Title: 顶级掠食者 (Alpha Predator)

Author:水千丞 (ShuiQianCheng)

Translator: K (@kin0monogatari)

Protagonists :沈岱 (Shen Dai -MC), 瞿末予 (Qu Moyu -ML)

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During Shen Dai’s thinking process, he has thought about the meaning of ‘marking’ many times. This kind of thought was not because Qu Moyu came into his life. Since his second sex has been fully developed, the doubts in his heart have never stopped.

Qu Moyu was the first alpha who made him have a strong urge to be ‘marked’. It was only when he needed to beg for a ‘mark’ that he realised that he had no resistance to the impulse of genes which longed to be dominated and violated by an alpha. The self-will that he has educated himself with for many years and which was strong in him could not go against desire. Under the contradiction, he must find a rationalised outlet for himself. So, he believes that his soul yearns for freedom, but his body succumbs to the primitive instinct to reproduce offspring.

Qu Moyu once made him believe that only when he meets someone he truly loves can he achieve spiritual and physical unity. The ‘mark’ will no longer be a genetic weapon to oppress and intimidate the other. It is nothing but a natural expression of deep love. Back then, he felt that way during the few days of Qu Moyu’s susceptible period for a short time. When Qu Moyu sobered up that time, he only had to face the storm that was waiting for him.

Even when washing off the ‘mark’ that shouldn’t exist, he suffered the greatest pain in his life. But at the same time, he also obtained supreme liberation. He thought that he would never allow that kind of thing to be imprinted on his body again in his life. After so many twists and turns and suffering… after finally seeing Qu Moyu’s true intentions as well as his own intentions…, he consciously chose a future with Qu Moyu. His belief in the unity of spirit and flesh has never disappeared. It was only when the bitter cold passes as the winter snow melts that it would be full of vitality.

***

The warm sun of early autumn shone on Shen Dai’s face, awakening him from his sleep. He opened his eyes and looked at the retro chandelier above his head. He saw the sand-colored light-striped curtains, as well as the sunlight leaking in through the gaps in the curtains. It brought him back to his carefree boyhood days. Everything was simple back then. And now, he felt as if all the burdens on him had been lifted overnight.

He lay in bed for a long time. He felt his body ache. He smelled the scent of pheromone that belonged to Qu Moyu lingering around him. They quickly pulled him back to reality. A small piece of gauze pasted on the back of his neck caused a slight tingling as he turned his head.

Shen Dai couldn’t describe the mood at the moment. He felt uneasy, anxious, embarrassed, and hopeful. But he was not regretful. Compared to the first time he was ‘marked’, he couldn’t resist it back then. But this time, it was his own decision. So he didn’t regret it anyway.

The bedroom door was pushed open. Qu Moyu held a glass of warm water. His hair was half-dried which indicated that he had just taken a bath.

Seeing Shen Dai who had woken up, Qu Moyu was stunned at the door. Shen Dai also got up to sit and looked at Qu Moyu quietly. A wonderful atmosphere circulated between the two of them.

After being ‘marked’ for the first time, the moment Qu Moyu woke up was the beginning of their relationship breakdown. So strictly speaking, they did not really experience a series of positive changes brought about by the ‘marking’ before. There were a lot of misunderstandings and resentments between themt.

But at this moment, the depiction of all literary and artistic works about the changes after ‘marking’ that people have talked about invaded their minds. When people face unfamiliar feelings, they will instinctively find ways to describe it. They have thought of many ways to describe it but it is still impossible to accurately describe the mood at this moment. It was almost as if a lonely, awkward, and strange soul that had been wandering in this world for a long time finally found another soul that fits perfectly with it. What was incomplete between them had now embraced the other and reached eternal completeness. There would no longer be any regrets in life from here onwards.

This great happiness and joy allowed them to forgive everything in their life experiences. They are even willing to die at this moment, just to retain the ultimate perfection of the moment.

The two stared at each other silently and they were sure that the other party also felt the same feelings. This feeling can only be shared with each other in this world and does not require any language to be spoken.

It was so beautiful. So beautiful that it was like a dream.

Qu Moyu put down the glass of water in his hand and sat beside the bed. He kissed Shen Dai’s forehead lightly and murmured, “It’s like a dream.”

Shen Dai threw himself into his arms and hugged him tightly.

Qu Moyu also hugged Shen Dai back. He lowered his head and rested it on Shen Dai’s shoulder, sniffing the scent emanating from Shen Dai’s glands. It was a special scent. The combined pheromones of ebony which smelled cold blended together with Epiphyllum which smelled sweet and restrained. This omega belongs to him. He belonged completely to him. Only then did he believe that he didn’t need to pursue victory again and again in order to see his worth. He didn’t need endless battles to prove the meaning of his existence. He didn’t think he ‘won’ Shen Dai. Instead, he had never felt this kind of supreme sense of accomplishment before. His heart that was suspended in mid-air fell to the earth. When he finally made this person as his, he felt complete..

