SCOM - Chapter 32
Chapter 32
“Hi!” Guan Xue greeted Ji Yuezhi enthusiastically, completely forgetting what her swollen face looked like.
Ji Yuezhi nodded and said, “Could you move aside?”
Guan Xue wasn't as tall as Zuo Luohuan, but Ji Yuezhi didn't want to bump into anyone else's knees again.
The other person immediately stood up and let him in.
“Thank you.” Ji Yuezhi sat down, leaning against the windowpane, letting the sourness and fatigue in his heart spread bit by bit.
When you like someone, no matter how many advantages you originally have, they all vanish when you face that person, leaving only an indescribable sense of inferiority.
Perhaps from giving in too much to his exhaustion, Ji Yuezhi leaned against the glass, gradually closed his eyes, and fell asleep.
The flyer carried them over the mountain range and finally landed successfully in front of a dense forest. The group got up to leave, but Ji Yuezhi had not yet woken up. Guan Xue, who was next to him, was getting up while sending messages on her optical computer, not noticing at all.
It was Zuo Luohuan, at the very back, who passed by and found Ji Yuezhi asleep against the window.
“Ji Yuezhi.” Zuo Luohuan stood in the aisle and called out. Seeing he still hadn't woken up, she thought something was wrong.
After rushing around for two days and one night, Ji Yuezhi also had quite a few injuries. An Omega's constitution was not stronger than an Alpha's, not to mention he had differentiated less than a month ago. She had heard that Omegas at this stage were prone to fevers.
Zuo Luohuan looked at Ji Yuezhi, who was half-leaning against the glass. His face wasn't red; on the contrary, it was somewhat pale. His long eyelashes were slightly closed, and his lips were pressed into a thin line. The afternoon sun shone through the window, casting a very fragile feeling upon his face.
She frowned and leaned closer, just about to reach out and touch his forehead, when Ji Yuezhi suddenly woke up. A pair of dazed, clear eyes quietly looked at Zuo Luohuan, as if he hadn't fully come to his senses.
Zuo Luohuan was taken aback, then withdrew her hand. “It's time to get off.”
“...Mm.” Ji Yuezhi finally became fully awake and responded softly.
But Zuo Luohuan had already straightened up, stepped back into the aisle, and started walking down.
Ji Yuezhi glanced at the now-empty flyer, then looked up at Zuo Luohuan's retreating back, his heart skipping a few beats. Just moments ago, he had been upset about her changing seats, but now, because of this small bit of gentleness from her, he felt happy again.
The group disembarked to find that the tents had all been dismantled, and the instructors were standing there waiting for them.
“This training session was barely a pass.” Kang Guang's tone shifted. “But... are you going to rely on Zuo Luohuan's pheromones to win every time? If there were more people and they caught up from behind, she couldn't withstand that kind of consumption, could she?”
Over-releasing pheromones could cause irreversible damage to the brain.
Ding Wuming was helped down by Yan Yan, his face pale. “It was me...”
“Don't give me this 'me' or 'you' business,” Kang Guang interrupted impatiently. “In the military academy exercise, you are a team. If one person makes a mistake, it's the same as the entire team making a mistake.”
Ding Wuming lowered his head. “Yes.”
“It's your first time training as a team, so it's normal to have problems. But remember that on a real battlefield, situations are frequent and anything is possible.” After the reminder, Jia Hailan said, “That's all for today. Go back and rest. There's more training tomorrow night.”
Before leaving, He Yue reminded them, “You can elect a captain now. You can nominate someone yourselves.”
The instructors boarded the flyer and left, leaving the group staring at each other.
They had no vehicle to go back in!
The seven of them hadn't boarded the flyer, and no one had arranged for their departure. They could only hitch a ride on the truck transporting the tents, the seven of them sitting in the back, bumping along the road home.
“Let's elect a captain now. Who's it going to be?” Guan Xue asked, raising her hand.
