Chapter 56
Sirius stood up and looked at the quantum computer in disbelief. His position as the female ruler was fixed in the imperial marriage system, and even he could not replace her when the position was occupied by Celt.
Unless Celt deactivates it, however, he did not manually set Isil as his empress.
In a flash, he looked sharply at Celtic.
The recording had ended, and the last image that remained was Hill's face looking at the screen. His figure was so ethereal that even without the wind, the image would quickly shatter.
Celtic sat upright behind his desk, silently gazing at the gradually fading image.
His face was expressionless, yet his gaze was focused, as if Hill was the only insect left in the entire universe, unlike any other Marshal Celtic at any time.
His affection came so late, ridiculously late.
Sirius clenched his fist, then laughed angrily as if suddenly realizing something: "Isidore only returned because he received your orders."
Yes, Isidor was Celt's former adjutant, his most loyal subordinate, and his former student. Without Marshal Celt's transfer order, he could have even endured serving on the desolate planet for up to six years.
Six years ago, Nuka was attacked by star beasts. Nathaniel took most of the female soldiers with him to capture Pegasus. During his escape, he suddenly entered the budding stage. Isidore became his guide, successfully helping him pass through the second evolution and advance to become an S-class male.
The guiding insect that was originally the highest-ranking, highest-ranking, and most suitable in all aspects in the nearby star system was General Celt of the First Army.
For various reasons, he had given Isidore a spot, a spot that was not limited to a queen or a servant.
But Isil, feeling guilty for betraying Celt, endured the exile and never used the spot in all these years. The barren spot remained as if it had never existed until today.
When registering a female, the male insect can simply grant authorization without being present, but the female insect must complete the entire process.
The starship arrived at 8:00 AM, the registration office opened at 9:00 AM, and Isidore arrived at the registration window at 10:00 AM.
Meanwhile, the impatient Sirius boarded the warship, adding what he thought was the final straw.
In fact, whether he comes or not, Celtic has already made his decision.
——
"@Male Insect Protection Association, are you all useless? If you can't do a good job, you can go feed the Star Beasts, do you hear me?"
"Even if it's Marshal Celt, how can a single female insect be a potential consort for two male insect princes at the same time?! What about the thousands upon thousands of female insects who have never even received male insect pheromones?"
"Tell me it's a system bug, and the programmer should apologize!"
Both on the StarNet and outside the royal palace lawn, all the female insects were in an uproar, incredulous. The storm almost swept everything, and the official StarNet was nearly overwhelmed by raging fury.
Fortunately, insects soon discovered the clues.
"Wait a minute, I just checked the marriage registration page, and it seems there's a bug in His Highness Sirius's empress position?!"
Who is it?
"Lieutenant General Isidor? How could it be Lieutenant General Isidor?"
"Who is Lieutenant General Isidor? Never heard of him? What makes him capable of taking the position of Marshal's consort?"
"Lieutenant General Isido was the Marshal's former adjutant. Six years ago, he voluntarily transferred to the Kochilodo defense line. In recent years, he has disappeared from the military and is only remembered by a few insects."
"But the Marshal is already close to mental chaos. Without an S-class male insect, the Marshal will inevitably perish. Doesn't that mean the Marshal's life is on a countdown?"
"Is the person upstairs out of their mind? The S-class male insect empire isn't just about one! There's also Prince Hilgard!"
"No wonder the Marshal participated in the selection of His Highness Hilgard's consort."
"Does anyone think that with Marshal Celtic around, our hopes are slim?"
A chorus of wails erupted downstairs.
The female insect's voice, amplified due to its loss of control, reached the ears of a male insect in the palace from afar.
Hill stroked the cold porcelain cup. The untouched black tea was stirred by the wind, and the ripples that spread out like waves blurred the handsome features of the male insect.
Long, slender fingers picked up the teacup, pale lips parted slightly, and she took a small sip.
beep beep—
An emergency communication popped up on the computer, revealing a head of golden hair as bright as the sun. Nathaniel's arrogant expression was unusually excited. He leaned on the table, his elaborately layered clothes making him look extremely formal.
“Hill,” Nathaniel raised his chin, adopting the air of an elder brother, his face beaming, “I have done what I promised you!”
Although he only gave one instruction to Hersen, Hersen would help him solve whatever problem he had.
Whether it was getting rid of Albert, whom Hill despised, or snatching Celt from Cyrus, they were just a few female insects.
He wants the throne of the Insect King, and Hesen will seize it for him.
