SGT CH2

“Release the empress? Nourish the Zerg egg?”

“I think you want me dead.”

Mu Si fled to the doorway, looking back to meet Ax’s furious, deranged eyes. The female Zerg’s muscles were taut, chains digging blood marks into his wrists. The frost-like Zerg patterns on his arms seemed to glow for an instant, then quickly faded.

Hiss…

Did those Zerg patterns just light up?

Wearing an S-class inhibitor and still nearly able to activate Zerg pattern energy—what kind of monster was this?

If the inhibitor weren’t still diligently working, Mu Si had no doubt Ax would have crushed the alloy chains with his bare hands and then torn him to shreds. This just proved how terrifying the combat power of a top-tier female Zerg was.

Once Ax was released, he’d be the first to die. But if his scum gong value was too high and he couldn’t complete the transformation mission, he’d apparently die too.

Confirming Ax’s pregnancy made Mu Si believe half of what the livestream system said. Seeing Ax’s concern for the Zerg egg, along with his terrifying strength that almost broke through the inhibitor’s restraint, made him believe ninety percent. If this Zerg egg couldn’t be saved, Ax would truly stop at nothing to drag him down to hell.

Both paths led to death; the only sliver of hope lay with that stagnant Zerg egg.

The inhibitor was still active, so Ax couldn’t mobilize his Zerg pattern energy and wouldn’t be able to break free from the chains anytime soon. Mu Si bravely stopped, asking the doctor from a distance: “As long as there’s enough pheromone, the Zerg egg can be saved, right?”

“Theoretically, yes…” The sub-male doctor was also flustered, afraid General Ax would break free and harm the Prince, and also worried the Prince would get angry and punish them. He stammered: “The Zerg egg hasn’t had contact with male Zerg pheromones since its conception. Too much pheromone deficiency has severely affected the egg’s growth and development; it’s not something ordinary pheromone nourishment can fix.”

Mu Si had already seen the inspection report and knew about the egg’s condition, so he directly said, “Just tell me what to do next.”

Ax also suppressed all emotions, holding his breath and staring at the doctor, awaiting his answer.

“Tenfold replenishment.” The sub-male doctor said, “The pheromone lacking in the early stages must be replenished tenfold. Only then will the Zerg egg have a chance to awaken from dormancy and develop normally.”

Ax closed his eyes in despair. He could set aside his dignity and endure all torment, perhaps even beg for pheromones once or twice from the Prince. But tenfold the pheromones—that was an amount even highly favored female Zergs could hardly obtain.

Mu Si frowned slightly, also finding the matter difficult. He had pheromones, but the female Zerg needed to cooperate. Mu Si subtly glanced at Ax, seeing the female Zerg’s formerly straight spine slump, as if all his strength had been drained. Mu Si still preferred Ax’s resilient appearance, no matter what torment he endured. Although it made his teeth itch with frustration, that version of Ax was captivating, and it made him want to harm him even more.

Mu Si dismissed the doctor first. In the cold, empty punishment room, only the two Zergs remained. Mu Si’s eyes darted around, brewing a mischievous idea.

“You heard it. Ten times the pheromone is needed to keep the Zerg egg alive.” He slowly approached Ax, taking extremely slow steps, constantly monitoring Ax’s movements. If the other party made any sudden move, he could turn and flee immediately.

Ax raised his eyes, his emerald green eyes clear and frank. He guessed the Prince intended to humiliate him with this. If he could obtain pheromones this way, he didn’t care what he might suffer. However, the Prince couldn’t possibly give him enough pheromones. Ax’s gaze slowly fell to the Prince’s exposed neck. Fresh blood also contained a large amount of pheromones. If…

Mu Si felt a chill on his neck, and a shiver crawled up his spine. He immediately stopped. High-level male Zergs have a keen perception of danger, a perception comparable to a military female Zerg’s combat instinct accumulated over years of facing danger. There were only he and Ax in this punishment room, so there was no need to say where the danger he felt was coming from.

