Chapter 44: We’re His Main Characters, After All (Xi’an & Claire Special, Plus Cassian & Aira)

A good Female Lord should like his Male Lord's posts immediately.

Speaker Cassian, who was on his way home, saw the new post his Male Lord had just published, and naturally saw the discussion underneath about his "love rival."

"..."

A love rival?

He couldn't deny that "An" occupied an extremely important place in Aira's heart, one that even he himself seemed unable to shake.

He had indeed felt a sense of crisis because of it.

But...

A male Zerg.

If his Male Lord learned what kind of male Zerg An truly was, would he still admire and adore him so much?

Cassian hesitated.

He wasn't sure whether he should tell Aira what he had uncovered.

Aira worshipped "An" so deeply that he almost regarded him as a god, following him with the devotion of a believer pursuing his deity.

If he learned An's true identity, if he found out that he was the protagonist of the once sensational "domestic abuse case" and "divorce case," his illusion would surely shatter.

That would indeed eliminate his "love rival" in one stroke.

But Cassian wasn't sure whether Aira could endure such a blow.

It would be equivalent to destroying his faith.

That night, Aira had awakened from a dream in tears and embraced him, saying that he'd dreamed of his god blessing him and wishing him health and a long life.

If he learned the truth, Aira probably wouldn't be able to bear it.

His health had always been poor...

Only recently had he regained some spirit thanks to An's novels.

Cassian rubbed his forehead and sighed softly.

He'd keep it hidden for as long as he could.

He opened a communication channel, contacted Xi'an, and sent him the information he had discovered, strictly forbidding him from mentioning it to Aira.

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Meanwhile, it was daytime in the Ninth Military District.

Claire's marriage leave had ended, and he returned to the military district to report for duty.

From the moment he stepped off the aircraft, he had been receiving attention.

Nearly every military female was staring at him.

Whether they knew him or not, curiosity, scrutiny, suspicion, envy...

All kinds of gazes fell upon him.

Even though Claire had prepared himself mentally, he was still stunned by the spectacle.

He first went to report to the Legion Commander and confirm his return.

The Legion Commander patted his shoulder, praised and encouraged him, and even mentioned that his merits during this expedition would likely earn him a promotion to Major General.

Then, after a dry cough, he pulled out several exquisite cards introducing Instructor from his military uniform pocket.

"Ahhem, my Male Lord is a loyal fan of this book. He especially likes you and Second Lieutenant Xi'an... Oh right, could you also get Second Lieutenant Xi'an's autograph for me?"

Claire petrified.

He had no idea how he managed to sign his own name.

Only after leaving the building did he realize he still had two cards in his hand.

He had actually agreed to ask his Male Lord for Xi'an's autograph.

"..."

Claire stared at the cards with a headache, having no idea how to explain this to Xi'an.

What kind of mess was this?

When he returned to the troops under his command, these guys weren't nearly as reserved as the strangers and the Legion Commander outside.

They pounced on him like beasts.

"Claire! You really married Lord Xi'an?! Holy shit!"

"Colonel, how did you trick Second Lieutenant Xi'an into marrying you? Teach us! Give us pointers!"

"Are those scenes in Instructor real? Did you really perform a psychic marking?!"

Claire kicked one flying, but he still couldn't resist the bunch clinging to his legs.

"Please, Commander, just give us a hint. I've been single for fifty years already."

The military females looked at him with sparkling eyes, full of thirst for knowledge.

"What tricks could I possibly have? Want to spar with me a few times instead?"

Claire tried to shake off the military female hugging his leg, but even hanging in midair, the guy refused to let go.

Claire laughed in exasperation.

"Learning from me is useless. Have you ever seen a male Zerg who liked my type?"

"Lord Xi'an!!!"

Everyone answered in unison.

Claire paused.

"...That's true."

"You're showing off, aren't you?!"

"Claire! Commander! You can't abandon your brothers after escaping singlehood!"

Claire laughed and folded his arms, casually kicking the military female hanging from his leg.

"Let go. Ask whatever you want. If I can answer, I will."

"Wow, Commander actually smiled. How rare. Love really nourishes a Zerg."

"You actually believe in love? It's obviously male pheromones and Psychic Soothing."

"That's different. Other Zergs might not have love, but Commander and Lord Xi'an definitely do!"

The military females argued before turning toward Claire together.

"Commander, do you?"

What kind of question was that?

Claire complained inwardly, but still pursed his lips and nodded reservedly.

"Look at that smug expression! The corners of his mouth are harder to suppress than an energy gun!"

"Exactly. An Ultra-A female only needs a finger to suppress an energy gun, but suppressing that smile whenever he mentions his Male Lord isn't easy."

Everyone teased him when suddenly all the voices stopped.

Every military female looked toward the doorway.

Claire also turned around in surprise.

Military boots tapped against the floor.

Xi'an walked in from outside and met everyone's gaze.

He smiled.

"Long time no see, everyone. My transfer application has been approved. From today onward, I've returned to my original unit. Please take care of me."

The words were addressed to everyone, but those smiling eyes only stuck to Claire.

Everyone could feel that atmosphere no outsider could squeeze into.

Was this love?

Too sour.

But being able to admire Lord Xi'an's glorious beauty up close again was wonderful.

"Welcome back, Second Lieutenant Xi'an!"