Hill raised his head slightly, his light blue eyes almost transparent in the sunlight. His voice was clear, and a smile slowly crept onto his face, making him look incredibly obedient: "Thank you, brother."
Without Hessen's instigation, the matter of becoming the Queen of Cyrils wouldn't have spread so quickly, allowing Celt to lose her chance at becoming the Queen of Cyrils at the last moment and choose herself instead.
Only the female ruler has the potential to become the insect emperor.
Even though he has a severe disability that prevents him from using insects and makes it difficult for him to winnow, he is, after all, the prince of the Insect Emperor. Only by marrying him and obtaining the position of the Queen can Celt be qualified to become the Insect Emperor and fulfill his ever-growing ambitions. What a wise choice!
The sunlight falling on Hill's eyes did not generate any warmth.
"Ahem—" Nathaniel, who had never experienced such treatment before, subconsciously straightened his bow tie and arrogantly raised his chin. "Just a female insect."
Seemingly afraid of revealing anything amiss, Nathaniel quickly shut down his personal terminal.
He demurely extended his hand, gesturing for Hesen, who was waiting nearby, to take his hand.
"Well done," Prince Nathaniel praised.
Hesen bowed deeply with a gentle smile: "This is what I should do for my lord."
At the same time, Sirius put down his personal terminal. Just now, he had thought about telling Hill the truth, but the communication had been unsuccessful. Perhaps it was the will of the Insect God that made him give up telling Hill.
Hill actually had a strong self-destructive tendency. He no longer trusted any insects. He was not afraid to let Albert know about his illness, and even looked forward to all the insects peeling off their hypocritical masks and revealing their ugly faces.
Lightning flashed and thunder roared on Acheron Star. For a moment, he felt that Hill was anticipating a world collapsing like a torrential downpour, hoping for a complete annihilation.
Hill lived a hard and exhausting life. What kept him going was his hatred for Celt. This hatred had sustained him until now. If he knew now that Celt had actually come of his own accord, would he be able to let go of his hatred and finally release his last ounce of energy?
After all, he had loved Celtic so deeply.
Sirius gasped for breath, forgiving his selfishness; he couldn't lose Hill.
Even if it's a lie, he hopes Hill will love him more and live on at all costs.
Sirius put his hands in his pockets and silently looked out of the starship.
The hatch of the First Army warship slowly opened, and Marshal Celtic's steady footsteps echoed in the passageway. His military boots clattered rhythmically on the alloy floor, and bright sunlight streamed into the open passageway.
The massive, jet-black bone wings unfurled in an instant, the distinct exoskeleton exuding a chilling, ruthless metallic aura, willingly marching towards a known fate, a known deception.
Sirius's lips were pressed into a tight line; as long as Hill had a sliver of hope, he didn't care about anything else.
"Beep beep—"
The communicator rang for the third time, and finally the call was connected.
"Marshal! Why did you send Isidor to register the female ruler? Only the female ruler of the male insect prince can become the insect emperor! Besides, you don't have time anymore. You must obtain the S-level pheromone, otherwise not only you but also—" Dick's anxious voice rang out like a machine gun the moment the call connected.
“Dick.” Celt’s cold voice cut him off.
Marshal Celtic was autocratic; his decisions were not open to questioning by any insect, and all insects held him in absolute awe. No insect could disobey him.
But this time, Dick couldn't maintain his respect for him; he couldn't control his emotional outburst.
"Marshal, we both understood six years ago that Hilgard had no chance of successfully advancing to the second stage. Have you forgotten?! The probability of him successfully advancing to the second stage with the help of a 2S female insect is 0! It's 0!"
His voice was almost cracking, trembling uncontrollably.
"Only with the assistance of a 3S female insect will the success rate increase, but it's only by a mere 5%. There's no way he can successfully advance to the second stage. He's been deceiving all the insects! There's no way he can become an S-class male insect!"
Six years ago, Celt secretly collected Hilgard's biological information and conducted genetic testing after being sent to Nuka.
Hilgard has had a huge physical defect since birth. He is physically weak and unlikely to live past the age of 18, making it impossible for him to pass the second advancement. Only with the assistance of a 3S female insect will he have a slim chance of survival.
For the cold-blooded and rational Marshal Celt, the probability was too low. He could not entrust his life to such a slim chance. Nathaniel was only A-rank, and in the entire empire, the only one who could keep him alive was Sirius, a male insect.
