Chapter 167: To: The Dim Star
[[]]: "Next up, one with deep emotions!"
[Stelle]: "Not heartbreaking, right?"
[[]]: "Healthy, uplifting, positive and sunny!"
[Silver Wolf]: "How many times have you said that? Do you think we can still believe you?"
[[]]: "At least... after I appeared, it's not heartbreaking in reality."
[Inside Herta Space Station, Stelle approaches a researcher who is muttering to himself: "Witty? No, better to be more heartfelt. Elegant? Hmm, slang shouldn't be written into poetry."
"Should I use [raven hair] or [white skirt hem] here? Ugh, this is giving me a headache..."
Stelle can't help her curiosity: "What are you doing?"
Only then does he snap back to reality: "Ah? I'm writing poetry. Can't you see? There are already several versions on that table over there."
"Sigh, your interruption reminds me - I've written so many versions already. Why hasn't Lily written back to me yet?"
Bernard beside him replies: "Hah, that Lily is the star researcher of [Herta's Abstruse Scroll Department], the only visiting scholar from our Amber Era to serve in the Abundance star domain."
"Would she have time to pay attention to you?"
Roche retorts: "Of course she has time for me! Since Lily left, we've been keeping in touch intermittently through the galactic radio relay."
"Even across tens of thousands of light-years, she wouldn't ignore me."
"She just didn't reply on time this time, that's all! The circumstances are special!"]
[Roche]: "Ah, it's the story of me and Lily!?"
[March 7th]: "So, what exactly happened?"
[Roche]: "This... I won't spoil it. If it weren't for this magical chat group brought by the light screen, Lily and I would truly have been separated by time."
[Silver Wolf]: "Then better not spoil it. Since reality turned out well, that means there's no heartbreak!"
[Stelle]: "Does Silver Wolf really want to experience heartbreak that much? To cry and then keep acting tough?"
[Silver Wolf]: "None of your business!?"
[Roche is extremely anxious and confused: "I really don't understand why Lily stopped paying attention to me right after I confessed..."
"We used to talk about so many things.
From which of the 101 Aeon rituals in the Abstruse Scroll Department require Gunther's beard. To..."
"How to [examine soil and stones] with astral probes to determine the waxing and waning of a planet's divine favor by assessing soil quality."
Listening to Roche's eloquent speech, Stelle can't help saying: "Bro, you're quite romantic?"
"You call this romantic? Then we've talked about plenty of [romantic] things."
"In our communication right before I confessed, she described an incredibly magnificent starquake to me."
Roche's tone carries a hint of pride: "Just think about it - a stellar death! Others would flee from it, but my Lily not only obtained first-hand observation data, but even saved a hitchhiker who narrowly escaped death."
Roche keeps talking about how wonderful his Lily is, while Stelle listens quietly beside him, with Bernard nearby scolding Roche for being unscholarly. Roche completely ignores his master's words and asks Stelle to check if there's something wrong with the relay. Stelle agrees.]
[Raiden Mei]: "Is this what people talk about when they're in love?"
[Kevin]: "Isn't it?"
[Silver Wolf]: "Science people, aren't they amazing!"
[Roche]: "Haha, isn't my Lily especially impressive!?"
[Lily]: "Roche, would you please shut up."
[Stelle]: "I can smell the dog food."
[Stelle first appreciates his beautiful poetic lines, then heads to the support cabin section to investigate that relay. Arriving at the relay, she indeed finds it damaged, detecting missing components.
Fortunately, right next to it is the [Hush-Bury Room] where abandoned curios are stored, so Stelle goes there to look for replacement parts.
After finding replacement components, Stelle assembles the three missing parts one by one— "Radiowavesonline~" The relay's self-check completes. "No transmitting radio signals detected. If needed, please select past signal records to view."
Facing so many chat history archives, Stelle doesn't find it troublesome and carefully goes through their sweet nothings. But the most records only go up to months 48-51, with no records after that. No matter how much Stelle searches, the relay's AI only says one thing: "No radio signal translation records for this time period."
"56 - present."
Stelle continues searching and finally finds some fragments. "Silly Roche, of course I understand what you mean. As for my answer..."
(Record damaged.) "The record gets damaged right here?!"
Stelle was enjoying reading the young couple's chat history, much like being left with a cliffhanger, and nearly couldn't hold back here.]
[March 7th]: "So sweet~ This is too sweet, right?"
[Sushang]: "Wait... Stelle, you can even fix this kind of thing?"
[Stelle]: "Heheh, see how skilled I am!?"
[Elysia]: "What a beautiful love story~ It's been so long since I've seen such beautiful, pure emotions♪"
[Guinaifen]: "Even little Guizi feels somewhat envious, not to mention those howling like ghosts and wolves in the group."
[As several months of chat history were exposed, many goblins everywhere felt their teeth itch with envy. There were no sweet nothings, just some very ordinary warm work daily life. But in the eyes of certain goblins, this was critical hit after critical hit! At Herta Space Station, Roche rarely blushed. Having his chat history seen by the entire universe, though nothing much, still felt quite embarrassing.
Facing this situation, Stelle easily figured out that someone might be messing with things. "Go investigate the monitoring room to see if there are clues...
Looks like someone tampered with the relay..."
Stelle acts immediately and runs to the monitoring room. Sure enough, in the monitoring room, she discovers that someone indeed tampered with it. "Although the surveillance only captured a blurry view, he looks like... Bernard!?"
Stelle smirks: "Now that I know who it is, time to go confront him."]
[March 7th]: "Bernard was the one who tampered with this relay? No wonder Bernard didn't let Roche go check it."
[March 7th]: "But why would he do this? Isn't Bernard Roche's master?"
[Sushang]: "Could it be like in those stories - broken engagement, dragon king, mismatched social status?"
[Stelle]: "Have you been reading too many novels? This is obviously impossible, okay?"
[Stelle]: "Roche, quickly confess honestly!"
[Roche]: "This... uh... I already said I won't spoil it!"