Chapter 20

Sebastian was a few centimeters taller than Asher. Usually, it wasn't a big deal, but at times like this, it became exceptionally obvious.

With Sebastian's head lowered, their noses were nearly touching. The warm breath softly exhaled between them was completely impossible to dodge, and Asher's eyelashes grew slightly misty from the damp air.

Meanwhile, his waist was still held firmly in the other's hands.

Asher felt this posture was somewhat inappropriate.

At the very least, it was absolutely impossible for him to execute such a movement toward any Omega.

Yet unfortunately, the person in front of him had completely reined in that look of a predator wrapped in a gentleman’s clothing. His face was flat and his expression entirely composed, his amber eyes layered beneath the gold-rimmed glasses, radiating nothing but an ascetic aura of aloof indifference.

He looked far too upstanding—so upstanding that Asher began to suspect his own thoughts were far too trashy.

After all, this person had been Locked in a battle against him for over a decade. He likely didn't view him as an Omega in the slightest, so what exactly was he feeling so unsettled about?

Could it be that after presenting, his late puberty had finally arrived, and his hormones were beginning to bounce around blindly?

Asher felt this wouldn't do. He absolutely could not display even a fraction of weakness right before Sebastian, let alone let him discover his discomfort, granting him any opportunity to mock him.

Thus, setting his face in a hard line and pressing his lips tight, he put on a front of absolute, calm poise—looking exactly like a young master who was simply being served during a wardrobe change.

Yet Sebastian’s fingers, whether deliberately or otherwise, happened to brush right past Asher's waist. He used a sliver of force, yet the touch remained remarkably gentle. The poised young master instantly tensed his entire frame, dropping a single beat of his breath.

Holy sh—.

He must have done it on purpose.

Asher raised an eyebrow, just about to open his mouth to launch an interrogation, yet the other had already released his waist. Using his thumb and index finger to pin down a specific point on the belt, he pulled a portable hole-puncher straight out from his bag with his other hand.

With a sharp clack, an extra hole appeared exactly at the spot pinned by his fingers.

Following another two clacks, the belt buckle Asher had fumbled with all this time was securely fastened.

Finishing these matters, Sebastian uttered not a single word. Turning around to walk toward the desk, he set his bag down, leaving Asher with nothing but a flat view of his back, entirely nonchalant.

Concealing his glory and title completely.

Asher looked down to gauge the fit—perfect.

So in truth, the guy was simply helping him measure the fit just now?

Asher felt he had likely misjudged a gentleman's heart with his own petty thoughts again, feeling a bit embarrassed.

Biting his lip, he murmured, "Uh, thanks for that."

"Nothing."

A flat response, devoid of any waves—a gentleman as serene as water.

Yet in a location completely hidden from Asher's line of sight, Sebastian twirled his fingers and let out a smile.

In the end, he had failed to restrain himself—succumbing to a desire driven by pure looks, claiming a personal benefit along the way.

The completely innocent and oblivious Asher, currently filled with a mix of gratitude and guilt, asked while examining the belt, "Where on earth did you get a hole-puncher from?"

"I caught sight of Eugene trying on his uniform this afternoon. Reflecting that your waist likely wouldn't turn out any better than his, I went out to purchase one."

No wonder he had suddenly vanished for quite a while.

Sebastian’s mind was far too delicate, exactly like a meticulous old witch.

For a moment, Asher didn't quite know what to say. Lowering his head, he focused intensely on examining the belt buckle. Once he finally resolved the mechanics and unfastened it, Sebastian tossed the hole-puncher straight toward him.

He caught it with a swift grip. "What's this for?"

"Deliver it to Mason."

"Mason's round little frame shouldn't have any use for this."

"Have Mason hand it over to Eugene."

"Then why the hell not just give it directly to Eugene?"

"..."

Sebastian lifted his eyelids, evaluating Asher's genuinely perplexed expression for a solid ten seconds.

Casting his eyelids back down as if accepting his grim fate, he muttered, "In any case, just deliver it to Mason; that's all."

Sure enough, at certain times, Asher was a pure single-celled organism—toss him into salt water and he could be drowned within a single minute.

