"So, the path through the underground reservoir is indeed in the Old District... but..."
Inside Meryl's mansion, Himeko looked as if she wanted to say more but was hesitating.
"Let me see~ Usually, at a time like this, they definitely wouldn't let us unlock the final boss so quickly. So, do we have to go to another map to get some necessary item, or maybe we can only reach that Legendary Tower by entering from a specific place?"
March sat beside Stelle, arms crossed, and pushed up a pair of glasses she had acquired from somewhere, looking as if she had seen through the entire plot.
"Uh... well, you guessed correctly."
Himeko gave a slightly helpless laugh.
"Hmph hmph hmph~ See! So when are we going to be able to just clear the main story directly! Every time, we have to go through a bunch of twists and turns..." March grumbled, exasperated.
Clang!
Stelle's lance of fire appeared in her hand, and she stared at Himeko with a burning gaze.
"Uh... if we just charge straight in, it'll be very dangerous. Besides, the Corporation didn't get us insurance, so we won't get any money for work-related injuries."
Himeko said resignedly. After all, the Astral Express was hired by the IPC. Why would those guys spend extra money to look out for them?
"Mmm..."
Seeing that Himeko wouldn't agree, Stelle turned her head to Wende, giving him a pitiful look, her golden eyes filled with pleading...
"Himeko's right. And although I'm a doctor... I'm not a perpetual motion machine! There are so many people, I can't possibly heal everyone at every single moment, can I?"
Wende spread his hands and shrugged.
"You can't?"
An ice-forged longsword appeared in Jingliu's hand out of nowhere. She caressed the cold blade as she spoke, her crimson eyes staring straight into Wende's own purple, helpless ones.
"I can't!"
Wende shook his head decisively. What was she getting involved for! If she were to join the fight... hiss, could he even keep her in check? He'd never actually tried that before.
"Fine, since you said so."
Jingliu casually dispelled the ice sword, looking completely unconcerned.
"Whew... So, our next destination is the Scrapyard, which is adjacent to the Old District. It's the largest garbage dump on all of Punklorde, and inside..."
"Wait!"
Before Himeko could finish, she was interrupted by an excited voice.
Stelle's eyes were shining with a dazzling light as she stared intently at Himeko, making Himeko feel a bit awkward as she rubbed the goosebumps on her arms...
"Sister Himeko! Are you saying there's a lot of garbage there?"
"That's right."
"Great! I agree to go to the Scrapyard!"
Stelle raised her hand enthusiastically, her voice full of glee.
"Hiss... Did you learn a traditional Xianzhou art form or something?"
March looked at Stelle, whose demeanor had done a complete one-eighty, and asked with a very serious look in her pinkish-blue eyes.
"What?"
Stelle looked at March, confused.
"Face-changing, of course!"
"Hahahahaha!" xN
For a moment, Meryl's living room was filled with joyous laughter. Even Meryl herself, who was watching from the side, had a genuine smile on her face as she typed out "Hahahaha" on her tablet.
"Sigh... I suddenly understand why Welt was so supportive of me coming down to lead the team," Himeko said, her smile tinged with resignation.
---o---
"Achoo!"
Far away on the Astral Express, orbiting high above, Welt frowned and sneezed.
"Strange... could it be that she's thinking of me?"
Welt rubbed his nose, puzzled. Although he didn't put much stock in such superstitions from the old world, it seemed the only things that could make him sneeze were a shedding Pom-Pom or this very possibility.
Thinking of Pom-Pom, whose fur was currently glossy and smooth thanks to the hair care products he'd fleeced from the Corporation, Welt shook his head helplessly. His expression then turned serious as he looked at the data on the screen before him.
Logically speaking, a week after a Stellaron eruption, its ability to shield the area from the outside world shouldn't be this strong. But right now... interstellar communications were still being blocked. The only connection they could establish was with Punklorde's local network. And even though Punklorde's star rail was still severed... this shouldn't be happening...
Stroking his chin thoughtfully, Welt immersed himself once more in the databank search. The Stellaron on Punklorde... was far too abnormal.
---o---
That evening, Himeko and Meryl were deep in pleasant conversation. Jingliu had also joined in, and they seemed to be chatting about topics like cooking.
Wende stood blankly before Stelle, who had pulled out a massage table from god-knows-where. Looking at her pitiful expression, even though he knew it was an act, he ultimately agreed to her request.
"Hmph! You just spoil her!"
This critique came from the tsundere Little March, who then promptly squeezed Stelle out of the way to take the first spot in line.
"March, you know, tsundere has already retired from the meta."
Stelle sighed helplessly as she watched March's face turn bright red under Wende's hands.
"Is this that Xianzhou-style massage?"
Veyl stood beside Wende, watching the blissed-out March with a reminiscent look on her face.
"It is. Does Miss Veyl know about it too?"
Seeing an opportunity, Stelle immediately sidled up to Veyl to continue the conversation.
"Yes, I do... I once had a teammate who was from the Xianzhou. It's just a pity..."
Veyl's gaze lowered slightly, as if she had recalled some sad memory from the past.
"She was lost in a crusade against an Abomination of Abundance."
Shaking her head, Veyl's tone was filled with regret.
"Miss Veyl... why don't... you try Wende's massage too?"
Seeing Veyl's spirits were low, the professional pit-digger, Stelle, decisively made the suggestion.
"?"
Wende glanced at Stelle, bewildered. Was it really okay for her to say that right in front of him?
Unconsciously, his hands applied a little too much force.
"Ngh... Ahhh~!"
March's moan instantly echoed throughout the entire villa.
"Uh... is this appropriate?"
Looking at March, who was so blissful that drool was about to leak from the corner of her mouth, Veyl suddenly felt that she wasn't so curious anymore.
"Don't worry! You can trust Wende's skills!"
Stelle puffed out her chest and declared with absolute confidence.
"In that case... Mr. Wende, would you mind..."
"Yes, don't worry, it's no trouble."
Wende nodded helplessly. As expected, no matter where he went, this was a fate he could not escape...