ICAWZ Chapter 185

The Southern Region places the pursuit of beauty above all else. A glimpse of this can be seen in the architecture of Central City, Yinchatait. Most of the towering buildings around are light-colored with graceful arches—delicate yet elegant. On the streets, the female zergs pass by in droves, all with long hair and dressed impeccably. Male zergs, on the other hand, are a rare sight. Even when one is occasionally spotted, he is closely surrounded and shielded by the female attendants of his household.

In contrast, the town of Saint Lieux is indeed a remote backwater.

As Robert piloted the aircraft toward the Third District, he spoke to Sanya: “Lord Russell has fallen ill and is currently hospitalized. Chairman Croney is at the hospital taking care of him. There shouldn’t be anyone at home right now. Once you return, take a bath and get some rest first.”

Sanya’s female father, Croney, served as the Speaker of the House of Nobles—a position that was respectable enough. However, given Salaranfa’s tendency to prioritize military power, this role held little sway during critical moments.

Sanya hadn’t yet figured out how to face his family, but upon hearing this, he could only nod. “Thank you for the trouble.”

Robert waved it off. “We’re all one family. No need to talk about trouble or not.”

It wasn’t long before the aircraft arrived at the residential district, gently landing in front of a beautiful white garden villa. Sanya still remembered the house’s password. He walked up to the door, tried it, and with a soft “beep,” the door automatically unlocked and swung open.

Sanya looked at the interior furnishings and exhaled slowly. “Nothing inside has changed. It’s exactly the same as it was when I left.”

Robert helped place the suitcase by the door. “You’ve had a tiring journey these past two days. Take this time to rest. I still have some things to take care of, so I’ll head off now.”

Sanya said, “Won’t you come in and sit for a while?”

Robert chuckled. “It’s fine. No need to be so polite with me. I really do have things to do. I need to return to the military to report later. I’ll come by again when I have the time.”

He truly seemed busy. After speaking, he waved goodbye to Sanya and You Que before hurriedly leaving in his aircraft.

After watching Robert leave, You Que glanced around the surroundings before finally asking, “Your home is so nice. Why did you end up going to a remote place like Saint Lieux?”

Compared to the bustling Yinchatait, Saint Lieux was like an isolated countryside. Sanya’s villa was beautifully designed and far more luxurious—miles ahead of anything in Saint Lieux. Why would anyone choose to go there?

Sanya, however, shifted the topic. “I’ll tell you tonight. Come on, let me take you upstairs to have a look.”

You Que couldn’t help but feel that there must have been some hidden reason behind Sanya’s departure back then. However, it didn’t seem appropriate to press the issue now. Carrying his suitcase, he followed Sanya upstairs.

Sanya’s room was on the second floor. Having been unoccupied for so long, he expected it to be dusty. Yet, to his surprise, when he opened the door, the bed and bedding were neat and tidy—clearly, someone had been maintaining it regularly.

Sanya casually placed his suitcase in the corner, walked around the room, and pulled open the curtains to let the light stream in. For a moment, he felt a bit dazed. “This was my room when I lived here before. It’s been so long since I’ve been back—I almost forgot what it looked like.”

You Que noticed a photo frame on the desk and picked it up for a closer look. “Is this your family photo?”

Sanya must have been quite young when this picture was taken. He looked a bit naive, hands in his pockets, sporting a high ponytail, exuding a cool and aloof demeanor without a smile. He seemed very different from now—where his demeanor carried a touch of nervous sensitivity and an icy detachment.

Sanya walked over and pointed to the two elders in the front of the photo. “These are my female father and male father. The two smaller ones are my younger brothers, Laimi and Laixing. If I calculate their ages… they should’ve joined the military by now as well.”

You Que had lived a carefree life, and he didn’t even know what he liked. Whether someone smiled or not never crossed his mind. He placed the photo album back and deliberately reached out to touch Sanya’s braid. “How about you give me a smile?”

Sanya, of course, didn’t smile. He ignored You Que, turned away to unpack his luggage, and pulled out two sets of clean clothes, placing them on the bed. “Take a shower and change into something nice. My female father will be back tonight. Look neat and make a good impression.”

You Que thought to himself that this was technically his first time meeting his father-in-law, which made him feel a bit uneasy. “Should I get a gift or something? Showing up empty-handed doesn’t feel right.”

Sanya thought to himself, What’s there to buy? “They don’t care about those formalities. Just relax and stay here. Female zergs are the ones who need to bring gifts when they visit a male zerg’s home.”

You Que still felt like he should get something, but since he was new and didn’t know his way around, and with it being so late, he decided to plan for tomorrow.

