Silver Wolf recounted yesterday's events to Adrian in detail, blaming her losing streak in games entirely on Blake.
"Poor kid. But… the real victim seems to be Sampo?"
Silver Wolf nodded. "True. In the end, he took the most damage. That domineering Blake, with his overwhelming strength, just grabbed Sampo and used him as a weapon."
"Goodness… not even in games do characters use living people as weapons." Silver Wolf's opinion of Blake hit a new low. If it were her, she'd be scarred for life.
"So, why did that guy come to this planet?!"
That was Silver Wolf's biggest concern. If he hadn't shown up… she wouldn't have kept losing!
"Seems… maybe… possibly… probably… because of me?" Adrian couldn't think of an excuse. Could he say Blake was interested in a mere Great Guardian?
"Oh, because Jarilo-VI has traces of the [Legion]."
"The Antimatter Legion…"
Silver Wolf shuddered. If Adrian was right, with all the Voidrangers she'd drawn to [The Herta] Space Station, hadn't Blake already noticed her?
She shook her head, pushing the post-game analysis aside, and changed the topic.
"All things considered, it's a pretty perfect story, don't you think?" Silver Wolf looked up curiously, trying to gauge Adrian's response.
He probably didn't know… Jarilo-VI's story wasn't over. Before the [Script] glitched, Silver Wolf had read the mission description, which didn't include her at all.
Soon, the Interastral Peace Corporation would arrive on Jarilo-VI. When that happened, Silver Wolf planned to join the fun.
"With [Eternity]'s intervention, all imperfections become perfect," Adrian said, planting a mini stealth domain anchor in the room.
"A [Trailblaze] beacon? You've got one of those?"
"I'm half a traveler myself. Carrying a portable teleport anchor is normal, right?" Adrian stretched, correcting her. "To be precise, it's an [Eternity] beacon."
"No need to explain, I get it. [Eternity]'s knockoff of [Trailblaze]'s marker anchor, right?"
Silver Wolf guessed. After all, wasn't [Eternity] just a copycat of other Paths, with [Abundance]'s longevity and [Mystery]'s cryptic riddles?
Not to mention Adrian, the loyal yet not-so-loyal [Eternity] follower, the most complex of them all.
Silver Wolf had always been curious—how did this guy become an [Eternity] Emanator? Asking Adrian directly would likely get her brushed off, so she turned to Kafka, who'd met him a few times.
Plenty of people were curious about this, giving her a perfect excuse to ask.
But when Kafka heard her question, she just smiled, giving no clear answer!
The reason? She simply wasn't curious about it.
"Ugh~ Teammates not grouping up, can't play like this. Stream's over."
After watching Bronya's speech at the Everwinter Monument, Silver Wolf shut off the virtual projection and left.
Adrian looked at the empty room. Time to regroup with Dan Heng and the others.
With the Void and Stellaron Core issues resolved, Jarilo-VI needed time to recover. They couldn't just fight Cocolia and then celebrate the Warm Sun Festival.
…
Administrative District, Qlipoth Fort
"Sorry, I know the schedule's tight… but I don't want the citizens to wait too long. Allow me to thank you all again for your efforts." Bronya bowed deeply to the group.
"To save this world from disaster, you've given everything. Stelle nearly sacrificed her life… I've no right to ask for more."
"Huh, where's Head Blake?"
"Hm…" Bronya hesitated. "Mr. Blake is… at the Everwinter Monument, handing out gifts to residents, saying they're Church specialties."
Dan Heng's guard went up. He already knew what the gifts were.
Sure enough, Bronya pulled out an oddly shaped soap bar, her face screaming [Confusion].
March 7th took out her own soap. "It matches mine! Both are [∞]-shaped!"
"This soap… does it have some special meaning?" Bronya looked at Adrian, the one most tied to [Eternity].
"Keep it. It's a symbol of the Church's aid. Who knows, this soap might come in handy someday," Adrian explained, recognizing Blake's enthusiasm. He genuinely wanted to help Jarilo-VI—otherwise, he wouldn't have given Bronya a soap that could double as a weapon.
"Thanks to Mr. Blake's eloquent speech, the citizens' spirits are lifted, and everything's progressing smoothly. From now on, as a subsidiary of the Church, [Jarilo-VI] will forever protect the Astral Express crew. I hope you'll come back often."
"Farewell, friends. May the stars forever [Preserve] your journey."
After a brief goodbye with Bronya, as they left Qlipoth Fort, March 7th led the trio to the Everwinter Monument, but Blake was nowhere to be seen.
"Are the souvenirs gone already? Such a pity… But, Stelle, congrats! Your first [Trailblaze] journey is a smooth success!"
Pop!
March 7th pulled out a confetti cannon from somewhere, celebrating.
Watching the confetti rain down, Dan Heng's lips twitched. "Clean it up." He looked at Stelle. "This [Trailblaze] journey is worth celebrating."
"Alright then! Rate this journey from one to five!"
"Every [Trailblaze] journey is a perfect five for me!" March 7th was generous as always.
Dan Heng was different, giving a middling score. "Two point five."
"What? Not even a passing grade? Teacher Dan Heng's standards are that high?"
"My criteria differ from yours." He crossed his arms. All three turned to Adrian, awaiting his answer.
"Eight."
"Huh? Eight out of five?!"
Adrian nodded. "Miss March, you still don't grasp the meaning. A sideways eight is my true score."
"I get it! Teacher Adrian means Jarilo-VI has infinite potential, with a bright future." Stelle, twice glanced at by the [Eternity] Aeon, earned Adrian's approval.
"So, we've got plenty of time… Stelle, wanna hang out a bit longer?" March 7th invited her, knowing Dan Heng and Adrian were eager to return to the Astral Express.
"Belobog's rarely this lively. Strolling with a beautiful girl is the Galaxy Ranger's purpose! Let's go!"
Watching March 7th and Stelle walk off, Dan Heng and Adrian locked eyes.
"Back to the Express?"
Dan Heng nodded silently, sending a quick message to Himeko and Welt.
Adrian grabbed Dan Heng's wrist, struck by an idea.
"This time… how about we use a more traditional method?"
6.1s