Chapter 49
“…That’s how it is.”
The young military woman stood in front of the desk and reported everything with a serious expression.
"This is my negligence. I will take the punishment after I get the female slave back."
Not only was he scolded by the admiral, he also had to endure the wrath of his direct superior.
Michel smiled bitterly inwardly. It was unknown whether he could stay in the military after this visit.
Sitting behind the desk was another female soldier, dressed neatly in a dark military uniform, with her lieutenant colonel epaulettes shining with a cold silver light.
The female soldier had tough features and a cold face, with only a hint of icy green eyes visible from under the shadow of her hat brim.
He was originally looking down at some documents, but upon hearing this he looked up at his subordinates who were still unaware of the situation.
"It's too late."
His tone was calm, but the content of his words made the female soldier in front of him turn pale.
"This incident is not just about losing a female slave that the admiral cares about, but has shaken the foundation of the entire military."
The tiny waves had been lifted up by the east wind and had grown into huge waves that were able to shake the steep cliffs.
No matter what the consequences of this turmoil are, no one who has been involved in it can remain unscathed.
Leimand closed the document in his hand and leaned back in his chair somewhat tiredly.
The reason for coming back this time was the admiral's mandatory order, but because the place we were clearing was too far away from Etal, even though we moved dozens of starports and traveled non-stop, it took more than half a month to get back here.
But in just such a short period of time, the female insect has managed to survive and quickly accumulated such great strength... Should I say that she is really worthy of being called a bug?
Anton should be already overwhelmed by the situation. After the order forcing him to go back, no new requirements were issued. But if he just sits there and waits for orders... the outcome will definitely not be good.
Leman took a deep breath and opened the information sent over.
There is no truly hidden information on this garbage planet. The male insect's tricks are ingenious but too simple, and can be collected and deciphered with a little investigation.
His fingertips tapped the tabletop intermittently, and he stared at the documents in front of him in a daze.
"Yell..."
A deep voice echoed in the stagnant space, "He was the one who bought the female insect?"
The photo column on the translucent screen showed a male insect with black hair and black eyes.
That face made the densely packed data shine brightly, almost attracting every eye that was looking at the data.
"Yes, sir. This male is named Yael and is of D grade."
The young military woman interrupted cautiously and gave the lieutenant colonel a brief summary of the data she had collected.
"This male insect has a rather unique background. He was suddenly discovered on a garbage planet. He has no blood relationship with any other male insects in the insect race, nor does he belong to any noble family or clan."
"After recovering from his injuries in the main system, he came here to live. He has been settled here for a year until half a month ago when he passed by the female slave exchange and took the female slave back."
"We are considering using star coins, which are two hundred times more valuable than the female slave, to buy the female slave back from the male insect... But when you say it's too late, you mean..."
The female soldier raised her hand, and Michelle's voice stopped abruptly.
"Needless to say, I know this male insect." Leimand said suddenly.
The deep green eyes under the brim of the female soldier's hat were dim and unclear, staring at the information, or rather the picture of the male insect.
"Varied……?"
Michel raised his head in surprise, but when he met the military woman's gaze, his body froze, and he suddenly lowered his head and shut his mouth.
"Don't act on your own. Wait for my instructions."
Leimand didn't say much. He glanced at Michel and spoke in a cold and unquestionable tone.
"The female insect is probably unable to move, but we can still try to attack the male insect."
"Go down and call Nika over."
After the door was closed, the office fell into silence.
The female military officer with a stern expression stared at the data page for a long time, as if she was thinking about how to deal with the situation, or as if she was in a trance.
After a long while, he suddenly reached out his hand towards the photo, but stopped before touching the pair of dark eyes.
The fingertips did not fall for an unknown amount of time before the suspended light screen automatically went out.
*
Yael felt the hem of his clothes being pulled and turned his head in confusion.
"015, what's wrong? I just said that the master bedroom doesn't need to be cleaned."
But the little robot housekeeper was holding a mop and looking at him blankly, as if he didn't hear what he said.
The light on Xiao Fang's screen suddenly began to flicker, and his red eyes disappeared and deformed, looking a little strange. Suddenly, a small, sharp squeaking sound came from his mouth.
"No electricity?"
