Chapter 36: Black Market

Chapter 36: The Black Market

The two of them slept with their backs to each other.

Xu Shaoen stared at the uneven ground, not sure what he was feeling.

The Alpha behind him was breathing slow and steady, like he was about to drift off.

Xu Shaoen closed his eyes. He felt Pei Ju seem to move slightly and instantly went stiff, bracing himself.

But no—the other guy seemed to shift even farther away, the warmth pulling back, like he was holding himself back.

Xu Shaoen bit his lip.

He seemed different now.

Not quite the same as before.

Xu Shaoen rolled over onto his back.

Pei Ju had been lying the same way, but when he saw Xu Shaoen roll over, he scooted closer to the wall.

Xu Shaoen was speechless.

Was Pei Ju really going to cut ties with him from now on?

Xu Shaoen could barely believe it. Every time the other guy so much as stirred, he'd wake up. He tossed and turned all night and barely slept, while Pei Ju, on the other hand, slept like a log.

**

The next morning, Pei Ju stretched.

"Good morning," he greeted Xu Shaoen.

But Xu Shaoen looked a little pale, like he hadn't slept well, with faint dark circles under his eyes.

"Is the place too rough? Trouble sleeping?" Pei Ju asked with concern.

But Xu Shaoen had stayed in way worse places before and never tossed and turned like he did last night.

Xu Shaoen really hadn't slept well last night. Pei Ju had wanted to pull him into his arms and hold him, soothe him, but remembering the tears in his eyes, he sighed to himself and let it go.

After all, he was the one pursuing him now. Even if it was just for show, he had to act like a proper gentleman, so Xu Shaoen wouldn't think he was just some guy taking advantage of a vulnerable moment.

Though he'd only started having second thoughts halfway through taking advantage—he wondered if it was too late to turn back now.

"You hungry now?" Pei Ju tidied up the room and glanced at the time.

Last night Xu Shaoen had said he wasn't hungry—maybe because he was too shy to say yes, or because it was late and he was worried about going out being unsafe.

But now it was broad daylight and the streets were bustling again. They could go grab something to eat.

They'd been living on nutrient solution this whole time and hadn't had a real meal. Sure, Coent City was a lower district, but it was still part of Sama Prime, so there had to be some decent food around.

"A little," Xu Shaoen said, patting his stomach. It was completely empty.

He'd stayed up half the night before finally crashing.

But his stomach had been growling in the middle of the night. He kind of regretted not listening to Pei Ju and grabbing something to eat before bed.

The two of them got ready and headed out.

Chen Junjin was still across the way, drooling in his sleep. At the knock, he dragged himself out of bed, his hair a complete mess.

"I haven't even washed my face yet. You two go on ahead."

As they turned to leave, he ran after them to the door and shouted:

"Don't forget to bring me back something to eat!"

**

The two of them walked side by side down the morning street.

The betas who'd left after dark were back, filling the city with life and bustle.

"Baozi! Fresh, fluffy baozi!"

"Noodles! Tasty noodles!"

"How about some tofu pudding? Made fresh this morning!"

The noisy street gave Pei Ju a sense of déjà vu. He remembered his student days—walking down streets just like this, grabbing a quick breakfast, then heading through the school gates.

The alleys were lined with old brick, weathered by years of wind and rain but still standing strong.

The steam blurred Pei Ju's face. Xu Shaoen, who'd been busy picking out food, stopped and turned around.

He actually felt like Pei Ju seemed especially far away at that moment.

"Let's go get some noodles," he said, tugging on Pei Ju's sleeve and pointing at the noodle stand.

Xu Shaoen stepped forward first, pulling him out of that haze of steam.

They sat across from each other. The table was small, and their knees kept brushing against each other.

Xu Shaoen snapped the chopsticks apart and handed them to him.

The noodles came. The omega across from him ate in small bites, a light sweat forming on the tip of his nose.

"Aren't you gonna eat?" Xu Shaoen bit into an egg and burned his tongue. He fanned at his mouth, looking so full of life.

So how could this not be the real world?

Pei Ju lowered his head and took a bite of his noodles.

This world had a lot in common with Blue Star, but also a lot of differences.

At first, he thought he'd never adapt, never accept it. But before he knew it, he'd been in this world for a while now, and he hadn't thought about his old home even once.

Memories slowly merged, piece by piece. What surfaced in his mind was a gentle mother, a strict father, and an easygoing older brother.

And now, there was someone else vibrant by his side.

These experiences made him feel like he was no longer a traveler passing through, but truly a part of this place.

"Boss, one more order of noodles to go, please."

Xu Shaoen paid, holding the noodles he'd gotten for Chen Junjin, and looked at Pei Ju. "Let's go."

Pei Ju followed behind Xu Shaoen at a leisurely pace.

Their shadows overlapped—sometimes merging, sometimes pulling apart, sometimes pressing even closer.

A faint smile tugged at the corner of Pei Ju's lips.

