Shao Tien [POV]
The walk from my miserable, termite-ridden shack to the bustling central marketplace was long enough to give me a mild identity crisis, but the moment I stepped past the city gates, my jaw nearly hit the dusty cobblestones.
I was utterly fascinated.
Back in my first world, people were just... people. Here?
The biological caste system was on full, unadulterated display like a high-budget fantasy sitcom. You didn't even need a specialized scanning device to figure out who belonged to what class; you could clearly see the social divide just by watching how people walked down the street.
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[MARKETPLACE VISUAL GUIDE]
- ALPHAS: Strutting around like they own the air everyone else breathes. Chests puffed out, pristine silk robes, and auras so heavy they practically scream,
"Look at me, I am genetically superior!"
- BETAS: The exhausted backbone of the economy. Hustling, shouting prices, carrying crates, and looking like they desperately need a five-year nap.
- OMEGAS: Breathtakingly beautiful, delicate, and flanked by an aggressive number of bodyguards or overprotective family members, gliding through the crowd like fragile glass dolls.
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And then, there was me.
I navigated the chaotic crowd, found my designated, slightly damp little market stall, and began unloading my sad, lumpy vegetables onto the wooden display table.
As I arranged a row of highly questionable cabbages, I took a moment to inspect my reflection in a nearby bucket of rainwater.
I had to laugh. My looks were definitely *not* your typical Omega standard. I didn't possess the kind of country-ruining, war-inciting, ethereal beauty that could make an entire empire collapse into civil war just from a single blink.
No, I just looked aggressively average. My face was the definition of ordinary.
But honestly? This worked heavily in my favor.
Heh! I didn't even need to put an ounce of conscious effort into looking like a Beta because I naturally looked exactly like one. Every single fiber of my being, from my messy hair to my unremarkable stance, was shouting,
*"BETA! NOTHING TO SEE HERE! JUST A MUNDANE CIVILIAN WHO LIKES TURNIPS!"*
With my perfect camouflage securely in place, I decided to start my business with a burst of manufactured enthusiasm.
"Get your fresh greens here! Crackerjack cabbages! Mind-blowing onions!" I shouted, putting on my best customer-service smile while my eyes secretly scanned the crowd like a hawk.
I was, of course, looking to see if the glorious protagonist was lurking around the market.
At one point, a heavy silence fell over a section of the street. I perked up.
A incredibly handsome Alpha was riding past on a magnificent, jet-black horse. He had sharp cheekbones, a commanding posture, and looked exceptionally good in my perception.
I checked him out, looking him up and down with intense scrutiny to see if he might be the legendary Male Lead.
*Hmm... nah,* I thought, tossing a carrot back onto the pile.
*He doesn't have that righteous, tragic, main-character energy. He looks way too smug. With that haughty smirk and those expensive leather boots, he's definitely the type to be a mid-tier villain who gets violently defeated in episode three. Hehehe.*
Unbeknownst to our vegetable-vending host, the actual Male Lead was currently nowhere near the civilian market. He was busy being incredibly dramatic in a completely different sector of the capital.
=====°°°°
Meanwhile, at the Imperial Warrior Camp...
The atmosphere at the elite military training grounds was thick with the scent of sweat, iron, and impending vengeance.
Standing perfectly straight in the center of the dusty courtyard was a breathtakingly good-looking gentleman.
His posture was flawless, a testament to years of brutal discipline. In his grip, he held a magnificent sword—the blade was a deep, midnight black, but if the light caught it just right, you could see a dangerous glimpse of crimson red embedded within the steel.
The weapon was exceptionally thin, yet a single glance told you exactly how lethal and razor-sharp it truly was.
This young man was widely recognized as one of the absolute best warriors in the entire imperial camp. Despite his youth, he possessed a terrifying wealth of experience when it comes to the bloodstained battlefield.
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[CHARACTER PROFILE: THE MALE LEAD]
- Temperament: Cold as absolute ice.
- Inner Core: Pure, uncorrupted, and fiercely loyal.
- Emotional State: Harboring a profound, hidden sadness behind a stoic mask.
- Ultimate Goal: Absolute, uncompromising revenge.
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To the rest of the world, he looked strong, mighty, and utterly invincible. But behind that carefully constructed facade of a flawless soldier lay a deeply rooted pain. He was a man living in the shadows of his past.
