The Male Zerg Cub Doesn’t Want to Be the Cannon Fodder Top - Chapter 11

The chubby cub frowned slightly, noticing the female’s unusually intense attitude toward the rebel army. However, he did not dwell on it; after all, the female already possessed a rebel bracelet, so it was only natural that he had been following them for a long time.

Among the Zerg of the Empire, those interested in the rebels were not few. This legendary organization, “Dawn,” had recently defeated the Empire’s three major Legions and occupied a cluster of planets led by the Heaven Palace planet, claiming they would bring a new dawn to the Empire.

The open rebellion of females and sub-females against male rule was a world-shaking first for the Zerg. Had Maurice not been guided by his system missions, he might also have been swept up by the rebels’ momentum and investigated them himself.

Of course, most Zerg within the Empire were quite conservative. Under the fierce propaganda of the Star Network, they called for the rebels’ blood, and a culture of mutual denunciation flourished, causing the deaths of many innocents. Most females and sub-females viewed the rebels as heretics; even those with doubts in their hearts dared not speak up, lest they be flagged by the Star Network and wait for law enforcement to arrive at their door.

As a former human from Earth, Maurice was not familiar with the rebels, but he could not have been more repulsed by the Empire’s tyranny. His heart leaned toward the rebels, and he assumed that the female, as a deserter, was likely dissatisfied with the Imperial military system and sought to join the rebels to find a new path.

With this in mind, Maurice moved through the black market with the female. The main city’s black market was massive, half above ground and half below, no smaller than a mid-sized city. The male authorities turned a blind eye, extracting countless profits from it. Things not permitted by Imperial law in the Upper City, such as casinos, contraband, and illegal genetic experiments, all played out here.

The Snake-Coiled Tree was located on the eastern side of the black market’s underground city. It was said to have originated from a savage S-rank alien plant invasion years ago that caused half the city to collapse. After the plant was destroyed by the Imperial army, its iron-hard remains still supported the underground dome. The complex vines intertwined like venomous snakes, forming a great wonder of the underground city.

During the Empire’s large-scale roundup of Zerg suspected of colluding with the rebels, the Snake-Coiled Tree became the place where the main city disposed of traitors. Countless females and sub-females had been cruelly executed there; their bodies still hung from the tree to this day to intimidate the “low-lifes” of the underground city.

Understandably, the rebels holding a gathering in this cruel place was a form of strike-back against the massacres. As Maurice thought about this, he and the female slipped into an abandoned dwelling that offered a good vantage point for observation and escape. Through the broken window, they could see the massive roots of the Snake-Coiled Tree and the remains hanging above.

They waited for several hours. Maurice took out the roasted meat he had prepared in advance. Despite the female’s resistant expression, he insisted on feeding him until he was eighty percent full. It was only when the female became slightly annoyed, his white earlobes turning a deep red, that the chubby cub sheepishly stopped. He knew that a dignified female like him had no habit of eating outdoors, let alone getting his hands greasy in such an unrefined manner. However, Maurice felt that eating was paramount. Thinking of how the female had lacked a stable diet before, he only wanted to prepare three meals a day and ensure the female ate his fill every single day.

Eliotte’s stomach was filled with warm food, and he turned his back to the cub to escape the excessive feeding. He sprayed a potion scavenged from the black market to dispel the heavy scent of roasted meat mixed with dust, helplessly using a handkerchief dampened with cleanser to wipe his fingers. His heart was weighed down by heavy matters, leaving him with no appetite, yet he could not find it in himself to refuse the cub, knowing that departure was imminent.

He would never again eat roasted meat handmade by the cub, nor have the chance to hold the soft little body tight or bury his face in the cub’s generous belly to escape reality. He had escaped long enough, long enough to know what happiness tasted like, long enough to have indulged himself in imagining a future that was fundamentally impossible.

