Chapter 33

Chapter 33

Tormented by nightmares, with a pounding headache and waves of nausea, Yor could barely fall asleep. It wasn't until the sky started to lighten with the gray of dawn that he finally managed to doze off.

Still half-asleep, he felt someone brush his forehead. Though the touch was gentle, it still startled Yor awake.

He forced his eyelids open, his throat dry and raw as if scraped by sandpaper. "...Taste?"

Taste furrowed his brow and withdrew his hand, the skin beneath his fingers burning hot. "You have a fever."

Lima handed him a cup of water, pressed the back of his hand briefly against Yor's neck, then "looked" at Yor's mental sea. The lingering terror he sensed made his brow furrow. "What happened last night? Did you have a nightmare?"

Yor barely managed to prop himself up against Lima's chest and swallowed the medicine Lima offered.

His body was weak, and his mental sea felt even worse—like being trapped in a swamp, suffocating, sinking deeper with every struggle.

He turned his head to see Taste and suddenly remembered. "Weren't you sleeping on the floor beside me last night? Where did you go in the middle of the night?"

Taste opened his mouth, but before he could come up with an explanation, hurried footsteps echoed from outside the cabin door.

Herman entered, his expression grim. "There's movement on the hillside. Something broke into Yor's house last night."

Hearing this, Taste paused, then muttered vaguely: "I heard strange noises outside the ship last night too. I chased after it for a long distance, but couldn't catch up."

This made Lima's expression turn grave. "Something that can evade the tracking of both you Sub-Lords... who is it?"

Stronger than two War Department Sub-Lords. Yor's heart skipped a beat, and a name slipped out. "Leonius?"

But after a moment to calm down, he shook his head internally. No, it shouldn't be Leonius.

Leonius didn't remember those three days—he only knew that Yor had hidden the bug eggs from him and taken off. If he really had tracked them down, every bug on this ship put together wouldn't survive a single swing of his blade. There'd be no need for sneaking around.

Taste also steeled himself and continued the lie. "No... impossible. If it were a Lord... I'd have been killed the moment I chased after him. How could I still be standing here?"

.....

It was pretty convincing. Yor couldn't help but nod.

He touched his lower abdomen, feeling that heavy, sinking sensation lingering. After a moment of silence, he suddenly turned to Lima. "Can you try for me? Using your mental strength as an anchor—can you link to the... consciousness inside my belly?"

Lima thought for a moment. "I've never tried it before, but it's at least Sub-Lord level. My mental strength might not be enough."

Taste couldn't help asking, "What would you link to it for?"

Yor's gaze darkened. "I had a dream yesterday. This bug spawn crawled out of my belly, clung to me and said..." He paused. "...told me to give it children."

The cabin went silent for a few seconds.

Even Taste, who knew roughly what was going on, was at a loss for words—Lima and Herman's breaths hitched as well.

Yor's tone turned sharp. "If that really happens, I'd rather kill it right now."

Taste didn't dare make a sound. No wonder he'd been so scared he got a fever. That Seraphiel looked so gentle, but his methods were vicious. Were domain bugs really that twisted...

Lima was the first to react, speaking hurriedly. "That's... that's something only the most ancient and savage bugs would do. It hasn't happened in many generations."

Seeing Yor's confusion, he paused, gathered his thoughts, then slowly continued: "Our bug race is divided by generations. Each generation has its own Broodmother. While the Broodmother lives, she keeps laying eggs—those eggs become the next generation. After the mother dies, one male bug from the next generation suddenly receives the Broodmother's inheritance. He tears off his own elytra, burrows underground, and when he emerges again, he has become the new Broodmother."

Yor's eyes widened in sudden understanding. So the Broodmother was transformed from a male bug! That meant once he gave birth to this egg, his plan to become a male bug was completely feasible and reasonable!

Receiving Yor's thoughts through the mental link, Lima paused but didn't refute him. He simply struggled to finish what he needed to say. "So please rest assured—after the child generation is born, they are generally not permitted to approach the mother."

Herman stood at the door, apparently realizing this information was somewhat difficult for Yor to digest. He added dryly, "The Broodmother has been gone for too many years. Many bugs don't know these traditions... and it's even harder for alien races to understand. Our bug ethics differ from most races... but it's not as extreme as what you dreamed about."

Yor processed this for a few seconds, then shot Herman a knowing look.

Ah, I see. So it's not about having kids with the mother—it's about having kids with one of her sons.

Not that it was much better, but it was definitely a bit more tolerable than last night's nightmare...

