After a long and tiring day, Master Wende returned to the Express, utterly exhausted. The moment he collapsed onto his bed, he sensed a scorching presence draw near.
"Hm? Miss Tingyun, how did you…"
Feeling this intense heat, Wende initially thought Tingyun had snuck in again. He had just sat up to reason with her when he saw Jingliu's feverish gaze locked onto him. Her cheeks were flushed crimson, and her usually ice-cold body was now abnormally hot.
"Bad woman, what are you…"
"!!!"
Seeing Jingliu lunge straight at him, Wende quickly twisted his body to dodge.
"Hehehe…"
Jingliu let out an eerie laugh. Wende suddenly felt his feet stop dead; two pillars of solid ice had frozen them firmly to the floor!
As Wende stared in horror, Jingliu pounced.
---o---
"So Himeko's coffee has this kind of effect too? I can't believe it…"
The next morning, Wende sipped a freshly brewed cup of hot tea, his voice filled with resignation.
Thankfully, he had reacted in time, forcefully using his Yin-Yang energy and a lightning needle to push Jingliu back. Otherwise, he would have been tormented by his conscience!
After last night's encounter, Wende was more certain of one thing than ever: Himeko's coffee had begun to evolve, developing different adaptations based on a person's constitution. That stuff had become sentient! He absolutely had to post a notice on the Express, warning everyone not to touch Himeko's coffee!
"Good morning, Wende. You look a bit worn out. Were you overworked at Aurum Alley yesterday? Want me to ask Stelle for a day off for you?"
Himeko, still a little grumpy from having just woken up, saw Wende sitting on the sofa sighing to himself. Her eyes widened slightly as she gently sat on the opposite sofa, her face full of concern.
Looking at the culprit behind his suffering, Wende's face was a mask of despair. A thousand words were stuck in his throat like a fishbone, but in the end, they all dissolved into a single, long sigh.
"Sigh~~~"
Himeko: "???"
"Himeko! Good morning!"
A very energetic March 7th greeted Himeko. The wrap-up work on the Xianzhou didn't require the Express's help at all, so Little March had nothing else to do. You could say she was the idlest person on the train.
"Mm, morning, March."
"Morning."
"Morning, Wende!"
Seeing March's bright and cheerful demeanor, Wende suddenly felt the melancholy in his heart lift considerably.
"By the way, Stelle seems so busy lately. She has to manage Aurum Alley on the Luofu and help Madam Herta with tests at the space station… she has no time to hang out with us anymore!"
March pouted, looking indignant. Why did everyone else have things to do? Didn't that make her seem superfluous?!
"Hey, March, how about you come help me at the massage parlor?"
Seeing March practically scratching the walls out of boredom, an idea struck Wende. He smiled at her and proposed his idea.
"Huh… but I don't know how to do anything… Will I really not just get in your way?"
March clasped her hands behind her back, tracing circles on the floor with her left foot.
"Of course not, I can teach you. Didn't I teach Stelle how to cook? I can definitely teach you how to massage."
Wende smiled at the hesitant March. Given her talents, she should be able to learn something like massage just by watching, right?
"Is… is that so! Then I'll give it a try!"
Seeing Wende's earnest expression, March was convinced. Besides, Stelle had no free time now, and it would be a few days before the Express set off again. She might as well learn a new skill from Wende in the meantime! In the future, if Wende wasn't around…
Huh?
Wende… he wouldn't just… disappear, would he?
March suddenly froze for a moment, her eyes becoming distant.
"March? March? What's wrong? You suddenly zoned out."
Wende gently tapped March on the shoulder, his voice tinged with concern.
"It's nothing… I just thought of something."
Shaking her little head, March dislodged those impossible thoughts. Something like that, how could it possibly happen!
"Let's go, let's go! I haven't even been to Aurum Alley yet!"
"Hey! Don't be in such a hurry, I haven't packed my things."
"Oh right, I think I heard some strange noises coming from your room yesterday…"
"You heard wrong!"
Watching the two leave while bickering, a hint of reminiscence flashed in Himeko's eyes. She smiled and shook her head, took a sip of her coffee, and then gazed out the window.
Once upon a time… she too was such a carefree young girl… Ha, but isn't she still the same now?
---o---
"Hello everyone, I'm Sister Guoguo! Today I'm bringing you a video explaining the brand new Simulated Universe, Swarm Disaster, in Star Rail Version 1.3!
You might be asking, (in a cutesy voice) 'Sister Guoguo, Sister Guoguo! When did you start making gameplay guides?' I want to state upfront that this is not a strategy guide for Swarm Disaster, but a lore explanation video! I hope everyone can make that distinction!
Alright! Let's get to today's topic… (a large chunk is omitted here)
…Once we sort out the plot of Swarm Disaster, we discover something. The Path of Order, which was devoured by Harmony, and the Path of Equilibrium, which assisted but had little presence, seem to have some kind of mysterious relationship. And speaking of Equilibrium, I wonder if a certain someone's figure pops into your heads?"
"That's right! I strongly suspect that Wende is very likely a follower of the Path of Equilibrium!"
The arrival of Swarm Disaster gave players in the real world a crash course on the terrifying insectoid calamity that once swept the universe, and it also lifted a tiny corner of the veil on the third most mysterious character to date.
As for why third… first was, of course, our Trailblazer! Second was Little March. Although this version was supposed to release March's companion quest, for some reason it hadn't appeared yet… Was it being held back for the second half of 1.3?
Up to this point, 5-star Wende's background was still a giant question mark. Star Rail still had many plot holes waiting to be filled in by future story updates!
In any case, anything was fine, as long as they didn't unearth a truckload of angst!
---o---
"How is it? Have you learned it?"
After demonstrating the hand movements for March, Wende looked up at her as she practiced the motions in the air.
"Mhm! I've completely got it!"
March tilted her head up, looking extremely confident. Then, she competently began to get handsy with Stelle, who had been forcibly dragged over to be a test subject.
"Wait! March! Something's wrong! Ah! That hurts!"
For a moment, Stelle's wails echoed throughout Aurum Alley. No one knew where March got so much strength from…