Yevenko straightened his clothes, which had gotten a bit rumpled while he was being dragged away. Walking back over, he gave Tom a subtle look.
Tom instantly pulled two tiny white flowers from the empty space behind his back, flashing a wide, toothy grin. He held one in each hand and offered them to March 7th and Himeko.
What could he do? As a suspect, Yevenko figured it was time to start building up some goodwill with everyone here.
Himeko blinked, surprised to see Tom. But as someone who'd seen her fair share of strange things, she quickly regained her composure. She nodded slightly and accepted the flower with a gentle smile.
"Thank you."
Then she turned her gaze to Yevenko. There was no hostility in her eyes—only curiosity, and perhaps the faintest glimmer of goodwill.
After all, the appearance of a second Astral Express was something worth headlining across the entire cosmos.
As for the goodwill… maybe it was because Yevenko's situation reminded her of her own, just a little.
Back when the Aeon of Trailblaze had perished, it was Himeko who reignited the spark and set the Astral Express back in motion.
One person. One train. And one... mascot.
Himeko's gaze drifted to Tom.
If Yevenko had known what she was thinking, he definitely would've protested—mascot? No way. Tom was his main carry, thank you very much.
March 7th also accepted the tiny white flower, her eyes lighting up in delight.
"Wow! I've never seen a flower that looks like it came straight out of a children's picture book. I'm keeping this as a souvenir."
She lifted her camera with her right hand and snapped a picture of the flower held in her left.
Asta, seeing that Himeko had arrived, looked like she wanted to say something—but hesitated.
Himeko noticed immediately. She smiled faintly and spoke softly.
"Asta, this is the Herta Space Station—your domain. You don't need to worry about us. As for the second Astral Express, I'll talk it over with this Mr. Yevenko later."
"For now, the news of an Antimatter Legion attack is more urgent."
Asta breathed a quiet sigh of relief. Her lips curved into a soft smile.
"Then I'll speak frankly."
Her expression turned a little more serious as she looked at Yevenko.
"Mr. Yevenko, as a passenger of the other Astral Express, I believe you wouldn't joke about something like this."
"As acting station master of Herta Space Station, you can speak with me directly. If what you're saying turns out to be true, you will have our friendship."
Yevenko nodded.
"I'm not lying."
"I don't know the exact timing, but it should happen very soon. And there's about a seventy percent chance the Stellaron Hunters will arrive alongside the Antimatter Legion."
"That said, the space station ultimately won't suffer much damage."
At the mention of both the Antimatter Legion and the Stellaron Hunters attacking Herta Space Station, Asta's vision nearly went black. She looked like she was about to lose it—already imagining her days as acting station master coming to an abrupt end.
If the space station was obliterated, what was left to manage? She'd have no choice but to go home and take over the family business.
But Yevenko's next sentence was like sunshine breaking through the clouds.
So… the forces attacking this time weren't particularly powerful. Or perhaps the Stellaron Hunters weren't coming to destroy the station at all.
And with the Astral Express crew present, their combined strength would likely be enough to hold the line.
Still…
Asta's gaze toward Yevenko turned slightly radiant.
This guy's valuable!
That earlier explanation clearly wasn't him intercepting some secret message from the Legion or the Hunters. It sounded more like some kind of predictive ability—possibly even bordering on prophecy.
The accuracy might not match the infamous script-level prophecies of Stellaron Hunter Elio, but it was still incredibly rare.
Maybe that's why his combat power is so low—he put all his skill points into prediction.
I wonder if there's a way to bribe him into staying on the station?
She began running through ideas. Maybe she could offer him a battleship. Or maybe… a battleship. Or—wait for it—a battleship.
But of course, that all depended on whether his warning proved true.
Himeko, too, had noticed Yevenko's oddity. She gave a thoughtful nod.
"Either way, we should be on alert now."
"Asta, as a friend of the Herta Space Station, the Astral Express crew will assist in the coming battle. Assign us wherever you need."
Asta didn't stand on ceremony. She nodded firmly.
"Understood."
Then she turned to Arlan.
"Arlan, send the alert. The station is to prepare for battle. All non-combat researchers are to be protected immediately. Go—now."
Arlan nodded crisply.
"Yes, Station Master Asta."
He quickly activated his communicator and began issuing commands. Asta did the same, relaying orders across the entire station with practiced efficiency. Arlan and the two guards from earlier rushed off.
During the brief lull, Asta asked Yevenko something that had been on her mind. As far as she could tell, he had no combat capabilities.
"Mr. Yevenko, do you need protection? We can assign you to stay with the researchers."
Yevenko shook his head immediately.
No way. He'd just made a discovery—when encountering characters like Asta, Himeko, and March 7th, his exploration value had increased significantly.
He'd already pocketed four Star Rail Tickets.
Just by meeting them! Players back in his world would cry with envy—they had to scour the map for ten minutes just to earn enough for a single pull.
He could only imagine: would defeating enemies increase his exploration value too? Or even… Stellaron Hunters?
So far, all the people he'd met were from the standard pool. What about limited characters? Would those drop Special Tickets?
Yevenko drifted into a dreamlike fantasy.
Bottom line: no protection. If he got sidelined, there'd be nothing left to farm.
He immediately flexed his bicep—which barely rippled, like the chest of a sad little golden retriever—and flashed a confident grin.
"No worries, Miss Asta. I'm actually quite strong."
"Even if the Nihility Envoy shows up, I could go toe-to-toe with them."
Tom, seeing Yevenko show off his "muscles," jumped in to support him. He flexed his own bamboo-like arm…
And in the next second, his bicep bulged high. Then a second bulge rose on top of the first—muscle stacking like a tower of pancakes, swelling until it rose above Tom's head.
Tom grinned wide, radiating smug confidence.
Asta looked from Yevenko's bicep… to Tom's. Her lips twitched. In the end, she only pressed her pink lips together and said gently:
"Well… I'll leave the space station's safety in your hands then, Mr. Yevenko. And this…"
"Tom. His name's Tom," Yevenko added.
"Then I'll count on you too, Tom," Asta said softly.
And so, Tom's name—like a pebble dropped into a vast cosmic lake—sent its first, tiny ripple across the universe known as the Star Rail.
Just a single wave.