Chapter 154: Virtual Love Interest × Legion Commander (12): Ulysses Has Adopted a Male Zerg’s Daily Schedule

Lord Roy leveled up again! The virtual Male Zerg I'm raising has grown up. (hug)

From now on I can say, "I watched Lord Roy go through his awakening and transformation."

Morris: ... (draws sword)

The Legion Commander is going to chop you into minced meat. (terrified)

It's fine. There are so many of us, he can't chop us all.

Watching Lord Roy become more and more beautiful step by step feels like the virtual Male Zerg I raised is transforming too. It's so satisfying. Even though I can't personally participate, having such a high-level guide is much better for Lord Roy's transformation, so I'm very satisfied.

? (hesitates) (wants to say something) (decides against it)

Physiological awakening really is amazing. Not only do you become prettier, you even grow taller.

You also grow longer. (whispers) (blushes)

You didn't whisper at all. I heard you all the way from the frontier planet.

Morris personally measured Lord Roy's height and body length all week. He must've had the time of his life, huh?

You can actually experience this in a virtual game? Hurry up and release this game already! I'll spend however much money it takes! Isn't this just after my wallet? Take it! Take all of it!

I don't mean anything by it. I just like helping Lord Roy go through his transformation.

Even Male Zergs want to experience it. I want another physiological awakening so I can grow taller too. Tiny Male Zergs are adorable, but I still want another five centimeters. That way I'd look more harmonious standing beside my Female Lord.

Don't you want to grow another five centimeters? (blushes)

My Female Lord said what I've got is enough! He's very satisfied! (angry)

Female Zergs always comfort Male Zergs like that. But in reality, every rank a Male Zerg advances brings enormous changes. The higher a Male Zerg's rank, the more sought after he becomes. It's not just pheromones and psychic power—every aspect is completely different. That's why so many Female Zergs pursue high-ranking Male Zergs.

After a brief silence, one Male Zerg replied:

But I'm already A-rank...

An A-rank Male Zerg.

In an era without S-ranks, where even Super A-ranks were practically nonexistent, A-rank truly was more than enough.

Far more than enough.

The comments immediately changed direction.

Lord, look at me!

Are you still accepting Female Attendants?

And countless similar messages flooded in.

Hmph. Female Zergs.

Philor coolly closed the review section.

If a Female Zerg hadn't first passed inspection by his family, °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° there was no way he'd marry him. He wouldn't even consider it.

Among Male Zergs, Philor was already slightly above average in height.

In everyday life and social occasions, that was perfectly sufficient.

But his Female Lord was overwhelmingly handsome, tall, long-legged, and carried an incredibly powerful presence. Standing beside him, Philor always felt he wasn't photogenic enough. He looked pitiful somehow, like a drooping little flower that wasn't radiant enough.

If only he could grow another few centimeters.

He was already A-rank. Advancing any further would be incredibly difficult.

If a game like this really existed, then breaking through inside the game didn't sound bad at all.

Considering the Affinity between him and the Female Zergs in his family...

Getting a dozen Upgrade Gift Packs wouldn't be asking too much, right?

...

【Roy settled down on the Floating Island.

But during the day, he still returned to the house on the ground.

Perhaps because it held special meaning for him.

That was his home.

The Floating Island was simply a beautiful, spacious house.

Morris also helped renovate the house on the ground.

He repaired the walls and roof, built a new front door and furniture with his own hands, made a fence that enclosed a little courtyard, improved the soil, and planted flowers, vegetables, fruit trees, and shade trees.

He could have purchased a villa and garden instantly with a single tap through the game's interface.

Instead, he chose to do every little thing himself.

Land that had once been barren was transformed into a place overflowing with life.

Some of the plants came directly from the in-game shop.

Others he patiently raised from seeds.

Roy worked beside him, farming and repairing the house together.

Secretly, he planted a large patch of poisonous thorn fruit in one corner of the fence, earning a complicated look from the Female Zerg.

When the crops in the yard ripened, Roy picked a great many of them and delivered them to the elderly villagers.

They had long noticed the changes in his courtyard and knew he had completed his physiological awakening.

Their wariness toward Morris gradually disappeared.

They now believed he was a good Zerg.

Morris really was a good Zerg.

