ISWTDB Ch105

Chapter 105: Interstellar ABO (27, 28)

Especially for someone as high-ranking and powerful as Ernest, they would only treat them as playthings. After all, in the eyes of many, Ying Zhao was considered incomplete, even ridiculed by others as a genderless freak.

But unexpectedly, the rumored cold and detached Ernest, a marshal who showed no reaction to any beauty, had actually marked the boy.

It was clear that Ernest was truly moved. The crazy possessiveness I had seen in that man’s eyes back then was not an illusion but real.

Yes, it turns out I was the one who couldn’t see clearly. The boy is so outstanding, and so what if he doesn’t have glands? The qualities and shining points he possesses are unmatched by any Omega.

How could I have been so blind to think that the boy was inferior to those ordinary Omegas? But when I finally realized all this, it was already too late.

The boy I loved had already been fully marked by another Alpha, and they had even fused mentally. He would never belong to me again.

This realization drove Abner almost mad for a moment, and he began to harbor a deep hatred for Ernest.

As he saw Ying Zhao slowly walking toward him, although the boy tried not to show it, Abner still noticed that his waist and legs seemed a bit stiff.

Thinking about what might have caused this discomfort made Abner clench his teeth. Then, he heard the boy softly say to him, “Instructor Abner, I’ve finished refining the potion.”

After saying that, Ying Zhao took a jade-green potion from his pocket and handed it to Abner.

Abner took it, wanting to say something to Ying Zhao, but after handing over the potion, the boy quickly made an excuse and left in a fluster.

Was the boy still upset because he had been forced to do such things? But I could only pretend as if I didn’t know anything. Abner took a deep breath, a kind of pain he had never felt before spreading through his heart.

He uncorked the potion bottle and drank it all in one go. Feeling the power surging through his body, he turned and headed straight to the principal’s office. He couldn’t stay at this school any longer.

He had to get to the battlefield quickly and accumulate some military achievements. At the same time, he could have Ying Yan produce more potions for him, continuously enhancing his mental strength.

Yes, once his mental power surpassed Ernest’s, he could break through his mental barriers. He might even be able to re-mark the boy mentally.

Thinking of this, Abner regained his resolve, and his mood lifted. As for his body, Abner squinted his eyes. The boy’s potion-making skills were incredible, and if he could mask Ernest’s pheromones, then he should be able to find a way to erase the pheromones left from a full marking, right?

While Abner was getting lost in his own thoughts, Ying Zhao had no intention of caring about Abner’s ideas anymore. These days, he had been staying at the marshal’s residence with Ernest, the two of them constantly glued together.

In fact, due to the man’s excessive demands, Ying Zhao had eventually gotten angry with him. So, to appease his little partner, the marshal decided to support his plan for revenge and had his subordinates investigate some interesting information related to Abner.

That’s when Ying Zhao learned that Abner’s quick rise to the rank of lieutenant at such a young age had a hidden story. The military achievements that had earned him that rank had been taken from a dead comrade.

Knowing Abner’s personality, he was likely to do it again. After reviewing the timeline, Ying Zhao carefully re-read the plot.

He discovered that after Abner enhanced his mental strength, he soon went to the battlefield and quickly rose to the rank of general. And the reason for his rapid promotion was that during a Zerg ambush, he and a major general had infiltrated the Zerg’s rear with a weapon and destroyed their mothership, which led to victory in the battle.

However, according to the vague details of the plot, the greater credit for this achievement likely belonged to that major general. Abner didn’t even enter the Zerg’s territory, so it’s highly possible that he once again took the credit of a deceased major general. Or worse, the major general may have survived but fell victim to Abner.

Thinking of this, Ying Zhao narrowed his eyes. Now that Abner was going to the battlefield, it matched this timeline perfectly. It seemed he needed to protect the people around this incredibly lucky protagonist.

Of course, Ying Zhao didn’t plan to handle this matter on his own. He shared his thoughts with Ernest. After all, when it came to the battlefield, his man was far more experienced than him in this world.

