Chapter 46: Male School Heartthrob x Military Academy Student (9): You Can Apply for Leave to Go on Dates with a Male Zerg

[An unfamiliar environment, an unfamiliar bed, and a whole night of nightmares.

Hill had slept poorly and woke up early.

A soft little hatchling was lying in his arms. Hill stared blankly for a few seconds before remembering everything that had happened yesterday.

This was his hatchling from ten years in the future...

Even now, it still felt unreal.

Hill reached out and poked the hatchling's soft little cheek with his finger. It was pleasantly springy.

Noticing signs that the hatchling was about to wake up, he quickly withdrew his hand.

The hardships of coaxing the little one to sleep last night were still fresh in his mind. He absolutely didn't want to wake him.

He quietly got out of bed and washed up.

Two toothbrushes sat on the bathroom counter, one big and one small. It looked incredibly cute.

Hill couldn't help taking a picture with his terminal.

Unfortunately, neither one belonged to him.

He could only take out his own spare toiletries from his spatial button and do a simple wash.

As soon as he stepped out of the bedroom, he saw Iso preparing breakfast.

Considering the efficient use of space inside a mecha, the kitchen was open-plan, with only a separate island counter equipped with basic smart cooking appliances.

The female Zerg standing behind the island preparing ingredients looked handsome.

A cool-faced, handsome guy who could cook—he seemed like the warm, homey type.

Iso also noticed the male Zerg emerging.

He was rather surprised that a male Zerg would wake up so early.

“My apologies, Lord Hill. Breakfast will take a little longer. Would you like a cup of fruit and vegetable juice first?”

Iso washed his hands and poured him a cup of warm golden juice.

“Mmm, thank you.”

Hill accepted the warm cup and sat on the sofa, holding it in both hands as he watched the female Zerg skillfully prepare and cook.

This was something he would absolutely never see at home.

His family was huge. Their dining table was longer than Iso's entire living room.

Every Zerg had their own place at the table—which was already better than some neglected secondary consorts in certain male Zerg households who weren't even allowed to sit down to eat.

It was just... far too lively.

No one's seat was fixed. Seating was determined according to military rank, ability, favor, and status.

Aside from his own seat and those of his male parent and female parent, everyone else's positions changed constantly.

Get promoted? Move forward one seat.

Make a major contribution to the family business? Move forward one seat.

Become pregnant or give birth? Move forward one seat.

Receive the Male Lord or Female Lord's affection recently? Move forward one seat.

Most of the female Zergs in the family were military females with strong competitive instincts, and they enjoyed this kind of competition.

One meal was more dramatic than eight hundred episodes of a soap opera.

Hill didn't want to watch dramas.

Unfortunately, he lived inside one.

Compared to that, Iso's place was so quiet that it made him want to lie down and take a nap.

Iso's terminal suddenly lit up. Apparently, he'd received a message. He opened the holographic screen and frowned.

Hill felt he shouldn't pry into someone else's affairs, but seeing the female Zerg looking troubled, he still asked,

“What happened?”

What he really wanted to ask was, “Is there anything I can help with?”

“Nothing.”

Iso answered instinctively, then paused. Afraid the male Zerg would think he was being dismissive or hiding something, he added,

“It's about the withdrawal application. There have been some complications.”

Hill was startled.

He had told Iso to calm down and think things over.

And he'd actually gone and submitted it?

Hill immediately stood up and walked over.

“There's no need to withdraw. It hasn't come to that. I have a share of responsibility for the hatchling too. I can help take care of him.”

Hill selectively ignored the fact that before coming here last night, he hadn't wanted to raise the hatchling at all.

He could provide psychic soothing and money, but he definitely didn't want to become an unmarried young parent.

Besides, male Zergs traditionally didn't participate in child-rearing. Even if he did nothing, nobody would blame him.

On the contrary, the fact that he was paying and providing psychic soothing would already make everyone think he was an exceptionally good male Zerg.

But now...

Hill himself didn't understand why.

Perhaps it was responsibility.

Or perhaps he simply couldn't bear seeing such an outstanding female Zerg destroy his own future.

No female Zerg could remain unmoved hearing such words from a male Zerg.

But Iso still refused.

“It would trouble Your Lordship too much. There is no reason for a male Zerg to raise hatchlings.”

Besides, he could tell that Lord Hill only provided psychic soothing to Isidore out of kindness and responsibility.

He didn't truly regard Isidore as his own hatchling.

Nor would he accept him as part of his family.

The ideal situation now was for him to raise the hatchling alone while the male Zerg provided psychic soothing—like a volunteer doing community service.

Nothing more.

When Isidore grew older, he would take him to register his Zerg information. The parents section would only contain his own name.

This hatchling would not affect the male Zerg in any way.

At most, he would be considered an unacknowledged illegitimate child.

Iso lowered his eyes.

The beautiful future described by the hatchling contrasted sharply with reality.

But he and the male Zerg had no relationship to begin with.

He couldn't ask for more.

“There has to be a way.”

Hill paced back and forth while thinking. He even entertained the idea of buying a house outside school and raising the hatchling there.

