The old man who was holding Anne's shoulders suddenly bent down deeply.
Anne instinctively raised her hand to steady him, only to see tiny shards of blood and internal organs oozing from the old man's trembling, unclosed mouth. Her heart skipped a beat, and then she realized he was leaning over her, blocking her view with his body.
"Don't look at it, don't look at it." The old man called the Pope spoke intermittently while retching, and covered his mouth tightly with the shriveled palms of an elderly person. Even so, blood continued to flow out from between his fingers and drip onto Anne's smooth cheek.
Anne clenched her teeth, trembling with fear for unknown reasons, and her upper and lower teeth made a creaking sound.
From the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of the distorted scene in the square—many people instinctively lowered their heads, and some, like the Pope, stared at the scene for too long, blood streaming from their features. Yet, for some reason, some wore expressions of fanatical fascination, their faces filled with fear and yearning, pain and madness.
Some stretched their hands toward the sky, tiptoed as if seeing something they longed for, and muttered to themselves. Others sat on the ground, curled up, as if returning to their mother's womb, their faces filled with strange tranquility as they closed their eyes and fell into an unknown dream.
Then, amidst a constant shudder, Anne saw Erica, sitting in the front row of the square, calmly and with composure, stand up. Her long, slightly curly brown hair was perfectly straight, and her usually gentle and quiet green eyes suddenly revealed an excitement that Anne couldn't understand. This made her look completely different from usual, more lively, more unbridled, even a little ferocious... What was hidden in those eyes? Worry? Or a grand, unconcealable gratitude and admiration?
However, this complex emotion disappeared quickly, and Anne thought it was an illusion caused by the chaotic scene... because Erica lowered her head and looked at her, turning back into the Omega girl Anne was familiar with, with a look of concern and worry that could not be misidentified.
The red-haired Alpha girl breathed a sigh of relief, but she shuddered at some subconscious suspicion that she didn't want to face.
**
Langman Griffin was recuperating at home due to some unspecified "illness" and did not even attend the Queen's birthday celebrations.
He didn't watch the live broadcast either, but just swayed his wine glass in Griffin's old house, enjoying the rare leisure time.
But the peaceful holiday was broken by a text message that read: Something happened in the square.
The blond man stood up from the recliner covered with animal fur, walked to the window of the bedroom on the second floor of the Griffin old house in a white bathrobe, and pulled open the heavy velvet curtains. The sunlight immediately illuminated the ancient and gloomy room with grandeur.
Griffin's House was one of the closest buildings to Ma'an Fort. Despite its limited height, a corner of the square could still be seen through the lush bushes and carefully sculpted vegetation. However, anyone with eyes within a fifty-kilometer radius could see the massive ship anchored above Ma'an Fort Square and the tentacle that, at first glance, resembled a dark cloud, lingering over it.
Langman placed the goblet in his hand on the narrow windowsill. He didn't know what he was thinking about, but he pursed his lips and revealed a sarcastic expression that was trying hard to hide his fear.
**
The live camera was turned off the moment the tentacles appeared in the sky. The big screen in the mall suddenly fell into darkness, and the crowd watching nearby immediately whispered because of the sudden change.
"Why did the live broadcast stop? Wasn't it still playing when that terrorist on the spaceship was boasting?"
"…Is the situation out of control?"
"How is that possible! That's Maan Fort!"
"Isn't the army outside the capital planet right now? Have they been dispatched?"
George felt flustered and looked at the strange man in the black cloak in front of the screen. He found that he was slightly raising his head and pressing one hand to his forehead under the hood, seeming a little annoyed.
However, that person obviously did not often fall into such emotions, because his slightly frustrated action was extremely awkward, which made the onlookers unable to help but have an urge to go over to him and ask about his difficulties in order to provide help.
Then, the hem of the black cloak trembled in the air, and the man turned around and walked quickly towards the stairwell. His jawline seemed sharper than usual because of the owner's anger or some other emotion.
When he reached the stairwell and before he opened the door, the Beta youth who had said he was going to make a phone call happened to come out. Seeing his hurried steps and furious look, he asked in a low voice.
The black cloak gave a brief answer.