“I’m worried that I will lose myself after being ‘marked’, but I don’t feel that way now.” Shen Dai’s ear was against Qu Moyu’s left chest. He closed his eyes and listened to his lover’s heartbeat. He felt so peaceful and safe, “I feel very peaceful.” That may be the ultimate peace of mind that a person pursues all his life. When the hustle and bustle ends, a soul will finally find the kind of peace as it found a place that it belongs to.

“Me too.” Qu Moyu felt his nose sore. He never thought that great happiness would make people want to cry.

Shen Dai raised his head and said with a smile, “Let’s go home. I want Qiuqiu to feel this kind of security too.”

***

The two did not return overnight. Qiuqiu cried in dissatisfaction all night until they both appeared in front of him, carrying pheromones that were deeply connected to each other. Qiuqiu obviously also noticed this change and he expressed his happiness with a smile. With that sense of security, he soon entered a sweet dream.

Shen Dai gently circled Qiuqiu’s soft hair with his fingers. His eyes are full of tenderness and love.

“If we didn’t come home, he could cry all night. He’s really energetic.” Qu Moyu smiled, “It’s really hard raising an alpha.”

Shen Dai stared at Qiuqiu. But suddenly, his face changed slightly. He raised his head to look at Qu Moyu and his eyes were a little flustered. He was really dizzy as he just remembered something!

“What’s wrong?” Qu Moyu was also nervous looking at him.

Shen Dai covered his stomach subconsciously and Qu Moyu immediately understood it. A smirk flashed across his face, but he was calm on the surface. He coughed softly: “You were not in the estrus period. The pregnancy rate wasn’t high. It should be fine.”

Omegas are only easy to get pregnant when they are in estrus. This is because they will be ready for that when they are in estruc. But this does not mean that they are safe during the usual sexual affairs. After all, Qu Moyu has already invaded the genital cavity last night…

Seeing Shen Dai frowning tensely, Qu Moyu reassured: “My glands are damaged. It may not be that easy…”

“Lying with your eyes open.” Shen Dai glared at Qu Moyu with a feigned anger, “You have been healed a long time ago.”

Qu Moyu spread his hands and continued to lie with his eyes open: “It’s not healed yet. I still feel weak from time to time.”

Shen Dai ruffled his hair angrily, but he looked at Qiuqiu and couldn’t help thinking that it would be nice to have another cute baby like Qiuqiu.

Qu Moyu stretched out his long arms and took Shen Dai into his arms. He hugged him tightly: “Don’t worry. If there really is one, I will take good care of you and minimise the impact of this on your work. At the very least, I will never let you face it alone again.”

Shen Dai gently held Qu Moyu’s hand and nodded.

“But just in case…” Qu Moyu rubbed against Shen Dai’s face, “If you really carry one, how can we deal with this?”

“What do you mean?” Shen Dai didn’t understand for a while.

“We should get married immediately.” Qu Moyu said firmly.

“What?”

“We can do that today. Your household registration is at home, right? I can ask Uncle Heng to send my household registration to the Civil Affairs Bureau. And then we can go to get the certificate right away.”

Shen Dai was a little stunned: “What are you talking about? How can we just…”

“Let’s do it now.” Qu Moyu stood up with Shen Dai in his arms, “Let’s get the household registration.”

Shen Dai looked at Qu Moyu in disbelief.

“Let’s go.” Qu Moyu took Shen Dai’s hand and blinked his eyes innocently, “Shouldn’t you make me and Qiuqiu a family?”

Shen Dai laughed: “How can you be so impulsive? Calm down.”

“How can this be considered impulsive? I’ve thought about it for a long time.” Qu Moyu took Shen Dai’s hand and placed it on his heart, “In my heart, our marriage has never been broken. Now is just us making up for it. There’s just a gap in between. So I don’t want to wait another day.”

“But, don’t we need to sign anything?” Shen Dai recalled the contract that was so thick that it couldn’t be overturned when they first got married.

“What else to sign? Go to the Civil Affairs Bureau and sign whatever it is that they ask you to sign there.”

Shen Dai’s heart was pounding. He always felt that it was inappropriate to act impulsively. It was as if he was being dragged into a pirate boat by Qu Moyu. But he couldn’t find a reason to refuse him.

Qu Moyu urged: “Look for your household registration and ID card. Okay, baby?” He leaned over and kissed Shen Dai’s face several times, “Come on. I want to marry you right away. I’m going to marry you today.” He was afraid that Shen Dai would be stubborn and regret it later. So he wanted to take advantage of the fact that the two of them had just finished ‘marking’ and when their affection was strong to get to business. This S-class alpha decided to settle it all at once.

