ICAWZ Chapter 9

In any case, since he’s going to prison, might as well enjoy it first.

The unexpected actions of Lu Yuan caught the military females off guard. They hadn’t reacted when, by the time they regained their senses, Wengel was already lying on the ground like a pile of rotten meat. With more exhales than inhales, his aristocratic arrogance was dispersed by Lu Yuan’s resounding slap.

If something happened to a rare aristocratic male zerg with a blood purity of up to 40% in this place, it would undoubtedly be a bad omen.

The military females nearby were suddenly alarmed at the sight, disregarding the arrest of Lu Yuan. They hurriedly ran forward to check Wengel’s condition.

“Your Excellency! Are you alright, Your Excellency?!”

“Oh no, His Excellency Wengel has fainted. Quickly, call the medical team!”

It’s easy to imagine the chaos in the registration hall, especially when Wengel’s female attendants heard about their master’s accident. They clashed with the stationed military females, attempting to force their way into the hall, pushing the already grim atmosphere to its peak.

“Why is it so noisy outside?”

At the end of the second-floor corridor was a data room. General Saphir, who had been sorting through student records behind his office desk, frowned upon hearing the faint commotion outside the door. The four military stars on his uniform looked oddly familiar; it turned out to be the middle-aged female zerg who had appeared outside Lu Yuan’s ward.

Yusto sat on the sofa opposite, engrossed in flipping through a military magazine. With a light chuckle upon hearing Saphir’s question, he didn’t bother lifting his head as he said, “I bet you ten stars, General Saphir, that this kind of mess is usually connected to male zergs.”

General Saphir sighed helplessly, “Seventh Prince…”

Yusto interrupted him, “Please don’t address me so formally, Dean. Your status at Bardell Academy surpasses everything.”

“Alright,” General Saphir had to change his tone, “Yusto, are you perhaps taking the situation too absolutely?”

Yusto clearly didn’t think so. He stood up from the sofa, gesturing to General Saphir, “You’re always so optimistic. In that case, let’s go out and have a look.”

The second floor’s location provided a good vantage point. So, when General Saphir and Yusto opened the door and stepped out of the data room, they witnessed the chaotic scene unfolding downstairs.

The urgently summoned medical team hurriedly lifted the unconscious Wengel onto a stretcher. Outside, the crowds that gathered to witness the commotion eagerly opened their terminal recorders to upload videos to the StarNet. The military females on duty were busy maintaining order, simultaneously trying to prevent the crowd from taking unauthorized photos. The situation was chaotic, to say the least.

Observing the scene, General Saphir squinted his eyes, feeling a strange sense of familiarity with the figure lying on the stretcher. “Isn’t that the male cub of the Monck family?”

Yusto, amused, corrected him, “It’s the ‘troublesome’ one from the Monck family.”

At that moment, a military female rushed up to report. Seeing General Saphir, he quickly saluted and anxiously repeated the events that had just occurred. He ended with a self-blaming tone, “I apologize, General. It’s our negligence. We couldn’t protect His Excellency Wengel when the danger occurred.”

Upon hearing that a female had physically assaulted a male, General Saphir was momentarily astonished. After all, such absurd incidents usually only occurred among the female-dominated aristocracy in the northern regions. “Where is the female who attacked him?”

The military female pointed downstairs at Lu Yuan, saying, “We didn’t dare take any action, so we temporarily detained him.”

Little did the military female know that when General Saphir and Yusto saw the black-haired, black-eyed zerg downstairs, their pupils momentarily contracted. Clearly, they hadn’t expected to encounter Lu Yuan in such a place.

General Saphir, lost in thought for a moment, decisively spoke up, “Temporarily detain him in the interrogation room. I will personally conduct the interrogation. Until then, no one is allowed to release him.”

Yusto was surprised by the revelation that General Saphir would personally conduct the interrogation. After all, the charge of assaulting a male, especially a noble one, was not a trivial matter. If Lu Yuan were indeed taken to the interrogation room, even a few dozen lashes would be considered lenient.

Seeing General Saphir heading towards the interrogation room, Yusto immediately stepped forward to catch up. For some reason, he proactively spoke, “General, interrogations like this shouldn’t be done by you personally. After all, it’s just a minor scuffle. I’d be more than willing to assist you.”

General Saphir halted at Yusto’s words, turning to look at his most outstanding student. His gaze seemed to penetrate Yusto’s inner thoughts, “That sounds like a reasonable suggestion, but Yusto, I genuinely worry that you’ll award him a medal of honor in the interrogation room and then release him with grandeur. If that’s the case, I’d rather not.”

He had no doubt that Yusto would engage in such unconventional actions, as he often went against the norm.

Yusto chuckled, gesturing with open palms. Unlike Wengel’s superficial gilded elegance, Yusto’s grace and composure were ingrained in his very being. “Don’t say that. I just wanted to share your burden.”

General Saphir declined, unaware of Yusto’s acquaintance with Lu Yuan, thinking Yusto might want to cause trouble for the Monck family. “There will be opportunities in the future, but for now, I won’t let you involve yourself in this matter. Your Highness Yusto, before your wings are fully grown, you shouldn’t antagonize the Monck family.”

“The emperor rises like flowing water, and noble families are as steadfast as iron.” This saying held true in any era. The newly crowned zerg emperor relied on the support of wealthy noble families. The aristocrats in the north were currently restless, and if Yusto had any aspirations for the position of the Zerg Emperor, he shouldn’t easily offend those influential figures.

