There are differences between people.
At this moment, the two people under everyone's gaze showed completely different reactions.
Silver Branch's face was filled with natural calm and devotion. He stepped forward, his posture elegant.
By contrast, Nero in the crowd kept his head lowered tightly, his face red to the tips of his ears, his eyes slightly unfocused. The overwhelming sense of shame made him tremble a little… This kind of scene was really a bit too much for him to handle.
A Pure Beauty Knight truly lived up to the name, remaining perfectly composed even in a situation like this.
Listening to Silver Branch's footsteps drawing closer, Nero pressed his lips together, his toes curling so hard into the ground that he felt like he could start a business selling rift creature products without even needing any monsters...
Silver Branch stopped in front of Nero. This radiant man raised his right hand to his heart and bowed toward Nero in greeting, then spoke, "Forgive me, my friend. Though this is indeed an impertinent act, I must still offer the highest praise for your beauty. Please forgive me."
"Perhaps you do not yet fully understand, but please believe that your beauty is like tens of thousands of blazing stars, bringing light and warmth to the cold, lonely universe, to this world."
"No form of concealment can hide your brilliance. Your existence is like the sun, always able to dispel darkness and gloom."
"Ah, forgive me. I've gone on at length without restraint. Please allow me to introduce myself."
"I am from the Pure Beauty Knights, Knight-Errant Silver Branch, here to pay you my respects."
Hearing Silver Branch's voice, Nero blinked, then raised his head and looked up at the man.
There was still a bit of panic in the boy's eyes. When had he ever seen a scene like this?
It wasn't a joke that some people cry from excessive nervousness and shyness, at the very least, Nero had seen such a person during a school speech assembly.
Thankfully, he wasn't one of them. Otherwise, this would feel even more humiliating.
The crowd's reverent stares made Nero want nothing more than to bolt on the spot and hide back in his little room on the train.
But without a doubt, Silver Branch appearing on Jarilo at this time was extremely abnormal. This was probably the "special event" the system had mentioned.
On the other hand, he still hadn't gotten the sword the system promised him yet… so Nero forcibly suppressed his urge to run away.
He had clearly thought the system was pretty reliable before… but now he had the strange feeling of being stabbed in the back.
'Wouldn't it have been fine to just give me the sword directly?!'
'Why go through all this?!'
'Damn it all to hell!'
'This is all Aha's fault!'
After mentally tearing into the unscrupulous system and a certain fun-loving god who was clearly enjoying the show, Nero still politely reached out his hand to Silver Branch.
"Hello… I, I'm Nero..."
"I know."
Silver Branch nodded lightly. There was a gentle smile on his face, his gaze soft. He lightly supported Nero's hand, then gently let it go.
Immediately after, this confident and charming Pure Beauty Knight led Nero toward the Everwinter Monument.
"I heard of Jarilo's beautiful scenery from the distant reaches of the universe, and while passing through the Herta Space Station, I also heard your story."
"Though Jarilo is no longer the green oasis I once heard described, this pure expanse of white is equally delightful. The people here are extraordinarily resilient. The city they have built is so magnificent, and their will to survive burns so fiercely, it truly brings joy from the bottom of one's heart."
"I believe that our meeting was no coincidence. Perhaps it was a stellar wind somewhere in the universe that brought you and me together."
"To speak frankly, I think this question does not even need to be asked, because I have already felt His glory upon you."
"But please forgive my boldness once more, may I ask whether you are aware of the Goddess of Pure Beauty, Idrila?"
Nero followed Silver Branch as they walked.
He listened quietly to Silver Branch speak, while also thinking that being able to talk like this was really impressive.
When Silver Branch asked about Idrila, Nero nodded.
"I know."
But only at the level of knowing.
After all, when Nero transmigrated, Old Mi hadn't really shown much of Idrila's story.
Silver Branch, however, was unexpectedly easygoing. Hearing Nero's reply, he nodded.
"Ah, just as I thought. I understand now. Thank you, this is already enough."
This knight, whose devotion was almost fanatical, didn't even make Nero acknowledge that "the Goddess of Pure Beauty, Idrila, possesses peerless beauty."
After that, Silver Branch introduced Martin, the unfortunate corporate wage slave, to Nero.
Nero noticed that Martin was staring straight at him, only snapping out of his daze after quite a while, awkwardly greeting him.
Nero didn't really mind it. If anything, Martin's slightly comical reaction actually helped ease his own embarrassment.
Who was he, Nero?
His adaptability was great, okay.
Since it already happened, he might as well go all in.
He wasn't shy. Not shy at all.
After introducing Martin, Silver Branch then showed Nero the wanted notice that had been posted on the Everwinter Monument.
He said that the figure depicted in the drawing was vividly lifelike and very suitable for public display, so he had used it as a tool to promote Pure Beauty.
Following Silver Branch's gesture, Nero looked toward the wanted notice. In the next instant, his mind was shaken to the core.
That wanted poster depicting him... was way too accurate.
'Who drew this realistic style?!'
'It wasn't in the original plot at all!'
'Wasn't it supposed to be Gepard drawing abstract art and Pela drawing the beautiful style?'
'What is this nonsense?!'
'Why is March's wanted portrait so abstract, while mine is this realistic?!'
Looking at the almost photograph-like, extremely realistic artwork, Nero instantly felt that something was very wrong, then immediately forced himself to calm down.
With a leap carried by the wind, he jumped up and tore the wanted notice down on the spot.
However, it seemed he was still a step too late.
"Make way, make way! What's going on here?"
The voice of the Silvermane Guards rang out.
As soon as a large crowd had gathered here, the nearby Silvermane Guards on patrol had already sensed that something was off.
But the Everwinter Monument was, after all, a landmark. Having more people around it on any given day was normal.
However, later on, the crowd surrounding the Everwinter Monument suddenly parted on their own, and one by one they began to encircle something like devout knights, this looked far too strange.
So they came over to see what was going on.
As soon as they entered, they saw a tall, beautifully built red-haired knight who looked like he'd stepped straight out of a shojo manga.
And in the center was a white-haired youth, equally beautiful, so beautiful, in fact, that he surpassed even the red-haired knight whose face already seemed divine.
By comparison, the hunched man standing to the side, wrapped in bandages and wearing a somewhat lecherous look, appeared rather creepy.
Poor Martin was immediately looked down on by the Silvermane Guards who barged into the crowd.
But soon after, the guards frowned, their gazes once again landing on the white-haired youth.
'This kid... looks kind of familiar.'
Thinking carefully, wasn't he one of the four outsiders depicted on the wanted posters?
"You! Don't move!" one Silvermane Guard shouted on the spot.
Nero's body trembled as he had just put away the wanted notice.
"!?"