Chapter 85

What on earth was she doing!?

Just as her lips were about to brush the surface of the card, the rich epiphyllum scent wafting from it jolted Li Huan awake. She released the card as if startled, and it clattered to the floor with a crisp sound.

That noise fully snapped Li Huan out of her daze. Her entire body shuddered, and the gaze she directed at the card carried a hint of fear.

It was merely a card infused with Jiang Li’s pheromones—yet she had nearly kissed it. It was nothing more than one of Jiang Li’s cards!

Staring at the pristine white card lying on the ground, Li Huan repeated this to herself over and over in her mind. She suppressed the inexplicable urge to kiss it, along with the bewilderment that came with it.

She had never acted like this before.

For this bizarre behavior, Li Huan’s final explanation to herself was this: After spending the past month around Jiang Li, she had become extremely sensitive to her pheromones, which had inevitably led to a case of loving something by association.

It was because her own pheromones craved proximity to Jiang Li’s that she had exhibited such perverse tendencies moments ago.

Yes, it was all because of the pheromones. There was no way she could have any other feelings for that troublesome eldest miss.

Her ear tips flushed red. The card, which had rested on the marble surface for so long, was finally picked up—somewhat awkwardly—by its current owner. She turned and headed toward her room.

Li Huan planned to tidy up and return home for a visit.

Jiang Li’s parting words had effectively granted her the freedom to leave the Jiang Mansion.

As long as Li Huan showed Jiang Li’s card to the security guards at the gate and said she was going out to buy a gift for Jiang Li, she could leave smoothly and attend to her own affairs.

However…

Recalling how Jiang Li had openly expressed her fondness for Li Huan’s pheromones, her footsteps faltered midway up the stairs. Her fingertips brushed the back of her neck.

She could still faintly feel the warmth and scent of Jiang Li’s fingertips there.

A complex emotion flickered in Li Huan’s eyes. She couldn’t quite fathom what was going through the eldest miss’s mind.

Neither her frank words earlier, nor the intimate gesture of rubbing the back of her neck with her fingertips.

The approach felt teasingly ambiguous, blurring the lines in her eyes, yet it clearly held no romantic intent.

Li Huan shook her head, casting aside the tangled thoughts swirling in her mind. Her expression reverted to its usual cool detachment.

No matter what, she had neither the interest nor the time to play games with this eldest miss.

One after the other, the two left the Jiang Mansion.

“You’re deliberately keeping Li Huan from going to school, aren’t you?” came 123’s ghostly voice.

Jiang Li nodded without hesitation. “Last night, a friend sent me a message about Li Huan—something rather intriguing.”

She didn’t keep them in suspense and revealed the content directly. “Zhou Chenyu suddenly started asking my friend about Li Huan yesterday. She’s convinced Li Huan skipped school because she’s with me.”

Zhou Chenyu, the female lead of this world’s storyline, was in the same class as Jiang Li. Like Li Huan, she had been recruited to Sheng An Academy due to her outstanding grades.

However, even though both had entered via academic excellence, Zhou Chenyu came from a modest, middle-class family, and her relationship with Li Huan wasn’t particularly close.

So, for her to specifically inquire about Li Huan was indeed interesting.

Sunlight filtered through the dense branches outside the window, spilling into a pair of pale amber eyes. They were clear and shimmering faintly as thoughts churned within.

Jiang Li extended her palm, and the fine rays of light danced playfully across her fingertips, evoking images of something vibrant and surging.

Such as an Alpha’s healthy, graceful body.

Thinking of Li Huan naturally brought to mind the fact that Li Huan didn’t like her—a realization that surfaced amid her musings.

But this wasn’t anything unusual.

Who wouldn’t grow weary after spending a month cooped up with this sickly body of hers, catering to its every whim and facing beatings at the slightest disagreement…?

Jiang Li thought: She must be somewhat deranged to like someone like that.

Not to mention the unpredictable time bomb that was 123, which could make her say all sorts of strange things to Li Huan at any moment.

So, let things take their natural course.

After all, her task was simply to ensure Li Huan broke free from the world’s male and female leads’ storyline and lived life on her own terms.

As long as Jiang Li pulled Li Huan away from the protagonists’ orbit, she would have succeeded at least halfway.

Once the task was complete, she could smoothly leave this world for the next one. Li Huan’s feelings toward her were no more significant than a fleeting splash of water.

To pull Li Huan out of the protagonists’ worldline, Jiang Li first needed to uncover the reasons tying her to it.

That was also why she had refused to let Li Huan go to school with her.

The relationship between the female lead, Zhou Chenyu, and Li Huan didn’t seem close enough for Li Huan to proactively share details of her deal with the Jiang Family.

So, where had Zhou Chenyu gotten her information from?