Staring at Sebastian's expression, Asher felt it radiated a giant declaration of 'You must be an absolute idiot.' He was just about to explode in rage, yet remembering he had misjudged the guy a moment ago and that the other had helped him out, he forced his anger back down.

Flipping the hole-puncher once, he asked, "You don't need it yourself?"

Sebastian extended his hand toward him, measuring out a specific distance between his index finger and thumb. "See this length?"

"?"

"I happen to be longer than you by exactly this much, so I have no use for it."

"..."

Asher's gaze drifted down toward Sebastian's waist, recalling the muscle lines he had faintly caught sight of back at the hospital that day.

He had to admit, this person was not only taller than him, but his physical build was also far more solid. Although he looked lean while wearing clothes, once stripped of them, he was a standard Alpha with a flawless physique.

Bragging.

Mockery.

Deliberate.

Asher gathered a breath in his chest, preparing to open his mouth to yap away, yet he was completely cut off by an abrupt gasp.

"Good heavens! Ash, you two solitary Alphas are actually hiding inside the room in the dead of night to measure this?!"

"?"

Measure what?

"And Ash, you actually lost! Oh my god!"

Mason covered his mouth with his small hands, his eyes fixed wide as his gaze locked onto the hem of Sebastian's uniform, his expression a mix of absolute shock and intense envy.

Sebastian: "..."

Asher: "..."

"Beat it."

In perfect unison.

Mason whimpered: "I merely came to remind you that the hot water cuts off after eleven o'clock at night. If you want to shower, move quickly. Yet you guys are actually fierce to me."

A chubby boy weighing over a hundred and fifty pounds acting spoiled was quite a horrifying sight.

Mason was completely oblivious. "Therefore, Ash, Boss Seb, let's go shower together! I want to join the measurement too!"

"..."

Sebastian's face turned freezing. Snatched the hole-puncher straight out from Asher's hand, he stuffed it into Mason's palm. "Take this piece of trash and find your Eugene right now, otherwise don't ask exactly why you'll be carried out of here horizontally."

"Whimper." Mason walked out the door trembling with fear, yet clinging to the doorframe with absolute reluctance, casting a wave of mournful grief back. "Everyone here ranks in the top three of our grade, so why the hell do you always exclude me from your games? You excluded me from the rank one bet, and now you exclude me from measuring lengths. Are you guys gang up on me, isolating me, and looking down on me?"

"Yes."

In perfect unison once more.

Mason froze for three seconds before choosing to depart from this heartbreaking land.

This once, Sebastian learned his lesson, locking the door securely from the inside before finally turning back around to look at Asher. "What do you plan to do regarding the shower?"

Even if a certain someone weren't an Omega, Young Master Asher and Young Master Sebastian would never willingly squeeze inside a communal restroom with a massive crowd of people while completely exposed.

Furthermore, Asher currently was an Omega.

Thus, without a single fraction of thought, he blurted, "Just wait until after eleven o'clock before heading over, then."

During this season and at this temperature, a cold shower didn't present much of a difficulty for teenage boys, so Sebastian nodded in agreement.

"Then pack your belongings. I'll step out for a bit."

When he returned, he was carrying two thermos flasks packed completely to the brim, alongside two washbasins—enough to barely scrape together a warm shower.

At times, Asher genuinely couldn't comprehend where Sebastian’s extensive capabilities originated.

He was clearly a young master with a prominent family background and a delicate frame, yet he seemed to know absolutely everything, and nothing could present a difficulty to him. Every single problem was resolved with total ease, to the point where people would completely overlook the fact that those problems had existed in the first place.

Compared against him in this manner, it made himself look exceptionally like a piece of trash luxury-boy who was entirely incapable of managing his own life.

Reviewing it objectively, this person possessed no flaws except for being wicked and malicious.

His own dislike toward him was one thing, but genuinely throwing a tantrum would make him look entirely groundless. Furthermore, at certain times, he truly couldn't bring himself to explode in rage. After all, the other did display a fair amount of consideration and warmth, softly puncturing back whatever anger he was about to unleash every single time.

