Herta Space Station, Main Control Zone.
Nearly everyone on the station had gathered here, placed under concentrated protection by the Security Department.
After all, most of the personnel were researchers and scholars. Their numbers were not particularly large, and the Main Control Zone could easily accommodate them all.
At this moment, the majority of people were anxious and tense. The invaders were the infamous Antimatter Legion.
Even the Herta Space Station carried the possibility of falling.
However, no members of the Antimatter Legion had appeared in the Main Control Zone. With so many Security personnel standing guard around them, everyone still felt a solid sense of safety.
"Miss Asta, how is the situation now?"
At the Monitoring Zone, the Astral Express crew members who had just helped escort people to the Main Control Zone stepped forward to ask.
"You're back." Asta smiled when she saw Himeko and the others. "Thank you for your hard work. The crisis should be resolved by now. It seems Mr. Nolan removed the Antimatter Legion's forces all at once."
At present, the Monitoring Zone could no longer detect any traces of the Antimatter Legion. Under normal circumstances, that meant the crisis was over. Still, to be safe, they would wait for Nolan to return and clarify the situation before making any official announcement.
"Even three Doomsday Beasts were handled so easily? Don't tell me Nolan is actually an Emanator!" March 7th exclaimed in shock.
"How could that be?" Asta shook her head. "The world he comes from hasn't even been reached by the Aeons' Paths yet. The 'Paths' of the Aeons haven't extended there, so he isn't even a Pathstrider."
"Heh, the universe doesn't revolve around Pathstriders alone," Welt said with a faint smile. "Other systems of power also produce incredibly strong individuals.
"It's just that compared to Pathstriders, they're relatively rare. Or perhaps they simply don't mind stepping onto a Path as well."
For example, in the past, as a Herrscher, he had wielded formidable power. Even after losing his Herrscher Core, he still retained a fraction of that authority.
When he had unexpectedly arrived in the galaxy and discovered that the mainstream cultivation system of the universe was the Path system, he found it remarkably compatible. It did not conflict with his original abilities in the slightest.
So when the time came, he naturally embarked upon the Path of Trailblaze and became a Pathstrider.
Presumably, many other civilizations were similar. Even if they possessed their own power systems, they would not object to walking a Path.
Thus, most of the well known powerhouses in the galaxy were Pathstriders.
"Uncle Yang really knows a lot!" March 7th chuckled, scratching the back of her head, feeling like she finally understood a little.
"Everyone, I'm back."
While Asta and the Astral Express crew were still concerned about Nolan, he arrived at the Monitoring Zone shortly afterward to reunite with them.
"How did it go? Is it all taken care of?!" Compared to Asta, the warm and adorable March 7th seemed even more anxious as she hurriedly asked.
"Yes. The Antimatter Legion has been wiped out. Their fragments are currently piled up in a space under my control."
Nolan nodded and briefly explained how he had dragged the Antimatter Legion into the Void Star Sea and eliminated them there.
"Whew, that's wonderful. The crisis at the station was resolved without any casualties. Thank you, Mr. Nolan."
Asta let out a long sigh of relief.
[Asta Has Developed Good Feelings Toward You, Obtained 900 Affection Points. Current Affection Level: Lv.7 (100/700)]
Seeing the notification pop up on his character panel, Nolan smiled.
"It's my job. There's no need to thank me."
"No need to be modest, Mr. Nolan. Without you, the station could never have repelled the Antimatter Legion with virtually no losses."
A gentle smile bloomed across Asta's fair face.
It seemed that hiring Nolan as a security consultant for major crises had indeed been the right decision.
"Nice work!" March 7th also patted Nolan on the shoulder.