But he had to go. The lives of millions of compatriots rested on him. He could not save them all, but if he mediated, if he held onto his beliefs and maintained his sanity, those Zerg might still have a glimmer of hope.

The First Legion, which had luckily escaped death, might still have a chance.

With too many thoughts churning in his mind, Eliotte’s eyes began to sting. Kneeling on the ground, he touched the fluffy top of the cub’s head as the little one peered through a telescope. Suddenly, his gaze sharpened, and he whispered: “They are here.”

The male cub did not dare release his mental tentacles and could see nothing with the naked eye. He jumped up and down in frustration until the female gently pressed down on his head to calm him.

As dusk settled, old lamps began to flicker on one by one. The light was very dim, illuminating only small patches of ground and mostly obscured by the vines of the Snake-Coiled Tree. However, the sheer number of lamps was vast. Before they knew it, the entire execution area was shrouded in hazy light.

Figures cloaked in robes gradually emerged from the darkness. Their silhouettes were half-lit and half-hidden in the shadows, like ghosts in the mist.

More and more figures appeared, gathering beneath the tree. It was unclear who started it, but one figure climbed the tree and untied the ropes holding the executed “rebels.” Countless bodies were lowered and laid out on the ground. Myriad hands held up lamps as if performing a silent mourning rite.

Maurice watched this scene quietly in the dark, momentarily speechless. Since transmigrating into the Zerg world, he had many times despised this savage, cruel society and the indifference it bred. Relationships among the Zerg were cold; even between female parents and children, they were often flat and lacked care. The entire society emphasized only one unshakable relationship: the absolute obedience of females and sub-females to males.

Maurice knew that under the weight of the environment, most Zerg had been conditioned and twisted; becoming “incapable of love” was not their fault. But being truly immersed in it, the naturally warm and cheerful university student realized how difficult it was to endure. When he walked the streets, he met with suspicion; when he attempted to communicate, he met with rejection.

That was why he had bothered the system for so long that it refused to deal with him. The thing he was most grateful for since his arrival was finding a female who still possessed a spark of life. Logically, as an adult soul, the student should have felt some shame at being treated like a cub, but the female’s behavior happened to satisfy his deep craving for human connection.

Now, witnessing this scene with the female, Maurice suddenly felt certain that the rebels were not the cruel, bloodthirsty, god-forsaken organization the Empire portrayed. What they were awakening was perhaps the Zerg humanity suppressed for so long by tyranny, and the innate desire for equality and freedom in the bones of all life.

A raspy singing suddenly rose, and Maurice heard them chant:

“When the stars align in a row,” “That is the signal from the Mother Goddess,” “We shall march to the final battlefield,” “There, the Mother Goddess is with us.”

In the Zerg world, this was the first time Maurice had heard a song. The melody was simple and could hardly be called ornate or beautiful, but it carried a weight of a thousand pounds. Maurice could not help but fall into his professional habits, pulling out an electronic screen and recording with an electronic pen:

“This is a resistance that can be described as gentle, yet profoundly significant. It has nothing to do with the ‘cruelty,’ ‘bloodlust,’ and ‘slaughter’ preached by the Imperial Star Network. In fact, looking at such a gathering to bury compatriots, one could never imagine that it is this very organization, so full of emotion and respect for life, that wiped out the Legions sent to suppress them.”

“If singing a requiem for compatriots and collecting their bodies is an act the Empire cannot tolerate, and if the basic rights and demands of the vast majority of the residents cannot be met, then the harsh laws of the Empire must be scrutinized. The ‘peace and stability’ pursued by those in power should also be re-evaluated.”

The cub wrote rapidly. Beside him, the female affectionately stroked his furry head. Feeling the cub instinctively lean into the touch, a bitter smile appeared in his eyes. If only he could stay a little longer, if only he could see the cub grow up.

Just then, a flashbang landed on the intertwined vines of the tree. The indestructible vines shook violently, and the searchlights of the Imperial Law Enforcement Team illuminated the rebel gathering site with piercing clarity.

