After Appearing on a Dating Show with a Top-Star Omega - Chapter 1

“Ding, ding, ding—” The bell in the teaching building rang right on schedule. Even though the lecture was only halfway through a key point, the professor tactfully packed up their laptop and left.

Below the podium, students slung on their bags and pulled their friends away. The room filled with a cacophony of voices, all buzzing with an unmistakable excitement—after all, tomorrow was Saturday.

“Jiang Yuan! Jiang Yuan! Let’s go, let’s grab dinner!” A girl with a ponytail tapped the person next to her.

The setting sun spilled into the room, gilding the figure by the window in gold. She wore a simple white shirt with sleeves rolled casually to her forearms, showing off smooth, powerful lines that tensed as she finished her notes.

“Ah, okay.” Jiang Yuan snapped out of her trance and obediently packed her notebook and stationery into her bag.

The girl with the ponytail rested her chin on her hand, staring at her roommate with her head tilted. The person before her had a sharp, striking jawline. From the side, her brow bone was high and her nose bridge straight. Her long hair, tied in a low ponytail, made her look both beautiful and cool.

They were both Betas, but had her roommate always been this good-looking? Ever since some unknown point in time, she felt like her roommate had changed—even her old memories of her were starting to feel a bit hazy.

Jiang Yuan slung her bag over her shoulder and turned to find Qi Meng’an staring blankly, clearly daydreaming.

“Meng’an?” she prompted.

“Oh, right!” Qi Meng’an snapped back to reality and grabbed her bag. “Quick, quick, Liang You should be waiting for us at the door.”

The two reached the classroom entrance and immediately spotted Liang You, who was looking down at her phone. Qi Meng’an grabbed one friend in each hand and led the charge out of the building.

Since it was the end of the school day, the campus was packed with people heading toward the gates. Forced to slow down in the crowd, Liang You tapped on her phone and shared a post she had just seen on the school forum, her voice bubbling with excitement.

“Isn’t tomorrow the school anniversary? Guess who’s coming!!”

Qi Meng’an played along. “Who? Who?”

A-University was a breeding ground for talent; so many alumni had donated money and buildings that it was hard to narrow down. Jiang Yuan found her curiosity piqued as well.

“Senior Yu Qingshi!!” Liang You zoomed in on a photo in the thread.

In the photo, a woman wore a white sequined mermaid gown. Her black hair was slightly curled, cascading down her waist like silk. Set against the media wall of a film festival, she held a trophy, radiating a cold, noble aura. Her pale face wore a rare, faint smile.

Qi Meng’an was shocked. “Good heavens, Yu Qingshi? For real? Isn’t she abroad for the film festival?”

“Apparently she flew back right after the ceremony.” Noticing Jiang Yuan’s gaze, Liang You leaned over to show her. Since Qi Meng’an was standing between them, the distance was a bit far, and Liang You accidentally swiped the screen, shrinking the photo back down.

Jiang Yuan only caught a glimpse of amber eyes shimmering with a smile and a tiny mole at the corner of one eye.

She pursed her lips and smiled. “Yeah, she’s quite beautiful.”

Qi Meng’an let out a long sigh. “Man, if only I were an Alpha.”

Liang You teased, “You’d have to be an S-rank Alpha for that, okay?”

As the two continued their discussion, Jiang Yuan’s thoughts drifted. She was a transmigrator. Specifically, after checking her body, she realized she had transmigrated in her original physical form. This wasn’t a novel she had read; it was just a regular world.

As an orphan college student, she had no real attachments back home. Since her “original identity” here also lacked family and friends, Jiang Yuan had adapted quite well, gradually blending into the rhythm of dorm life and university.

The only issue was that her “original identity” was a Physics major—something she had never touched—which meant she had been spending all her time lately buried in the library.

Returning her focus to her friends’ conversation, she couldn’t help but think: As expected of the School of Physics. Even the dorms were strictly segregated into Alpha, Beta, and Omega wings. Luckily, her “original identity” had average grades and was assigned to the Beta dorm. Otherwise, no matter how fast she learned, she would have been exposed.

The three roommates had a close bond and a tradition of meeting every week for a big meal off-campus. This week, they had booked a hotpot place—an old staple near A-University located in a back alley.

As night fell, the restaurant was packed, with every seat taken. Inside, the steam from the pots and the roar of the crowd made Jiang Yuan’s head spin. During the wait for their food, she stepped outside for some fresh air.

Outside, a cool night breeze made the leaves rustle against one another.

Hearing heavy, chaotic footsteps behind her, Yu Qingshi ducked into an alleyway. Someone must have leaked her itinerary tonight; a group of sasaeng fans had swarmed the restaurant entrance. Worse still, the mix of various pheromones during the business dinner had left her neck glands throbbing with pain.

Yu Qingshi gripped the syringe in her pocket. The cold casing stung her nerves, helping her regain a sliver of rationality. Fortunately, she carried suppressants with her. She should be fine. She headed deeper into the alley.

After a few steps, she was met by three thugs. Their gazes were predatory and undisguised as they stared her down. Yu Qingshi, hypersensitive to malice, immediately tensed, her brow furrowing.

“Oh, a little Omega. Is your heat starting?”

