Chapter 14: The Third Bite
This briefing only consisted of the mermen in charge of piloting the battleship reporting the situation to Lux. There wasn’t much to discuss, and it wrapped up in less than half an hour.
The merman generals departed one by one, and Lux prepared to return to his quarters to check on his human.
“Admiral Lux!” the elderly Lieutenant General Erwin suddenly called out to him.
Lux turned around.
This time, General Erwin didn’t beat around the bush. “Admiral Lux, I heard that you brought that precious human onto the battleship as well.”
Lux gave a quiet grunt of affirmation. “He has just entered his transformation phase and cannot leave my side.”
“But…” the old general expressed his concern, “Base X has been frequently harassed by the Zerg lately. I worry for his safety…”
Lux had heard this exact line so many times from the very beginning until now that his ears were virtually growing calluses.
“General Erwin, I will take full responsibility for my human’s safety,” Lux said evenly, lowering his eyelids. “He cannot leave my side, and I cannot choose to skip the campaign for his sake either.”
“This…”
“There is nothing left to debate on this matter. I am bringing him along to the campaign, and that is the final decision.” Lux turned away. “There is no need to bring it up again in the future.”
His words already carried a distinct chill, leaving General Erwin with no choice but to nod. “Understood. I will instruct them to reinforce the defenses to ensure his absolute safety.”
“No need.” Lux raised a hand. “Just keep things as they are. There is no need to make a grand display.”
Nothing could easily disrupt the operational efficiency of the military branch, not even his own human.
“Admiral Lux!” A merman guard suddenly burst through the briefing room doors. “Admiral, something has happened! Your human, he…”
Lux’s pupils contracted slightly. Before the guard could even finish the sentence, the pale-gold silhouette had already vanished into the corridor. The powerful current whipped up by his departure left the guard and the old general swaying violently, taking them quite a while to stabilize themselves.
“Mee-uuu… meow-awooo…”
“Meow-uuu…”
Weak, sorrowful cries leaked through the tightly sealed door of the quarters, the voice already sounding somewhat hoarse.
Lux swiftly activated the room’s emergency release valve.
The very instant the door slid open, Ruan Chen sensed the golden merman’s scent. Stretching out his arms, he shakily swam toward the merman’s chest.
Lux caught Ruan Chen in a firm embrace. The human buried his head into the merman’s neck, nuzzling frantically in sheer desperation. “Meow-uuu…” (What took you so long QAQ)
The human in his arms was curled into a tight ball, his fair skin flushed an unnatural shade of pink. His body temperature was terrifyingly high, and the sounds he made to call out to Lux were incredibly soft and sweet, accompanied by a continuous, involuntary purring.
The physical reaction of the transformation phase had officially hit him.
The depth of Lux’s eyes darkened significantly. He gently secured Ruan Chen’s small head, shut the door, and reached out to lift his chin.
“Meow-awooo?” Ruan Chen’s eyes were glistening with moisture, his large, pitch-black pupils perfectly round. He refused to pull away from Lux, desperately trying to bury his head back down to press against the merman’s neck.
So comfortable.
The merman’s skin was blissfully cool; only by pressing tightly against it could he slightly alleviate the throbbing pain and burning heat consuming his body.
Ruan Chen narrowed his eyes in sheer contentment, his entire body going limp with relaxation.
Consequently, it wasn’t until Lux laid him onto the bed and leaned down toward the side of his neck that Ruan Chen suddenly snapped out of it.
“Meow-uuu——!” (Don’t bite me!)
His eyes instantly flew wide.
Ruan Chen lifted his legs to kick blindly at the merman. Unfortunately, his limbs were completely weak and devoid of any real force; his small bare feet planting against Lux’s waist didn’t look like resistance at all, resembling playful splashing instead.
As sharp fangs pierced into the side of his neck, Ruan Chen let out a sharp “mee-uuu.”
A wave of spiritual pheromones far more devastating than the previous two times surged frantically into his system. Ruan Chen shuddered violently, his very blood feeling as though it were boiling over.
“Meow-uuu-uuu…” (Hurry up and stop…)
His eyes stretched to their absolute limits.
Yet the low whimper escaping him was incredibly faint, carrying a distinct babyish quality, the tail end of the sound trembling uncontrollably.
Lux’s spiritual pheromones were completely dominant and suffocatingly dense, sweeping aggressively through every corner of his body. Ruan Chen’s breathing grew more and more frantic, the tiny gills near the base of his ears opening and closing at an extreme velocity.
“Mee-uuu…” (I can’t take it anymore)
Even his pleading failed to make the merman above him stop. Ruan Chen’s eyes were flushed crimson, the tears welling up instantly swept away by the water currents.
Because he had endured the agony in the room for far too long this time, the stimulation brought by the spiritual pheromones was more intense than ever before.
His heart felt as though it were free-falling from the sky continuously. Ruan Chen’s body shook like a leaf in the wind, his fingers clutching tightly onto Lux’s shoulders, managing to leave a neat row of tiny scratch marks against the skin.
Ultimately, before the injection could even reach completion, Ruan Chen’s vision went entirely black, knocked completely unconscious by the overwhelming intensity of the stimulation.
Lux sensed the anomaly immediately. “Ruan Ruan?”
On the bed, the black-haired human’s mouth was slightly parted, revealing a tiny tip of pink tongue, but his eyes were tightly shut and his brow was furrowed, yielding absolutely no response.
Panicking, Lux immediately summoned the chief medical officer stationed on the battleship.
After conducting a thorough inspection of Ruan Chen, the military doctor said, “Admiral Lux, there is nothing wrong with your human. The stimulation from the spiritual pheromones was simply too intense for him to bear, causing a temporary loss of consciousness.”
Lux held Ruan Chen’s hand. “This did not happen during the first two instances.”