Sebastian, that guy.

He truly was a max-level calculating predator.

The young master’s internal slander was one thing, but he didn't refrain from utilizing the max-level calculating predator's hot water in the slightest.

Fortunately, the communal restroom of the base wasn't entirely barbaric. It wasn't a vast expanse of open space where everyone could view each other's lengths, but featured numerous stalls partitioned off by wooden boards.

Once eleven o'clock passed and the hot water cut off, the crowd vanished completely.

Asher selected the innermost stall in the absolute corner, feeling it delivered a better sense of security.

Sebastian stepped into the stall right next to his.

Asher looked for trouble unprovoked. "Are you planning on peeping at me? Why the hell are you staying this close to me?"

Sebastian unpacked his toiletries in a slow, deliberate manner. "Did you bring body wash, shampoo, or a facial cleanser?"

"..."

He genuinely hadn't.

On past trips, the housekeeper had always assumed the responsibility of packing his luggage. This once, Eleanor had handled it.

Eleanor, that noble lady...

Sebastian continued to slowly pour hot water into a basin, adjusting the temperature. "Therefore, aren't you destined to utilize mine? Or do you intend to cross a vast distance while exposing that valuable gluteal line of yours just to borrow them from me at the other end of the restroom?"

Asher was ready to yap away.

Sebastian handed a basin of water over the top of the partition board. "The temperature should be suitable. Use this now; I’ll prepare another basin with hotter water for you to use later."

...

Asher couldn't yap anymore.

This person had definitively done it again!

Biting his lip, his ear tips flushing pink, Asher accepted the basin. "Thanks."

"Mm."

Sebastian nodded. Turning on the shower head and lifting his head, he let the current hit him directly, soaking his light chestnut hair before traveling down the sharp lines of his face, passing that mole beneath his eye, and dripping from his jawline.

Lifting his arm to run his fingers through his hair, the tensed muscle lines of his arms and neck grew increasingly clear under the soaking water.

Further down, the view was completely blocked by the wooden partition board, hidden from sight.

Asher stared for a full three seconds before abruptly snapping back to his senses. Had he genuinely just deemed the partition board an obstacle because he couldn't continue looking further down?!

Presumably, having just finished presenting, his Omega hormones and primal drives were still in a flux of chaos. He couldn't blame himself.

Turning on his own shower head, Asher hid his entire frame within the current.

While washing, a thought flashed back into his mind out of nowhere: Sebastian’s mole truly was beautifully positioned. Wet with water, it actually looked a bit sexy.

He turned the tap even wider.

Done for. Even his aesthetic standards were being compromised.

Although the shower could hardly be described as luxurious, the two of them had at least completed it.

With a mandatory wake-up call at six o'clock the next morning and assembly at the training field by six-thirty after clearing their rooms, neither of them pestered each other upon returning to the dorm, packing up to head to bed.

The room was remarkably small—barely over ten square meters. Two cots were placed face-to-face, the distance between them less than a meter.

The cots were barely 1.2 meters wide, let alone the fact that the blankets lacked pure cotton and the mattresses lacked down filling.

Asher had never slept in such a grueling environment in his entire life.

Although he had gone to bed early, he simply tossed and turned, completely unable to drift off.

The steel frame of the cot let out a relentless cycle of creaks.

Sebastian was lying perfectly flat on his own cot. Listening to the constant shifting sounds drifting from next to him, he finally couldn't hold back. "Deeming the bed too hard?"

Asher muttered in a muffled voice, "Acceptable enough."

Standing up and bending his waist, Sebastian gathered his blanket into his arms and walked over to Asher's side. "Get up."

"?"

"Layer another blanket underneath, and it should be passable enough to sleep on."

Asher stopped his shifting. "No need. I’m far from being that delicate; there's no necessity for you to act like this."

Had Sebastian been treating him a bit too well recently?

"You're tossing and turning, making a relentless rack of creaks, and I can't drift off either. I have zero desire to be late tomorrow morning."

Asher: "..."

Fine, it was entirely his own self-indulgent assumption.

"It's fine, I'll stop shifting. Go back to sleep."

