On Monday morning, a faint scent of disinfectant drifted through the corridors of the Life Sciences building, mixing with the cool, early morning air to create an exceptionally clear atmosphere.
Silas Shen arrived very early, when few people were yet walking through the main hall. A single second before stepping toward the elevator, his footsteps came to an abrupt halt before the most conspicuous announcement board in the lobby. Reflected clearly across the cool lenses of his gold-rimmed glasses was a brand-new notice that had just been posted, bearing a vivid red official seal.
[Notice Regarding the Adjustment of Campus Medical Security for Omega Students]
Effective immediately: The University Hospital officially integrates "Autonomous Pheromone Blocker Patches" into the routine health security framework for Omega students.
Distribution: All Omega students may collect them free of charge by presenting their student ID. No application required; completely anonymous.
Implementation: This notice takes effect on the date of publication.
At the bottom of the page, three heavy red official seals—the University Affairs Committee, the University Hospital, and the Life Sciences Department—sat side by side, commands in plain sight.
Silas maintained his slightly head-tilted posture, standing before that notice for a very long duration.
The morning sun pierced through the French windows, illuminating every single line of the black ink on white paper until it appeared near-transparent. Within his perennially cool, waveless eyes, it was as if a tiny pebble had been cast into the deepest, most tranquil lake, disrupting the surface with layer upon layer of ripples that could not be easily quieted.
"Morning, Professor Shen."
Lin walked over cradling a stack of new experimental consumables, turning his head to follow Silas's gaze toward the announcement. In that exact millisecond, Lin's eyes widened sharply, and subsequently, his facial muscles relaxed into a massive, unstoppable smile that even carried a trace of unshed tears:
"It's officially implemented... it's finally, officially implemented! Professor Shen, starting today, every single Omega at our Beijing University can obtain the safest blocker patches completely free of charge, as long as they wish to!"
"Yes."
Silas responded with a low murmur. His voice remained as tranquil and waveless as it customarily was, devoid of dramatic fluctuations. However, from an angle Lin could not see, Silas's hand resting inside his lab coat pocket gripped the edge deathly tight, his knuckles turning faintly white from the sheer force.
"Furthermore, when I went to the university hospital to collect this week's allocation just now, I heard their director mention that several neighboring sister institutions have been consulting our laboratory overnight regarding procurement and licensing channels." Lin's face flushed entirely red with excitement, his voice dropping low with an un-concealable pride. "Judging by this momentum, it's estimated that starting next semester, the entire Beijing higher education circle will follow suit!"
Silas did not speak; he merely listened quietly.
Lowering his eyelids marginally, his line of sight fell upon a random point in a vacuum. The floodgates of memory loosened somewhat unexpectedly, and he suddenly recalled many years ago—when he was still an isolated, thoroughly plagued-by-pheromones graduate student—inside an old laboratory that was vastly narrower and dimmer than the current one, using a trembling hand to write down the very first molecular formula concerning the blockers on a sheet of scratch paper.
At that time, he believed he was merely conducting a routine, somewhat paranoid research project to combat his own fate. He had even self-deprecatingly thought that this was nothing more than finding a sufficiently scientific, rational excuse for his own isolation and inability to fit in.
He had never imagined that after surviving countless failures, Julian Liang's malicious calculations, and the severe suppression of the old academic guard, those dry data points piled high with cold atoms and bond energies would one day transform into a notice full of human warmth on an announcement board.
Transforming into neat rows of blue boxes on the shelves of the university hospital, turning into a tiny patch that could be torn open at any time inside the pockets of countless wandering Omegas who were exactly like his former self.
It might not instantly rewrite this massive world dominated by pheromones. But at the very least, it allowed an individual to possess an additional option to calmly say "no" when facing those overbearing, aggressive pheromones.
And for an Omega occupying a vulnerable position, sometimes, merely possessing the right to choose was entirely sufficient.
"Professor—!!"
A vibrant shout that sounded capable of flipping the entire corridor ceiling over abruptly exploded from behind.
Before Silas could pull his mind back from his chaotic thoughts, the air behind his person turned scorching and scalding in an instant. In the next second, a rich, overbearing, yet excessively sticky aroma of blazing oranges enveloped his entire frame deathly tight.
A pair of slender, powerful arms materialized around his waist. Hunter Huo leaped forward entirely from behind, utilizing a posture that was near-barbaric yet extremely reverent to lift the slender Professor Shen straight off his feet by the waist, spinning him fiercely through the air in a complete circle.
"Hunter Huo...! Set me down! This is the corridor!"
The sudden sensation of weightlessness caused Silas's gold-rimmed glasses to almost slip off. His pale cheeks flushed entirely crimson in an instant, and the perennially decorum-conscious Professor Shen swatted at the youth's rock-hard shoulders with a touch of shame and annoyance, a trace of a smiling urgency finally creeping into his cool voice.
