Caden slumped back onto the couch.
The warning signal on his wrist AI kept beeping non-stop—his heat index had already hit 75%.
Ten minutes ago, he’d already used a suppressor. But after so many years of continuous injections, his body had become resistant. The drug wasn’t helping anymore. His rut came right on schedule—worse than ever.
He leaned back heavily and, with trembling fingers, cuffed one wrist to the chair with a metallic click. His voice was hoarse and rough:
"…T518, drop the room temperature again."
The AI’s composed voice replied, “Caden, the temperature is currently set to minus six degrees Celsius, the minimum safe room temperature. You are in heat. Should I initiate Absolute Lock Mode per standard protocol?”
“Yes,” he rasped.
In a flash, steel panels from military-grade tech slid into place, sealing every wall, the ceiling, and all exits. The whole room became a literal fortress.
“Absolute Lock Mode engaged. Countdown begins: 24 hours. You will be completely isolated for the next 24 hours,” came the monotone voice.
Caden looked like a wreck.
Once a mature male—especially without a female partner—hit 90% heat, he risked losing control and shifting into beast form. That state was brutal and wild, and no one could predict the outcome.
Considering Caden was an SSS-class male, his beast form going berserk wouldn’t just be trouble—it’d be catastrophic for the entire capital.
He’d always been strict with himself. There was no way he was going to let himself break free and rampage outside like some bloodthirsty monster.
But with how rare females had become lately, a lot of adult males couldn't survive a full heat. There had been instances of bodies literally tearing themselves apart. And this time… his symptoms came hard and fast. Honestly, even he wasn’t sure whether he’d make it out in one piece.
Then—some noise.
Bang.
Bang bang!
Caden’s sharp gaze snapped toward the study. A dangerous glint flickered in his eyes.
Someone’s here?
The banging came from the study. That room held top-secret military data and weapons. If someone was hiding in there during his rut, they were either trying to steal something or planning to ambush him while he was vulnerable.
Either way, just dumb.
Caden’s strength during heat didn’t weaken—it doubled, even tripled. In his current state, hardly anyone in the capital could take him on. If he engaged, there’d be zero survivors.
He tilted his head, narrowed his eyes, and tried to see what the noise was. The sound came from a tall, black-gold container inside the study. The thing had been brought in days ago, picked up from a junk planet during a military scan. No one had been able to open it, and what was inside remained a mystery. All they knew was that it had blasted down from the sky, causing enough shockwaves to shake the whole planet. The main fleet had been alarmed into action, thinking it might be dangerous.
He was supposed to send it to the lab today… if not for this damn heat.
So there’s... something alive inside?
BANG. BANG BANG.
The container shuddered again. Then?
With a sharp crack, the lid burst open.
A delicate, pale hand reached out, curving over the edge with the kind of soft, effortless grace that froze Caden in place.
What the…?
He watched as a thin, fragile-looking girl slowly sat up from inside the container. Stunned, his eyes widened in disbelief.
A female?!
And—damn—she was stunning.The girl staggered a bit before pushing herself upright, finally revealing her full appearance to Caden's eyes.
She looked crazy petite—barely around 160cm. Her skin was so pale it was almost see-through, and she looked no older than fifteen or sixteen. Bright, alert black eyes, soft delicate features, wearing a paper-thin white dress that barely reached her upper thighs. Her legs were long and slim—definitely not even as thick as his arm. That waist-length black hair flowed down like silk, hugging her back like a dark waterfall. She was so stunning, so unreal, not even the finest females raised in royal families could compare to this girl.
Stepping out of the box, she glanced around curiously, then locked eyes with him. Her voice was soft and sweet, like cotton candy melting on your tongue.
"Hey, I’m Naomi Star. Can I ask where this is? Also… are you, like, being held captive or something?"
That voice hit Caden like a punch. Everything inside him tensed instantly with a loud mental boom.
“Beep—beep—beep—” His wristband’s AI system lit up like crazy, alarms blaring while his stat levels spiked to 87%. He had to fight like hell to suppress his beast form, his eyes going red from the effort.
He gritted his teeth. “Y-You… how did you even get here—hide! Now!”
This was insane. Completely insane. He was in full-on heat—how could a female be in this room?!
Females were fragile, like made-of-glass fragile. Their physical limits weren’t even a fifth of what average males could handle. They needed constant care just to survive.
He knew damn well the handcuff on his right wrist was more symbolic than functional, and this so-called ‘absolute lockdown’ room? It wasn't gonna keep her safe if he lost control. He was a walking danger to this rare, precious female.
Naomi sniffed the air, nose twitching with curiosity.
As a top-tier alpha, she picked up something… was that a pheromone scent?
She squinted at him. “Wait, are you… in heat?”
“I…”
Caden was struggling to breathe normally, his shame practically drowning him as he tried to cover up what was happening.
Naomi casually walked closer, bent down, and picked up a syringe lying on the ground. She held it to her nose and gave it a sniff.
This was… yup, definitely some sort of suppressant.
Though not quite like the ones back in her world—the smell was way stronger, the dose felt more like something you’d use on an aggressive beast than a regular person.
While she was still deep in thought, Caden’s wolf ears suddenly popped out against his will, silver-gray and twitching awkwardly on top of his head. Then came the thick, fluffy tail, slowly stretching out on the couch behind him. Unlike the guy who clearly wanted to vanish into thin air, the tail was practically wagging with joy at the female standing nearby.
Naomi’s eyes lit up instantly.
Okay, yeah—this had to be the beast-star world. That dimensional travel machine her institute built? Totally worked.
Back in her A.B.O. world, humans were dying way too soon. Lifespan had tanked to the point where the norm was not even hitting fifty. Some people looked young forever, yet died in their twenties or thirties. Naomi was one of those unlucky ones. She was already twenty-one, but looked barely fifteen. No one knew how long she had left.
In theory, her world and Caden’s universe weren’t even remotely parallel. But to solve the whole lifespan mystery, a top scientist back home invented the dimensional jump tech. That brought her here—to this star system full of beast-hybrids, where people reportedly lived up to 500 years, hoping to figure out their secret.
And now? Naomi reached up with both hands and gave one of his twitching ears a gentle poke. “It’s so cute… where did this come from?”