What Should I Do If My Ex-Girlfriend's Pheromones Smell Too Good? - Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Question. We Are All Female Alphas, Why Be Shy…

“What, Student Yan finished one class and realized Mecha Solo Combat isn’t suitable, so you plan to switch majors to Mecha Manufacturing?”

Shu Qiong put down her notes and looked back without showing weakness.

Yan Xiangyu smiled: “Then Student Shu has wronged me.”

Her left hand magically snapped her fingers, and the pen in her hand had turned into a tube of suppressant sometime earlier.

“Now?” Shu Qiong was puzzled. “Why didn’t you give me all the suppressants yesterday?”

Yan Xiangyu said innocently: “I forgot.”

She “kindly” reminded: “Shall we go to the restroom? Class breaks are limited, we need to hurry up and give you an injection.”

Shu Qiong looked at her, saying nothing.

Yan Xiangyu avoided her gaze: “Let’s go. We’re all female Alphas, why be shy?”

“Who’s shy?” Shu Qiong was speechless. “I’m estimating the thickness of your skin.”

Yan Xiangyu stood up, casually put on her cap, and kept one hand in her pocket, looking like a person no one should approach, and familiar people should scram. Yet, she obediently asked: “What’s the result of your estimate?”

Shu Qiong pinched her voice: “Dear, I can’t detect any trace of skin on your body.”

Yan Xiangyu: “…”

Shu Qiong didn’t refuse Yan Xiangyu’s service this time. She chose a relatively clean stall, directly pushed Yan Xiangyu inside, and neatly closed the door.

She casually tucked back her hair, fully exposing her nape to Yan Xiangyu’s sight, and said in a slightly muffled voice: “Be quick.”

“…Then I’m starting.” Yan Xiangyu was caught off guard by her proactiveness and was uncharacteristically flustered.

Shu Qiong waited for a while but didn’t feel anything behind her. She turned her head in confusion: “I’m the one being taken advantage of, right? What are you dawdling about now?”

Yan Xiangyu’s earlobes were slightly hot. She stood rooted in place, mentally preparing herself: “I’m coming now? It might hurt a little, this is very normal, just bear with it.”

“…”

Shu Qiong sneered: “Five seconds, hurry up and get to the point.”

Yan Xiangyu lowered her eyes, staring at her smooth, fair nape. The fluid, graceful curve of her shoulder and back was completely exposed. Her left hand gently wrapped around Shu Qiong’s shoulder, half-hugging the person in front of her.

The familiar scent in her hair brought a subtle sense of satisfaction. The fullness in her arms made Yan Xiangyu momentarily want to ignore everything and make this hug completely real.

She felt Shu Qiong’s body tense up and chuckled huskily: “Nervous? I won’t eat you.”

Just as Shu Qiong was about to retort, a fleeting sting came from her scent gland. The cool liquid smoothed out the effects of the rut, slowly relaxing her body.

After a moment, she pulled away from Yan Xiangyu’s embrace, feeling refreshed. She casually brushed her hair: “Thanks. Your technique is decent, but it was too fast, I barely felt anything.”

She said, pulled the stall door open, and quickly fled the scene.

Yan Xiangyu was dumbfounded.

She deeply felt like she was a tool used and discarded.

She reluctantly tossed the empty disposable syringe and left the restroom.

When passing the Mecha Solo Combat Class 1 classroom, she glanced inside and saw Shu Qiong throwing a challenging look at her, come at me if you dare.

“…”

Perfect.

Did she forget she had to return to Room 406? Yan Xiangyu secretly gritted her teeth.

Returning to the Mecha Solo Combat Class 1 classroom, Yan Xiangyu keenly noticed several eyes on her.

She frowned and went back to her seat.

“What’s wrong?” Yan Xiangyu asked Su Heyi next to her, leaning back in her chair.

Su Heyi patted her shoulder: “Don’t mind what others think.”

Yan Xiangyu was bewildered.

Su Heyi then pulled up a newly posted thread to show her: “Someone saw you and Shu Qiong go to the restroom together and enter the same stall, and they’re digging into your relationship.”

