Knock, knock, knock! "Wende! Himeko said you're coming with us this time!"
March 7th's energetic voice broke Wende out of his thoughts. She was right. It was a bit too early to be thinking about designing a 5-star character card. He should focus all his energy on the Trailblazing journey ahead.
"One moment! I'm coming!"
He casually grabbed a backpack, placed the metal container holding Himeko's "secret-recipe black coffee" inside, and added some simple daily necessities, just in case any unexpected situations arose in Belobog.
Once everything was ready, Wende opened his door and walked towards the Parlor Car...
...........
"Are you ready?! An exciting grand adventure! Let's go!" March 7th shouted from inside the landing pod, full of vigor.
"Let's go!"
Stelle was also swept up by March 7th's energy. The two of them gazed down at Jarilo-VI below, their minds filled with unlimited reverie.
"Mm... you'll get used to it."
Dan Heng noticed Wende seemed a bit reserved and patted him on the shoulder.
"Er, I actually think this is pretty great. At least this Trailblazing journey won't be boring, right?" Wende raised an eyebrow, smiling at the two live wires in front of them.
"Mm."
Dan Heng nodded in agreement.
In the skies of Jarilo-VI, a meteor glowing with blue light slowly descended. Its destination was the last remaining human settlement on this ice-and-snow planet.
Belobog, humanity's last bastion against the Eternal Freeze, the land blessed by the Architects...
Before the Eternal Freeze descended, Jarilo-VI was a planet where spring lasted all year, with a pleasant climate. The local residents used their diligence and wisdom to build a city unique to Jarilo-VI and began to connect with the outside world.
After the Astral Express connected to Jarilo-VI, its exchanges with the outside world grew closer, and Jarilo-VI flourished.
Jarilo-VI's unique ore, "Geomarrow," was also widely beloved by other civilizations. Because of this, Jarilo-VI became a "resort planet" renowned throughout the universe.
At that time, everyone believed this planet was destined to shine among the galaxy's other dazzling stars.
However, the arrival of a Stellaron shattered the dreams of this planet and its Architects.
The Stellaron's arrival brought disaster and turmoil to this beautiful world. The once-famous resort destination had become a paradise for the ravaging Antimatter Legion.
For the sake of [Preservation], the first Great Guardian of Belobog made a wish to the Stellaron. A cold wave that swept across the entire planet descended...
The Eternal Freeze halted the [Destruction] of the Antimatter Legion, but it also severed Jarilo-VI's connection to the outside world.
From then on, Jarilo-VI became a lone boat adrift in the vast universe, and Belobog was the last passenger on this small vessel.
A thousand years later, the Express, symbolizing the Trailblaze, once again descended upon Jarilo-VI. A conflict centered around the [Stellaron] was about to begin again...
......
"Wow! It really is a world of ice and snow!"
Stepping out of the lander, March looked at the vast white expanse before her. She reached out her hands and gently caught a falling snowflake, watching it melt into a droplet in the warmth of her palm before letting out a heartfelt sigh.
"It really is a world of ice and snow!"
Stelle stretched, looking at the icy landscape, and sighed in the same way.
"Are you a copycat?" March teased Stelle, who was repeating her words.
"Sigh~ It's just a sea of white. Where are we supposed to go?" March turned to Dan Heng. As the train's guard and keeper of the archives, asking him was always the right move!
"According to the coordinates, our destination is just ahead," Dan Heng said, checking the lander's orientation before looking forward. Beyond the blizzard lay their destination.
"So, why didn't we just land there directly?" Wende couldn't help but complain. If he weren't already a person wielding the power of a Path, he would have long since frozen into a popsicle in this icy wasteland.
"Er... you want to tell him or should I?" Dan Heng looked slightly embarrassed and passed the buck to March.
"Um... I think it's better if we don't talk about it. Anyway, nothing lives where we landed, so it's safer! Right!"
Stelle's expression was intriguing. It was as if she could smell some amusing hijinks afoot.
"In any case, it doesn't hurt to be cautious. We still know very little about this world," Dan Heng said seriously, summarizing the lessons from previous journeys as he looked at the carefree March.
"Relax! With the four of us here, what problem can't we solve?" March 7th turned and patted Wende's shoulder, looking utterly confident.
Hiss...
Looking at March 7th's proud expression, Wende felt that she wasn't wrong.
The original Trailblaze team only had Stelle, March 7th, and Dan Heng. But with his addition, the full four-person team seemed complete.
Look, Stelle was currently on the Path of Destruction, Dan Heng was on the Path of the Hunt, and March 7th was on the Path of Preservation. Wende didn't even need to be mentioned; he'd made his skills into something like the love child of Abundance and Harmony, with top-tier healing and support abilities. And if he unlocked his sixth Eidolon... hmm, and added Preservation to the mix, that relationship would get a little complicated!
"Right!" Seeing Wende's "that's absolutely right" expression, March 7th's eyes crinkled into a smile.
"Stelle has a Stellaron in her body, I have my unique Six-Phased Ice, Dan Heng has... uh, his mysterious past that we don't know about, and as for Wende...... uh...... he has the tragic experience of having his ship sunk??"
Seeing Wende's look of utter resignation, March 7th's momentum fizzled out. She really didn't know what special thing Wende had. Was being handsome... special? Looked at this way, Wende was apparently the most mysterious person among them!
"Yeah, yeah, get on one ship that sinks and people will talk about it for a lifetime," Wende said, rolling his eyes. He was completely speechless. You could have at least complimented me for being more handsome than everyone else!
"Uh... anyway! Anyone who dares to mess with us will be unlucky!"
"They'll be unlucky!" Stelle dutifully repeated from the side.
"Hiss... how long has this repeating symptom been going on?" March 7th asked, a trace of concern in her eyes as she looked at the clearly stable Stelle.
"Could it be that Uncle Yang hit her too hard and made her stupid? Or did her brain get fried after drinking Himeko's coffee?"