"So? What happened?"
Wende asked, completely bewildered. He had just stepped out of the kitchen to find the entire crew silent and the atmosphere thick with tension.
"Er... it seems March choked, so I used some coffee to help her wash it down..." Himeko explained with an awkward smile.
"Coffee..."
Wende's mouth twitched. He looked at the exquisite teacup on the coffee table and could almost see the lingering resentment emanating from the dregs within.
"Sigh, forget it..."
Wende decisively abandoned the idea of using his needles on March 7th. He turned, went to the Synthesis Machine in the car, crafted an Antidote, and fed it to her.
"Ah! I'm fully revived!"
After taking the Antidote, March 7th was instantly re-energized. As if nothing had happened, she picked up her plate of egg fried rice and continued eating, though her movements were now noticeably more ladylike.
Wende glanced at March 7th, who was now taking small, delicate bites, and then at the elegantly dining Himeko. So all it took to achieve elegance was a single cup of coffee?
"So, what does Himeko's coffee actually taste like?"
His curiosity piqued, Wende couldn't hold back. It was just coffee. How bad could it possibly taste?
And so, driven by Wende's curiosity... Stelle went and asked for a cup of coffee personally brewed by Himeko.
Our innocent Stelle seemed to think that March 7th had simply choked on her food. She had no idea she was walking straight into the abyss!
Dan Heng's perpetually calm face showed a flicker of shock. He put down his fried rice and looked at Stelle, who was now holding the cup, with an expression of profound respect.
Even Welt no longer lingered on the taste of home. He subtly pushed his glasses up his nose, his gaze towards Stelle now tinged with a hint of complexity.
"Did we forget to tell her when she boarded the Express?" March 7th whispered, blinking at Welt and Dan Heng, communicating through their shared understanding.
Dan Heng shook his head.
"Indeed. We forgot the most important thing!"
Wende looked at the unremarkable cup of coffee in Stelle's hand. It smelled fine, didn't it?
Stelle, still unaware that she had become the center of attention, gently blew on the coffee and then took a small sip.
"BOOM!!!"
"Holy shit! The Stellaron is out of control!"
"Uncle Yang!!!"
Thwack! (The sound of a cane hitting someone's head.)
Clatter... (The sound of a coffee cup shattering.)
Szzzzzz... (The sound of coffee corroding the carpet.)
Wende held the once-again-unconscious Stelle in his arms, staring at the patch of "coffee" that was actively corroding and spreading across the floor. He swallowed hard.
He was certain the coffee beans he'd purchased from the space station were perfectly fine! The coffee machine on the train was also fine! The coffee he brewed for himself was delicious. But why...
Wende glanced out of the corner of his eye at the utterly astonished Himeko. Could it be... that Himeko herself was cursed with some sort of coffee curse?!
"Er... here! An Antidote!" Little March scratched her head as she looked at the peacefully sleeping Stelle, then synthesized another Antidote from the machine and handed it to Wende.
Wende looked at Stelle in his arms. Her once fair face was now a swirling canvas of red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, and violet. He shook his head grimly. This was beyond what a simple Antidote could fix.
"Alright..." Seeing Stelle's terrifying appearance, March 7th sheepishly shrank back.
In the end, it was only with the help of Wende's lightning needles that the unconscious Stelle was able to successfully spit out that mouthful of "coffee," allowing her to slowly regain consciousness.
However, the newly awakened Stelle seemed to have amnesia, completely forgetting the moment she drank Himeko's coffee. It was only after March 7th pulled her into her room and recounted the entire ordeal that Stelle finally learned this painful lesson.
As for Wende... he also asked for a cup of Himeko's coffee. Then, under Himeko's indignant glare, he poured the coffee into a sealed container made of high-density metal.
This was a rare weapon of mass destruction. If he saved it, maybe it could be used to take down an enemy on the level of the Doomsday Beast!
As the train journeyed on, the crew's Trailblazing adventure truly began to unfold.
...................
The next morning, after a full day of rest, everyone was refreshed and ready for a new journey.
For Stelle and Wende, this would be their first true Trailblazing expedition!
After a simple breakfast in the Parlor Car, Pom-Pom began preparations for the warp jump.
March 7th and Stelle were chatting idly, with March recounting her story of how she came to the Astral Express. Wende had, at some point, sat down beside them, listening to their conversation with his chin propped on his hand.
"The Express has left the space station's safe zone. Preparing to jump in ten minutes! All passengers, please be seated and hold on tight to avoid the vibrations!"
After speaking, Pom-Pom gave a pointed look at March 7th, who was sitting next to Stelle.
"Er... Conductor~ There's no need to make a special announcement, is there? I mean, we've jumped so many times, and I'll tell Wende and Stelle, too! Right?" March said, winking at Wende and Stelle.
"And who is the passenger who tries to challenge herself every time, only to end up falling over?" Pom-Pom asked, looking at March 7th with a helpless expression.
"Ehehe... That's called being indomitable!" March 7th said awkwardly, scratching her pink hair.
"..."
Stelle, standing to the side, was a bit confused, but Wende, who knew the plot, simply smiled. He just hoped March wouldn't fall too hard during the jump.
Watching Stelle go over to talk with Welt and Himeko, Wende's thoughts drifted out the window, toward a planet covered in ice and brutal cold.
This was their next destination: the planet known as Jarilo-VI.
"Stellaron... Preservation..."
Whenever he thought of these elements, a certain question would always echo in his mind.
"Birds... why do they fly?"
If the Trailblazer had been Caelus, Wende might have genuinely discussed this question with him.
Given the chance, who wouldn't want to shout, "This is the inscription of [Salvation]!"? Just thinking about it was enough to get the blood pumping.
"Heh... for some reason, I'm suddenly craving some instant noodles."
Wende muttered to himself, thinking of that instant-noodle-loving boy.
The train began its jump. As was tradition, March 7th stood in the middle of the car, endlessly chanting things like "I won't fall down."
Thump...
With a flash of white light, a beautiful planet, like a white snow globe, came into Wende's view...