Jiang Li hoped that showing up at school with this frail, sickly body today wouldn’t be for nothing.

The soft light filtered into the car. Jiang Li closed her eyes to rest, resembling a delicately sculpted piece of fragile porcelain. Only her thick, long lashes trembled occasionally, betraying a spark of life.

Calling this body sickly wasn’t an exaggeration in Jiang Li’s view.

This month’s heat period hadn’t just drained her with repeated pheromone flares; even during brief respites, her heart would ache sporadically, robbing her of proper sleep.

The vicious cycle repeated endlessly. Jiang Li was certain that if the heat dragged on much longer, her mission in this world would fail.

And yet, she couldn’t afford to fail. Graduation wouldn’t be easy, Jiang Li sighed inwardly.

Returning to the classroom after a full month away, Jiang Li received an enthusiastic welcome from her classmates.

She was quite popular in the class, and even throughout the school.

It wasn’t just her powerful family background providing support; her personality and appearance effortlessly won affections.

From an elite family yet never arrogant, stunningly beautiful, with a slender and delicate figure. She always wore a faint, elusive smile when facing anyone, blending elegance and fragility in a way that tugged at heartstrings and sparked admiration.

She often took sick leave due to her frail health, but a full month off was unprecedented.

Now that Jiang Li was back, her desk was swarmed, water-tight with classmates. Some genuinely cared, while others probed slyly about who had been with her during her heat period.

Jiang Li subtly noted the ones asking those questions, filing them away for later use.

The crowd around her dispersed only when the class bell rang, finally giving her some fresh breathing room. The smile faded from her lips as she exhaled the stifled frustration weighing on her chest.

This damned heat period.

In this new world of pheromones, Jiang Li keenly felt for the first time how unbearable it was for an Omega to venture out and mingle right after the initial heat phase.

Just moments ago, boys and girls had formed layers of human walls around her desk—all recently differentiated high school students. Even after spraying blocker mist before leaving home, faint traces still wafted with their shifting emotions.

Strand by strand, they swirled around her nose, all unfamiliar scents.

Youthful orange, bittersweet herbs, heavy forest wood… They wafted at her without warning, a multitude of pheromone types. But at the nape of her neck, a cedar tree had already taken root.

Over the interrupted month, the cedar’s cool clarity had silently melded into the lush epiphyllum, domineeringly guarding this blooming flower bud.

Now, facing these aggressive pheromones vying for her, the cedar unhesitatingly treated them as enemies. Her nape throbbed in protest, restrained by the inhibitor spray.

With the heat ended, the bite mark had naturally healed somewhat.

Now, the cedar was trapped at her nape, its potent, aggressive pheromones slamming against her skin, making it ache. Jiang Li gently pressed her fingertip there, trying to soothe it.

At first, it was a light touch, but peace didn’t last. She parted her hair and pressed her palm firmly against it—a warning from the owner of the epiphyllum scent.

The source of the pheromones was fragile and in need of care.

Clearly, the force Jiang Li applied wasn’t gentle.

Irritation flashed in her eyes. Her nape prickled with dense pinpricks of pain. Class had just begun, and she was already wondering if she should go home.

The cloying pheromones crowding her earlier had made her uncomfortable, and even the fresh air from the window now offered little relief. Her heart raced restlessly.

A trace of cedar scent happened to drift to her nose.

Li Huan’s pheromones really were pleasant, Jiang Li thought.

She twirled her black pen deftly between her fingers. The occasional glances drifting her way irritated her; her lips pressed into a thin line as she swept a cold look back.

Her eyelids were naturally thin; when softened deliberately, they gave a gentle air, but when her expression chilled, the inherent haughtiness of a pampered eldest miss shone through unmistakably.

It sent chills down spines.

Jiang Li sat by the window, and this class happened to be taught by the homeroom teacher—hardly a time for anyone to let their gaze wander.

The female lead, visibly distracted, was the obvious exception.

When Jiang Li turned to look at her, the girl seated against the wall quickly averted her eyes. Her ponytail, tied back, whipped unnaturally, betraying her wandering mind.

Naturally, the sharp-eyed homeroom teacher caught her, calling her to answer a question.

Satisfied that she had stopped staring, Jiang Li withdrew her gaze, letting it drift vaguely to the empty desk and chair ahead. The person who had once straightened their back to shield her from the teacher’s view hadn’t shown up.

She had kept her at home—or so Jiang Li guessed, she had probably left the Jiang Mansion by now.

After all, to leave with Jiang Li’s permission, she had blushed to her ear tips while explaining herself. Amusement flickered in Jiang Li’s eyes.

Unaware that her own flushed ears had been noticed by Jiang Li, the girl was now standing before a plush toy, backpack slung over her shoulder, eyes locked intently on it.

For some inexplicable reason, she had spotted this plush, wandered inexplicably into the shop, and now stood motionless before it.

