Flip the chessboard
As soon as Alfonso finished speaking, he felt with satisfaction the change in Gabriel's pheromones standing behind the Worm Queen.
Pungent pheromones emanated from Gabriel's position. Perhaps because he was still considering the live broadcast, Gabriel quickly restrained the pheromones.
Alfonso was pleased with himself, but his expression remained calm and kind. He spoke in a tone that seemed to show deep concern for Alyssa, "I just thought of this when I saw that little snail on the live broadcast a while ago, saying those childish words about wanting to be your husband."
"Your Highness, Alyssa, we all understand that time has been asymmetric with ours during the years you've been stranded in another dimension. However, we haven't been able to accurately determine your actual developmental age. Your mimicry appears smaller than that of a cub, yet your body has been emitting the pheromones of an adult insect."
"If you can't control your pheromones like me, it's likely you're about to enter your second pupation. Conventionally, we recommend that Her Majesty the Insect Queen choose a husband before entering her second pupation. This way, Her Majesty will take on more of the husband's racial traits after her second pupation, which will also benefit the relationship between Her Majesty and the husband."
While pheromones are also a means of communication for Zerg, intelligent Zerg pheromones are generally only released during times of intense emotion. Constant pheromone emission generally signifies sexual maturity and the search for a mate.
But Alyssa's inability to control her pheromones wasn't physiological; it was pathological. The last thing she needed right now was a courtship pheromone containing a large amount of male insect hormones, which would stimulate her already fragile gonads.
Alfonso remained composed, his plan prepared. If the Worm Queen refused to choose a husband now, he would turn the conversation to her health. Why was the Worm Queen, who had no desire to mate, constantly sending messages seeking a mate? Could there be a problem with her gonadal development? Could Her Majesty Elisa still successfully give birth to the next Worm Queen?
If the Worm Queen agrees. Ha.
The reason those high-ranking families who were dissatisfied with the Worm Mother were still complying with her antics was because of the coveted position of Wang Fu dangling before her. If the Worm Mother agreed to choose Wang Fu, he would immediately produce a dozen or twenty strong, hormone-filled males to hang around her every day.
He could even use the matter of recommending outstanding family members to the Insect Mother as a political bargaining chip that could be traded at a fixed price.
Gabriel knew this was all Alfonso's conspiracy. Alfonso must have seen something was going on and deliberately brought up the subject during the livestream. If the public knew Her Majesty Alyssa had a problem with her gonads, affecting her ability to conceive a new insect queen, the sense of security Her Majesty had painstakingly fostered through her livestreams would be instantly shattered.
Gabriel's mouthparts were grinding and squeaked, and her venom glands were heating up. She wanted to immediately wrap this vicious old assassin bug in her venomous silk and drag it to the Guardian Square to be exposed to the sun.
But the moment her furious pheromones went out of control, Alyssa pulled Gabriel into her spiritual world. Communication in the spiritual world was top secret, so there was no need to worry about other insects hearing.
"Your Highness, please leave it to me. Arranging a candidate for your royal consort is the responsibility of the Internal Affairs Officer, not the Court of Decisions. I will teach this withered old assassin bug the consequences of crossing the line."
"We're broadcasting live. Mammy, we can't let the public see the Warbrother Chamberlain and the Court of Resolutions feuding during the live broadcast. This will weaken the authority of the Palace of Saint Joseph."
Gabriel was very angry: "This is an open conspiracy. Just because you are respectable and considerate, you are forced by a despicable person like him to do something you don't want to do!"
"It's not that I don't want to do it," Alyssa stroked the insect-shaped Gabriel's hideous mouthparts and winked playfully, "but I suffered a major change and I'm still healing. My body and mind are very fragile, I'm just pretending to be strong."
When it comes to playing power games, Alyssa may indeed be inferior to Alfonso.
But she has her own philosophy of survival for the weak. Her delicate appearance and fragile heart can also become her armor and weapon.
Seville was closely monitoring the livestream and the comments. The old scoundrel's attack had caught Seville off guard, leaving him no time to react. Alfonso's question not only touched upon Alyssa's core concerns but also the part that had Seville most apprehensive. His vest pumped furiously, as if he were hearing a verdict.
No... no chaos. He still had to help Her Majesty Alyssa control the situation. Sewell's mind raced, forcing himself to think about how to smoothly cut off the video footage if Alyssa's answer wasn't meant to be known to the public without drawing public scrutiny on the Palace of Saint Joseph.
In the picture, Alyssa slowly raised her head. Sevier was dozens of light years away from her, but the look in Alyssa's eyes transmitted through the live camera instantly hit Sevier.
He extinguished the urge to cut off the live broadcast signal and watched Alyssa's performance without blinking.
