The female zerg before him turned crimson at a speed visible to the naked eye.
It was as if that compliment just now had scalded him.
He struggled slightly, and the mental power-restricting cuffs collided with the bathtub, emitting a clattering sound.
He stumbled due to exhaustion, and his just-recovered body seeped fresh blood anew because of this fall.
He was far too weak, to the extent that he was completely unable to display even a tiny fraction of his original strength.
Handsome yet fragile.
Male zergs were mostly weak and fond of delicate sub-females, but there were also some with peculiar tastes who simply liked the look of fierce military zergs having no ability to resist under their methods.
In pellucid terms to the outside world, Noel was precisely the one who liked this type.
Female zergs carried into the Duke’s estate would, in less than an hour, be battered and covered in injuries. Among the small circles of female zergs, it was widely rumored that Duke Noel had special hobbies and enjoyed forced scenarios.
Yet heaven knew how much physical pain Noel felt right then for that single bottle of top-grade mental power recovery serum!
That was a life-saving item his brother had brought back for him!
No matter how severe an injury a zerg sustained, whether broken arms and legs or a damaged mental sea, a single bottle of the serum could restore them seven or eight parts out of ten!
Had it not been for the fact that a portion of the injuries on this fellow’s body was caused by himself, Noel might not have been able to grit his teeth and use this heavy-duty medicine on him.
Yet look at him! Just as his broken bones and dripping, terrifying wounds had all healed, with a mere gentle tug, they had all torn open again!
Was his skin made of paper? Why was it so easy to break?
Noel found it difficult to lose his temper with him, but his expression nonetheless betrayed a degree of annoyance.
Not knowing where he had once again incurred the displeasure of this pampered young Lord under that dark, heavy gaze, Alpha lowered his head and crawled out of the bathtub, dragging his dripping wet body.
“Lord Mujer.”
He half-knelt before Noel, his posture submissive.
Even so, he still dragged his battered body and delivered a standard military salute to him.
In the imperial military, the status gap between superiors and subordinates was like a chasm, yet only trusted confidants would execute such a grand and solemn salute.
Although Noel Mujer had inherited the title of Duke, unlike his brothers, he held no actual power in the military.
“You know me?” Noel was stunned.
The female zergs usually carried in either lost their wits from terror, weeping and wailing to beg for mercy, or wore a look of unyielding defiance, resisting and cursing. To find one as calm as him was truly rare.
Light circulated within Alpha’s dark golden eyes. Meeting Noel’s gaze for a fleeting instant, he lowered his eyelashes. “I have once had the honor of hearing your name.”
Noel’s face darkened.
The name this female zerg had heard certainly could not be a good one.
He possessed bewitching abilities and high-level mental power, yet he was not permitted to enter the military academy to study mecha piloting or any combat techniques, and every time he attempted to leave the imperial capital star, he was blocked.
To Noel, he was merely a prisoner with a glossy exterior.
At first, he could endure it, but as his brothers left one by one, and his male father mysteriously disappeared one day, he could no longer endure it.
He wanted to go find his own kind and his female father fighting outside. He had no desire whatsoever to be fancied by the royal court and forced into some inexplicable mating match with a greedy, hypocritical female zerg he had never even met.
Those female zergs who tried by every means to seduce him for a brief romantic encounter to leave zerg eggs, alongside the pampered female zergs who could only talk big, were all equally repulsive to him.
Yet with increasing age, the daily harassment from the Male-Female Matching Center drove him completely crazy.
To leave the imperial capital of Atlant, he had to immediately find a nominal spouse.
This spouse was best connected in no way to the royal court, possessed a lowly status so low he would dare not lay hands on him, looked pleasing to the eye, and preferably had a passable level of strength.
Otherwise, for a male zerg like him, single until twenty, to suddenly find a primary female husband would be a rather inexplicable matter.
Noel noticed the slightly trembling hands of the female zerg kneeling before him.
Well, it seemed he was not entirely devoid of fear.
It was just that his mental resilience was slightly better than that of ordinary zergs. Having heard of his fierce reputation, under desperate concealment, he inevitably leaked out just that tiny bit of reaction.
To a humble zerg lieutenant general, the status difference between them was like a natural chasm.
This fellow’s strength was acceptable, and his appearance was top-notch.
Noel enviously pinched the smooth lines of his arm muscles with his gaze, noting that was precisely the appearance he most wanted to forge for himself.
Yet unlike his own fair arms that approached transparency, through the baptism and refinement of blood and fire, the female zerg’s muscles were evidently much more compact, hiding terrifying explosive power within his body.
Even though he now submissively and softly exposed the vulnerable back of his neck, his intentions of goodwill were clear, yet he could also terminate his own fragile life at any moment.
Fortunately, that pair of silver ancient energy stone cuffs was emitting soft, glowing radiance. Unless his consent was obtained, this fellow’s movements would be severely restricted.
He was entirely unworthy of fear.
Noel’s tense body slowly relaxed.
“Since you have heard of me, then tell me what your impression of me is.” Noel sat on the edge of the bathtub, slowly spitting out these words.
