"I can’t make any promises, Graces. But if your reasons are convincing, I might take your side." Lu Xia paused, smiling as she caressed the man’s handsome cheek. "So, Graces, what kind of trouble are you planning to cause?"

Graces suddenly swept her into his arms and walked toward the bed. "This is the kind of trouble I want to cause. Will my Female Master permit it?"

"Mm, permission granted."

*

「Early the next morning」

When Graces arrived at the First Military District, he immediately noticed the change in the way people were looking at him.

Clearly, the news that he had become a main husband had spread like wildfire after the public banquet held in his honor the previous night.

Even though he had only invited Admiral Snop and his own adjutant, it was enough for the news to reach everyone who hadn’t attended.

Ignoring the envious and curious stares, Graces walked back to his office, his expression as impassive as ever.

Meanwhile, the First Military District’s internal network was already blowing up—

"Holy crap, I can’t believe Major General Grace became a main husband, just like that!"

"I thought it was almost impossible to be promoted to main husband after becoming a regular husband. How in the world did Major General Grace manage it?!"

"Have you all forgotten who Major General Grace is? Even back when he was a ’defective male,’ the guy made it to Colonel on his own merit. I also heard he won a duel against another Colonel who was a Gene Fusion Expert—and he wasn’t even a Fusion Expert himself back then. Now that he is one, of course he has a shot at becoming a main husband!"

"I don’t think the key is how incredible Major General Grace is. Isn’t it really that his Female Master favors him and was willing to promote him to main husband? Otherwise, something like this would be absolutely impossible!"

"I think the guy above has a point. So that begs the question: where can you find a Female Master that good?"

"’Good?’ You might think she’s good now, but you have no idea. Back when everyone found out who Major General Grace’s Female Master was, so many people were just waiting for the drama to unfold. Her reputation used to be terrible!"

"What’s the story? C’mon, spill the tea!"

"Just search online if you want to know. The old stuff is still there; she apparently didn’t even bother to have it removed. Seems like she doesn’t care. Still, I’m really curious how she changed so drastically. It’s kind of amazing!"

"Maybe it’s the power of true love!"

"Give me a break, that’s disgusting!"

...

When his adjutant saw Graces arrive, he sidled up with a wide grin and whispered, "So? Did you notice everyone looking at you differently when you came in today?"

Taking the glass of water from his adjutant, Graces shot a look at the man’s smug expression. "Was this your doing?"

"I didn’t have to say a thing. Plenty of guys in our district have Female Masters who attended your banquet last night. There were quite a few of them."

Graces hadn’t considered that. He just nodded. "Let’s get to work. No more gossip."

With that, he pushed open the door and entered his office.

Not long after, Admiral Snop came in. "Graces, I know this is a bad time to disturb you, but something’s come up. The front line on A11 Star is under a surprise attack from the Insect Race. The First Military District needs to provide reinforcements, and I need you to lead them."

Graces rose and saluted. "I’ll go prepare at once."

Admiral Snop clapped him on the shoulder. "Go let your Female Master know first, Graces."

"Yes, sir." Graces replied. ’Heading to the front lines this time... I don’t know how long I’ll be gone.’ He was truly reluctant to leave at a time like this, especially with certain decisions still weighing on his mind. But the situation was urgent, leaving no room for deliberation. For a soldier, orders always came first.

When Lu Xia received the news from Graces, she fell silent for a few seconds. "I understand. Be safe. As for the Fire Spirit Gene Extraction Liquid, find a quiet place to inject it if you need to. It will take effect within twenty minutes, but you’ll go through a period of weakness before that. If possible, inject it before you reach the battlefield, not during."

She was well aware that for Graces, a Major General in the First Military District, being dispatched to provide support on the battlefield was perfectly normal under these circumstances.

And though she was worried, she had no reason to stop him.

All she could do was give him one more tool to save his own life.

Listening to his young Female Master’s careful instructions, Graces felt both touched and deeply reluctant to leave. "Don’t worry, I’ll be fine. This should be resolved quickly. While I’m away, please take care of yourself. If anything needs to be done, have Smelian handle it."

"I know. Nothing will happen here on my end. You just focus on staying safe. The little one and I will be waiting for you to come back."

"Okay." As reluctant as Graces was, he couldn’t speak with Lu Xia any longer. After ending the call, he assembled his troops and set out for A11 Star.

News of Graces’s sudden deployment to the battlefield quickly reached Smelian and Cecil.

Cecil scoffed. "If you ask me, Graces has some pretty rotten luck. He just became a main husband, and he’s already being shipped off to the battlefield!"

Smelian shot him a look. "Wherever he goes, it doesn’t change his status as the main husband."

Cecil looked at Smelian’s dead-serious expression. "Don’t tell me you aren’t thinking the same thing. With him gone, isn’t this the perfect opportunity for you to impress Duke Lu Xia?"

Smelian was completely unfazed by the taunt. "You’re the one who claims not to care, so why are you so interested?"

Cecil was left with no comeback, since he had, in fact, been the one to claim he didn’t care.

Smelian was throwing his own words back in his face, and Cecil couldn’t argue without contradicting himself.

The old butler walked past the two of them, pretending not to have heard a single word of their conversation.

With Graces gone, not much actually changed at Duke Lu Xia’s Mansion. It was, after all, just one person missing.

Lu Xia herself seemed no different than before. She went to work, took care of her duties, and appeared to be taking Graces’s deployment to the front lines in stride.

In truth, however, some things were different. Every night when Lu Xia went to bed, she couldn’t help but feel that the bed was now vast and empty, strangely unfamiliar.

She just never let it show. ’After all, Graces was only deployed for a support mission. It’s not like he isn’t coming back.’

Meanwhile, on the way to A11 Star, Graces injected the Fire Spirit Gene Extraction Liquid in his quarters. Only then did he finally understand what the twenty-minute period of weakness really meant.

He couldn’t muster a shred of strength. It was as if his body had lost its ability to fight gravity. He could only lie on the floor, each breath a heavy, labored effort.

He was incredibly relieved that he had listened to Lu Xia and injected the Fire Spirit Gene Extraction Liquid before reaching the battlefield.

As time ticked by, the long twenty-minute wait finally neared its end. A warm current began to surge within him, spreading through his limbs to every corner of his body.