Lucivita instinctively reached up to cover the back of his neck, pausing for a brief moment before giving a faint, flat, “Hmm.”
He’s lying… Lucivita.
Rhein let out a slow, lazy response. Seeing Lucivita pull away to create a slightly dangerous distance between them, he suddenly added, “The color is very pretty…”
Coming from one female Zerg to another, this phrase sounded rather strange. In Zerg society, the shade of a morph-mark served as proof that a female had been marked. Only male Zergs, and only under very specific circumstances, would speak this way to a female that belonged exclusively to them.
It was crossing a line.
Lucivita frowned. Before he could utter a word, Rhein continued in a leisurely tone, “Is it a color brought to you by Lord Rhein?”
“…Don’t mistake my tolerance of you the first time as an invitation to test my limits.” Hearing that name seemed to trigger a visceral reaction in Lucivita. He reached out, grabbed Rhein by the jaw, and forced him to look directly into his eyes.
“It has nothing to do with that bastard and it has nothing to do with any waste of a male in the Empire.” Lucivita’s crimson pupils narrowed into vertical slits, resembling a predatory beast on the verge of a hunt.
Rhein obediently tilted his chin up, letting the other inspect him. As Lucivita looked into his face, the pressure in his grip suddenly eased. In silence, he let go of Rhein and issued a low warning: “Last time.”
“Oh.” Rhein didn’t seem to grasp the danger he had just narrowly avoided; he simply shut his mouth and resumed trailing behind Lucivita, finding casual amusement in observing his surroundings.
A sudden, jarring flutter passed through Lucivita’s mind. He couldn’t shake the feeling that the light, agile footsteps of the female behind him were hauntingly familiar, reminiscent of every pitch-black night when an identical male would walk with that exact rhythm straight to the edge of his bed.
Yet, a soul once dead would never return nor was it possible in this vast universe for two unrelated Zergs to share such an uncanny, unprovoked resemblance.
So, who on earth had sent this female calling himself Hein?
Compared to the cells assigned to others, Lucivita’s holding room could genuinely be described as comfortable and clean. Though the furnishings were sparse, it was entirely devoid of any lingering stench of blood or unidentifiable biological tissue. A neatly folded set of gray-white prison attire rested atop the pillow, looking no different from the garments Lucivita wore in his military dormitory.
Rhein knew Lucivita wouldn’t simply surrender without a fight. Did they really think dispatching a few self-defense squads could successfully lock him away in Ashrock Prison? It wasn’t that simple. Since he had dared to come here, he must have made foolproof preparations. The only mystery was: how many others within this prison were secretly serving as Lucivita’s hidden pieces on the board?
The room lacked a spare table and chairs, but Rhein had no intention of standing politely in the corner. The moment he stepped inside, he sat down naturally and expertly on the edge of Lucivita’s bed. If he weren’t desperately maintaining his character, he would have collapsed flat onto the mattress right then and there to zone out and slack off. Hand him a gaming console, and Rhein wouldn’t harbor a single complaint in the world.
This female is far too familiar, Lucivita thought to himself. Every single Zerg in the Empire had witnessed firsthand just how terrifying Lucivita had been during that infamous campaign, yet Hein acted completely oblivious to it all.
Leaning against the door, Lucivita offered a tight, humorless smile. “You’re sitting on my bed. Where am I supposed to sit?”
“On my lap, of course,” Rhein blurted out before his brain registered what he had just said. He lifted his head, offered a soft, dry cough, and quickly corrected himself:
“What I meant to say is, the bed isn’t particularly small. We can sit side-by-side with our legs touching.”
There was another reason why Rhein’s identity as a male hadn’t been exposed yet: in the Empire, males of a higher rank often bore closer physical similarities to females, possessing handsome features and tall, slender frames. But to say Rhein merely resembled them was an understatement he was actually a fraction taller than Lucivita himself.
Two tall, long-legged Zergs sharing such a small prison single bed inevitably meant their shoulders rubbed and their knees pressed together.
Lucivita glanced at him sideways and said coldly, “I’ll pass.”
Since Lucivita didn’t haul him up by the collar and throw him off the bed, it counted as tacit permission. Far from feeling sheepish, Rhein simply slumped backward against the headboard, boneless and relaxed.
Standing around for half a day practically killed me. Speaking of which, where is the food?
Talk of the devil, a knock sounded at the door. Lucivita turned and yanked the handle open, inadvertently startling Hall, who had been on the verge of knocking again.
Clearly not expecting Lucivita to be standing right against the threshold, Hall blinked in surprise before hastily reporting, “Major General, your dinner.”
Hall has always remained fiercely loyal to Lucivita, Rhein thought, even taking the trouble to cook and deliver meals personally. Military females typically prioritized dietary efficiency and nutritional value, usually opting for high-yield nutrient injections. Lucivita, however, did not fall into that category.
He watched as Lucivita took the bag from Hall and opened it. True to form, it contained rare, natural ingredients though they were still strictly raw components.
You’ve got to be kidding me, Rhein thought. Don’t tell me I’m expected to chew on raw vegetable leaves? At this rate, a nutrient shot would taste better.
To his surprise, Lucivita glanced sideways at him and ordered, “Wait here. If you wander off and die, I’m taking zero responsibility.”