**

Chen Junjin had just finished washing up when the two of them walked back in.

Chen Junjin took the bowl of noodles, totally stunned: "So much meat!"

"Apparently the livestock industry out here is pretty well-developed, but green vegetables are really hard to grow."

The mutant plants that nobody used to give a damn about are now worth their weight in gold out here in the junk galaxy.

The native animals are all thick-skinned and chewy, practically impossible to choke down, and the plants are nothing but coarse, stringy fiber.

The specialized starships can barely fit all the people they need to haul, so how the hell would there be room to spare for cargo?

So fresh greens have turned into a status symbol on Sama Prime, while chowing down on meat is no big deal at all.

Still, compared to nutrient sludge, this bowl of noodles is a damn delicacy.

Chen Junjin slurped down every last noodle, then licked his lips: "Bro, so where we headed today?"

"The black market."

The black market's where intel moves fastest. If they were Sama locals, they'd already know how to score a ticket, but the tricky part is digging up info without sticking out like a sore thumb.

"You're trying to get through the star gate?"

At that, they all shook their heads and told them to drop it: "Forget it, those tickets are gold, and there's no way folks from the lower districts can even dream of getting one."

One scrawny, dark-skinned old-timer, though, was happy to shoot the breeze with them a little longer.

"You see those bigwigs up in the upper districts? Why ain't they in a rush to leave? Because they can bail whenever they want! Soon as the Empire posts its new appointments and transfer orders, a fresh batch of A-class alphas rolls in from off-world. Once they've padded their résumés, they haul a bunch of omegas out with 'em..."

Omegas at the top of the White Tower can snag tickets by marrying up, but alphas are a different story—they're judged mostly on their fighting ability.

"If you get out there, what can you even offer the Empire? You got grades good enough to get a special invite to the Dome Military Academy? Or you got the chops to take down an S-class alien beast? Or you done something big, like helping run the whole damn galaxy?"

When Pei Ju didn't answer, the alpha let out a scoff: "Forget it! For run-of-the-mill alphas like us, we might as well just rot on this junk heap of a planet!"

But the trip wasn't a total bust.

By stitching together the boarding rules from a dozen or so info brokers, Pei Ju learned that the monthly starship tickets through the star gate come to forty in total, with the upper district, being the core zone, grabbing half of those.

Since they gotta network and mingle off-world, S-class alphas and active-duty A-class alpha officers can hop on board with special passports, as long as the governor gives the thumbs-up.

And to sweeten the deal, those officials can bring along one omega spouse and two alpha or beta attendants when they leave.

The middle district has twelve seats.

Alphas in the middle district usually got some kind of specialized trade.

After forking over a hefty jump deposit and signing a three-year labor contract with an off-world company, they can land gigs like starship tech, mechanic, navigator, and whatnot.

But the catch is, they can't bring any family along. Once they're gone, they'll never see their folks again. And if they change their mind and bail, they lose every cent of that deposit.

Their own lower district is where most of the B- and C-class alphas are packed in.

The lower district only gets eight seats a month, and those usually go to the meanest, most ruthless alphas around.

There's an arena in the lower district, right next to the black market. Some officials toss captured alien monsters into the pit and let 'em go at it.

If some gutsy, fearless alpha cracks the top eight and gets named the month's star, they score a ticket off this rock. The ticket's registered to a name, but they don't strictly check that the person matches it—so the stars get a choice: stick around Sama Prime and keep cashing in, or split and join an interstellar mercenary crew—totally their call.

And here's the kicker: the arena's best fight clips get eyeballed by the big shots up in the upper district. These stars might get bumped up to the upper or middle districts as inspectors or city guards if they catch the eye of some high-ranking alpha, or they might get scouted and signed by merc teams from outside the star sector.

Mercenary work ain't a walk in the park—most of the grunt work and death-defying gigs that imperial citizens won't touch get dumped on these junk-planet alphas, who're desperate to send cash home to their families, so they usually get the job done without any fuss.

So bottom line, the monthly tickets get carved up between the upper-crust elites, the middle-tier workhorses, and the bottom-rung brawlers. The folks who score tickets ain't always the toughest—hell, sometimes a beta sneaks in—but they either got pull or they got serious skills. For your average Joe, getting off this junk galaxy is damn near impossible.

The three of them compared notes and went quiet.

"Looks like option one's the best bet." Xu Shaoen tapped his finger on the twenty seats set aside for the upper district.

Big-shot officials or S-class alphas with the governor's special sign-off can bring one omega partner and two attendants, so Xiaojin could come back with us too.

With any other option, Chen Junjin gets left behind.

"But the catch is, we gotta get into the upper district first."

Problem is, the upper district's only open to A-class alphas and up. If Xu Shaoen flashed his real identity, he could get a meeting with the governor, but after the whole Han Zian mess, Xu Shaoen really can't trust these holier-than-thou officials.

And if even one link in the chain snaps, he's an outsider—easy pickings for some shady bastard to lock up or sell off.

