APUTFFZG Chapter 30.2

Translator: Deyonna

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The voice from the terminal was gentle and calm, without a ripple. But after working together for so long, Adelaide could still pick up the subtle differences.

He's angry, very angry. But why?

"Help me deal with this, and I'll add an hour to my daily online time."

The online time Ye Er meant was the "exchange learning," which was rather stingy at only three hours a day. Adelaide had been scorning this unreasonable arrangement for quite some time.

Hearing this condition, he tossed logic, law, and morality aside and agreed readily*—

*Literally "what logic, what law, what morality"

"Say, how can I help?"

After a series of tedious steps, Adelaide followed the trail from the email account Ye Er had provided, traced it to several terminals, and breached their defenses at incredible speed, taking them over completely.

Through the micro-camera on one of the terminals, they could see that the holders were a few unruly female zergs. They looked violent and wore matching work vests, and tiny text seemed to be printed on their name badges.

Adelaide narrowed his eyes and read the text aloud. "...Exchange?"

His screen was shared with Ye Er's terminal, so Ye Er was seeing the same scene.

The female zerg on camera, his expression twisted, questioned the scar-faced female zerg in front of him. "Andrey, what do we do now? Even if you beat me to death, I don't think that person would want to see these videos..."

"How much footage do we have left?"

Andrey, a cigarette clamped in his teeth, looked gloomy and sinister. "We can drag this out as long as possible. That female slave can't run away. We'll wait for a chance to snatch him back."

He was the one whose finger had been bitten off in the video. The identity matched.

Ye Er lowered his gaze and thought it over carefully for a moment.

"I'll send you 5,000 star coins. Then transfer them to his terminal, change the date to December 22nd, mix it in with the earlier transactions, and label it No. 36. Make sure you leave no trace."

Adelaide raised an eyebrow but didn't ask why. After working the panel for a while, he swiftly transferred the money as instructed. "Done."

"Then?"

"They've bombarded me with threatening emails. Don't read them. Just delete all the original emails."

Ye Er went silent for a moment, then went on. "Can you implant a virus in their chips to stop them from contacting me in any way? Or maybe I can install something on my end to cut off all contact with them."

"I can install a blocker on your end that stops any zerg you haven't specified from sending you messages."

Ye Er nodded decisively. "That's pretty good."

A series of taps followed, then a long beep, and Adelaide's voice came through.

"The emails have been deleted, and the blocker has been installed. Then—"

"Then—"

Ye Er's words overlapped with his.

Adelaide fell silent as he heard the voice in his ear turn calm to the point of coldness.

"Blow up their terminals."

Adelaide's eyes showed surprise, but he quickly snorted with amusement and deftly tapped a key with his fingertip.

"As you command."

Beep!!!

The moment his finger sprang back, the terminals immediately entered self-destruct mode, and a bright red progress bar filled in a second.

"Andrey, what's wrong with your terminal? It's been flashing red..."

Bang!!!

Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang!!!

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!"*

*I counted: it's 27 啊's

"My hand, ahhh! The terminal... it's gone. My hand is gone, ahhh! Quick, call an ambulance, hurry!"

"It hurts! It hurts so much!! How could the terminal just explode? My hand, ahhh!!!"

One after another, deafening explosions rang out. The advanced terminals’ defensive power was so immense that it could blow off an entire hand.

For a moment the scene was filled with flying flesh and blood, and horrific screams mingled with roars echoed in all directions.

It was as sweet as heavenly music.

Ye Er narrowed his eyes, feeling the heavy blockage in his chest finally ease a little.

Adelaide, who was enjoying the scene just as much, wore a look of faint understanding, as if he had finally guessed something.

After the terminal was blown up, they'll definitely buy new ones and transfer the data over. The forged transaction records will be carried over too, leaving no trace of the intrusion.

"Using fraudulent transactions and sending fake videos to deceive their superiors. If this gets exposed, it'll be a serious dereliction of duty."

He stopped there, then curled his lips in praise. "You're really cunning."

"Thanks for today."

Ye Er didn't comment on that and simply replied briefly, getting an equally satisfied response.

"You're welcome. Remember to stay an extra hour tonight."

After ending the call with Adelaide, Ye Er stroked the surface of the terminal and placed a voice call.

"Hello, may I ask if this is the city machine's unified control center?"

For the first time, he used his privileges as a male zerg. With just a few words, he had the surveillance footage of himself picking up Xi Ze on a snowy night, along with the footage of the city machine chasing the female zergs and he asked for the archives to be deleted.

Without pausing to rest, he kept making calls—

"Dr. Hughes, do you have access to the hospital's surveillance?"

"Director Elaine, could you do me a favor?"

Ye Er walked to the window, closed it, and relaxed slightly once he had an affirmative answer. He smiled gently. "Yes, that's right... All right, thanks a lot."

Only after he had finished did his expression soften. He also deleted the video sent in the email so that the terminal was completely clean and left no trace.

