Riding the starskiff, Adrian and the three arrived at Evernight Pavilion first, resting in place for a bit.
"Going back to the earlier topic, regarding Kafka, what else do you want to know?" Adrian asked.
Stelle shook her head, still harboring countless doubts. "Her throwing herself into the net is very suspicious…"
"A fugitive who can peer into the future surrendering without resistance means, in her eyes, things [should be this way]."
"Is she really so assured? The possibilities of the future are nearly infinite."
Kafka's display of such composure instead made Stelle feel that she truly had the confidence to prove herself unrelated to this Stellaron Core crisis. Or perhaps, some mishap would occur during the Divination Commission's interrogation, allowing her to smoothly escape… Doubts piled up in Stelle's mind: Why did the Stellaron Hunters go to such lengths to bring them here? Why would a dangerous figure like a Lord Ravager appear on the Xianzhou Luofu? The more points of doubt she had, the more questions arose. What sort of future did the [Slave of Fate] exactly see behind this chain of actions?
The Galaxy Baseball Bat Hero fell into contemplation. Aside from Adrian, none of them knew that the Stellaron Hunters' [Script] had already become garbled code.
"'[The matter involves secrets and cannot be disclosed]'… is this the Xianzhou's motto? From the Sky-Faring Commission to the Divination Commission, everyone has this phrase on their lips. Only the General is affable and approachable."
"I'm starting to miss Sampo a bit… wait! How did that thought pop up? Have I gone mad? No, no, no, Xianzhou people are way better than Sampo!" March 7th hurriedly dispelled the dangerous idea in her brain. What decent person would drug them all unconscious and then bring them to the lower district! Moreover, normal people wouldn't hide in snowdrifts for no reason. She remembered Stelle even used a mimetic weapon to bonk him once.
Mentioning past events, March 7th recalled her experiences on Jarilo-VI: "Ugh, on Belobog we were chased until we were running all over, not even time to catch a breath. This time coming to the Xianzhou, we have plenty of time, but it's all spent on waiting."
"Chase, escape, and wait—perhaps life is just like this…" March 7th suddenly comprehended a life philosophy. This surprised Stelle greatly.
"Yo, you know how to write poetry now?"
"What's so hard about that? A beautiful girl, casually sighing—the sorrow exhaled is poetry. I at least still have some talent."
"Come on, shopping can heal all worries."
"Yay, the daily shopping segment once a day, let's go, let's go! Teacher Adrian, any recommended places?"
"Aren't we waiting for Dan Heng and the others?" Adrian asked in surprise.
"Mm… oh, right, in this unfamiliar place, we can't just abandon our companions willy-nilly!"
"It's very simple, I…"
"Hmph, hmph, hmph… aaaaaaaaaah!"
Not far from the square, a sudden wail of misery successfully interrupted Stelle right as she was about to speak.
"Damn, interrupted at the crucial moment!" Stelle took out her mimetic baseball bat, turning and running toward the source of the wail.
"Eh? What happened… let's go take a look too!" March 7th followed closely behind. Upon arriving at the scene, they saw a Cloud Knight soldier who had fallen into mara-struck.
"Sigh, that's why I didn't want to come…" Adrian supported his forehead, smiling wryly. He took a single step when a figure flashed past him at high speed.
"Everyone retreat!"
Running aflame with purple lightning, Bailu rushed over, delivering a running knight kick to fell the mara-struck soldier.
"Hurry and feed him this medicine, make him lie down obediently…"
Four massive shadows covered Bailu. Looking up, it was precisely the Cloud Knights who had successively fallen into mara-struck.
"I… I mean… make them lie down obediently…" Bailu's voice grew smaller and smaller, trying to use cuteness to muddle through, while her small hands went somewhat dishonestly behind her back, fumbling for something.
"That child is in danger!" March 7th summoned her ice lance, but unfortunately, the ice mist couldn't be instant-cast and still needed to charge for a period.
"Heh! This is the drawback of ranged bow soldiers. March, you retreat; let me handle it!"
Stelle protected Bailu behind her, charging up to engage the mara-struck soldiers in close combat. The crushing of combat power was one bat to a mara-struck little friend.
After the battle ended, Bailu walked before the beaten-down mara-struck soldiers, hands on hips.
"After getting a lesson, now you can lie down obediently, right?" She didn't forget to turn back and thank Stelle and March 7th: "Thanks to the big sisters for helping stabilize the patient's emotions! This [Heavy Blow Anesthesia] technique is quite impressive!" Bailu gave them a thumbs-up.
"Beating therapy—those who've experienced it all say it's good!"
"Ah, little sister… but I didn't do anything," March 7th scratched her head, feeling somewhat guilty.
"No problem. Big sister having this willingness to help is good enough! But with you all making a move like this, these few Cloud Knights' illnesses have actually gotten worse. I have to exert more effort to set their bones and bandage them. Damn, now I'm completely overwhelmed!"
Stelle was shocked again. The Xianzhou actually lets children treat people's illnesses? Had the Xianzhou's situation become so dangerous that even the child scouts were in the field!?
"Where did this child come from? Where's your dad?"
"I don't have a dad."
March 7th was at a loss for words for a moment. This child is too pitiful: "Ah… then where's your mom?"
"I don't have a mom either." Bailu's straightforward answer left March 7th completely stumped. Two sentences successfully made March 7th feel guilty for life.
Seeing the other's hesitant expression, Bailu again placed hands on her hips, spreading them: "I know, you see my tiny figure and think I must be a [little kid] who snuck out carrying my parents on my back."
"Hmph, this is the Xianzhou! Outsider short-life species little sister, don't judge by appearances. We Vidyadhara reincarnate self-sufficiently and don't need any dads or moms!"
"This lady, from the moment of molting birth from the water, has begun studying medicine, and in the Alchemy Commission, she's also a properly licensed and practicing physician!"
March 7th and Stelle exchanged a glance. It seemed their views were consistent. Belobog's children were still playing in the mud underground, while here the children could already proficiently treat people.
"Lately on the Luofu, things haven't been too peaceful. If you all…"
"If nothing's wrong, don't run around everywhere, right? What a pity, the Luofu's General gave us a job, so we inevitably have to run east and west," March 7th explained.
Hearing these words, Bailu thought pensively: "Then, if big sisters have any mishaps, falls, or injuries… I can give you all free consultations! Since you saved me, the medicine fee will be twenty percent off."
"Wait a minute, isn't this contradictory? Didn't you say free consultation?"
"Ha, do you know how many people on the Xianzhou Luofu want to get a number for this lady's specialist clinic but can't beg for it!"
"If not for not bringing enough money when sneaking out, this lady wouldn't go to… cough, cough! Enough idle talk; delaying the patient's diagnosis wouldn't be good."
"Got it!"
Under everyone's astonished gazes, Bailu took out a bottle about the size of her palm that looked like pop milk tea.
"Hey, hey, hey? Drinking milk tea in this kind of situation? As expected, still a child!"
"What are you saying? This is a specially made ointment for treating mara-struck!"