in the unseen

After twenty hours of flight, the warship docked smoothly at Starfish Terminal. A crowd of people in military uniforms streamed out, lining up neatly on either side of the boarding ramp, waiting for those inside to disembark.

A pair of signature black combat boots encased his well-defined calves as their owner casuallydes cended the ramp. He removed his military cap, his stern face calmly scanning the area before giving a slight nod to the two rows of personnel.

“Well done on this mission. Report to Headquarters in fifteen days. Rest well.”

Ji Yaoming’s voice was not loud but carried a commanding presence. His subordinates saluted before dispersing quickly, many shouting excitedly while wiping tears as they rushed toward family members waiting outside the terminal.

In the blink of an eye, the crowd had dispersed.

Last month, Ji Yaoming had received an urgent message requesting support in the Northern War Zone due to an Alien Species uprising. Without hesitation, he led his team there and stayed for a month. Normally, the Second Unit deployed in the Northern War Zone should have prevented the situation from escalating, but the message mentioned that the captain of the Second Unit had been suspended under investigation, so someone else had to step in and assume command.

It was only after the fighting ceased that they finally had a chance to take a break.

“Dear Captain Ji, if you don't mind me asking, when was the last time you saw a doctor?”

Ji Yaoming strode toward the hospital’s pre-arranged vehicle, ignoring his adjutant who was closely following him while reviewing the schedule. The adjutant’s striking white hair was particularly noticeable, making Ji Yaoming wonder if he had been overworked recently—it seemed even whiter than before.

“You should take a break too, Lu Sien.”

Lu Sien snapped shut the jam-packed schedule book and habitually opened the car door for his captain before walking around to the driver’s side.

“A break? Captain, can you even tell me what a break is?”

He started the car and accelerated, heading straight for the hospital.

The speedometer hit 120 km/h, but the person in the back seat comfortably rested his hands on his lap. As the scenery flashed by outside the window, Ji Yaoming observed the mostly unchanged neighborhood, thinking it had been a long time since he last returned.

“Captain, it’s been a while since you’ve been back, hasn’t it?”

Lu Sien spoke from the front, a hint of excitement in his voice. Ji Yaoming wasn’t sure where this glee was coming from but responded with a faint “Mm.”

Lu Sien was his senior by a year and generally reliable.

“Then I bet you didn’t know the repair department moved to Headquarters. It’s been a few years now... two or three, I think.”

With an expert drift and the screeching tires against the ground, the car came to a steady stop in the parking space.

“Nine points.”

Ji Yaoming opened the door, picked up his military cap, and donned it properly. He gave a fair score to the smiling man standing before him. Lu Sien was caught off guard by the random rating and laughed heartily for a moment before the two took the elevator to the check-up department.

They used a dedicated elevator, arriving near the end of the workday. It was sparsely populated, with only the two of them inside.

“Seriously, you should really go get checked at the Pheromone Department.”

Lu Sien looked at his junior, who wore three medals on his chest, with pride in his eyes.

Just last year, only five years after graduation, Ji Yaoming had become the executive officer of their First Unit. That meant this man had achieved the rank of lieutenant colonel by the age of 25. Moreover, he had just been appointed Chief Executive Officer yesterday—normally, he should have been promoted to colonel, but for some reason, he hadn’t advanced, and it didn’t seem like he had any intention of moving to the capital to take up the chief executive role.

Tsk tsk, but regardless, the new generation truly inspires awe. The Philker White Star 416 incident had made Ji Yaoming famous. After the First Unit was reorganized, Headquarters personally requested him to lead it. Although there were many objections from higher-ups, Ji Yaoming took the position. In two years, he quelled six major Alien Waves, not to mention countless smaller ones, and now he had even resolved the crisis in the Northern War Zone.

“Not necessary.”

There he goes again. Although his junior seemed to be thriving, only he, the longtime senior, knew the truth.

His ice-cold, unapproachable junior detested all Omegas and Betas.

If it were just Omegas, Lu Sien, as an Alpha, could understand—the unbearable sensation of having one’s insides torn apart by Omega pheromones was something he could sympathize with.

But he even despised Betas.

As someone who liked Betas, Lu Sien couldn’t wrap his head around it.

The elevator doors slid open slowly, and Lu Sien asked him simultaneously, “What did Betas ever do to you? They’re all law-abiding, honest people.”

The two stepped out and walked toward the direction where the line for medical examinations stretched down the hallway. Ji Yaoming showed no desire to answer the question.

Although it was near the end of the workday, the hospital was still crowded. Their attire and faces stood out noticeably among the crowd, inevitably drawing attention.

