Faced with the sudden light in Zuo Shihuan’s eyes, Gu Heng felt an unfamiliar pang of regret.
Even when he had trusted his uncle and been kidnapped, or when he’d nearly died surrounded by Zerg forces, at most he had been angry at his own weakness—never once had he regretted his decisions.
But this time was different.
It was just a Federation Alpha—not even an Omega. What was there to regret?
Gu Heng couldn’t make sense of himself. Yet, confronted with that hopeful look in Zuo Shihuan’s eyes, the cold, proud shell around his heart seemed to crack open slightly. From beneath the ice, something warm stirred—only for him to force it back again.
His voice came out hoarse. “Wait… I’ll be leaving soon.”
Zuo Shihuan’s expression darkened. With a bitter curve of his lips, he replied, “Then I won’t see you off.”
Gu Heng frowned, nodding silently, his expression complicated.
Seeing this, Zuo Shihuan didn’t press further. He wasn’t shameless enough to keep clinging on.
Still, his gaze swept around the hotel room. The décor was fairly high-end—not on par with the six-star hotels in the upper city districts, but certainly expensive for the lower zones.
It wasn’t hard to guess who had brought Gu Heng here.
With the kind of meager pay Gu Heng made in the lower city district, there was no way he could afford such a place—nor be so familiar with it.
Zuo Shihuan didn’t want to think about how many times Gu Heng had been here before. He drew in a deep breath and, when he opened his eyes again, the warmth was gone, replaced by the same cool distance as before.
“I’ll cover the room,” he said flatly. “You can go. Just shut the door when you leave. You know I’m… not in great shape right now.”
A faint, mocking smile tugged at his lips, his pale face—made even whiter by the sheets—looking almost bloodless.
Gu Heng frowned, pushing down a strange ache in his chest. Still, as an Alpha, he couldn’t possibly let someone else pay the bill.
“No need. I’ll cover it when I leave.”
“Oh?” Zuo Shihuan’s tone was indifferent. “But I don’t want to use money someone else gave you. Consider it me repaying you—for letting me avoid freezing in my car last night.”
“…I can afford it,” Gu Heng said through clenched teeth.
He knew Zuo Shihuan had misunderstood again, but he couldn’t exactly explain. What was he supposed to say—that he was the Empire’s crown prince and hardly short on cash?
His brows furrowed as he opened his communicator to prove he had enough funds. But the moment he saw his account balance, his expression stiffened.
[Current account balance: 300.67 Federation credits.]
Zuo Shihuan noticed the flicker of shock and asked, “What’s wrong? Don’t have enough?”
Gu Heng: “…”
Unfortunately, he’d guessed right. On his bartender’s wages, Gu Heng really couldn’t afford a night in a hotel that cost thousands of credits.
Normally, he didn’t care about such trivial things—this was just his public account for appearances. His real money was stored in a hidden, untraceable one. But he couldn’t transfer from that without revealing something a “regular Beta bartender” shouldn’t possess.
It was too late at night to contact Ji Shenwen for help.
“…Not enough,” Gu Heng admitted, annoyed.
Zuo Shihuan smiled faintly. “She didn’t give you any money?”
“She” referred to the imaginary wealthy patron Gu Heng supposedly had.
Gu Heng sighed inwardly. Time to keep the lie going.
“Spent it all.”
“So fast?” Zuo Shihuan said, half surprised. “Then I’ll pay this time.”
Gu Heng felt humiliated as an Alpha. His voice dropped low. “…Fine. I’ll pay you back later.”
Zuo Shihuan’s lips curved into a soft, sad smile. “No need. We won’t be seeing each other again anyway.”
Gu Heng’s pupils tightened slightly. He understood what Zuo Shihuan meant—just as he’d intended to “let this Federation Alpha go.” But hearing it said out loud made it strangely hard to accept.
Zuo Shihuan looked away. “Aren’t you leaving yet? If it’s too late, you can stay here. I’ll just get another room.”
His calm tone only made Gu Heng long for the warmth and closeness from before.
Gu Heng’s dark eyes deepened. “No need. I’ll go.”
Zuo Shihuan tilted his head back and gave a light laugh. “When? You know I can’t exactly do much right now, wrapped up in just a bedsheet.”
Being urged out like this, Gu Heng still couldn’t move. His legs felt rooted to the floor. After a moment, his brows twitched and he rasped out, “If I just leave like this, it feels unfair for you to cover the bill. Tell me if there’s anything I can do for you—as a favor, just this once.”
To earn the promise of the Imperial Crown Prince—it was something worth far more than gold.
Gu Heng looked deeply at Zuo Shihuan.
Zuo Shihuan froze for a moment, then slowly curved his lips into a faint, mocking smile. Fingers interlaced, he replied calmly, “Do you really think an Alpha of the Zuo family would ever need your help?”
Gu Heng met his gaze for a few seconds before answering, “I don’t take back my promises. If one day you regret it—if you want to use this promise—I’ll still fulfill any request you make.”
Even if, in the future, the Empire and the Federation were destined to meet in war, he would still spare Zuo Shihuan’s life.
