ALSACW – Chapter 100

John was an alpha.

But he wasn’t so sure about that anymore.

Before this war called A-Virtue broke out, “alpha” was an easy label to identify. They liked adventure, bragging, and lecturing naive omegas about the truths and lies of the world. Of course, among other alphas, their self-aggrandizing talk wouldn’t touch on anything too grand—that sort of thing easily led to arguments. They usually chatted about their understanding of omegas, which always managed to liven up the atmosphere. They didn’t actually have to understand omegas; all they had to do was say a few specious things.

For example, “Omegas are as pure as diamonds, but sometimes just as cold.”

Or, “When an omega says they love you, it’s often just the beginning of taming them.”

It was all very simple. The camaraderie between alphas was maintained by these simple things.

Now, however, things had changed a little.

This little thing called A-Virtue had disrupted everything.

At first, it was just a decorative alpha livestreaming online. But because she was S-rank, had been involved in several sensational news stories recently, and had a fiancée named Tang Jianxi, her livestream attracted an immense amount of attention and significance—which, of course, might have been exactly what she wanted.

This attention and significance gradually gave birth to something new. The Empire had been mired in mutual recriminations between alphas and omegas. Omegas accused alphas of usurping their rights for years, while alphas mocked omegas for making eloquent arguments about things that didn’t exist. They had clearly lost in the competition, yet they claimed the victors shouldn’t have won. As for Glory, hah, that was a class issue. What did it have to do with gender? It wasn’t as if aristocratic omegas were paragons of truth, goodness, and beauty.

The two sides went back and forth, neither able to convince the other. The increasingly heated war of words ignited real fury, leading to a dozen vicious incidents across the Empire.

There were arranged fights, sneak attacks, and those who were just fishing in troubled waters.

In short, the situation was chaotic.

But it hadn’t been as chaotic as it was today.

After all, Yun Chuji, that S-rank alpha, had declared with absolute certainty in her little livestream room: “This situation didn’t arise from competition. It all started with malicious cooperation. Alphas first exploited omegas excessively in cooperative settings, then used that advantage to win in competitive ones. It was never a fair competition, because alphas used means outside of competition to defeat omegas.”

“Moreover, alphas have also reshaped the world to better suit them. For example, the destruction and crimes committed by alphas during their ruts are generally treated with leniency, and safe rooms for alphas in rut have been built in many public places. An alpha in rut is an emotional monster incapable of communication, not so different from an omega in heat. Yet people can understand and tolerate the former, while viewing the latter with a lewd and pitiful gaze.”

“So, I say again, this has never been a fair competition.”

These words had spread so widely that even an alpha like John could remember them. But he didn’t understand what they meant. In his eyes, omegas were definitely not as bad off as they claimed. With such a skewed AO gender ratio, aside from that perverted bunch from Glory, John himself and all the alphas he knew treated omegas like treasures. Having an omega was the lifelong dream of many alphas.

John was only now realizing that for an omega, having an alpha might not be that important.

According to Yun Chuji, it was because people had denigrated the heat period so much that omegas naturally had a poor impression of alphas, who were so closely associated with it. Alphas and heat periods seemed to form a trap, one that would forever make them second-class citizens.

John told this to his omega mother. She was silent for a long time, then said in a tone he still couldn’t comprehend, “If identities weren’t transparent on the StarNet, I’d suspect this kid was an omega.”

So, it was true, wasn’t it?

After seeking confirmation, John arrived at this answer.

In that case, could A-Virtue be true as well?

Would it, as it claimed, make both alphas and omegas happier?

John couldn’t be sure, nor could he deny it.

He was just an ordinary alpha who had never been in a serious relationship. His only intimate contact with an omega had been accepting a few gigs on a 404 site to give temporary markings to omegas in heat.

But this was, after all, a growing storm. The Third Princess, once popular among omegas, had publicly voiced her support for A-Virtue, followed by a large number of alphas from the upper-class families on the “Glory list.”

The water was getting murkier, making it impossible to see the original direction.

John didn’t want to get involved. He didn’t want to learn A-Virtue, nor did he want to attack it. So he blocked everything related to A-Virtue, Yun Chuji, Tang Jianxi, and Lucia on the StarNet.

He had a period of peace.

Until now.

John stared blankly at the crowd parading above him. A line of hover cars flew past at low speed, people shouting from within them.

“Long live A-Virtue!”

“A-Virtue is the future of the Empire!”

“Spartacus omegas and A-Virtue alphas fight side-by-side!”

John couldn’t make out the faces of the people in the hover cars, nor could he tell if they were alphas or omegas. In the flickering neon lights of C-District’s fifth ring, they were as imperious as an arrow about to pierce the heart of this place.

Many people, like John, were frozen in place. Others, acting in self-defense, grabbed whatever they could get their hands on and hurled it at the convoy in the air.

