EROS [Zerg]

As Eros listened to Alai recount how important Evanson was to him, he, who should have been saddened, felt a sense of relief.

Allais had never even met Evanson, yet he held such high expectations and fantasies about him…

Eros felt pressured by Alai's expectations. He thought, "Is the highly anticipated Evanson not having an easy time?"

Thinking of this, Eros braced himself on Alai's shoulder with his claws, slammed Alai against the cabinet behind him, and stared directly into his eyes. His once clean and innocent purple eyes were now shrouded in shadow.

"Sometimes I really doubt the sincerity of your claims about liking Evanson."

“I’ve heard many insects say they like Evanson, and they like me because I look exactly like Evanson.”

"But do you know how they treated me?" Eros hated recalling his days at the Pluto Trading House; the gentle expression that used to grace his face was now replaced by a chilling coldness.

"They said they liked Evanson's voice, so they broke my legs and listened to me scream."

"They said they liked Evanson's face, so they stuck razor blades into my body to pry open my exoskeleton and enjoy my agonizing expression."

“They said they liked Evanson, so all the things they didn’t dare do to Evanson were done to me.”

"So, do those insects like Evanson, or do they hate Evanson?"

Eros pinched Alai's face, wiped away the remaining tears from the corners of his eyes, and asked in a low voice, "I want to hear you tell me what you insects who say you like Evanson really think, and what you want to do to me who has the same appearance as Evanson?"

Alai's body gradually stiffened, his lips trembled, and he couldn't utter a single word.

"You've never even met Evanson, so what right do you have to say you love him? Your love and gratitude are only directed at the Evanson you've imagined; you're only moving yourself."

"When you saw me, who looked exactly like Evanson, you felt a sense of belonging, so you couldn't help but project your own emotions onto me, hoping that I could empathize with you."

"But you didn't realize that what you gave me wasn't just care, but also demands."

“You’ve been very good to me from the beginning, but your kindness comes with conditions. You expect me to fulfill all the wonderful things you imagine about Evanson.”

As Eros spoke, he stood up, his eyes coldly fixed on Alai, who was sitting on the ground: "I can't take it."

Arai, his secret exposed, was speechless, watching helplessly as Eros walked to the windowsill to stand alone in the wind. The moment the window opened, a cold wind rushed in, blowing the stray hairs on Eros's forehead, the platinum blonde strands rippled like waves in the wind.

In the small room, the two insects remained silent, neither of them speaking.

Alai sat for a long time before getting up from the ground. He looked at Eros's back, hesitated for a moment, and then walked to Eros's side and apologized in a deep voice: "I'm sorry."

Eros gently stepped aside to make room for Alai, letting the biting cold wind blow onto his face.

"Perhaps we should all wake up."

Eros recalled that he hadn't disliked the name Evanson from the beginning. In the underground auction, he only knew that the male and female insects who bought him were doing so because he looked like another female insect, which was why he was "marketable".

During his time of rest, Eros, who was enduring pain, would even think about what kind of female insect that resembled him was, and why so many insects hated him and wanted to treat him with so many cruel methods.

"I want to understand him."

"Who do you want to know... Evanson?" Allai asked, surprised by Eros's sudden voice.

Eros nodded and said seriously, "I want to know what kind of bug Evanson is."

“Everyone compares me to him, but I don’t even know what kind of bug he is.” Eros seemed to have made up his mind as he said to Alai, “I want to understand him, and then surpass him. I want future bugs to see me and have Eros as the first name that comes to mind.”

"You said you want to surpass Lieutenant General Evanson?"

Alai blinked, a hint of hesitation in his voice, then shook his paw in denial:

"That's impossible... I'm not trying to discourage you, but it's impossible that there will never be another female insect like Lieutenant General Evanson."

Alai's words made Eros somewhat embarrassed:

How do you know it's impossible if you don't try?

Alai didn't say much, but grabbed Eros's paw and led him from the balcony to his own bookshelf.

This was the first time Eros had seen what was inside the bottom cabinet of the bookcase, which was locked by Alai.

Stacks of photos and posters of Evanson, battle log analysis sheets, battle videotapes, and all sorts of newspapers, magazines, and books.

The most eye-catching item was a set of white papers placed in the very center. Eros saw the white paper he had borrowed from the library of the Fourth Star System.

He originally thought there was only one book, but he didn't expect that it was just one book in a set.

“I dare say there aren’t any female insects in this academy, and they have more complete information about Lieutenant General Ivanson than I do.” Allai handed one of the keys to Eros.

"Here's the key. As long as you don't lose it, you can look through whatever's inside."

