Wolf Servant

Chapter 9: Provocation

[Another shining new Beta recruit.]

...

[Plus a Faise Lancelot... the world seems to be falling apart. There have been too many outstanding Betas in recent years, while the status of Alphas remains so high that no one questions them—are the Alphas still up to the task?]

...

[If this continues, one day, Omegas might even have the right to participate in the battlefield... Strength and weakness are not innate, right? At least the oldest wolf packs weren’t; it’s said that their status wasn’t determined at birth but by their claws and fangs.]

...

[Wow, I watched Fendir Kai live using the "Stellar Track" series. "Stellar Track"! The last time I saw this series of mechas was in a museum! Incredible, I wonder what his background is!]

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[Fendir Kai, nineteen, from Star Shard Alley, 13th Street, Atlantis City. His parents are ordinary assembly line workers at a mecha manufacturing plant... uh, Atlantis, 13th Street, isn't that the famous lower district?]

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[So, he's from a poor family?]

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[What, what, what! A bright child from a humble family? This is getting interesting hahaha, seems like the elite noble preschool education they love to brag about has suddenly become a joke—]

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[Wonder what the Lancelot family thinks, can someone interview them?]

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[Bai Jue Lancelot, being humiliated by a Beta in such a setting, what a wimp, does he really think he’s an Omega?]

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[The poor young master of the Lancelot family, now holds the record for being the fastest to be surpassed. His expression must be priceless right now!]

...

In the freshman lounge, tables and chairs were overturned, a complete mess.

Smash!

He viciously threw the communicator into the corner, where it bounced and shattered into pieces from the immense force!

Those gleeful jerks on the campus anonymous forum weren't wrong; at this moment, Bai Jue Lancelot's expression was indeed priceless—

"Are these people out of their minds?!" The black-haired boy's face was twisted, his previously rosy cheeks now pale, and he looked like his fur was about to explode. "Are they blind? I’m still the second-best, what's so interesting about dragging the Lancelot family into this—why don’t they make fun of those Alphas who did worse than me?!"

In the lounge, everyone had already retreated far away.

So, at this moment, the only one who could face Bai Jue's wrath was the person he always despised, Faise—who had been elusive earlier, then appeared the moment Bai Jue saw the preliminary results on the big screen and flew into a rage, bringing him to this lounge...

Now, the man bent down to pick up the shattered communicator, unsurprisingly smelling the scent of burnt components... He casually put the broken device into his pocket and said gently, "Young master, since ancient times, the second place has always been the biggest loser. If people want to find someone to mock, then of course..."

Faise swallowed the rest of his words under Bai Jue's fierce glare.

Judging by the atmosphere, he wouldn’t be too surprised if the next second a black wolf with slightly curly fur pounced and bit his neck—

At least Bai Jue looked like he wanted to.

He was furious.

"And you’re defending him," Bai Jue took a few steps forward and grabbed Faise's collar. "You also think I'm ridiculous, huh? An Alpha beaten by a Beta—"

The black-haired boy’s pupils contracted dangerously into a point.

He gripped Faise's collar so tightly that the man had to bend down slightly to accommodate—

They were very close, close enough that Faise was almost breathing Bai Jue's exhaled carbon dioxide.

"Oh, I almost forgot, the great Faise Lancelot, you are also a Beta who surpasses Alphas." Bai Jue sneered, about to let go—

Just then, as he was about to release his hand, another large hand pressed down quietly.

"Young master, calm down." The hand, covered in black leather gloves, pressed down on the back of Bai Jue’s hand, the man's voice low, "You know I didn’t mean it that way. You are outstanding—whether as the heir of the Lancelot family or as an Alpha—what other Betas do is of no concern to me."

The leather gloves felt slightly cool.

That temperature seemed to travel from his hand to his brain, making Bai Jue pause, as if the fire within him also cooled slightly—

Black eyes met those calm, blue eyes, the latter's gaze steady and without any ripple.

... Not like someone who was lying.

Bai Jue: "..."

Bai Jue took a deep breath and withdrew his hand from under Faise's palm, stepping back—

He collapsed back into the lounge’s soft, wide sofa, exhaling a frustrated sigh... Bai Jue rubbed his head, frowning, feeling that maybe he had indeed overreacted.

Wasn’t he always the one under scrutiny?

Called effeminate, weak, useless...

And today, his performance in the first drill had given those people a huge slap in the face, as for that minor "flaw"...

Bai Jue paused, muttering, glancing reluctantly at Faise: "... Alright, Faise, did you see that Beta’s operation?

Was he really that good? Did he use the 'Stellar Track' series mecha?"

Deciding to face reality after his anger.

"However, his opponent also used 'Stellar Track', young master. It was a match from the lower district under the same conditions." Faise gave an unexpected answer after glancing at Bai Jue.