He was weirdly comforted a little, but last night's "dream"—or rather, "feeling"—had been so real. Like... like some kind of omen, as if this was destined to happen...

And who knew whether the Broodmother genes and consciousness fragments inside his body came from some ancient, savage-era Broodmother?

He looked down at his belly, and the knot that had just loosened in his chest quietly tightened again.

In this race, there wasn't a single trait that set his mind at ease.

Seeing Yor still troubled, Lima thought for a moment and offered, "If you're really worried, I can find a Sub-Lord level domain clan bug. Once we link to the bug inside you, we can figure everything out."

Lima was thinking of finding his father. He was a bit odd—eccentric enough to fall in love with a male war bug and somehow produce a hybrid like himself—but he was at least trustworthy and wouldn't easily leak Yor's existence.

But he'd talk to Yor about that once he got in touch with his father.

As they spoke, Yor's fever finally broke. The heat left his body, and he felt much more comfortable.

With Lima's help, Yor ate some more food—soft, easily digestible things, stew that melted on the tongue. It was bland, but once swallowed, it did ease the discomfort in his stomach.

Lima patted him. "Don't overthink. Have Taste and Herman stand guard outside. You get a good sleep."

Yor nodded obediently. Soothed, his eyelids began to droop, and he finally fell into a deep, heavy sleep.

=============

The small cabin on the hillside sat quietly in the wind and sand.

Herman had come in and thoroughly inspected the place, personally activating every defensive mechanism—yet Amon was still lounging comfortably in Yor's old recliner, legs crossed, as if it were his own home.

The chair creaked faintly under his weight, but the sound was swallowed by the sand. No bug heard it.

Not only that—he could "see" everything happening inside the ship crystal clear.

The low murmurs of conversation, Yor's exchanges with Lima through the mental link, Taste's stammering attempts at cover-up... all of it reached his senses, crystal clear.

Staring in the direction of the ship, he smiled softly.

From the Purification Department laboratory... carrying a Lord-level egg in his belly. And that iron-headed fool with his spotless mental sea—it was most likely his.

He'd had a good impression of the war bug, yet he'd rather use the more troublesome method of mental sea cleansing to collect pheromones than accept irrigation from a Vorna war bug, even though that would've been faster and more efficient... He was determined to hide his identity and become a male bug.

Add in the dream the Broodmother had mentioned last night—that was definitely Seraphiel's doing.

The pieces clicked together, and he'd figured out the whole picture almost perfectly.

He let out a soft "tsk," as if amazed that things had turned out even more interesting than he'd anticipated.

That iron-headed fool was desperately trying to turn the mother into an ordinary male bug, and Seraphiel was going along with it. The Broodmother the entire bug race was searching for—in their hands, he'd become a hot potato.

Amon propped his chin on his hand, thinking for a moment, then murmured, "That won't do... Since mother has returned, how could he leave again... You are destined to be the Broodmother..."

He pulled the Broodmother consciousness fragment from his chest, tossing it casually between his fingers.

The golden light flickered in the dim room, like a dying firefly—yet it never truly went out.

He watched for a moment, then a slight smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. There it was.

On the Purification Department's home planet, a new message suddenly arrived on the Lord's terminal.

Zane was buried in a stream of data, irritably reaching to swipe the new message away.

He'd been thoroughly fed up lately—the Broodmother sent to the War Department had failed inexplicably, the domain bugs were slacking off and uncooperative, and Leonius had even become unreachable! A string of setbacks had him dead set on pushing the broodmother experiment forward, not wanting to deal with any trivial nonsense.

But the Lord's built-in AI precisely caught several keywords at that moment, automatically projecting the message into his line of sight, forcing him to read the line clearly.

A set of planetary coordinates, followed by a line of text: On this planet, many war bug miners have cleaner mental seas than newborn buglings. Leonius and Seraphiel are both here. What do you think... could a real broodmother have appeared?

Zane's pupils constricted sharply.

It was a message from Amon. That troublesome bug rarely had anything serious to say... but what if it was true?

Zane stared at the message for a moment, then finally tossed his stylus onto the desk and got up, heading for the landing pad: "Let's go. Maximum speed."

The message reached Leonius's terminal almost at the same moment.

A brief intel report came through the War Department's encrypted channel: "Special surveillance target—Purification Department Lord Zane has left the department's home planet. Based on intercepted signals, his destination is Vorna Star, a planet under the War Department's jurisdiction."

Leonius looked at the line, stood up, and donned his battle armor. "Zane's sensed something's off. I'll go intercept him."