The people in the convoy retaliated with their empty or half-empty wine bottles.

Screams and shouts filled the air. In that moment, John felt he must have put on a VR helmet; otherwise, how could a scene like this be happening in reality?

We look like a mob from ancient times.

“Bang!”

A wine bottle exploded at John’s feet.

John flinched.

His pheromones spilled out.

He picked up a shard of broken glass from the ground and threw it at someone in the convoy.

He hit his target.

John smiled, his freckled face looking utterly joyful.

After all, a real alpha was supposed to take risks.

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When Yun Chuji returned home from training, she was taken aback by the solemn atmosphere.

Tang Jianxi and Gu Yun were both staring silently at their terminals. Since they didn’t have the sound on, Yun Chuji didn’t know what shocking news they were watching, but she instinctively knew they were both looking at the same thing.

Because the expressions on Tang Jianxi’s and Gu Yun’s faces were identical—a mixture of shock and heartache.

“Did something happen?” Yun Chuji asked.

Tang Jianxi heard her but didn’t answer right away. She looked at her quietly for a moment, then said something completely unrelated: “This has nothing to do with you.”

An inexplicable jolt went through Yun Chuji’s heart.

She opened her terminal and quickly understood what was going on.

Parades, armed brawls, deaths, and injuries.

The words stung her eyes.

Of course, the two words mentioned most often were the same two she had been saying constantly for some time: A-Virtue.

A group of A-Virtue supporters had clashed with passing alphas during a parade. The two sides first attacked each other by throwing bottles, chairs, iron bars, and other objects. As the number of injured grew, the situation spiraled out of control. People on the ground got into their own hover cars, switched to manual piloting, and charged the convoy.

In the surveillance footage, the two colliding hover cars exploded like fireworks.

For an instant, even the surrounding neon signs lost their color.

The alpha driving the car was named John. He was an ordinary alpha who had never expressed any discriminatory views against omegas. He had even deliberately blocked the A-Virtue controversy on his StarNet.

And yet, he was the one who caused the explosion.

Yun Chuji’s fingers trembled. No, of course this had something to do with her. Every single person who died in this incident was more innocent than she was.

She was the one who brought A-Virtue into this world, but before it could bring the happiness she had prophesied, it first brought pain to the people of this nation.

Tang Jianxi covered her eyes.

Her voice trembled slightly. “Xiao Ji, this has nothing to do with you.”

Gu Yun also said, “This has gotten too big. It’s beyond your control now.”

Yun Chuji took Tang Jianxi’s hand away. She didn’t cry—she had grown much stronger these past days. She asked Tang Jianxi earnestly, “What can I do for them?”

All the tips from her livestreams had been donated to an omega foundation established by Tang Jianxi, but the money was donated in batches, which meant she still had some left.

Before Tang Jianxi could answer, Yun Chuji made her own decision. “I will do my best to comfort their families. This tragedy must not continue.”

“Hm?” Tang Jianxi was confused. How did Yun Chuji plan to stop this tragedy?

Or rather, was there any way to stop it at all?

With Lucia and Clarence now involved, what had started as an action to set up a target and spread an idea among alphas had become tinged with the colors of a power struggle—and such colors were always accompanied by bloodshed.

But she soon had her answer.

Yun Chuji turned to Gu Yun and said, “Grandma, my marksmanship isn’t up to standard yet. I’ll keep training, but not here anymore.”

Tang Jianxi guessed her intention almost immediately. Her eyes widened, and she gripped Yun Chuji’s forearm tightly. “Going out there will accomplish nothing except putting you in danger!”

Yun Chuji didn’t answer, only looking at her gently. Tang Jianxi subconsciously loosened her grip, pleading, “We’re not even married yet.”

“We will get married, Jianxi.”

But only after I clean up the mess I made.

Tang Jianxi closed her eyes. She knew it would come to this. She knew this fool Yun Chuji would never let herself off the hook. She just hadn’t expected her to choose the most dangerous path.

Yun Chuji wanted to remedy this violent situation, but the prerequisite was to place herself in the midst of that violence. What kind of target runs straight into a nest of guns?

However, Tang Jianxi quickly calmed down.

That’s right, the situation was indeed very dangerous. So, it seemed she would have to do something meaningless as well.

“Whatever you plan to do, I’m going with you.”

Yun Chuji thought for a moment and didn’t refuse. Of course, she knew she couldn’t refuse.

After all, she couldn’t control Tang Jianxi’s actions.

Gu Yun, who had been watching from the side, finally couldn’t help but tsk. She took off her apron and said, “I say, why are you two acting like this is a life-or-death parting?”

“Have you two forgotten that your grandmother—me—is a super-strong alpha?”

Yun Chuji looked at her in confusion.

Tang Jianxi also looked at her in confusion.

Gu Yun: “Fuck!”

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