Seeing Ewan staring blankly into space, as if completely disassociated from reality, the man grew anxious. Did he suffer some kind of internal injury? Worried, he took two quick steps forward and placed a hand on Ewan's forehead: "Hey, did the fever burn your brain out?"
"Don't..."
Ewan let out a small cry, but it was too late to stop the man. As contact was made, Ewan was instantly enveloped by the scent of strong black tea. It seemed to seep into his pores, and he felt a sudden, uncomfortable heat rising at the nape of his neck.
Okay, fine. He had accepted that this bizarre world, in addition to male and female, was indeed divided into Alpha, Omega, and Beta, just like in those weird novels the girls used to read.
And that scent of black tea? That had to be the man's pheromones. Objectively, it wasn't a bad smell - quite pleasant, actually - but it made his body churn with a nauseating unease. His physiological reaction was violent, his whole body jerked, and he scrambled backward until his back hit the wall, curling into a defensive ball.
"Hey..." The man seemed taken aback by this extreme reaction. He stammered, flustered: "I'm sorry, I... I didn't mean to. Are you alright?"
As he spoke, he backed away. But Ewan still couldn't regain control of his own body. His eyes began to burn, tears welling up unbidden. This clearly panicked the man, who immediately crouched down, careful not to loom over Ewan from a height: "Hey, please don't cry."
I don't want to cry!
Ewan wanted to scream that very sentence, but his body was currently in open rebellion against his will. Just as he tried to wrestle back control, he heard his own voice - weak, soft, and trembling - betray him: "Why... why do you people always use pheromones to force others! You Alphas are all hateful!"
"I didn't do..." anything. The man couldn't finish his sentence because it was cut off by a heart-wrenching sob from the boy opposite him. In the dimly lit room, the boy looked small and fragile in the shadows.
Chestnut hair fell messily over his face, cheeks were wet with tears, and his sobs were full of grievance. It was a sight that would tug at anyone's heartstrings. The man, clearly awkward, tried to suppress his pheromones as much as possible, attempting to use a gentle aura to soothe the boy.
Minutes later, he heard a tiny voice mumble: "Sorry, I lost control a bit."
Ewan had struggled mightily to stabilize the emotions of this body. perhaps the last lingering grievances of the original owner had finally been purged, allowing him to regain full command.
Possessing someone else's body was truly a hazardous occupation! It was just a giant pit waiting to bury him, there was nothing good about it!
But first, he had to deal with the situation at hand.
Seeing the man still looking at him, Ewan decided to organize the information he had absorbed and spin a pitiful yarn: "I'm a little afraid of Alphas. I'm sorry."
"My family doesn't like Omegas. Since I was little, I've always been bullied by my two Alpha brothers." It was a complete fabrication, but the lingering resentment in the body made Ewan's voice choke up convincingly: "I just came of age, and they forced me to marry an old man the same age as my father. I met him twice, he's a pervert! He tried to assault me every time..."
At this point, Ewan's voice caught in his throat. He closed his eyes, and fresh tears slid down his cheeks: "I didn't want to, so I ran away. In the end, there was nowhere left to run, so I crashed my spaceship into a random planet."
"Thank you for saving me..." Ewan's voice was feather-light: "But..."
The unfinished sentence made the situation seem even more tragic. That single dangling word allowed the man to feel the utter despair of the boy before him. He could almost imagine the Omega thinking that perhaps it would have been better if he had just died.
"You..." As someone who had never comforted anyone before, the man found himself in a difficult spot. Noticing that the Omega was no longer rejecting his pheromones, he continued to use them to soothe Ewan's emotions.
"I don't even know your name yet..."
The sudden change of topic made Ewan pause, but he quickly responded: "I'm Ewan. And you?"
"Asher Ryder." Asher replied succinctly, then continued: "Ewan, you don't need to be afraid. If you've made it here, you don't need to worry about your family finding you."
This surprised Ewan. "Is this place... very powerful?"
According to the body's memories, Ewan knew that some planets were the private property of great clans, forbidden to outsiders. But the Vance family was not a small clan, escaping them wouldn't be easy.
"No." Asher's answer extinguished Ewan's newly kindled hope. Just as he was calculating how to evade the Vance family while scratching out a living, the man continued, "This place is very backward. So backward that it has been completely forgotten by The Empire."
"You can think of this as a poor, forgotten refugee camp. I don't know how many years it's been since anyone came here, and no one can leave this planet either. You can rest assured staying here, we don't discriminate much between Alpha, Omega, or Beta."
"Really? I... I don't have an ID card. Can I still stay?"
The man chuckled: "Have you ever seen a refugee camp that demands a lot of personal paperwork? Relax. It's not just our village, this whole planet is destitute. There's no internet, and survival is a daily struggle for food. Who has time to worry about paperwork?"
"But if one day you want to leave, you can go to Silverton Town. There's a low-grade satellite receiver there, but it's still usable."
The lack of internet and the poverty surprised Ewan. According to what he had read in books and the memories of this body, the Interstellar Era was a time of tremendous development and advanced technology.
To end up in a place where people frankly admitted they barely had enough to eat in such an era was a shock. But Ewan wasn't afraid. Screw it. Being alive and having a place to hide from the Vance family was already a huge win. So Ewan asked: "So... how can I stay?"
"Just report to the village chief."
Ewan nodded. He tried to stand up, intending to ask the man to take him to the village chief to register. Stabilizing his status would give him peace of mind. But Ewan had overestimated his new body. The moment he stood, the world spun violently, and darkness rushed in. Just as he thought he was going to face-plant into the floor, he was caught by the man and fell into a warm embrace.
The scent of black tea was so strong that Ewan's head spun even more.
His face flushed red, and he stammered, "S-sorry, I didn't mean to."
Just a moment ago, he was guarding against the man as if he were a predator, and now look at him - throwing himself into the guy's arms. Oh, this body was absolutely useless.
Asher didn't blame him. He simply helped Ewan back onto the bed. "Never mind, I'll go report to the village chief for you. You rest for a bit; your body is likely still weak. Later, when you feel better, you can go to the back to wash up and check your wounds. It's... not convenient for me to do that..." He coughed dryly, then added, "I'll go to the village entrance to buy some ointment. You can apply it yourself tonight."
With that, the man walked out, leaving Ewan lying dazed on the bed.