A Chemist's Interstellar Saga

Chapter 45: Master Chemist
Chapter 45: Master Chemist

”Arix, I’ve brought your meal,” Kellan said as he rapped on the door twice. Opening the door, he walked in carrying two bags.

”You’re here! What are we having today?” Arix asked with an innocent smile. Meanwhile, her hands moved deftly beneath the blanket to detach the opticomputer and sneakily tuck it under her pillow.

This was the only opticomputer Drexel had managed to smuggle into the training base after much effort. Arix had to return it once Drexel was done with his classes, so if Kellan discovered and confiscated it, she’d have no way to explain herself to Drexel.

”There’s your favorite fruit pudding and some ice cream cake,” Kellan said as he set up the small table on the hospital bed, placing the pudding on it.

Arix eagerly took a spoonful of pudding before glancing curiously at the other box in Kellan’s hand. ”Is there someone else you’re delivering food to?”

Kellan looked at the remaining box and smiled mysteriously. ”Yes, I’m bringing some food to a good friend.”

Arix paused mid-bite, scratching her head awkwardly. ”You mean Captain Cantet, don’t you?”

”That’s right,” Kellan replied warmly, a hint of amusement in his tone.

”Is he okay? I heard psychic injuries can be tricky,” Arix asked softly, a bit guilty.

”He’s fine, just a minor psychic world concussion. A few days of rest, and he’ll be discharged,” Kellan replied, recognizing her guilt and giving her a reassuring pat on the head.

A psychic world concussion was similar to a regular concussion and would heal with proper rest.

Relieved to learn she hadn’t caused Cantet serious harm, Arix said, ”I’m fine here, go check on Captain Cantet.”

”Alright. Finish your meal and get some rest. Just leave the dishes to the side; I’ll have a medical robot collect them later,” Kellan instructed.

”Got it,” Arix nodded obediently.

Kellan affectionately ruffled Arix’s hair before grabbing the box and leaving the room.

As soon as Kellan was gone, Arix immediately pulled out the opticomputer from under her pillow. She quickly opened a mecha master’s livestream and watched intently while munching on her pudding.

Meanwhile, Kellan stepped out of Arix’s room and knocked on the door of the adjacent one.

”Who’s there?” Cantet sat up, leaning against the headboard and massaging his still-swollen temples.

”It’s me, Kellan,” Kellan’s gentle voice came from the hallway.

Cantet raised an eyebrow in mild surprise. He straightened his posture, and checked himself out.

He felt satisfied that he still looked as dashing as ever.

”Come in,” he said finally.

Kellan opened the door, carrying the box as he smiled at Cantet. ”You haven’t had lunch yet, right? I brought you some pudding.”

”You actually have the time to bring me food specifically?” Cantet raised an eyebrow skeptically, feeling like there was a catch.

People often said he had a dark heart, but he knew the sly fox standing in front of him was the real deal. Some people had even been tricked by Kellan only to thank him afterward.

Kellan set down the food. His lips curled into a slight smile as he said, ”I came to the hospital to bring Arix some food and thought I’d bring you some as well.”

”Arix is in the hospital too?” Cantet couldn’t believe it at first.

Given Arix’s formidable psychic power, it was far more likely she’d put others in the hospital. Cantet himself was her first victim, so he had no reason to doubt that.

The smile on Kellan’s face vanished. With a touch of sorrow in his eyes, he said, ”Cantet, Pritchett is gone.”

Cantet paused, the spoon hovering over his pudding. He looked up and fixed his gaze on Kellan, his voice tinged with fury. ”What happened? I was only asleep for a day, and now he’s just gone?”

Pritchett had always been the kind of kind-hearted man who felt like a big brother to many in the Fifth Legion. Almost every new recruit who joined had once received his kindness.

Cantet had enlisted in the same group as Pritchett and had been the one to receive the most care from him.

Kellan gave a brief overview of the events. ”He was parasitized by an insectoid, which aimed to kidnap the only Supergiant+ in the Alliance. Yesterday, my sister caught him, losing an arm in the process.”

”Insectoid! Those insectoids again!” Cantet’s eyes grew bloodshot, his voice seething with anger.

”Cantet, it’s now locked up in the quarantine zone. Tomorrow, the Alliance’s Military Research Institute will take it away. Go see Pritchett one last time today and say goodbye,” Kellan said as he raised his right hand to grip Cantet’s shoulder, trying to offer some comfort.

”I understand. You go ahead,” Cantet said, closing his eyes. At that moment, he didn’t want to see anyone else.

”Okay, I’m heading off now. Eat up and get some rest,” Kellan said before leaving the room, giving Cantet some space to calm down on his own.

