The Cannon Fodder Became the Empire's Beloved Omega - Chapter 26.2

As the message notifications popped up, Han Ran opened the complaints requiring her review and immediately raised an eyebrow in surprise.

The screen displayed a long list of suspended accounts, with IDs ranging from high-level to low-level. Without exception, all the account holders were students identified as Alphas.

Clicking into the suspension details, the moderator’s ID was uniformly the same two characters:

Gu Yu.

Han Ran’s interest was instantly piqued.

There were only a few people with administrative privileges for the school forum, and she and Gu Yu happened to be among them. However, the former heir, famous far and wide, was equally notorious for his laziness.

Since entering Starcloud, the number of things that could get Gu Yu to lift a finger could be counted on one hand. As for spontaneously managing the forum that was even more impossible.

What on earth could have prompted Gu Yu, who couldn’t even be bothered to move a finger, to use his authority and ban so many accounts?

It was important to note that Starcloud University student accounts were unique. Once banned, unless an administrator lifted the restriction, the account holder would be unable to post on the official Starcloud University forum until graduation.

Han Ran glanced again at the unban times for those accounts: all uniformly set to 1,094 days. Including yesterday, that made exactly three years.

Instantly, her curiosity was piqued.

She opened each complaint one by one, reading through them carefully. Soon, Han Ran furrowed her brows, her expression shifting from initial intrigue to one of growing anger.

Every single one was discrimination! Blatant discrimination!

As the empire’s top institution of higher learning, they showed not a shred of pride or awareness of what it meant to be a Starcloud student! How could they openly mock an Omega for their gender and background? What kind of behavior was that?!

After finishing her review, Han Ran sneered, selected all the complaints, and extended the ban duration by a few more days. Combined with the mute penalty Gu Yu had previously imposed, she rounded it up to a full ten years.

Once the changes were made, she forwarded the complaints to the secretariat: “I’ve handled this batch of complaints. Please send the results back.”

The secretariat staff quickly acknowledged, then opened the results Han Ran had forwarded.

Written in bold red text was a string of remarks: “Starcloud University does not welcome any form of discrimination.”

Below it, in smaller font, was a line: “Ban duration extended by 2,556 days. No appeals granted.”

The secretariat: … ????

Everyone exchanged bewildered glances, utterly dumbfounded.

They had intended to apply collective pressure to complain about the administrator who had secretly penalized the students’ comments. Instead of achieving their goal, they had all been lumped together and dealt with in one fell swoop??

Seeing the remaining ban duration displayed on their accounts, everyone instantly descended into despair.

After dealing with that bunch of troublemakers, Han Ran felt refreshed and opened her messages.

There, quietly waiting, was a message from Yu Ruan sent not long ago, asking if she needed any help with the welcome party that evening.

Help?

Seeing those words, Han Ran suddenly recalled how Cheng Mu had repeatedly pestered her before, raving about how good Yu Ruan was at cooking. For Yu Ruan to bring this up now, she must be quite confident in her skills.

After their previous interactions, Han Ran already held a favorable impression of Yu Ruan. Receiving this message now only heightened her regard for her.

Han Ran thought for a moment before replying, “Why, do you have something else in mind?”

“I’d like to try cooking a meal for everyone myself,” Yu Ruan quickly responded. “After all, I’m the new student, and I’ll be relying on everyone’s care in the coming years. Do you have any favorite foods, Sister Ran?”

Somehow, Han Ran sensed a hint of shyness and awkwardness in those brief sentences.

“It’s just too adorable.”

Thinking of the rumors flying all over the school, she now just wanted to sneer coldly, then seal everyone’s mouths with tape and tie them up in the sports storage room to rot.

Han Ran thought for a moment, then directly made a phone call and sent someone to the Sky Garden to help him out.

She couldn’t possibly let him handle everything alone.

Han Ran thought.

After asking about everyone else’s preferences, Yu Ruan went straight downstairs.

The design of the Sky Garden was quite ingenious. In addition to the student residential areas, it also included living and exercise zones. The living area featured a very large kitchen, perfect for occasions like welcome parties.

The public kitchen had most of the ingredients Yu Ruan needed, with only a small portion requiring separate purchase. Yu Ruan placed an order on the StarNet logistics service and, while waiting for the delivery, began preparing the remaining items.

About halfway through his work, the doorbell suddenly rang, announcing a visitor’s arrival.

Yu Ruan opened the holographic screen and was surprised to see that it was the Beta girl who had bumped into him earlier at the student building.

He froze for a moment, then quickly answered the call: “Hello?”

Recognizing him, the Beta girl’s face lit up with delight. “Oh, it’s you!” She quickly caught herself and smiled apologetically. “I’ve been sent by President Han Ran to help with the welcome party preparations. Could you let me in?”

Just then, a message from Han Ran also arrived. Yu Ruan glanced at it, nodded, and granted her access. “The public kitchen is on the second floor. Come on up.”

“Okay!” She nodded and stepped away.

Not long after, Yu Ruan heard the elevator chime. The Beta girl he’d just seen stepped out, a cheerful smile on her face as she greeted him enthusiastically. “Wow, I’m so glad it’s you! I forgot to introduce myself last time, I’m Le Meng. Nice to meet you!”

