The Cannon Fodder 'Seme' is the Center of Attention Again (Quick Transmigration) - Chapter 22.1

Outside the window, the sun was like fire, scorching the eaves until they took on an unnatural red glow. Inside, however, the room remained as cold as an ice cellar. For a moment, even the rising sandalwood incense seemed to freeze in mid-air. The gray haze spread like a heavy cloth, pressing down on Li Qingran’s head until he no longer had the strength to breathe.

The Alpha behind him was still saying something excitedly. Li Qingran did not hear it clearly, nor did he care to. He even allowed that lingering scent of gunpowder to entwine around his arm and envelop his body.

“Host? Host!”

Amidst the swirling smoke, someone seemed to be calling him anxiously. Li Qingran blinked his eyes slowly and tilted his head back slightly to look at the lanterns on the ceiling. Inside the red fabric, electronic candles burned. The flickering orange-red light danced, falling into the Alpha’s messy hair and reflecting in his gray eyes. Those eyes shifted from pale to deep as the confusion within them gradually receded, replaced by a piercing clarity.

So that is how it is, Li Qingran thought. He understood everything now.

He understood why the waiter had been normal when he entered the restaurant but had offered a room upgrade on the way to the private booth. He understood why, after the upgrade, the waiter had given him such an indescribably eerie look. He understood why the sandalwood incense in this room was stronger and the smoke thicker than in the other rooms.

It was all a trap. It was a calculated scheme designed specifically to trick a cannon fodder like him into revealing a flaw.

Tsk.

Li Qingran’s lips curled slightly. He wanted to laugh, but he truly could not.

In the air, the biting scent of ice and snow grew more intense, surging toward Jiang Siran with overwhelming force. The natural aggression and combativeness of the pheromones forced Jiang Siran to involuntarily let go of the Alpha’s hand.

In that brief gap, Li Qingran pushed off the table and stood up abruptly. He stumbled toward the door, appearing as if he wanted to leave, but after just two steps, his pace halted.

Would leaving even matter?

Li Qingran lowered his head and looked at his feet sinking into the carpet. The long, fluffy gray fibers surrounded his white sneakers like thick smoke. In a daze, they seemed to turn into active tentacles, crawling up his ankles, thighs, waist, wrists, and neck. Tearing them away would be useless, because once they dispersed, they would simply reconvene and entwine around him again.

Therefore, instead of leaving, he might as well stay. He would stay and ask clearly at which step the problem had occurred.

His pale fingertips tapped an irregular rhythm on the white tablecloth lined with gold thread. The next second, before Jiang Siran could stand up and grab him through the powerful pheromones, the tall, thin figure ahead swayed slightly and slowly turned around.

His black hair fell by his ears. In his gray eyes, a stray beam of sunlight reflected, making them look brilliant.

“You have been following me,” Jiang Siran heard him speak slowly. A hint of doubt rose in those light-filled gray eyes.

“Why?” Li Qingran asked. “Why did you find me? I clearly told you that day that my name was Su Jingyi.”

So why exactly? Instead of entangling with the Protagonist Omega, why did you come to scheme against a cannon fodder who was never supposed to have any connection with the villain?

Li Qingran wanted to know. His gray eyes reflected his owner’s thirst for an answer. At this moment, he looked like a simple, knowledge-hungry student, looking expectantly at a teacher to solve his confusion.

Yet, the pheromones releasing from his body were manic and uncontrollable.

The pheromones, mixed with a hint of woodiness, roared toward Jiang Siran like a blizzard. They sliced through the air with silent cuts before surging into every pore of his body. They seeped into his flesh and blood, burning along his nerves all the way to his brain, pressing him down until he could not even stand straight.

This was significantly more pheromone pressure than he had endured in the alleyway.

Jiang Siran could not help but open his mouth, trying to gasp for thin oxygen. However, what flowed down his throat was that same Alpha scent of ice and snow that he should have rejected. It felt like a bucket of ice water poured over him from head to toe. It was bone-chillingly cold at first, but soon, a morbid, abnormal heat surged through his body, making his head spin. His Alpha nerves continued to output the violence, struggle, and anger triggered by the pheromones.

These emotions pulled at him, forcing him to release his own pheromones, but those were swallowed and shredded by the blizzard the moment they appeared. The snowflakes, carrying a hint of gunpowder, fell on him boastfully, turning into waves of irresistible pain.

The more enraged he became, the more obvious the pain grew, until he forgot to struggle or resist. He even forgot his own name, where he was going, and what he wanted to do. At this moment, all emotions seemed to turn into fuel for excitement. Jiang Siran felt his cheeks burning and his vision gradually grew dark.

