A Chemist's Interstellar Saga

Chapter 92: Black Hole
Chapter 92: Black Hole

Under Drexel’s relentless assault, even Quispe began to falter. With Arix by his side, he couldn’t unleash his full strength. Reluctantly, Quispe tossed Arix toward Hardy and ordered, ”Take care of her.”

Freed from worry, Quispe dove back into the intense battle with Drexel.

Hardy caught Arix, a sinister smile curling on his lips. Glancing at Quispe, who was locked in combat, he murmured, ”Alright, my dear CROWN prince.”

Arix noticed Hardy’s scheming look and felt a wave of dread.

”You’re Arix, right?” Hardy sneered.

”No, I’m not,” Arix denied, shaking her head. ”I’m Alexandra. Call me Alex.”

”Ha! So many people just called you Arix. Do you think I’m deaf? It doesn’t matter if you are or not; today, you’re going to die anyway. This is a death order from the insectoid queen. You should feel honored.” Hardy pulled out a strange crystal and threw it on the ground, creating a terrifying vortex instantly.

’A black hole? A real black hole that will reduce someone to nothing?’ Arix’s eyes widened in fear. She wanted to call for help, but before she could, Hardy clamped his hand over her mouth.

She struggled, yet her muffled cries going unnoticed.

Dae-jung, who had been trying to rescue Arix, was the first to notice something was wrong. He shouted, ”Arix is in danger! Save her, quick!”

Both fighters halted, their eyes darting toward Arix.

”You damn bug! Let go of my sister!” Drexel was furious, itching to tear Hardy apart. But with Arix in Hardy’s grip, he dared not act recklessly.

”Hardy! Stop! I’ll crush you if you hurt her a bit!” Quispe saw the black hole and immediately understood Hardy’s plan.

Black holes were different from wormholes. Wormholes, though a kind of black holes, had established space passages built by the insectoids, making them safer. A black hole, however, was an undeveloped wormhole. Falling into it meant getting lost in the universe, and the space storms inside could shred a person to pieces, turning them into cosmic debris.

”Quispe, this is our mission! Don’t forget HER orders: extinguish the Alliance’s last hope. This woman is Arix Kering! Are you going to stop me now?” Hardy frowned, displeased, glaring at Quispe.

Thinking of the terrifying queen, Quispe’s eyes narrowed. But seeing Arix struggle, he couldn’t bear it. ”Hand her over to me. I’ll take care of it myself.”

Hardy hesitated, annoyed. ’Why haven’t I realized Quispe is such a lovesick fool before? If I had known, he wouldn’t have teamed up with him.’

Quispe was turning out to be a real liability.

Hardy, disgusted, stopped wasting time and prepared to shove Arix directly into the black hole.

Luckily, Cupid, Vita, and Sophia arrived just in time, knocking Hardy away in unison.

Arix, still bound, barely had time to breathe a sigh of relief before another insectoid appeared out of nowhere and crashed into her, sending her into the black hole.

Arix got desperate. ’So, dying today seems inevitable, huh?’

As Arix lost her balance, she managed a bitter smile. Just before being swallowed by the black hole, she thought she saw Cassian arriving with the Alliance forces. Yet, before she could be sure, the black hole engulfed her completely.

”Arix!!!” The three little ones screamed in terror, then, without hesitation, they jumped in after her.

”Arix!!!”

”Arix!!!”

Their heart-wrenching cries echoed through The Sugli Forest. Drexel, Dae-jung, Calista, Cirilla, Elio, and countless other students frantically lunged toward the black hole, trying to pull Arix back.

But the black hole closed the instant Arix fell in, as if it had completed its mission. No matter how quickly they moved, there was no chance to retrieve her once she was inside.

”Argh—” Drexel roared in agony, unable to believe this was happening. A black hole! There was no hope of surviving that!

His sister, who had just returned home...

’How am I losing her again? And this time, the odds of her surviving are so slim. Can I ever get her back?’

Driven mad, Drexel began furiously digging at the spot where the black hole had been, desperate to find it and follow Arix inside. He couldn’t bear thinking his gentle, kind sister alone in that dark, cold void.

Cassian, who had just arrived, stared in disbelief at the scene, his fury breaking through his rationality. He transformed instantly into a massive white werewolf, baring his fangs at the two insectoids. His huge golden eyes, once calm, now blazed with a murderous rage, fixed on Hardy.

Cassian raised his wolf head and let out an enraged howl. His enormous body did nothing to hinder his speed; instead, he moved like lightning toward Hardy.

Terrified, Hardy hastily put up a psychic power barrier, but no barrier, no matter how strong, could withstand absolute power. It shattered like glass under Cassian’s attack.

”Quispe! What are you standing there for? Save me!” Hardy, overwhelmed by Cassian’s terrifying presence, called out to his teammate for help.

Quispe, watching coldly from the side, also wanted to kill Hardy. But as an insectoid prince, Hardy’s death wasn’t something he could decide, no matter how much he deserved it.

Quispe raised a Supergiant+ psychic barrier to withstand Cassian’s attack. He then turned to Hardy, expressing his disgust. ”Open a space portal and get us out of here now, do you really want to die here?”

”Fine.” Hardy quickly took out a special crystal and crushed it. Instantly, a vortex resembling a black hole appeared beside them.

”Go!” Quispe commanded, grabbing Hardy and stepping into the vortex, disappearing from sight.

Cassian could only watch helplessly as the two insectoids responsible for Arix’s demise vanished. Overwhelmed with fury, he spat out a mouthful of blood and instantly reverted to his small white wolf form, plummeting from the air.

Duke Glendale arrived just a bit too late. Catching Cassian with urgency, he let out a helpless sigh and said, ”Oh boy, Your Highness! You’re not even healed yet, and here you are in another fight. How am I going to explain this to His Majesty when you return half-dead?”

”Save her...” Cassian managed to whisper before slipping into unconsciousness.

”Alright, alright, save her. Got it. You just rest now. Finding someone who fell into a wormhole? That’s right up my alley,” Duke Glendale replied, rolling his eyes as he thought of something.

Cassian wanted to say more, but his severe injuries rendered him completely unconscious. The wounds from his last wormhole incident had never fully healed, and using his psychic powers twice in the past month had worsened his condition greatly.

Holding the small wolf cub, Duke Glendale sighed and remarked, ”They say deep love shortens one’s life. You lovers sure know how to wear yourselves out.”

”Your Grace, we’ve wrapped things up with the Alliance. Should we head back to the Empire now?” Kasem, the butler, asked respectfully.

”Back to the Empire? Not a chance! Kasem, look at this little wolf cub. He risked his life twice for the Alliance. We can’t return empty-handed; that would be a huge loss,” Duke Glendale said, looking at Kasem like he was a fool.

Kasem, caught off guard by the Duke’s shamelessness, quickly shifted to an expression of admiration. ”As expected, Your Grace, always so wise.”

With a satisfied smirk, Duke Glendale, carrying the wolf cub, started walking towards the edge of the forest, muttering, ”I’ve heard the Alliance recently developed a psychic power healing potion. We can’t miss out on that. Let’s go check it out.”

”Yes, Your Grace,” Kasem replied.

The joint training competition of the five military academies was cut short due to an insectoid invasion. This incident left one student missing and dozens severely injured. Fortunately, the advanced medical technology of the interstellar era saved the injured students.

Despite these efforts, there was no joy among the students or instructors. The missing student, Arix, was still unaccounted for, and hopes of finding them alive were slim.

The second greatest victim in this ordeal was probably Arix’s brother, Drexel, who had to return home for mandatory rest due to his mental state. He’d be home until the Hecaris Military Academy reopened.