Little Pink Starfish

In Su Liang’s memory, his sister Su Nuan had always been a gentle person.

Just like her name, she was warm—but also incredibly strong. After their parents died, she had raised Su Liang on her own. Later, she married into the Lu family despite being a commoner, enduring hardships that were beyond imagination. Even so, Su Liang had rarely seen her lose control.

Until today.

Only now did he realize—his sister could swear. And when she did… it was terrifying.

Su Nuan had just about cursed the ancestors of both the Ning and Lu families. Su Liang had no doubt—if it weren’t already so late, she might have rolled up her sleeves and gone straight to the Ning family to throw hands.

What had set her off was a sudden viral post on Starnet.

The post itself was simple: it listed, side-by-side, Ning Jiayi’s fake, hypocritical public statements from his official account—right next to all the things he had actually done in real life.

Lu Zhizhao got the same treatment.

None of it was exactly secret, but once someone laid out the timeline clearly, it became painfully obvious: Lu Zhizhao had claimed to like Su Liang, all while getting tangled up with Ning Jiayi. Even after Su Liang had publicly asked him multiple times to stop bothering him, he kept doing it. That didn’t stop him, however, from marking Ning Jiayi, getting him pregnant, and eventually marrying him.

With the recent livestream from that small-time influencer and the exposure of Ning Jiayi’s alt accounts, the post exploded.

Starnet’s gossip-hungry crowd was left speechless by Lu Zhizhao and Ning Jiayi’s behavior.

Especially since the post included plenty of irrefutable evidence.

Many Omegas had suffered from Ning Jiayi’s petty cruelty—some of them just for talking to Lu Zhizhao during normal business. That alone was enough to get them targeted. As the heir of the Ning family, all it took was a slight hint from him for others to take action on his behalf.

Some Omegas had to transfer to other star systems just to escape the harassment. Others fell into deep depression… some were even driven to take their own lives.

And as Lu Zhizhao’s so-called “friend,” Su Liang had endured even more.

“…If I’d known you were being treated like that, I would’ve divorced your brother-in-law on the spot and taken you out of that hellhole!”

Su Nuan’s voice broke after minutes of furious ranting. Her eyes reddened.

“Jie, it’s okay. I’m not involved with Lu Zhizhao anymore. And all of that… it’s in the past. I don’t even really remember it.”

Su Liang tried to soothe her gently.

And he wasn’t lying.

He had suffered under Ning Jiayi—but that pain was nothing compared to being hunted, exiled to District 48, and forced to do hard labor in the garbage pits after running away with Lu Zhizhao.

Having lived a second life, Su Liang had nearly forgotten the little games Ning Jiayi used to play—until that post reminded him.

After a long while, Su Nuan finally calmed down.

Su Liang exhaled deeply.

Then, unable to help himself, he took a risk—lowering his voice just a bit.

“…You’re really not going to scold me about being with the Snake Master? I thought for sure I’d be getting an earful today.”

Su Nuan rolled her eyes at him.

She grabbed a tissue, blew her nose, and tossed out a stiff reply:

“I’d been mentally preparing for this for a while now, okay?”

Her expression was exasperated.

“Every time we called or met, nine out of ten of your sentences were about the Snake Master. I just didn’t call you out on it. Looking back, I really should’ve shoved a mirror in your face so you could see how you looked when you talked about him.”

“Jie?!”

Su Liang froze. That was not the reaction he’d expected.

And what he didn’t know… was that the very subject of her complaint was sitting right next to him, quietly listening to her vent through the call.

As soon as she finished, Lu Taipan’s gaze turned scorching.

“What was it again? ‘The Snake Master is so handsome,’ ‘The Snake Master is amazing,’ ‘How is the Snake Master so strong?’ ‘He’s so gentle and reliable’…”

Su Nuan began ticking off the “fangirl quotes” with her fingers, one by one.

“Th-That was…”

Su Liang wanted to die.

He had planned to take this opportunity to let Su Nuan know Lu Taipan was right beside him.

But now he just wanted to jump out of the hovercar.

“…I’ve been through things, okay? I knew this was coming.” Su Nuan sighed, helplessly.

“I figured, if you liked the Snake Master, well… it was still better than ending up with Lu Zhizhao. At least the Snake Master is too busy to toy around. He’s seen plenty of beauties—he wouldn’t spare a glance at a kid like you. Worst case, your crush just fades away, and it’s over. No big deal.”

“But who could’ve known that he…”

She massaged her forehead.