But just before he fell into the darkness, a pale hand grabbed his hair and pulled him out.

In his hazy vision, Jiang Siran saw a golden light fall on Li Qingran’s lips, tracing a warm smile. Even his tone seemed to turn gentle again.

“Answer me, Jiang Siran. Why didn’t you go find Su Jingyi?”

Jiang Siran’s breathing grew more hurried. He looked at the Alpha who had returned to his side, feeling the sharp stings of pain from his scalp being pulled. He heard himself speak in a voice thick with moisture.

“I did look for him.”

Li Qingran tilted his head. Jiang Siran swallowed and continued.

“I investigated him. The records showed he is an Omega, but I clearly remember receiving Alpha pheromones in that alleyway. Even so, when I first got the files, I intended to meet Su Jingyi. I felt that since you gave me that name, you must have some connection to the person who owns it.”

“My original plan was to meet Su Jingyi to see if I could learn your identity from him. He agreed at first, but then for some reason, he suddenly canceled the meeting unilaterally. I had no choice but to use my own methods to keep searching.”

Jiang Siran smiled suddenly. “But now I am quite glad he canceled, otherwise I would not have found you so smoothly.”

After all, anyone would react if they heard a stranger was asking about their boyfriend. If Su Jingyi had kept the appointment, Li Qingran likely would not be living in this area, nor would he be this close right now, touching him just like the dreams he had repeated countless times.

Jiang Siran’s face grew redder, and a damp heat rose at the corners of his eyes. He looked increasingly excited, but Li Qingran’s face held only confusion.

“Canceled? When did he cancel?”

Though the Omega often acted unpredictably, he usually maintained the poise of a prestigious family when handling matters unrelated to Li Qingran. Li Qingran did not believe he would break an appointment without reason, unless…

Li Qingran suddenly had a bad feeling.

At that moment, he heard Jiang Siran reply, “Just a few days ago, about a week ago.”

Li Qingran calculated the time. It seemed to be the day Su Jingyi stood at the door and heard Qi Ziyan offer to help him through his rut. So, the Omega’s cancellation of the appointment was indeed related to him.

Because he wanted to finish his job early, he had temporarily decided to use the second male lead to stage a cheating plot. As a result, not only did he fail to provoke the Protagonist Omega into breaking up with him, but he also interfered with the meeting between the Omega and the villain.

And because the villain never met Su Jingyi, he never became addicted to the Omega’s pheromones, and thus never became the antagonist to the Protagonist Alpha. He had even ended up finding Li Qingran again.

Well, that was truly… wow.

Li Qingran could not help but sigh. He released his grip on Jiang Siran and took two steps back, sinking into a chair. The wooden back of the chair dug into his spine, but Li Qingran did not care.

The Alpha, who seemed to have lost all his strength in an instant, tilted his head back. The black hair covering his eyes slid away, revealing gray eyes like glass beads—beautiful and clear, yet lifeless.

Li Qingran stared quietly at the ceiling. Jiang Siran cautiously reached out and took hold of his limp pinky finger. Li Qingran did not stop him, only staring at the electronic flame jumping in the lantern. After a long time, he spoke again.

“So, what exactly are you looking for me for?”

He slowly turned his head to look at Jiang Siran, who was crouching beside him and looking at him expectantly. Before the Alpha could speak, Li Qingran cut off the obvious excuse.

“Do not say it is just to thank me for my help that day.”

Li Qingran did not believe Jiang Siran went through all this trouble just to say thank you. He was a major character in this world. He would not be that normal.

Li Qingran watched Jiang Siran quietly, waiting for an answer he could already vaguely guess—an answer that would very likely make 888 go crazy once again.

The fingers holding his pinky trembled twice. Li Qingran saw Jiang Siran grow excited again for some reason. He had already reigned in his pheromones, but the Alpha’s breathing became more rapid. That scent of gunpowder that had vanished in the blizzard—or rather, been swallowed by it—peeked out again, drifting tentatively toward Li Qingran. It clung to him, just like Jiang Siran’s fingers, which were now boldly grasping his entire hand.

“I certainly want to thank you. If it weren’t for you, I might not have left South City alive that day.”

Li Qingran heard Jiang Siran say, “So, in a strict sense, you are truly my savior. I want to repay you. But besides that, I also want to, I want to…”

The Alpha stuttered here, appearing somewhat embarrassed. But Li Qingran, seeing the veins bulging in his excited neck, reasonably suspected the man was just trying his best to suppress the urge to say something incredibly crude that would drive Li Qingran away again.

