"Of course. Not just any female is worthy of being compared to you."
"You are the gentlest, kindest, and most considerate female in the world, Princess. It's our honor to work in the same lab as you."
The male working beside Louisa exclaimed in admiration, his face filled with utter respect.
The positions at the Science Research Institute were arduous, and no delicate female had ever been willing to set foot inside.
But Louisa had volunteered to join them, cooperating with the Science Research Institute to develop a soothing agent for the male estrus period.
This deeply moved all the males at the Science Research Institute.
A faint smile graced Louisa's lips. "Alright, Allen, let's focus on our work."
"Perhaps this new female will be different."
"As if."
Allen pursed his lips. In his eyes, aside from Princess Louisa, all other females in the world were arrogant and rude creatures.
Unfortunately, males were plagued by their estrus period. Once they accepted a female's comfort and were marked by her, they were bound together for life.
Allen was an exceptionally proud male, and as the head of the second laboratory, he was also nearing the point of needing to find a Female Master.
Recently, his estrus period had intensified to twice a month, but he couldn't stand the sight of ordinary females.
Unless… An image of a graceful figure he had glimpsed at the convenience store entrance suddenly flashed through Allen's mind, along with a light, sweet scent.
She was an exceptionally beautiful female.
He shook his head. 'The experiment is more important.' He turned off his constantly buzzing phone and buried himself back in his research, thus missing the heated discussion blowing up in the group chat.
Practically everyone at the Science Research Institute, from top to bottom, knew that Yu Lan would be coming to the lab for an interview tomorrow.
*
「The next day」
Yu Lan woke up early and sat at the dining table, nibbling on a green, strange-tasting nutrient paste. Her pretty little face was scrunched up in disgust.
"Butler, is there nothing else to eat?"
"I mean, something other than these nutrient packs. They taste awful."
Yu Lan really couldn't stand the bizarre taste.
Her taste buds were desperately craving fluffy, fragrant white rice.
"Of course there is."
The butler stood before Yu Lan with a gentle smile, handing her a tablet.
"If you require delicious, fresh, and tasty meals, you can contact the Crown Hotel."
"They have the most outstanding chefs in the entire interstellar space, capable of creating the most exquisite dishes. However, the prices are also extremely high."
Yu Lan tapped on the tablet, and she quickly understood what the butler meant by "extremely high."
A simple dish of stir-fried pork cost ten thousand Star Coins.
HAHAHAHA!
'This is insane.'
'They could just rob people blind, but they insist on giving you a plate of food first?'
But in the interstellar era, to save time and reduce costs, most people only needed to drink a one-Star Coin nutrient pack to meet their body's basic needs.
There was really no need to waste time cooking anymore.
Delicious meals were always the exclusive choice of the upper echelons of society.
While Yu Lan was lost in thought, she noticed the butler was still standing before her, his face holding the same kind and proper smile.
But for some reason, Yu Lan found it a bit eerie and felt a sense of foreboding.
Sure enough, the next second, the butler spoke:
"Princess, the wages for the entire villa staff have not been paid for three months."
"May I ask when you plan on making the payment?"
"Wh-What?" Yu Lan felt her vision go dark as she stammered,
"How much do I owe you?"
"Not much. A mere 990,000 Star Coins." The butler's smile never faltered.
It was devastating news of epic proportions.
Startled, Yu Lan dropped the nutrient pack she was holding in her mouth, and it clattered to the floor.
She asked tentatively,
"May I ask what your monthly salary is?"
"100,000 Star Coins a month," the butler replied crisply.
'Damn it all!'
'Someone who used to make thirty thousand a month can't afford a butler who costs a hundred thousand a month!'
Debt: +990,000 Star Coins.
Yu Lan stammered for a moment. "Let's… let's discuss this at length after I get back from the Science Research Institute today."
'I need to deal with all these luxury goods the original owner bought and clear this debt as soon as possible.'
*
Under the butler's watchful gaze, a worried Yu Lan boarded the hovercar and arrived at the entrance of the Science Research Institute.
She was just about to take out her phone to message Zhao Song when, a second later, a man came running out of the institute.
"You must be Yu Lan, right? Here for the interview at the Science Research Institute?"
"Hello, hello! I'm Zhao Song. I was worried you might get lost, so I came down specially to meet you."
Yu Lan's soft, pink lips parted slightly. She hadn't even sent Zhao Song a message yet.
'But he just came out of the Science Research Institute, so he probably isn't a scammer.'
She quickly nodded. "Thank you."
"I'm Yu Lan. You can just call me Lanlan."
"Okay, Lanlan." Zhao Song's smile widened as he eagerly called her name.
In fact, from the moment he arrived at the Science Research Institute today, he had been completely distracted, his mind filled with thoughts of Yu Lan.
The closer it got to the scheduled interview time, the more flustered Zhao Song became at his workstation. Finally, he gritted his teeth and ran to the main entrance to keep a constant watch.
Thankfully, Yu Lan had really come.
The fact that Zhao Song had gone to meet Yu Lan was known by everyone, big and small, in the Science Research Institute. The whole crowd of single males was watching.
This was definitely the best the group of high-IQ, single males had ever looked. Every single one of them was groomed to perfection, looking sharp and full of spirit—a complete contrast to their usual lifeless, going-to-work appearance.
Zhao Song led Yu Lan past one transparent laboratory after another, occasionally speaking up to introduce them:
"This is the advanced weapons research center. All the weapons currently used by the Empire come from here."
"This is intelligent robotics R&D…"
"This is…"
One laboratory after another unfolded before Yu Lan, leaving her eyes with too much to take in. Knowing that Yu Lan was watching them, the researchers inside the labs tried even harder to show off.
Sure enough, the next second, the pretty little female's sweet and pleasant voice rang out:
"They're all working so diligently."
"So amazing."
'She praised me!'
This thought flashed through the minds of all the males simultaneously, and they worked with even greater effort, excitement, and focus.
Yu Lan: a new type of work-diligently-triggering agent.
Zhao Song wanted to laugh at the sight of these males acting so cheap, but he quickly led her past the labs. After passing through layers of security and one verification checkpoint after another, they arrived at the two most core laboratories.
Zhao Song's expression turned uncharacteristically serious.
"These are the most core laboratories in the entire Science Research Institute."
"The first and second laboratories, which are exclusively responsible for researching the soothing agent for the male estrus period."
"Lanlan, welcome to the first laboratory."
Zhao Song extended his hand to Yu Lan.
"Ah, does this mean I passed the interview?"
Yu Lan tilted her head in confusion, her pretty cheeks squishing into a soft curve that looked incredibly cute.
"Mhm."
Zhao Song nodded. 'The position was practically a giveaway to begin with. Just getting a female to show up is a miracle; what other requirements could there be? She might not even be able to handle the work and just run off on the second day.'
As they spoke, he pushed open the large door beside them and guided Yu Lan inside.