Chapter 17

Chapter 17

The sun rises as usual, but even the gentlest morning light on the Gobi of the Dark Star, without radiation barriers, is exceptionally glaring.

Queqiu blinked uncomfortably, his golden pupils nearly transparent under the direct sunlight, giving his eyes a fragile appearance, like a bubble about to burst.

"Mom's mood seems off," thought Mao Mao, looking up at Queqiu.

So, he stood up, moving in front of Queqiu to shield him from the intense sunlight.

When Queqiu opened his eyes again, the first thing he saw was the shadow cast over him, and then, looking up, Mao Mao's worried face.

Surprised, Queqiu asked, "What's wrong?"

Mao Mao sniffled, his silver antennae swaying in the wind, and then he plunged into Queqiu's embrace, burying his face there.

A muffled, childlike voice came from the embrace: "Mom, don't be sad. All of this is only temporary; it will get better."

Queqiu didn't expect Mao Mao to be so attuned to his every move, feeling a warmth in his heart. His initially disheartened mood quickly settled under the child's endearing comfort.

Yang, noticing Queqiu affected by the sun, quickly found a radiation umbrella and handed it to him, saying while driving, "The main city area has a radiation barrier. You won't need an umbrella once we're inside."

Queqiu took the black umbrella he had seen when he first met Yang, opening it to perfectly envelop both him and Mao Mao in its shadow.

Queqiu didn't need the umbrella, but the thoughtfulness of Yang's gesture was enough to touch him deeply. He held the umbrella, staring at its dark canopy, lost in thought.

Despite the grim state of this world, fortunately, he had met some genuinely good people.

After several hours of travel, Yang, Queqiu, and Mao Mao finally reached the main city area, beating the harsh midday sun.

From afar, they could see an imposing and majestic city. The steel walls, towering into the clouds, had red lights of cameras blinking at intervals of about ten meters, and in the middle was a massive, thick, black gate, several tens of meters high, making the people moving in and out below look as small as ants.

Yang explained, "The city walls and gates are made from dense iron from Mine One. They're thirty meters thick and can withstand at least twenty strikes from the empire's most destructive missiles. Every ten meters along the top of the wall, there's a sentry post or turret for both defense and offense."

Queqiu noticed that Yang spoke of these topics with pride and a gleam in his eyes. Puffing out his chest, he said, "Once, the insect race broke through the border defenses and attacked the Dark Star but couldn’t breach the main city’s defenses. Despite numerous assaults, they failed to take the city. Instead, the well-prepared soldiers counterattacked, assisting the capital's forces in a decisive victory against the insect race, securing our victory on the Dark Star."

"I wasn't born at that time, but my forebears participated in that great counter-offensive. No matter how many times those detestable insects invade, we'll always drive them off our planet!"

Queqiu quietly listened to Yang's stories about the Dark Star. The people at the top of this planet didn't recognize them and their forebears as citizens of the Dark Star, but from beginning to end, these unrecognized people strived to protect their homeland, even at the cost of their lives. Generation after generation rooted in this barren land, coexisting with death and danger, unrecognized and unredeemed, yet still taking pride in the Dark Star's honor.

Queqiu recalled the undisguised disdain and superiority of He Jieming and others on the Elisabeth when mentioning the Dark Star. He realized the reality was not as others portrayed. The Dark Star might have its dark aspects, but most of its people were just abandoned ordinary individuals. The so-called nobles who despised the Dark Star were not even comparable to those they scorned.

Upon entering the city, Yang passed through inspection smoothly, but Queqiu and Mao Mao, being new faces, were stopped by the city's military guards.

The team leader, a black hawk Alpha with sharp green eyes and a chilling aura, had two wings folded behind his back in a non-combat state. His face appeared fierce but seemed to recognize Yang. Although he noticed other people on the airship, he didn’t make trouble, stamping the pass while frowning, "Who are you bringing? I warn you, outsiders are not allowed in the main city area, and you don't have the authority to bring them in."

Having been a street chief for over two decades, Yang was known to the guard leaders, who had changed over the years. They remembered him as honest and dutiful and even reminded him not to break the rules.

To the leader's surprise, Yang didn't ask the passengers to get off but instead pulled him closer.

The leader immediately became alert, "What are you trying to do?! I warn you, don't you dare have any ulterior motives!"

Yang nervously leaned in, "Leader Lans, I've brought an Omega, there's no violation."

Saying this, he tapped on the airship, which responded with movement inside.

Hearing the word "Omega," the black hawk Alpha named Lans' green eyes widened in shock, about to shout, but Yang quickly covered his mouth.

Urgency spilling from his eyes, Yang hastily said, "Shh! Keep your voice down! There are people coming and going here, don't make noise and attract too much attention, you might scare the little Omega."

The leader's mouth was securely covered, unable to speak, he just nodded frantically, indicating he understood.

Relieved, Yang slowly released him.

As soon as he was free, Lans' eyes shone with astonishment, "Omega?!"

But remembering Yang's caution, he lowered his voice, still unable to hide his excitement, resembling Dodd's naivety.