Yael put the cup on the table, held down 015's round head, and pushed it toward the charging pole in the corner of the living room.
"Your battery is running low. Remember to recharge it in time next time."
But the head under the palm turned 180 degrees, raised the red bean eye that was left on one side and looked at him, making an emotionless flat mechanical sound.
"It's so hot... It feels so strange... It feels so hot..."
"015?"
Yael was stunned and quickly squatted down to check what was wrong with it.
"It seems like there's a power leak again...hiss,hiss...host, it's..."
“Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle, sizzle—!!!”
An extremely piercing sound came out from the voice box, like a terrible scream, and the small square screen had completely gone out, leaving only an empty darkness.
Click.
His ears seemed to catch a hint of unusual sound, and Yael's pupils shrank suddenly——
"Bang!!!"
A huge explosion sounded in my ears, and my eyes seemed to go blank for a moment. The strong shock wave instantly touched my body, and the blood evaporated before it spilled out, emitting a terrifying and disgusting aura.
Yael was no longer aware of his own breathing. His retina was filled with dark shadows and white light. He was shaking violently and uncontrollably, almost having a convulsion from excessive tension.
"Hero Lord?!"
A familiar voice was mixed in with the sharp tinnitus, and my numb body seemed to regain some sense, and I felt as if I was being held tightly in someone's arms.
"...Breathe slowly! Breathe in rhythm with me...Okay, relax a little, don't be afraid..."
The stern and anxious voice became clearer and clearer, and Yael finally regained his unbalanced breathing.
He shook his head slowly, and his vision gradually became clear. In front of him was Xi Ze's worried face.
He was rescued by a female insect who discovered the abnormality in time and rushed over, but the walls of the living room were charred black and were completely unsightly.
Thick smoke was billowing from the center of the explosion, it was extremely horrific.
Xize's expression was cold, and the bone wings that were crisscrossed in front of him slowly loosened. He did not bother to check the source of the explosion, but began to check whether the male insect in his arms was injured.
"My Lord? What's wrong?"
Yael had slowed down a bit, curled up in the female insect's arms, his eyes a little blank, and after hearing the question, he shook his head a little late, his voice hoarse.
"……It's OK."
But he didn't look like he was okay. Caesar gave him a quick check and after making sure he didn't have any major wounds and didn't need to go to the hospital, he picked up the male and wanted to put him in the master bedroom.
But Yael suddenly pressed down on the female insect's wrist. Although she was still trembling, her strength was firm.
"Wait...put me down."
Caesar frowned in disapproval, but still put the male insect on the ground, helping him to maintain a half-kneeling position so as not to slip.
"Master, I don't know if there is any danger here. It would be better to hide in the master bedroom first."
Yael closed his eyes and clenched his fists to try to suppress his physiological tremors. Under the massage of the female insect, his spasmodic muscles slowly relaxed, but he still felt a little weak.
"015..."
His voice was so hoarse that he almost lost it, and he looked up at the center of the explosion.
However, all that could be seen was a piece of broken machinery radiating out from the explosion and splashing all over the house, while more of it had melted in the high temperature generated by the explosion, leaving no trace.
Yael was held by the female insect on one side and moved over while trembling.
But the place was already charred black, and after searching for a while, there was nothing to be found except blackened fingers and a few deformed screws.
"015..."
He murmured almost silently, with a trembling cry in his rapid breathing, "No more..."
Xize was originally holding the male insect while helping to grope on the ground to find out what parts were left of 015, but he suddenly stopped when he heard the sob.
The male insect lowered his head, with his hair falling down in front of his forehead, obscuring his expression.
But the crystal clear liquid continued to fall, dripping onto the back of the hand that was rubbed black, dissolving the dirt bit by bit and leaving irregular marks.
Xi Ze's pupils shrank and he subconsciously reached out to catch the tears.
Drop by drop, it rolled and scalded like magma, almost burning holes in the flesh and blood.
"Heroic Lord..."?
Caesar spoke in a hoarse voice, and his outstretched hand trembled suddenly, tentatively touching Yael's shoulder.
Without much resistance, the male insect raised its head and looked at him with tearful eyes. Its long eyelashes were stuck into small clumps by its tears. It seemed a little dazed and was still sobbing from time to time.
