"Miss Robin, welcome."
"No need to be so formal, doctor. I just came by to check on things."
In the hospital, Robin conversed quietly with the mechanical doctor before her.
Her main purpose today was simple—to check up on the patients transferred here from Straton III.
"The vital signs of the transferred patients are quite stable. With continued treatment, most should fully recover."
"Most, huh?" Robin fell silent after saying this.
"Yes. As you're aware, among them are some incurable illnesses that current medical technology still cannot overcome."
The doctor handed Robin a list. Opening it, she couldn't help but grow quiet as she saw the conditions listed:
Entropy Dissolution, Photon Anemia, Dimensional Corrosion...
Each name was notorious—merely mentioning them was enough to darken faces across the cosmos.
Because there were no known treatments, no cures.
If even one could be conquered, the entire universe would send congratulations.
Even Zieltworth had become famous as a medical planet merely for its hope of curing Entropy Loss Syndrome—a single irreversible condition.
Through this alone, one could glimpse just how seriously people in the universe took these diseases.
Yet seriousness did not mean solutions.
Perhaps the Aeon of Erudition, Nous, had already calculated all possibilities—but that Aeon never shared such knowledge.
Though Nous foresaw all outcomes, They never revealed THEIR calculations.
Even if all life remained mired in suffering, that Aeon would not cast down a gaze of salvation.
Robin flipped through the medical records, but soon the records shifted to much younger patients.
Her breath caught briefly, but quickly steadied again.
The mechanical doctor could naturally sense from her reaction which page she'd reached.
"Miss Robin, some things lie beyond what human strength can reverse."
"I know." Robin recomposed herself, though the heaviness in her heart refused to fade.
"Ah, let's leave this aside. Let's discuss someone else instead."
The mechanical doctor tactfully changed the subject, handing over another report.
Robin frowned slightly when she saw the name.
"Sora's?"
"Yes, but it's not a physical checkup. It's a mental health assessment."
Robin began flipping through it, but the technical jargon quickly overwhelmed her.
"Can you explain it more clearly?"
"It's nothing overly severe. Due to prolonged mental strain, he's experiencing habitual exhaustion."
Robin's frown deepened. "Habitual exhaustion?"
"Yes. Extended periods of intense stress, without proper relief, have caused his mind to exhibit chronic fatigue symptoms."
"In this state, he might appear energetic, fully active, but beneath the surface, his mind is constantly under tension."
"And as you know, he possesses no extraordinary abilities. He's just an ordinary person. If this tension breaks, he could face a far more unpredictable mental collapse than average."
A mental collapse?!
"And due to habitual exhaustion, recovery after such a breakdown would be exceedingly slow and difficult."
"That's why I wanted to bring this to your attention, urging you to closely monitor his mental condition."
Robin nodded unconsciously after hearing this.
Indeed, for someone like Sora, the probability of this happening seemed alarmingly high.
"Is there any way to treat it?" Robin asked urgently. She absolutely refused to let Sora face a mental breakdown.
"Yes. The simplest method is frequent observation of his mental state."
Robin felt a pang of helplessness. If she could actually keep an eye on Sora at all times, would she still feel so troubled?
Noticing her expression, the mechanical doctor understood her difficulty.
"Then let me recommend you the best possible solution."
A notification soon appeared on Robin's phone.
"'Soul Spring—Tartaro'?"
"Yes. A planet capable of healing all mental afflictions—but only mental ones."
"It's a world composed entirely of memories and emotions, known as 'Memoria.' Through the endless washing of Memoria, all spiritual wounds are gradually soothed away."
The mechanical doctor continued earnestly, "I visited once myself. That journey is precisely what granted me genuine emotions."
Robin felt astonished by those words.
She had noticed something different from the doctor since the beginning, feeling as if she were conversing with a living, breathing person.
Who knew there was such a hidden story here?
"Memoria is filled with memory and emotion. Some go there to relieve deeply-rooted obsessions, others to finally come to terms with their past."