Cantet only looked up at the pudding on the table when he heard the door close. With a self-mocking smile, he muttered, ”Kellan, what you’ve given me isn’t a dessert; it’s the bitterest thing in the world.”

Elsewhere, Arix had just finished her meal and was about to lie down for a nap when she heard the door open.

She glanced up, puzzled. When she saw who it was, she immediately jumped up, terrified. Her voice trembled as she said, ”Captain Cantet, why are you here?”

’Oh no, Captain Cantet! Is he here to settle accounts with me?’ she wondered silently.

Cantet looked down, his gaze falling on Arix’s arm in a sling. His eyes lowered slightly, and then he spoke with a touch of pride and aloofness, ”I heard you caught Pritchett yesterday?”

Arix nodded in confusion.

”Got it. Thanks. At least you’ve let everyone know he was being controlled by the insectoid and wasn’t responsible for those actions. Everyone believes he’s innocent,” Cantet said. He didn’t wait for her reaction but simply closed the door and left.

Arix scratched the back of her head, bewildered. But seeing he had left, she didn’t think much of it and lay back down.

The door opened again the next second, and Arix looked up to find Cantet back. She sat up, exasperated. ”What else do you need?”

’Can’t you just say everything at once? You’re going to give me a heart attack!’ she complained inwardly but didn’t dare speak aloud.

”Oh, I forgot to mention earlier. Please tell your brother that the pudding was nice, but don’t send it again,” Cantet said before closing the door and walking away.

For a moment, the air hung in silence, and then Arix muttered a curse. She got up, locked the door to her hospital room, and finally returned to bed.

Letting out a sigh of relief, she settled in for a peaceful nap.

After her nap, Arix got up with a yawn. After freshening up, she planned to visit the mecha repair department, something she had requested permission to do yesterday.

Excitedly, Arix put on her training uniform and left the hospital room, heading toward the repair department. As she passed the Chemistry Department, she couldn’t resist peeking in for a quick look. But she was immediately called over by an older man in a lab coat.

”You’re the chemist assigned to help us from headquarters, right? What are you doing standing around like that? Get in here!” Sims called out, his tone tinged with slight disappointment.

Arix froze and looked around, pointing to herself in confusion. ”Are you talking to me?”

”Who else would it be?” Sims looked at Arix, puzzled, wondering how headquarters could send over someone who was both injured and clueless.

”Well, I don’t—” Arix began to protest but was dragged by the older man straight into the Chemistry Department.

”No time for chit-chat. Do you have any idea how many soldiers on the front lines are depending on our potions to save their lives? Stop dawdling!” Sims scolded angrily.

Hearing this, Arix stopped arguing, letting out a sigh as she was pulled deeper into the department.

Inside, Arix saw the chemists hard at work, just as Sims had described. They were busy brewing potions, and even the assistants were rushing around with focused faces, quickly and accurately delivering materials to each chemist in their individual labs.

”This is your room. Today, your task is to brew at least 500 advanced insect repellent potions and 500 advanced healing potions. If you need any materials, call Assistant 30, and he’ll get them for you,” Sims instructed before rushing off.

Arix stood alone in a lab full of materials. She took a moment to shake off her confusion before finally beginning to handle the supplies.

Both the insect repellent and healing potions were Planet-Class. Arix had already practiced brewing them multiple times in the month after her exams.

So she was comfortable with the process, but the sheer volume required was overwhelming. And the fact that one of her arms was practically useless only made the job harder.

Arix sighed.

After her sigh, Arix focused on the task of brewing the potions. She crushed the required ingredients and placed them into a test tube, letting them simmer for the necessary amount of time.

Once the mixture was ready, she carefully extracted the liquid and used her psychic power to separate the impurities.

Next, she took several other similarly treated extracts and blended them in a specific order.

Finally, she poured the finished liquid into a potion vial and sealed it.

One insect repellent potion was complete.

Crushing, simmering, extracting, purifying, blending, and bottling... For the rest of the afternoon, Arix found herself repeating these six steps continuously. The pile of finished potions at her feet steadily grew.

Sims occasionally passed by and, seeing Arix diligently at work, nodded in approval. He picked up one of her potions, placed a drop on his fingertip, and sniffed it. Afterward, he let the liquid touch his tongue, closing his eyes as he took his time to taste it.

Then, all of a sudden, Sims’ eyes flew open, and he looked at Arix in astonishment.

There seemed to be no impurities in this potion—or so few that it was undetectable by human examination.

Sims cast a deep, thoughtful glance at Arix before taking the potion to the testing room for a more thorough analysis.