Keith took the Queen’s letter with him. He planned to show it to Long Shi and called in his military aide.
“Where did Commander Long Shi go?” Keith asked.
The aide replied, “He went to the docks.”
“I’ll head there now,” Keith said as he walked out of the office.
“You’re going out, Governor? Please wait a moment,” the aide called after him. Soon, several guards gathered and insisted on accompanying him.
One of them handed him a patch that looked similar to skin.
“What is this?” Keith asked, examining the flesh-colored sticker. It looked just like a piece of real skin and was nearly invisible once applied.
“It’s a pheromone blocker,” one aide explained, pointing to the back of his own neck. “In case someone in heat bumps into you out there, this will protect you.”
“Even though you’re an SSS-level Alpha, you could still be affected by an Omega in heat,” another added.
Was it really this dangerous to go out in public? This world felt strangely primal. People going into heat in the streets?
Keith stuck the blocker to the back of his neck. He touched the area carefully. He could barely feel the gland. For Alphas, it was so small it was almost unnoticeable. If you really tried, you could feel a tiny bump.
He chose to travel by horse, followed by ten guards. He had hoped to go alone, but that clearly wasn’t an option.
He was beginning to understand that this body did not belong to an ordinary person.
Lanchi was a bustling port city. People filled the streets. As soon as Keith passed by, they turned their heads to look.
Whispers spread through the crowd.
“That’s the Governor.”
Taking advantage of the quiet time on the road, Keith pulled up the intelligence feed. He had heard the aides mention “SSS” earlier, but he didn’t know exactly what it meant.
Rank System: All three ABO genders are divided into six levels — C, B, A, S, SS, and SSS.
The rank does not indicate pheromone strength but reflects combat power. SSS is equivalent to Tier 0, SS to Tier 1. Both represent elite fighting ability, especially Tier 0.
C-level individuals have no combat strength and are considered regular civilians. They are the majority.
Ranks are determined by genetics at birth. That is why marriage is so important in this world. People consider social status, rank, and profession when choosing a partner.
Combat power depends on profession. Guns deal the highest damage but have a limited range. Mages generally deal less damage, but their spells cover a wide area.
An SSS-ranked mage is roughly equal in strength to an SS-ranked gunner.
Based on this information, Keith realized he was not just powerful. He was one of the strongest individuals on the continent, a true Tier 0. If he ever had to fight monsters, they probably would not survive even one shot.
Compared to a mage’s long-winded chants and casting times, guns were fast, efficient, and deadly. No competition.
He even thought that if he managed to find some rare gear, he could become rich. In his past life as a police officer, he had never made much money. Now, in this world, a single bullet might be worth more than his old monthly salary.
It also made sense why Ghis, dressed like a noble, had shown such interest in him. This was a high-magic world. Nobles formed alliances. Those without talent struggled to climb the social ladder.
At the dock, the sea stretched out endlessly. Warships could be seen in the distance under the Lanchi banner. Patrols moved steadily along the pier.
Long Shi stood near the water’s edge in his black uniform. He turned around when he heard the sound of hooves.
Keith told the guards to wait behind. He walked forward until he was face to face with Long Shi. The commander still looked angry.
“I want to speak to you privately,” Keith said.
“Why can’t we talk here?” Long Shi replied, his face still cold. He didn’t feel there was anything left to say to this childhood friend who had become Governor.
The person he knew best had ended up in bed with a mage, and not just any mage, but someone from Bane Perella.
“Take a look at this letter from the Queen,” Keith said, handing it over.
Long Shi unfolded the letter. His expression changed, softening slightly. He had not expected Keith to tell the Queen he liked a Beta.
“You… why would you tell her that? I’m sure she knows it’s me. She won’t allow us to be together.”
Keith knew the original host had pursued Long Shi for years, so he asked directly, “Forget about whether the Queen allows it or not. Why didn’t you accept me?”