Lu Sien had no choice but to mutter quietly, just loud enough for both to hear, “Just because you dislike them, have you even evolved out of your rut cycles?”

“If some famous evolutionary biologist heard this, they’d jump out of their coffin!”

This wasn’t an exaggeration—in the six years they’d served together, Lu Sien had never heard of Ji Yaoming going through a rut. He was like an iron man. Normal Alphas could at least take time off during their ruts, but Ji Yaoming never had...

Well, actually, there was that one time... Lu Sien shrank back slightly. Never mind, it’s probably better without ruts anyway.

The person beside him paused and shot him a cold glance. “An adjutant’s duties don’t extend to meddling in personal affairs, do they?”

Lu Sien pursed his lips but dropped the subject.

They lined up at the end of the queue. Lu Sien glanced around and noticed that almost everyone was Headquarters staff, with a few soldiers from their unit in military uniforms, all standing properly and greeting the two.

After a few minutes, Lu Sien suddenly asked, “Captain, when will our weapons be shipped to logistics?”

Ji Yaoming thought for a moment. “They were sent along with the Second Unit’s batch. Headquarters retrieved a batch last week. We didn’t have many damaged weapons.”

Hearing this, Lu Sien cheerfully said he would go retrieve them later.

Ji Yaoming glanced at him but said nothing.

“By the way,” Lu Sien pulled out his schedule notebook and flipped to the next day’s plans, “starting tomorrow, you have a three-day break. Tomorrow noon, you’re scheduled to go to Maracochi Restaurant...”

Ji Yaoming frowned and interrupted him, “What for?”

Smugly tucking away the notebook, Lu Sien flashed a mischievous grin. Ji Yaoming felt a chill of apprehension, unsure what this old fox was scheming.

“To meet your fiancé.”

Ji Yaoming: ...

“No. Cancel it.”

Lu Sien flatly refused. “Not possible.”

He was actually quite helpless himself. One night, Ji Yaoming’s stepmother had called him, insisting that he take Yao Ming to meet the person. To be honest, he had heard bits and pieces about their captain’s family affairs and didn’t want to get involved. But this junior of his was too rigid—occasionally giving him a hard time seemed like a good idea.

Suppressing a laugh, Lu Sien shrugged helplessly. “Your stepmother asked me to. She said...”

Suddenly, a faint scent of engine oil mixed with the fresh smell of shower gel drifted over. Lu Sien recognized the oil scent and fell silent, turning to look behind him.

There stood a person with a slightly reddened neck, head bowed.

Lu Sien's eyes lit up.

"Xiao Wenqi!"

The sudden, moderate-volume call made Wen Qi flinch. He closed his eyes as if resigned to his fate before looking up at the two sharp-looking, neatly uniformed men before him. The white-haired man greeted him warmly with a smile. Wen Qi tore his gaze away from the figure beside him and turned his attention back.

Wen Qi smiled naturally at Lu Sien. "Long time no see, Lieutenant Lu Sien."

"Don't be so formal. Just call me Brother like before. Are you free tomorrow? Let's grab a meal together—it's been too long."

Lu Sien couldn't resist pinching Wen Qi's cheek—it was a habit of his. Though Wen Qi was tall, to him, he still seemed like a soft, doughy bun.

Ji Yaoming turned sideways and coldly reminded Lu Sien that the doctor called him, then turned back to wait for his own number to be called.

Lu Sien patted Wen Qi's shoulder again, telling him to wait till he was done.

"Wait for me, Xiao Wenqi. Don't sneak off."

He nodded with a smile toward the person who swiped his card to enter, then subtly hid his left hand, which he'd forgotten to wear a glove on, behind his back.

Then, he tightly cupped his left hand with his right.

He hadn't intended to overhear.

After leaving the clinic, he'd taken a shower and come to get his arm checked. The doctor said it was nothing serious and advised a couple days of rest, thoughtfully prescribing two packs of pain relievers.

With his arm fine, Wen Qi felt a rare wave of relief.

But he hadn't expected to run into Lu Sien and the others.

Especially Ji Yaoming, who hadn't even glanced his way earlier.

His left hand remained cold no matter how he tried to warm it—Wen Qi knew that well. Yet he couldn't help gripping his left hand, whether to hide it or for some other reason. All he wanted was to escape the space Ji Yaoming occupied.

He hadn't planned to meet under these circumstances.

"......" Time seemed to stand still. There was no sign of the person inside coming out anytime soon.

Wen Qi’s right palm grew warm from clutching his left. He knew cold sweat was beading on his forehead. After hesitating a moment, he released his right hand.

"Hi... Captain Ji, long time no see. How have you been lately?"

Ji Yaoming didn't turn around, only answered flatly. His voice was low, and his words were far from pleasant. "Two minutes ago..."