"The other two options are worth a shot too."

Pei Ju mulled it over for a second: "I can throw my hat in the arena ring. Maybe I get lucky and take down a few contenders. And they said the arena fights get broadcast live, with highlight reels, and the Empire's got channels that rerun 'em."

If someone spots us on screen, maybe somebody'll come haul us home.

"No way, that's way too risky!"

Chen Junjin clawed at his hair, all worked up: "Boss, you're just a C-class alpha! You'd get your ass handed to you in no time! And I'm even more useless—I'm a beta. I can patch up a starship here and there, but I'm nothing special, and I just got canned. Even if I made it to the middle district, I couldn't land a job, let alone scrape together the deposit to leave..."

He plopped down on the floor: "Screw it, let's just stay here and make a life. We got our ID cards now, and enough energy stones that we don't gotta stress about food or clothes. Get a job, rent a little room—we've done that song and dance before."

"Easy for you to say." Pei Ju arched an eyebrow: "Don't you wanna go home? Don't you miss your kid sister? Didn't you say you stashed away some cash to bring back for her dowry?"

Chen Junjin's spirits sank for a second, but when he thought of his plain-Jane beta sister back home and his folks getting old, his eyes started to sting.

"If there's any chance at all, I still wanna go back."

He stared out at the alley beyond the flat, wiped his eyes: "I'm gonna go jog a few laps to stay sharp."

Just in case he ends up in the arena with Pei Ju, taking hits for cash, he better start practicing his dodges now—hope it ain't too late.

"What's on your mind?" Once Xiaojin stepped out, Xu Shaoen turned to Pei Ju.

Back when they ran into Han Zian, they'd had options.

But now every road looks shut, and the fastest, easiest way out seems to be option one.

Neither Xu Shaoen nor Pei Ju wants to rot on this planet, so the quickest route is obviously to blow their cover and get into the upper district.

Xu Shaoen's head is a mess of mixed feelings. He doesn't want Pei Ju risking his neck, but he also doesn't want him picking option one.

Would Pei Ju hand him over to the governor? Or to some other high-and-mighty alpha?

Deep down, he doesn't think Pei Ju would, but that nagging...

"We just got here—day one, and things can still turn around."

Tie up this little lamb and hand him over to those drooling jackal officials?

Pei Ju would rather roll the dice at the arena.

After all, he graduated from Dome Military Academy—even if his skills were just a few half-baked moves, there's no way he'd lose to some B- or C-class alphas in the slums of a junk planet, right?

Besides, the arena broadcasts fights live, so news could spread; and even if it didn't, once he scored a ticket, he could pass it to Xu Shaoen.

Maybe it'd take a while—half a year? A year?

Eventually, he'd scrape together three tickets.

Hearing Pei Ju's promise, a little spark of joy flickered in Xu Shaoen's chest.

"Oh, and here—this is for you."

A small silver neck ring appeared in Pei Ju's hand, kind of like a necklace or some sort of accessory.

"This is..."—a gift?

Xu Shaoen took it. The silver necklace wasn't pricey, but it was simple, elegant—actually pretty nice.

But after what happened before, Xu Shaoen didn't ask.

Pei Ju didn't strike him as the kind of alpha who'd give gifts.

"This is a pheromone blocker."

Sure enough, that's exactly what Pei Ju said.

"Your scent's too unique—anywhere you go, they'll clock you as an omega."

Between that pushy inspector yesterday and the weird looks from other customers at the noodle stand today, it all made Xu Shaoen uneasy and upped the risk of his identity getting blown.

So today, while he was out digging for info, he'd been hunting for a suppressor.

But they were either way too old, or too ugly and flashy—nothing fit Xu Shaoen.

Luckily, all that effort paid off. He scored this one off a beta.

That beta's mom was an omega from the White Tower in the upper city who'd married into their family. But the family had gone downhill—none of the brothers made anything of themselves, couldn't keep up with upper-city living costs, so they moved to the lower district.

Their mom couldn't stand that life, so when another alpha waved an olive branch, she ditched them.

It was supposed to be a keepsake, but now he had no choice—he had to sell it on the down low.

Pei Ju unclasped the neck ring and fastened it around Xu Shaoen's neck.

The floral scent clinging to him faded. Now, out in the world, Xu Shaoen would just pass for a decent-looking beta.

With his mental power covering the rest, he didn't have to hole up at home anymore.

It wasn't really a gift, but watching Xu Shaoen wear something he'd chosen still gave Pei Ju a quiet sense of satisfaction.

If they could return to the capital star, he would definitely dress up his omega properly.

Pei Ju took Xu Shaoen's hand and left a restrained kiss on his forehead.

"I'm planning to head to the arena later. Want to come with me?"

==========Author's Note:==========

Second update! Making up for the pain of the chapters that were locked earlier—should be soon, today I'll definitely let you all enjoy the thrill of reading three chapters!