Author's Note:
In this world, the two have switched identities. After resolving one more minor conflict, the countdown to the end will officially begin.
Chapter 118, The Sixth Story (2)
Qin Chu never dreamed that such a scene would occur.
He was clearly on the first warship, but he was wearing electronic handcuffs and sitting in an interrogation chair, his waist, abdomen, and legs tightly bound by the chair's straps.
Burke kept calling him "General," but he wasn't referring to Qin Chu; he was calling him Levy, who was sitting in the main seat.
The man, dressed in his military uniform and wearing his epaulets, sat in the captain's office of the first warship. But he was still completely unruly, not even sitting properly, his legs casually propped up on the desk, looking extremely arrogant.
This was the first time Qin Chu had ever seen someone treat his desk so rudely, and he raised an eyebrow that he didn't lower.
Unable to bear it any longer, Qin Chu prepared to have Levi put his foot down.
But before he could even open his mouth, Burke immediately turned and snapped at him, "Shut up! On our warship, what right do you, a pirate leader, have to speak?"
Qin Chu was speechless after being scolded.
Levy chuckled quietly.
Qin Chu coldly released his icy aura.
Although it was just a data entity, Burke still shivered from the familiar cold air.
He gave Qin Chu a suspicious look before saying, "Let me tell you, your space pirate group is finished this time. You'd better hand over the list of smuggled goods, or you'll be in the interrogation room!"
"The interrogation room?" Levy asked.
He brought Qin Chu down from the Black Spider and, apart from personally binding Qin Chu tightly, had no other contact with him.
He even ignored some of Qin Chu's questions, simply sitting in the seat that should have belonged to Qin Chu, his blue eyes calmly watching the person in the interrogation chair.
Even now, hearing the word "interrogation room" has piqued Levy's interest.
“Of course there is.” Burke nodded.
"Why didn't you say so earlier?" Levi put his long legs off the desk, stood up, and walked directly towards Qin Chu.
"What are you doing?" Qin Chu frowned at him.
Levy glanced at him, said nothing, and used both hands to lift Qin Chu up along with the entire heavy interrogation chair.
With his posture suddenly changing, Qin Chu instinctively tried to reach out for support, but both his hands were handcuffed to the armrests of the chair, leaving him no room to move.
The other subordinates in the office were also startled by the sudden, somewhat ambiguous actions between the two.
"Lead the way." Levy gestured with his chin toward Burke.
Outside the office was the corridor that Qin Chu knew all too well.
After he took up his post on the first warship, he walked this corridor countless times and knew every detail very well.
He was once a captain with supreme authority.
But now... he was tied to the interrogation chair and carried into the interrogation room like this.
Surrounding him were his loyal subordinates.
As he walked through this familiar corridor, surrounded by these people, Qin Chu looked up at the ship's smooth ceiling and felt an overwhelming sense of absurdity.
Beneath this absurdity, however, lurks an undeniable sense of shame.
"You fucking... put me down." Qin Chu gritted his teeth and struggled a little.
Levi glanced at him sideways, a smile playing on his lips, but remained silent and showed no intention of letting go.
The interrogation room door opened, and Levy finally put the chair he was carrying on his shoulder inside.
Burke called in two other people to assist with the interrogation, but Levy kicked the interrogation room door, stopping them.
"No need, I can do it myself." With that, he slammed the door shut and locked it neatly.
With the small window on the metal door switched to opaque mode, everyone was shut out. Only Levi and Qin Chu remained in the spacious interrogation room, along with... a wall full of torture instruments.
Levy had no interest in these trivial matters; he simply stared down at Qin Chu.
The man still had a smile on his face, but there was no smile in his icy blue eyes.
The atmosphere suddenly became quiet again.
This was a true moment of solitude for the two of them; even Noah wasn't there.
Qin Chu looked up at Levi, then looked away slightly. After thinking for a moment, he changed the subject and said, "What's going on with our identities? We switched? What a coincidence... um."
He didn't finish his sentence.
Because Levi, who was standing there looking at him, suddenly reached out, grabbed his collar, bent down, and kissed him.
Qin Chu frowned.
This kiss was unlike any other kiss before.
In the previous world, Qin Chu was actually the one who took the lead in every kiss they shared.
Levy wasn't particularly competitive in this trivial matter.
You could even say he enjoyed the feeling of Qin Chu grabbing his collar, pulling his hair, and kissing him. He always obediently let Qin Chu do as he pleased, only to cling to him again when Qin Chu wanted to end it.
But this time is different.