As the marshal of the empire, Ernest controlled the entire military. If he hadn’t been so indifferent to such matters, he wouldn’t have ended up being exiled to a small planet in the original storyline to spend the rest of his days.

What Ying Zhao didn’t know was that even before he met him, Ernest wouldn’t have cared if the royal family had ordered him to leave the military and live on a remote planet. Nothing in the world interested him.

Although he wasn’t pleased that his little lover was focusing his attention on another man, since his beloved had openly asked him to handle it, Ernest didn’t refuse.

But when the adjutant intercepted a message Abner had sent to Ying Zhao and forwarded it to the marshal, it nearly made Ernest crush his communication device in anger.

That damn Abner had dared to send such a suggestive message to his precious. He even told his beloved that he would go to the battlefield and fight for him, and when he reached a higher position, he would return and be with the boy forever!

In truth, ever since Ernest had first laid eyes on Ying Zhao, he had been secretly monitoring everything around him. Everyone in the boy’s surroundings and all the messages he received had to pass through the marshal’s scrutiny.

It could be said that the man’s possessiveness and desire for control had reached the extreme. He wouldn’t interfere with trivial matters, but when it came to a message like this, Ernest didn’t hesitate to press the delete button.

He scoffed at Abner’s confession. Did Abner really think he was someone special, that he could claim he would be with his beloved once he reached a high position?

Did he not realize that no matter how high he rose, could he ever stand higher than the empire’s marshal?

Moreover, after Ying Zhao’s near-death encounter, Ernest had already reasserted his control over the military. Every major family had placed their own people in the army.

Ernest easily took hold of these families’ tactics, and with a combination of soft and hard approaches, he had already quelled the ambitions of those who were plotting.

Although Ernest intercepted the protagonist’s message and Ying Zhao’s terminal did not receive it, with the system Xiao Bai around, Ying Zhao naturally knew about Abner’s actions.

After taking the potion Ying Zhao gave him, Abner’s mental strength had already broken through to 2S. It was unknown if it was due to the protagonist’s special constitution, but just this one bottle of potion had brought him to the threshold of 2S mental strength.

In fact, with a bit more medicinal stimulation, breaking through to 3S would be an easy task, which made Abner, who had gained such power, feel a surge of excitement.

Meanwhile, the Auston family’s lieutenant general had people keeping a close eye on Abner. Even though the appointed time had arrived, Abner had not handed over the so-called potion master as promised but instead had gone to the battlefield.

The news that Abner had broken through in mental strength on the battlefield made the lieutenant general even more envious. Although Lieutenant General Auston had already reached 3S mental strength, which was rare in the entire empire and second only to Ernest, he had longed for a way to further enhance his mental strength. This would give him a chance to surpass Ernest and become the empire’s next marshal.

But seeing Abner’s move to the battlefield, the lieutenant general knew that he intended to keep the secret of the potion to himself. However, as the lieutenant general had been closely monitoring Abner, he naturally received information that Abner had met someone before heading to the battlefield. That person was Yingyan, a student renowned for his genius in the field of potions.

It didn’t take much thought for Lieutenant General Auston to focus on Ying Zhao, believing that Abner’s great increase in power was inseparable from the young genius.

So he personally went to the Imperial Academy, intending to find Ying Zhao and see him for himself. What he didn’t know, however, was Ying Zhao’s relationship with Ernest. Since the Marshal’s men were guarding this information closely, no word of it could spread.

After a few unsuccessful attempts to find the student, the lieutenant general realized something was amiss. He also heard about Ernest’s sudden decision to teach at the Imperial Academy, specifically in the potion department.

Lieutenant General Auston didn’t believe that Ernest was merely trying to show the public that his pheromones were back to normal. Instead, he suspected that the Marshal had also noticed Ying Zhao’s talent and was trying to recruit him.

Thus, Lieutenant General Auston planned to act first. He knew that Ying Zhao was still under the guardianship of the Ying family, and Ying Guohao was a profit-driven man who had little affection for his son.

