Even from a distance, Lu Li could see a massive, unruly crowd swarming around the exact spot where Aseya had been standing just moments ago.
Anxiety spiked in his chest. Abandoning any thoughts of waiting for his ice cream, he sprinted back over as fast as his legs could carry him.
“Who do you think you are, and why have you surrounded Aseya?” Lu Li demanded sharply, cutting through the crowd.
Stefe looked Lu Li up and down, arching an eyebrow before letting out a deeply derisive, condescending sneer. “And here I was wondering what kind of magnificent Male Lord Aseya had managed to secure for himself. Turns out it’s just a little weakling.”
To be fair, Lu Li didn’t possess a frail or sickly frame by human standards. It was simply that the males of the Zerg race lived lives of absolute luxury and indulgence; their entire existence revolved around nothing but eating, drinking, and seeking pleasure. Over time, their builds naturally became hulking, heavy, and imposing.
Consequently, Lu Li’s clean, lean, and youthful physique was instantly written off by them as a “weakling” build among males.
Hearing the bloated male belittle him so flagrantly, Lu Li didn’t actually feel much personal offense. However, he absolutely would not tolerate anyone looking down on Aseya, nor would he stand by and let them degrade him. Aseya was his chosen spouse his Ci jun and he refused to allow a single soul to treat him with contempt.
“What kind of garbage are you to think you have the right to pass judgment on me and Aseya?” Lu Li spat right back at Stefe.
Infuriated by Lu Li’s open disdain, Stefe puffed out his chest and stated proudly, “I happen to be a noble male of the venerable Alden family!”
“Furthermore, I am a certified B-rank male!”
Stefe shrugged his shoulders arrogantly after speaking, clearly trying to make his bloated posture appear as intimidating as possible.
Oh? A B-rank male? If Lu Li recalled correctly, the official evaluation delivered to him by the Male Protection Association stated that he himself was an A-rank male.
He had been slightly concerned about how to discipline an arrogant, noble Zerg male without violating societal etiquette, and here this fool was, practically handing him the perfect solution on a silver platter. He might as well use the Zerg society’s own rigid hierarchy rules to utterly crush this self-proclaimed noble lord.
“A mere B-rank male dares to harbor pathetic delusions about Aseya? Are you even worthy?”
“Listen closely: I am an A-rank male. If you want to cause trouble for me, you had better carefully weigh the consequences first.”
Hearing Lu Li’s revelation, a female attendant standing closely behind Stefe felt a sudden wave of cowardice wash over him.
He leaned in, frantically whispering a warning into Stefe’s ear. “Male Lord, the master explicitly commanded you not to stir up trouble lately…”
Before the sub-spouse could even finish his sentence, Stefe violently kicked him aside. “Presumptuous slave! Are you seriously trying to dictate how I conduct my affairs?!”
The kicked female could only swallow his immense bitterness. Every single time Stefe provoked an incident, the brunt of the subsequent punishments invariably fell upon the attendants. If it weren’t for that harsh reality, who among them would dare risk the wrath of a furious Stefe just to offer sound advice?
“So what if you’re an A-rank male? The entire Alden family stands firmly behind me. You’re nothing more than a commoner male who got lucky.”
Stefe had already heard rumors through the grapevine that the illustrious General Aseya had been matched by the system with a mere commoner male.
Since that’s how you want to play it, don’t blame me for what happens next, Lu Li thought coldly to himself.
Beside him, Aseya gently tugged at Lu Li’s sleeve, evidently desperate to prevent his Male Lord from being dragged into a dangerous, high-profile altercation.
Lu Li tightened his grip on Aseya’s hand, offering a reassuring squeeze to signal that he had everything completely under control.
Then, stepping forward with fluid precision, he slammed the freshly purchased ice cream directly onto Stefe’s head.
Stefe was utterly paralyzed with shock. Realizing this commoner had actually possessed the sheer audacity to dump ice cream all over him, pure fury consumed him. He raised a heavy fist, aiming a wild swing directly at Lu Li’s face.
Yet, regardless of his current status, Lu Li had been a seasoned, highly capable brawler back during the end times; there was absolutely no scenario where he would allow a sluggish fool like Stefe to lay a single finger on him.
Ducking fluidly, Lu Li spun on his heel and delivered a devastating, full-force kick squarely into Stefe’s torso, sending the bloated male flying backward.
“Aaagh!” A pathetic wail echoed from a distance, quickly drowned out by the frantic, overlapping reassurances of his attendants as they scrambled to his side.
“You actually dared to strike me! I am a precious B-rank male! Just you wait, I am going straight to the Male Protection Association to report you both!”
After spitting out his venomous threat, Stefe was carefully hoisted up by his frantic sub-spouses and rushed toward the nearest medical pod.
