When the Major General Omega Picked Up a Little Snake Alpha - Chapter 1

On the planet Doro, a starship lay docked at the launch station.

Dozens of soldiers were busy overseeing the transport of confiscated contraband. The cargo trucks were lined with cages of all sizes, housing rare animals that intergalactic pirates had intended to smuggle out.

Luo Qi stood on the vast boarding platform, looking down over the railing.

Doro had once been a prosperous, vital hub, but it had been plagued by pirate raids for the last two years. Now that the final wave of poachers had been dealt with, his adjutant had delivered the good news: the pirate leader had already been sent to the prison on the capital planet, Landon.

Luo Qi had intended to escort the prisoner personally, but unfortunately, due to health reasons, he was forced to remain behind.

“Commander Luo, it’s time.”

A gentle, low masculine voice sounded in his ear. It was Fang Xi, his primary physician and traveling medical attendant.

Fang Xi was dressed in a freshly changed medical uniform—a crisp white suit complete with a tie. He was a Beta with soft, short brown hair, and his clothes carried the faint, clean scent of soap.

He watched as Luo Qi tilted his head slightly. A few strands of silver, shoulder-length hair shifted, revealing the smooth jawline of a delicate face. Beneath long lashes, Luo Qi’s peach-blossom eyes held pupils of such a pale blue they almost appeared transparent.

For someone with such light, ethereal coloring, he possessed strikingly bold features—large eyes, a high bridge to his nose, and small but full lips.

“Mm, let’s head back,” Luo Qi said, brushing past him. He was two centimeters taller than Fang Xi, and a faint scent of cherries wafted by as he moved.

Their General had entered his heat.

For the past few days, Luo Qi had stayed on the highest level of the starship, isolated from all Alpha soldiers. Only a few Beta logistics officers passed through the empty corridors.

Whenever they saw Luo Qi, they would salute from a distance and then immediately vanish behind doors as if their feet were winged.

Luo Qi found this quite baffling. He wasn’t an Alpha, after all; he wasn’t going to go around biting people just because he was in heat.

They arrived at the infirmary. Luo Qi took off his coat, draped it aside, and rolled up his sleeve for Fang Xi to administer the injection. Fang Xi’s assistant stood guard at the door.

Fang Xi pulled Luo Qi’s right arm onto a soft cushion on the desk. The moment his fingertips touched the General’s wrist, the hand holding the syringe slowed down by a fraction.

There were several small knife scars on Luo Qi’s arm, following the lines of his muscles. Like most Omegas, his skin was soft and fair, yet it possessed the toned strength of a soldier. Faint blue veins were visible beneath the skin of his fragile-looking wrist.

“We’ll draw blood for a checkup first, then administer the soothing agent,” Fang Xi said, looking down as he steadily inserted the needle.

Because of long-term use of suppressants, Luo Qi’s heat cycle had become erratic, so they had switched to soothing agents to transition him through it.

“The soothing agent isn’t supposed to have side effects, right?” Luo Qi stared at the syringe. “Why do my senses feel so heightened today?”

“What do you smell?”

“A fruity scent, a bit sweet,” Luo Qi recalled. “Earlier, when I was outside, it felt like it was everywhere.”

“Can you tell what kind of fruit?”

“I can’t quite say, it has a bit of tartness to it.” He looked out the window. His eyelashes were very long, the tips curling slightly upward, as pale as his hair.

“It’s entered the room,” he whispered, his nose twitching as he caught the molecules in the air. “From the window.”

Fang Xi followed his gaze toward the window, but his eyes lingered on the soft lines of Luo Qi’s profile.

His General had a face that was clean to the point of perfection. Who would ever guess how many enemies he had killed?

“It’s an Alpha,” Luo Qi said, his eyes half-closing as he rested his other arm casually on the armrest of the rattan chair. “A very strong Alpha.”

“The scent travels quite far,” he added, his lips curling into a cold arc. “Send someone to see who it is.”

“Understood,” Fang Xi said, signaling the assistant at the door. He withdrew the needle and pressed down with a cotton ball. “It shouldn’t be one of our people, no one is due for an estrus period these days.”

Unless, of course, they were being influenced by the General’s pheromones.

But Luo Qi had stayed on the top floor and kept his pheromones well under control. Unless someone had specifically climbed up here to catch a whiff, which would be a major violation of military law—it was impossible.

“Indeed, it’s a new scent.”

