Chapter 109: Then We’ll Force Him to Comply

“Why is it you guys?”

An Alpha strode forward, chin perpetually lifted in arrogance. His sharply angled brows were thick and dark, blending into the short hair at his temples. Just from a glance, his presence was filled with aggression. His condescending gaze carried an air of untouchable superiority, the kind of expression that made people want to punch him at first sight.

It was exactly the kind of pretentious attitude Lei Po hated the most.

Damn it, even Shen Yu doesn’t act this cocky in front of me.

Especially when the newcomer curled his lips in disdain. “How unlucky.”

Lei Po let out a cold chuckle on the spot. He stepped forward in his boots, closing the distance between himself and Eugene. Two Alphas of similar height stood face-to-face, and within three meters, the tension became combustible.

“I was wondering why someone was dragging their feet like they had a broken leg. Turns out it’s you. If you think this is bad luck, feel free to go back and request a different mission.”

Eugene lifted his eyes and looked down at him with arrogance. “New recruit, you’d better learn to show some respect when you speak. I’m your senior, and this mission, I’m leading you.”

“You?” Lei Po sneered. “You’re not qualified.”

“Heh, clown.”

Eugene’s face darkened slightly, his temper flaring at the provocation. He took a step forward, further closing the distance between them, about to throw down on the spot—when suddenly, a curly-haired brunet wedged himself in between them.

“Hey, hey, what do you two think you’re doing? The mission hasn’t even started, the enemy isn’t even dealt with yet, and we’re already losing firepower on our side?”

Ji Laili sighed helplessly, separating them. “Since everyone’s here, let’s confirm our identities and head to Nagano Star, alright?”

Ultimately, the mission was the priority. Though the two Alphas found each other insufferable and were eager to fight, they had to hold back.

Lei Po scoffed. “Fine, I’ll let it slide this time—for Laili’s sake. I’ll teach you a lesson later.”

“And what the hell is his sake worth?” Eugene blurted out. The moment he said it, two cold gazes locked onto him. One of them, even if Eugene were dead, he would still recognize.

Eugene stiffened, refusing to take back his words as if doing so would mean he lost.

“Who even is this Ji Laili guy?”

“Me, giving him face? He should be the one giving me face!”

Ji Laili hummed twice. “Yeah, yeah, of course. Senior Eugene is the one giving me face. Thank you, Senior Eugene. Now, let’s confirm our identities and get started.”

Eugene felt like he’d swallowed a rock. If Ji Laili had just ignored it, it would’ve been fine, but the moment he responded, Eugene felt like he’d lost ground. His words now sounded like a childish tantrum.

Damn it. They weren’t friends—they were enemies! What was this nonsense? As if I, Eugene, would bicker like a child with him.

And then there was Shen Yu, watching coldly from the side, clearly enjoying the show. Those two were just as annoying as ever.

Everyone else had already started confirming their identities.

Even Lei Po, who had been moments away from throwing punches, had joined in, acting as if nothing had happened.

Eugene looked at them, inexplicably even more irritated.

With a sour face, he grudgingly joined them.

This is all for the mission. I’ll endure it.

—

“Is the mission completed?”

“Of course. The person you mentioned has been placed accordingly.”

A blue starbrain screen projected in midair. The man in the video did not show his face, only his upper body clad in a black-and-gold military uniform. His Adam’s apple bobbed slightly, as if he had thought of something amusing, and a teasing voice came from the screen.

“Are you so sure he’ll work for you?”

“From the moment he joined the team, he was already our inside man. You don’t need to worry about that.”

“Ah~” The man on the blue screen drew out his voice, smirking. “Speaking of which, this group has been investigating the higher-ups recently.”

His tone was laced with malice, full of amusement as he chuckled.

“Tell me, those self-righteous old geezers, so convinced of their own loyalty and innocence—if they found out their protégés were aiding the enemy, wouldn’t their reactions be absolutely priceless?”

“Ah, just imagining it feels so damn good.”

His words were met with a warning, laced with a killing intent. “You’d better restrain yourself. Act more convincingly. If they catch wind of this, I won’t go easy on you.”

“Heh, is the psycho teaching me how to do my job now?”

Receiving no response, the man remained unbothered, humming an off-tune melody, clearly in high spirits.

“Looks like you’ll be getting what you want soon.”

“But what a shame—” he sighed theatrically. “The goods are a little tainted. Still, it’s usable, isn’t it?”

A chilling gaze stabbed toward him, but the man only smiled, satisfied.

“Well then, happy cooperation.”

Beep—

The blue screen vanished abruptly.

The only light source in the room disappeared, plunging the space into darkness. The Alpha exhaled heavily, his pheromones filled with displeasure.

After a while, a knock sounded at the door. The hallway’s automatic lights flickered on, casting a glow beneath the doorframe, revealing a pair of black military boots.

The light slipped through the cracks, half-illuminating the Alpha’s face.

The same black-and-gold uniform came into view.

—

Nagano Star was a border planet, situated at the intersection of the Federation and the Empire. There were many such planets, and Nagano Star wasn’t particularly notable among them.

Who would have thought that such a planet had already been infiltrated and turned into a research base for Imperial experiments? It was as blatant as pissing on someone’s doorstep.

It was an outright provocation. And the Imperials reveled in it.

Every time they conducted an experiment, or captured a talented Alpha from the Federation to use as a test subject, they delighted in watching their victims struggle—watching them suffer, seethe with rage, and wish for nothing more than to kill them—only to be crushed in hopeless defeat.

All it took was the release of Alpha pheromones to subdue them. Even the weakest Alpha here could experience a twisted sense of pleasure from it.

No matter how powerful or exceptional they were, once they were turned into an Omega, they would still submit to an Alpha’s pheromones.

However, some Omegas—after being converted—remained so exceptional that they even made Alphas jealous.

That sort of Omega was an abomination.

More experimental data was needed to eliminate such anomalies.

The entire purpose of these experiments was to weaken the Federation’s military strength. Over the past decade, the Federation had been producing outstanding talents at an alarming rate. The Empire needed a way to counter that.

Naturally, their gaze turned to the Federation’s military academies.

Especially to Shen Yu, the prodigy hailed as the Federation’s next Grand Marshal.

A rare talent. If he was smart, they would begrudgingly accept his conversion into an Omega and allow him to join their ranks instead of being just another test subject.

“But what if he isn’t smart?”

One of the project leaders chuckled mildly. His amber eyes, like aged resin, were dark and murky.

“Then we’ll force him to comply.”

“A bird with broken wings will always need a perch, won’t it?”