[On the Astral Express]
Mr. Yang was sitting on the sofa, flipping through the materials Dan Heng had compiled about Jarilo-VI as recorded aboard the train.
Suddenly, his phone vibrated.
Mr. Yang raised a hand and lightly nudged his glasses, took out his phone, and checked what was going on.
The message came from the group chat "Astral Express Family." It was sent by Nero, apparently photos he and March had taken on Jarilo-VI.
Mr. Yang started scrolling through them.
At first, there were photos of the place where they landed, a snowfield. The wind and snow were fierce, and the road was hard to make out.
Next was a photo of mountain peaks on both sides of the snowfield, along with pitch-black cliffs.
Then there were photos of roaming Fragmentum creatures, as well as the calyx they'd seen before.
And then…
"Hm?"
Mr. Yang frowned slightly and took a closer look… Nero seemed to have grabbed hold of a Hanu creation… Hopefully nothing dangerous would happen.
Mr. Yang continued scrolling. The next photos showed a snow mound, and a blue-haired man.
Nero said below that this was a Belobog wildman.
Then there were photos of the Silvermane Guards and Gepard. This one was taken outside Qlipoth Fort.
March added some notes below, explaining the duties of the Silvermane Guards in Belobog, then went on to introduce Belobog itself and the current state of Jarilo-VI.
After that came a few additional photos of Belobog, including distant shots taken on the snowfield and close-ups after entering the city.
Then there were photos of the Eternal Freeze Memorial in the plaza, as well as the interior and exterior surroundings of Qlipoth Fort.
Mr. Yang looked through these photos with great interest, his mood bright and cheerful.
'What a group of lovely kids!'
Until he saw the very last photo…
"Hm?"
Mr. Yang's expression froze at that moment. He furrowed his brows, his expression complicated.
Then Mr. Yang leaned forward, holding his glasses, and looked more carefully.
"Tsk…"
Mr. Yang took off his glasses, wiped them carefully, then looked again at the photo on his phone.
That photo was taken inside Qlipoth Fort. Right in the center stood a blonde woman wearing a white military uniform and a green cape.
White light streamed in through the window, making the photo look slightly blurry. Amid the hazy glow and drifting dust, there was a beauty that strongly resembled the return of an old acquaintance.
It was a very familiar face.
Then, beneath it, there was a line from Nero.
"This is Belobog's Supreme Guardian, Lady Cocolia Rand."
Finally, Mr. Yang straightened up, then let out a long sigh.
He silently turned off the phone screen, put the phone away, and shifted his attention back to the pile of materials from before.
Actually, it wasn't that he absolutely had to go out and have fun.
Having the kids take photos for him was already quite nice.
'Yes.'
'Quite nice…'
———
In Belobog, March and Nero stood together, both holding their phones.
"Haha! Himeko says the photos turned out great!" March was very happy.
"Huh? But why isn't Mr. Yang saying anything?"
"Then why don't we ask him?"
As Nero spoke, he quickly sent messages in the group chat.
[Mr. Yang, why aren't you saying anything?]
[Mr. Yang, say something!]
[Mr. Yang?]
[Say a word! Are the photos not good?]
[@Welt Yang, are you there?]
However, after sending so many messages, the two of them still didn't get a reply from Mr. Yang.
———
Meanwhile, Dan Heng and Stelle were talking with Gepard outside Qlipoth Fort.
No one knew exactly where Gepard had sent Sampo off to, but it didn't matter. Anyway, Sampo would definitely manage to get out and find Nero to collect his share of the money.
During the earlier exchanges before entering Qlipoth Fort, they had already discussed the arrangements.
Sampo's "OK" hand gesture meant he agreed to produce the coins, while an open hand with five fingers meant that for the coins he produced himself, he'd also take a cut, fifty-fifty.
The meaning behind this kind of exchange between Nero and Sampo wasn't known to anyone else.
At this moment, Gepard said, "The Supreme Guardian seems to favor you greatly. I've received orders that there's no longer any need to restrict your movements."
Stelle nodded. "She's actually pretty nice, reasonable and understanding."
"To be honest, I didn't expect things to go this smoothly!"
March and Nero, who still hadn't seen any reply from Mr. Yang, walked back over just in time to hear the conversation between Gepard and Stelle. March naturally joined in.
"Indeed." Nero nodded. "I said I wanted to take photos, and she let me."
He was in a very good mood right now.
"Haha." Gepard chuckled softly.
"I still have official duties to attend to and will be returning to my post shortly. I hope you enjoy your time in Belobog."
"Wait a moment!" March called out to stop Gepard.
"Do you have any recommended places for us? It's still early, we want to walk around some more."
Nero nodded as well. "Take more photos to show our friends."
Hearing such a request, certain fully developed artistic bacteria inside Gepard began to stir.
He crossed his arms, closed his eyes, and put on the calm, composed expression of a professional insider.
"If we're talking about places worth seeing, the Golden Theater and the History Museum come to mind. However, the museum requires proper identification to enter…
"I suggest you first visit the Eternal Freeze Memorial. It's Belobog's most symbolic landmark."
Listening to Gepard, Nero blinked and said, "That memorial? I already took photos of it before going to see Lady Cocolia. Do you know what those crystals on it are?"
"A product formed by mixing Eternal Freeze stone with geomarrow," Gepard replied.
"Then can I chip off a piece?" Nero asked again.
"Of course." Gepard said with a smile.
"You chip off one piece, and I can lock you up for a year. Chip off two pieces, and it's two years…"
"Th-then let's forget it." Nero took a step back.
Then Gepard continued, "If you're interested in music, you can go to the Ever-Motion Machine House. There are occasionally open-air performances there.
"As for the performers… well, you'll see for yourselves.
"Also, if you plan to stay at the Goethe Hotel, be sure to avoid the alley next to it where the Guards are stationed.
"That area has recently been affected by Fragmentum corrosion and has already been sealed off."
Hearing this, Dan Heng frowned, "The corruption has already reached close to the interior of the city… The situation is very severe."
"Yes, we are fighting against it…" Gepard nodded, acknowledging Dan Heng's assessment.
"I'll take my leave now. I wish you all the best."
With that, Gepard bade everyone farewell and departed.
After Gepard left, Stelle and March found a higher spot to stand on and began observing the nearby buildings and area layout, while also looking for the locations Gepard had mentioned.
Dan Heng and Nero remained where they were.
Dan Heng's brows were tightly knit. He felt Nero tugging at the corner of his clothes and turned to look.
Nero looked at Dan Heng and said quietly, "Teacher Dan Heng, something's really not right."
Hearing Nero's words, Dan Heng's brows relaxed slightly. He glanced at Stelle and March not far away, then said to Nero, "You noticed it too?"
"Yeah." Nero nodded.
"On the surface, whether it's their attitude or the arrangements, everything seems fine at first glance. But when you combine Belobog's current situation with some details, there are actually quite a lot of problems."
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