“…Ugh, forget it. Just be good to each other. He already treats you like his partner. What can I say?”

Remembering how Su Liang had been glowing with happiness lately, Su Nuan’s tone finally softened.

“Of course, if he ever mistreats you, you have to tell me, understand?”

Just as she was about to hang up, she glared fiercely into the screen.

“The Snake Master is actually really kind. He won’t hurt me—” Su Liang said reflexively, then caught the disappointed, “you’ve been brainwashed” look in her eyes.

He fell silent instantly. His face turned bright red.

After Su Nuan finally ended the call, Su Liang let out a long breath.

But the end of that conversation didn’t mean he was safe—he could feel the intensity of the gaze beside him.

Turning his head, he met Lu Taipan’s amused eyes.

“I’m kind?”

Before Su Liang could explain, Lu Taipan slowly repeated her words, one by one:

“I’m strong? And gentle? And reliable…”

“So that’s how you see me?”

Su Liang bit his lip, his face flushed red, his voice trembling. But instead of avoiding the question, he answered softly:

“If I were lying… my sister would’ve seen through it.”

The unexpected response made Lu Taipan pause.

The boy’s voice was soft and shy, but full of certainty.

“And you are kind to me,” Su Liang added. “That post on Starnet—it was your doing, right?”

Only Lu Taipan would care that much about whether Su Liang might be hurt by public opinion.

Sure enough, the focus on Lu Zhizhao and Ning Jiayi’s drama had diverted attention, shielding Su Liang from most negativity. That was no accident.

Lu Taipan smiled faintly.

“My steward did it.”

“…Thank you.”

Su Liang took a deep breath and said it seriously.

It was hard to describe how he felt.

Back when he was with Lu Zhizhao, he’d been scorned and gossiped about so much, he thought it was just normal.

He’d told himself he could take it.

He never expected that being shielded—being truly protected—would feel so overwhelming. He didn’t know what to do with it.

His chest felt warm. And a little sore.

“No need to thank me,” Lu Taipan replied gently. Then he added, after a pause, “Actually, I should be apologizing to you.”

“…For what?”

Su Liang blinked.

“I was too slow. I should’ve brought you back to Snake Den a lot sooner.”

Lu Taipan murmured.

“I met you before Lu Zhizhao ever did. But I let you slip through my fingers… I should’ve taken you home the moment I saw you.”

For a man so much older, he looked strangely childlike saying those words.

Su Liang sighed.

“I was fourteen. If you had taken me home, it would’ve been illegal.”

Lu Taipan blinked. “I just wanted to take care of you—how would that be illegal?”

Then his voice cut off mid-sentence.

His gaze darkened.

Su Liang also realized what he had just implied—and his whole face turned red.

What the hell was he thinking?!

“I—I just meant…”

He tried to explain, but the more he talked, the more it sounded like his mind had been in the gutter.

Lu Taipan stared at him.

The Omega’s pale skin flushed a delicious pink. Lu Taipan licked the faint bite mark on his lip—the one Su Liang had left.

Maybe… it would feel better if the mark stung a little more.

…

The trip from the Governor’s Mansion to Snake Den wasn’t a long one. But that night, the dark hovercar lingered on the route for far longer than usual.

When it finally arrived, the doors opened, and a warm, sweet scent mingled with incense drifted from inside.

A tall, handsome Alpha stepped out, carrying a boy in his arms. The black coat that had once draped over the Snake Master now covered the boy.

Su Liang was curled in Lu Taipan’s embrace, head lowered, clutching his shirt tightly.

Though no one was around, he still didn’t dare lift his head.

*

At the same time, in the unregulated grey zones beyond the Earth Federation—

A pitch-black long-range starship slowly docked with a small automated craft. A mechanical arm extended, latching the smaller ship beneath it.

Two figures clad in black armor dropped silently onto its hull.

They pried open the outer hatch with practiced ease and slipped inside.

The interior was bathed in crimson.

Warning lights flashed rhythmically. Gravity had failed. The space was full of empty bottles, syringes, and trash—all floating eerily.

Near the cockpit, a corpse hovered—lifeless, eyes clouded gray. His face twisted in agony and madness.

His hands were clenched like claws, nails dug deep into his throat.

Even with air filtration and full armor, the blood stench was overwhelming—because Bai Nian had torn his own throat open.

The two Snake Den operatives were silent for a moment.

Then—

[Calling Snake Den central command.]

One of their voices came through, cold and calm.

[Bai Nian, previously exiled, confirmed deceased—homicide.]