“Not me, anyway,” Qian Mao immediately excluded himself. “I'm just a technician.”
“I choose Zuo Luohuan!” Jiang Hong said, then looked at Zuo Luohuan, seeking credit. He was fulfilling his duty as a friend! He stood firmly on her side, not choosing her rival, Ji Yuezhi.
Yan Yan hesitated for a moment. He had been at odds with Ji Yuezhi since the start of the school year, but these past few days had completely won him over; Ji Yuezhi was truly formidable. However, Zuo Luohuan was also very capable and the leader of the other Disciplinary Committee. For a moment, he was undecided.
“I choose Ji Yuezhi,” Zuo Luohuan said slowly, suddenly raising her hand.
“I also choose Ji Yuezhi,” Yan Yan immediately followed, raising his hand.
When Zuo Luohuan raised her hand and spoke, Ji Yuezhi looked over at her but said nothing. She had never liked leading people, so it was normal for her to be unwilling to be captain. He knew from the beginning that she wouldn't vie for the position.
“Then... I'll choose Classmate Ji too,” Qian Mao said with a pained expression.
If Ji Yuezhi led them, they would definitely have to follow all sorts of rules. It would be different if Zuo Luohuan led; she never bothered with minor details as long as the general direction was right. But since she had chosen Ji Yuezhi, it was better for him to follow suit.
“I choose Classmate Ji,” Guan Xue said with a grin. “That's four votes. From now on, we'll have to call him Captain Ji!”
In the end, Ding Wuming and Ji Yuezhi didn't even need to vote.
After hitching a ride back to the academy, Guan Xue hopped down, waved to the others, and said enthusiastically, “Everyone, go back early, apply medicine, and rest up. We have to continue training tomorrow night.”
These kinds of injuries, even the hole pierced through Ding Wuming's leg, would heal in a few days after being treated with medicine. Not everyone's injuries were like Zuo Luohuan's previous one, which took a long time to heal.
“The wound on your shoulder reopened. Go to the infirmary as soon as possible.” Ji Yuezhi walked up to Zuo Luohuan's side. “Our team doesn't have much time to train.”
“I know.” Zuo Luohuan was buttoning her military jacket, which already had several tears in it. Hearing his words, she looked up and smiled. “I'll take Captain Ji's words to heart.”
She always spoke so brazenly, deliberately trying to provoke him, yet Ji Yuezhi couldn't help but feel a secret flicker of joy.
He watched Zuo Luohuan still fastening her buttons, pursed his lips, and said, “It's Sunday. The Disciplinary Committee isn't checking for proper attire.”
“Is that so? I always forget about that.” Zuo Luohuan tilted her head to look at him. “When you're near me, I always get so nervous.”
“What are you still talking about?” Jiang Hong came over and called to Zuo Luohuan, “Let's go, back to rest.”
“You go back first. Captain Ji told me to go to the infirmary to get my injury looked at. I have to listen to the captain's orders.” Zuo Luohuan walked slowly towards the academy grounds, leaving behind Jiang Hong, who had planned to go back with her.
Jiang Hong turned to look at Ji Yuezhi beside him, a stiff smile on his face. “Hehe, well, I'll go back and rest then.” After saying that, he ran off as if fleeing for his life.
He had always felt that because Ji Yuezhi was Zuo Luohuan's rival, he looked upon him, the rival's good friend, with extreme displeasure. Jiang Hong suspected that every time Ji Yuezhi looked at him, his gaze was laced with bone-chilling ice. Although everyone said Ji Yuezhi was a rather cold person, towards him, it seemed to be more than just coldness; there was also dissatisfaction.
The next day, the group dragged their ‘battered bodies’ to the training room for another day of pheromone resistance. However, this time, everyone's condition was much better than the last, and Ji Yuezhi no longer came wearing Zuo Luohuan's jacket.