Yan Xiangyu was silent for a few seconds: “These people are too idle.”

Su Heyi comforted her: “It’s fine, it’s just a rumor. Why take it to heart?”

Yan Xiangyu said sincerely: “…What if it’s not a rumor?”

“Uh, well,” Su Heyi was startled, then immediately relieved. “It’s perfectly normal for close friends of the same gender to go to the restroom together. I also liked holding hands with my best friend to go to the restroom when I was little.”

Just not entering the same stall.

Yan Xiangyu nodded, feeling somewhat comforted.

Then Su Heyi added: “Besides, you two just met, right? There’s nothing gossipy to dig up. An upright person doesn’t fear a crooked shadow, and good roommates aren’t afraid of being scrutinized. Relax.”

Yan Xiangyu immediately became worried again.

The problem is they aren’t upright, and their shadow is very crooked!

Feeling anxious, she attended another class. Yan Xiangyu opened the thread and saw that nothing substantial had been dug up yet, only a few posts containing secretly taken photos of the two of them. She breathed a temporary sigh of relief.

She was mainly worried about affecting Shu Qiong’s mood. Yan Xiangyu was concerned that Shu Qiong, who already attracted much public attention, would avoid or even despise interacting with her because of this.

The first class in the afternoon was a practical course, which left everyone exhausted.

But for most people, the first time they got to work with mechas was exciting. So, even though they were tired, they felt honored. When they entered the large lecture hall for “History of Mecha Warfare,” they hadn’t quite calmed down, and a large crowd squeezed into the tiered classroom, their enthusiasm undiminished.

Shu Qiong, a “second-generation mecha-er” who had access to mechas early on, was clearly not among them. In fact, the requirements for mecha operation were not high for mecha engineers, so the mecha practical class was not difficult for her.

While others were busy controlling mechas to perform simple running and jumping movements, she spent the entire class memorizing the structure of the military school’s standard mechas and comparing them with the blueprints she had seen in her mother’s notes.

Not long into the “History of Mecha Warfare” class, Yan Xiangyu, sitting next to her, saw her pull out a notebook and pen she carried, lost in thought as she drew and wrote.

With just a few strokes, the key details were vividly captured on the paper.

Compared to the concepts in Shu Ci’s blueprints, the military school’s standard mecha had limbs proportionally closer to the human body, and its heavy weapon arsenal had been dismantled, making it lighter for beginners to adapt.

Shu Qiong pondered for a moment and added a small line at the end: “Internal joints and power unit unknown, need to find another opportunity to dismantle and analyze the structure.”

Yan Xiangyu couldn’t help but ask: “You want to dismantle the school’s mecha?”

Shu Qiong said seriously: “How else can I learn without dismantling?”

Yan Xiangyu was impressed: “I heard upperclassmen say that first-year mecha students will be issued standard mechas, and we can register to collect them this week. You can dismantle mine then.”

“You trust me that much?” Shu Qiong looked at her and deliberately asked, “What if I can’t put it back together? You won’t blame me?”

Yan Xiangyu feigned concern: “What then? I’ve already pledged to accompany you to death, so please be merciful, Teacher Shu.”

Shu Qiong, who had been promoted from Student Shu to Teacher Shu, feigned solemnity: “Sacrificing oneself for scientific research, it will rest in peace under the nine springs.”

Professor Wang on the podium switched a slide on the PPT. After glancing across the large classroom, she picked up the roll book: “Next, we’ll pick a student to answer the question on the slide.”

Shu Qiong felt a chill down her spine, sensing trouble.

Sure enough, Professor Wang scanned the roll book and smiled: “Shu Qiong, you answer.”

Shu Qiong stood up and looked at the projection screen. To be honest, she was busy drawing blueprints and hadn’t been listening to the lecture.

She put on a thoughtful look, reading the question on the slide: “In the Battle of Bolton, if you were the captain of the sneak attack team, how would you lead your severely damaged mecha teammates to break through the encirclement, given that the team’s only Mecha Engineer was killed, your position was exposed, and you were surrounded by a swarm of insects?”

