With the long day over, the three of them didn't hesitate, immediately picking up their chopsticks.
A big meal after a battle is always delicious, and because of what happened today, Evelyn didn't strictly control her portions.
With the 'Evelyn-brand limiter' off, Astra Yao unceremoniously stuffed herself full, rubbing her belly in satisfaction at the table and letting out a long sigh.
"So full... Andrew, the hot pot base you made is so fragrant. I wish my stomach was bigger."
Watching Andrew sweep the rest of the ingredients into his stomach, she said with a hint of envy:
"I'm so jealous... Andrew, with an appetite like yours, can you eat lots and lots of different delicious things at once?"
Before Andrew could reply, Evelyn, who was gently dabbing the corner of her mouth with a napkin, reminded her:
"Young Miss, your daily calorie intake is strictly calculated. Even if your appetite were bigger, the amount you're allowed to eat would be the same."
"Ugh... Evelyn, how can such a pretty mouth say such cold words..."
Astra Yao, who had just been looking at Andrew with envy, puffed out her cheeks and said sulkily.
"There's something even colder. If you keep eating now but still want to have a celebration dinner tomorrow night, then during the day, it's just chicken breast and cucumber for you."
Knowing she was in the wrong, Astra Yao could only puff out her cheeks even more, trying to stage a silent rebellion by turning herself into a little pufferfish.
But for Evelyn, whose duty it was to ensure Astra Yao was in top condition, she had her own principles on this matter.
In the end, her pouting having failed, Astra Yao stood up, grabbed Andrew who had just finished eating, and headed for the music room.
"Hmph! Mean Evelyn! Come on, Andrew, let Evelyn clean up the table by herself!"
Watching her act like a child throwing a tantrum, Evelyn couldn't help but show a doting smile.
She said Evelyn could clean it all herself, but with a dishwasher, 'cleaning up' just meant putting the plates in the machine.
Unable to get a word in on the matter, Andrew could only follow Astra Yao quickly into the instrument room, where he was stunned by how well-equipped it was.
The neatly categorized arrangement of instruments was dazzling, and there was even a dedicated recording studio inside.
Before Andrew could take a closer look, Astra Yao turned to him and said:
"I still remember I promised to help you recreate that piece of music. Shall we start now?"
"Now?"
Astra Yao had been busy all day, and on the way back, she'd even been through a tense and thrilling kidnapping. Andrew hesitated a little and said:
"Why don't you rest and we can do it tomorrow? We have plenty of time later, don't we?"
Hearing this, Astra Yao immediately raised her hand in protest, saying:
"No way, no way! You have no idea, ever since I found out this morning, this has been on my mind all day!"
She held up her right index finger and pleaded:
"Don't worry, if I'm really tired, I'll ask for a break myself. So just one song, one song! Otherwise, I won't be able to sleep tonight!"
Since Astra Yao had put it that way, and seeing that it was still quite early, Andrew agreed.
Although he'd gone through a battle during the day's kidnapping, to be honest, that fight was a warm-up at best for Andrew.
So for Andrew, his energy was still quite abundant.
But speaking of recreating music, there was one song, and only one, that Andrew would think of first and would never forget.
That was "Proof of a Hero."
With orchestral instruments like the French horn as the main body, violin and flute as harmony, all performed over a foundation of drums.
And it goes without saying just how difficult the conditions were to become a hunter worthy of this piece.
It could be said that, as a hunter, hearing this song played just for you, that sense of pride that wells up from within, is something no hunter would ever forget.
Andrew had heard two versions. Although the first time was by association, the second time was a glory that truly belonged to him.
With Andrew's descriptions and humming, the complex and layered symphony was constantly modified and adjusted in Astra Yao's hands.
The two of them worked straight from dinner until midnight before they finally finished.
Hearing this familiar tune once again, Andrew couldn't help but recall his time in the New World and the Forbidden Lands.
That old geezer, the Sapphire Star, he probably wouldn't die even if Andrew himself did. Plus, the New World and the subsequently discovered ice fields had already been fully explored, so there was no need to worry about him.