Caesar touched Yael's face in a panic, trying to wipe off the dripping moisture, but forgot that his hands were burnt and dirty, and directly rubbed several black fingerprints on the male insect's face.
...making him look like a stray cat, even more pitiful.
Xi Ze quickly withdrew his hand, used his forearm to force the male insect into his arms, and whispered, "It's okay, don't cry."
The neck felt damp, and wet liquid flowed down along the clavicle, wetting a large area of the clothes.
The male insect in her arms cried silently, but her body couldn't stop shaking slightly.
The grief of loss, the terror of survival, and the silently burning anger were transmitted through the mental link.
There was a cold look in Xize's eyes, but it did not show on his face. He just lowered his eyes and lowered his voice.
“雄主不是給015換了新版芯片嗎？”
“之前我看過，主材料用的是非常堅硬的稀有材料，有一定幾率可以在爆炸中存活下來的，可能只是被沖擊到別的地方去了。”
聽到這裏，懷裏的雄蟲動了動腦袋，柔軟的黑發蹭在頸側，帶來一陣細微的麻癢。
西澤調整了一下姿勢，用臉緊貼着耶爾的臉，安撫道。
“只要找到芯片，碎片也行，就能将上面的代碼複刻出來，然後就能複原015了……好了，不哭了。”
耶爾終于從情緒沖擊中緩過神，聽到還有恢複的可能，立刻微微睜大了眼睛看向雌蟲，鼻音濃重的聲音中帶着點欣喜和不确定。
“……真的嗎？”
西澤微松了口氣，輕吻了一下雄蟲的眼尾，語氣篤定。
“真的。”
耶爾有些不好意思地抹了下臉，原本只有幾道烏黑的痕跡，現在變得滿臉都是了，只剩下一雙烏黑極亮的眼睛。
他渾然不覺，吸了吸鼻子後笑起來，“那我們去周圍找找吧，那塊芯片是藍色的，還挺大塊的，應該能留下一部分。”
西澤感覺心底陷下去一大塊，軟得不像話，他沒有出言提醒雄蟲，彎了彎眼應道。
“好，我找一下客廳，雄主去餐桌那邊看看吧。”
他觀察了一下爆炸的範圍和沖擊的軌跡，圍繞着客廳轉了一圈，最終在沙發旁邊站住了，上面的枕墊和沙發套被殃及，已經焦黑一片。
西澤迅速将表面摸了一遍，将找到的幾個零件放在缺了一邊的茶幾上，但是核心芯片仍然沒有影子。
他一手托住沙發一角，将一整個沙發側翻過來，又仔細查找了一遍底部，随後眉心皺起。
……怎麽會沒有？
但身後突然響起雄蟲驚喜的聲音，“找到了，在這裏！”
耶爾從爆開的花瓶後面，找到了深深嵌入牆體的芯片，黯淡的藍色上滿是裂紋，但整體還算完好。
“來了。”
西澤把沙發翻回來，抽出一張紙巾，包住那張芯片露出來的一段，小心地拔了出來。
“情況還好，複刻概率比較大。”
……
西澤之前說擁有幾乎所有高級機械證書不是假的，但基本都是還在軍校的時候考下來的，領兵打仗多年已經有些生疏。
但一轉頭就能看見雄蟲泛紅的眼眶，不說是有些生疏，就算是沒考也要熬一個月将證考了再說。
“工具箱在這裏。”
耶爾從茶幾的抽屜裏翻出工具箱，雖然表面焦黑，但裏面的工具都還好好的，讓他松了口氣。
爆炸現場會有不好的物質殘留，他們便把修複地點定在了主卧，将桌子搬開後席地而坐，将能找到的015的全部零件擺開一地。
西澤卻沒有立刻動手，而是先起身去浴室浸了條熱毛巾，把耶爾的花臉好好擦了一下，特別是眼睛，不敷一下明天肯定會腫起來。
“好髒……”
耶爾看着雪白的毛巾變黑一片，意識到自己一直頂着一張鍋爐煤炭工似的臉，一時有些耳熱。
他乖乖擡起頭臉，看見雌蟲臉頰上也黑了一塊，想起來好像是剛才雌蟲為了安撫他，用臉蹭了他的臉才沾上的。
“你臉上也有……”
耶爾低聲道，接過雌蟲手上的毛巾，擡手把雌蟲臉上的髒污擦掉，但手還沒縮回去就被抓住了手腕。
西澤看了他幾眼，似乎在仔細觀察他現在的狀态，确認沒什麽事後才親了親耶爾泛着薄紅的眼皮。
“已經沒事了……有哪裏不舒服要告訴我。”
第一次直面爆炸，雖然身體上可能沒受傷，但留下的心理陰影是深遠而長久的，需要及時介入心理幹預。
邊緣星沒有這個條件，但很快就能回到主星了，到時候要記得給雄蟲安排專屬的心理療愈，西澤在心裏記了一筆。
“好。”
耶爾深吸口氣将殘餘的驚懼壓下，臉上的神情放松了些，身體語言不再那麽警惕而繃緊。