Alyssa looked up at Alfonso for a moment, her mouth pursed, and tears rolled down her cheeks:
"...Lord Alfonso, is it true that even you only care about my reproductive value?"
Alfonso's heart trembled. He opened his mouth to explain, but Alyssa's sobs only intensified. "I know! In the final analysis, you just want me to give birth to the next insect queen as soon as possible! You also know there's a time difference between the two worlds. You want to know my exact age, right? I've spent twenty years in human society! Twenty years!"
“Why didn’t you come pick me up earlier?” Alyssa’s voice was filled with a hint of spiritual power, which made the insects feel more sympathetic. “I’m over there, I have no family, no home, and because of my unusual eye color, humans treat me as an alien! When I was bullied over there, primitive insects often came to help me. But because humans don’t like primitive insects, they also don’t like me who attracts insects!”
"I could only push away those primordial insects who protected me! After I came back, I finally adapted to my role as the Insect Queen, but I found that everyone seemed to no longer need my comfort because they had their first honey! I told everyone that first honey was harmful, but I was questioned for trying to protect my own status!"
"Do I have a choice? You could have just left me in that alternate dimension and kept using the First Honey! I've always wondered, before I pointed out that the First Honey was harmful, no one thought there was a problem with it. Then why did you still need the Worm Mother? Why did you rescue me back?"
"I know now—it turns out that the first honey is unstable! That's why you thought of me again! Not only did you think of me, but you also thought of the future! Before the first honey is stable, you can't be without the insect mother, so you have to stabilize me and let me give birth to the next generation safely! It would be best if I could lay eggs as soon as I reach sexual maturity. That way, you can have a insect mother that is more in line with the insect mimicry and more in line with your aesthetic tastes!"
Alyssa covered her face, tears leaking from her fingertips. Gabriel hugged Alyssa distressedly, tears welling in his eyes as he shouted at Alfonso, "Lord Alfonso! Please stop! Her Majesty Alyssa has only been back for three months! She's been working very hard to learn how to be a Worm Queen! Please give her some time. Don't exploit her personal life after draining her mental strength!"
"Don't you feel sorry for Her Majesty at all? Can't you see how vastly different Her Majesty's mimicry is from the physique of an adult male insect? We're all working hard to make Her Majesty strong. With a body like that, how could she withstand even the most restrained courtship from an adult male insect's husband?"
Alfonso stared in amazement at the Go board that had been overturned by Alyssa's sudden emotional breakdown. The round black and white pieces were scattered all over the floor. This was clearly his winning move, but the Worm Queen had completely overturned the board.
He didn't need to look to know that the barrage forum had already been cursing him like a dog. The focus of all the insects had probably shifted from "Why didn't the insect mother choose the king's husband" to "Why did it take so long to rescue the insect mother?"
The Worm Mother, still nestled in the Chief Internal Affairs Officer's arms, tearfully demanded, "If I choose the King's Husband, will you all rush me to lay eggs? Didn't you say the Worm Mother lineage is a single-line inheritance, and that after laying eggs, they must die? Will I die sooner than you?"
The Chief Internal Affairs Officer burst into tears and hugged the Worm Mother tightly. "No, Your Majesty Alyssa! You will definitely outlive an old woman like me! You can choose a consort whenever you want, and whoever you want. We will never force you! It is our job as Internal Affairs Officers to recommend a suitable candidate for you. It is not the Court's job to interfere!"
The seamless cooperation between the Worm Mother and Gabriel, with their excellent singing, recitation, acting and crying, successfully transformed Alfonso from a "wise, kind and caring elder who cares about the Worm Mother" into an "ugly politician who only wants to squeeze out all the value of the Worm Mother as quickly as possible."
How could this Zerg Queen be so unafraid to publicly display her weakness and incompetence? Tears flowed without warning. Where did she place her dignity as the supreme ruler of the Zerg race?
They are a warlike Zerg race, who have carved out their territory with their fists in the harsh environment of the universe. How can a mere wimp lead them to the top of the cosmic food chain?
No matter how he thought about it, Alfonso knew he had lost this round again. In fact, it was even worse than the loss he'd suffered when he'd revealed his insect form at the Insect Fighting Tournament. In this live drama, which he had initiated but which was drastically altered by the Insect Mother's exquisite acting, he was completely cast as a villain, a buffoon who only managed to bully the Insect Mother. The Court of Resolutions would likely quickly distance itself from this cold-blooded, hypocritical politician, fearing being represented by him. The higher-ups would also react, perhaps even taking their wrath out on him. Because of the Insect Mother's outburst, no one dared to even broach the subject of selecting a royal consort for a long time.
Alfonso laughed bitterly, then knelt on his knees, bowed his body deeply, and said to the still sobbing Worm Queen, "Your Majesty Alyssa, I am guilty. I beg for your forgiveness."
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