A hint of embarrassment colored Long Shi’s bronze-toned face. He believed Keith truly loved him. That thought shook him a little.
“Our families are not equal. My father served yours as a guard. You were the young master. I was just a bodyguard.”
“That’s your reason?” Keith couldn’t believe it. The original host and the previous transmigrator had chased him for years, and this was all it came down to?
“You’re an Alpha. I’m a Beta. We can’t have children.”
Betas had underdeveloped reproductive systems. The chance of pregnancy was about one percent. Alphas ranked S and above didn’t even have reproductive organs for childbirth.
Fortunately, the ABO population remained balanced, so society was stable.
“I don’t care about having children,” Keith said honestly. In this world, no children was even better. But he didn’t love Long Shi. He was not his type.
Long Shi misunderstood again. He thought Keith’s words came from deep affection. His face turned slightly red.
“Then what’s going on with that mage?”
“Nothing happened. He said he might be able to help me recover my eyesight. We had a few drinks while talking, and he passed out in my room. That’s it.” Keith honestly didn’t understand why Long Shi refused to be with him and still acted jealous. Sometimes he was too straightforward for this kind of emotional game.
“So it was just a misunderstanding. I’m sorry,” Long Shi said, sighing with relief for some reason.
Waves lapped at the shore. Birds called overhead.
Keith thought for a moment, then said, “I’ve made a decision. I’m going to marry an Omega from Bane Perella.”
Long Shi froze. He had just convinced himself to accept Keith’s feelings. Now he looked shocked.
“Why? Are you trying to punish me?”
Was Keith doing this because he had taken too long to respond, and now wanted revenge?
“I don’t understand why you would think that. I never wanted to punish you,” Keith replied, genuinely puzzled. He had no romantic feelings for Long Shi. Maybe if they had started dating from the beginning, he could have forced himself to adapt. But now it was too late.
“I need to show loyalty to the Queen. Marrying someone from Bane Perella, regardless of gender, will help protect our positions. Otherwise, we could be replaced at any time.”
Even the role of Governor was unstable. It could be taken away without warning. Let alone someone like Long Shi, who held a military command.
Long Shi shook his head and remained silent for a while. He had always liked Keith but never dared to accept it because of the class difference. Working together daily had been enough for him.
As long as he could see Keith every day, that had felt like enough.
“No. I won’t accept this,” Long Shi suddenly said as he lunged forward and wrapped his arms around Keith. “I like you. How can you marry someone else?”
Keith was caught off guard and nearly lost his balance. Long Shi’s strength from close combat training was no joke. Keith grabbed his shoulders firmly to steady them both.
Long Shi held onto him tightly and leaned in, trying to kiss him.
Keith quickly turned his head away. Long Shi’s lips brushed through his hair. It was a close call.
“Calm down,” Keith said firmly as he pushed Long Shi back and created some distance. His voice was cold. “We should keep our distance.”
“I want to be with you,” Long Shi said suddenly. He looked hurt by Keith’s rejection. His eyes shimmered with unshed tears.
“I don’t want you to sacrifice yourself by marrying someone you don’t even know.”
Keith felt a faint pain rise in his head. He knew he could not refuse Long Shi too harshly, but he also could not explain that he was no longer the original person in this body.
After all those years of chasing, the person the original host had longed for suddenly said yes just like that?
The original host had been hopelessly devoted, and the previous host even more pitiful. If he had lasted just one more day, he could have heard this confession and reached a happy ending. He could have been with the one he loved. The previous host would have been thrilled.
“I’m sorry. My mind is made up,” Keith said with firm resolve.
“Do you really have to do this? Of all people, why must you marry someone from Bane Perella?” Long Shi’s voice trembled with a mix of hurt and anger. “Have you forgotten that people from my family died at their hands five years ago?”
“You are Keith Lanchi. This land belonged to your father. Now it has become part of Bane Perella, and you still plan to marry one of them. What are you thinking? Doesn’t that disgust you? You once said we would get revenge together.”