Wen Qi didn’t understand. "What?"

"Up until two minutes ago, things were fine." The words were icy, devoid of any emotion.

Wen Qi lowered his head and began rubbing his cold left hand again.

Maybe he should just go back. He could reschedule the check-up. Staying here any longer felt like it would make him faint.

Wen Qi drew a quiet breath and said, "Captain Ji, you recently..." But before he could finish, a loud voice cut through from a distance.

"Hey!"

An impact hit his neck, followed by a strong arm draped over his shoulder. Wen Qi stumbled but managed to steady himself before Jiang Liangping could push him to the ground.

Jiang Liangping looked at the short line. "Wow, glad we made it! Is it because it's so late? There's hardly anyone here!"

"Damn it, let go of me!" Rong Qiu sounded furious.

Jiang Liangping had one arm around a sweaty Wen Qi and was dragging a scowling Rong Qiu behind him. He glanced at the rank insignia of the man in front—it wasn’t his fault for staring; that uniform was rarely seen on the streets.

"Huh? Is that... Officer Ji! Hello!" Jiang Liangping greeted him boisterously, then lowered his voice as he realized. "Were you two talking just now? Wen Qi, didn’t you say you didn’t know Officer Ji?"

Wen Qi tensed up.

This time, Ji Yaoming turned around. Wen Qi nervously glanced up, only to see Ji Yaoming’s eyes sweep indifferently over his face before giving a slight nod to Jiang Liangping in acknowledgment.

"Number 69, Ji Yaoming."

The door opened, and the person who haunted Wen Qi’s thoughts walked inside without a second glance.

"Damn it, can you let go?" Rong Qiu was still struggling. "I said we’d come tomorrow. I’m exhausted today."

"Come on, don’t be scared. I know you’re afraid of running into what’s-his-name, but do you think you can just run into an officer whenever you want? What are the odds? He’s probably already finished his check-up and left. If you want to see him—"

"Xiao Wenqi!"

As soon as the voice rang out, both men froze. Then the exit door opened, revealing a man wearing a muzzle.

Rong Qiu instinctively blurted, "What the fuck!"

Lu Sien saw it too. His smile widened as he stepped in front of Wen Qi. "Don’t mind him—he’s a bit on edge after a pheromone draw."

Wen Qi nodded in understanding as Lu Sien pointed to the muzzle on his mouth.

Lu Sien grinned. "Xiao Wenqi, do you know Rong Qiu?"

Rong Qiu glared at the deceptively polished man, whose smiling eyes held a trace of ferocity—perhaps from the recent pheromone extraction—as if sizing up prey.

Rong Qiu spat, "Shit!"

Wen Qi replied calmly, "They’re both good guys. Their department was the one that took me in back then."

"Oh~" Lu Sien reached out and shook Jiang Liangping’s hand firmly. "Captain Jiang from the Repair Department, right? I’ve heard a lot about you. Thanks for looking out for Xiao Wenqi."

Jiang Liangping grinned and shook it warmly in return. "Not at all, Vice Captain Lu. Feel free to visit anytime."

"Then I’ll definitely stop by someday."

With that, Lu Sien smiled and held out his hand to Rong Qiu, waiting for a handshake in return.

The latter flat-out refused, not even trying to hide his disgust, as if shaking hands would cause him physical pain.

"Brother Sien," Wen Qi interjected.

The atmosphere was tense. He wasn’t sure how the tension had built between them, but since both sides were his acquaintances...

"Hmm?"

Lu Sien withdrew his hand and gave a low chuckle.

Wen Qi sighed. "Are you free tomorrow? It’s been a while—let’s eat at *Maracochi* Restaurant. My treat."

"Xiao Wenqi! You’re the best!"

Lu Sien enveloped him in a bear hug. Wen Qi remained unfazed, but the two behind him jumped, startled.

"Damn, Wen, aren't you... Are you trying to go bankrupt with our crappy salaries? You don't need to take someone like him to such a fancy place." Rong Qiu’s face was full of shock.

Maraqi Restaurant—that’s a place for the wealthy. What does that mean? The cheapest dish costs 88,000 Galash!!

Lu Sien, however, grinned as he wrapped an arm around Wen Qi, with a knowing grin. "Maraqi Restaurant? How convenient."

Suddenly, the door behind them swung open. Another man wearing a muzzle stepped out coldly and, without a word, stone-faced grabbed Lu Sien by the collar and dragged him away. Even while being pulled along, the adjutant cheerfully raised his arms and formed a big heart gesture toward Wen Qi.

The three left behind: "..."

Wait... this adjutant seems a little out there!

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