With that, Lucivita stepped out alongside Hall. Rhein’s mood instantly bounced back—after all, Lucivita’s cooking skills were something he had personally trained from scratch back in the day; it certainly wouldn’t taste bad.
He sprawled completely across Lucivita’s bed like a boneless fish, utterly melting into the pillows. A rich, lingering floral fragrance enveloped him, reminiscent of stumbling into a cluster of post-rain roses, fragrant and striking, yet damp with morning dew.
Rhein recognized this as Lucivita’s pheromone signature, though he couldn’t help wondering: Is it usually this potent? I feel like I’m forgetting something important.
His pale golden hair spread across the sheets like a pool of liquid fire igniting from the roots, glowing with striking intensity against the fabric. Staring up at the monotonous ceiling, Rhein felt an inexplicable wave of annoyance wash over him as his thoughts drifted back to the vivid, flame-like cluster of roses visible at the nape of Lucivita’s neck.
Technically, it has nothing to do with me… I’m just in a foul mood.
Rhein mentally blamed it on the constraints of his mission, he was bound to a single identity as Rhein Eletis in this world, and the only person Lucivita was allowed to fall for was Rhein Eletis himself.
Instead, Lucivita currently looked ready to butcher Rhein on sight.
Truly a delightful piece of news to brighten the day.
Just as Rhein’s thoughts threatened to drift out into deep space, Lucivita pushed open the door carrying two trays. Rhein flipped over, lazily draped himself face-down across the pillow, and then propped himself up into a sitting position.
That exact posture was painfully familiar. A wave of heavy irritation churned within Lucivita. An identical face paired with such deeply ingrained, mirroring habits confirmed one chilling reality: someone had meticulously analyzed and dissected the male who had once spent every waking and sleeping moment by his side. The realization turned Lucivita’s stomach.
Yet, he was willing to play along with this little game for a bit longer. Was the mastermind pulling the strings his dear “Lord Husband,” or perhaps one of the Empire’s royal princes? Naturally, it could also be a pawn dispatched by one of the aristocratic houses.
Regardless, purely for the sake of this face, Lucivita was willing to let him draw breath for another couple of days. Unfortunately, the person standing behind him wouldn’t be granted the same mercy.
Eagerly taking the tray from Lucivita’s hands, Rhein inspected the contents: a simple portion of shredded pork and green peppers over rice. Though the ingredients didn’t look entirely fresh, the culinary technique behind them was solid enough to make up for the deficiency.
He let out a sigh. Had I known Lucivita was living this comfortably in prison, I wouldn’t have bothered coming.
Misinterpreting his sigh, Lucivita narrowed his eyes. “What? Not satisfied?”
To prove his satisfaction, Rhein picked up his chopsticks, plucked a bite, and popped it straight into his mouth. The very next second, he squeezed his eyes shut in a grimace and spat it right back out.
“Major General… are you entirely certain there’s nothing wrong with this food?”
Rhein lifted his gaze, locking eyes with Lucivita’s probing stare. In that brief, intense exchange of glances, both individuals read the hidden subtext in the other’s expression.
After a moment of silence, Lucivita let out a soft, low chuckle, his tone dripping with faux innocence. “I’m merely responsible for the cooking. It wouldn’t be entirely impossible for the ingredients to go bad somewhere along the transport lines. But Hein, precisely what made you suspect something was wrong?”
It was no secret that Lucivita favored purely natural ingredients. Even here in prison, he possessed channels to smuggle unprocessed foodstuffs onto supply freighters and slip them past inspection. But how many hands did those items have to pass through? Who could guarantee the safety of what ultimately landed on Lucivita’s plate?
Lucivita had detected the tainted ingredients beforehand; he had deliberately incorporated them into both portions to observe how Hein would react.
Scarcely any Zerg retained an appreciation for traditional culinary arts, and typical military females certainly wouldn’t possess the refined palate to detect subtle alterations in flavor. At that point, Lucivita could definitively conclude that a powerful faction was backing Hein from the shadows.
However…
Rhein genuinely wanted to groan out loud. What kind of person could eat bitter, spoiled green pepper pork and honestly think the meal was completely fine?!
He stood up and walked toward Lucivita by the wall. The Zerg possessed absolute confidence in his own physical strength, maintaining a relaxed posture free of any overt defensive stance. Yet Rhein knew that the second he stepped close enough and showed hostile intent, a lightning-fast counterattack would follow.
He harbored no hostility, however. As he closed the gap until the space between them shrank to a mere breath, neither made a move.
“I simply felt the Major General’s culinary skills were somewhat lacking.” Rhein’s golden bangs, spilling across his forehead, fluttered softly in the draft of Lucivita’s breath. His refined, striking facial features were thrown into sharp relief, though his dark pupils carried a faint, rigid blankness hinting every now and then at an elusive trace of blue light that flickered in and out of existence, pulling the eye.
He reached out, his fingers resting lightly against Lucivita’s silver hair, his gaze carrying a provocative, teasing warmth while his voice dropped into a low, lingering murmur.
“If the Major General doesn’t believe me… you’re welcome to taste it yourself.”
Though he was clearly pointing toward the meal resting on the tray, under the charged atmosphere of the moment, Lucivita felt the morph-mark at the back of his neck begin to burn with an inexplicable heat.