After calming down a while, he picked up everything on the floor and put it back on the table, to make sure 015 wouldn't notice anything unusual.

Finally, Ye Er withdrew the mental power barrier around him and opened the door.

The living room was empty, and it felt somewhat vacant and lonely.

"Okay, do you see the red wire inside? One end is connected to... pull it out and plug it into the port next to..."

Xi Ze's voice came from the small balcony, with 015's voice mixed in. Ye Er paused for a moment, then walked out.

On the balcony, 015's belly was wide open, revealing the complex circuitry and interlocking gears inside. A small mechanical heart beat rhythmically.

The floor was littered with its dismantled parts, making for a rather alarming sight.

"Oh, oh, okay, let me look."

At Xi Ze's instructions, it quickly lowered its head to find the matching circuit, rummaging around inside.

The weather was fine, and sunlight poured in like water, casting a shimmering glow on the balcony floor as a breeze swayed and billowed the curtains.

Xi Ze sat in his wheelchair at the far left side of the balcony.

The golden light blurred the female zerg's outline, and tiny specks of light danced on his hair and eyelashes.

His eyes were half closed, as if he were completely immersed in the sunlight, and he only occasionally gave a simple instruction.

Hearing Ye Er come over, Xi Ze turned his head and called out with a light smile, "Male Lord."

The scene from moments ago flashed before his eyes, and Ye Er's breathing turned sluggish.

But when he came to his senses, the female zerg's face was clean, with no trace of blood.

The many unsightly scars on his body had mostly healed and were neatly hidden under decent clothing.

The scenes in the video had truly been left in the past.

"Okay, what's next?"

015's voice cut through the silence between the two of them, drawing Xi Ze's attention.

The constant dread that had been haunting him finally began to dissipate a little.

Ye Er leaned against the balcony door, somewhat exhausted, watching Xi Ze keep guiding 015 as it reassembled its parts.

He really was a military female.

Fit, strong, neat, and honorable. This was how he should have looked.

It was completely different from the way he had appeared in the video: naked, tortured and humiliated at will, crushed into the mud.

The derailed train, after stumbling along a muddy path, had finally returned to the right track and was gradually revealing its original dazzling radiance.

It should have been this way all along.

Ye Er took a deep breath, his heavy heart finally lightening and his mood gradually brightening.

"What are you doing?" he asked. He had already guessed, but he asked anyway, as a formality.

"I'm helping 015 simplify some of its programs. This model of smart housekeeper was phased out because it had too many redundant programs. A moderate modification can make it run more smoothly."

Xi Ze was exceptionally familiar with machinery and modifications. After all, he was a military female who had worked with mecha and advanced weaponry for many years.

"I've passed most of the mechanical certifications, all at the highest level."

Xi Ze coughed lightly, looking a bit embarrassed at his own boasting. "So you don't have to worry about 015 being damaged. Moderate modifications can extend its lifespan by at least twenty years."

Ye Er looked at the harmonious scene before him, lost in thought. After a while, his lips curved slightly and he chuckled. "So amazing."

Sensing that the male zerg's mood was a little off, Xi Ze tilted his head.

But all he saw was a large patch of warm yellow. The male zerg's figure was a blurry gray shadow that somehow looked downcast and lonely.

He curled his fingers around the wheels of his wheelchair and rolled forward a few turns toward the male zerg. "What's wrong?" he asked softly. "Did something happen?"

"Nothing."

Ye Er didn't want to talk about it, his eyelashes drooping slightly. "Nothing at all. Don't worry."

"Is that so..."

Sensing the male zerg's evasion and perfunctory answer, Xi Ze pursed his lips but couldn't ask anything more. His hands on his knees tightened slightly.

Ye Er raised his eyes again, looked at the female zerg in front of him, and smiled. "Can I have a hug?"

Without waiting for Xi Ze's answer, he bent down, opened his arms, and wrapped the female zerg in his embrace.

The warm body filled his arms completely, as if he were buried in the belly of a fluffy snow leopard, soft and warm. Ye Er let out a contented sigh.

"Male Lord, what's wrong...?"

Xi Ze's voice was very soft. His fingertips spasmed for a moment as he hesitantly stroked the male zerg's thin back and patted it lightly. After a long hesitation, he tightened his arms with restraint and hugged him back.

"It's nothing. I came across some filthy things, but I've already cleaned them up."

His voice, playing it down, came from beside his ear, soft, with an almost coquettish lilt at the end.

"I'm a little tired... so give me a hug."

"...Okay."

The air gradually quieted. The afternoon glow slowly lost its vivid color, lightly dyeing the rolling clouds.

Fine snow drifted down from the sky, catching a little golden light like falling, twinkling stars.

The embracing shadows, which had at first shown clear outlines of their own, gradually melted into the shifting sunlight and became indistinguishable from one another.

After a while, 015's head suddenly popped up, blinking its pea-like eyes.

"Are you done hugging? Which wire should I take next?"

☰