"The headcount's gone up again."
"Ignore them. They're harmless."
The female Rover murmured it under her breath, gaze flicking toward the presences lurking in the bushes, behind the garden rocks, tucked into patches of shadow not far behind them. Her companion patted her shoulder with a wry look that said let it go for now.
"Aren't they hungry? They've been following us all day. If they don't mean us any harm, they might as well sit down and eat with us."
"Who knows. All I know is I'm starving enough to eat a Tacet Discord raw. Crownless probably tastes decent, honestly."
"Don't you worry, it'll be ready any second~!"
On the honor of Panhua's Restaurant, no customer would go hungry.
The owner's bright, no-nonsense voice rang out from the kitchen. The food hadn't even left the wok yet, but the aroma alone was enough to make both Rovers' mouths water. And their "right hands" were hungry too.
Soon after, Yangyang, Chixia, and Baizhi found them as well.
"Ahh, choosing Auntie Panhua's place for your first meal in Jinzhou? You two have impeccable taste."
"Mm, Auntie Panhua makes the best Jinzhou food. Oh, Baizhi, I didn't expect to see you here." Yangyang turned to her, surprised.
Normally, once Baizhi sank her teeth into an interesting data sample, she'd lock herself in the research institute for three days straight.
"Hehe~ She didn't want to come at first, but I told her the Rovers would be here. She fell right in line after that."
The three of them were clearly regulars. Chixia pulled both Rovers to a table with a view and settled everyone in. Baizhi toyed idly with a strand of her hair and said, without a shred of embarrassment:
"Yes. Because those two are very attractive to me."
"...Wow. Did I hear that right?"
Chixia rocked back in her chair. The Huaxu Academy's famously glacial genius, the ice-queen researcher who wore the same flat expression for everyone. (Though in truth, that was less an attitude and more a permanent condition.)
And she'd said that?
"I-is this the suspension bridge effect? She got rescued by them, so now Baizhi has feelings for..."
"Stop. I'm interested in their bodies... that sounds misleading too, but you know what I mean."
Arms folded, expression unchanged. A perfect demonstration of the principle: if I'm not embarrassed, the only one embarrassed is you.
The other four nodded. Still, hearing words like those from someone with Baizhi's particular brand of cool detachment could make anyone's heart skip. Chixia cleared her throat and steered the conversation elsewhere.
"Ahem! So, while I was on patrol earlier, I found a lead that might be connected to you two. Yangyang, Baizhi, you know the memorial on Yihu Hill, right?"
"Of course. The stone monument on the far southern edge of the city, built to honor the fallen soldiers. What about it?"
Yangyang tilted her head. She visited every month to lay flowers. She hadn't lost anyone close, but that was precisely why she brought them for everyone whose name was carved into the stone.
"I found this on one of the tablets!"
Chixia pulled out her Pangu Terminal and held up a photograph for the group.
It showed one monument that stood out among the rest, visibly the oldest, weathered by centuries. The inscription had been worn almost to nothing by time, but fragments were still legible:
Black moon veiled the sun, and the army was on the verge of collapse... Though they possessed the will to charge, death was all but certain... Amidst the shifting clouds and fading light, a golden-eyed stranger appeared... The general's blade fell like a bolt of lightning... The jade dragon lay across the horizon, and though the soldiers longed for home... they did not dishonor their charge. At this gateway to the world, Jinzhou was founded... This monument stands as record.
"Is this... the story of Jinzhou's founding?"
"Golden eyes. It's only one clue, but..."
Yangyang, Baizhi, and Chixia lifted their gazes in unison, all three pairs of eyes landing on the gold irises that gleamed like cat's-eye gems in both Rovers' faces.
A match. Hard to call it coincidence.
Something clicked for Yangyang and Baizhi at the same moment. Back at the research institute, and somewhere in her own home, there were records and histories with physical descriptions that matched both Rovers. The specifics were fuzzy, but both resolved on the spot to dig through their archives the moment they got back.
Before the thought could settle, a cheerful "Order up~!" cut through the air. A woman in a white apron, red-haired and red-clad with the same fiery energy as Chixia, swept toward the table carrying a parade of steaming dishes.