General Saphir finished speaking and walked away, heading straight for the interrogation room. Yusto was left standing in place, his sharp brows furrowed.

On the other side, Lu Yuan successfully made his way into the interrogation room.

He wasn’t a purely good person nor a purely bad one. Throughout his life, conflicts tended to erupt with others for various reasons, leading to a reputation that was already not particularly favorable becoming even worse.

Lu Yuan was indifferent to it all.

Because, at this point, even if he wanted to regret, it was too late. The heat of the moment often happened in the blink of an eye.

Just as Lu Yuan was sprawled on the table, contemplating whether he would be fined or sent to prison with a rather arrogant expression, the door of the interrogation room suddenly opened with a light creak. In walked a female zerg dressed in military attire.

Lu Yuan instinctively looked up but found that he didn’t recognize the newcomer. Though there wasn’t a single wrinkle on his face, his eyes, weathered by the passage of time and the accumulations of the battlefield, were filled with the aura of age and a history of ruthlessness. The traces of military life didn’t need the uniform to emphasize.

Lu Yuan sensed danger, instinctively straightening his posture, quietly waiting for the interrogation. His gaze fell on the four-star military insignia on General Saphir’s shoulder, and he couldn’t help but wonder inwardly. Wasn’t it just beating up a male zerg? How did it attract the attention of such a high-ranking official?

General Saphir seemed to sense Lu Yuan’s wariness. Taking a seat across from him at the interrogation table, he gestured for Lu Yuan to relax, dispelling the martial aura. His expression was unexpectedly gentle, “Your Excellency, please don’t be nervous. I mean you no harm; I just have some questions I’d like to ask.”

Lu Yuan initially thought General Saphir wanted to inquire about the fight and responded in a somewhat cooperative manner, “Ask away.”

However, the first question General Saphir posed was, “Where do you come from?”

With this question, the moderately-sized interrogation room suddenly fell into a deadening silence, where even the sound of a pin dropping would be audible.

Lu Yuan looked up at him, finding General Saphir staring directly at him. There was no hostility in those eyes, only profound curiosity and inquiry.

Unconsciously, Lu Yuan’s hand, resting under the table, tightened and then slowly loosened. Eventually, he decided to play dumb. After all, being taken away for research like an extraterrestrial being wasn’t something he found amusing. “Sorry, I don’t understand what you’re asking.”

General Saphir seemed to have anticipated that Lu Yuan wouldn’t tell the truth. He opened a nearby terminal brain, retrieving recently organized data. With pinpoint accuracy, he reconstructed all the movements Lu Yuan had made since arriving in this world.

“According to StarNet data, a few days ago, you suddenly appeared in the restricted zone of the Solitiam Forest. You were then discovered by a patrol team and taken to the interstellar hospital for rescue. However, your identity information is entirely blank.”

“I’ve extracted your facial data and blood samples, comparing them with all the missing zerg cases in the Empire over the past two decades. The result showed no matches, as if you’ve never lived on this planet.”

General Saphir concluded, looking directly at Lu Yuan, and asked with each word carefully chosen, “Your Excellency, could you please enlighten me?”

Lu Yuan felt that he couldn’t reveal the truth because even he hadn’t figured out how he ended up in this place. “I’m sorry. I had a head injury in the forest, which resulted in memory loss. So, I might not be able to answer your questions.”

General Saphir, seasoned by battle experience, clearly wasn’t easily fooled. Realizing that Lu Yuan wasn’t going to budge, he changed his approach, searching for a breakthrough, “Your eye color and hair color are quite unique. You don’t seem to be a native of Salaranfa. Could you be from another place? If I find any clues, I might be able to help you return home.”

Upon hearing this, Lu Yuan’s thoughts stirred. He did want to return to Earth, considering that this world was entirely populated by zergs, a stark contrast to his original world. If this female zerg in front of him could help him get home, that would be great. However, out of caution, Lu Yuan didn’t immediately respond. Instead, he replied vaguely, “I might be from somewhere else, but I can’t remember clearly.”

General Saphir continued probing, “Do you have any impression of Hossburgh? The northern zergs live there, and they’ve always embraced black. Perhaps you have some connection with them.”

In fact, the Zerg race wasn’t entirely unified. Millions of years ago, they split into two factions during a war. They divided themselves at the Solitiam Forest, maintaining a semblance of harmony as they extended their territories to the chilly north without interfering with each other.

The northern zergs resided in the center of Hossburgh. Legend had it that their ancestors had defected during a battle, leading them to be cursed by the Zerg God. Despite possessing the most robust physique and elf-like, beautiful faces, their skin, like the black pearls in the depths of the Lagona Deep Sea, exuded a primal wildness. Consequently, they revered black with utmost fervor.

Lu Yuan had an exceptionally rare combination of black hair and black eyes, a double-black trait. Given this, General Saphir couldn’t think of any other tribe that he might be associated with.

Lu Yuan didn’t immediately respond to the question. After a moment of silence, he spoke, posing a counter-question, “Although it might be a bit forward to ask, I’m genuinely curious: why do you want to help me?”

Alternatively, he framed it differently, “What benefits do you gain from helping me?”

Lu Yuan might be impulsive in smaller matters, but he was unwavering on more significant issues. He wouldn’t reveal information about his Earth counterparts. After all, what if the Zerg race had plans to occupy Earth?

 

 

 

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Author’s note:

Lu Yuan: I’m not spilling the beans, you can rest assured.