That way, both he and Iso could take turns caring for him.

Of course, there were drawbacks.

The house would be too close to school. If the two of them entered and left the same place frequently, rumors would eventually spread among classmates.

And Iso was a military academy student. Discipline there was strict, and he might not have the time or opportunity to leave often.

Suddenly, Hill's eyes lit up.

He smacked his fist into his palm and turned around.

“You could say you're dating me! You can apply for leave if you're dating a male Zerg! Then, if I have classes, you can come over and take over!”

“......”

Silence filled the room.

Iso stared at the male Zerg in shock.

Only then did Hill realize what he'd just said, and his face instantly turned red.

He hurriedly explained,

“I don't mean it like that! I mean... for the hatchling. It's the best solution. We can just pretend. It'll be fine.”

For male Zergs, it truly didn't matter.

Even dating several female Zergs at once was perfectly normal.

Nobody cared.

But for a female Zerg, it was equivalent to being marked with a particular male Zerg's label.

At least while the relationship lasted, he could no longer pursue any possibilities with other male Zergs.

It was basically...

Losing the right to choose a mate?

Hill nervously looked at Iso, uncertain whether the other party could accept such a suggestion.

Iso's eyes widened in disbelief.

His expression remained blank, but the shock in his heart far exceeded what appeared on his face.

A male Zerg Lord was willing to help a complete stranger in this way.

That was an extraordinary level of kindness.

“Thank you very much, Lord Hill. I... I don't know how I can repay you...”

Iso's lips moved.

He thought of many things.

But eventually, his shoulders slumped.

Money?

This Lord didn't need it.

His body?

The other party wasn't interested.

He wasn't even interested in abusing him.

Then perhaps the custom mecha weapons he'd made?

Don't joke.

This was a male Zerg Lord.

Perhaps the bones or crystal cores of exotic beasts he hunted...

But even those couldn't compare to what Lord Hill had bestowed upon him.

Hill became embarrassed instead.

“You don't have to repay me or anything. I haven't really done anything.”

He was only lending his name to a female Zerg.

And what he got in return was...

Having the female Zerg come back and raise the hatchling.

Hill felt so guilty he wanted to cover his face.

He thought what he was doing was rather excessive.

Yet the female Zerg was still thanking him.

Sleepy-eyed, Isidore emerged from the bedroom rubbing his eyes and looking for his Dad and Papa.

He saw Dad standing by the kitchen island with a shy blush on his face, while Papa stood behind the island, his eyes bright and his upper body leaning forward.

Oh my, embarrassing~

Isidore covered his eyes with his hands, then secretly peeked through his fingers.

The two Zergs turned around simultaneously and looked at the little hatchling.

Iso spoke first.

“Finished washing up? Breakfast will be ready soon.”

“Yep! All done!”

Isidore bared his bright white teeth to show Papa.

Zerg hatchlings possessed excellent self-care abilities. Adults hardly needed to worry about them.

After greeting the little hatchling, Hill returned to the sofa and picked up his fruit juice.

Isidore looked at Dad sitting far away, then at Papa preparing food.

He walked over and tugged on Papa's pant leg.

After Papa bent down, he whispered softly,

“Papa, did you kiss Dad? Did you make Dad stay? Will Dad live with us from now on?”

“Don't talk nonsense.”

Iso lowered his voice and tried to cover the hatchling's mouth.

But it was useless.

A male Zerg's senses weren't as keen as a female Zerg's, but at such a close distance, it was impossible for Hill not to hear.

All he could do was drink his sweet fruit juice and pretend he'd gone deaf.

For Isidore's breakfast, Iso prepared simple vegetable meatballs and milk-fruit juice.

As for the male Zerg, he had followed an online guide titled "Exquisite Male Zerg Breakfast."

Whether it tasted good was another matter, but the presentation was excellent.

Bright colors, all kinds of food, balanced nutrition—the kind of meal people photographed and uploaded to StarNet to show off.

Hill: “......”

He had never imagined that this was Iso's breakfast style.

Everything looked beautiful, but eating it felt more like snacking than having an actual meal.

Meanwhile, Iso's own food was perfectly normal.

The aroma of grilled meat made Hill drool.

As someone who didn't cook, he naturally couldn't criticize the chef's arrangements.

Hill silently finished everything on his plate and felt like he'd eaten an entire stomach full of fruit and grass.

After breakfast, he discussed buying a house near the school with Iso.

The Underground District was indeed hidden enough that the hatchling would almost never be discovered there, but it was too far away.

They were still students. Running back and forth every day wasn't practical.

Somewhere near school would be much more convenient.

As for disguising the hatchling's identity, they could think of something later.

A house.

Iso remembered the male Zerg's choice of wording and began calculating his savings.

Each victory in the underground mecha arena earned a considerable amount of star coins.

But this was Capital Star, where land was worth its weight in gold.

...

Meanwhile, at the military academy.

Inside the principal's office.

After rejecting the withdrawal request, the principal received yet another application.

A leave request.

Reason:

Dating a male Zerg.

His vision darkened and he nearly fainted.

Was protecting all three legs really this difficult?

...]