They simply belonged to different worlds.

In their daily lives, Morris would often pilot a flyer and take Roy anywhere he wanted to go.

They visited amusement parks, wandered shopping malls, bought whatever they liked, looked out over the sea, explored grasslands, forests, snowy mountains, and towering cliffs.

Nearly everyone they encountered assumed Morris was Roy's Female Lord.

Morris carried Roy's pheromones.

Roy also carried Morris's pheromones.

It was only natural for others to misunderstand.

Even though, ever since Roy's physiological awakening, they had never gone any further.

Simply living together naturally caused each of them to carry the other's scent.

The relationship between Roy and Morris gradually became... strange.

They lived together.

They traveled together.

They wished each other good morning and good night.

Occasionally they bumped into one another and shared a brief embrace.

Other than that, there was nothing more intimate.

They never slept together.

They never kissed.

Sometimes, when Morris escorted him back to his room, Roy could see the hesitation in his eyes.

If Morris said something...

Roy would invite him inside.

But Morris never spoke.

So Roy pretended not to notice.

They weren't intimate.

Nor had they made any promises to each other.

Male Zergs who completed physiological awakening usually ended up marrying their guides.

But they had nothing.

Neither of them ever brought it up or asked.

Morris was a player.

He was also a Female Zerg who believed in never marrying.

This would probably become nothing more than an insignificant chapter in his life inside the game.

Roy didn't know how long Morris would remain in this world.

Perhaps one day he would grow tired of it and leave.

Or perhaps, as long as their Affinity never reached its maximum, he would stay forever.

Occasionally Roy asked Morris about things outside the game.

About Morris's world.

About the game itself.

About the closed beta.

Morris was one of the closed beta testers.

But he certainly wasn't the only player.

Roy began paying close attention to the news.

Whenever something particularly strange happened, he would ask Morris if a player had done it.

Most of the time Morris answered no.

Only on very rare occasions did he admit he wasn't certain whether players were involved.

Roy asked how long it would be before the official launch after the closed beta.

Morris wasn't sure.

But based on how Zerg games were usually handled, open beta would probably begin one to three months after the closed beta started, followed by the official release.

Morris noticed Roy's uneasiness.

To Morris, this was merely a game.

But to Roy, this world was his real life.

He had no idea what would become of it once countless players flooded in.

There was another matter Morris hadn't dared mention.

Some games deleted all closed beta save data.

A wipe before launch.

Using his power and wealth, Morris could purchase every piece of data concerning Roy and every record from their closed beta.

Even so...

There remained enormous uncertainty.

No one knew what Roy's cherished world would become after the game officially launched.

Morris made a decision.

He would stop the game from ever being released.

...】

The readers in the review section were dumbfounded.

Morris, what are you doing? You crossed the river and then blew up the bridge?

You finished eating and now you're smashing the bowl?

I haven't even gotten to eat yet!

I can honestly understand both Roy and Morris... but I WANT TO PLAY THE GAME!!!

Protect our game! (Reward: Quantum Cannon ×5)

Don't let the Legion Commander succeed! (Reward: Star Destroyer ×1)

Down with the evil Legion Commander Morris! Open fire! (Reward: Quantum Cannon ×10)

The Heavenly Garuda readers were bewildered.

?

Weren't those supposed to be our lines?

For a while, the entire screen filled with rewards shaped like every imaginable weapon of war.

Being treated as Public Enemy Number One by so many readers...

Morris had become a protagonist unlike any other.

Even during the early days, when readers had boycotted Claire and Iso, things had never been this lively.

Ulysses browsed through the comments before his gaze landed once more on Morris's words:

"I've decided to stop the game from launching."

His eyes narrowed dangerously.

This game was something the gods intended to create.

He himself was responsible for organizing and completing it.

Countless Zergs had poured their efforts into it.

If anyone else had spoken of stopping the game's release...

He would never have tolerated such a thing.

But these words had been written personally by the god himself...

For a moment, Ulysses couldn't understand what the god truly intended.

He decided to ask in person.

With a reason now in hand, Ulysses submitted a visitation request.

As before, it was a private application.

And it was approved almost immediately.

Compared to the three consecutive rejections he'd received before, his importance in the god's heart had clearly surpassed what it once was.