"Jinzhou skewers, chilled herb salad, red-oil pulled chicken, Jinzhou mini soup dumplings, Dragon Beard Candy, Jinzhou stew, star pastries, that's the lot~! You're young, eat up! Holler if you need more."
"That's... a lot of food."
"There are five of us. Can we even finish all this?"
The table groaned under the weight of Jinzhou's finest, every dish a feast for the eyes and nose. But Yangyang and the others weren't remotely confident they could clear it all, and waste was unacceptable in Jinzhou. As a frontier garrison city, supplies were plentiful enough outside of major conflicts, but letting food go to waste was a sure way to earn the contempt of everyone around you.
The female Rover shot a questioning look at her companion.
He'd been the one to order.
"Relax. We'll finish it. Might not even be enough, actually. We've got a champion eater who hasn't made an entrance yet."
"Champion eater?" came the chorus from all four.
"Abby. Rise and shine, it's dinnertime~"
He called out to his right hand, the one bearing his Tacet Mark, and held the back of it close to the fragrant spread. The mark flickered twice, and a figure burst out.
"Smells good! Something smells amazing!!"
A small, white, furry creature hovered in the air, one eye orange and the other blue, a streak of orange tracing a Tacet Mark across its forehead. Two ear-like appendages spread wide, almost like wings, each adorned with a golden ornament.
"Wh-what is that?!"
"An Echo? But it's so strange."
"It came out of his Tacet Mark!"
"...I think I've heard that voice before."
Unlike the stunned trio, the female Rover wore a thoughtful expression.
She remembered. When they'd absorbed the Crownless Echo, the voice she'd heard was identical to this little creature's.
So it had been the one helping them absorb the Crownless.
"Hi there! Um, can we eat first? I'm really, really hungry. Can we talk about stuff after? Please?"
The adorable white creature, presumably an Echo, floated in midair wiping its mouth with tiny paws. It surveyed the Jinzhou feast laid across the table and declared itself combat-ready for total annihilation.
"Fair point. It'll get cold if we wait."
"Right. Food first, questions later!"
Five people and one Echo launched a coordinated assault on the table. The feast vanished at record speed, and Abby's appetite turned out to be so far beyond expectations that he had to order a second round before the little glutton was satisfied.
The female Rover silently thanked the Jinzhou City Hall expense account.
"So. What exactly is this little one?"
Baizhi studied Abby with naked curiosity, noting a resemblance to her own You'tan, but something distinctly different. More unusual. She'd never encountered an Echo that could speak. (The Crownless had been a Tacet Discord, not an Echo.)
And this one could out-eat all of them combined.
Her hopes deflated, though, when Abby pondered her question with visible effort for a long moment... then cheerfully admitted to remembering absolutely nothing. Same amnesia as the female Rover. No answers to give.
"Who am I? Where am I? What am I supposed to do? Oh, I think my name's Abraxas, but the rest is..."
"He probably knows something." The female Rover glanced at her companion. "It came out of our Tacet Marks, and you already had a name for it."
"Afraid not. I don't know much about Abby either. The name was just something easy to call it since its memories are gone. But one thing I can say for certain: Abby is our companion."
He reached out and rubbed the top of Abby's head.
The little creature had been fidgeting with anxiety over its blank memory, but those words melted the tension from its face. It nuzzled into his palm, pressing its forehead against his hand.
The female Rover nodded. She trusted him completely, and her own instincts agreed.
This thing wasn't an enemy. If anything, the two of them owed it. Without Abby's help, they'd never have been able to absorb the Crownless Echo and gain that power.
"Hehe~ I don't remember anything, but you guys feel so familiar! And I like the name Abby. So it's decided! Just like he said, from now on, Abby is officially your companion! Next time some scary monster shows up, just watch me swallow it whole! Rawr~!"
Abby zipped over to float between the two Rovers, raised its clawless little paws, and opened its mouth in a miniature roar. Not remotely intimidating. The kind of thing that could only make you smile.
Both Rovers' lips curved upward.
Two hands rose in unison to pat Abby's head.
Somewhere nearby, a certain blue butterfly watched the scene with envy.