Sure enough, Li Qingran watched as Jiang Siran hesitated repeatedly before finally forcing out the second half of the sentence he had clearly edited many times.

“I also want to ask for a chance to pursue you.”

Bang!

Another loud noise exploded in the Alpha’s ear. The continuous booming sounds were like planes roaring right over his head, making Gu Shiyu nearly unable to steady himself, let alone hear what his subordinate was reporting.

His ringing ears only caught the blurred sentences coming from the other end of the phone.

“Ever since you helped me with your pheromones in the alleyway, I haven’t been able to stop recalling that feeling. I have even dreamed about it many times. I cannot control myself from thinking about you. I think I have fallen in love with you. I want to be with you, forever and ever. Is that okay?”

Of course it is not okay!

Before that clear, gentle voice could respond, Gu Shiyu answered the question in his mind first.

How can you be together! How is it possible for you to be together? You are both Alphas!

Gu Shiyu gripped the railing beside him tightly. Distinct veins bulged on the back of his pale hand. The scent of red wine pheromones poured out along with his emotions, hitting the subordinate next to him until the man could barely stay upright.

“Mr… Mr. Gu?” The poor subordinate spoke with difficulty, trying to wake his boss who had suddenly fallen into a state of rage after making a phone call.

But clearly, his call was like a small pebble thrown into the ocean; it failed to create even a ripple.

The sound of someone’s voice came from the phone again. Because of the distance, it sounded a bit blurry. Gu Shiyu instinctively pressed the phone tighter against his ear.

It was Li Qingran’s voice! He was answering Jiang Siran’s question!

Realizing this, Gu Shiyu subconsciously held his breath. His broad chest stopped moving, but his heart beneath it continued to beat violently.

Thump, thump.

It was like a march before an execution—urgent and anxious, making one desperate for a quick resolution. Fortunately, Li Qingran did not make Gu Shiyu wait long. After repeating Jiang Siran’s final words in surprise, he let out a soft laugh. It was unclear if he was laughing at the Alpha’s absurd idea or at the fact that a plot meant for a protagonist had fallen on him once again.

“You like me?”

Li Qingran raised his other free hand and beckoned to Jiang Siran. The latter immediately pressed closer, obediently placing his chin into the Alpha’s upturned palm.

A pale thumb pressed against his red lips, which were trembling with excitement. After kneading them gently twice, Li Qingran pushed his thumb into the mouth, directly touching the sharp canine teeth. The point of the tooth pierced Li Qingran’s fingertip, but he continued to rub it as if he could not feel the pain. He did not withdraw his hand until Jiang Siran uncontrollably began to salivate. Then, he leaned forward slowly toward the Alpha.

In that dark green pool of eyes, Li Qingran’s reflection became increasingly clear. First, those indifferent gray eyes that seemed to let nothing in, then the high bridge of his nose, and finally, those slightly parted, pale pink lips.

Jiang Siran instinctively tilted his head up, trying to chase those lips, but he was held down by Li Qingran’s grip on his chin.

Then, in the next second, Jiang Siran saw the Alpha grin within a distance of less than ten centimeters. As his canine teeth were faintly revealed, Li Qingran’s cold voice rang out again.

“Look clearly. I am an Alpha—an Alpha of the same gender as you.”

Exactly! You are both Alphas! How can an Alpha be with an Alpha?

On the other end of the line, Gu Shiyu wished he could crawl through the network to the booth where Li Qingran and Jiang Siran were, and punch this gay Alpha to death so he could never pester Li Qingran again or say anything that contradicted social values.

Unfortunately, current technology cannot open a portal through a phone. Therefore, no matter how anxious or hateful Gu Shiyu felt, he could only stand there helplessly, clutching his phone and praying for Li Qingran to continue rejecting the man.

But compared to Li Qingran’s non-aggressive question, Jiang Siran’s response was much more aggressive and persuasive.

“I know we are both Alphas. But who says an Alpha cannot be with an Alpha?”

Jiang Siran looked up at Li Qingran. Although his chin was only being held, he appeared as if his neck were being constricted, giving off a sense of labored breathing. His voice trembled along with him.

“The one I like is you. Whether you are an Alpha or an Omega, I like you. I like the feeling of being wrapped in your pheromones.”

Gu Shiyu could not listen any longer. Does Jiang Siran even believe that himself? An Alpha only feels disgust and rejection toward pheromones from their own kind. How could he possibly like them and be addicted to them? The feeling of being wrapped in them, he must think he is an Omega!

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