As for Guan Xue, she had actually observed Ji Yuezhi's jacket for several days in a row and finally concluded that the mark she had seen that day was a mistake.
“A heads-up, the three military academies will be coming to our school on the fifth of next month.” After everyone came out of the pheromone room, Bai Feng said, “The people from the three academies might wander around. In short, whoever runs into them should show them around. The instructors have already been notified. If they want to attend classes for a tour and experience, just take them with you.”
This was a tradition for the military academy exercises. If the competition was confirmed to be held in a certain district, the other military academies would go there ten days in advance to experience the academy in that district and, while they were at it, take the host academy's students down a peg.
After training ended, everyone walked out one after another. Zuo Luohuan fell in behind Ji Yuezhi, smelling the unfamiliar Alpha pheromones on him, and felt an inexplicable sensation.
It was probably because this Alpha's pheromones smelled so unpleasant. Zuo Luohuan couldn't help but recall the scent of her own pheromones mixed with his that day—a misty vapor, like the fresh and faintly sweet fragrance of a forest after rain. Besides the pheromones, she also remembered Ji Yuezhi's moist, beautiful eyes from that day, and her throat couldn't help but move.
The Ji Yuezhi of that moment... was so different from usual.
“It stinks!” Qian Mao rolled up two balls of paper and stuffed them in his nose. “Good thing we don't train like this every day.”
Zuo Luohuan came back to her senses upon hearing this and thought to herself that it really must be because today's Alpha pheromones were so unpleasant that her mind had wandered to all sorts of random things.
“People from three military academies are coming to visit and learn.” Jiang Hong snorted. “I think they're coming to cause trouble. Luohuan, you should take them around then and see what kind of waves they can make.”
“Not interested,” Zuo Luohuan refused. As long as they didn't flaunt themselves in front of her, she wouldn't proactively interact with them.
Ji Yuezhi, who was ahead, turned back, looked at Zuo Luohuan, and said, “This exchange isn't just about them probing the First Military Academy's depths. We can also use this opportunity to get to know them in advance and perhaps discover some weaknesses.”
Zuo Luohuan thought for a moment, then changed her tune. “...You're right. We can have a mutual exchange.”
So he was wrong? Jiang Hong felt insulted.
“Let's go.” Zuo Luohuan stepped past Ji Yuezhi and said to Jiang Hong, who was beside her, “The smell on you is unpleasant. Go wash it off soon.”
“Is it? I think it smells quite nice.” Jiang Hong tugged at his clothes and sniffed the Omega pheromones on him. “It's sweet, with a hint of strawberry.”
“Only you like it,” Zuo Luohuan tossed back.
Watching them walk away, Ji Yuezhi, who had clearly heard what Zuo Luohuan just said, felt the corners of his lips curve up slightly. She didn't like other Omegas' pheromones.
Most Alphas liked sweet-smelling Omegas. The pheromones he had differentiated with weren't bad, and he was working hard to train his body's flexibility. Becoming a qualified, soft and fragrant Omega was just around the corner.
In the blink of an eye, the fifth arrived. The First Military Academy specifically had the seven students participating in the military academy exercise go to receive the students from the three other academies.
As if they had planned it, the three vehicles from the military academies parked side-by-side at the entrance of the First Military Academy. Seeing the seven people waiting to receive them at the gate, they refused to get out. Guan Xue went up to ask, and one by one, they all claimed to be feeling unwell from the long journey and needed to sit and recover for a while.
Guan Xue went up and down, visiting all three vehicles, and finally came down with a dark face. This was clearly intentional.
“What the hell, these guys are causing trouble the moment they arrive?” Jiang Hong said indignantly. “They're asking for a beating!”
“The quality of these vehicles isn't very good,” Ji Yuezhi said suddenly. “They might catch fire.”
Qian Mao: “Huh?”
Hearing this, Zuo Luohuan laughed. “Our captain says the vehicles are going to catch fire, so they're going to catch fire.”
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