"Sigh, I really don't know what to say about you guys."
At the door of Herta's office, Asta looked at the tightly closed door, letting out a helpless sigh as she addressed the trio behind her. "Now, getting Lady Herta to come out will probably take a lot of convincing."
Stelle, Dan Heng, and March 7th were crouched to the side, each holding a cup of coffee, none of them saying a word.
"What happened?"
Only Welt was still completely in the dark. From start to finish, he had only seen Herta once, and she had avoided him as if he were an Annihilation Lord, leaving him feeling quite helpless.
Asta's smile stiffened. "Uh… it's a bit complicated, hard to explain in a moment. But for now, we won't trouble you all further. Given Lady Herta's current mental state, she's really not suited to deal with strangers."
"Since we caused this mess, we'll take full responsibility," Himeko said, pausing for a moment.
"No need to trouble you, Big Sis Himeko," Asta said, gently pushing Himeko outward. "This matter is rather complicated, after all… Oh, by the way, once the space station's affairs are sorted out, we can continue discussing that 'matter' from last time."
"There's still a lot of work to do at the space station, so I won't see you off!"
With that, Asta hurriedly left, her retreating figure carrying a hint of something, leaving the group with puzzled expressions.
After sending them off, Asta quickly made her way to the logistics department of the space station. She swiftly located the person in charge. "If you don't want to be fired tomorrow for stepping in with your left foot, remember this: I never came to you, and I never secretly kept any of Lady Herta's discarded files. Understood?"
The person in charge fell silent for a moment before cautiously replying, "Stationmaster, you're so busy every day. This is my first time seeing you."
Asta nodded with satisfaction. "Very good."
…
"No matter how you look at it, our rescue operation at the space station was a complete success. Now, we should focus on the most pressing issue at hand."
Himeko cleared her throat and looked at Stelle, who was still holding her coffee, smiling faintly. "Before we parted, Asta sent me a video showing the entire process of your 'birth' in the Curio Collection Room."
Birth?
Hearing this word, Dan Heng and March 7th exchanged a glance. Why would they use that term for someone as fully grown as Stelle?
"'Birth' isn't exactly accurate, but the Stellaron Hunters implanted a Stellaron into your body, creating the you that exists now," Himeko said with a slight smile. "On behalf of the Astral Express, I'd like to invite you to join us on our journey."
"Great!"
Stelle nodded matter-of-factly, agreeing without hesitation.
Seeing how readily Stelle agreed, Himeko paused for a moment before reminding her, "But the path of Trailblazing is destined to be lonely and constantly filled with danger. Before boarding the Express, you need to be prepared."
"OK."
Himeko: …
"In that case, let's not waste any time. Come back to the Express with us," Welt said, removing his glasses and giving Stelle a firm pat on the shoulder. "Look, at this very moment, you've officially embarked on the Path of Trailblazing. I have a feeling…"
Stelle only felt her face burning with embarrassment.
Uncle Welt's chuunibyou tendencies were just too much for someone's social skills to handle…
…
"It feels so surreal."
On the Express, March 7th leaned against the sofa, watching Stelle as she was being presented with a train ticket by Pom-Pom. She suddenly spoke up.
"The journey of Trailblazing is like that. No one knows where the next step will lead," Dan Heng said calmly. "'The unknown' is what makes Trailblazing so captivating."
"Mhm."
March 7th nodded lightly, taking the camera from her waist and quietly capturing this monumental moment.
The instant Stelle received the ticket, it signified that she would officially become their companion.
Thinking back to the moment when they faced the Doomsday Beast's deadly beam and Stelle stood unflinchingly in front of her, March 7th couldn't help but let a smile creep onto her face—a smile as vivid and beautiful as a snow lotus melting under ice.
Click, click, click—
The camera's shutter snapped repeatedly, and Stelle, the subject of the lens, seemed to notice. She slowly turned her head, froze for a moment, then flashed a smile and made a "peace" sign with her hand.
Before crossing over, Stelle had thought more than once that with Stelle's face and figure, as long as she struck the right pose, she'd be an irresistible heartthrob to both men and women!
March 7th fought the urge to ruffle Stelle's hair and kept pressing the shutter.
"So cute…"
…
"Passenger Stelle, since you're a new passenger on the train, we haven't prepared a room for you yet, so you'll have to make do with this empty room for one night, pa," the fluffy conductor said, leading Stelle to the door of a spacious, bare room. "Though it hasn't been furnished, the conductor has always kept it clean, pa. Please rest assured, Passenger Stelle."
Stelle wasn't surprised by this. She simply stared silently at Pom-Pom's slightly curled tail, every hair meticulously groomed, looking incredibly tempting to play with…
Stelle shook her head vigorously, feeling a mix of amusement and exasperation. Did Pom-Pom's tail have some kind of cosmic power? Why was her mind automatically pulling up in-game dialogue options?
"Passenger Stelle, what are you looking at?" Pom-Pom noticed Stelle's gaze and took a small step back.
"Nothing, it's just my first time on the Astral Express, and I'd like to take a look around," Stelle said with a smile. "That's okay, right?"
"Of course! The Express is open to every Nameless guest in the galaxy, pa!" Pom-Pom replied. "If you need anything else, feel free to find the conductor, pa. I won't disturb you now."
With that, Pom-Pom waddled off on its short legs.
Stelle surveyed her current bare room. As Pom-Pom had said, it was indeed empty but impeccably clean, with only a desk placed by the window.
"Sigh, looks like I'll have to sleep in a cardboard box tonight…"
Stelle thought for a moment and decided to make do with a few cardboard boxes for the night. There obviously wasn't a recycling station nearby, so after a brief consideration, she decided to ask "Shush" for some.
Since the Express had a drink-mixing robot, there should be cardboard boxes for transporting supplies.
"Hey, Stelle, welcome aboard."
As soon as she went downstairs, "Shush" greeted Stelle. "Would you like to hear a joke?"
"Uh, no thanks. Do you have any spare cardboard boxes?"
"Shush" let out a soft chuckle. "If you're willing to hear a joke, I'd be happy to assist you."
Stelle sighed helplessly. "Fine, fine, go ahead."
"Question: When you've been on this train for a hundred years, you're still considered a new passenger. Why is that?"
Stelle thought for a moment. "Because no one else boarded in the meantime, so my seniority is always the lowest?"
Even as she gave the answer, she knew it didn't sound right—Old Man Imbibitor Lunae had boarded in the meantime, after all!
As expected, "Shush" said with a tone of regret, "I'm sorry, but that's incorrect."
"Then what's the answer?"
"Shush" polished a glass in front of it and said, "The answer: Because it's got Stelle-ar navigation, so it always lands at the brightest spots in the galaxy!"