Entering the bathroom, You Que casually removed his shirt and tossed it into the laundry basket. When he turned around, he saw Sanya still bent over, sorting through things. Without a second thought, he reached out and pulled Sanya into his arms.

“Let’s shower together, it’ll be easier.”

You Que’s physique wasn’t exaggerated, but it was far from frail. His muscles were well-distributed, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist. Normally, his clothes hid his build, but once he took them off, his lean abdominal muscles became visible.

Sanya was suddenly pulled into You Que’s embrace. The pheromones on the other zerg made him feel dizzy, and when the shower was turned on, the heat enveloped him, making him feel even more lightheaded. He didn’t even realize when his clothes had been completely removed.

“Mm… You Que…”

Sanya wrapped his arms around You Que’s neck, unable to open his eyes from the hot water pouring over him. He buried his face in the other zerg’s neck, and in a moment of passion, he kissed upward along the Adam’s apple. However, he was suddenly flipped over by You Que, his back pressed against the tiled wall, revealing the cruel scars on his back.

You Que hugged Sanya from behind, his Adam’s apple rolling as he hoarsely whispered in his ear, “How did you get those scars on your back? Tell me.”

From the first day he saw the scars, You Que had been curious about them, but Sanya refused to speak. Now that they had finally reached the southern region, You Que’s curiosity had reached its peak.

Sanya struggled, trying to turn, but he was pinned against the cold tiled wall by You Que, unable to move. In his ear, the deep, serious voice of the dominant male sounded, “Speak.”

Sanya pressed his lips together and turned to look at him. Water droplets clung to his eyelashes, and his lips, stimulated by the hot water, became even more crimson, contrasting with his pale skin. It inevitably reminded him of the first time they met in the rain: “Can we talk about it tonight?”

You Que lowered his gaze and bit him lightly. His voice was somewhat unclear, “Now.”

His hand, with its distinct knuckles, slowly moved from Sanya’s waist up to his shoulder blades. The uneven scars seemed to silently tell the tale of the brutality from that time, and even the flowing water seemed to transform into warm, viscous blood.

Closing his eyes, all he saw was a blinding scarlet.

Sanya frowned, unwilling to speak, but You Que suddenly lowered his head and kissed his scars. The hard pressure of his teeth and the touch of his tongue against the skin caused a rush of anxious shivers. His voice, rarely gentle, whispered, “Don’t be afraid, tell me…”

Upon hearing this, Sanya’s eyes inexplicably stung with tears. He lowered his gaze, his fingertips digging into the edge of the tiles, the force so intense that his knuckles turned pale.

Without wings, the female zerg was considered incomplete and useless. Moreover, he had killed a male zerg, committing an unforgivable crime…

In an era where male zergs were regarded as supreme, Sanya couldn’t be sure whether You Que would truly not care. But a paper could not cover fire; eventually, the truth would be revealed.

He struggled to utter a few words:

“There…”

“Are my wings…”

Sanya’s voice was pale and weak, like someone trapped in the stark winter, trying to describe a long-gone spring through imagination and memories.

Upon hearing this, You Que finally remembered that in this world, all female zergs had wings, most likely located at the shoulder blades. He subconsciously stopped kissing, an inexplicable sense of dread rising in his heart. “What happened to your wings?”

Was it an injury from the battlefield? Or…

“They were removed.”

Boom—

Sanya’s simple words were like a thunderclap, leaving You Que stunned and his mind blank. His pupils contracted, and he briefly doubted if he had heard wrong. “What was removed?”

Sanya noticed You Que’s stiffness. He turned to look at him in the flow of water. The bathroom was shrouded in mist, and neither of them could see the other’s face clearly. Yet, their bodies suddenly felt completely cold, as if the chill seeped through from the inside out, and even the hot water pouring over them was of no use.

“My wings were removed.”

Sanya didn’t know why he remained so calm. His face expressionless, he grasped You Que’s hand and slowly guided it to his back. His voice was hoarse, almost unrecognizable: “Have you ever seen the wings of a female zerg from the South?”

“My wings were beautiful. Many male zergs wanted to keep them.”

“What a pity… I couldn’t show you my wings…”

Their wings shimmered with radiant colors, breathtakingly beautiful, and were considered a gift from the Zerg God. But it was these very beautiful wings that brought countless disasters.

