"This is a hovercar, a common and convenient mode of transportation on Apricot Grove."
After disembarking from the Astral Express, Lumina walked to a small corner of the platform and pressed a small red button. Immediately, a sleek, high-tech hovercar materialized before them, appearing as if it had been quantum-manifested into existence.
"Wow! How did that appear out of nowhere? It's like magic!" March 7th exclaimed, her eyes wide with wonder as she looked around, completely captivated by the hovercar's sudden appearance.
"There's no advanced technology involved, just a storage principle," Lumina explained, walking forward to open the hovercar's door. She gestured for the trio to enter first.
Once they were seated and buckled in, Lumina slid into the driver's seat, closed the door, selected Sumeru City as their destination, and started the hovercar.
As she drove, Lumina continued her explanation: "The platform is equipped with a storage space where the hovercar is stored. When needed, you just press the button to retrieve it."
"Because the landing platform is quite far from Sumeru City and other cities, and given the daily influx of foreign spacecraft arriving at Apricot Grove, it's not suitable for large-scale construction of a hover station."
"To ensure visitors to Apricot Grove could reach their destinations smoothly and easily, the House of Daena devised this solution."
"The hovercars travel at high speeds and are equipped with the coordinates of every city, large and small, on Apricot Grove. Foreigners need only a brief orientation to operate them with ease, making it incredibly convenient."
As the hovercar sped past the window, Lumina explained everything in detail, the landscape blurring by like a film transition.
"But what if a foreigner, despite following the instructions and racking their brain, still can't figure out how to operate it?" March 7th asked.
Even though Sister Lumina had assured them it would be easy with the instructions, March 7th eyed the hovercar's control panel—a bewildering array of complex data displays. It hardly looked like something you could master with just a quick guide...
"Not everyone is named March 7th," Stelle interjected, waving her hand before Lumina could answer March 7th's puzzled expression.
"Uh... what's that supposed to mean? I'll give you another chance to rephrase that," March 7th said, her eyelids drooping and the cheerful smile vanishing from her face as she stared at Stelle with exasperation. She generously offered Stelle a chance to correct herself.
The Stellaron Spirit, naturally, appreciated this generous opportunity. Placing her hands on her hips and adopting a serious expression, she declared, "What I mean is, not everyone is as foolish as you, March 7th!"
"Stelle, do you have some kind of misunderstanding about me?"
Though March 7th desperately wanted to punch her, Sister Lumina was watching from the side. She couldn't embarrass herself in front of her...
Therefore, March 7th clenched her tiny fists, forcefully suppressing her impulse. She forced a friendly smile and asked Stelle if she might have a slight misunderstanding about her—a lovely and adorable young girl.
"Misunderstanding?" Stelle muttered the word, then waved her hand dismissively and shook her head, her expression completely impassive.
"On other points, I might have misunderstood you a little..."
"But when it comes to your intelligence, I understand you perfectly—there's absolutely no misunderstanding whatsoever!"
March 7th: ...
Seeing Stelle's earnest expression and hearing her solemn tone, March 7th suddenly fell silent.
I'm naturally clever and resourceful! How could Stelle see me as a total airhead...? Where did I go wrong to give Stelle such a profound misunderstanding of me? March 7th wondered silently, but she couldn't figure out the root of the problem.
"I—"
"Don't worry, March 7th. Even though you're a bit slow and rather silly, rest assured, there's no one in the cosmos dumber than you!"
March 7th had just opened her mouth to clear up this colossal misunderstanding, but before she could utter more than a few words, Stelle had already grabbed her shoulder and delivered her "consolation."
March 7th: ...
March 7th's body gradually began to tremble. She pursed her lips, clenched her fists, and lowered her head, refusing to let Stelle's face come into view as she desperately suppressed the urge to beat the Stellaron Spirit to a pulp.
"Having another bout of stupidity?"
"I can't take it anymore!"
But the moment Stelle caught sight of March 7th's expression and blurted out a question, the volcano within March 7th erupted completely.
"If I don't beat you into next week today, I'm not March 7th!"
Flames of nameless fury blazed in her eyes as her dainty, pink fists flew without hesitation toward Stelle's body.
"Huh?"
Stelle's gaze flickered with confusion at March 7th's sudden outburst. She couldn't understand why March 7th was suddenly trying to beat her up.
But confusion aside, as the Galactic Baseballer, how could she willingly let March 7th's tiny fists pummel her mercilessly?
A cold glint flashed in Stelle's eyes. With superhuman reflexes, she caught March 7th's fist, flipped her body, and extended her palm, preparing to retaliate.
Though March 7th might seem simple-minded, her strength was no joke. Faced with Stelle's counterattack, she quickly erected a corresponding defense.
And so, in a series of alternating punches and palm strikes, resembling children playing "You hit me, I hit you," the two became locked in a tangled struggle.
"Sigh..."
Watching the antics of these two goofballs, Lumina, who had witnessed the entire exchange, sighed and rubbed her forehead. She couldn't help but feel exasperated by their childish behavior.
Fortunately, the hovercar was a marvel of Apricot Grove's technology. Despite its high speed, passengers inside felt no motion at all. If one ignored the rapidly changing scenery outside the window, it was akin to sitting on a park bench.
No matter how fast the outside world rushed by, no matter how intense the battle inside the car became, neither affected the other.
Thus, though Lumina found the antics of the "two living treasures," Stelle and March 7th, exasperating, she made no attempt to stop them.
Though Stelle and March 7th didn't seem particularly reliable, they handled their tussle with surprising restraint.
They kept their strikes just strong enough to inflict pain without causing any actual harm.
Lumina simply watched their mock fight with a gentle smile.
As she observed, a peculiar emotion suddenly stirred within her—a sense of "delightful amusement"...
Yes, watching Stelle and March 7th's mock skirmish actually filled Lumina with a sense of delightful amusement!
Though she found this feeling strange and inexplicable, her inner thoughts immediately offered an answer:
"Beautiful girls fighting each other? That's the best! o(* ̄▽ ̄*)ブ"
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House of Daena
Sumeru City's central hub and the political heart of both Apricot Grove and the entire Sumeru Star System. The highest-level galaxy-wide conferences are held here.