Meeting the criteria alone was far from enough.
Noel narrowed his eyes, listening prudently to his answer, knowing that if this fellow were two-faced and performed deceitfully, he would have to guard against him all the more.
“It is rumored that your habits are somewhat perverted.” The female zerg before him deliberated for a long time, his eye color quite complex.
He raised his eyes and asked tentatively, “Do you intend to enjoy me tonight?”
Noel fell silent.
Pardon me, aren’t you a bit too straightforward in this regard?
Noel was shocked into stillness for quite a while before finding his voice.
“I am a picky zerg, and I still do not know whether you are truly to my taste.”
With a slight twist of his fingers, a number of thick vines spiraled and wound upward, instantly wrapping the kneeling female zerg on the floor so tightly not a breath of air could escape, looking like a turquoise cocoon.
He was bound tightly all over and tossed onto the bed.
The female zerg’s expression grew bewildered. “What are you doing?”
He leaned against the edge of the bed, his stray hair still damp, the water droplets having lost their thread at the tips falling down drop by drop.
Drip.
Drip.
The room was so quiet that only the sound of falling water droplets could be heard.
The female zerg parted his lips slightly with a blank expression, having no choice but to slowly relax his body along the direction of the vines’ entanglement to make himself a bit more comfortable.
To Noel, this was simply an attitude of taking whatever was desired.
It seemed that no matter what he did to him, he would not resist.
Noel cursed a dirty word in his heart.
The side effects brought by this damn reputation!
Anyway, he could not wash himself clean even if he jumped into the Yellow River!
Yet why did this fellow look so accepting? It was simply too seductive!
His vines tossed Alpha into a position against the wall, brutally pulled the quilt to cover him from head to toe, and hurling a chilling sentence, Noel turned around in a flurry, “Stay obediently in the room today! You are not allowed to run around everywhere!”
That retreating back carried a faint trace of a hurried escape.
The female zerg lowered his head, his stray hair concealing the hooked corners of his lips.
He gazed deeply at Noel’s departing back.
He gently hugged the soft quilt.
It seemed to carry the scent of the male zerg.
After a long time, he responded in a low voice, “Nuo.”
Meanwhile, the interrogator Libur, waiting outside the gorgeous iron railing of the Duke’s estate, was pacing anxiously.
Finally, he saw John, the servant he had bribed, walking hurriedly out of the garden.
“How is it? Was the task I had you handle completed?” Libur hurried forward two steps, revealing a joyful expression.
Yet before he could rejoice for too long, seeing John lowering his head with a troubled expression, his face darkened. “What? Don’t tell me you couldn’t smuggle him out today?”
“My Lord, the Duke’s mood seemed a bit poor today and he chased all of us servants out. Usually, after not too long, once Lord Noel gets tired of playing, he tosses the female zerg onto the grass for us to throw out. I figured today would surely be no exception, but after waiting for a long time, I only saw Lord Noel carry that military zerg into the inner chambers.”
John furrowed his brows with a bitter expression. “If you had asked me to smuggle out a waste zerg the Lord didn’t want, I could have done it easily, but since the Lord still fancies him, how could we servants dare to disturb the Lord’s leisure?”
John shrank his body slightly, but thinking of the five silver coins in his pocket, he still mustered up his spirits, smiled apologetically, and discussed with Libur, “Why don’t you come back tomorrow night and take a look?”
Libur had no other choice and could only agree.
Yet he still remained unwilling to give up.
Lord Noel’s enthusiasm always came and went quickly. He had become a seasoned expert at picking up zergs outside this estate, so why on earth had an accident happened just today?
Libur paced back and forth, watching the lights in the garden go out one by one. Presuming that the young Lord Duke had also turned in for the night, he could only leave in low spirits.
Alpha’s crimes had not yet been pardoned. Logically speaking, staying in the Interrogation Department was the safest course.
Once some time passed and the Minister of Military Affairs, Nathan, asked about it, whether releasing him or executing him, the Interrogation Department could produce an official protocol.
Now that he had been directly taken away by someone, if the Minister of Military Affairs blamed them, only he, this humble interrogator, would be pushed out to take the fall.
Libur walked outward in dejection.
Duke Noel was extremely overbearing, deeply favored by the royal court, and could be described as willful and reckless, running amok across the entire planet of Atlant without anyone daring to provoke him.
For a zerg with such a bad reputation, it was simply impossible for him to pull a female zerg out of the Interrogation Department just to house, feed, and care for him well.
Presumably, once this zerg entered the Duke’s estate, his fate would only be even more unfortunate than staying in their Interrogation Department.
Yet even so, if it were found out that he had privately released a prisoner, the consequences would be dire.
Thinking of the cold, grim, and morbid face of the Minister of Military Affairs, Libur shuddered and rubbed his own head.
No, tomorrow he still had to come to the Duke’s estate to check on the situation so he could report back to his superiors!
Author’s Note: Alpha: Actually, I was just trembling with excitement, you know.