After Transmigrating as the Scumbag Alpha in an Otherworld Novel, I Ended Up with the Villain - Chapter 20

Across a row of shelves, Su Xinge looked at Xiang Tiange and smiled. “No wonder you were willing to let us come here.”

Xiang Tiange didn’t take the bait and changed the subject. “Everyone must be exhausted. Put your things away and come over to eat with us.”

Many people who had been sitting listlessly on the floor immediately perked up at the word “eat.”

Xiang Tiange walked toward a cluttered area on the far left. She casually reached out and fished out another key, then opened a hidden door tucked away in the shadows of the corner.

A creak echoed.

Zhang Tian stood up, surprised. “There’s a door here? I didn’t even notice it before.”

Xiang Tiange said to the group, “Anyone who wants to eat, come inside.”

With that, she led the way in. Seeing this, the others quickly gathered their belongings and followed.

Xiang Tiange lit a candle inside. Under the flickering light, she explained, “This used to be a snack shop connected to the supermarket. Now we use it as a place to eat.”

In the light, they saw a bar counter on the far right with three stools in front of it. To the right stood three small square tables.

Ye Hai, who was at the front, nodded. “This really works as a ready-made dining room. But what are we eating? Surely the old food in here is no longer edible?”

Xiang Tiange stepped behind the bar and asked, “Did you bring food on this mission?”

Ye Hai replied, “Everyone should have brought a little, but as for whether each person brought enough, I wouldn’t know.”

Xiang Tiange smiled. “It’s fine. I brought you in here mainly to give you an extra treat.”

As she spoke, she pulled three cans from beneath the counter.

Su San and the others had just walked in. The moment they saw the canned meat, their breathing grew heavy with excitement.

Ye Hai’s eyes lit up in admiration. “Now that is the good stuff.”

Su Xinge walked in and, hearing the conversation, said unhurriedly, “Only three cans. Is that enough to share among so many people?”

Xiang Tiange explained, “It’s not like this is all you’re eating. Adding a bit of flavor for everyone is still nice.”

The group fell silent.

Xiang Tiange continued, “It’s not that I’m stingy. You all know how precious food is these days. Tell you what—if you have other things you can trade, I can swap food with you.”

Su Xinge had expected this; Xiang Tiange even treated her own cousin this way. Su Xinge pulled an unopened pack of compressed biscuits from her jacket, walked to the bar, and asked, “Can these biscuits trade for canned meat?”

Xiang Tiange initially looked hesitant, but after taking the biscuits and examining them closely, she nodded. “Deal.”

Xiang Tiange was currently very short on high-satiety foods like these, but she had a decent supply of canned goods. Trading for a favor like this wasn’t a bad deal.

Su Xinge pulled out another pack. “Two cans for two packs, no problem?”

Xiang Tiange took the biscuits and nodded. “Fine.”

Seeing this, Ye Hai and Zhang Tian both pulled out compressed biscuits from their bags. On field missions, these were the top choice for filling one’s stomach, and they usually carried more than a day’s worth for emergencies. Now that they could trade for meat, who wouldn’t want an extra treat?

Xiang Tiange swapped cans for the two men in turn, then looked at the others. “Anyone else?”

The group was silent.

Ye Hai said, “They probably won’t trade. Why don’t you bring out those first three cans for us to share?”

Xiang Tiange handed the three cans and some utensils to Ye Hai. “Luckily there are some disposable utensils left, otherwise you’d have to use your hands.”

Seeing Ye Hai take the cans, Zhang Tian said, “One can for Su San’s group of three, one for us Awakened, and the last one for An Le and the girl. A child that age needs to grow.”

Ye Hai nodded. “Agreed.”

Su Xinge smiled. “No objections here.”

Su San and his group hurried forward with fawning smiles to collect their can and utensils, repeating, “Thank you, thank you.”

Su San had food in his bag, but he didn’t plan on taking it out yet. In this situation, it was better to play the victim; the squeaky wheel gets the grease. Even though it was one can split between three, it was still good. He planned to have his real meal later in a quiet corner.

Ye Hai distributed the utensils, gave a can of meat to An Le, and held the last can while asking Zhang Tian and Su Xinge, “The three of us already have our own cans now, so there’s no rush to eat this one. Should we split it now, or wait until we get back to the base?”

Su Xinge thought for a moment. “Take it back. We can trade it for merit points.”

Zhang Tian agreed. “I think taking it back is better too.”

Wang Qingyue was the last to enter. Seeing everyone had divided the food, she asked Xiang Tiange, “How is Teacher?”

Xiang Tiange shook her head. “Same as always. She fell asleep again.”

Su Xinge walked to the furthest corner where An Le and Lin Yuxuan had already taken seats. She sat across from them.

She placed her two cans on the table and pulled out two more packs of biscuits. “It’s been a long day. Everyone have a can and some biscuits; eat up.”

