"Ah?" Stelle looked at Nero and let out a short syllable, but it was already enough to express her surprise and confusion.
"N-Nero! You… you, how did you…"
March covered her mouth in shock, then hurriedly shouted, "Y-you-you, put that thing down right now! It's too dangerous!"
Dan Heng, after a brief moment of stunned silence, stepped forward and instantly appeared in front of Nero, ready to take the thing Nero was holding.
However, Nero jumped back, the wind lifting his body as he dodged Dan Heng's hand.
When Nero turned around, they saw him holding a red, bird-like elemental crystal in his arms.
A Flamespawn.
Just like the Frostspawn, it was also a creature from the Rift and a basic elemental crystal. The difference was simply that their attributes were opposite.
Frostspawns emitted cold into their surroundings, while Flamespawns radiated heat.
The power of wind wrapped around the Flamespawn, binding and controlling this elemental crystal that had only simple intelligence. It couldn't struggle, so all it could do was sit quietly, behaving like a warm little baby.
Nero reached out and waved at the three who were worrying about him. "Relax, it's totally safe! Look!"
While speaking, Nero lifted the controlled Flamespawn to show it to Dan Heng.
"It's already under my control, so there's absolutely no problem!"
Dan Heng looked at the boy's face, gradually showing a satisfied expression from the warmth provided by the Flamespawn, and narrowed his eyes slightly, then shifted his gaze to the construct in Nero's arms.
He carefully observed the Flamespawn's state and the wind binding it. The wind-formed restraints were complete and secure, fully containing the construct.
Dan Heng looked back at Nero. On that sun-bright face, a flash of admiration appeared in his eyes and vanished almost instantly.
That wind controlling the Flamespawn, the arrangement of power and structure, was extremely clever. Even he would be surprised by such control.
But… confirming that the controlled Flamespawn posed no problem was enough for now.
Dan Heng nodded gently, then said to March and Stelle behind him, "It's fine. It's safe."
Hearing even Dan Heng say so, March and Stelle bounced over.
Stelle leaned forward, her golden eyes staring curiously at the Flamespawn.
March, however, frowned and began scolding Nero, "How can you just casually pick up a Rift creature like that? It's so dangerous!"
But once she felt the warmth coming from the Flamespawn, her mood flipped instantly, "But wow, this thing is really great! In this kind of environment, it makes the whole body feel so much warmer! Good job, little Nero!"
The airheaded girl showed a face-changing speed that made jaws drop.
Nero didn't mind. He just smiled and said, "Right? It's super warm!"
Stelle then curiously stretched out her hand and poked the Flamespawn.
The Flamespawn, bound by Nero, couldn't react at all.
"Wow… amazing… it's completely turned into a warm baby!"
"Hehe… from now on, it's our Trailblazer Squad's portable heater! We can use it wherever we go, and it doesn't even consume resources!"
Nero was genuinely delighted. March and Stelle were also happy about it. Even the always-quiet Dan Heng was smiling now.
The four once again set out cheerfully.
This time, they no longer had to endure the freezing snow.
Only the lonely Flamespawn couldn't resist, and not a single person spoke up for it…
———
[Reality]
[Siberian Duck's Livestream Room]
The game screen shifted, showing a snowy field. Grandpa and his group had already arrived on Jarilo-VI.
The start was filled with the funny "repeating option" dialogue and Nero being afraid of the cold.
"Haha, the repeating option made March so helpless!" Siberian Duck giggled. "Hey! Guys look in the back corner, Nero seems super cold! Even after switching to Dan Heng's clothes he's still shivering!"
As he spoke, Siberian Duck moved his mouse over to Nero in the corner of the screen.
[I Use Pantene: Feels like the tech has improved since the closed beta. You can see Nero's face turning red from the cold.]
[I am Little Bug: Nero is really scared of the cold.]
[Wind-Boy Solo-Stan: Haha, hurry up and go, you can't stay in a place like that for long… Stop chatting, Nero is gonna freeze to death!]
[Nero's Shoes: Nero don't shiver, come into my arms, it's warm!]
[Youth Wasted If Not Perverted: Nero's hands and feet must be ice-cold. But I'm warm… warmer inside than outside… put me in your mouth!]
[Aha's Messenger: Truly living up to your name, bro!]
"So March broke the snowmobile, huh? Aren't you guys going to spare a glance at Nero?"
Seeing March get shut down by Dan Heng, Siberian Duck let out another hearty laugh.
"What, you only notice Nero when you're desperate to change the subject?"
[Eat Thirty Oily Pancakes In One Meal: Hey, March, what are you doing!? Your hands are freezing, don't stick them on someone's face!]
[Horizon: LOL she froze Nero so much he almost jumped.]
[Dan Heart Eternal: Hahahaha! Even then Nero stayed dead serious.]
Next came March 7 listing the strengths of every member of the squad.
"Pfft! Why did everything fall apart when it got to Teacher Dan Heng!?"
This chain of jokes hit Siberian Duck right in his weak spot, he had a very low laugh threshold and an extremely loud laugh.
All you could hear in the stream was, "HAHAHAHA!!!"
[Dan Heart Eternal: Dan Heng: March, is that really what you think of me?]
[Girl In The Ice: March, be honest with me… you're totally taking secret revenge on Teacher Dan Heng, aren't you?]
[Flame Blade In Snow: All I'll say is, judging from March's pure college-student-level innocent expression, she genuinely couldn't think of anything.]
[Milk Flavor Barbecue: How rude of you.]
[Happy HOOHO: Look, Nero is so cold he started stamping his feet! Ahhh this is killing me!]
With March's shout, the Trailblazer Squad officially set out, walking across the snowfield.
Siberian Duck followed the quest marker. Not far ahead, he encountered a Frostspawn with a gold exclamation mark above its head. The plot triggered and the game entered an animation.
The group began discussing the Frostspawn. And of course, when a problem appeared, they turned to the all-knowing Teacher Dan Heng.
Teacher Dan Heng didn't disappoint, he gave his information on the Frostspawn.
Then the discussion moved to whether or not to take a detour. And during all this, Nero's character had already left the edge of the screen.
Neither Siberian Duck nor the viewers noticed this detail… until Nero's reluctant voice came from off-screen:
"Huh? We still have to detour? How long do we have to stay in this icy tundra!?"
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