Sanya gave a self-deprecating smile, pulling at the corner of his mouth. “Remember when you asked me why I left the South? Back when I was in the military, I unintentionally offended a noble male zerg. When I was injured on the battlefield and hospitalized, he bribed the doctor to strip my wings away. This scar… is the result of that…”

Upon hearing this, You Que suddenly felt a cold shiver from head to toe. He had suspected that Sanya must have offended some enemy, which had forced him to leave the South, but he never imagined there was such a story behind it. Sanya’s wings had been skinned off while he was still alive!

You Que’s face instantly darkened. His fingertips unconsciously tightened, to the point where Sanya felt a sharp pain. Through clenched teeth, he forced out a few words: “Who was that male zerg?”

Sanya felt the pain in his back but didn’t pull away. He raised his head to look at You Que, his face appearing pale under the lights, but his tone was serious:

“I killed him.”

To say ‘killed’ wasn’t entirely accurate; ‘dismembered and fed to the dogs’ might be a more fitting description.

In that moment, You Que clearly saw the coldness and killing intent emanating from Sanya. He was momentarily stunned, unable to find the words. But the female zerg reached out and slowly embraced him, his fingertips icy, his body trembling, like a lonely boat floating on the water, with no support or refuge.

“You Que… I hate him.”

“I wish he could die a thousand times, ten thousand times…”

“But you can’t be afraid of me, You Que. You can’t be afraid of me…”

Any male zerg who learned that his partner had once killed another male zerg would, to some extent, feel fear. Sanya was so vicious—who could say on any given day he wouldn’t kill You Que?

Sanya reached out and embraced You Que, his grip tighter than ever, as if fearing the other might push him away. In a daze, it felt like something hot was falling from his eyes, but it mixed with the flowing water, making the sensation unclear.

“Do you know how painful it was when they stripped my wings? They tore out two of my wing bones while I was still alive…”

Sanya’s voice carried a deep, searing hatred: “You Que… I would rather they had killed me…”

“Being killed would have been better than living like this…”

The more he spoke, the more his body trembled, as if he was recalling the excruciating pain of lying on the operating table, at the mercy of the zergs. His fingertips almost dug into You Que’s flesh.

The sharp pain in his waist finally snapped You Que back to reality. He instinctively embraced the trembling Sanya, his heart overwhelmed with shock and anger, to the point where he didn’t know what to say.

“Stop overthinking. What could I possibly be afraid of from you?”

You Que held Sanya tightly, lowering his head to shower the female zerg’s cheek with a flurry of kisses, trying to soothe his emotions. All words of concern vanished in the tangle of their lips and tongues. “I’m not afraid… “

I’m not afraid…

You Que thought to himself, how could he be afraid of Sanya? If the same thing had happened to him, the situation probably wouldn’t have been much better than Sanya’s.

He could tell that Sanya came from a good family. His cousin Robert had even become a major. If Sanya were still in the military, his position would only have risen, never fallen. He had such a promising future, yet had been ruined to this state. Who wouldn’t hate that?

You Que found himself hating on his behalf.

Sanya saw You Que’s face, cold and terrifying. He pressed his forehead against his and whispered, “You Que, but I don’t regret going to Saint Lieux… If I hadn’t gone, I would never have met you…”

But the price of this encounter had been far too severe, not something You Que had wanted.

“You killed that male zerg. What if they find out now that you’re back?”

Sanya kissed You Que’s cold lips. “My record is clean now. As long as there’s no legitimate reason, even if they find out, they won’t be able to do anything to me.”

What mattered most was that his male father was seriously ill, and Sanya simply couldn’t remain indifferent. Even if there was danger, he had no choice but to return.

After this interruption, You Que couldn’t help but feel a bit overwhelmed. After they finished their shower and changed into clean clothes, he seemed to remember something. He ran his hand through his hair and looked at himself in the mirror. He noticed the dark roots of his hair had already grown a little, though not very visibly.

Sanya noticed his movement. “What are you looking at?”

You Que lowered his hand from his hair. “It’s nothing. Didn’t you tell me to dress neatly?”

Sanya walked over and adjusted You Que’s collar. “You’re already very neat. The female father will like you.”

Croney was supposed to work today, but because the male lord was ill, he took the day off to care for him. As a result, he returned earlier in the afternoon.

Croney parked the aircraft in the yard and, as usual, pushed open the door to enter the house. He was preparing to head to the kitchen to make dinner, so that Laimi and Laixing, who worked at the military department, wouldn’t come home hungry. But as soon as he entered the house, he keenly sensed that something was wrong.

Although the home’s decor hadn’t changed, the presence of an unfamiliar zerg felt strangely out of place. Occasionally, there was even a faint noise from upstairs.

Croney’s expression changed:

Could it be a thief?

 

 

 

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