Watching Lu Li defend his honor so fiercely, a profound wave of emotion welled up within Aseya’s heart.
Yet, almost immediately, a lingering sense of dread took root. “Male Lord… they will undoubtedly distort the facts and fabricate lies when they report this to the Male Protection Association.”
If the association chose to penalize him, it wouldn’t matter much military females possessed thick skin, resilient flesh, and an incredibly accelerated healing factor; a standard lashing would leave no lasting damage. But Lu Li was entirely different. Males were notoriously fragile and delicate, and with the immense political weight of the Alden family backing Stefe, Aseya terrified himself with the thought that he might lack the power to shield his master from harm.
After all, judging by the sound of that impact, Stefe’s injuries were bound to be severe.
And severe they were; Lu Li had channeled a full hundred percent of his apocalypse-honed strength into that single strike, putting his entire weight into the blow without holding back a fraction of his power.
“Do not worry, Aseya. Neither you nor I will suffer a single consequence from this. Your Male Lord already has a counter-strategy prepared.”
Lu Li offered a gentle, soothing smile to alleviate the general’s anxiety.
“Come along now. The ice cream we just bought was entirely ruined, so let your Male Lord take you back to purchase a fresh one.”
“Male Lord…” Seeing how entirely unbothered Lu Li was by the impending political fallout, Aseya opened his mouth to protest further.
“Let’s go! Be good!” Lu Li had absolutely no intention of wasting his afternoon dwelling on a garbage existence like Stefe. Pulling Aseya along by the hand, he guided him straight back to the small ice cream boutique.
“We’ll take one strawberry flavor and one classic original, please.”
As the shopkeeper handed over the treats, he couldn’t help but marvel internally at how profoundly fortunate this military female was to have secured such an incredibly doting, protective Male Lord.
The shopkeeper happened to be a delicate sub-female with exceptionally refined, attractive features. Possessing a fair amount of confidence in his own physical appeal, he boldly took a step forward, venturing a flirtatious inquiry. “Respected Lord, are you by any chance seeking additional female attendants? I am highly skilled in the art of serving and pleasing males.”
The moment those words left the clerk’s mouth, all desire to enjoy his ice cream vanished from Aseya’s mind. He locked a freezing, dangerously lethal glare directly onto the bold sub-female.
Lu Li was thoroughly stunned by the sheer lawlessness of the local culture. Aseya was standing right beside him, yet this clerk still possessed the audacity to openly try and wedge himself into their relationship.
Lu Li immediately shifted to soothe his tense general, before turning to address the sub-female with a polite but absolute coldness. “No thank you, I have no desire for sub-spouses or attendants. Having my Ci jun by my side is more than enough for me.”
Without waiting for a response, he firmly gripped Aseya’s hand and walked out of the shop.
Although a trace of deep-seated insecurity still lingered in Aseya’s chest, he maintained an entirely blank, unreadable expression on his face.
“Does the Male Lord truly harbor no preference for those delicate, soft sub-females? They are traditionally far more cherished and adored by males than rigid military females like myself,” Aseya’s cool, detached voice drifted into Lu Li’s ears.
Great, Lu Li thought with a mental sigh. I spent the entire afternoon coaxing him into a good mood, and just when he finally smiled, we’ve been dropped right back to square one.
Lu Li stopped in his tracks, taking both of Aseya’s hands into his own and looking directly into his eyes with absolute solemnity.
“Listen to me, and listen well: I, Lu Li, will only ever have one spouse, and that spouse is you, Aseya. Furthermore, I stated explicitly on the day we registered our union regardless of the present or the future, you will remain my sole partner. I will never take a single female attendant, nor will I ever accept a female slave into my household.”
“With the great Insect God as my witness, if I, Lu Li, ever violate this sacred vow, may I die a violent death without a grave to claim my bones.”
Hearing such a profound, terrifyingly absolute vow uttered so readily, Aseya’s heart trembled violently.
“Male Lord, you truly do not need to bind yourself to such an extreme, even if you chose to accept attendants in the future, I would not object.” Compared to every other male in existence, Lu Li had already treated him with a level of kindness that defied imagination.
“But Aseya, I want to grant you absolute security.”
“I never want you to lose sleep to worry or fear, and I refuse to ever be the source of your sorrow.”
“Male Lord… thank you.” Unable to restrain the sheer depth of his emotion any longer, Aseya leaned his head down, pressing his lips firmly against Lu Li’s.
His Male Lord was a treasure beyond compare; how could he ever bear the thought of sharing even a fraction of his warmth with another soul?
Lu Li’s lips were incredibly soft, perfectly matching his gentle, yielding disposition a profound softness that effortlessly caused one to sink deep into the sensation, entirely powerless to pull away.