The most direct way to show intimacy with someone in front of others was to call them by a name unique to them.

The name "Zoe" rolled around on Miles Sherman’s tongue, but in the end, he just dropped her surname and called her by her first name.

Startled at being called out, Zoe Pierce went, "Ah?"

She wasn’t sure what Miles Sherman wanted, but she trotted over to his side anyway. Her clear eyes crinkled in a smile as she looked at him. "Okay!"

She was clearly in high spirits after getting the Mecha, beaming at everyone she saw.

She even gave the upperclassmen a polite nod and a smile.

Her smile was utterly captivating.

It wasn’t just Miles Sherman; Nathan Lockwood and the others following behind noticed it too.

The Omegas at the outpost were mostly those already attached to the troops; new ones hardly ever arrived.

Zoe Pierce’s arrival was like a stone dropped into a still pond, instantly sending out ripples.

An Omega, of age and single.

Beautiful, with a warm and sunny personality.

When she was with Miles Sherman’s squad, she always spoke in a soft and gentle manner.

It was impossible not to notice her.

The people on Siren Star weren’t privy to the events on The Capital Star, nor did they know what had happened online.

They could only form their impressions of Zoe Pierce through direct, brief observation and interaction.

An Omega of a similar age who wasn’t the least bit spoiled.

No matter how you looked at it, she was hard to ignore.

In just one short week, Zoe Pierce had no idea how much of a reputation she had already built among the Alphas at the outpost.

Besides being an outpost for the Federal Military Academy, there were outposts for several other military academies here as well.

If Miles Sherman and the others weren’t always with Zoe Pierce whenever she appeared, someone would have likely tried to hit on her long ago.

Even so, plenty of people still came to sneak a look at her every day. When Zoe Pierce and her friends went to the outpost cafeteria, gazes swarmed around her like flies.

Erin Xavier had even asked Zoe Pierce if she hadn’t noticed how many people in the cafeteria were watching her.

But Zoe Pierce just looked at them, completely oblivious. "It feels about the same as it did in the joint exam cafeteria. They’ve probably just never seen an Omega tag along."

She had already experienced this kind of attention during the joint exam, so she was more or less immune to it now. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

Besides, these people were just looking; they weren’t like her instructors, who would suddenly come over and give her snacks.

Chase Shaw and the others didn’t know whether to call Zoe Pierce dense or just unperceptive.

It was like she was completely wired wrong when it came to this sort of thing.

She had absolutely no idea how charming she was.

And Zoe Pierce truly didn’t think she was all that likable. After all, ever since Aurora Sutton had revealed that Damien Pierce, despite his superficial kindness, was secretly plotting against her, she had been constantly on edge.

Then she was matched with Miles Sherman’s squad and was treated with such indifference at first, only to be warned later by Nathan Lockwood.

She was walking on thin ice.

Her only choice was to keep strengthening herself, absorbing everything she could like a sponge.

Gradually, she felt Miles Sherman and the others warming up to her.

Then, after the joint exam, she saw on her Intelligent Brain that the attention and appreciation she received were because she was different from other Omegas.

So naturally, Zoe Pierce never felt she had any particular charm simply for being an Omega.

Besides, with her glands still not recovered, she couldn’t even emit pheromones like a normal Omega.

’What could they possibly like about me?’

’The attention they’re giving me now is just because I’m new here. Once the novelty wears off, things will go back to normal.’

If Nathan Lockwood and the others knew that they themselves were the reason for Zoe Pierce’s defensiveness, they would probably be kicking themselves.

For now, however, they just sighed in relief that Zoe Pierce was so oblivious.

They had no intention of pointing out the true nature of all the stares she was getting, either.

After all, presumptuous desires had begun to take root deep in their hearts, growing a little more each day, just waiting for a chance to break through the surface.

A sense of urgency had settled over them.

Seeing the occasional flicker of unhappiness even among their own team, they thought, ’What right did those other Alphas have—Alphas of lower rank and far less distinguished family backgrounds?’

Once that crowd of annoying Alphas was finally out of sight, Miles Sherman and the others escorted Zoe Pierce back to her quarters.

Zoe Pierce’s recent routine was nearly identical to when she was pulled from the joint exam, with the sole addition of Mecha training. But she wasn’t truly idle in her free time; her mind would unconsciously keep re-examining everything related to the Pierce Family.

Just as she got inside, a message notification came from Zoe Pierce’s Intelligent Brain.

She opened her Intelligent Brain. It was from Chase Shaw.

"When we get back to The Capital Star, our previous agreement still stands."

’Previous agreement?’

’We haven’t made any agreements recently. The only thing that could count as one is probably what we discussed about the Mecha on the airship.’

As she was concentrating on her thoughts, another message from Chase Shaw came through: "The Mecha models here are too old. There’s nothing really new."

Even the one he had cobbled together for her was just a precaution in case she ran into an extreme situation.

Chase Shaw considered it. The current Zoe Pierce was just a beginner. While she was a fast learner, she was still a long way from those who had trained for years. The Mecha he’d pieced together could serve as her starter unit. He’d get her a new one later.

Zoe Pierce typed back to Chase Shaw: "What I have now is already great."

The indicator showed he was typing for a long time, but then nothing came through.

Zoe Pierce waited for a while.

"Just leave it to me," he said.

Zoe Pierce: "..."

’Are they always this intense when they give gifts?’

Zoe Pierce almost laughed. ’These guys are really...’

As she was smiling to herself, she suddenly felt a sharp, needle-like sting on the back of her neck. The pain was fleeting; by the time her hand reached for the gland on her nape, the sensation was already gone.

She froze for a second. Her slender fingers found the edge of her barrier patch and pulled it off.

A faint, clear floral scent, barely there, wafted to her nose.

She sniffed the barrier patch. The scent was coming from it.

’Have my pheromones started to return?’

Zoe Pierce stood up, lifted her hair, and turned her back to the mirror, twisting to see her reflection.

Her gland seemed a little more swollen than before, a small, soybean-sized bump.

She pressed it gently with her finger, then brought her fingertip to her nose. This time, the scent was faint again, almost nonexistent.

For something this specialized, Zoe Pierce decided it was best to see a doctor.

The outpost had a hospital. She decisively applied a new barrier patch, threw on some clothes, and checked the distance on her Intelligent Brain.

It wasn’t far—just over a ten-minute walk.

She opened the door, registering for an appointment as she walked.

The outpost only had one department that dealt with Omegas, so there was no choice to be made, and there was no one ahead of her in the queue.

’Talk about an unpopular specialty.’

Upon arriving at the hospital, Zoe Pierce went straight to the top floor. In contrast to the plain white walls of the lower levels, the upstairs was painted a soft, dusty blue, and the air was noticeably fresher.