"And through that washing of Memoria, even I successfully escaped purely mechanical thinking."
The mechanical doctor spoke gently to Robin: "I understand your concern for Mr. Hoshigaki, and your helplessness regarding those incurable diseases."
"You've already done enough. Perhaps you should visit there, too, and let your spirit rest."
After gently patting Robin's shoulder, it quietly departed.
...
"Why didn't you head back out this afternoon?" Robin asked after returning to find Sora resting.
Seeing her, Sora eagerly recounted all the bizarre incidents he'd experienced today.
He'd gone to maintain the ship—only to inexplicably find himself upgraded to platinum membership.
And when contacting the IPC's after-sales specialist, the person who answered had strangely shifted roles to selling him new services instead.
All these oddities clearly conveyed one message.
"...Seems today isn't a good day for me to go out," Sora concluded solemnly.
"Aren't you just being overly suspicious?" Robin said helplessly.
"You wouldn't get it. One must stay vigilant! Never drop your guard!"
Hearing those words, Robin's eyes locked onto Sora intently.
"Sora."
"Hm? What's wrong?"
"Are you tired?" Robin bluntly asked the question she'd been holding back.
"Tired? No way!" Sora declared cheerfully. He was eating well, sleeping well, drinking well—how could he be tired?
Last time, he'd slept nearly twenty hours straight, waking to find they'd already reached their destination.
Right now, Sora still felt bursting with energy!
The only reason he hadn't gone out was due to the sheer weirdness of today's events.
Not tired, huh?
Is he really not tired…?
This was a question too complex to easily answer.
"Oh, right—how'd things go on your end?" Sora curiously asked. "How're those transferred patients doing?"
Robin had mentioned her plans earlier, prompting his curiosity.
The girl paused for a moment, then sat across from him, summarizing the patients' situations.
But when she reached the end, she again hesitated, revealing a complicated expression.
Yet Sora instantly understood why Robin was acting this way—after all, he'd become closest with those children himself.
"Do you know what codename those kids were given?"
Robin looked startled by his question.
"On Zieltworth, they're known as the 'Children of Starfire'—a special group."
"From the start, those kids were fully aware of their situation. That's why they eagerly took part in medical trials and research efforts."
"They haven't given up. Some of them are still fighting."
Sora smiled slightly, "So don't look at them with that sorrowful face. Each one of them is a hero fighting fate itself."
A spark can ignite a prairie—and in the vast, boundless darkness of the cosmos, their tiny stars shone brighter than ever.
"But…"
Even so, progress on those incurable illnesses was minuscule, unlikely to shift significantly.
"Trust me," Sora simply said, calmly and resolutely.
Even if treatments here failed, Sora himself possessed plenty of means capable of fully resolving these diseases.
Leaving aside his gifts, he still had other resources—such as Brain, and Superman Yuri…
Those children still had plenty of time, allowing Sora the confidence to give such assurances.
"You..." Robin fell completely silent.
She stared at Sora without knowing what to say, feeling again as if he'd quietly shouldered yet another heavy burden.
This constant pressure on his spirit…
She bit her lip firmly, eyes locked on Sora as she finally made up her mind.
It was definitely time to discuss with the others how they could lure this man to Tartaro.
"Oh, right!" Sora suddenly clapped his hands, turning to Robin. "Let's go ask the little heroes what their wishes are!"
Eh?!
Utterly bewildered, Robin found herself dragged along by Sora, suddenly standing in front of a group of children.
And their wishes turned out to be extremely simple and pure.
"We wanna see Sister Robin perform live!"
"A real concert! Woohoo!"
Ehh!?
Robin looked blankly from the cheering kids to Sora, completely confused as to why the topic had suddenly shifted to her.
"Hehehe," Sora snickered slyly, "surely a certain someone, being a big star, wouldn't refuse the children's heartfelt wish, right?"
Clearly, this had all been premeditated!
Robin didn't understand why, but seeing the smug grin on Sora's face, she suddenly felt inexplicably irritated.
Maybe…she should just stop worrying about him.