Ulysses first returned home to change into a fresh set of clothes.

He also brought the gift he had prepared for the god.

Only then did he use his spatial ability to arrive outside the god's residence.

He pressed the visitor's doorbell.

Counted silently to three.

The door opened.

A Male Zerg with platinum-blond hair as pure as moonlight appeared before him.

Emerald-green eyes quietly observed him before a gentle smile curved his lips.

"Welcome. Have you been getting proper rest lately?" An Ruo asked.

Ulysses had originally intended to present his gift immediately.

Instead, he was greeted with such an unexpected question that his steps paused for just a moment before he naturally walked inside.

"Thank you for your concern. I make sure to get at least the minimum amount of sleep every day."

Not that staying awake was really an option.

Being held in the Male Zerg's embrace at night drastically reduced his work efficiency.

That was probably why married Female Zergs could hardly ever work overtime at night.

In a civilization that prioritized reproduction above all else, married Female Zergs were rarely assigned nighttime duties whenever possible.

Ulysses, of course, could never become pregnant.

Nor could that doll become pregnant in his place.

At night, he could only grit his teeth and continue working for a while beneath the Male Zerg's warm embrace.

Once he truly couldn't continue and his efficiency dropped to nothing, he would return to his own room, wash up, change into his nightclothes, and lie in bed.

Assuming the exact same posture as the doll, he imagined the Male Zerg's embrace and touch, savoring every tiny shiver that ran through him.

It was as though he had been held all night long.

Gradually, Ulysses learned to arrange his work in advance.

He worked overtime relentlessly during the day, pushing his efficiency to its absolute limit while deliberately avoiding both nighttime and lunch breaks.

His daily routine had now become just as healthy as the Male Zerg living in the prison.

A schedule any Zerg would envy.

An Ruo really couldn't detect any signs of exhaustion on Ulysses.

Although his answer had sounded slightly unnatural...

At least he was getting enough sleep.

That was enough.

An Ruo invited him inside to sit down.

Originally, there had only been one chair in the room.

But because Ulysses visited so often, An Ruo had added a comfortable armchair.

After all...

It would be far too strange for the Marshal to sit on his bed every time they talked.

Looking at the extra armchair, An Ruo suddenly felt he'd unknowingly become more and more like Selerus.

The armchair in Cell No. 1...

Hadn't Selerus prepared that specifically for Ulysses as well?

Now...

Ulysses had his own chair here too.

Ulysses noticed that small detail.

From the gaming pod...

To the armchair...

There were now two things inside the Male Zerg's room that belonged specifically to him.

Perhaps the photograph on the wall and the doll on the bed counted as well.

Ulysses liked these gradual changes.

Little by little...

It felt as though he was moving into the Male Zerg's world.

Step by step, drawing closer to him.

Getting nearer and nearer.

Suppressing the smile threatening to appear, he presented the gift he had prepared in advance.

"I spent quite some time searching for this. I thought you might like it."

You didn't have to bring a gift...

An Ruo politely thought to himself.

But the moment he opened it, his eyes widened in delighted surprise.

It was Ul!

The photographs of Ul he'd been missing all this time!

Silver-gray hair.

Amber eyes.

There was no way he could mistake him.

There were two photographs altogether.

One had obviously been taken during Ul's childhood.

A group of wolf beastfolk were taking him through the streets.

The little Male Zerg Ul wore a hat with wolf ears on top and walked beside the tall, powerful wolf beastfolk.

He genuinely looked like a little wolf cub.

The second photograph was taken much later.

It showed Ul together with Avis and his family of three.

All of them were in disguise.

Ul wore sunglasses, along with a hat and scarf.

He cradled a little hatchling dressed in matching colors while reaching out to hold Avis's hand.

Avis, wearing his usual cold expression, clasped his hand in return.

An Ruo couldn't help being surprised by Avis's expressionless face.

Was it because they were outside?

Did he have to stay alert for danger...

Protect his family...

Remain vigilant at all times?

Yet the way he held Ul's hand was incredibly gentle.

Afraid the Male Zerg's hand might grow cold, he wrapped it completely inside his own.

A cold face.

A warm handholding.

An Ruo was completely sold on the pairing.