But Gudao was a different story.
Although he had dealt with the Incandescent Dragon, the biggest threat found so far in the Forbidden Lands, before coming here.
This place still held many mysteries and unknowns. He didn't know if they would encounter monsters of the same caliber in the future.
And when he accepted the commission for the Hellfire Dragon, Andrew seemed to overhear someone in the gathering hall talking about a special individual infected with the Frenzy Virus appearing nearby.
Without him there to tank and draw aggro, for a bow user like her, the danger of the hunt would definitely skyrocket.
But Andrew quickly stopped his wild thoughts.
In any case, before coming to the Forbidden Lands, Gudao was a powerful hunter in her own right. Plus, she was originally a lone wolf. Maybe she was even more at ease without him.
No matter the time, of course you have to trust your partners.
Besides, with Guts and her own Felyne assisting her, there probably wouldn't be any problems.
As the music ended, the raw emotion brought by the notes surged through Astra Yao's heart like a tidal wave.
It took her a while to come back to her senses.
"What a... grand, solemn, and epic piece of music. It's truly impressive."
Under the music's influence, countless magnificent scenes seemed to appear in her mind.
Spectacular and masterfully crafted natural landscapes, countless huge and dangerous beasts roaring, stampeding, and fighting, yet coexisting in a unique ecosystem.
At the same time, there was an unparalleled sense of heroism and pride.
The pride of a hunter.
"Not bad, right?"
Hearing the familiar music again after so long, Andrew nodded with satisfaction, a wave of nostalgia and emotion rising in his heart.
Astra Yao's eyes lit up upon hearing his words, and she said:
"It's more than not bad! This music... is absolutely amazing!!!"
After being excited for a while, Astra Yao finally calmed down completely.
Andrew looked at the finished recording on the computer and said:
"By the way, do you have a record-cutting machine here? I want to see what kind of effect this song has when it resonates with Ether."
Hearing this, Astra Yao tapped her chin with her index finger and nodded slightly, a hint of confusion flashing in her crimson eyes before she had a sudden realization and said:
"Andrew, you want to cut it onto a record and use an Ether Engine to test how strong the conversion efficiency is and what specific effects this melody will have when it resonates?"
Her own curiosity piqued, she immediately pointed to a device not far away in the room and said:
"Yes, yes! I want to try it too! Once it's cut, let's test it together!"
Looking at the equipment, which looked even more professional than the one at the video store next door, Andrew could only sigh in admiration.
As expected of a musician's house, it was fully stocked with everything music-related.
And with Astra Yao's skilled operation, a successfully cut record soon appeared in Andrew's hands.
Then, under Astra Yao's expectant gaze, he placed it into his Ether Engine.
As the rousing sound of the French horn rang out, Andrew's Ether Engine seemed to be stimulated.
Within the core Dragon Gem, a massive amount of Dragon Element energy began to be consumed at a rapid pace, and the buffs from the Ether Engine were no longer just the most basic stamina and endurance recovery.
At least, in Andrew's perception, in addition to the original two recovery boosts, at least three more buffs—Attack Up, Defense Up, and Affinity Up—began to form simultaneously within his body!
He even felt his movements become lighter, and various actions were sped up to a certain degree.
As long as it could be played successfully, the buffs it provided would be absolutely beyond imagination.
But for now, at least, it was impossible to find out.
After all, the Ether Engine, which had started to emit black smoke, was literally telling Andrew—if you keep playing this, it's going to explode.
Sensing something was wrong, Andrew pressed a button. The music stopped instantly, and the record with "Proof of a Hero" was ejected at the same moment.
At the same time, even though it had been carefully modified by Andrew and used a bit of Dragon Bone material.
In just a few short seconds, the Ether Engine had already begun to emit a burnt smell from overheating.
A terrifying energy flowed within it.
The Odogaron bone was already showing signs of being overwhelmed, let alone the parts taken from a generic Ether Engine and assembled onto it.
