WMSR — QT Chapter 160

 

WMSR – QT Chapter 160

By

siofra

Hearing this, Muir could not help letting out a cold snort. "Hmph, put on a show."

While they were conversing, a sudden commotion erupted at the entrance of the grand hall. Both instinctively turned their gazes toward the source of the noise, and the next instant, they froze—was that... Colin?

It was not as though they had never laid eyes on Colin before; in fact, as fellow stellar twins of the omega cohort, Muir had always regarded Colin as his primary rival. Yet he had never once witnessed Colin looking like this... meticulously and exquisitely attired.

An elegantly tailored petite formal dress draped over his slender frame, perfectly accentuating his fine silhouette. Soft, lustrous locks of black hair fell across his brow in a few gentle wisps, half-veiling his refined eyebrows and smooth forehead below. Beneath rested a pair of obsidian eyes—so pure and deep they were rarely found among omegas—framed by raven-feather eyelashes. As they fluttered slightly, an ethereal, tranquil aura washed over the room, capable of setting any alpha's heart racing.

Upon taking in Colin's appearance, Muir's expression soured considerably. He had always known Colin possessed striking looks coupled with a unique demeanor that made it impossible for others to overlook him, but he had never imagined that when Colin dressed with deliberate care, he would present an image like this—interpreting the absolute pinnacle of the word beauty.

Yet what sort of behavior was this? Having previously tossed out declarations that he cared nothing for the matching process and harbored zero intention of selecting an alpha this season, he now strutted in making such a flamboyant, high-profile entrance dressed to the nines. Did this prove that his persistent loathing for this fellow was entirely justified after all?

Amid the collective gaze of the assembled omegas, Colin paced smoothly inward from the entrance. Choosing not to engage in conversation with anyone, he walked straight toward a vacant, secluded corner and stood there quietly, maintaining his customary habits.

Yet this time, owing to his strikingly unconventional styling and aesthetic, the remaining omegas found themselves unable to dismiss him with their usual indifference. Even as they murmured among themselves in conversation, their peripheral vision kept darting restlessly toward the solitary figure lingering in the corner.

Withdrawing his gaze, Muir remarked with a face full of disdain, "Hmph, I told you he was just putting on an act. Just a couple of days ago he claimed he wasn't planning to pick any alpha in this matching cycle, and today he shows up flaunting himself like this."

"Indeed, indeed, Muir, you called it right. I never would have guessed Colin was such a two-faced hypocrite." The surrounding omegas, reminded of what Colin had previously uttered at the lounge, chimed in promptly to agree with Muir.

While Muir wore a haughty smile born of validation from his peers agreeing that Colin was a scheming fraud, a nagging sensation at the back of his mind whispered that he had somehow overlooked something crucial.

Yet that elusive detail remained as ethereal as drifting smoke, impossible to grasp.

Just as Muir knitted his brows in response to this unsettling premonition, the procedural phase for the omegas to select their alphas officially commenced.

The selection procedure unfolded at the operational terminals arrayed at the front of the hall, with sequences randomized by the system. The omega summoned by name was required to step forward to the console and designate five preferred alphas, with the final selection outcomes broadcast simultaneously onto the grand display screen within the hall and across the entire star-net.

The imperial administration adopted this public framework to expose the entire omega selection process directly under public scrutiny, demonstrating that zero backroom manipulation occurred and that every chosen alpha was handpicked by the omegas themselves.

One omega after another stepped forward in response to system callouts, walking up to operate the terminals and lock in their five favored alphas. While the grand screen projected the avatars of those five chosen alphas prominently, the right side of the display operated an interactive real-time scrolling feed of star-net commentary. Despite the immense dimensions of the screen and its vast capacity for incoming text, the commentary cascaded downward at a dizzying, blinding velocity.

While Muir remained somewhat distracted by that lingering sense of an overlooked detail, staring blankly at the cascading comments, a familiar name caught his ear—Colin.

Muir snapped his head upward to look. Within his line of sight, Colin moved forward with his usual calm, aloof expression, stepping unhurriedly toward the terminal before methodically selecting five alphas. Everything appeared entirely normal; indeed, true to the rumors circulating about him prior, those five chosen alphas looked as though they had been picked at random with zero genuine thought or investment. Not only were their overall qualifications thoroughly mediocre, but the selection even included one particular alpha who had faced vicious online lampooning throughout the current season.

As Muir stared intently at Colin, the returning omega seemed to sense the fixed gaze and raised his eyes toward Muir's direction. Their eyes intersected for a fleeting second, after which Colin resumed his tranquil posture in the corner, acting as though the brief eye contact had been an entirely inadvertent glance.

Yet that micro-moment of interaction pierced through Muir's mental fog like a beam of light breaking through mist, finally unearthing the overlooked loophole and sending a sharp shudder through his entire frame. He realized it—he had finally pinned down what he missed!

Colin did not hold the slightest bit of indifference toward this matching cycle, contrary to the impression he projected!

Ah, indeed! How could he have forgotten? Although he loathed Colin's perennial air of detached indifference—acting as though nothing mattered and refusing to contend for anything, yet unfailingly having the finest offerings laid at his feet—he was forced to concede that Colin was naturally low-key and rarely sought the spotlight. If so, why would a low-key individual like Colin execute such a stark, deliberate reversal to meticulously dress up today?

He had previously been hoodwinked by Colin's facade of nonchalance, but deeper scrutiny revealed glaring contradictions.

And the most glaring contradiction of all was that Colin had actually looked up to lock eyes with him just now!

To appreciate the significance, across all these years—regardless of how fiercely their factional rivalries among the omegas escalated—Colin had consistently behaved as though standing above mundane affairs, remaining totally oblivious to external friction. Yet this time, Colin had actively registered his gaze and raised his head to return it. What did this signify?

Muir felt an irrepressible laugh bubble up within his chest. It signified that Colin was actively monitoring the people around him, and that he was feeling nervous!

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