Li Huan didn’t like plush toys; there wasn’t a single one in her home.

But Jiang Li seemed to adore them, even dedicating a corner of her room to displaying all sorts.

Curiosity drew Li Huan’s hand out to touch the squirrel.

Its body was wrapped entirely in soft fur, fine and plush to the touch—so soft it melted the heart.

Stitched with lively features, it looked ready to leap through pine woods the next instant, body relaxed, fluffy tail curved luxuriously high behind it, tipped with brown that begged to be pinched.

She had said she liked Li Huan’s pheromones.

And this plush toy’s full name was Snow Squirrel.

Her gaze lingered on it for a long time. In the end, Li Huan took it back to the Jiang Mansion, hesitating before placing it beside her pillow.

Wrapping pheromones slowly onto the plush would take time and required close proximity to the person. Li Huan couldn’t carry it around, nor did she want Jiang Li to notice.

Besides, Jiang Li never came to her room anyway.

The room’s lights were off, casting a long shadow across the floor. After a moment, the arm hanging at her side slowly lifted, accompanied by a drawn-out sigh that lingered.

The object of that sigh was currently tempted to let out a long sigh of her own.

Jiang Li rubbed her aching temples, leaning back in her chair as Ning Yi enthusiastically shared gossip about Zhou Chenyu and Lou Ke—the very reason Zhou Chenyu had been asking around about Li Huan.

The plotline had just kicked off when Jiang Li arrived in this world.

Since it was only beginning, the deep bond between the protagonists hadn’t yet surfaced. In fact, Zhou Chenyu currently harbored disgust toward Lou Ke.

A slacker at the bottom of the class rankings, wasting days away and throwing his weight around thanks to his family.

The exact type Zhou Chenyu despised most.

Yet Lou Ke persisted in pestering her, declaring his pursuit.

Wherever she went—the cafeteria, the sports field, the balcony for some air—there he was. Even after school, he trailed her all the way home.

Faced with this near-hooligan behavior, Zhou Chenyu confronted him directly to stop, only to receive: “I’ll chase you until you have a partner.”

Hearing this, Jiang Li began to suspect the reason behind Zhou Chenyu’s search for Li Huan.

Though the Lou Family didn’t rival the Jiang Family, it was still prominent in the city. Lou Ke, the family’s sole heir of his generation, had been spoiled rotten since childhood.

Few dared oppose him when he set his sights on pursuing someone.

Except Li Huan.

Zhou Chenyu must have learned of Jiang Li’s connection to Li Huan from Lou Ke.

Li Huan didn’t stand out much in class, but her S-level Alpha differentiation report and her perennial spot as grade first made her impossible to overlook.

Some might help, but for Zhou Chenyu, Li Huan was the ideal choice.

Silent personality, top grades, high differentiation level—and most crucially, dirt-poor background.

And Ning Yi’s account of what followed aligned perfectly with Jiang Li’s guess.

Tch. Jiang Li averted her gaze, a flash of disdain crossing her eyes. She said nothing more about such tactics, only steeling her resolve to yank Li Huan from this absurd worldline.

Simply because Li Huan had no backing, she was reduced to a tool to boost the protagonists’ romance. What a pitiful worldline.

Her drifting gaze returned to the blackboard. Jiang Li lightly patted Ning Yi, who was still chattering, signaling her to stop.

The two watched as Zhou Chenyu approached, arms laden with a massive stack of practice sheets. Her eyes dodged Jiang Li’s at first, then firmed.

She gently set the sheets on Li Huan’s desk. Meeting Jiang Li’s surface smile—which Zhou Chenyu found subtly mocking— she nodded faintly.

Gripping her hands tightly, Zhou Chenyu asked softly, “I heard Li Huan’s staying with you now. Could you trouble yourself to pass these practice sheets to her?”

“She’s always particular about them, so I picked them up for her.”

Her voice was soft, fragile as a breeze.

It set Ning Yi’s teeth on edge. She shot Jiang Li a look: Here’s someone asserting her “main palace” status. Aren’t you going to say something?

Facing these words that dragged her into trouble, Jiang Li smiled gracefully, embodying the poise of an eldest miss.

The next second, in front of Zhou Chenyu, she dialed Li Huan’s number.

The instant it connected, Jiang Li clearly saw Zhou Chenyu’s smile crumble, twisting awkwardly.

Hearing the slightly hurried breaths on the other end, Jiang Li softened her voice. “If there were another Alpha’s pheromones around me right now, would you graciously accept it?”

Ning Yi’s eyes widened beside her, her gossip-hungry stare fixed on Jiang Li.

No way, right? She just spent her first heat with you, and you’re already bored?!

Evidently, the thought wasn’t unique to her.

On the other end of the line, dead silence fell.