Chapter 110: The Special Potion
Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations
Editor: Karai
Lanser was still staring at the StarNet screen, trembling in shock. Sophos snorted coldly and raised his hand to shut off the screen. “The plan stays the same. The Crown Prince has already delivered the wine to Heinrich. Lanser, go wait in your room—you know where it is.”
Startled, Lanser lowered his head and bit his lip, replying shyly, “Alright, I’m heading there now.”
Duke Paris watched the slender omega’s retreating figure with a sneer. “You shouldn’t talk to him like that in front of us. Children need some privacy.”
“What’s there to keep private? Who here doesn’t know I’m planning to put my own son into Heinrich’s bed?” Sophos glanced at Duke Chu, who remained silent, his wrinkles taut with tension.
When Duke Paris approached him, Duke Chu only hesitated briefly before agreeing to provide Heinrich’s genetic data to produce the special potion.
In exchange, he would get to choose from several noble omegas and personally decide the marriage match. Lanser was quite suitable—he had always admired Heinrich and didn’t mind being part of the plan. Still, Sophos couldn’t help but ask for his son’s sake, “Aside from the mishap with Lin Xu, is everything else going according to plan?”
Paris smiled. “Don’t worry. Although the process deviated, the outcome will be roughly the same. Now that Lin Xu isn’t an ordinary person, if Heinrich betrays us, Lin Xu will have the ability and temperament to leave him.”
Duke Chu said quietly, “Keep it discreet, or it will damage both Heinrich’s and Lanser’s reputations.”
“This is the Imperial Palace. No one will know.”
– –
Lin Xu had just reached Heinrich’s side and hadn’t said half a sentence before a small curly-haired boy rushed up, shouting, “Professor Lin!”
Startled, Lin Xu stepped back half a pace. The next second, Ryan felt the death glare from Marshal Chu and gave a sheepish grin, stepping back a little.
Ryan had always known about the relationship between Heinrich and Lin Xu. Recently, he had even fought alongside them on the StarNet forums, shouting that Marshal Chu and Dr. Lin was true love! But a secret bastard child? Ryan was sure there wasn’t one.
“You’re here too.” Of the three, only Zhou Pingbo smiled gently.
“Here I am,” Ryan said. “Professor Lin told me to stick close to my dad lately to avoid assassination attempts, so I shamelessly tagged along.”
Suddenly, Lin Xu remembered something. “Ryan, are you familiar with the Sixth Legion of the Elam Fleet?”
“Somewhat. Professor Lin, what’s up?”
“I want to know about the Chief of Staff Guy.”
Ryan glanced back at Guy, who stood out in the crowd because of his height. “Chief of Staff Guy?”
He didn’t know exactly what Lin Xu wanted to ask and hesitated a moment before picking a starting point. “I heard from my dad that the Chief of Staff has been nursing a baby lately. I thought maybe this time the kid’s father had shown up.”
“Nursing a baby?” Lin Xu’s train of thought broke for a moment. “Isn’t Guy an alpha?”
Could it be that he not only lied to Lin Xu about his identity but even about his gender?
“He is,” Zhou Pingbo added, his face tinged with gossip, “Doesn’t Dr. Lin know about Chief of Staff Guy and Sixth Legion Commander Alonso’s legendary AA romance?”
Lin Xu frowned. No, all he knew was that Guy had been a Star Pirate who raided everywhere.
“I know! I know!” Ryan raised his hand excitedly. “When I was five or six, they were constantly at each other’s throats. That was the most twisted part of the story. The legion commander was a noble descendant, while the chief of staff came from the slums. They never got along since enlistment. Their hostility lasted all the way until both became the highest commanders of the Sixth Legion.”
“Then, during a mission chasing rebels, Guy was severely injured. Alonso stayed outside the med pod for three days and nights. They say—at least, that’s what I heard—that the first thing Guy did when he woke up was press Alonso against the wall and kiss him. Ahem. I don’t know if it’s true, but they got married a week later. Before they left for Old Earth, my dad told me the chief of staff was pregnant.”
“Alphas can get pregnant?”
Zhou Pingbo explained, “Some male alphas and betas have uteruses, though most have degenerated badly. Guy’s case is unusual.”
As they talked, a waiter carrying a tray of wine glasses approached the four and asked Lin Xu and Ryan if they wanted a drink.
Lin Xu took a glass of orange juice. Ryan reached for a blue berry wine, but his movement was too sudden. The waiter didn’t step back in time, and with a clatter, most of the liquid spilled onto Heinrich’s military uniform.
“Sorry! Marshal Chu, I didn’t mean to!” the waiter exclaimed, immediately trying to wipe the stain with a napkin, nearly in tears and apologizing profusely.
“It’s fine.” Heinrich accepted the napkin and calmly pushed the waiter’s hand away.
Suddenly, Crown Prince Leo appeared, looking apologetic. “Marshal Chu, do you need to change clothes? I’ll have the attendants take you to the dressing room. They’ll provide a uniform in the right size. Please, bear with it for now.”
“Thank you, Your Highness.”
His dress uniform was pure black and wouldn’t stain easily from colored wine, but the pulp stuck to the fabric and looked untidy.
“I’ll go change,” Heinrich whispered into Lin Xu’s ear. When Lin Xu nodded, he followed the attendant out of the banquet hall. Leo comforted the flustered waiter with a few kind words, telling him not to worry—Marshal Chu wouldn’t hold it against anyone.