The Astral Express was docked at the station as well. Without Nolan's help, they would have been caught up in the disaster too. As a result, they had developed a bit of goodwill toward him:
[March 7th Has Developed Good Feelings Toward You, Obtained 830 Affection Points. Current Affection Level: Lv.6 (150/600)]
Himeko's affection increased as well:
[Himeko Has Developed Good Feelings Toward You, Obtained 820 Affection Points. Current Affection Level: Lv.6 (120/600)]
Naturally, Welt and Dan Heng's goodwill toward Nolan had also risen. However, since they were men, no notification was displayed, and the increase was not as significant.
Amid his delight, Nolan suddenly thought of something and said to everyone,
"On my way out just now, I found two people sneaking into Miss Herta's collection vault to get their hands on the Stellaron. They even fused it into someone."
He briefly explained how Kafka and Silver Wolf had attempted to take the Stellaron.
The moment the Stellaron was mentioned, Asta, Himeko, and the others immediately focused their attention on him. Himeko, her crimson hair gleaming, revealed a look of sudden realization.
"So Herta has actually been collecting a Stellaron? Could it be that the Antimatter Legion was drawn here because of it?"
A Stellaron could bring disaster in countless forms. It would not be strange if it directly attracted the Antimatter Legion.
Even if the Stellaron itself had not actively done anything, once the Antimatter Legion learned of its existence, they would most likely attempt to seize it.
"That's probably the case." Asta seemed to agree. She looked at Nolan with a troubled expression. "The two you captured should be members of the Stellaron Hunters. It's troublesome enough being targeted by the Antimatter Legion. We cannot afford to have the Stellaron Hunters set their sights on the station as well.
"We should send them away as soon as possible. If necessary, we could hand them over to the IPC in exchange for a bounty. Those two are high value fugitives wanted by the IPC.
"As for the gray haired girl who fused with the Stellaron, we should wait until Madam Herta returns before deciding what to do."
The Stellaron belonged to Herta. Asta had no authority to make that decision, nor any way to extract it.
"Alright, no problem." Nolan nodded.
Kafka and Silver Wolf had already been branded with Command Seals. They now obeyed him completely. Even treating them like personal maids would not be an issue.
In that sense, they were already his people. Compared to trading them in for a bounty, it was obviously better to keep them and have them work for him.
After all, one was the deputy of the Stellaron Hunters, and the other was a top tier hacker in the universe. Their true value could never be measured in money.
Moreover, they were both beautiful girls, and their Affection Potential was also golden. If he ever managed to max out their affection, he would probably obtain some rather powerful Affection Skills.
He found himself looking forward to it.
As for whether Kafka and Silver Wolf might resent being controlled and find it difficult to develop affection toward him, that hardly mattered. He already had more than enough Affection Skills. Missing one or two would make no difference.
Having them work for him was sufficient. Besides, with his current level of attractiveness to girls, as long as they spent enough time together, even negative affection could eventually be turned positive.
Just like Rosalyne, the Crimson Witch of Flames, whom he had also controlled. At the beginning, her affection toward him had been in the negatives. Yet after all this time, it had long since turned positive.
Her Affection Level had even reached Level 6, and that was without him deliberately trying to raise it.
Soon after, Asta used the station wide broadcast to announce that the crisis had been resolved. The space station gradually began returning to normal.
Once Nolan and the Astral Express crew had some free time, they set off for Teyvat once more.
This time, there were no surprises. Using the Void Star Sea as a transit point, the Astral Express successfully entered Teyvat directly, appearing near Guyun Stone Forest.
Nolan then invited everyone to the Jade Chamber to meet Ningguang, and asked Baiwen, Baixiao, and Baishi to introduce Teyvat to them.
After that, the Astral Express crew could explore Teyvat on their own.
Meanwhile, Nolan sensed that Kafka and Silver Wolf seemed to have awakened.
So he entered the Void Star Sea once again.
(End of Chapter)
RedX43's Note:
➤ Want More? Get up to +25 Extra Chapters on Patreon!
➤ [email protected]/RedX43
➤ +400 Power Stones = +1 Extra Chapter Drop!
➤ Thanks for reading! 🙌