"See that elevator over there? We can take it straight up to the Master Control Zone." March 7th pointed toward the elevator that had come into view, addressing the girl beside her, Stelle.
As for why she wasn't talking to Clara? Well, wasn't it because Clara had just called her dumb?
Fine. If you say I'm dumb, then I'll be dumb.
March 7th made a decision in her heart. From now on, for anything she knew but Clara didn't, she would play the fool and pretend not to know it either.
But March 7th was clearly overthinking things. Most of what March 7th knew, Clara also knew. And even if Clara didn't know something, she certainly wouldn't go asking a 'dummy' like March 7th.
Seeing March's little act, Clara didn't pay it much mind.
What was the difference between March 7th right now and a little kid?
Oh, wait. In a sense, March 7th was practically a kid. Never mind, then.
"Come on, I'll take you there." March 7th said to Stelle with a smile, pointedly ignoring Clara as she led Stelle over to the elevator.
'Why does this have the distinct vibe of a young couple having a spat?' Watching March's antics, Clara was suddenly reminded of the clichéd plots she'd read in cheesy novels in her past life. 'Is the troublemaker supposed to show up next?'
With that internal grumble, Clara slowly made her way over to the elevator doors as well.
…
By the time Clara reached the elevator, she saw March 7th pressing her palm against the control terminal, her face a picture of frustration.
"Did you break the elevator?"
"It wasn't me! It was broken before we got here!" March 7th hurriedly explained at Clara's question. "It must've been the Antimatter Legion!"
"Probably right." Clara nodded. "With a brain like yours, you probably couldn't break an elevator made of refined metal even if you tried."
"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?!"
"Exactly what it sounds like. If you don't even understand plain words, then there's nothing more to say." Clara walked up to the elevator and gave it a quick once-over.
"Argh, you're so infuriating!" March 7th let out a cry of impotent rage. Seeing Clara's posture, she thought Clara was about to try and fix it, and huffed, "Hmph! I don't believe for a second you galaxy rangers know how to repair elevators."
Hearing this, Clara let out a light chuckle. "You're right, I don't know how to fix an elevator."
"So…"
"I never said I was going to."
With those words, Clara delivered a sharp kick to the elevator door.
THUD
With a resounding thud, the elevator door obediently fell flat on the floor.
March 7th and Stelle: …???
What just happened? Both March and Stelle's brains momentarily short-circuited.
But March quickly snapped out of it, a look of panic crossing her face as she rushed over to the fallen door, checking to see if it could be reattached.
"Hey! Why did you just start dismantling the elevator?!"
"How are we supposed to explain this to Herta and Asta…?"
March looked like she was about to cry. Even though Clara was the one who kicked it, as part of the same group, she'd definitely be affected too.
Clara was a galaxy ranger and had even mentioned being 'sisters' with Herta, so she'd probably be fine. Stelle was an amnesiac, so she'd be fine too.
So who would get blamed for the dismantled elevator door? The answer was painfully obvious.
At that moment, March's mind was working with unprecedented clarity, piecing together the likely consequences in an instant.
"Wahh… /(ㄒoㄒ)/~~ This door must be so expensive… Am I going to have to work in the space station for the rest of my life to pay it off…?" The image of having to bid farewell to the Astral Express and spend her life doing odd jobs on the station flooded her mind. Tears welled up in her eyes, threatening to spill over any second.
"You really have a vivid imagination," Clara said, slightly exasperated. When she'd played the game, she hadn't remembered March 7th being this dramatic.
"I'm the one who broke it. I'll own up to it. You won't bear any responsibility."
"Then… then are you going to have to work here for the rest of your life?"
"?" At this, a giant question mark seemed to pop up over Clara's head, a mannerism she unconsciously mimicked from Sparkle. "Relax. Even if I had to pay for it, such a small sum wouldn't even make me blink."
Thinking of the balance in her accounts, Clara said this with the utmost confidence.
"Besides, as Herta's 'dear sister,' I doubt the station would hold such a minor thing against me."
Of course, there was another part she left unsaid: even if she dismantled the entire space station, Herta probably wouldn't do much to her. Whether she could actually beat Herta in a fight was one thing, but Herta would likely just use it as an excuse to rope her into a few more 'little experiments.'
"Wait, that's not right! The elevator's broken! What's the point of kicking the door open?!" March 7th finally realized the core issue. If the elevator was broken, what good was opening the door?
"Who told you the elevator was broken?" Clara cast a dismissive glance at March before calmly stepping into the elevator car. "The startup permissions were just temporarily locked down due to the [Antimatter Legion] invasion."
"If the permissions are locked, then what's the point of opening the door?" March said, not really understanding Clara's logic but replying anyway. No particular reason—she just didn't like the look Clara was giving her, the one that clearly said 'idiot.'
"Enough talk. Just get in." Clara had no desire to engage further.
"Hmph! I'd like to see how you plan to get this thing moving without permission." Seeing Clara's attitude, March huffed and led Stelle into the elevator.
But the moment March stepped inside, Clara closed the distance, her hand swiftly patting down the side of March's thigh.
"Ah! You… you… you!" Feeling Clara's touch, March's face instantly turned beet red. "No touching between ladies!!!"
"Are you insane?"
Clara quickly found what she was looking for, pulling a card from March's pocket and rolling her eyes.
Seeing Clara's expression and the card in her hand, March realized she'd misunderstood.
"Th-that's the card Station Head Asta gave me…"
"Oh, right! This card is probably an access key…"
March thought hard, recalling the card's origin, and clapped her hands as she remembered.
Clara pressed the card against the control panel. Instantly, the panel lit up, permissions unlocked.
With a nod, Clara selected the floor for the Master Control Zone and then tossed the card back to March.
"Hmph! In the end, you still needed this lady's help." Tucking the card away, March shot a triumphant look at Clara.
Clara didn't even grant her a glance.
"Wait a second."
Watching the elevator start up and the floor numbers climb, March seemed to realize something.
"If I had the access key the whole time… then why did you kick the door open?"
Hearing this, Clara revealed a smile.
"Don't you think this way of making an entrance is much cooler?"
March 7th: …
…
T/N: No entry this time?
…
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