A Short-Lived Cannon Fodder Alpha Just Wants to Be a Salted Fish - Chapter 14

The moment Chu Yihan finished speaking, she felt a sudden wave of heat surge from deep within, spreading to her every limb. The electric-like sensation left her body weak.

The Omega’s pheromones, like gardenias slowly blooming around her, emitted a sweet and elegant fragrance that tugged at the heartstrings.

Wen Yuan watched as Chu Yihan’s fair face grew flushed, turning into a ripe apple within seconds—so red and moist it made one want to take a bite.

The primal possessiveness of an Alpha was stirred by the Omega’s pheromones. Wen Yuan’s gaze unconsciously slid from Chu Yihan’s cheek to her neck. That neck, usually as white as cold jade, was now tinged with a delicate layer of crimson. Wen Yuan swallowed reflexively.

Take a bite. Make the Omega in front of me mine alone.

The moment the thought surfaced, Wen Yuan snapped back to her senses. She forced herself to look away and asked uncertainly, “Are you… going into heat?”

The Alpha’s presence became stronger as Wen Yuan spoke. Chu Yihan nearly let out a whimper; she bit her lower lip hard, forcing down the discomfort of the heat.

“Yes… I need to go to the restroom.” Chu Yihan stood up and walked toward the bathroom.

An Omega going into heat in a public place is a dangerous thing. Fortunately, the top floor was mostly empty now, and the few people present didn’t react to her abnormality—they were likely all Betas.

Worried about her, Wen Yuan followed at a respectful distance. Once she saw Chu Yihan enter the Omega restroom, Wen Yuan stood by the door and said, “Call me if anything happens. I’m right out here.”

Chu Yihan gave a soft reply. She reached for her pocket, only to realize she was wearing a formal dress today—there were no pockets. Her suppressants and blocking patches were in her bag. Because she had only stepped out for a breath of air, she had left her bag on a chair in the banquet hall.

Chu Yihan closed her eyes, clutching her phone to call Han Yu. Just as the screen lit up, Han Yu called her first.

Chu Yihan felt a surge of relief and quickly tapped to answer. Her hand was trembling so much she accidentally hit the speakerphone.

From the other end came Duan Yun’s voice: “Han-han, the schedule was moved up. Your mother was called on stage to give a speech, and she wants to introduce you to everyone afterward. She says to come back immediately.”

“I understand,” Chu Yihan replied and hung up.

Separated by only a door, Wen Yuan heard everything. While marveling at how busy wealthy families were, she noticed the Omega pheromones weren’t receding at all.

Chu Yihan called her name from inside.

“I’m here,” Wen Yuan said, unable to help asking, “Still haven’t used the suppressant?”

“My suppressants and patches are in the banquet hall,” Chu Yihan said breathlessly. “Can you help me—”

“I’ll go borrow one for you—” Wen Yuan started, thinking it was the same situation as last time.

“No time.” Chu Yihan opened the door. As if afraid Wen Yuan would run away, she reached out and grabbed Wen Yuan’s sleeve.

In an instant, the dense Omega pheromones enveloped Wen Yuan. She lowered her eyes, deliberately avoiding looking at Chu Yihan from the neck up, but she couldn’t miss the hand gripping her sleeve. The fingers were long and beautiful, the tips a faint pink. As a hand-fetishist, Wen Yuan found it hard to look away. She whispered, “What do we do then?”

“Give me a temporary mark.”

Chu Yihan’s voice was soft, tremulous, and carried a scratchy, magnetic quality.

Wen Yuan was already feeling lightheaded from the pheromones; hearing this request in that tone made her brain stall. She was completely stunned. It wasn’t until Chu Yihan pulled her into a stall that Wen Yuan realized she was serious.

“This isn’t a good idea.” Wen Yuan felt overwhelmed by the pheromones and stepped back. “I’ll find a way to borrow a suppressant for you.”

She reached for the door handle to leave, but Chu Yihan’s low voice came from behind: “I can’t control my pheromones right now. What if an Alpha comes by while you’re gone?”

That was indeed a major problem. This wasn’t school; the Alphas here were all adults. Chu Yihan’s pheromones were becoming increasingly potent, and Wen Yuan didn’t feel safe leaving her alone.

“But…” Wen Yuan turned around, her back pressed against the door. She rubbed her slightly sweaty fingers, hesitating. “You know that when an Alpha marks an Omega… they might lose control, right?”

Even for a temporary mark, the process triggers an Alpha’s intense desire for control. Those with weak willpower might lose their reason entirely.

“I know.” Chu Yihan lifted her head, her lips curving into a weak, weary smile. “I believe you can control yourself.”

Being trusted so implicitly caught Wen Yuan off guard. “You trust me that much?”