He didn’t know if he was affected by the alpha pheromone or not, but Shen Dai found his household registration book and ID card magically. He was dragged into the car by Qu Moyu and was driven all the way to the Civil Affairs Bureau. He remembered that the first marriage between the two was a small process under an agreement. Although it was a contract marriage, he also prepared for it for several days. In comparison, this time, it looked more like a contract marriage than the previous one due to the hasty nature of it.

It was not until the time to take the wedding photo that Shen Dai sobered up from his confused mind. He still remembers the first wedding photo of him and Qu Moyu. It was perfunctory and rigid.

He went to the bathroom. He tidied his hair carefully, smoothed the collar and front of his shirt, and practised smiling in the mirror for a while. He then walked out with a satisfied expression.

Most newlyweds didn’t take wedding photos in the Civil Affairs Bureau, but they would take a good-looking and satisfying set in a commercial photo studio. But neither of them care too much about whether the photos look good or not. As long as the people in the photos belonged to each other.

They were sitting in a humble studio with a bright red curtain behind them, shoulder to shoulder. When the photographer asked them to get closer, they turned their heads to look at each other and showed a bottomless curve of affection in each other’s eyes. Seeing the unwavering love, they looked at each other and smiled. They then turned to the camera, slightly tilted their heads towards each other and kept that happy smile in the viewfinder frame. That smile was saved for eternity in the photograph.

When he walked out of the Civil Affairs Bureau with a red marriage certificate in hand, Shen Dai was still full of unrealistic feelings. He took pictures of it with his mobile phone. He then opened the marriage certificate and looked at it over and over again. He felt the sense of happiness in every detail.

The two did not get in the car. They instead held their marriage certificate and walked along the sidewalk holding hands, like many excited newlyweds who came out of the Civil Affairs Bureau.

From time to time, Qu Moyu put Shen Dai’s hand on his lips and kissed it: “Ah Dai, this day and last night were like a dream to me. But it’s not a dream. It’s true. You are my wife, my omega, and the person I will accompany and love for the rest of my life.”

Shen Dai looked up to Qu Moyu. His eyes gradually moistened and he laughed: “I know. It’s all true.” From yesterday until this moment, his entire heart has been filled with love and happiness. There was no more room to question the resoluteness of this feeling.

“How do you want the wedding to be?”

“Low-key. Don’t bother too much about it.” Shen Dai’s five fingers were interlocked with Qu Moyu’s, “The style doesn’t matter.”

“Okay. I’ll listen to you.”

“You know?” Shen Dai pointed to the road in front of him, “The first time I went through the marriage formalities with you, I also walked on this road. Of course, I was alone back then. I thought about a lot of things. I also thought I had to restrain myself. After fulfilling the contract, I should not put my hopes up with you. But I also guessed that I can’t do it, because that person is you after all.”

Qu Moyu stopped walking and looked at Shen Dai tenderly: “I didn’t believe in ‘fate’ before. But with you, I feel that fate has been pushing us towards each other. Since the accident in the laboratory five years ago. So no matter what happens, we will always end up being together.”

Shen Dai only felt his eyes were filled with tears. He knew that all the bumpy roads they had travelled through had meaning at this moment. He took a deep breath and suppressed the overflowing emotions. He then said: “Mr. Qu has figured it out clearly. This time, I didn’t sign a prenuptial agreement. You must cherish and carry on your marriage with me.”

Qu Moyu grabbed Shen Dai’s wrist and curled his lips into a smile: “My whole being is yours. What kind of prenuptial agreement do we need to sign? My wife will be the big boss in the future. As long as you are by my side every day, everything else is up to you.”

Shen Dai hooked his hands to Qu Moyu’s neck and kissed his lips as he tiptoed on his feet. This kiss is sweet and affectionate. It portrayed the everlasting happiness and meaningfulness of this moment.

The warm sun of early autumn has paved a bright future for them. And that is the future that they will walk on together hand in hand.

***Author’s Note: It’s over, it’s over, it’s over! It’s the happiest thing to have been done!! I’m grateful! To everyone’s support! Writing books is so much fun! I am so happy to have so many people reading my book!  I! Love! You! Countless kisses for you all. See you in the next book!​​​​ -SQC

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THE END

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Next update: 2022.10.07

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*Translator’s note: Thank you so much to everyone who has been reading this translation. I’m very happy to be able to share with you guys. I, however, didn’t have time to share fan-arts made by people on Weibo with you guys. Sorry about that. Hope to see you guys soon in another translation (which I have no idea as to which yet). You guys are welcome to suggest any other stories for me to translate. I preferred modern-time stories with older uke and younger seme. I’m learning Mandarin and also Thai language so stories in those languages are my preference. I can also translate Japanese but I don’t really like Japanese BL novels, sorry. An extra chapter is next. I dunno if there will be more extra chapters but I will keep you all updated. Teehee. -K