ALSACW – Chapter 139

The streets of the Empire had always been sparsely populated, mostly filled with various machines. People hid inside their mechanical shells, conversing through technology and metal, keeping one another at a safe distance.

This wasn’t entirely bad, as it allowed people to let down their guard.

But it wasn’t entirely good either, as it emboldened them to tell lies with impunity.

At this moment, the Howard family was telling lies. They skillfully stitched together facts, twisting them into something completely different from the original, all to incite hatred.

More and more troops were dispatched to Qinglan Star.

But the forces led by the Howard family did not remain on Qinglan Star. They coordinated attacks on various planets from both within and without. Protective shields were breached from the inside, and missiles rained down from outer space, bringing death, bloodshed, and hatred.

After striking, these small harassment units would retreat to a remote planet to recuperate, only for a second and a third wave to appear.

The weapons available to the Empire’s citizens could not defend against enemies from beyond the atmosphere, so people were forced to hide underground like insects to save their lives.

It wasn’t just alphas and omegas who took shelter; betas did as well.

But soon, the betas discovered they had to defend themselves not only against attacks from their own kind but also from the more dangerous other genders.

A series of sensational murders of betas occurred under the guise of executions. These “executed” betas were all branded as suspected traitors.

Gradually, accusations of treason no longer required evidence. The very existence of a beta seemed to become a form of betrayal, capable of igniting endless hatred among the Empire’s people.

And hatred, in turn, bred more hatred. Before any large-scale battles had even broken out on the main front, the internal conflict among ABOs within the Empire had descended into chaos.

The Howard family fanned the flames from behind the scenes, portraying localized conflicts as a systematic plan by the Empire to exterminate the beta gender.

Then, they launched their own starships to carry out the slaughter of the Empire’s people.

The Empire’s official media tried to debunk the rumors, but they could not deny the fact that, in every corner of the Empire, life had become significantly more difficult for betas.

It was at this moment that the Tang Group announced a new product: an artificial pheromone project specifically for betas.

This artificial pheromone was designed to solve the problem of betas being unable to cope with an alpha’s rut or an omega’s heat when they formed a bond. At the same time, the Tang family declared they would conduct further in-depth research into more effective omega inhibitors and suppressants that could effectively alleviate alpha ruts.

This news was like dropping water into a pan of boiling oil.

It was common knowledge that the Tang family had always been at the forefront of omega rights. Wasn’t this move an attempt to stand up for betas?

The suppressed dispute over omega rights resurfaced with a vengeance.

During this turbulent time, Waste Star also fell into silence.

What the people of the Empire didn’t know was that despite the repeated calls to war, the true military leaders of all three genders—alpha, beta, and omega—had been gathered together all along, though the meaning of “gathered together” had become somewhat ironic these days.

The group sat in the conference room just as they had before, only this time without Andrew, the man currently stirring up trouble in the Empire.

Her Majesty the Empress was also absent.

She didn’t even know this meeting had been called.

“At its root, this mess is a problem with the imperial family. I believe we might find a more reasonable solution by bypassing Her Majesty,” Chu Meng stated calmly, her words bordering on treason.

Among those present, only a few alpha officers showed any change in expression. The rest remained impassive, suggesting they harbored similar thoughts.

The imperial family’s troubles weren’t limited to the Howard family. Glory some time ago, and Spartacus after that—all had their shadows cast over them.

There wasn’t a noble family in the world that didn’t vie for power and profit, but none went as far as the imperial family, repeatedly using the nation’s welfare and the people’s livelihood as pawns in their games, as if they couldn’t prove their extraordinary talents to the world without causing some major incident.

Even the alpha officers with altered expressions said nothing more. Though they were loyalists to the imperial family and indebted to them, they knew the imperial family was undeniably culpable for the current chaos. They had no defense to offer and could only listen for now. If the discussion turned truly detrimental to the imperial family, they would try to intervene, but for the moment, they could only stand and listen.

The betas in the room were in the most awkward position. The Howard family had quietly raised the banner of beta resistance, putting the beta families, who had just thought they could secure their top position with a starship, in a rather embarrassing situation.

Originally, with the starship, they could have easily claimed the title of beta protectors. But now, those damn Howards had gone and flipped the entire table, right after they had finally been dealt a winning hand.

Now they were caught between a rock and a hard place. Side with the Howards?

But just the other day, every single one of them had raised their hands and cheerfully ousted the Howards from the Empire’s center of power.

Side with the Empire?

That would be even more foolish. The scorn of their fellow betas alone would be enough to drown them.

And that was without even considering whether the Empire would accept them. With the Howards as a precedent, who knew how much suspicion they would arouse.

Of course, among them were some who wanted to risk it all, not for their family’s fate, but for the fate of all betas.

These individuals were quieter than the others, but their faces betrayed nothing.