"After you read this, you'll understand why I say there will never be a female insect that surpasses Evanson."

Eros took out a white book and held it in his paw, discovering that it had handwritten marks on it.

"This is the third edition of the Civil Code of Conduct for the Insect Planet in the Sixth Galaxy, written by Lieutenant General Evanson himself to my female father."

Alai stood beside Eros, looking at the opened white paper, and said with regret, "His hard work is contained in this, but unfortunately, it will soon be abolished."

"Abolish?" Eros flipped through the white paper in his hand. The contents were clearly more mature and detailed than what he had seen in the fourth star system.

"Can this really be done?" Eros remembered that the version he had seen was very unreliable and could only be considered the ignorant fantasy of a female insect.

"This is only the third edition; the eleventh edition is currently in use in the Sixth Star System." Alai pulled out the latest copy from the bottom of the white paper.

Eros took it and found that this was the thickest one.

Upon opening it, I discovered that every single word inside was handwritten, with clear and beautiful characters that were even neater than those printed by electronic machines.

“My stepfather was a prosecutor. I vaguely remember that when I was a child, Evanson, who wasn’t yet a lieutenant general, often came to my house to discuss this with my stepfather.” Alai looked regretfully at the white paper in Eros’s hand:

"However, my female father didn't like him much at the time, and because I had difficulty walking, I didn't want to see insects, so I never spoke a word to him in person."

"The female father used to say that Evanson was a whimsical brat who was too well protected by His Majesty the Insect Emperor. Who knew that he would actually implement this law throughout the entire Sixth Star System."

Eros listened quietly as Alai told him about Evanson's exploits.

"In fact, given Lieutenant General Evanson's military achievements and background, he could have been promoted to general long ago. However, I heard that he killed a noble male insect during his student days. At that time, the Male Insect Protection Association almost exiled him to a desolate planet. It was only thanks to the intervention of the Insect King and the current Grand Duke Kavenor that he was saved."

"It was also because of Grand Duke Cavour's help that Evanson later married him and became his queen." At this point, Alai said sullenly, feeling that Grand Duke Cavour had clearly taken advantage of Evanson's vulnerability and forced her to marry him.

If Evanson and he truly had a good relationship, why would he later give up his high-ranking position and generous salary in the First Star System, and willingly go to the most dangerous and remote Sixth Star System to expand the empire's territory, without setting foot in the First Star System for several years to go home and see his lord and his insect offspring?

After listening, Eros suddenly had a fleeting image in his mind, but it was too short to grasp any useful information. He tried hard to recall what had just flashed through his mind but couldn't figure it out. The female insect put the book back in its place on the shelf and said to Alai, "It's too late, let's rest first. We have a full schedule of classes tomorrow."

Alai has a very regular daily routine. Seeing that it was getting late, he turned off the light.

Eros was lying in bed, just closing his eyes to drift off to sleep, when several images suddenly flashed before his eyes.

Eros suddenly opened his eyes, trying hard to recall the scene that had just appeared before him. He thought for a long time but could not recall the memory that had just appeared. He only vaguely remembered that he seemed to have seen a female insect that looked a lot like Commander Enel in the scene.

The room was pitch black. Eros lay quietly on the bed, his mind in turmoil. He didn't know what these fleeting memories were.

Could it be a memory from my past?

The fleeting image swept away all of Eros's drowsiness. After tossing and turning and confirming that he couldn't remember anything more, he had no choice but to sit up in bed, lean his head against the wall, and force himself to close his eyes to calm himself down.

A faint light shone into the room through the window. Alai subconsciously rubbed his eyes, then propped himself up on his arms and sat up in bed.

Opening his eyes, he found Eros already dressed and sitting at the table, looking at the white paper he had given him the night before in the dim light from the window.

"Why don't you turn on the light?"

Alai reached under the bed for his mechanical lower limbs and skillfully attached them to his legs.

“You weren’t awake yet.” Eros put down his book.

Alai turned on the light and his gaze fell on the dark circles under Eros's eyes: "Didn't you sleep well last night?"

Eros stretched his arms and flipped through today's schedule: "It's not very good."

Alai looked at the course schedule, pulled out another chair, and sat down.

"This afternoon in Weapon Science and Technology class, Professor Brandt will take us to the mecha training ground to watch them conduct mecha combat training. You must take a good look, it's really cool."

"And if you do well in this course, you can directly apply for military mechanic positions through the school after graduation. If you get the job, the military merits and salary you earn will be more than enough to support your little male insect."

At this point, Alai propped his head up and looked at Eros:

"Although that little male is young, you can tell he likes you a lot. There aren't many male insects that like females, so you have to seize this opportunity."