Therefore, he remained steadfast in his choice of Sirius, even though Sirius expressed great displeasure.
Therefore, after the incident on Nuka, he avoided meeting Hilgard's repeated attempts to befriend him.
The female insect was too rational and calm to waste a single second on a male insect that was doomed to die, even though she had once depended on that male insect for survival in the vast Star Forest.
This is the true nature of the Celtic female insect: forever weighing the pros and cons on both sides of the scale, ultimately making the most reasonable judgment.
"I know."
The air currents at high altitudes fragmented his voice, making it sound so calm, no different from when he made decisive decisions on the battlefield.
"Then why are you doing this?! You're going to your death! Hilgard's condition will only get worse now! He's gone through all this trouble, whether it was pretending to get close to you or now, he's just deceiving you!"
In his panic, Dick suddenly remembered something: "A month ago, I intercepted a report before it was submitted. It detailed Hilgard's six years of admiration for you. Why did it happen right when Hilgard's return as an S-class male was announced? Don't you find that suspicious?"
"He's setting traps step by step just to make you abandon Sirius and fall into his snare!"
After all, if two male insects are both serotonin, one is deeply in love with you, while the other is a playboy who repeatedly refuses to marry you, any rational insect would choose the former.
But what if one of them is not an S-grade male at all, and has serious defects?
"Isidore, what have you found? Tell me quickly—"
Dick seemed to have switched to another female insect. The sound in his ear blurred for a moment, and then he heard Isidor's hurried yet hesitant voice.
"Marshal, after I became His Highness Sirius's consort, I shared His Highness's health report. His Highness Sirius's pheromones are consistently low, and there is a risk of him consuming excessive amounts of pheromones."
Isidore paused for a moment: "I suspect that His Highness Hilgard did not successfully complete the second advancement to become S-rank, and that his S-rank pheromones came from His Highness Sirius."
Another male insect continuously damaged itself to provide him with high-level male insect pheromones so that he could disguise himself as an S-class insect, thus facilitating this elaborate deception.
Even male insects that falsify their rank will be brought to trial and pay a heavy price.
Dick continued in a hoarse voice, "He's been lying to you all along!"
"Marshal, he has no sincerity—"
Those so-called sincere words were nothing but deceptive lies. He wove these lies to survive, for that meager 5% chance. Marshal, you clearly had the 100% safe choice of Sirius, so why did you choose to pursue a 95% chance of failure?
There was a long silence on the other side, with only the sound of the wind cutting through everything. After a long time, Dick heard Marshal Celt's voice.
Marshal Celtic was always rational and ruthless; his voice seemed devoid of emotion, just like his cold, piercing eyes.
But this time his voice lowered, and for the first time it brought warmth to his already cold, mechanical demeanor.
He said, "What does it matter if it's genuine or not?"
"It's enough that I'm sincere."
The communication was disconnected, and the iconic black bone wings appeared on the virtual screen in front of them. Countless Zerg in the interstellar space were eagerly awaiting this moment.
Enormous, jet-black bone wings descended upon the lawn in front of the palace, blotting out the sky, their powerful and chilling pheromones forcefully repelling all female insects within a three-meter radius.
Celtic had deep, cold eyes and sharp features. His gray eyes were unruly and defiant. His close-fitting military uniform accentuated his explosive bone structure. His shoulder straps and chest were adorned with the golden Thorn of Glory Medal, highlighting his illustrious military achievements.
He strode forward until he crossed the boundary and arrived at the palace building.
Tick-tock—
The hour and minute hands meet at this moment; it's noon.
Two long, slender arms reached out from the building in front of the palace, and two sub-females respectfully opened the window for His Highness Hilgard.
The bright sunshine fell, and the Sophia roses bloomed in front of the palace. The wildly climbing branches meandered upwards, and the layers of flowers surrounded the quiet window and the beautiful, fragile male insect.
He had light blue eyes, long silver hair as pale as moonstone, and pale knuckles; he was handsome and ethereal.
Nathaniel was a mad tyrant, Cyrus was a libertine, and Hildegard was the flowing moonlight.
"Your Highness, good afternoon——"
Celt bowed, his voice low, and made a respectful gesture as close to Hill as possible. The female insects behind him seemed to awaken from a dream and bowed down as well.
Hill's hand, resting on the window, tightened little by little until he felt the pain spreading from his palm.
The carefully laid net had finally come to an end; the troublesome and ruthless beast had finally walked into the trap, letting the deadly rope tighten around its neck.
Celtic--
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com