Claire also extended his hand.

"Welcome back, Second Lieutenant Xi'an."

Xi'an smiled and grasped it.

"Commander, now that I've returned, I won't be leaving again... so don't think about abandoning me."

The last sentence was spoken softly, right beside Claire's ear.

The high-ranking female soldiers, all A and B grades, collectively admired the sky, the earth, and the scenery.

Ah.

Why couldn't their ears just go deaf?

...

With their marriage certificate, Xi'an moved into Claire's officer residence.

A three-story detached villa.

He looked around at the interior, which was so simple it resembled a model house.

This was his first time coming here.

It was almost exactly as he had imagined.

Spotlessly clean.

Everything neatly arranged.

Very few belongings.

And no traces of any other male Zerg.

Xi'an was very satisfied.

From now on, this would be his and Claire's long-term residence within the Ninth Legion.

He could be intimate with Claire in all sorts of places.

Xi'an's eyes sparkled.

Claire had originally worried that he might dislike the place. Seeing him happy, he finally relaxed.

"Since I haven't been back for so long, there aren't many things here. Whatever you need, I'll buy immediately."

"No hurry. Sit with me first."

Xi'an took Claire's hand and led him onto the sofa.

At first, they sat properly with straight backs, looking every bit like military Zergs.

But as they sat there, Xi'an gradually leaned against him and cupped his face, kissing him.

And after kissing...

Claire's pheromones slipped out beyond his control.

He had endured their hardest days together and had once possessed the self-restraint of an ascetic among Zergs.

But he had absolutely no resistance to Xi'an.

In the end, they made love once on the sofa.

Claire carried him upstairs to the bathroom to wash him.

And they did it again there.

Now lying on the wide and comfortable officer's bed, Xi'an contentedly kicked Claire's calf beneath the blanket.

This was the happiest life he had imagined.

Claire didn't understand why he was kicking him.

He caught the male Zerg's ankle and gently rubbed it, feeling the alluring bones beneath his fingers.

Heat rose in his chest again.

Because of the psychic mark, Xi'an immediately sensed his emotional change.

The corners of his lips curved slightly in secret, but he deliberately teased him.

"Let's talk about something serious."

Xi'an said,

"My brother found out where that An-shen is. Hmm... the answer is rather unexpected."

His eyes held a trace of complexity and emotion.

Seeing that the male Zerg no longer seemed interested in continuing, Claire reluctantly released his ankle and leaned closer.

"Where? Isn't it the First Military District?"

"It is the First Military District, but..."

Xi'an's expression became particularly complicated.

"...it's the Military District Prison."

He looked deeply conflicted.

But Claire completely failed to understand his point.

"Oh."

There were male Zergs in military prisons too.

That had always been within Claire's guesses, so he wasn't surprised.

But which male Zerg could it be?

Despite handling such overwhelming Psychic Soothing work, he still had time to write novels.

Was that even manageable?

A name often mentioned recently in the military flashed through Claire's mind.

However, he had never personally experienced it.

He had gotten married during his worst period of psychic instability, and Xi'an had soothed him, so he had never needed to line up for the military district's Psychic Soothing services.

Thus, he knew little about the matter.

"Annor. The other party in the Marshal's divorce case."

Xi'an directly spoke the name.

It perfectly matched the one that had just flashed through Claire's mind.

Claire raised his eyes in astonishment and met Xi'an's gaze.

"How could it be... him?"

A male Zerg capable of soothing nearly a hundred military females to perfect scores in only three star-hours certainly had enough mental energy left to write.

But...

How could a male Zerg whose domestic abuse case had shaken the entire Federation possibly write such words?

Even if the same event were written by different Zergs, the content and expression would be entirely different.

There was love in An's stories.

He had written the emotions flowing between Claire and Xi'an, emotions neither of them had noticed themselves, with astonishing delicacy.

Neither Claire nor Xi'an could have written such words together.

They simply weren't capable of exposing their hearts so finely.

"Could there be some mistake?" Claire couldn't help asking.

It wasn't that he doubted Speaker Cassian's abilities.

It was just...

Too unbelievable.

"Either way, we'll know once we meet him."

Xi'an said,

"I've applied for a visit at the end of the month. But I don't know whether he'll agree to see us. Before this, he rejected every military female who requested a visit."

Claire was surprised.

"He rejected all of them?"

Male Zergs in prison usually didn't reject visits.

They were one of their few forms of entertainment and relaxation.

And they could receive plenty of gifts.

Male Zergs generally loved that.

"Not exactly."

Xi'an's expression became strange.

"Among the visitation records he accepted, there is one name."

He silently mouthed it.

€€€€ Ulysses.

The Marshal.

Claire's eyes widened slightly.

An unexpected name.

But it wasn't unreasonable for the Marshal to visit his former abuser and witness him imprisoned.

As for why the other party had accepted that visit...

Perhaps he simply hadn't been given the opportunity to refuse.

Claire's feelings became equally complicated.

But Xi'an had already perked up and opened his light screen.

"What do you think we should bring as gifts? Even if he refuses to see us, we should at least send something inside."

Then he blinked playfully at Claire.

"Though I think he'll be willing to meet us."

"After all..."

"We're his main characters."

"As a creator, he probably wouldn't refuse to meet his own 'main characters,' right?"