Naturally, the rest of society was completely obsessed with him. Many young Omegas and Betas routinely fantasized about him, daydreaming about being swept away by the brooding military prodigy.
Meanwhile, the young Alphas in the academy viewed him with immense envy, desperately wishing they could possess a fraction of his overwhelming power and legendary strength.
But our Male Lead didn't care a single bit for the fame, the glory, or the worship he constantly received.
The glittering titles meant nothing to him. His only mission in life—the sole reason his heart kept beating and his lungs kept drawing breath—was to avenge his father's brutal murder. That was the only reason he was still living.
*After the revenge is complete...* he often thought, staring into the distance, *I don't even know what I will do with my life. But I suppose I will think of it if that time ever comes.*
With a sudden, sharp intake of air, he raised his black-and-crimson blade.
He started to sway his sword, his entire body moving in a fluid, hypnotic dance of death.
His hands were so incomprehensibly fast that the human eye couldn't even track the weapon; all you could see was the terrifying after-image of his sword cutting through the wind.
Every single day, without fail, he practiced until his muscles screamed. He was biding his time, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. When the day of reckoning finally arrived, he would make his father's betrayers pay for their sins until their very last breath.
Wiping the sweat from his brow, the young General sheathed his weapon. He changed into his formal imperial armor and began his long walk toward the grand palace.
He had just been summoned for a top-secret mission—a mission that, little did he know, was about to completely change his destiny forever.
=====°°°°°
Back to Our Stressed Host, Shao Tien
The sun began to dip below the horizon, painting the sky in shades of bruised purple and orange. The market was packing up, and against all physical odds, my vegetables were actually completely sold out.
But instead of celebrating my financial victory, I was slumped over my empty wooden table, profoundly tired and deeply disappointed.
*Sighs...* The Male Lead didn't show up. Not even a single glimpse of a brooding, main-character-esque soldier.
I had spent the entire afternoon staring at random strangers for absolutely nothing.
"Whatever," I muttered, packing up my empty burlap sacks.
"I'm just gonna go back home. Tomorrow, I'm taking a day off from the vegetable business. I will not sell veggies tomorrow; instead, I am going to actively hunt for the ML. I seriously hope I can find him tomorrow, or else this plot is never going to move forward."
I swung my empty bags over my shoulder and began the long, lonely trek back toward the direction of my isolated village.
The city noise faded away, replaced by the ominous, quiet rustling of the surrounding forest trees.
As the shadows lengthened across the dirt path, a sudden, violent shiver ran down my spine.
I froze in my tracks. The air temperature felt like it dropped twenty degrees in a single second. A heavy, suffocating sensation pressed down on my chest—it was something really, truly ominous.
*The f*ck is this feeling?*
I thought, my heart rate instantly spiking. My instincts were screaming at me to run, but my legs felt like lead.
And then, like a lightning bolt striking my brain, a specific piece of data from the world plot rushed to the forefront of my mind. I remembered something the System had casually mentioned right before it forced me to pass out earlier.
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[CRITICAL PLOT POINT REMEMBERED]
Shao Tien's Original Fate: Late returning from the market. Isolated path. Kidnapped by thugs. Gang-raped until death.
Current Status: It is late. I am on an isolated path. The System is offline.
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My eyes widened into dinner plates.
*Oh my God.*
*This is the day. This is the exact, specific day where the original owner of this body is supposed to be kidnapped and killed!*
My entire being started to tremble violently. Cold sweat broke out across my forehead, soaking through my cheap cloth tunic. The terrifying reality of my situation crashed over me like a tidal wave.
I started to walk fast—almost hyperventilating—anxiously looking around at the darkening trees. Every shadow looked like a monster; every rustle of the leaves sounded like approaching footsteps.
*The absolute, total f*ck! This is a f*cking big and serious problem! The System is gone, I have the physical strength of a fragile, undernourished Omega, and a group of horrific criminals is actively hunting me right now!*
"How the hell should I escape this?!!!!" I panicked internally, my eyes tearing up from sheer terror.
( ⚈̥̥̥̥̥́⌢⚈̥̥̥̥̥̀)
If I didn't figure out a way to defend myself or alter my path in the next five minutes, World Two was going to end in a permanent game over before I could even meet the protagonists!