Someone poked her leg. Su Heyi quietly passed her notebook over.

Shu Qiong gave her a grateful look but didn’t look at the notes. She looked up at the projected map of the terrain around Bolton, frowning slightly.

She was certain that Professor Wang’s question was aimed at her from the start. It was in this battle that Ms. Shu Ci, with her extraordinary talent, achieved a remarkable feat and became an Alliance Special Merit Recipient. However, she also suffered a severe leg injury, was forced to retire from the battlefield, and turned to the field of mecha engineering.

Shu Qiong had repeatedly studied this famous battle and knew Shu Ci’s response, but it was not applicable for general reference—Shu Ci took over the Mecha Engineer’s position in the emergency, urgently repaired her teammates’ mechas, and then bravely killed the Insect Queen with sheer passion, which caused the insect swarm to gradually retreat, giving the team a chance to breathe.

Professor Wang smiled and reminded her: “A genius like Ms. Shu is rare, perhaps one in a century. Let’s assume the ‘you’ in the context of this question does not have the ability to be both a combatant and an engineer.”

Shu Qiong nodded and gave the answer she had envisioned a million times: “If it were me, I would make a strategic retreat to Bolton Cliff, and then jump off the cliff with my teammates.”

Professor Wang was slightly surprised. She heard a student murmuring, “Suicide? Well, better to commit suicide cleanly than be killed by the Zerg.”

Shu Qiong’s expression didn’t change. She looked at the topographical map: “We all know the sneak attack team’s goal is to go straight to the Mother Nest. The forward scout team has already detected that the Mother Nest is below Bolton Cliff, or rather, inside the mountain, which is easy to defend and difficult to attack. To proceed along the safest route, we would need to spiral down the mountain road for several kilometers. The path is rugged and narrow, and the battle line would be too long. In such a situation, I would not choose this path.”

She took the laser pointer and pointed at the highest point of the cliff: “I’ve looked at the published parameters of the surviving mechas. The most severe damage was to the heavy weapon systems, resulting in insufficient firepower. However, in contrast, the damage to the power units was minor. But jumping off a cliff at a height of 1,500 meters, even if the mecha’s anti-gravity floating ability is still intact, it cannot withstand such a huge kinetic impact. So, I would choose to jettison the heavy weapon arsenal, which has been emptied of ammunition, to reduce weight.”

“I’ve calculated that at this reduced weight, a safe landing is completely possible.” Shu Qiong smiled. “And that vertical landing point is only three hundred meters from the Mother Nest.”

Three hundred meters, with strong, tacitly cooperating teammates, the probability of breaking in with cold weapons is not small.

The classroom was silent.

Professor Wang’s expression was a mix of satisfaction and scrutiny: “A very sharp idea, but also a risky choice that tests the chemistry and trust between you and your teammates. If a combatant’s ability or reaction cannot keep up, this would be a sufficiently fast ‘suicide’ method.”

Shu Qiong did not shy away from this point: “You are absolutely right, but I believe my future teammates will be people who can entrust their backs to each other.”

Professor Wang, a genuine retired Mecha Commander from the battlefield, mentally sighed at the youth and confidence of the young generation: “Have you considered that if one of your teammates has a heavy mecha and cannot jump off safely regardless of the circumstances? Would you abandon them to maximize the benefit?”

Shu Qiong looked straight ahead: “Historically, carrying a heavy mecha during a sneak attack in the Battle of Bolton was not wise. But if a heavy mecha was brought for some strategic purpose, the situation would definitely change. For example, the heavy weapon arsenal would be more abundant, and the team would have a greater chance of breaking out of the encirclement sooner rather than being trapped. Specific problems require specific analysis. With sufficient firepower, there would be no need to risk jumping off the cliff; they could try to force their way down.”

“Very good, please take a seat.”

Professor Wang’s eyes showed appreciation. She turned the slide: “Tactical flexibility is very important. Even if you are a combatant and a mecha engineer, you cannot always rely entirely on the commander for thought.”

She summarized with a joke, and the classroom atmosphere lightened up again.