"... What? How could there be two of those old machines, uh, wait." Bai Jue paused, lifting his head with a changed expression. "The people on the forum didn’t mention this."

"Because mentioning it would make it seem less impressive, they just needed to say the part that was annoying enough—" and make those unsuspecting fools jump up in anger, scratching and baring their teeth.

Faise swallowed the last part because Bai Jue had already widened his eyes again: "You look like you're saying they didn't mention it just to fool a gullible fool like me."

... Yes, exactly.

"Young master, please don’t accuse people randomly." Faise looked down, lying with a straight face.

Bai Jue didn’t notice his slight avoidance of eye contact, just impatiently tapping the floor with the tip of his heavy black military boot: "So, that Beta... isn’t as impressive as imagined?"

"‘Bright children from humble families’ are rare. Perhaps one out of ten from the lower district is excellent, the rest are barely capable of entering this school... They have such limited knowledge of mechas due to their poverty, it’s like a middle-grade horse against a lower-grade horse, so the middle-grade horse wins quickly, that’s normal." Faise said blandly, "And your recent opponent used the 'Star Lord' series Light Speed Mecha, obviously from a wealthy family, with access to systematic preschool education..."

"Hmm?"

Faise paused, lifting his hat brim: "Young master, your match was a battle of top-grade horses."

Bai Jue pursed his lips, looking unconvinced.

Faise smiled and continued: "Mecha combat speed never represents everything. Even when I practice with the teachers using mechas, we don’t consider time as a key quality indicator. Time only reflects the strength gap between the contestants... If you don’t believe me, you can check the final evaluation scores."

"…"

It seemed Faise’s reminder about the scores worked, and Bai Jue instinctively reached for his pocket—only to find it empty—then remembered he had smashed his communicator...

Bai Jue glared at Faise again, as if it was also Faise’s fault that his communicator was broken—

Standing up, he reached into Faise’s pocket, took out his communicator, and logged into the first-round competition evaluation page. Bai Jue found that Faise was right: although the Beta with thick glasses was nearly ten seconds faster than him, the judges gave them the same score, and Bai Jue even scored slightly higher in technical performance.

—Those judges were all military personnel sent to scout for talent, some so old that even his father had to call them teacher, so there was no question of them giving favor to the Lancelot family, and they were indeed professional and authoritative.

"Hmph."

Bai Jue shoved Faise's communicator back into his pocket, now much more at ease.

Faise, evidently used to this, quickly calmed a raging wolf pup.

Straightening the chair Bai Jue had kicked over, Faise rearranged his military uniform and was about to tell Bai Jue to prepare for the next round of battle when he turned and found Bai Jue still watching him.

Faise: "What?"

Bai Jue, now calmer and thinking clearly, rolled his eyes: "

“My communicator is broken?”

Faise: “Yes, it is.”

Bai Jue: “Then why don’t you throw it away? Why did you pick it up? For the recycling refund?”

“…” Faise sighed, “Young master, the communicator contains a lot of personal information. If someone with ill intentions gets hold of it, it could pose a threat to your safety—”

“For example?”

“For example, your selfie taken right after a shower, with only a towel wrapped around your waist, in front of the mirror.”

The pale face of the black-haired boy froze for a moment, then turned a suspicious shade of pink: “… There are no such pictures in my communicator.”

“When you took that selfie, I was less than five meters behind you. I clearly saw you save that photo and—”

“Faise.”

“Yes, young master?”

“Shut up.”

“Alright, young master.”

…

Bai Jue stood up from the chair and put his military cap back on.

As he and Faise walked out of the lounge, he heard some commotion behind them… Almost instinctively, he tilted his head—

Then he saw the Beta being surrounded by media reporters at the end of the hallway, Fendir Kai.

At that moment, Fendir Kai also seemed to sense Bai Jue’s gaze. In the crowded corridor, the two new stars locked eyes.

Under Bai Jue’s gaze, Fendir Kai raised his hand, adjusted his glasses, and turned to one of the reporters, saying calmly, “I have nothing much to say. I just want to prove that one’s background or family doesn’t determine whether someone is excellent—just like the esteemed Faise Lancelot, if you work hard enough, whether you are an Alpha, a Beta... or even an Omega, you can do very well.”

Flashbulbs went off repeatedly.

The reporters were full of praise, furiously taking notes.

As Fendir finished speaking, he caught a glimpse of the black-haired noble young master standing at the other end of the corridor, whose expression remained unchanged throughout. Suddenly, the young master smiled, revealing sharp wolf-like teeth—

The boy raised his hand, drew a thumb across his neck in a highly provocative gesture, then mouthed: "I’ll kill you in the training field, ignorant Beta."