Chapter 20: The Captain Loses Jingzhou

"Ah, the work is finally done!"

Thanks to the combined efforts of Jun An and Theresa, Theresa quickly finished her work for the day, much faster than anticipated.

Sitting in the Captain's lap, Theresa opened her phone and started chatting with Cecilia.

World's Cutest: You there?

Cecilia: I'm here. What's wrong, Theresa?

World's Cutest: Nothing, just wanted to ask how long it took, and roughly how many times, for you and Siegfried to conceive Durandal?

Cecilia: (Shocked) Wh-Why are you suddenly asking this?

World's Cutest: Just curious, that's all. You know, it's harder for Fusion Soldiers to have children. My situation should be similar to Siegfried's.

Theresa was already somewhat keen on taking maternity leave. The best comparison for Fusion Soldiers having children was Cecilia and Siegfried.

One was a genetically modified human, the other a descendant carrying Kevin's genes. Although modified by Dr. MEI, they still retained permanent Honkai Beast organelles, classifying them effectively as Fusion Soldiers too.

Cecilia: But Theresa, you don't need children, do you? Or have you had a change of heart?

Cecilia, after all, knew her adoptive sister well. She never seemed like the type to get into romance, otherwise she wouldn't have remained single into her forties.

And after becoming Schicksal's Overseer, Theresa had even less time and reason for it.

Now she was talking about wanting children? It felt incredibly strange no matter how you looked at it.

World's Cutest: Mhmm, I've been wanting to take maternity leave recently. I heard that including the postpartum confinement period, you get six months off!

Cecilia: (Serious) Theresa, a child isn't something to be taken lightly. You can't just have a child for that kind of reason.

Cecilia: If the child you bring into this world has nothing but money and power, they won't be happy!

World's Cutest: ...

World's Cutest: An-Anyway, I'll be responsible all the way, okay? Just tell me, so I have something to refer to.

Cecilia: Alright. If you count the time before marriage, it took Siegfried and me two and a half years to have Durandal.

As if compromising, Cecilia revealed the time it took to conceive Durandal. In short, with Siegfried's Fusion Soldier constitution, it took two and a half years of effort to have a child. That conception rate was quite low.

After all, two years contained countless fertile days. If it still took two and a half years, wouldn't the chances be even lower if both partners were Fusion Soldiers?

Seeing this message, Theresa glanced at the Captain behind her. "Captain, you'll have to work harder."

Jun An could only pinch Theresa's slender waist, lifting her up and setting her down again. Theresa was incredibly light; Jun An really couldn't figure out how such a light body could possess the physical strength to lift the half-ton Judah with one hand.

Jun An lifted Theresa's small body, using her weight for arm strength training.

Of course, compared to Jun An's A-rank physical fitness, Theresa's hundred-odd pounds offered almost no training effect, aside from endurance training and occasional stress resistance practice.

So, for actual physical training, Himeko was slightly more suitable.

Theresa knelt on the sofa, her toes slightly curled, her body trembling for a while before she shot the Captain a glance filled with shame and indignation.

"I didn't say right now! I'm still chatting with Cecilia!"

Theresa petulantly contracted her muscles. "If the Captain doesn't behave, I'll clamp down and break you."

Luckily, this was just a text chat, not a video or voice call.

Meanwhile, a message arrived from Cecilia.

Cecilia: So, you're having a child? Seriously?

Theresa: Keeping it secret from you for now. I'll bring the person over for your approval later.

After sending this, Theresa immediately closed the app. Knowing Cecilia, she expected a barrage of gossip next. She'd talk to her again once Cecilia had calmed down.

Seeing Theresa in a good mood, Jun An kneaded Theresa's small chest, asking curiously, "Do you want a child that badly?"

"Mhmm."

Theresa started browsing various pregnancy-related topics on her phone. "After being subjected to Cecilia's PDA for so long, any woman would start thinking about having kids."

"Then you'll probably only be able to have a C-section."

Theresa's body was small, small in every sense. Coupled with her physical constitution, Jun An felt a C-section was the safer bet. After all, a Fusion Soldier wouldn't die from one or two cuts.

"Mhmm, I think a C-section is better too. Longer leave."