“I trust you,” Chu Yihan said word for word. “You even resisted Zheng Qin’s pheromones.”

Wen Yuan was stumped; she couldn’t find a reason to argue with that.

“Please.”

That’s cheating! Being stared at by those watery, pitiable eyes filled with trust, followed by such a coquettish plea—no Alpha could withstand it.

Wen Yuan’s defenses crumbled completely. She looked away, her voice a bit raspy. “Turn around.”

Chu Yihan obediently turned her back, pulling her long, loose hair to one side to reveal her pale, delicate neck. A round blocking patch was still on her gland, but it was no longer effective; the dense pheromones were leaking out from the edges.

Chu Yihan could clearly feel Wen Yuan approaching. The Alpha’s scent made her crave contact, yet she was instinctively afraid; every second became an excruciating wait.

But Wen Yuan didn’t move for a long time. Chu Yihan reached back to peel off the patch herself while urging her, “We don’t have much time, hurry… ugh!”

The moment the patch came off, the Omega pheromones, now unconstrained, lunged at Wen Yuan.

Almost without thinking, Wen Yuan grabbed Chu Yihan’s hand, pinned her against the wall from behind, lowered her head, and bit down.

By instinct, Chu Yihan felt a surge of panic and an urge to flee, but one of her hands was pinned against the wall while the other was held behind her back—she was completely restrained.

A temporary mark only takes a few minutes, but because senses are heightened and physiological reactions are intense, the process felt like an eternity. Chu Yihan’s fingertips scraped slowly against the wall. The injection of pheromones made her head swim and her body go limp; she bit her teeth hard but couldn’t help a soft, pained whimper.

Wen Yuan paused and loosened her grip slightly.

Chu Yihan wanted time to speed up, yet she also wished it would stop at this very moment.

As the mark neared completion, the weight in Wen Yuan’s heart finally began to lift. Fortunately, her soul was that of an adult, or she might not have had the willpower to overcome her primal urges—especially since Chu Yihan’s pheromones seemed uniquely attractive to her.

Recalling how she had lost control and bitten too hard at the start, Wen Yuan instinctively licked Chu Yihan’s gland as a comforting gesture after finishing the mark. The moist, warm tip of her tongue sliding across the gland was even harder for Chu Yihan to bear than the pheromones.

Chu Yihan’s eyes widened, and her legs went so weak she nearly fell to the floor. Wen Yuan nimbly caught her, pulling her into a brief hug and lightly patting her back twice. “I read online that Omegas feel uncontrollably low after being marked. Does a hug make it better? Sorry, I bit you too hard.”

There were countless posts online complaining about Alphas who didn’t know how to comfort an Omega after a mark; Wen Yuan and Shi Ran often criticized such Alphas in the comments.

Chu Yihan was stunned for a moment, then whispered a soft “It’s okay,” her face burning.

Strands of warmth flowed from Wen Yuan’s embrace through their touching skin to the depths of her heart. The gloominess caused by the merging pheromones began to dissipate.

The temporary mark worked. The Alpha’s pheromones suppressed the Omega’s; the feverish heat in Chu Yihan’s body receded rapidly, and her strength returned.

Seeing her recover, Wen Yuan released her and asked, “Had I ever marked you before?”

After a two-second silence, Chu Yihan replied, “On the day you differentiated, you injected your pheromones, but you didn’t complete the mark.”

Wen Yuan was shocked for a moment, then quickly grew calm again. No wonder an Omega suppressant had worked on her, and no wonder she found Chu Yihan’s scent so intoxicating.

“I’m sorry…”

“It’s okay.”

Wen Yuan then muttered, “And yet you told me before that I didn’t do anything to you.”

“I was afraid you’d overthink it and feel guilty.” Chu Yihan prepared to open the door, changing the subject. “I’ll go out first. Once I’ve confirmed it’s clear, you follow.”

Wen Yuan hummed in agreement, her gaze falling on Chu Yihan’s neck. Her hair was still pulled to the side, leaving the gland exposed—the teeth marks were clearly visible. Wen Yuan felt like a bit of a beast. She called out, “Wait!”

Chu Yihan let go of the handle.

“I keep forgetting to give you back the blocking patches. I happen to have one on me today, so let me put it on for you. It’s not good for your reputation if people smell Alpha pheromones on you.”

Wen Yuan looked at the little lamb pattern on the patch, adjusted the angle, and gently pressed it onto Chu Yihan’s gland. She made sure it wasn’t crooked and smoothed down the edges with satisfaction. Her fingertips inadvertently brushed the sensitive skin around the gland.

The slight tingling sensation was like an electric current. Chu Yihan bit her lip, her fingers curling instinctively as a shiver traveled from her fingertips to the center of her heart.