Holding the blanket, Sebastian remained stationary, showing zero intention of backing down.

Lacking any alternative, Asher rubbed his nose, offering an honest confession: "It’s not because the bed is hard. It's too hot, a bit itchy, and uncomfortable."

Hot?

Sebastian knitted his brows. Utilizing the moonlight streaming from the window, he caught sight of the fact that Asher had indeed only casually draped a single corner of his blanket.

Southaven in early September could hardly be described as freezing, but it was definitively far from hot. Furthermore, this was a barren mountain in the suburbs; the temperature gap between day and night was massive, turning quite chilly after nightfall. How on earth could he feel hot?

Asher also reacted to this detail. Reaching out a hand to touch his own forehead, he muttered, "Could it be that taking a cold shower triggered a cold, and I'm running a fever?"

"Running a fever typically triggers a sensation of cold instead."

Dropping the blanket and bending his waist, Sebastian braced one hand against the edge of Asher's bed, pressing the other onto his forehead.

"A bit hot, but it shouldn't reach the temperature of a fever. Does your head ache? Do you feel dizzy or congested?"

Asher shook his head.

Pressing his lips together, Sebastian thought for a brief moment before asking, "Aside from feeling hot, what other reactions do you experience?"

"Just hot, and my entire frame feels weak. I desperately want to summon my strength, yet I can't find any power."

Thoroughly weak—even his voice sounded noticeably softer than usual, completely drained, sounding a bit like he was acting spoiled.

Sebastian bent his waist even lower, leaning close to Asher's neck to take a sniff.

The extreme proximity sent an instant shiver through Asher's system. He instinctively wanted to shove him away, yet for some unknown reason, he couldn't bring himself to do it.

Sebastian didn't linger long either. Taking a shallow sniff, he swiftly lifted his head to look at Asher's face, conducting a slow observation with the absolute calm and rationality of a physician. "Aside from heat and weakness, do you also experience dry lips and throat, extreme difficulty concentrating, and a feeling that your thoughts are slipping from your control? Or perhaps... a trace of impulsiveness?"

The moment Sebastian outlined the details, Asher finally realized that it was indeed exactly the case. Furthermore, the sensations grew noticeably more intense than just a moment ago, the discomfort forcing him to bite his lip.

Catching his reaction, Sebastian looked straight into his eyes, issuing a flat command: "Look at me."

"Mm?" Although Asher found it completely bizarre, he genuinely fixed his gaze onto Sebastian.

The room was dim, yet the brilliant moonlight from the window streamed inside, faintly illuminating Sebastian's face and tracing it with a soft layer of silver light. His naturally crisp and exquisite features appeared exceptionally ascetic and sexy.

Sebastian's looks, in truth, actually seemed quite handsome.

"Do you deem me remarkably handsome right now, radiating a fair amount of attraction?"

"?!"

This person actually possessed the ability to read minds!

Asher's eyes instantly widened.

Sebastian nodded. "It seems so."

"..."

Before Asher could spit out the word 'narcissist,' Sebastian extended his wrist once more, bringing it to the tip of Asher's nose. "Take a sniff?"

Who the hell wanted to sniff?

Asher took a drag of the scent.

Incredibly fragrant.

The crisp fragrance that had been familiar in the past turned exceptionally alluring today. Asher sniffed with absolute zero restraint, feeling the temperature within his body surge even higher, yet he couldn't bring himself to stop—even reaching out to grip Sebastian's wrist, wanting to climb along his arm.

Catching his posture, Sebastian comprehended everything thoroughly, a perfect clarity in his heart.

Bracing against the edge of the bed, his waist bent and his head lowered, he admired a certain Asher whose eyes were flushed yet thoroughly innocent and dazed at an extreme proximity.

Alluring without a shred of self-awareness; that was the definitive sin.

Slowly parting his lips, his voice dropped low and gentle, laced with an enchanting magnetism: "My beautiful Omega, do you genuinely lack the awareness that your mating heat has arrived?"

"..."

"?"

"!"

"Sebastian, you absolute bastard, you actually stripped my blanket away! What the hell do you think you're doing, you predator?!"