Following Sushang's guidance, the group boarded the starskiff bound for the Central Starskiff Haven—the very same one Lumina and Tingyun had taken earlier.
The starskiff soared through the sky at incredible speed, swiftly reaching its destination.
However, their destination was slightly... off course.
"Hmm... This definitely doesn't look like the Central Starskiff Haven," Lumina remarked as she stepped off the starskiff and surveyed the surrounding scenery.
Staircases and buildings stretched as far as the eye could see, the air buzzing with the rhythmic clatter of machinery. It bore no resemblance to the expected haven.
"Where... where are we?" Sushang stammered, disembarking and staring in bewildered awe at the unfamiliar landscape.
"This appears to be the Artisanship Commission," Luocha observed, his gaze sweeping over the surroundings before offering a calculated "guess." "It seems the starskiff veered off course."
"The Artisanship Commission... How could this Starskiff silently veer off course like that?!"
Hearing this, Sushang glared at the Starskiff behind her, itching to tear it apart right then and there.
"Is this Starskiff even usable anymore? Can we get it back on course?"
"The Starskiff is broken."
Dan Heng emerged from the Starskiff moments after Sushang spoke, delivering the verdict.
"Ugh... Seriously?" Sushang threw her hands up in exasperation.
"Oh, wait!"
Suddenly, Sushang seemed to remember something and turned to Lumina.
"Miss Lumina, you're a Physician, aren't you? See if you can patch up this Starskiff!"
Lumina: ?
Lumina's small eyes widened with two enormous question marks.
Staring at Sushang's earnest expression, Lumina's lip twitched. It seemed Sushang had rendered her utterly speechless.
"Little Sushang, I'm a Physician, not a craftsman. I don't know how to repair Starskiffs."
(Lumina can heal living things, but a Starskiff is an inanimate object. She can't heal it unless it contains a soul.)
(Xueyi can heal, and although she's an Automaton, the soul and consciousness within her make her a living being. The same applies to Luocha. Please don't criticize this headcanon! (╯﹏╰)~~)
"Uh... yeah, you're right." Realizing she might have said something foolish, Sushang scratched her head, feeling slightly embarrassed.
"..." Lumina couldn't help but feel a sudden urge to tease Sushang, who looked so adorably clueless. But with Luocha and Dan Heng standing beside her, and the lack of a player perspective at this time, she reluctantly suppressed the impulse.
[Friendly Reminder: There is no player perspective at this time. You'll gain access to it when you encounter Xueyi later.]
Sensing Lumina's restraint, the System helpfully added:
[So, go for it! Ignore Dan Heng and Luocha's glares and do whatever you want with the beautiful Sushang!!!]
"No player perspective? I see." Lumina skimmed the System's message, automatically dismissing the part about "doing whatever she wanted."
After surveying the surroundings, she quietly observed, "For such a massive Artisanship Commission to be completely deserted like this, something must have happened."
"We shouldn't linger here too long. Let's find a way out quickly."
"Oh, right, right!" Sushang snapped to attention, quickly surveying their surroundings.
As one of the Six Commissions, the Artisanship Commission, while never as bustling as the Central Starskiff Haven, should never be this eerily quiet.
Like Cloudford, this place must have suffered some immense calamity.
"Miss Lumina is right. We shouldn't stay here any longer than necessary," Luocha agreed, pointing to a passage in the distance. "I sense something emanating from there. Shall we investigate?"
"Agreed. Let's proceed with caution." Sushang nodded, forcing down her fear as she faced the desolate plaza. She bravely stepped forward to scout ahead.
How adorable, Lumina thought, watching Sushang's valiant effort. She's clearly scared, yet as a Cloud Knight, she feels obligated to maintain this façade of fearless heroism before us.
If we were to strip away that pretense, would she break down in tears?
Lumina wondered, her gaze lingering on the young knight.
[The player's perspective has shifted. Remember to maintain your composure.]
Seeing Lumina's mood gradually turning arrogant, the System quickly reminded her, "Maintain your image."
"Maintain my image?" Lumina retorted, feigning confusion. "This is my true self. What else is there to maintain?"
The System remained silent for a moment before relenting, "...Do whatever makes you happy."
"Hmph♪" Lumina hummed softly and followed Sushang out of the area.
-
"So... the ultimate goal of the Stellaron Hunters and the Astral Express is to kill the Aeon of Destruction?"
Even after switching perspectives to Dan Heng, Little Bear was still reeling from his earlier conversation with Kafka.
[Huh? Me? Fight the Aeon of Destruction? Seriously?]
[Can we win? Of course we can!]
[Who are we? We're the protagonists! Victory is guaranteed!]
[So... in the end, the Trailblazer becomes a god? The next Aeon of Trailblaze?]
[A god? If I become a god, can I grab Lumina and... hehehe... do whatever I want with her?]
[Hey upstairs, isn't it possible Lumina might become a god before us?]
"This news is... mind-blowing," Little Bear finally muttered after a long pause, shaking himself out of his daze.
"Still, I don't think we need to worry about all that right now. Let's focus on figuring out who the real mastermind behind the Xianzhou is."
The Aeons were ancient history. Little Bear shook his head, dismissed the topic with a sentence, and continued through the story.
"Looks like we're back to Dan Heng's storyline."
"Let's see how this suspected mastermind of the Xianzhou performs."
Little Bear watched Lumina in the story, his voice tinged with excitement.
[Right, forget about the Aeons for now. Let's just beat Lumina first! (Facepalm/Crying with laughter)]
[Noob question: Don't most games have a defeat cutscene when you lose to a boss? (Laughing) Could they release this one on a different website? (Drooling)]
[Is this defeat cutscene even appropriate?]
[You're right, but this is a 12+ game.]
"Stop fantasizing about Lumina's defeat cutscene. What if we're the ones getting defeated?"
Little Bear chuckled at the raunchy comments in the comment section.
He controlled Dan Heng, guiding him toward the designated location.