Unfortunately, Zuo Shihuan didn’t grasp the weight of those words. To him, the “future” Gu Heng spoke of was nothing but an empty, unreachable concept. There would be no future. In twenty days, he would be standing beside another Omega at an engagement banquet.
Even if that Omega weren’t Yu Lizhu—his fiancée only by arrangement—it would be someone else. But definitely not a Beta from the lower city districts like Gu Heng.
So Gu Heng was the one who didn’t understand. They had no future. There was no chance they would ever meet again.
Zuo Shihuan’s eyes reddened abruptly. His spine stiffened as he fought not to tremble. Gritting his teeth, he said slowly, “Then there is something I want to ask you for—right now.”
Gu Heng frowned. “Now? You could wait—”
“No! Right now!” Zuo Shihuan’s eyes were firm as he met Gu Heng’s gaze. “You said you’d do me a favor, didn’t you? Then go to a place and bring me something back.”
“What is it?”
“A discarded old mech model,” Zuo Shihuan said.
Gu Heng looked puzzled. “Why would you want an abandoned toy? Couldn’t you just buy a new one?”
Zuo Shihuan’s eyes darkened, complicated emotions flickering within them. “Yeah, I’d like to know that too—why I can’t just buy a new one. Anyway, just bring it back. After that, you can throw it away or burn it if you like.”
He paused, then added quietly, “Just… don’t let her find out.”
Gu Heng frowned. “Whose toy is it? Why do you want it back?”
Zuo Shihuan’s gaze turned hollow and cold. “It’s mine. But I don’t want it—and I don’t want it left with her either.”
He exhaled softly, then went on, “I’ll tell you straight. It’s my biological mother’s. The same woman who abandoned me in the slums when I was little, who ran off with all our money. After I differentiated and became a valuable Alpha, she showed up again—said she regretted it all, wanted to make it up to me. She brought me a model mech, one I’d wanted when I was a kid, thinking a ten-year-old toy could make up for everything.”
A bitter smile tugged at his lips. “But I don’t want it. I don’t even want to see her. Still, I can’t stand the thought of it sitting there with her either. Can you help me get it back—without being seen?”
Though there was no light in his eyes, Zuo Shihuan still smiled faintly as he looked at Gu Heng.
He knew Gu Heng could do it. The man worked as an underground fighter in the lower city districts—rumor had it he was strong enough to take down real black-market champions and had connections with all sorts of people. No one who survived in that place was ordinary.
Gu Heng frowned slightly, his dark eyes fixed on Zuo Shihuan. There was no reason to refuse.
“Alright.”
“Then I’ll leave it to you.” Zuo Shihuan brought up the details on his communicator. “Here’s the address—and a picture of the mech model.”
Gu Heng took it and glanced at the screen. The photo showed a dust-covered mech toy. It looked… oddly familiar.
“It’s the Silver Comet—an S-class mech from over ten years ago.”
“You actually know it?” Zuo Shihuan looked mildly surprised. “I thought it was pretty obscure. It’s not even a Federation model—it’s from the Empire. And that one barely ever appeared on the battlefield.”
Gu Heng handed the communicator back. “Mm. I’ve seen it before.”
Not just seen it—he had piloted it himself.
The Silver Comet was an S-class mech stored in the Imperial Palace’s collection. It had been designed for speed and precision, built to strike down Zerg commanders in a single high-speed assault.
But his father had always preferred heavy-combat mechs. So despite being rare, the Silver Comet had only been deployed a few times before being shelved.
By the time Gu Heng was old enough to go to war, it had already been replaced by newer models.
If he could offer it without revealing who he was, he would have given Zuo Shihuan the real thing outright—because clearly, Zuo Shihuan didn’t truly dislike it.
Zuo Shihuan noticed nothing amiss. Assuming Gu Heng had simply seen the mech in some Imperial promotional video, he accepted the communicator and asked casually, “Aren’t you going to write the address down?”
“No need. Baile Star, E-District—Jiaan Complex, Building A13.”
Gu Heng gave the screen one glance and memorized it instantly.
Zuo Shihuan blinked, a little surprised. He realized he had also memorized that address long ago—but not because it was easy to remember. It was because he could never forget the person who lived there.
When he came back to himself, he smiled calmly. “Then I’ll leave it to you.”
Gu Heng frowned slightly. “That’s too small a request. You can ask for another.”
Zuo Shihuan shook his head. “No. That’s all I want.”
“Alright,” Gu Heng said. “I’ll go to Baile Star right now.”
Zuo Shihuan’s eyes flickered. “You’re not waiting until tomorrow?”
Gu Heng grabbed his jacket and stood. “No need. You said you wanted it back, didn’t you?”
Zuo Shihuan’s lips twitched into a faint smile. “Mm. Then safe travels.”
Gu Heng turned back, his dark eyes steady and serious. “I’ll be back soon.”
Bang—
The door closed firmly. The man he was watching had already gone.
A whisper broke the silence of the empty hotel room. “No… you won’t be back soon.”
Because traveling to Baile Star would take at least twenty days. By the time Gu Heng returned, Zuo Shihuan’s engagement banquet would already be over—everything would be over.
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