The kiss was very aggressive. Qin Chu could feel that Levi was acting out of character, aggressively conquering his mouth and even trying to completely steal his breath.
This made Qin Chu feel a little uncomfortable, and he subconsciously tried to struggle, but his arms were tied, and he had no room to move.
They kissed for an unknown amount of time, until the taste of blood spread across their tongues again, before Levi pulled away slightly.
Qin Chu's breathing rate increased, and with the rise and fall of his chest, their lips were still gently brushing against each other.
Levi's blue eyes were fixed on him, then she suddenly opened her mouth and bit his lower lip: "Is this how you kissed me at the end of the last world, hmm?"
Qin Chu paused, then turned his gaze away again.
Levi reached out and gripped his jaw, turning him back to him. "Speak. We didn't pursue the matter in that AI space because we were afraid a fight would cause the space to collapse. You really think this is all over?"
"..." Qin Chu really wanted to say that was right.
Levi noticed and, in anger, bit him again.
This time, Qin Chu bit down hard, and immediately felt a sharp pain in his lip, followed by a burning swelling. Bleeding wasn't certain, but a bite mark would definitely be left.
"He grabbed me and kissed me without saying a word, and he was so enthusiastic." Levi complained through gritted teeth, his voice filled with both anger and grievance. "I was just thinking how great this was, and then when I opened and closed my eyes, I found out he was going to teleport me away?"
"What if I really get out? Are you prepared to withstand the impact of the world collapsing all by yourself? You..."
Levi's tone grew even harsher, tinged with lingering fear, "Qin Chu, believe it or not, if you die protecting those human consciousnesses, I'll do nothing else for the rest of my life but to drag out every single person you saved, and kill every single one of them you saved."
Why is it that when the person I love dies, they can still live?
He squeezed hard with his fingers, and Qin Chu's jawbone ached from the pressure.
But Qin Chu didn't pay attention to any of that; instead, he looked up at the person in front of him.
He was stunned when he saw Levi's eyes. He didn't expect that this man, who was saying such harsh words, would have such red eyes.
“Kill them all, then I’ll commit suicide, and while I’m at it, blow up a few planets to take with me. Are you happy now?” Levy continued.
Qin Chu stared at him for two seconds before breaking free of the electronic handcuffs.
Seeing this, Levi stepped back slightly and turned his head: "I don't want to fight you right now, but I mean what I said. If you dare..."
Then the conversation suddenly stopped.
Qin Chu's freed hands did not push him away or attack him, but instead ran her fingers through his hair and gently ruffled it.
"It's alright now."
"You blocked most of the impact; I'm not injured now."
"I'm sorry, it was my fault, I won't do it again."
Her voice remained cool and clear, yet it carried a barely perceptible tenderness.
Levy remained silent with his head turned to the side, but the sharp aura emanating from him had diminished considerably.
"I'm sorry, I didn't expect... you to be so angry."
Qin Chu wasn't lying. He knew Levi might be unhappy, but he didn't expect Levi's reaction to be so strong.
This was the first time he had maintained such a close relationship with someone, and the only vague thought in his mind was that he wanted what was best for him. His first reaction to any situation was to ensure Levi's safety.
Unexpectedly, this was not what Levy wanted.
Her fingers slid down, brushing through his hair before cupping Levi's face in her hands.
Qin Chu wanted to lean over and give him a comforting kiss, but then realized that his upper body was still tied up, so he could only pull the man closer to himself.
"Did I let you break free?" Levi finally turned to look at him, reached out and pulled his hands off, then handcuffed them with electronic handcuffs, this time adjusting the pressure level.
"..."
Qin Chu did not struggle again and sat down comfortably in the chair.
Levy was slightly satisfied.
He sat down directly in front of Qin Chu, rested his head on Qin Chu's lap, and wrapped his long arm around Qin Chu.
“Don’t run, understand?” he said. “I’m the one in the most danger. If you really want to protect these people, keep an eye on me.”
Qin Chu chuckled softly, "Alright."
Levi leaned against Qin Chu's lap for a while before feeling his throbbing nerves calm down a little.
Who could have known that when he learned that Qin Chu was going to send him away and let him bear the shockwave of the explosion alone, his first emotion was not anger, but fear.
That's fucking weird.
He lived a free and unrestrained life and was never afraid of anything.
Ironically, it was in this virtual world that I tasted the bitterness of fear.
This feeling persisted, subsided slightly when he successfully escaped the previous world, but resurfaced with even greater intensity after he entered this world and discovered that he and Qin Chu had separated.