Auston sent members of his family to approach Ying Guohao, suggesting that the Auston family was interested in forming an alliance with the Ying family. Ying Guohao was stunned by the proposal. After all, no matter how presentable the Ying family might be, they were still a small family. Being favored by one of the empire’s top families was a stroke of luck.

Without hesitation, Ying Guohao eagerly accepted the olive branch offered by the Auston family. When he learned that they were interested in Yingyan, he was a bit surprised, but ultimately indifferent.

In Ying Guohao’s eyes, no matter how outstanding Yingyan was at school or how much profit he earned by crafting high-quality potions, none of it could compare to the benefits of an alliance with the Auston family.

The Alpha selected for this union was just a side figure from the Auston family, an Alpha with no accomplishments to speak of. Although this Alpha was in his thirties and looked dignified, he had a reputation for being a notorious scoundrel. Not only had he achieved nothing in life, but he also relied solely on the family name to throw his weight around, indulging in all manner of vices.

No respectable Omega would be willing to marry such an Alpha, but the lieutenant general didn’t care about providing Ying Zhao with a good match. He simply chose an obedient, worthless Alpha from the family to formalize the union.

Clearly, Ying Guohao didn’t care about Ying Zhao’s future happiness, so the engagement was arranged without informing Ying Zhao, and the wedding was scheduled for a week later.

Ernest, upon receiving the news that his most precious treasure was being casually bartered away by his despicable father, and that Ying Zhao was being paired with such a scoundrel, felt a rage that was beyond description.

He had been hesitant about how to deal with Ying Zhao’s father, worried that his lover might still harbor feelings of familial affection. That hesitation led to this situation.

Ernest’s expression was terrifying when Ying Zhao casually walked into the room and saw him. Startled by the grim look on Ernest’s normally expressionless face, Ying Zhao quickly approached, concerned. “Ernest, what’s wrong? Your face looks scary!”

Ernest’s expression softened as soon as he saw Ying Zhao. Gently embracing the young man, he spoke with a tone of tenderness, “I just received some bad news about you, and it made me furious.”

The Marshal’s lips pressed into a thin line as he struggled with whether to show the information to Ying Zhao, fearing it might hurt him. Yet without revealing it, he couldn’t fully deal with Ying Zhao’s detestable family.

Fortunately, Ying Zhao didn’t leave Ernest in suspense for long, and glanced at the documents in his hands. When he saw that his father had arranged for him to marry an Auston family scoundrel, a playful smile spread across his face, and he finally understood why his partner had been so angry.

Turning, he gently patted Ernest’s arm, kissing the bridge of his nose, and laughed, “Is this really what made you so mad?”

Ernest, hearing this, was taken aback and frowned at the young man. “Aren’t you angry?”

Ying Zhao smiled and shook his head. “They’re not worth my emotions. After all, the person who cares about and loves me most is right here with me.”

Ernest, gazing into the young man’s face, saw no trace of sadness in his eyes, and his heart melted. Yes! His little one was too intelligent not to understand the cold, exploitative nature of his father, which explained why he had always hidden his true abilities. Now that the boy had Ernest in his life, there was no need to worry about such family members.

Although he was pleased that Ying Zhao had seen through everything, this did nothing to lessen Ernest’s loathing for the boy’s father or his heartache for his beloved.

Gently stroking his lover’s soft hair, Ernest lightly pinched his ear and spoke tenderly, “Baby, I can’t tolerate them treating you this way. You are my treasure, and I won’t allow them to treat you like an object to be traded.”

Ying Zhao nodded, clearly appreciating the intensity of Ernest’s love. Thinking of his so-called father, Ying Zhao’s eyes gleamed as he chuckled, “If they want a marriage alliance, let them have one. After all, I’m not the only child in the Ying family. I think my brother would be quite eager to marry into the Auston family.”

Ernest nodded, satisfied to leave the matter in his hands. With him around, there was no need for his beloved to worry.

Ying Zhao remembered that in the original plot, one of the reasons the original character had been so easily captured by Abner’s men was due to his brother, Ying Fei’ang, leaking information for a small reward. Reflecting on this, Ying Zhao thought that Ying Guohao likely had no idea how bold and wild his son Ying Fei’ang truly was, often seducing both Alphas and Betas without regard, frequenting nightclubs and earning a terrible reputation at school.