Normal maternity leave was generally around 150 days, about five months. A C-section often allowed for requesting more leave due to the surgery.

Of course, for normal people, childbirth always carried life-threatening risks. Even someone as strong among ordinary humans as Cecilia needed a long recovery period after giving birth to Kiana.

"Besides, for me, as long as I have enough Honkai Energy, I could probably get out of bed in three days, and back in bed in five."

Theresa spoke confidently, then instantly had another thought. "Wait, if I use the extra leave gained from the C-section to get pregnant with the Captain's child again, wouldn't I get another round of leave? If I repeat this cycle, wouldn't I never have to work again?!"

"...Could you please not treat children like tools?"

Jun An helplessly pinched her narrow chest as punishment. "Besides, it's already hard for Fusion Soldiers to conceive. Your plan won't work."

"I-I was just saying,"

Theresa let out a soft grunt of pain. "And besides, I don't need to worry about my image in front of the Captain. Hehe, I got a bit too relaxed."

Jun An could tell Theresa was genuinely under a lot of work pressure.

"Ah, forget it. Once I'm done with my current business, I'll head over to Schicksal HQ to help you out. I'll bring the Hyperion over too."

"Really?"

Theresa was instantly delighted, rubbing energetically against Jun An's chest. "So what has the Captain been busy with recently? Does Theresa need to help?"

"Investigating the cause of my death back then."

Jun An inhaled the scent of Theresa's hair; the shampoo smelled nice. "That was planet-busting level power, after all, and it showed sufficient hostility. We have to take precautions."

Of course, the main reason was to complete the system's mission.

"But we have almost no clues right now,"

Theresa's eyes held a hint of apology. "Currently, aside from knowing the opponent's power level is extremely high and that they're hiding in the Sea of Quanta, we know nothing."

That was the culprit who killed Jun An. Even if Theresa wanted to investigate, she lacked the means. Even the scientists were clueless.

"That just means the opponent wiped their ass extremely clean,"

Such a cowardly approach made Jun An increasingly suspect it was Sa.

"If the opponent is that thing, I already have a rough plan in mind."

"That thing? Can you stop playing word games?"

"Something with a perspective on benefits similar to the Cocoon of Finality. I can't conveniently say more."

Sa possessed near-omniscient eyes. Although Jun An wasn't afraid of being watched himself, it would be troublesome if she discovered clues through Theresa. Finding Sa wasn't easy, after all.

Of course, Jun An's knowledge of the plot currently extended only up to Sa – specifically, the 1.5 arc storyline he'd crammed before returning to Earth. He wasn't yet clear on the Part 2 story, which was why he was focusing on Sa for now.

[However, this is a world with a higher difficulty than the original story. Please be careful, Host.]

The system reminded Jun An, and he nodded inwardly.

In this world, Kevin, not holding back, had nearly beaten the main cast, including Jun An, half to death. The Herrscher of Sentience's puppets each possessed pseudo-Herrscher level combat power, just like in the Previous Era...

The severe power creep and plot deviations had caused Jun An considerable trouble.

"But regardless, the next step remains unchanged."

That was to obtain power sufficient to rival a planet-buster.

Of course, the prerequisite was surviving tonight.

When Himeko returned, she brought Jun An a bottle of medicine.

"Captain, I asked a friend to help me get my hands on this!"

Himeko placed the medicine on the table. Seeing the still-combined pair, she immediately pulled Theresa away and set her aside, then knelt before the Captain herself. "I'm so tired, let me drink a couple of mouthfuls first!"

Jun An watched Himeko bury her head in his chest, searching for 'water' to drink. He curiously picked up the medicine bottle from the table, a bad feeling creeping in. "What's this medicine for?"

Theresa answered, "It was originally used for breeding elephants. Roughly one bottle per head. Himeko and I discussed it; we'll just take a third of it today."

"Wait, this could kill someone!"

Jun An tried to get away, only to find Theresa had already locked his throat firmly with her body.

She licked the Captain's earlobe, whispering like a terrifying succubus, "Anyway, becoming a Fusion Soldier will reset your state. So before that reset, just feed me and Himeko until we're full~"

Jun An was horrified.

Seriously, you're treating this like a meal!?

And so, that night, the Captain, through carelessness, lost Jingzhou, filling two palaces completely.