The gray-haired young man wore an expression that was both helpless and comforting, but he quickly suppressed the emotions that had been revealed due to his slightly inappropriate amusement and tried to offer comfort in a serious, objective and calm manner... but he undoubtedly failed. The man standing opposite him pressed the back of his head and kissed him, and the dangerous aura on him vanished.
During this process, Igor stroked Azathoth's back like stroking a big cat.
"This matter is indeed very troublesome at the moment." He first acknowledged the seriousness of the matter, and then added affirmatively under the gaze of the evil god's black eyes, "But you will handle it."
Azathoth sighed.
"My tentacles are only smart in bed."
"..." The young human said in a rare fair tone, "That's because you were controlling them personally at the time."
Then he changed the subject: "I asked Marshal Gonger about the current situation. He said there's no need to worry for now. The Zerg attack only looks menacing, but in reality it's more like a spur-of-the-moment 'teasing'."
He emphasized the last word and continued, "If the Insect King planned this raid with the intention of humiliating the Federation, then he unfortunately ran into an iron wall."
Iron Plate Azathoth: "..."
He wanted to hold his forehead again.
"I'm very happy and grateful." Seeing this, Igor spoke again, "I didn't expect you to be willing to help humans. Most of them have nothing to do with you at all."
Azathoth said frankly: "I did it for Erica."
"You did this to avoid causing further harm." The human held his cold hand and leaned forward to kiss the evil god on the corner of his mouth. "No matter how the audience in the glass ball viewed this rescue, the gods in heaven certainly didn't intend to harm them."
"Do you know what you are saying?" Azathoth said with a scrutinizing look in his eyes. "Your compatriots would not want to hear you say that."
Igor did not flinch at his indifference; he even smiled. "I'm not as selfless as you think... Humans have their own preferences, sir."
He often called Azathoth this, with a touch of respect and a subtle intimacy.
Something beneath Azathoth's ribs throbbed rapidly at these words, as if heat from all his body instantly rushed into his brain, urging him to speak seriously, "But I also don't want you to be embarrassed, so no one will be irreparably hurt."
His follower responded casually, as if it were a normal thing: "I have always believed in you."
**
George bent down with the shopping bag, hugged his knees and buried his face in the gap between the two rows of seats.
At this moment, the boy strangely forgot his panic, and his thoughts began to jump and jump as he began to consider whether he should try to have a relationship after the crisis was over and he returned to school.
**
Hugo: "Wow."
It manipulated the mall's cameras and spun them 180 degrees, pretending to shake its head: "Cold dog food is randomly shooting at my face."
Wendy, who was sitting next to it, was distracted by the square and suddenly heard this and asked, "What?"
Bionic Man: "I'm talking about Igor. He is not a straight man after all."
Wendy, who had grown up in a society with six genders, didn't get the meme. She looked at Hugo, who was sitting on the sofa, counting his toes without a care in the world. After a moment's hesitation, she whispered, "Are those people in Maanbao Square going to die?"
"Why?" Hugo looked up at her curiously.
"Because... uh, it offended the gods?"
The android burst out laughing and leaned back on the soft sofa: "Then I can't atone for my sins even if I die a thousand times?"
Wendy licked her upper lip and squeezed the sofa cushions. "But you two have a good relationship."
Hugo stopped laughing. He stood up, still gazing at Wendy with that strange gaze. Then, the android said mysteriously, "Since you're Igor's sister, I'll tell you a secret."
Wendy's pupils shrank back to vertical, and she asked cautiously, "What did you say?"
Hugo leaned close to her and whispered in her ear, "If that day ever comes, I will definitely destroy the world before Azathoth does. Even the evil god won't be able to snatch my life."
“…”
Wendy's back felt cold, and she grabbed Hugo's wrist and pulled him away from her, not knowing whether he was telling the truth or not. Hugo smiled and let her pull him away, almost rolling off the sofa to the ground. He laughed and complained, "Wait, you're not really believing this, are you?"
Are you a chuunibyou? Wendy really wanted to say that.
But the disgust and hatred on the android's face just a few seconds ago were so real that she was speechless for a moment.
"Forget what you said just now." Hugo sat back down and straightened his bangs that had become messy because of his previous actions. "What I meant to say is that Azathoth doesn't actually hate humans."
It looked at Wendy's distrustful expression and said with a raised lip, "Believe it or not, I can even say that I like you quite a bit."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