All the signs pointed to one thing.
An Ether Engine made of ordinary Ether alloy materials couldn't withstand it at all.
If Andrew had been even a little slower, he could be considering how to build a new one right now.
The two of them looked at the Ether Engine, which was still giving off a burnt smell even after a while, and stared at each other for a moment, at a loss for words.
"Is... is the effect really that strong?"
Seeing Astra Yao's surprised look, Andrew, who also hadn't expected it, scratched his head and said:
"I didn't expect it to have such a terrifying effect either, but this is indeed the most sublime music from where I come from."
But the Meowscular Chef's little tune wasn't this terrifying.
Could it be that different songs are related to the things they represent?
But with so little information and so few samples right now, it was impossible to make a judgment. It could only be a guess.
It was just a bit of a pity.
In any case, with the current materials, it seemed they could only look at "Proof of a Hero" with longing.
But just as Andrew thought they couldn't try it, Astra Yao immediately held up her microphone-shaped staff, which looked to be exquisitely custom-made, and said:
"Andrew, want to try it with my Hemiola? It has a very high energy capacity to handle the energy control for the large-scale equipment during concerts!"
Large-scale equipment?
He thought of the equipment he saw during the rehearsal that could manipulate the stage, making dozens of performers all hang in the air with Ether energy.
The person operating it seemed to be Astra Yao, who did it through the resonance of her singing.
If it can drive such large equipment, maybe it really could work?
Already a little unwilling to give up, Andrew naturally agreed with pleasure.
Subsequently, the record was placed into the dedicated slot for playing records on the Hemiola.
The music played, the stirring French horn sounded immediately, and in the next moment, a rich purple glow swirled around the staff.
Although it looked a bit strained, after a few shudders, the Hemiola successfully withstood the resonance of "Proof of a Hero" and the Ether energy.
"It worked!"
Watching the Hemiola gradually stabilize, the two cheered quietly.
But they didn't have long to be happy before something unexpected happened.
When the music reached its first crescendo, the seemingly stable Hemiola began to shake again as the energy surged even more violently, unable to hold on.
The surging energy, resonated by the music, was like a colossal beast that Astra Yao couldn't control at all.
More and more uncontrollable energy was accumulated, and when the fluorescent purple on the staff reached a certain critical point, it burst forth with an extremely bright light.
Following that was the Hemiola's intense sonic blast.
The excessive infusion of Ether energy directly overloaded its component that could release sonic blasts for attacks, unleashing an immense power.
And this entire transformation happened extremely rapidly, in just a few short seconds.
The situation was urgent. With no time to pull Astra Yao away to a safe distance, Andrew chose the most direct method of protection—
With a pull of his arm, Andrew directly shielded her in his embrace, taking the full force of the powerful impact with his back.
The powerful sonic blast couldn't be completely blocked even with the incredibly thick soundproofing cotton covering the room's walls.
And there was no need to even mention the inside of the room.
The neatly arranged papers and sheet music for recording were sent flying into the air.
The only saving grace was that the experiment was conducted in the recording studio.
Although the various instruments outside were affected by the Hemiola's shockwave, with multiple layers of insulation, at least nothing was damaged.
But the thick glass on the door connecting the two rooms wasn't so lucky. Under the shockwave, the thick glass shattered directly.
Shrapnel-like glass fragments flew towards the two, clattering against Andrew's armor.
Fortunately, as this wave of energy was completely vented and the internal Ether energy was depleted, the uncontrolled Hemiola fell directly to the ground.
Drawn by the sound, Evelyn rushed into the room, pushed open the door, and immediately shouted anxiously:
"Young Miss! Andrew! Are you two okay?!"
But pushing open the door, the place where many recording devices had been was now scattered all over the floor, shaken by the shockwave.
And in this chaotic room, the image of Andrew in his armor embracing Astra Yao amidst the ruins was like a princess and her knight, as if they were standing not in a room, but in the center of a stage.
____
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