Stelle was still punished in the end. What she had said had been way too un-Nameless.
The Nameless actually had a pretty good reputation across the cosmos. They were not the Antimatter Legion, or IPC-style capitalists, or anything like that.
"I heard Aha and Akivili had a rather delicate relationship. Is that made-up lore?" Alice asked curiously.
That was what a masked person had told her, and the way they said it had sounded so well-reasoned and convincing that it almost felt real.
"Well…"
Murata Himeko's mouth twitched. How was she supposed to know? But Aha really had been one of the Nameless. Even after doing that sort of thing, Aha had still never been struck from the Astral Express roster.
If someone said there was absolutely no relationship at all, even they would not believe it themselves. It was hard to say whether that counted as made-up lore or not.
"Aha is the strongest Emanator of Trailblaze, and Akivili is the strongest Emanator of Elation. The two of them gave each other those titles," Koji said.
"That made-up lore is total garbage, isn't it?" March 7th complained.
The strongest Emanator turning out to be an Aeon? Was that not a little too ridiculous? It sounded like a complete joke.
"Maybe it really is possible," Murata Himeko said slowly.
Everyone knew that the Aeon of Elation could not be judged by common sense, and Akivili was also an Aeon with plenty of personality. If the two of them could get along, then Akivili probably had a bit of that prank-loving nature too.
As for the idea that the Aeon of Elation had disguised itself as an ordinary person and infiltrated the train, maybe that could fool average Nameless. But could it fool Akivili, another Aeon? More likely, Akivili had simply allowed it.
Pom-Pom probably knew some things, but clearly had no interest in talking about that matter.
March 7th's mouth fell open. No way. Could something like that really have happened?
"By the way, how did you all even end up in Teyvat?!" Koji asked.
The Astral Express should not have arrived in Teyvat in the first place, but the fact remained that it had indeed appeared on the continent.
"We ran into a turbulent zone of unstable space, and then we fell into Teyvat," Murata Himeko said, sounding a little depressed when the topic came up.
They had been trailblazing for so long, and this was the first time something like this had happened. It was both absurd and helplessly funny.
The Astral Express, a train built for trailblazing, had actually crash-landed.
"Then your luck really was terrible. Was the Astral Express damaged?" Koji asked, looking at the Astral Express crew with sympathy.
"It is fine. Nothing serious happened to the train. After a period of repairs and rest, it will be able to return to the starry sea," Murata Himeko said.
"Can I go take a look?" Alice asked expectantly.
A train that could sail among the stars naturally stirred her curiosity.
"Pom-Pom is on the train. If you can get its permission, then yes, you can have a look around," Murata Himeko said. She could tell that Alice was not a bad person.
"Oh, right. Pom-Pom might hate bombs, so do not take any out, and do not damage the Astral Express."
As for why it hated bombs, that was obviously because of the incident where Aha, the prank-loving Aeon, had blown up the train.
If Alice showed up on the Astral Express carrying bombs, Pom-Pom would probably throw her out on the spot.
"I understand. Klee, come on. Mama's taking you to see the train."
Holding Klee in her arms, Alice flew off into the sky on her magic broom, heading straight for the train out at sea.
"She really is an enthusiastic person," Murata Himeko said, amused.
She was already a mother, and yet she still felt like someone whose childlike heart had never really faded.
"So witches really do exist. Are they the same kind of witches as Big Herta?" Stelle asked curiously.
Miss Big Herta, with that pointed hat of hers, certainly dressed the part of a witch.
"The Hexenzirkel is a very special organization here in Teyvat. Every member is outstanding in her own field."
"Some can perform divination, some can see the future, some practice alchemy…"
Hearing that, Welt asked, "Alchemy in the sense I am thinking of?"
In the wider universe, alchemy was not mainstream. It belonged more to the realm of mysticism, while science was still the dominant path.
"Yes, more or less. There is an alchemy master in Mondstadt. He was created by someone else, yet possesses human intelligence. His mastery of alchemy is so advanced that he can refine creatures of other races into humanoid form," Koji said with a nod.
"Human transmutation?" Welt said in surprise. That kind of achievement in alchemy really was astonishing.
"You can stroll around Liyue first. When you want to visit the other nations, I can be your guide," Koji said.
He had nothing much to do anyway.
"Koji, are you really that familiar with the other nations too?" Stelle asked.
"More or less. I have dealt with all of them. As for connections, I know quite a few people." Koji nodded, then vanished on the spot. He should probably go keep an eye on Alice and the others.
Aboard the Astral Express, Alice led Klee around to explore. It was not as high-tech as she had imagined, but the atmosphere was warm and cozy.
"Conductor, the Astral Express should be usable as a weapon too, right?" Alice asked with great interest.
"No. The Astral Express is not a weapon."
Pom-Pom immediately went on edge, almost bristling, as if it had just remembered something unpleasant.
The Astral Express was a means of transportation, yes, but it could also be used as a weapon by ramming into things. Even walls forged by the Amber Lord had once been smashed straight through.
Pom-Pom simply did not like that kind of crude behavior, but in the past it had not been able to overrule Akivili.
As for now, it was even less willing to let such a thing happen.
Without Akivili, the Astral Express was not easy to repair at all, and Pom-Pom cherished every single carriage.
"All right."
Alice smiled and followed Pom-Pom's train of thought.
From that, it seemed the Astral Express really had been used as a weapon before, sending enemies flying on impact.
Getting hit by the Astral Express really would be hilarious.
"Conductor Pom-Pom, are there any requirements for becoming one of the Nameless?" Alice asked.
Koji looked at Alice in surprise, but then he thought about her title as an adventurer. Alice really was an elf with a trailblazing spirit.
"There are no especially harsh requirements. As long as someone has the desire to trailblaze and their character is up to standard, the Nameless would be very happy to welcome them," Pom-Pom answered after a brief pause.
Becoming one of the Nameless had nothing to do with how powerful you were. What mattered was whether you truly possessed the spirit to explore and blaze new trails.
"What kind of character counts as acceptable?" Alice continued.
"Being able to unite with and help the other passengers, daring to oppose injustice, and never using your position to commit evil," Pom-Pom said simply.
After becoming one of the Nameless, one would definitely run into all kinds of trouble. Those were the challenges of trailblazing. But no one was allowed to use the name of the Nameless to do wicked things.
If someone did, then their identity as one of the Nameless would be revoked immediately. They would even be treated as an enemy of the Nameless. That kind of thing had happened before.
Those requirements were reasonable enough, but how many people could truly give up their current lives, step into the starry sea, and go blaze a path toward the future?
Alice nodded. The Nameless really were quite interesting. Their standards of character were impressively high.
(End of Chapter)
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