After the waiter wiped his tears and left, Leo smiled warmly at Lin Xu. His golden hair and blue eyes—often seen in news reports—gave him a gentle appearance.
“Good evening, Dr. Lin. I’ve heard much about you.”
Lin Xu nodded coolly, his voice calm and neutral. “Good evening, Your Highness.”
Leo, adept at reading moods, sensed Lin Xu’s lack of interest in chatting and said, “I have other matters to attend to. I’ll take my leave now. I hope you enjoy the banquet, Dr. Lin.”
“Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness.”
After Leo left, Lin Xu fell back into his thoughts. Something still felt off. Eight years ago, the Guy he knew was the leader of the Star Pirates. But Ryan said Guy had been Chief of Staff of the Sixth Legion for over a decade.
He slowly recalled in his mind palace how Guy’s Star Pirates ship was far more advanced than the patched-together, shabby ships of other Star Pirate groups. Was it common for the Sixth Legion’s Chief of Staff to moonlight as a Star Pirate? Lin Xu knew the Dionysus sector was chaotic, but he hadn’t expected it to be this messy. Ryan took advantage of Lin Xu’s silence to ask Zhou Pingbo, “Isn’t Ika in Capital Star?”
“He’s on leave visiting friends in Haven. If you want to see him, ask if he has time to show you around Haven.”
“Ah…” Ryan’s energy dropped. “I can’t travel far, and the Elam Fleet is about to return to Dionysus. I probably have to go back with my dad; it’s safer there.”
Just then, Kalt called for Ryan. He said goodbye to Lin Xu and hurried through the crowd. Zhou Pingbo sighed, watching his retreating back. “He likes Ika.”
“It’s obvious,” Lin Xu said. “But Ika doesn’t seem like the type to like anyone.”
Zhou Pingbo raised an eyebrow in rebuttal. “Don’t say it so absolutely. Ika has someone he cares about. He came to work for the Abyss Fleet because of her.”
“Who?” Lin Xu had never seen anyone around Ika, nor had Ika ever mentioned such a person.
“Katrina, the designer of the Victoria. Ika specially wrote the Ruth AI to work with that starship.”
“She isn’t—”
Zhou Pingbo glanced at Ryan’s figure swallowed by the crowd and sighed again. “You could say she’s passed away. Ika has never said it himself, and she didn’t know about Ika’s feelings. As for Ryan… he’s too different from Katrina. I don’t know if Ika would ever like him. Just try to talk to Ryan, tell him not to get too heartbroken.”
“Mm.” Lin Xu nodded.
Suddenly, a young woman in a long dress appeared from the crowd and rushed over to Lin Xu. She ran in heels, almost stumbling into him.
“Miss Hill?” Lin Xu grabbed her arm gently. “Be careful.”
“Dr. Lin, quickly, go to the resting room to find Heinrich.” Catherine was still catching her breath, speaking rapidly.
“What happened?” Zhou Pingbo stepped forward.
“He… he,” Catherine glanced around at the guests who were watching them from a distance, then lowered her voice. “I can’t say for sure. Anyway, his pheromones leaked out. I couldn’t get close. You need to hurry.”
She’d seen Lanser enter the resting room before Heinrich. Whatever he did there caused an alpha pheromone scent to spread. Catherine immediately came to find Lin Xu.
“Susceptible period?” Lin Xu exchanged a look with Zhou Pingbo. Zhou Pingbo frowned. “It shouldn’t be this time.”
“Never mind. I’ll go first,” Lin Xu said. “If it is the susceptible period, I’ll control him.”
“Good. Contact me anytime. If you need it, I’ll have someone bring the medicine.”
Lin Xu turned and headed down the corridor leading to the dressing rooms. But just as he left the banquet’s noise behind and saw the resting room at the corridor’s end, two guards blocked his way.
“Hello, sir. This is a private area. Please, don’t enter without clearance.”
“I’m going to the guest resting room.”
“That is a private area, currently closed to guests.”
Lin Xu already smelled vetiver scent in the air. The two guards remained expressionless, calmly blocking his path. They were two rare beta guards, unaffected by alpha pheromones.
“Please, step aside,” Lin Xu looked them in the eye and repeated firmly, “I’m looking for someone who just went in.”
“You cannot enter here.”
Lin Xu stopped arguing and pushed past the two guards. They tried to block him again, but he waved them off and knocked them down. He quickened his pace. The vetiver scent grew stronger, guiding Lin Xu through the many rooms until he found where Heinrich was. The door wasn’t locked. He pushed it open, and a strong pheromone scent mixed with a floral perfume rushed out. Inside, Heinrich was gripping a male omega’s neck, his whole posture aggressive. His clenched fist hovered above the struggling omega.
Lanser’s face was flushed red, nearly suffocating. But under the influence of the special potion, Heinrich had almost lost all reason and acted purely on instinct—not of desire, but of attack!
No matter how much Lanser shouted, he couldn’t bring Heinrich back to his senses. When Lanser saw the face that had always stirred his jealousy and hatred, it was like spotting a lifeline. He cried out, reaching toward Lin Xu, “Help… help…”
Lin Xu took in the scene at a glance and immediately stepped forward, grabbing Heinrich’s fist with a cold voice. “Heinrich, stop. If you throw that punch, his skull will shatter.”
Lanser’s face turned blue-purple from lack of oxygen, no trace of his usual delicate beauty remained. Tears streamed down harder than before.