“Don’t move! You damned traitors, you are all under arrest for betraying the Empire and desecrating the Mother Goddess!”

The cold voice of the enforcement team rang out in mid-air, followed by the roar of particle cannons. Because the vines were as hard as iron, the enforcement team and military females could not break through immediately, giving the gatherers a chance to retreat. Countless hooded figures surged toward Maurice and the female. The cub immediately grabbed the female’s sleeve, his mind frantically searching for an escape route.

He had not expected the rebel gathering to draw both the Imperial Law Enforcement and the First Legion into a joint ambush. If it were only one force, perhaps some rebels could escape, but the two forces had surrounded the area completely. If not for the dead vines of the Snake-Coiled Tree acting as a shield, the majority of the gatherers would be dead by now!

But the situation was urgent, and the cub could not think too much. He took a few photos of the scene and was about to pull the female away, but just as his warm little hand touched the female’s cold fingers, he was gently brushed aside.

“Follow that sub-female with the black vine pattern on his hood. Follow him, and then show my mecha to the other party. He will accept you on behalf of the rebels and take you away from the Empire to their territory.”

“Forget that for now!” The cub could not budge the female, and sweat began to bead on his forehead from anxiety. Their current hiding spot was safe for the moment, but once the enforcers killed most of the gatherers, they would begin a carpet search. The female’s identity could not be exposed!

“We have to go. The encirclement has not fully formed yet. Someone must have leaked the rebel gathering.”

“Not necessarily. Perhaps it is because of me,” the female said abruptly. He leaned down and used the back of his white hand to wipe the sweat from the cub’s nose.

“Because of the hunt for me, the First Legion and the enforcement team are jumping at shadows. The gatherers have no ability to resist regular troops. If nothing is done, they will be wiped out. And you will lose the chance to join the rebels and leave the Empire.”

“What? Is this why you insisted on coming to the rebel gathering? You want me to go with them, but what about you?”

The frequent bombardment of particle cannons almost blinded Maurice for a moment. He looked at the female’s eternally perfect face, feeling the light and shadow of the world shaking endlessly.

“I cannot go, I am sorry.” The female pulled the cub’s small hand down, guiding him to grasp the spatial button around his neck. “This mecha is called Shining Star. It is the mecha of the criminal female, Eliotte.”

Seeing the cub’s eyes widen in shock at the revelation, Eliotte forced a small smile and interrupted the cub’s words.

“Listen to me first. The reason the First Legion and the enforcement team are hysterical is me. As long as I appear, capturing me will become their primary objective. You and the rebels will be safe.”

“No matter how you look at me, or what scandals you see about me in the future, it does not matter. I do not care about my reputation; it was always an insignificant thing. I am a Zerg with no future; my fate was decided long ago. I will not die if I am caught, but I have never truly been alive. But you have a great future ahead of you; outside this Empire is a much wider universe.”

“The rebels have been looking for fallen types like you. They will accept you. For my sake, the rebel general, Edwin, will treat you well. You will surely grow up safely. This is my promise to you.”

Eliotte reached out and gently pushed the cub, pushing him into the shadows of the building. Maurice snapped out of his shock, but he was momentarily speechless. He made an urgent sound like a mindless small animal, desperately reaching out his short arms, but he failed to catch the female’s fingertips.

“I wish we had more time.”

The female spoke silently. A pair of golden wings suddenly materialized behind him. In the cub’s panicked sight, those massive, radiant wings broke through the ruined roof. The burst of energy carried the female rapidly into the sky. Those dazzling golden wings, symbolizing royal status, overpowered the vulgar, piercing lights of the particle cannons and searchlights, illuminating the entire grim underground city.

The law enforcement and military females who were surrounding the rebels immediately abandoned their nearby targets like a pack of sharks smelling blood. In an instant, the sound of ominous explosions converged, swallowing that brilliant golden light.

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