“Hello,” Yu Ruan nodded, glancing apologetically at his gloved hands. “I’m Yu Ruan.”

She waved her hand, indicating it was no problem. She quickly walked over, asked Yu Ruan about the dishes he was preparing, and skillfully put on a pair of gloves. Sighing with relief, she said, “I thought I’d run into that notoriously difficult-to-please heir. I never expected it’d be you here, what a relief!”

Yu Ruan looked at her blankly.

Le Meng blinked, a bit confused. “You don’t know? It’s the rumor going around school lately about that super bad-tempered, super fierce new heir! I heard they’re an Omega and really hard to please.”

She let out a sigh. “I was so worried that if I came here and messed up the task President Han Ran assigned me, I’d get scolded. I’ve been feeling down about it for ages! But seeing you here finally put my mind at ease.”

Yu Ruan understood: she was subtly expressing goodwill, complimenting him for being reassuring and making her feel safe.

As for the earlier part of her comment.

After thinking it over carefully, Yu Ruan decided to clarify. “If you’re talking about the Omega who moved into this dorm.”

“Huh?”

He pointed at himself, a little embarrassed. “That would be me.”

Le Meng: “!!????”

The shocking revelation hit Le Meng like a physical blow, leaving her dizzy and disoriented, nearly causing her to drop the mixing bowl in her hands.

The young girl’s mouth hung open in a perfect “O,” her eyes wide with sheer terror. Seeing her expression, Yu Ruan was instantly overcome with guilt. He tentatively waved a hand in front of her face and asked, “Um, are you okay?”

“Ah! Th-this, I’m so sorry!!” she finally snapped out of it, apologizing at lightning speed and on the verge of tears. “I had no idea it was you! Please, please don’t take any of my nonsense to heart!!!”

Worried that she might actually burst into tears if this continued, Yu Ruan quickly removed his gloves and steadied the teetering girl. “It’s fine, really. I was just explaining the situation. There’s no need for this.”

At his words, the pitiful-looking girl lifted her head. “Really?”

Yu Ruan nodded with difficulty.

Only then did she finally let out a sigh of relief.

Seeing her state, Yu Ruan thought for a moment and offered some comfort. “They’re just rumors, don’t take them too seriously. But since we’ve met now, I thought it might be better to clear things up.”

Before he could finish, Le Meng, her eyes brimming with tears, cut him off.

“I understand!” she exclaimed, angrily wiping her tears. “How could they be so vicious, spreading such malicious lies about someone?! They’re just talking nonsense!!”

Yu Ruan stared blankly at her complete 180-degree shift in demeanor as Le Meng earnestly grabbed his hand. “Don’t worry, I’ll definitely expose those awful people to my friends! I won’t let you suffer this injustice for nothing!”

Her voice trembled with emotion. “How could those scoundrels bear to slander someone as kind and sincere as you?! It’s absolutely despicable!! I’m going to smash their heads in!!”

Yu Ruan: “…” Thanks for the thought, but no need, really.

He gently withdrew his hand, somewhat helplessly, and nodded in gratitude, trying to change the subject. “How about we focus on finishing tonight’s meal for now?”

He pointed toward the clock in the distance.

Le Meng immediately shifted her attention. Noticing that the minute hand had already moved past the halfway mark, she let out a panicked cry and tearfully said, “I’m so sorry!!!”

Yu Ruan couldn’t help but sigh softly.

Resigned, he picked up the half-mixed bowl of ingredients and began combining the rest. Just then, the light screen on his wrist flickered again. He accepted the message, and Gu Yu’s voice came through: “You’re not in your room?”

“Yeah,” Yu Ruan replied, still mixing the ingredients. “I’m helping out on the second floor. Why, is something wrong?”

“…” The other end fell silent.

Yu Ruan waited patiently, handing the mixed ingredients to Le Meng. A moment later, he thought he could faintly hear the soft hum of the elevator in operation.

He paused mid-action and instinctively glanced toward the direction of the sound.

Still on the call, Gu Yu stepped out of the elevator. Faint, murmuring laughter drifted over from afar, causing his footsteps to falter slightly.

Following the sound, he looked over and, as expected, spotted the person he was looking for in the communal kitchen.

Bathed in sunlight, the Omega’s eyes held a faint smile, his slightly curled hair tips seeming to glow, lending a captivating radiance to his gem-like pupils. Standing beside him was an exceedingly cute girl. The two appeared to be happily discussing something, and moments later, she let out a soft laugh.

Instantly, Gu Yu slightly furrowed his brows.

For some inexplicable reason, he felt a bit unhappy and rather uncomfortable.

This strange sensation almost transformed into an impulse, urging him to step forward and separate the two who were talking.

He lowered his gaze and thought for a moment, then ended the ongoing call and turned to walk back.

Just then, another figure emerged from the elevator.

The person wore a roguish, unrestrained grin, and upon seeing Gu Yu, his eyes lit up: “Gu Yu, you’re here to see Ruan Ruan too? Perfect, I was just about to look for you!”

Gu Yu paused mid-step and frowned. “Shut up.”

He instinctively glanced toward the distance. Sure enough, the two who had been quietly talking seemed to have heard the conversation here. The other person looked up in confusion, his gaze immediately landing on Gu Yu, who was attempting to leave.

Support