Now, pairing such a reckless sub with Auston’s rogue Alpha might create an amusing reaction.

Soon after, both families released the news of their upcoming marriage alliance. Everyone knew that an Auston Alpha was involved, but no one knew which member of the Ying family was chosen for the match.

Upon learning of Ying Zhao’s attitude, Ernest naturally stopped holding back and no longer cared about the Ying family. Thus, merely two days later, Ying Fei’ang was found in bed with the person from the Auston family intended for the marriage alliance.

Reportedly, both of them were the type who liked to mess around outside. After meeting at the same bar, they hit it off instantly. They thought they were just going to have a casual encounter as usual, without completing a full bond. However, during their intimacy, Ying Fei’ang unexpectedly triggered a heat cycle.

Omega pheromones burst out, luring the Alpha, and the two, having lost their reason, ended up completing a true bond. Since the complete bond had been established, there was no way to replace the partner. Thus, the scum Alpha and scum Omega had no choice but to hold a wedding.

Both of them were unwilling, but due to family face, they were forced to stay together. The scum Alpha had been told beforehand that the marriage partner was originally meant to be Ying Zhao. Though Ying Zhao had no glands, it didn’t bother him, as he considered Ying Zhao to be far more attractive than that Ying Fei’ang.

He had long coveted Ying Zhao’s beauty, but now he had to marry someone as promiscuous as Ying Fei’ang, who had been with who knows how many people. This made the scum Alpha furious.

Moreover, he had always relied on his family’s power, thinking he was somebody important. He firmly believed it was Ying Fei’ang who had schemed to marry into their family and intentionally tampered with things. Otherwise, how could a heat cycle have been triggered so coincidentally?

After all, this wasn’t the old days. The inhibitors now are extremely effective, and under normal circumstances, such a situation would never occur.

On the other hand, Ying Fei’ang also felt extremely frustrated. He had spent enough time in nightclubs to know the scum Alpha’s reputation. He only thought the guy had a decent face and wanted to play around, but being forced to marry him was something he absolutely detested.

However, given that they had already completed the bond, there was no other option.

Now, both of them had become disposable to their families, with no value left, so no one cared whether their married life was happy or not.

If they had ever seen Ernest’s adjutant, they would have noticed that he looked almost identical to the waiter who served them drinks that night.

While Ying Fei’ang and the Auston family’s scum Alpha were holding their wedding, Ernest also made a bombshell announcement on the StarNet.

The famously aloof marshal publicly declared that he had finally found someone he was willing to cherish for the rest of his life—Ying Yan.

The marshal even shared a personal photo online for the first time. In the picture, Ernest had his arm around Ying Zhao, his gaze tender. They were holding hands, with wedding rings on their fingers.

Originally, because of Ying Zhao’s age, he was still supposed to be under Ying Guohao’s guardianship. However, with Ernest’s intervention, Ying Zhao smoothly registered his marriage with the man on the StarNet.

In this era of interstellar travel, one is considered an adult at the age of twenty. However, if someone has not entered the workforce and remains in school, their guardianship remains under their legal guardian until the age of twenty-five.

Thus, the marshal used a few small tricks to marry Ying Zhao, making them legally a couple. With that, Ying Zhao’s guardianship naturally transferred to Ernest, his husband.

Even if Ying Guohao wanted to exploit Ying Zhao, he no longer had any grounds to hold him back. It must be said that this move by Ernest left everyone dumbfounded.

Ying Guohao couldn’t fathom how his naturally glandless, disabled son had managed to win over the imperial marshal.

Auston, the middle general, was equally astonished. However, he was more convinced than ever that his suspicions were correct—that Ying Yan must have the ability to create a drug capable of enhancing mental power. Otherwise, Ernest wouldn’t need to bind himself to such an obscure family’s Omega.

But right now, he had no time to dwell on this, as the Auston family, long the emperor’s claws, had been making frequent political missteps lately.