Luo Qi knew everyone on his warship like the back of his hand, including their pheromone profiles, which were all on record.

Aside from himself, no one else smelled like fruit. Furthermore, Alphas usually had much harsher scents. For instance, his adjutant, Jiang Luo-yi, an A-rank Alpha, smelled heavily of musk when he was in rut.

“Don’t worry, Adjutant Jiang will investigate,” Fang Xi said. “Once this shot is finished, go back to your room and rest.”

Fang Xi was usually a gentle subordinate, but he became firm whenever it concerned Luo Qi’s well-being.

“Fine,” Luo Qi said, rolling down his sleeve and standing up to put on his coat. “I want a sandwich for breakfast.”

Luo Qi returned to his quarters. Located at the northernmost and highest point of the warship, the room was spacious, bright, and minimalist, with a transparent sealed balcony.

Luo Qi locked the door and leaned his hand against it, his brow furrowing. That thick, fruity scent was surging in from the balcony. It was no longer just sweet and sour; it carried a crisp, intoxicating fragrance.

Exactly which Alpha was being this bold?

He pushed open the window hatch on the balcony and leaned out to look down. Night had fallen, and on the several-acre landing pad, only a few small lights were moving. The cargo trucks had departed, and the animals should have all been moved into the lowest cargo hold. There were no outsiders left on his ship.

Luo Qi tapped the communicator on his left wrist to place a call, and a holographic screen popped up.

“Commander,” Jiang Luo-yi’s voice came through. “I’ve received the order.”

“Have you found who it is?”

“We are using scanners to sweep the ship. There are no strange scents on the lower decks.”

“You didn’t smell anything either?”

“None of us smelled anything out of the ordinary.” Jiang Luo-yi hesitated for a moment. “I… I only smelled cherries.”

Luo Qi’s lips went still. On the other side of the screen, the man awkwardly scratched his buzzed head.

“Apologies, Commander. I didn’t mean to.”

“Continue the search and find them,” Luo Qi ordered. “They are at least a B-rank Alpha.”

“Yes, sir!”

Luo Qi shut the window tightly and lit some incense meant to neutralize pheromones. He found his pajamas in the bedroom and slowly changed into them.

The unfamiliar fruity scent was making him feel flushed and restless.

He hadn’t felt like this in a long time.

He possessed S-rank mental control and had lived among Alphas for years; it was always he who influenced others, never the other way around. Therefore, this fruit-scented Alpha might be higher than a B-rank.

Luo Qi curled up into his soft mattress, pulling a thick yet light duvet over himself. He grabbed a blue caterpillar plushie and hugged it tight.

During his heat, he would use pillows and bedding to build a small “nest,” resting his head on a whale-shaped pillow.

He wasn’t a person who lacked a sense of security, but the instincts of an Omega made him want to retreat into a soft, warm, confined space.

The medication made him drowsy. Luo Qi soon drifted off, and as he closed his eyes, the world seemed to spin.

It felt like being drunk.

The fruity scent seemed to ferment, seeping into his body. When he opened his eyes again, the clock on the wall read 1:00 AM.

He couldn’t take it anymore.

Luo Qi got out of bed and changed back into his uniform. His feet felt like they were stepping into a void, a lightheadedness following a night of drinking.

But it wasn’t an unpleasant hangover. It was more like having a small drink, lying on a soft fabric sofa in a dry, heated little house, and sleeping until he woke up naturally.

He realized then that this wasn’t just a simple fruit-scented pheromone. It was the scent of red wine.

It was a blatant, unbridled seduction aimed specifically at him.

Only an S-rank Alpha would dare to do this. But there were no S-rank Alphas on his ship.

Luo Qi pressed the call button for Jiang Luo-yi. “Have you still not found them?”

“Commander, we’ve detected a high-level unfamiliar pheromone in the cargo hold. We are currently searching the area.”

“The cargo hold?”

“Yes. It’s that batch of rare animals scheduled to be transported back to the capital tomorrow. We suspect someone is hiding in the cages.”

Luo Qi went to the foyer and leaned down to pull on his combat boots with one hand.

“Proceed with caution. Tell the first squad to stand by in the cargo hold as well. The enemy might have S-rank mental strength.”

“Understood!”

Luo Qi holstered his gun and pushed the door open. As he passed the third door in the corridor, he noticed the light was on. Fang Xi was still on duty.

He pulled his jacket tight. It was just a thin military uniform, and the temperature was low at night.