Eat, drink, and be merry. The biscuits in the original host’s fridge were meant to be used.

Su Xinge popped the tabs on all three cans on the table, pushed two toward them, and said, “Go ahead, eat.”

An Le stared intently at the canned meat. Hearing Su Xinge, she quickly looked up. “Thank you!” Then her gaze snapped right back to the meat.

Lin Yuxuan picked up the can placed near her hand and said to An Le, “Stop staring and eat!” With that, she opened the can fully. The aroma of meat drifted out, and she used her chopsticks to put a piece in her mouth.

Su Xinge watched Lin Yuxuan, wanting to see if it tasted good, but she saw Lin Yuxuan frown. She swallowed the meat as if it were a great struggle.

Before Su Xinge could ask, Lin Yuxuan stood up abruptly, walked to the bar, and asked Xiang Tiange, “I feel a bit nauseous. Is there a restroom here?”

Seeing Lin Yuxuan’s pale face, Xiang Tiange replied quickly, “Go out to the stairwell, it’s right on the right.”

Su Xinge put down her can and stood up, telling An Le, “Don’t worry, you eat first. I’ll go check on her.” She was worried about Lin Yuxuan.

Stepping out of the small dining room, the outer area was quite dim. The candles had been blown out at some point, and she could only see the path by the faint light spilling out from the snack shop.

Walking to the stairs and looking closely, Su Xinge noticed another door at the corner. It was half-ajar, and a strained sound of dry heaving came from within. She could imagine the owner’s discomfort.

Su Xinge stopped outside the door and asked with concern, “Are you okay?”

The dry heaving paused for a second, then grew more intense, as if the person inside were in even more pain. Standing outside, Su Xinge was anxious but couldn’t help, so she left the restroom area, fumbling in the dark to take her own drinking water out of her bag.

At that moment, Wang Qingyue stepped out of the dining room and lit a candle. “Sorry, I blew the candles out to save them, but I was afraid it would be inconvenient for you, so I came out to light them.”

Seeing the environment suddenly brighten, Su Xinge said, “Thank you, I really needed that.”

Wang Qingyue waved her off and went back inside. By the time Su Xinge reached the restroom door again, Lin Yuxuan had come out. She was leaning against the doorframe, looking exhausted.

Su Xinge handed her the water. “Want some water?”

Lin Yuxuan took the water, had a sip, and then ran back inside to vomit again. Su Xinge waited outside. A moment later, Lin Yuxuan walked out and said, “Thank you.”

Su Xinge hesitated, then simply blurted out the question, “Are you… pregnant?”

Lin Yuxuan, still dazed, asked back, “Have what?”

Su Xinge found it difficult but continued, “Is the nausea because you have a baby in your belly?”

Su Xinge had always felt Lin Yuxuan was acting strange, and she figured she might as well break the ice. It was better to clear the air and solve the problem once and for all. Su Xinge’s face turned red, and she wanted to bury her head in the floor, but she kept her head up and waited quietly for an answer.

Lin Yuxuan waved her hand, answering instinctively, “It might be the medicine; my stomach feels off.” Then she reacted immediately, her eyes turning sharp as she stared at Su Xinge. Word by word, she asked, “It was just a Temporary Mark. How could there be a baby?”

The air suddenly went still.

Su Xinge’s eyelid twitched twice. Finally, she managed to squeeze out, “Ha… I was just joking…”

Su Xinge’s mind went blank for a moment. She knew the novel mentioned Temporary Marks and Complete Marks, but she didn’t know the specific biological differences between the two, nor did the novel detail them.

Lin Yuxuan narrowed her eyes, her voice soft. “Is that so?”

She had clearly seen the flash of bewilderment in Su Xinge’s eyes. That didn’t look like a reaction to a joke; it looked like the confusion one feels when encountering something completely foreign. Besides, how could an Alpha not know whether they had given an Omega a Temporary Mark or a Complete one?

Could Su Xinge be reborn like me? Does she know what happened and that’s why she asked?

No, that’s impossible. Our hatred is irreversible. Unless… the person in front of me isn’t Su Xinge at all…

The seed of suspicion took root and began to grow rapidly. All the “unreasonable” behaviors from this person could be explained by this one answer.

Su Xinge forced herself to stay calm and smiled. “Of course. I see how much you like An Le, so I just made a joke.”

Lin Yuxuan looked up and moved closer to Su Xinge. Su Xinge backed away until she was pinned against the wall with nowhere else to go. Their heights were similar; at this proximity, they were mouth to mouth, nose to nose, and eye to eye. There was nowhere left to hide their gazes.

Heat rose as their breaths interlaced.

Lin Yuxuan braced her hand against the wall and said, “Then… do you want to have your own…?”

She stared straight into Su Xinge’s eyes, trying to see something deeper within.