Chapter 4
[I take my comment back. This is the strongest female I’ve ever seen!]
[She’s so cute, but damn, she’s fierce!]
The males in the restaurant stayed frozen in place, unsure of what to do. Astraea, meanwhile, yelped in pain when Nyx gripped her wrist.
Nyx released her, but Astraea wasn’t done yet. She glared at Nyx and tried to kick her.
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Nyx dodged effortlessly. Astraea’s foot swung through empty air, throwing her off balance, and she tumbled forward in a very ungraceful heap.
By now, the livestream’s viewership had skyrocketed, far surpassing the usual numbers for top streamers. The streamer, torn between fear and greed, kept filming despite the chaos.
More viewers were drawn in by the commotion. What they saw completely surprised them.
[Am I hallucinating, or are two females really fighting?!]
[That’s not a fight. It’s called self–defense.]
[But wasn’t Astraea trying to hit Zayne first?]
Zayne was a male, and in this society, males were at the bottom of the food chain. If a female hit a male, he had to take it. If he dared fight back, he’d be slapped with assault charges and spend at least ten years in prison.
Astraea, furious after her double humiliation, finally remembered she wasn’t alone. She turned to her companions and shouted, “You’re just gonna sit there and watch me get bullied?!”
They were two secondary consorts Astraea had just taken, a pair of brothers. The two of them seemed awkward now and hesitated.
As Astraea’s consorts, they were supposed to defend her, to fight for her honor.
But the person standing opposite Astraea was another female, a more petite and delicate female who radiated an air of vulnerability.
Even if they were willing to risk the consequences of hitting a female, they couldn’t bring themselves to raise a hand against Nyx. She looked too fragile, like she might break if they even tried.
Seeing their hesitation, Astraea took a shaky breath and burst into tears.
Nyx blinked, caught completely off guard.
Honestly, this was the easiest fight she’d ever been in. She’d never seen someone so high–maintenance, so full of temper, and yet so utterly harmless.
After a moment’s hesitation, Nyx pulled a handkerchief from her pocket and handed it over to Astraea.
It was one she’d sewn herself with a little sunflower embroidered in the corner.
Astraea snatched it without a word and wiped her face, glaring at Nyx between sniffles. Her pride was in shreds.
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12:27 Sat, Feb 8 BBB.
Chapter 4
Through her tears, Astraea’s voice trembled with indignation. “Unbelievable! You hit me for a male?!”
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To Astraca, this was absurd. Females were meant to be above everything. Males, no matter their rank or status, were beneath them. And yet, that strange female sided with a male and humiliated her.
Nyx raised a finger, her voice steady and firm. “First of all, I didn’t hit you. I just stopped you from hitting him.
“Second, everyone deserves dignity, and it has nothing to do with their gender. You feel humiliated because I stopped you, but how do you think Zayne would’ve felt if you slapped him in front of all these people? Does he not deserve respect?
“And third…” Nyx’s gaze turned sharp. “To me, you’re just a stranger. But Zayne is my family. If you try to hurt him in front. of me, of course I’m going to protect him.”
Astraca froze, staring at Nyx. This small, delicate female had spoken with a confidence and presence that left her completely stunned.
The livestream chat went wild, and the viewers went crazy.
[WHO IS SHE?! I need her name!“]
[She’s amazing! I’m obsessed!!!]
[“Of course I’m going to protect him.” Someone put that on repeat for me, please!]
[She says males deserve respect. I’m so moved.]
[I want her to call me family. I want her to protect me too.]
[By the Beast God above, I swear I’ll follow her in my lifetime. No other female will ever compare to her.]
The livestream chat was exploding with comments. Viewers practically wanted to crawl through their screens to confess their love to this incredible female.
Meanwhile, Theon got a message from a friend. Only then did he know the livestream had a massive audience.
“His sharp eyes scanned the crowd and locked onto the streamer. He immediately gave that guy a cold, warning glare.
Theon exchanged a quick glance with Zayne, and they both made the decision to get Nyx out of here.”
As they escorted her away, Astraea was now back with her consorts. She clutched the handkerchief tightly, staring at Nyx’s retreating figure. For once, she didn’t throw another tantrum.
Inside the spacecraft, Zayne took the seat to Nyx’s left. His gaze lingered on her profile, unable to look away.
The image of her standing in front of him, shielding him, and those words she said to defend him replayed in his mind on an endless loop. His heart pounded relentlessly, like a drumbeat that refused to pause.
Nyx could feel the weight of his stare, but she pretended not to notice.
By nature, she was introverted, and now that the adrenaline had worn off, embarrassment started to creep in. At the restaurant, she acted on impulse, letting her emotions take over. But now, sitting quietly in the spacecraft, all she could think about was how over–the–top she must have looked.
Her toes curled in her shoes as the awkwardness consumed her. After a few minutes of this unbearable tension, she finally couldn’t hold back. She turned to Zayne and blurted, “Why are you staring at me like that?”
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Chapter 4
DD
]
Zayne was silent for a moment. Then, instead of answering, he said something completely unexpected, “I’m an orphan. I grew up on H973–a Desolate Planet.”
After he struggled to leave that planet, he had never talked about his past with anyone. Nyx was the very first person to make him open his heart.
Zayne continued, “Desolate Planet is a place where resources have dried up. Most people leave if they can, but those who stay behind only face chaos. Crime, violence, and death are everywhere. There’s no future, no hope.”
Nyx tried to picture it. It was probably like some of Earth’s most dangerous regions, where even tourists risked losing their organs if they weren’t careful.
“That’s incredible,” she said, her voice full of genuine admiration. “You made it out of a place like that and became so excellent.”
Coming from a tough background herself, Nyx understood how much intelligence, determination, and sheer grit it took to claw one’s way out of that kind of life.
Hearing her compliment, Zayne smiled.
It wasn’t his usual polite, distant smile. This was different–warmer and softer. His gold–rimmed glasses, normally a shield that kept others from seeing the real him, couldn’t hide the emotion in his eyes. It was like winter thawing into spring.
For years, Zayne had carried the weight of his past alone. He’d fought tooth and nail to rise above it, enduring countless hardships and sneers from people who looked down on his origins. He had seen the ugliest sides of humanity, yet he never let it break him.
Even though he treated females with the respect society demanded, deep down, he refused to submit to someone like Astraea. He wouldn’t let himself be trampled on or used as a pawn in some petty power game.
That was why he rejected Astraea and sought refuge in the military, choosing solitude over a life he couldn’t respect.
At first, his feelings toward Nyx were simple: he liked her and wanted to protect her. Agreeing to be her guardian hadn’t been about romance or long–term plans.
But now, things were changing. For the first time, Zayne found himself wanting more. He wanted to stay by Nyx’s side
forever.
Nyx, meanwhile, was growing increasingly nervous under his intense gaze. She thought, ‘He’s not about to confess his feelings, is he?’