Creak. The door behind him opened. Unsurprisingly, Fang Xi followed him out; he was always so perceptive.

“Commander Luo, where are you going this late?” Fang Xi’s tone carried a hint of reproach as he draped a heavy overcoat over Luo Qi’s shoulders.

“To the cargo hold,” Luo Qi said, pulling the coat closed. “Come with me.”

“But you are currently…”

“Don’t worry about it,” Luo Qi interrupted.

He knew, of course, that he shouldn’t be heading down while in heat. But if there really was an S-rank enemy hiding on the ship, he had to be there.

The two of them, one following the other, rounded the curved corridor and entered the lift, heading straight for the basement level.

Fang Xi bit his lip as he watched the General’s profile. He didn’t know how many Alpha soldiers Jiang Luo-yi had brought down there, but if they were low-level recruits, they might not be able to handle the atmosphere.

The General’s pheromones smelled better than real cherries. Even though Fang Xi was a Beta who didn’t even like cherries, he couldn’t help but want to breathe it in.

Fang Xi shook off his wandering thoughts and forced himself to look ahead. The elevator doors opened, and a chaotic mix of smells hit them.

The cargo hold was in an uproar. Under the dim lights, various animals were screeching, chirping, barking, and buzzing. Rows of cages were stacked together, creating a kaleidoscope of colors as far as the eye could see.

Luo Qi led the way, weaving through the narrow aisles. There was the musk of beasts, the smell of droppings, and various floral scents, like the “Luminous Sheep” with trumpet flowers growing from their heads, or a cage of hedgehogs covered in strange, fragrant powder.

And then, there was that rich, almost hallucinogenic scent of mellow wine.

Luo Qi followed the scent through several turns. The smell of wine grew thicker, making his heart race. A damp flush crept onto his fair cheeks, and a misty glaze covered his eyes.

“Don’t walk so fast!” Fang Xi grabbed his sleeve, but Luo Qi shook him off.

“Commander Luo!” Fang Xi’s shout drifted a few meters away.

Ahead, there was a warm orange light source. His subordinates were gathered there, at the source of the scent. Luo Qi drew the gun from his waist and approached rapidly.

He would personally deal with any Alpha who dared to provoke him.

“Commander!” Within the blurry afterimages, a dozen broad-shouldered figures stood like a wall of steel before him.

“Move,” Luo Qi’s voice was clear and steady.

“Commander, you’re being affected,” someone said, though he couldn’t tell who. “Please, let us handle it.”

“No need. All of you, back away.”

His slender frame pushed through the soldiers. Every man there was taller than him, yet not one dared to stop him. On the left, an empty iron cage let out a loud clang as someone stumbled against it.

Jiang Luo-yi held the man up. “Yu Ma, go get the medics. Wen Si-yi is—”

He was in rut. All the Alphas were entering their estrus periods; it was a test of their mental fortitude. The cherry fragrance was invading the space like opium.

“Major General!”

“Commander! There’s really no need for you to step in personally!” One soldier tried to approach, but another suddenly grabbed him by the collar. “Stay away from the Commander! You uncontrollable scumbag!”

“What the hell is wrong with you!” The first soldier threw a punch.

The two began to brawl. Other Alphas who still had a shred of sanity rushed in to break them up, while Jiang Luo-yi kicked the two apart.

“All of you, get the hell out of here!” Jiang Luo-yi roared. “Anyone who takes another step forward is discharged!”

Those words were like a bucket of cold water. The Alphas snapped back to their senses and began dragging each other away toward the exit, nearly colliding with Fang Xi as he rushed in.

“Luo Qi!” Fang Xi was so panicked he forgot his honorifics. He had been shaken off by Luo Qi earlier and had gotten lost in the maze of crates.

Luo Qi stood under that glow of warm light. He still held his gun, but his tense grip was slowly relaxing.

He stared at the small glass tank in front of him. It was the source of the red wine scent, the place where that S-rank Alpha was hiding.

It was actually a snake.

It was a tiny black snake, curled up and hiding inside a crumpled newspaper tube, leaving only a small tail poking out. The tail flicked rhythmically against the wood shavings at the bottom of the tank.

Though the scales were black, they shimmered with a sleek, dark blue luster whenever they caught the light, looking like curved, iridescent metal.

It was quite beautiful.

“Are you the one seducing me?”

Luo Qi crouched down, his forehead resting against the edge of the glass. The heat of his breath created a hazy white mist on the surface.

“You’re being quite bold.”