It couldn’t be helped; the scarcity of Omegas on the Dark Star had reached an extreme level. Even in the main city area, there were at most twenty to thirty young Omegas, mostly confined to the Dark Star Military Academy, rarely seen in public. Even the city guards' leader had seldom seen a living Omega, usually only glimpsing them on the interstellar network, satisfying curiosity from afar.

So the presence of an Omega in this rundown vehicle was undeniably thrilling.

"Is it really an Omega?!"

Skeptical, Lans tiptoed, peering over the edge of the vehicle's compartment, eyes wide with anticipation.

Before he could finish, two silver antennae suddenly appeared, causing the black hawk Alpha's eyes to widen dramatically. The next moment, an Alpha cub jumped out, startling him so much he instinctively stepped back, nearly flaring his wings.

While the antennae alone didn’t reveal the cub's species, it was clear this was an Alpha cub, particularly troublesome.

Lans, feeling deceived as his high expectations crumbled, couldn't contain his anger. His green eyes blazed, ready to glare at Yang fiercely, but then, a golden-haired, golden-eyed Omega, angelic in appearance, quietly appeared before him.

“！”

Lans was left stunned.

That, that was...

Omega？

"Could I have been mistaken?"

"Is the person standing before me... really an Omega?"

"Who is he looking at? Is it me?"

"Such a beautiful, adorable little Omega..."

Lans was so stunned by Queqiu that he couldn't speak. He never imagined being this close to an Omega of his dreams. Overwhelmed by the immense surprise, he was blinded to anything but the exquisite beauty before him, not even pondering why he couldn't detect even a hint of the Omega's pheromones.

Amidst his astonishment, and fearing his fierce appearance might scare the timid Omega, Lans hurriedly tried to put on what he thought was a standard smile. To others, however, he resembled a patient with facial paralysis attempting post-surgery recovery exercises, his expression hovering awkwardly between a cry and a smile, even more intimidating than his angry demeanor.

Yang knew Lans would react this way, or rather, anyone, Alpha or Beta, would have the same reaction upon seeing Queqiu.

After all, Queqiu possessed a beauty rare even among top-tier Omegas. Moreover, his golden hair and eyes shone impressively in the sunlight, radiating a warm glow, irresistibly drawing anyone who saw him closer.

His demeanor wasn't excessively arrogant like other Omegas, still delicate, yet with a fragile, breakable quality that instinctively made one want to protect this small, exquisite Omega.

While Lans was still reveling in the excitement of seeing an Omega up close, Yang was relieved he had prevented Lans from causing a scene. At the same time, he couldn't help feeling a bit helpless, knowing well the natural attraction Omegas had on Alphas, akin to the most addictive drug. Worried about delaying Queqiu's enrollment at the Dark Star Military Academy, Yang stepped forward to interrupt Lans.

"You've had a good look, now let us into the city. We have urgent matters to attend to."

"Had enough?"

Lans instinctively wanted to object, "How could I have seen enough? This is a real Omega! Finally, a close encounter with one! Even a lifetime wouldn't be enough!"

But as soon as he came to his senses, Lans hurriedly cleared the way, fearing that his actions might indeed delay the little Omega's important affairs.

Despite having witnessed such scenes numerous times, Queqiu was still not quite accustomed to the intense gaze of individuals like Lans and pressed his lips together, lowering his eyelashes before sitting back down.

Mao Mao, not understanding why, felt an unprecedented anger rising from the depths of his heart upon seeing Lans' unabashed admiration for Queqiu. He turned his back to Lans, shielding Queqiu from the other's prying eyes with his small body. Even his soft silver antennae stood erect in defiance, like sharp horns ready for battle.

Clenching his tiny fists, he thought resentfully: "Humph, such an annoying and rude Alpha, even more irksome than that dumb Beta from Duocao Street."

"I won't let any of you covet Mama!"

Lans no longer hindered Yang and quickly let them into the city. After Queqiu's departure, unable to contain his excitement, Lans' folded wings "flapped" open, kicking up dust and shooting straight up into the sky like a firework, circling overhead in a joyous flight. In his exhilaration, he cared little for any repercussions of such behavior during work hours.

As a result, everyone present, be it familiar members of the city guard or strangers, looked up at the wildly flying Black Hawk Alpha in bewilderment and disdain, as if watching a fool.

A new member of the team, unfamiliar with Lans, gazed at their hovering leader and asked in confusion, "What's with the leader? Is there some kind of enemy alert?"

"Enemy alert?" scoffed a veteran member while stamping passes for passersby. Without even looking up, he remarked, "He's just overly excited about something. The last time he exposed his true nature and flew around like that was when his Beta sister had a nephew. As for this time, who knows?"

He casually speculated the truth without realizing it: "Maybe he saw an Omega? Ha, what a dreamer I am, as if he could ever encounter an Omega."

Author's Note:

"Mao Mao Brand Human-Shaped Shield, fully automatic, no operation needed. It blocks sunlight and prying eyes, with a fuel consumption of just one hug from Queqiu per hundred kilometers."