Mu Si was a little angry. He was already prepared to help Ax save the egg, yet the female Zerg was still intent on killing him. In that case, he wouldn’t hold back on making things difficult. There were many ways for a male Zerg to give pheromones to a female Zerg: it could make the female Zerg extremely ecstatic, or it could make them extremely miserable.

“General Ax, you wouldn’t want your child to die in your womb, would you?” Mu Si didn’t hide his anger, his eyes gleaming with clear malice as he looked at Ax.

Ax took a deep breath, relaxed his body, and slowly tilted his head back, exposing his neck with the inhibitor. He looked up at Mu Si from below. “If Your Highness would be willing to bestow some pheromones upon me.”

The female Zerg’s posture hadn’t changed much from before, but now Ax’s muscles relaxed, and his voice softened, adopting a submissive and ingratiating stance. His pale skin, long untouched by sunlight, combined with the black neck ring inhibitor, gave him a cold, delicate vulnerability that was particularly endearing to other Zergs. It also tended to trigger certain perverse desires for sadism. Especially those usually indifferent emerald eyes, which, softened by emotion, acted like a small hook, making one’s heart itch.

A clumsy disguise. A clumsy seduction. But it strangely calmed Mu Si’s anger.

Mu Si stepped forward, pinching Ax’s chin and lifting his face. His thumb brushed against the side of Ax’s face, and he got to admire the female Zerg’s suppressed expression as he wished. This was a performance they both understood perfectly well. But Mu Si didn’t mind. And Ax had no choice.

“Want pheromones? Then you’d better perform well.” Mu Si’s tone was light, his gaze sliding down Ax’s neck and into the black tight-fitting vest that encased his full chest, a clear hint in his eyes.

But the female Zerg was more patient and bolder than he expected. Ax tilted his head and enveloped Mu Si’s fingertip with his mouth.

“…” Mu Si’s mind went blank, and he quickly pulled his hand back.

Ahhhhhhh—

Thank goodness, his finger wasn’t bitten off. Mu Si clutched his finger and quickly glanced at the light screen, seeing it filled with excited bullet comments.

“???” What was wrong with these otherworldly viewers? There were no pheromones, so what were they so excited about?

Mu Si’s ears felt hot, and he found the female Zerg in front of him displeasing. He lowered his head and glared fiercely at him. “Can’t you be more reserved?!”

“?” Ax found he couldn’t quite follow the male Zerg’s thought process. Didn’t the Prince himself ask him to serve?

“If Your Highness dislikes my proactiveness, I will restrain myself. I can endure a lot; you can do anything you wish.” Ax lowered his eyes, appearing submissive. If he hadn’t added, “as long as you grant me pheromones,” it might have seemed more sincere.

“Hmm, pheromones. As long as you perform well, I will, of course, give them to you.” Mu Si responded carelessly, his hot ear tips gradually cooling. 

His gaze drifted to the livestream screen. It wasn’t that he disliked proactiveness. 

It was just that he didn’t want other Zergs, or anything else, to see Ax in an emotional state. 

Ax was his. Exclusively his. 

Since it was a livestream, there should be a way to block or censor it, right? Could the sound be turned off? Could the screen be blacked out? He’d look into it later.

His attention returned to Ax. The female Zerg clearly heard his perfunctory tone, and a hint of anxiety and aggression appeared between his brows. 

Mu Si felt a little like laughing. 

His reply might have been careless, but he wasn’t refusing to give pheromones. What was the rush? Anyway, this Ax, who could be so easily stirred emotionally by him, was much more appealing than the Ax who used to treat him like air.

“Don’t rush. Let me think about how to arrange this…” Mu Si picked up a lock of Ax’s hair, twisting and playing with it between his fingers. 

Ax’s eyelashes fluttered, a bit uneasy. Perhaps he should do something to please the Prince, to beg for compassion. But he wasn’t good at such things, and the Prince didn’t seem to like female Zergs being overly proactive. Ax was trapped in a suffocating silence, waiting for the verdict on himself and the Zerg egg.