"I don't care! I'm not letting go!"
Although Hunter submissively returned Silas's feet to the floor, those long arms remained deathly looped around Silas's slender, attractive waist, refusing to loosen their grip under any circumstance.
The youth's golden hair was terribly glaring under the sunshine. Lowering his head slightly, his sparkling puppy eyes were currently brimmed with a brilliance more resplendent and burning than a sky full of New Year's fireworks, even his voice trembling faintly with pure excitement:
"Professor Shen, look! Your research is officially implemented! And first thing this morning, news arrived from my brother's side—every single criminal record belonging to that old bastard Julian Liang has been locked down deathly tight. He can forget about ever stepping out to harm people again for the rest of his life! It's a double victory, a double victory, do you understand?!"
Due to their extreme proximity, Hunter's scorching breath poured entirely across Silas's pale neck, the heat causing the latter to instinctively shrink his collar slightly.
"We absolutely have to celebrate tonight!" As if claiming credit, Hunter rubbed his head against Silas's shoulder, his sharp canine teeth flashing as he smiled beautifully. "I anticipated this three days ago and specifically reserved the window-side private room at your favorite Cantonese restaurant!"
Silas's hand, which had still been struggling, paused marginally. Turning his head with some suspicion, he stared through his lenses at the youth's handsome countenance situated a mere breath away, his tone carrying a sliver of inquiry he himself hadn't detected:
"How did you know that was my favorite?"
If his memory served him correctly, he had never mentioned his dietary preferences to a single individual.
"How is that difficult?"
Hunter arched an eyebrow with immense pride, the hands looped around Silas's waist unable to resist tightening covertly by a fraction, his sticky gaze anchoring against Silas's beautiful lips:
"As long as it concerns Professor Shen, there isn't a single thing I don't know. Every single time we walk from the Life Sciences department to downtown for a conference, whenever we pass by that Cantonese restaurant, your stride slows down by two seconds compared to routine, and you cast an extra glance through the glass window at their displayed seasonal menu. I have it all recorded inside my tiny notebook."
Silas parted his lips, his brain—which was perennially accustomed to rigorous, analytical thinking—experiencing a rare instance of stalling in this exact millisecond.
He had originally wanted to ask why do you insist on recording such minute, trivial matters; wanted to say stop wasting your energy acting like a private detective tracking all of my preferences; and wanted to chide Hunter Huo, you are truly too clingy, dating is prohibited inside the laboratory using his customary high-and-mighty, restrained cadence.
Yet those excuses, which had historically been utilized by him as defensive ramparts, seemed to resemble a handful of spring snow melting within a hot spring the moment they met the youth's pure, burning eyes that held nothing but him—he simply could not utter them.
A prolonged silence expanded between the two, and the sweet, rich aroma of blazing oranges in the air smoked up a warmth that caused even the tip of one's heart to tremble along with it.
Ultimately, Silas merely let out a sigh that carried a hint of resignation. Lifting that pale, jade-like hand, he pushed his slightly sliding gold-rimmed glasses up with some helplessness, his cool voice turning thoroughly soft in this moment:
"For what time... did you make the reservation?"
Hunter clearly hadn't expected the perennially proud and reserved professor to agree so rapidly; his entire person noticeably blanked for a brief moment.
Subsequently, that invisible, high-frequency wagging tail practically soared into the sky. He smiled like a large golden retriever who had finally succeeded in stealing a chicken, the curvature of his lips so massive it was impossible to restrain, his entire person excitedly pressing straight against Silas's frame:
"Seven o'clock! At seven in the evening, I'll drive my most flamboyant car to pick you up downstairs! Professor Shen, remember to change into that deep blue silk shirt I like best when you head back; I happen to possess a necktie in the exact same color scheme. We'll wear a couple's outfit tonight!"
"Childish."
Silas cast a moderate glare sideways at him, finally exerting force to break away from the youth's embrace. Turning around, his head slightly lowered, he extended his long fingers to pull open the frosted glass door of the laboratory, launching his long legs to walk inside rapidly while feigning composure.
Outside the corridor's glass windows, the breeze caused the green plants to rustle lightly.
Hunter remained standing in his original position like a fool, staring at the slowly closing door.
Although Silas had walked away with extreme rapidity, Hunter had still captured it accurately—the exact millisecond his professor turned around, those beautiful phoenix eyes hidden behind the gold-rimmed glasses were distinctly brimmed with tenderness. That perennially cool mouth, which was usually pressed into a straight line, curved upward beautifully and highly in the bright morning light.
Everything was as perfect as it could possibly be.
However, in a corner hidden from everyone's view, as those settled crises gradually drifted into the distance, a brand-new, vastly more troublesome world-class puzzle was quietly commencing its prelude within a certain someone's mind.