["Kakavasha?"]
[When Aventurine opened his eyes again, Kakavasha had already disappeared.]
["…Goodbye."]
[The sigh was like a heavily worn old chip, slowly falling into the deep pool of memory. Aventurine quietly walked to the front of the bright red curtain. He was only one step away from the final stage.]
["Alrighty—the actors are in place. The good show should begin. This performance is dedicated to you. I hope it can leave you with unforgettable memories..."]
[Aventurine suddenly looked back. His gaze seemed to pierce through long years of time, reaching that distant rainy night, where there was starlight wet with tears, and the warmth in his sister's palm that never faded.]
["…Kakavasha."]
[...]
[Sunday: "By the way, before you leave, I still have a rather personal question." He paused. "Do you… really want to personally destroy this world?"]
[Aventurine smiled deeply: "Hypothetically—just a hypothesis—if every time I throw the dice there is a probability of rolling this result... then I would definitely be very willing to take that gamble."]
——
Akame ga Kill!
"Hypothetically—just a hypothesis—suppose there is such a person who grew up from childhood in a tribe with a harsh environment. The tribe was constantly subjected to massacres and plunder by other tribes. His father died in an accident, and his own mother and older sister both died under the butcher's knife."
"As the last person of the tribe, he luckily survived, yet still had to be sold as a slave. After going through nine deaths and one life, he finally carved out a line of survival for himself..."
Wave couldn't help but let out a long sigh: "If it were me, I would have long wanted to hug the world and just explode on the spot. Maybe that would feel a little more psychologically satisfying..."
"Oh? I didn't expect Wave to say something that belongs to a terrorist."
Accompanied by a high-pitched male voice, a man dressed in a white lab coat in a scientist's outfit slowly walked into the room.
"Dr. Stylish!"
Dr. Stylish raised an eyebrow and smiled: "If Wave wants to hug the world and explode, I can help you with body modification and give you a hand with the latest type of explosives."
"Dr. Stylish, I was just joking." Wave scratched his head a little embarrassedly. "But does our Empire really have people with tragic experiences similar to Aventurine's?"
"Mm..." Dr. Stylish lowered his head and pondered for a moment. "There are. But people with tragic backgrounds exist in every world. It's not rare. Such people often develop antisocial personalities because of their childhood circumstances and harbor a desire for revenge against the world... Of course, most of them become terrorists… mm, most of the rebels outside are also this kind of people."
Dr. Stylish stared seriously into Wave's eyes: "So, Wave, when you encounter this kind of person, just kill them directly."
——
[On the streets of Golden Hour, Welt and Acheron had already successfully reunited with Stelle and the others. After briefly introducing themselves, Welt also got straight to the point and stated Acheron's current stance.]
[After everyone discussed unanimously, they believed that Aventurine, who was currently accusing Acheron, was the most suspicious. Welt guessed that he had already sensed the secrets of Penacony and taken action, only that it was currently unclear what position the Astral Express occupied in his plan.]
[The worst case... he might use the Express to do something extreme.]
[Since Acheron would set out together with everyone, the most urgent matter was to first find Aventurine. But coincidentally, the speakers on the street just then transmitted Aventurine's voice:]
["Ladies and gentlemen—"]
["The most astonishing and grandest performance in the history of Penacony is about to open—the Interastral Peace Corporation sincerely invites everyone to the scene—Clock Studios Theme Park!"]
[Himeko couldn't help but let out a "pfft" of laughter: "…See? If the actors and the audience can't even make it to the venue, wouldn't all of Aventurine's arrangements be wasted?"]
[Without further delay, everyone decided to rush to the park immediately. Only at the very end of the group did Acheron call out to Welt.]
["…Mr. Welt." Acheron asked a little doubtfully. "Why didn't you tell your companions about my 'true identity'?"]
["Just as you said—it's not that I'm unwilling, but that I cannot. That long story… is also difficult for me to relay to others in just a few words. But I am willing to trust you. My trust in you comes more from… personal subjective judgment. I also believe—even if it were them, they would make the same decision."]
["Thank you very much." Acheron smiled and nodded. "As a return, in the upcoming confrontation, if a situation disadvantageous to the Astral Express appears… I will stand on your side."]
["—Willing to offer what meager strength I have."]
——
Honkai Impact 3rd.
"By the way, how 'meager' can the 'meager strength' spoken by an Emanator be?" Kiana scratched her head. "Can she summon something like Jing Yuan's spirit of the divine general and then help the Express crew slash once?"
"I'm not too clear either... I remember she once slew Duke Inferno. Did she draw her blade at that time?"
In her impression, Acheron seemed never to have truly made a move. Himeko couldn't recall even the very few combat scenes. Just now she had mentioned the so-called "true identity"... most likely Acheron was not simply an Emanator.
The key point was—exactly which Aeon's Emanator was she?
Even in the Simulated Universe, during the period when [Propagation] once ran rampant across the universe, among the Aeons that appeared there seemed to be none whose Path could match Acheron. [Finality]? [Enigmata]?
An existence that can blur people's memories yet itself is not of the Path of [Remembrance]...
"So, is the current situation of the Express crew gathering together to raid Aventurine? Like fighting a boss in a game?" Bronya interjected from the side.
Kiana shook her head: "Not quite. Have you ever seen a boss raid where the party brings along an Emanator? If a battle really breaks out, Aventurine would be the challenger, okay?"
As she spoke, Kiana excitedly burrowed behind Mei: "Maybe we can soon see another 'Mei' make a move. Mei… are you happy? Are you excited?"
——
[Everyone arrived at the empty park, passed through the long corridor, and finally reached a broad stage.]
[Aventurine's voice came from the speakers all around: "Truly late, ladies and gentlemen of the Astral Express, and also this side's… [uninvited guest]."]
[Himeko: "We have come to keep the appointment, Mr. Aventurine. According to etiquette, you should also show yourself."]
[Aventurine laughed lowly: "Of course I will. But before that, I hope to properly introduce tonight's protagonist..."]
["Please welcome with applause—Miss [Stellaron]!"]
[Stelle smiled all over her face and waved openly toward the surrounding cameras: "Mom, I'm on TV!"]