After Stelle and March walked over together with Dan Heng,
A few lines of text suddenly popped up on the screen.
[Some time before the Xianzhou's Luminary Wardance commenced]
The audience instantly realized, this looked like a flashback, the timeline set before the fight with Hoolay.
Inside the carriage.
As Stelle looked around, she muttered,
"Our train actually has a carriage like this?"
"Pompom's been hiding this for so long!"
"Damn it, I wasted so much time watching this!"
The robot standing behind the bar looked over directly.
"Welcome home, dear Nameless. What would you like? Something to drink? Something to eat? Or perhaps a wonderfully amusing joke?"
"In this party carriage, you can enjoy happiness to your heart's content."
The robot spoke in a young, calm male voice.
Stelle's eyes lit up and she cheered, "Party time?!"
"That's right, party time!"
"However, with just you three Nameless… I'm afraid it won't really work. Perhaps next time."
Then, in a smooth shift of tone, he added, "But I can tell you a great joke."
This mysterious robot filled the audience with anticipation.
So no one realized what they were about to hear.
On screen, under Stelle's expectant gaze, the robot said in a relaxed tone, "Someone once asked a Nameless, 'How many guests came to your party?' And that Nameless answered in disappointment: 'None.'."
The atmosphere instantly froze.
The expectation on Stelle's face stiffened on the spot. Behind her, March and Dan Heng both shivered.
After a moment of silence, the audience erupted:
...
: Hiss… that's so cold!
: My toes just curled straight into Belobog.
: Damn, I stayed silent for three seconds before realizing the pun, then finally let out a relieved smile.
: ?? What kind of pun-based cold joke is this?!
: I didn't laugh at the joke, but I did laugh when Star, March, and Dan Heng's pupils shook.
: Stelle's reaction is hilarious too! "The party moment I was looking forward to.jpg → The party moment I actually faced.jpg."
...
The comments was filled with wild complaints.
But the robot showed no reaction and continued on its own.
"Oh?"
"It seems the three of you didn't understand the humor in that line. Allow me to explain, "
"Shut up!"
All three shouted in unison. None of them expected that this refined-looking robot's first line would be a cold joke.
"I'm here." The robot replied calmly.
This baffling response made Stelle scratch her head. "Wait, is this guy even dumber than March?"
March 7th immediately protested, "What do you mean 'dumber than me'? Do I look that dumb to you?!"
At that moment, the robot Shut Up finally realized the three Nameless had misunderstood and explained:
"I understand now. You just told me to shut up. That sounds exactly like my name, 'Shut Up.' A very amusing misunderstanding indeed."
The trio froze. Then an even colder chill enveloped them.
What the hell! How can a robot be named Shut Up?!
They could already imagine the level of resentment the person who named him must have had toward this robot!
Yet Shut-Up still politely and calmly continued: "I am an ancient drink-mixing robot, restored by my previous owner, 'Void Archives.' My owner installed a cold-joke module in me, making me a true cold drink robot."
The audience was completely defeated by Shut-Up at this point.
And just as Shut-Up was about to tell another cold joke to break the uncomfortable silence, Welt and Himeko at the other end of the carriage finally finished their discussion and walked over.
"Shut Up, thank you." Himeko said bluntly.
The joke Shut-Up was about to say instantly died.
As the others arrived, including the Train Conductor, all the Nameless finally gathered.
"Now… regarding the train's next destination, we need to hold a meeting," Welt said, pushing up his glasses.
It was here! The moment the audience had been waiting for!
First brought up was the suggestion Black Swan had left them.
"The Eternal Land, Amphoreus."
"Nothing about this world exists in the databank, not even its name," Dan Heng said thoughtfully, touching his chin.
Black Swan previously stated that this world was difficult to observe from the outside and could only be reflected through the Garden's Mirror of Recollection.
When the audience heard that back then, many had already begun speculating.
After all, a world that can only be illuminated by the Mirror of Recollection…
Such a prerequisite was extremely unusual.
Some speculated it might be a special memory-based world.
Like the Asdana System, a star system entirely filled with mnemonic matter and undiscovered.
But this theory was also heavily debated in the forums.
The reason: Black Swan's words, A land where three paths intersect.
At this moment, the audience stared tightly at the screen, hoping for more information.
"This mysterious world… will its trailblazing difficulty be very high?" March scratched her head and looked at Stelle.
"Stelle only just recently joined the crew; this journey might be a bit too much for her."
"No need to worry," Himeko replied with a gentle smile.
"To us today, a world untouched by Akivili seems rare. But for the Express back then, this was almost routine, Touching the edge of worlds was simply… part of Trailblazing."
"Still, even if we don't end up going, the train's fuel issue must be solved," Welt pointed out.
Everyone fell silent for a moment.
The train's biggest problem now was that they simply… didn't have enough fuel.
And in terms of fuel, everyone already had their own thoughts on where they needed to go.
"For now… this is fine."
"I will respond to Miss Black Swan and list the Eternal Land Amphoreus as one of our options, but not as the final decision."
"Considering the special nature of this journey, we should make more preparations. Before deciding officially, I'll contact our allies to gather whatever information they have on Amphoreus."
After some discussion, Himeko made the final call.
No one had objections.
Soon after, the flashback ended.
The screen went black, then flickered with scenes of what happened next.
The Xianzhou fight with Hoolay, Penacony's Paperfold University incident, meeting with Rappa, all the way to now.