Then he heard the Prince say, “You can leave the punishment room.”

Ax suddenly looked up, staring at the Prince in disbelief.

Mu Si added, “But you’ll have to wear another inhibitor.” He was truly terrified of this female Zerg. S-class female Zergs were monsters; even the top-tier inhibitor almost couldn’t restrain him. Mu Si contacted the butler and had him send a bracelet-shaped inhibitor.

Ax had no right to question the Prince’s decision. He could only follow the Prince’s arrangements. 

However, being able to leave the punishment room was also a good thing. If it were before, he wouldn’t have cared where he stayed. As soon as the Prince forced the matching, he had lost everything. 

Any place in the Prince’s mansion was the same to him, just a different part of the cage. But now, even for the Zerg egg in his womb, he couldn’t stay here. After all, no one could guarantee that the male Zerg would remember to come to the punishment room every day to provide pheromones.

The inhibitor arrived. Mu Si took it and personally put it on Ax. “Just wear it on… your right hand.” Mu Si clasped the inhibitor onto Ax’s right wrist and activated it before finally unlocking the chains on him.

Almost as soon as the inhibitor was put on, Ax felt a sudden sense of weakness. His body felt light, completely without strength. 

The chains supporting his body were released, and Ax uncontrollably tumbled forward. The Prince happened to be standing in front of him. As he fell, he practically lunged onto the Prince. And the position was a bit awkward. He was kneeling, the Prince was standing; at this height, his chin just reached…

Ax held his breath and turned his face away, trying to brace himself to avoid it. But at that moment, he caught a faint scent of fruitwood and flowers—the Prince’s pheromone. 

His body, starved of pheromone nourishment for so long, trembled. Ax’s rationality wavered. The resilient will of a military female Zerg made him unwilling to yield to instinct. But his body told him he needed pheromones. 

Yes, he needed pheromones; his Zerg egg needed pheromone nourishment. In an instant, Ax made his choice, closing his eyes as if sacrificing himself, letting himself drown in instinct, welcoming the impending pain.

“Wait, wait!”

Mu Si pushed Ax away, gathered his outer garment, and took several steps back, glaring at the female Zerg in front of him with a flushed face. “You, be reserved! Be reserved! Are you really that impatient??”

Ax only swayed when he was pushed away, quickly regaining his balance. Hearing the Prince’s rebuke, Ax didn’t feel much embarrassment, perhaps because the Prince, with his flushed face and stomping feet, had little deterrent power. 

He supported himself with one hand on the ground and slowly stood up. The change in eye level made him momentarily spaced out. How long had it been since he stood up? 

Fortunately, S-class female Zergs have strong physiques and extremely powerful recovery abilities. Aside from being exceptionally weak and powerless, he was otherwise no different than usual. 

And Ax already had experience with having his abilities restricted by inhibitors, so he quickly adapted to his current physical state.

Then he noticed that the Prince had become quiet at some point, staring up at him blankly. There was a natural difference in bone structure and physique between male and female Zergs. It wasn’t obvious when Ax was kneeling, but it became very clear when he stood up. 

Mu Si, who exercised regularly and was exceptionally tall for a male Zerg with a great physique, looked a full size smaller, almost petite, when standing in front of the tall, powerfully built Ax. They were still very close, and the physical imposingness instantly reached its maximum.

The taller, more robust female Zerg, however, now had his brows lowered, all his sharpness reined in, and he asked in a gentle voice: “Your Highness, when can I receive the pheromones you bestow?”

Mu Si: “…”

Is all a pregnant female Zerg’s brain capable of thinking about just pheromones, right?

Ten times the pheromones needed for a normal Zerg egg’s growth and development…

Mu Si could already foresee his miserable next few months. He would have to sleep with Ax daily as if clocking into work, torment Ax in various ways, and witness Ax having to endure and cooperate with him…

Boo hoo hoo, how tragic.

He couldn’t even suppress the corners of his sadly downturned mouth.