In Europe, many small nations existed. By Long Shi’s words, the original Keith was practically royalty, but the family line was gone.
Keith felt a surge of anger inside him, but he quickly pressed it down. His expression stayed calm, almost emotionless. His eyes were clear, yet distant.
“This eye of yours. It was injured during that time five years ago, wasn’t it?” Long Shi reached out and gently touched the eye patch covering Keith’s left eye. “Back then, I thought you had died. I was so relieved when you came back alive.”
That struck a sore spot. Keith’s left eye was completely numb now. He could not even feel the light touch against it.
As someone with SSS-level gunner status, being injured like that was both rare and humiliating. There were very few who could even match his level.
“Who was it?” Keith asked. He gripped Long Shi’s wrist slightly tighter. His right eye flashed with a sharp glint.
This was a grudge he would not forget.
“It was someone named Esther,” Long Shi answered. “He’s an SSS-level male gunner. No one knows his secondary gender. He’s the guardian of the royal tomb. Very mysterious. Few have ever seen him. You are one of the few. Don’t you remember? He’s one of the Queen’s personal enforcers.”
“Do you really think someone with only S-rank magic like the Queen could stay on the throne without support like his?”
Keith paused in thought. If Esther was that mysterious, it made sense. Most people who had seen him probably didn’t live to speak of it.
“I understand.”
His voice was quiet and low. His face remained expressionless, his tone flat and emotionless.
Long Shi felt disappointed. He could sense how much Keith had changed. The boy who was once cheerful and playful had become someone cold and heavy with silence.
There was no warmth in him now. His words were hard and detached, like iron. Maybe losing an eye had changed him completely.
Keith spoke with cold detachment, his tone almost mechanical.
“I haven’t forgotten our revenge. We need to stay focused. If I want to get close to the Queen, I need to marry someone from Bane Perella.”
Long Shi pulled his hand away, clearly hurt.
“You really plan to go through with that? You’ve changed. You’re not the person I used to know. You used to be so bright and kind. You smiled easily and joked around. You used to tell me you liked me so seriously. Now you’re just cold.”
“Then stop liking me. Let’s end whatever uncertain relationship we had,” Keith said without hesitation and turned to leave the dock.
He didn’t think he was the same person. Back in his past life, he had died at the age of thirty. His personality was already like this. Cold. Serious. Completely straightforward.
Perhaps he had disappointed Long Shi. But maybe that was for the best. It would be easier if there were no more emotional entanglements.
He was now the Governor, and he needed to be cold and rational. He had no interest in close-combat fighters or Betas, and that included Long Shi.
If he had to marry someone from Bane Perella to achieve revenge, even without love, he would do it. Revenge mattered more than anything else.
If he failed to kill the Queen within two and a half years, he would vanish just like the previous host.
He had been given this powerful identity. He had to make full use of it.
Back in the office, Keith returned to his desk to handle documents. Lanchi’s affairs were still piling up, and the system in his mind wouldn’t stop complaining.
“Dear user, does anyone understand the pain I feel right now? Top-ranked host just completely rejected my carefully designed romance mission. I might actually break. I don’t even know if I can predict future story events anymore.”
“You can predict plotlines?” Keith asked curiously.
“Kind of. Want me to try it?”
“Sounds interesting. Try it.”
“You’re making this hard. What if you die because of this? This is a high-magic world. Things are dangerous out here. Give me a moment to run a forecast.”
Keith continued signing documents brought by his aides. The workload reminded him a little of being some kind of powerful CEO in a novel. About ten minutes passed.
“System, hurry up.”
A beep echoed in his mind.
“Prediction complete. According to the new trajectory, you are going to become the consort of three kings.”
Keith froze. His hand jerked. The pen tip nearly snapped, and ink spread across the paper.
The consort of three kings?
Was that a serious result?
He was a straight, single-minded Alpha. How had his fate turned into something this ridiculous?