“This is perfectly normal, please do not worry excessively,” the doctor smiled reassuringly. “It is merely because your human was awakened not long ago and his body remains quite weak. Once he has been properly nourished for a period of time, this will no longer occur.”
Lux nodded. “Understood.”
The doctor prescribed a bottle of nutritional pills, instructing Lux to mix them into the food for Ruan Chen to consume.
After the doctor departed, Lux’s gaze lingered on Ruan Chen’s slender waist.
Pondering for a few seconds, he reached out his hand to measure it.
So thin.
The waist felt almost entirely devoid of flesh against his palm, the bones slight and pronounced.
He truly needs to be properly nourished.
Lux stared at the small bottle of nutritional pills, lowering his eyes in deep thought.
Ruan Chen dreamed that he had transformed into the golden merman once again.
Except this time, the merman’s physical build seemed significantly smaller than before. He couldn’t see the character’s face, but he could faintly sense that the merman’s line of sight was much lower, as if he were quite young.
Is this what the golden merman looked like when he was a kid?
Before he could figure it out, the merman lowered his head, and his perspective shifted. Ruan Chen saw a deeply lacerated wound across the merman’s abdomen, thick blood gushing out continuously.
What happened?
The merman pressed a hand against the injury, swimming forward with great difficulty.
A few seconds later, Ruan Chen understood the source of the injury.
Not far away, a swarm of the exact Zerg monsters he had been slaughtering in the game suddenly emerged, hissing viciously as they lunged toward the merman.
Did this merman also like playing holographic games when he was a kid?
Ruan Chen was stunned.
Whether out of fear or sheer exhaustion, the merman’s hands were trembling weakly as he gripped his weapon.
Yet he still calmly lined up his sights against the monsters, eliminating them one by one.
When the battle concluded, he slouched behind a piece of cover, panting heavily.
So pitiful.
He looks like he desperately needs help.
Just give up if you can’t beat it, just quit and restart, pick a better weapon.
Ruan Chen felt anxious on his behalf.
Wielding a tiny handgun barely the size of a palm, even the early stages would be incredibly brutal to clear.
The golden merman wiped his face with his arm. Ruan Chen caught sight of the numerous lacerations covering it, making his heart ache just looking at it.
Ruan Chen couldn’t bear to watch any longer.
Just quit and restart, big bro…
Ruan Chen opened his mouth to shout, but the imagery abruptly dissolved.
“Meow-awooo?” He stared blankly at the immaculate room before his eyes.
There was no injured little merman, no monsters, absolutely nothing.
Hearing the movement, Lux turned his head. “You are awake?”
Hearing his voice, Ruan Chen supported himself with his arms to sit up.
The golden merman in the dream just now was absolutely, undoubtedly Lux.
Aside from appearing several sizes smaller, everything else was identical.
Lux leaned down to scoop him up into his arms. For once, Ruan Chen was remarkably well-behaved, willingly opening his arms to loop them around the merman’s neck. “Meow, meow, meow. (I just dreamed about you)”
“What are you saying?” Lux supported him in the crook of his arm.
Ruan Chen tilted his head back. The merman’s exquisitely handsome features were right within arm’s reach, his attire pristine and elegant. The muscles of his torso and arms bulged subtly beneath the fabric of his shirt, looking entirely detached from the helpless, wretched image in the dream.
Sigh.
Who would have thought that a guy as colossally massive as this golden merman would actually be so trash at holographic games, getting bullied that badly by minor Zerg mobs on the third stage.
Though that game really is a bit too realistic; even the wounds look completely real and seem super painful. Next time, I should try getting injured in the game to test it out too.
With a face full of profound pity, Ruan Chen raised his hand.
Lux raised an eyebrow slightly, not yet understanding the meaning behind the gesture, before his head was very gently patted down in a smoothing motion by Ruan Chen.
Ruan Chen’s perfectly round eyes gazed intently at Lux. “Meow, meow, meow, meow. (Don’t worry, I will absolutely carry you through this game.)”
He smoothed out Lux’s long hair a few more times, only for his hand to be suddenly captured by the merman.
In the very next second, Ruan Chen watched with wide eyes as Lux lowered his head and planted a soft kiss right into the center of his palm.
Ruan Chen’s entire body froze instantly.
“Meow-awooo——” Just as he was about to unleash a string of curse words, as luck would have it, a loud, resounding “growl” tore from his stomach.
The sound was exceptionally distinct within the silence of the room.
Ruan Chen looked down at his own stomach. “?”
Hello? Excuse me, do you mind?
Lux let out a soft chuckle, placing him down onto the seashell sofa nearby. “Be good, wait here for a moment. I will bring you something to eat.”
Ruan Chen looked up, only for his head to be firmly patted and rubbed once more by the merman.
A sensation that was simultaneously numb and intensely satisfying shot from the spot on his scalp straight down to his tailbone. Ruan Chen shuddered violently, the curse words that had rushed to the tip of his tongue forced right back down his throat once again.
By the time he looked back over, Lux had already closed the door and departed.
Ruan Chen: “…”
He sat cross-legged on the sofa, his small face scowling as he stared fixedly at the palm of his hand, before reaching up to scratch at the exact spot Lux had just rubbed.
Incredibly bizarre.
How come when he rubbed it himself, he didn’t get that exact same sensation?
Every single time he was touched by this merman, his entire body instantly felt out of sorts, looking exactly like…
Ruan Chen bit his finger, sinking into agonizing contemplation.
Suddenly, his eyes flew wide.
Yes!
It looked exactly like that fat orange cat his grandfather raised in the courtyard!
Every single time someone rubbed that cat’s head, it would tilt its head back and stick its butt straight up in the air, looking utterly intoxicated with pleasure.
Ruan Chen went completely blank.
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