“How about it? Want us to help you out?”

As they spoke, three pungent, suffocating pheromones surged toward her.

“Get lost,” Yu Qingshi said, her eyes icy.

As an S-rank Omega, her sense of smell was elite; she caught every trace of pheromones in the air. Three Alphas. Actually, they were easier to deal with than Betas who couldn’t smell pheromones at all.

In an ABO society, pheromones work on a hierarchy. A few B-rank Alphas were nothing in the face of an S-rank. Yu Qingshi reached up and peeled back a corner of her suppressant patch. A cold, fragrant scent of magnolia found its opening and poured out, instantly flooding the alley.

Before she could take another step, a sudden noise came from the side.

“What are you doing?”

Jiang Yuan hurried over, shielding Yu Qingshi behind her. She pointed an iron bar she had picked up at the three men. “I’ve already called the police. What do you think you’re doing?”

The situation shifted instantly.

Yu Qingshi arched an eyebrow, her gaze sweeping over the girl’s neck. It was pale and clean, the bone prominent. A Beta. No wonder.

Yu Qingshi readily hid behind her, lowering her gaze to look perfectly innocent. Opposite them, the three Alphas were pale and twitching, so suppressed they were nearly forced to their knees.

It was a strange sight: three Alphas with legs shaking from pheromone pressure, and the “aggressor” being carefully and considerately protected from behind.

Yu Qingshi kindly pressed her suppressant patch back down. As soon as the pheromones were retracted, the three Alphas scrambled away, leaning on each other for support.

Jiang Yuan glanced suspiciously at the iron bar in her hand. Fearing they might return, she kept a tight grip on it. She turned around. “Are you okay?”

The person before her was bundled up so tightly that not a patch of skin was visible. Her face and head were visibly small, making her mask and sunglasses look oversized. Even though her face was hidden, her slender, upright silhouette reminded Jiang Yuan of a freshly blooming magnolia—elegant and striking.

Following the encounter, Yu Qingshi’s glands began to burn. The heat traveled from her ears to her face, and even her fingertips felt weak. She looked up through her sunglasses and saw a pair of worried, earnest eyes.

Maybe she can help.

Yu Qingshi reached out, removing her sunglasses and mask. Her lashes cast shadows over her eyes. “Can you help me with something?”

Jiang Yuan froze. The woman before her was exquisitely beautiful with a cold temperament, but right now her face was flushed, and her eyes were misted over.

Jiang Yuan nodded instinctively. “Let me take you to the hospital.” She stepped forward to support the woman’s arm.

Yu Qingshi’s body stiffened. As Jiang Yuan approached, a scent became clear. It was a lime fragrance—fresh and pleasant with a hint of coolness. Even her glands felt like they were cooling down slightly.

Yu Qingshi suddenly pushed Jiang Yuan away. “Are you an Alpha?!” she demanded sharply.

Jiang Yuan stumbled back half a step, completely baffled. An Alpha? Do you have to be one to save someone?

Yu Qingshi frowned, sensing the difference. This wasn’t pheromones—otherwise, she would have smelled it before the girl even got close. It was just the natural scent of a Beta. It was faint and light, wrapping around her like a breeze.

“You’re a Beta. Sorry,” Yu Qingshi relaxed, her voice apologetic. “I misunderstood.”

Jiang Yuan shook her head. “It’s fine.” She wondered how the woman could tell. Did she just have a “mediocre Beta student” face?

The heat in Yu Qingshi’s body intensified. Her limbs felt so soft she could barely stand. She instinctively grabbed the little Beta’s hand for support and handed her the suppressant from her pocket.

“Help me inject the suppressant.”

Jiang Yuan took it. The syringe had been warmed by the woman’s body; the liquid inside seemed to carry her heat, stinging Jiang Yuan’s palm.

Was it an illusion? She could smell traces of magnolia. Jiang Yuan glanced at the woman; it was likely just perfume that matched her magnolia-like aura. She looked down at the device. There were no instructions on the clean, silver syringe. The needle, about half a finger long, glinted coldly under the streetlight.

The alley was secluded and empty. Yu Qingshi leaned against the wall and turned her back, pulling her long black hair over her shoulder. She peeled off the suppressant patch, and the magnolia scent surged out once more, filling the alley instantly.

The scent was light but incredibly aggressive; for a moment, Jiang Yuan felt as though she were walking through a forest of magnolias. The woman before her had a long, graceful neck like a swan. Her neck bone was petite and elegant, but the center was flushed pink and looked slightly swollen.

Jiang Yuan hesitated. “Where… where do I inject it?”

Yu Qingshi: “…”

Do Betas these days not take ABO Physiology?

She pointed a pink-tipped finger at the swollen area. “Here,” she explained patiently.

Jiang Yuan was stunned. “But…”

“Is there something else you don’t understand?” Yu Qingshi turned her face back toward the Beta. Her cheeks were dusted with a soft pink, her amber eyes were watery, and that tiny mole sat at the corner of her eye.

Something flashed in Jiang Yuan’s mind—a sense of déjà vu—but she couldn’t catch it. The situation seemed urgent. Jiang Yuan spoke quickly, afraid of wasting time.

“But… you shouldn’t inject insulin there, right?”