“Betas cannot be independent,” Chu Meng set the tone for the conversation. “There is no irreconcilable rift between betas and AOs. Allowing the war to escalate will only breed meaningless hatred. We once lived in a world of peace and stability. If we are to fight a war for the sake of war, it would be utterly foolish.”

“The rift is between the Hall family and the Howard family. The Empire has no need to start a conflict comparable to the Activation War over the feud of two families.”

At this, all eyes turned to Chu Meng. They knew the preceding words were merely a prelude; what came next was the true reason for this meeting.

“The imperial family’s affairs should be resolved by the imperial family. There is still one starship in the hands of the Imperial Guard. They have the ability and the reason to bear the responsibility of cleaning up this mess.”

“And what about us?” a beta asked.

“We will be responsible for forcing the abdication,” Chu Meng replied in a low voice.

“And the betas?”

Chu Meng raised an eyebrow and said lightly, “Since this is all just the imperial family’s domestic affair, what does it have to do with betas?”

The room fell silent.

Although the imperial family was not an absolute monarchy whose every word was law, they were the nominal supreme leaders in both military and political affairs and held considerable real power. If the military gave such a response, it would be a direct slap in the face to the imperial family.

If they wanted to avoid retaliation from the imperial family, the military would have to continue to stick together. In other words, Marshal Chu intended to use this opportunity to curtail the imperial family’s power.

Among the alpha officers was a man from the Hall family. He scanned the room, but few dared to meet his gaze. From this, he could guess their thoughts.

He snorted coldly. “The imperial family is not without its own army.”

“But the imperial army is composed entirely of alphas, a fact that became inappropriate many years ago.” Chu Meng looked at the blond alpha, smiled, and stood up. The numerous medals on her dark green military uniform clinked. “I know the alphas present may be unwilling to give up an imperial family that favors alphas. But what you probably want even less is an imperial family that forces omegas and betas to isolate you.”

Then, as if making small talk, she added, “Oh, by the way, I have some good news for everyone. The Tang Group has developed several new drugs to facilitate bonding between omegas and betas. With the addition of inhibitors, alphas are no longer so indispensable to omegas.”

She paused, looking at every alpha in the room. “So, my compatriots, it is time you started treating us as equals.”

To be honest, Chu Meng’s words carried a hint of a threat. The reason she was able to take the lead in both meetings wasn’t because the Omega Legion was truly that overwhelmingly powerful, but mainly because there were two starships parked outside.

One that hadn’t been given away.

And one poised to strike.

A beta raised his hand.

It was the same scene as the other day.

And once again, it was an isolated blond man.

Chu Meng rubbed her forehead, feeling a little weary. This time, she thought, we’ve really hit the jackpot.

On the Imperial Capital Star.

Yun Chuji signed up for the volunteer guard patrol, responsible for protecting the safety of betas.

Alphas were indeed good at fighting, especially in a tense atmosphere. Their desire for aggression and violence sprouted like mushrooms after rain, finding any crack to grow.

Many alphas, under the pretext of judging betas, committed a series of acts that would land them in prison.

However, due to the complex situation, all these cases were piling up without being tried, which undoubtedly inflated the alphas’ self-righteous arrogance.

AIs couldn’t control them.

Because they had AIs too. In fact, due to the long-standing, unspoken privileges alphas enjoyed in the Empire, their AIs were more numerous and more durable than those of betas.

Only an alpha could truly control them.

This volunteer guard patrol was originally a small group organized by a handful of alphas who couldn’t stand by and watch. After Yun Chuji joined, it was suddenly thrust into the public spotlight.

Yun Chuji and Tang Jianxi’s reputations among some alphas had now reached an all-time low.

As for the omegas, they naturally supported these innocent betas.

Because, as everyone knew, an omega always has a beta best friend.

To attack all betas indiscriminately, as those alphas were doing, was simply inhuman to the more sentimental omegas.

Yun Chuji tore off her inhibitor patch and applied a new one to her gland. The alpha who had collapsed on the ground would naturally be tended to by his AI.

Yun Chuji took a few steps forward and walked up to the beta who had suffered this unprovoked attack. “Are you alright?”

The beta glanced at her but said nothing, not even a word of thanks. After picking himself up from the ground, he walked away on his own.

He had a slight limp, a result of the attack from the alpha just now.

And that wasn’t the only alpha who had beaten him.

His job required him to be out and about, which gave those roaming alphas plenty of opportunities.

There weren’t enough police officers, and the AIs were even less effective.

And his boss, who wouldn’t let him take time off, was the root cause of it all.

Under these circumstances, asking him to thank another alpha was indeed asking too much.

Yun Chuji didn’t press the issue. She took out her optical computer and hurried to the next location where an excessive number of alphas were gathering.

The one just now was just a chance encounter.

Just then, before the coordinates appeared, a call came through.

It was Tang Jianxi.

She said hurriedly, “The military is forcing the abdication.”