西澤松開他，将視線放到地板的零件上，“現在就開始吧。”
現在的工具太有限了，很多步驟根本沒法下手，但最新芯片是植入了一定生物活性的，如果保存太久就會失活。
等有條件再修複，專屬于015的記憶和情感都會被清零，變成工廠統一生産的智能家居。
西澤思忖良久，最終還是決定手動錄入代碼，能保存一點是一點，核心在這裏，到時候修複丢失數據會簡單很多。
他喚醒光腦，拉開幾片淡藍色的光屏，輸入幾串代碼後頁面瞬間變了一個樣子，随即一塊鍵盤懸浮在手心下，上面的按鍵無比複雜。
耶爾似懂非懂地看了幾眼，坐在雌蟲身邊看着他操作。
他參與的研究項目也和算法有關，但本質其實還是生物科學，和機甲智械這一類大相徑庭。
“……”
這場修複持續了整整一夜，期間好幾次耶爾撐不住，被雌蟲強制按在大腿上，蜷縮着睡着了。
但又睡不安穩，幾次迷迷糊糊醒來，發現正身上蓋着暖和的被子。
而擡眼就能看見西澤專注的神情，淡藍色光屏在雌蟲臉上打下分明的陰影，無數奔湧的代碼在修長手指下傾瀉而出。
耶爾強撐着看了一會，很快就被雌蟲察覺到他醒了，一只寬大的手覆蓋上雙眼，隔絕了屏幕上的光線。
“很快就好了，雄主繼續睡吧。”
噼裏啪啦……
——嗒。
西澤敲下最後一個按鍵，結束了這次繁瑣至極的複刻，确認将文件全部保存備份好，将它加密打包發到了另外一個星網賬號上。
等一切都弄完，他有些僵直的肩膀才微微松懈下來，閉了閉眼緩解通宵工作的疲憊。
外面夜色深深，時間已經接近淩晨六點，再過一個小時應該就天亮了。
被長時間枕靠，大腿肌肉泛起輕微的刺痛，西澤沒有在意，伸手撥了撥雄蟲額前淩亂的碎發，露出好看的眉眼來。
他指尖輕點上耶爾的臉，微顫的睫羽仍然濕潤，沿着眼尾輕輕一抹，便延伸出一道細微的水痕。
西澤神色沉冷，将剛剛熄滅的光腦喚醒，傳了個消息給白朗——
【最近加強巡邏，最新防護罩運到之後搬一個過來安裝，通知技術組……】
消息還是不可避免地洩露了一些，難免有渾水摸魚的勢力從中作梗。
原本他都可以不理會，但這次差點傷到雄蟲，已經踩到了他的底線。
等将這棟房子周圍的防禦提升幾個等級，又将其他要注意的事打點好，外面的天色已經亮了。
“唔……”
懷裏的雄蟲不安穩地動了動，西澤還沒來得及安撫，耶爾的身體猛地顫了一下，清醒過來了。
“已經弄好了嗎？”
耶爾勉強撐着雌蟲的大腿直起身，有些呆呆地看着他，說話也慢吞吞的。
“不好意思哦，昨晚我睡着了。”
西澤卻有些懊惱，“我應該讓您去床上睡的，在地板上睡不舒服，脖子會不會很酸痛？”
得到否定的答案後他松了口氣，伸手把耶爾翻起的領子捋平，将目前的情況告訴他，“已經弄好了，雄主不用擔心。”
“到時候拿去主星找一個靠譜的機械師，就能把015複刻出來了。”
主星。
耶爾頓了一下，但想起炸得七零八碎的015，又垂眸斂去了異樣的神色。
“好，到時候去主星看看吧。”
他搖了搖頭醒神，把身上的被子慢慢卷起來扔到了床上，“你去補一下覺吧，我去把外面收拾一下。”
眼看着西澤就要跟着站起來，耶爾連忙按住他，語氣故作兇狠。
“趕緊去睡覺！你的黑眼圈好大一個，好像被打了一樣！”
西澤頓了頓，有些懷疑地摸了摸眼睑，“……真的？”
他之前不眠不休十幾天作戰，臉上都看不出疲憊的痕跡，這次只不過熬了一個通宵而已。
“真的！”
耶爾非常肯定地點頭，卻又彎腰親了親他的眼睛，“辛苦了，快去休息吧。”
一直看着雌蟲在床上躺好，他才走出房間，但第一眼就是滿牆滿地的焦黑，頓時頭痛地嘆了口氣。
“我記得這個房子裏應該有一鍵清潔……交房的中介好像說過，在哪裏來着……”
耶爾在客廳轉了幾圈，沒有不自量力地拿起拖把搞衛生，而是非常及時地想起來星際建築一般會安裝有一次性的一鍵翻新功能。
“非常快捷迅速！”那中介神情誇張，伸手指了一個方向。
“雖然沒有智能家務機器那麽靈活，而且需要喊專門的蟲二次填充才能繼續使用，但是可以讓房子瞬間煥然一新！”
當時耶爾還不知道這個功能的主要作用是什麽，直到在星網上看到評論——多蟲運動之後房子很亂，這個功能非常實用！
他才回想起來這個種族的設定，是類似于全民impart，而且設置這個功能一次性不是因為技術限制，而是為了保護雄蟲的腎有所節制。
現在倒剛好派上用場。
Yael finally found the hidden switch and clicked it, and it began to automatically scan the dirty area and automatically clean and even refurbish it.
They dragged the damaged furniture to a corner and removed the sofa cover and stuffed it into the washing machine. This made the explosion scene look less tragic.
While waiting for the automatic cleaning to start, Yael washed his face again, took out a few slices of the spare bread from the refrigerator, ate them, and put the rest in the incubator, waiting for the female insect to wake up before eating them together.