Right after Rappa's arc ended, just before the next segment begins.
In the audience's hearts, a clear understanding was already taking shape.
...
: So, during that earlier period, while the three were off adventuring, Himeko was gathering information through her allies?
: I wonder if they'll find anything.
: I think most likely it'll be related to Amphoreus. They've been foreshadowing it for so long, only that mysterious place matches all the clues we've been given.
: I'm really curious whether the information these allies bring back will be revealed.
: Black Swan, that mysterious woman… Once she takes action, she really leaves us scratching our heads.
: That's the value of a woman who truly moves behind the scenes!
...
While the comments were summarizing the previous clues, the scene had already shifted to Penacony, the Golden Hour.
Two Bloodhounds were stationed on an important road, but they clearly weren't focused on their work, just gossiping instead.
"Any news on the former Oak Family head yet?"
"Huh? None!"
"Bingo! Most of the blame was pinned on him when the Charmony Festival was abruptly cancelled. Since then, not a single soul's seen him."
"Too scary. He's the former head of the Oak family, after all. And yet there's no news at all!"
"Heck, forget his whereabouts - nobody even knows if he's still alive! Talk about scary. For all we know, we might have watched something go down in history - like what happened to the Blackplum Family back then - without even realizing it."
"I've heard another theory about that family head, though..."
Just as they were busy gossiping, a figure that made the audience's eyes widen suddenly appeared at the edge of the frame.
His clothing had changed, now white and blue, but the design was still filled with contradictory yet blended elements of religion, dominance, and Harmony, all silently announcing the wearer's identity.
Sunday!
...
: Holy, ! I'm not seeing things, right? That's Sunday?!
: He actually came out!
: No one arrested him? No, that's not the point, who let him out?!
: Was it Jade?!
: Who cares who did it, The Family actually agreed to it? Or they're just not holding him accountable?!
...
Sunday's identity carried extraordinary weight. How could someone like him appear here so casually?
The audience was flooded with questions.
Meanwhile, on-screen, the former defeated, walked calmly toward the two Bloodhounds.
Behind Sunday followed a Penacony male.
"This guest, I'm truly sorry."
"The Dreambuilders are inspecting this road, so all related facilities are shut down. Passage is impossible."
Seeing someone approach, the Bloodhounds stepped up to block them.
Before Sunday even spoke, the Penacony man stood with hands on hips and grumbled impatiently.
But it seemed neither of them intended to do anything aggressive.
They simply turned to leave.
At that moment, the female Bloodhound frowned at Sunday's back. "Sir… have we met somewhere before?"
"Have we?" Sunday stopped, then slowly turned around.
That face, the one that had shocked Penacony countless times, appeared once again on screen.
Distorted halos rippled across the edges of the display.
The moment he turned back, the power of Harmony had already taken effect.
"Where and when would that be?" Sunday's voice was low and unhurried, each word leaving no room to breathe.
The female Bloodhound touched her head, shook it gently.
"…Perhaps I remembered wrong. My apologies. Please, continue on your way."
Seeing this, the comment section immediately exploded with 'Now that feels right' messages.
After Sunday and the Penacony man left the area, the Penacony man finally couldn't hold back:
"Hey, you, You almost dragged me, Wonweek, straight into trouble. Of all the roads, you just had to walk right under the Bloodhounds' noses?"
Sunday looked back, perfectly calm: "With you here, there usually won't be a problem."
Wonweek crossed his arms and snorted: "Try thinking of others a little, will you? Penacony's number-one fugitive, just standing next to you is enough to get me burned."
Sunday replied quietly, "That's precisely why I must walk with you. Right now, you're the only person in Penacony I can trust."
Wonweek snorted again and looked up at a huge billboard on the street, one featuring Robin as the spokesperson.
"What about her?"
Sunday paused for a moment, then said with restraint, "Her… I cannot drag into this."
Their conversation only confused the audience further.
Never mind where this Wonweek guy even came from, just the fact that Sunday trusted him this much was already extraordinary.
...
: This doesn't feel right. Sunday trusts this Wonweek that much?!
: What the hell, 'With you here, there won't be a problem,' and 'You're the only one I can trust.' If anything, shouldn't the only one he trusts be Robin?!
: Sunday actually avoided answering Wonweek's question.
: Don't tell me Robin is still being protected in the Dreamscape?!
: No, Sunday's probably relieved that Robin wasn't dragged into prison because of him. This likely has nothing to do with Wonweek's question about trust.
: Who is this guy anyway? If Sunday trusts him so much, why didn't he show up during the Dream of Order?
: Hiss… Wait. Sunday escaped right before the train departed. Don't tell me he's about to take a path no one ever imagined?
...
The mysterious Wonweek.
Someone who could easily earn Sunday's trust, combined with the awkward timing of this scene, the audience's minds ran wild.
MiHoYo doesn't include useless elements. If Sunday appeared in this scene, he must be crucial to what comes next.
Amphoreus, Sunday, the Express…? What kind of development is this leading to?
With burning curiosity, the audience continued watching.
But the next moment, Wonweek stroked his chin and remarked sarcastically,
"I really don't get it. You already escaped, why insist on coming back to Penacony? What, did the IPC give you a mission?"
Sunday shook his head, a hint of confusion in his voice: "Unfortunately… that Lady Bonajade, seems to have no need for me."
Jade?! A major figure in The IPC helped Sunday break out of prison?!