Seraphiel sat in a nearby chair, looking down at his own terminal. He got up, looking a bit helpless. "I have to go too," he said, shaking his screen at Leonius: "Zane's asking me what the two of us are hiding from him."

Yor wasn't feeling well, and the egg plan couldn't be rushed. The two Lords decided to deal with the big problem that was Zane first.

One fierce, one overwhelming—two auras left the starship one after another, disappearing into Vorna Star's sunset.

Amon, eyes closed, felt the two oppressive presences fade into the distance, then slowly opened his eyes.

He smiled in satisfaction, then stood and brushed the nonexistent dust off his clothes.

The next moment, he vanished on the spot.

Yor was sleeping soundly when he felt someone staring at him.

The gaze was completely unguarded—with his current sensitive mental power, even back when he was an ordinary Blue Star human, it would've been impossible not to wake.

He struggled to open his eyes, and even though he'd braced himself, he still jumped—a tall figure loomed over him, staring without moving.

Yor was dazed for a moment, then scrambled backward, but he was already in a sleep pod—where could he go?

His back hit the pod wall, his heart slammed against his ribs, and he stammered out the name: "Leonius?"

The bug in front of him said nothing.

He was as taciturn as ever, just lowering his head slightly, his gaze sliding from Yor's face down to his abdomen, and staying there.

Yor opened his mouth, but no words came out.

He'd imagined many times how Leonius might find him, but he'd never been able to figure out what to say.

Should he explain why he ran? Ask what the other had come for? Or just ask... are you okay?

But when that face actually appeared before him, all the words he'd rehearsed refused to come out. He even forgot how to breathe properly.

Leonius moved.

He stepped forward twice, extended that hand with its sharp, defined knuckles, and gently pressed it against Yor's belly.

Through the fabric, Yor could feel the warmth of his palm—not hot, but it was overwhelmingly present.

His hand stayed there, as if feeling the faint pulse from within.

Yor looked at his lowered brows and eyes, suddenly noticing he looked different from the Leonius in his memory.

Had he lost weight?

His jawline was sharper than last time, and his frame was thinner too.

Yor closed his eyes.

He should ask, "I'm a broodmother who can lay eggs—will you lock me up and keep me breeding offspring for the war bugs forever?"

But he couldn't bring himself to ask. He was afraid of the answer.

If Leonius really... then he'd just die. With his current mental power, ending himself shouldn't be impossible.

He hadn't said anything back then, hadn't even tried to confirm... so it was his fault first.

"Sorry."

In the end, all he managed was a vague apology.

But the next moment, his chin was lifted, and Leonius spoke his first words since they'd met: "Then give me back the memories from that time."

Caught in those pale golden compound eyes, Yor was dazed for a moment—no, wait... clearly... clearly...

The next instant, his confusion vanished, and he obediently said: "From... the sealed hatch door..."

Inside the cabin, overwhelming Lord-level pheromones filled the air, along with wet sounds and muffled groans. Taste and Herman, just beyond the door, remained completely unaware.

After who knew how long, Amon finally lifted his head, satisfied.

At the very end, he fed all the accumulated Lord pheromones to... the egg.

A galaxy away, Seraphiel—who had just intercepted Zane alongside Leonius and was about to step forward to negotiate—suddenly felt his knees go weak. His body heated up without warning, his face flushed crimson, and his limbs lost all strength.

Zane, who had been about to sternly question Leonius, saw Seraphiel's condition and stepped back two paces, covering his nose in disgust: "What the hell are you doing? It's all males here—why are you going into heat?"

Leonius also looked over, baffled. They were old friends, but with Seraphiel radiating pheromones like this, even he didn't want to lend a hand.

But Seraphiel's face went pale: "Damn it, Amon..."

Inside the ship, Amon looked at Yor's belly, now swollen high from the egg's rapid growth, and the satisfied smile on his face slowly deepened.

He studied it for a while, like admiring an unparalleled work of art.

He leaned down, bringing his mouth close to Yor's ear. "The domain bug has been the broodmother's emotional comfort bug for so long," he said, his voice carrying a gentle, languid malice, "so who comforts the domain bug's emotions in turn?"

He straightened up, his pale golden compound eyes gleaming in the dim light. "My dear mother, what you owe me—there's still plenty of time to pay it back, slowly."

He stood there, quietly watching Yor's sleeping face for a while.

Outside the window, the sun was rising over Vorna Star.

How could I just watch you escape the broodmother's tragic fate, leaving me alone to suffer through the long years in pain and solitude...

==========Author's Note:==========

Sorry, I had stuff to do during the day. This counts as yesterday's update; today's will come later.