The sound of the machines operating was monotonous and boring. Yael sat on the only remaining chair for a while, then got up and returned to his room.
He opened the door quietly. Caesar was not asleep. He opened his eyes and lifted one side of the quilt after hearing the noise. "Come in?"
The warm air blew against my face, making the place look almost like a den, soft, small, and dim, like a brown bear or a squirrel's cave filled with food, nuts, and straw to survive the winter.
Too safe and warm... an irresistible temptation.
Yael's Adam's apple moved slightly, and he nodded without hesitation.
The process of getting into the nest was a bit difficult. The female insect was lying outside and he was a little afraid to step firmly. In the end, he was held around the waist by one hand and carried in.
The warm quilt made him sigh comfortably and he buried his face deeply in it.
"…I just woke up, I might not be able to fall asleep again."
"It's okay, it's good to rest for a while."
Xi Ze turned sideways to make more space.
The female insect's face was a little blurry in the dim light, with only a few rays of morning light outlining its clean and sharp outline. The windproof wall still enveloped Yael in his shadow, bringing him an unknown but steady sense of security.
Xi Ze reached out and patted the bulging quilt, and his deep voice softened a little, "Go to sleep."
"Um……"
Yael was not sleepy yet, but he could hear the hot breathing in his ears and the strong arms wrapped around him through the quilt. The last trace of coldness melted away in the soft and thick embrace.
After a few minutes, Yael decided to close his eyes and rest for a while, and suddenly pulled his hand away. He clung to the female insect like an octopus, and buried his face in the softest part without any hesitation.
Fell asleep again.
The author has something to say:
Poor 015, it's ok, the general will work hard to fix your orz, you will become very very cool, and then continue to follow Ye Ye and laugh foolishly (bushi
No one can resist Ye Ye's tear attack (an arrow piercing the heart)