Silver Wolf froze.
Never in her wildest dreams had she expected that the freshly activated Stellaron Vessel first words would be
"Wifey!"
Directed at her of all people?!
And wait a second…
Duckie?
Who on earth was Duckie?! She'd never even heard that nickname before!
Kafka, standing beside her, gave a small, deliberate cough and asked quietly,
"Didn't you say she'd remember me?" "Why is she calling you first?"
"How should I know…" Silver Wolf muttered, her face stiff with disbelief.
"This whole Stellaron Vessel thing was already weird from the start. I'm not even surprised it's acting up now."
Kafka's hand drifted toward the gun at her waist.
"Then should I just… deal with her?"
"Whoa, hold it right there."
Silver Wolf quickly reached out to stop her.
"You were the one who said this was all part of Elio's script, remember? I don't recall 'kill her' being in the script."
Kafka's eyes flicked back to the gray-haired girl before them.
"Fair point."
"Then let's hear what she has to say first. Yeah, that's probably best—wait, hey—!"
Before Silver Wolf could finish, the girl named Bai Ming suddenly leapt forward and tackled her into a hug.
"Ahhh—!"
Bai Ming sighed dreamily as she squeezed Silver Wolf tightly.
"You're even softer than I imagined! This dream feels way too real!"
"Dream…? Dream?!"
Silver Wolf frowned, realizing something was seriously off.
She pushed at Bai Ming's cheek, which was currently nuzzling from Bai Ming, after a while Silver wolf managed to put a little distance between them.
"This isn't a dream. And I'm not your 'wifey' or whateverv 'Duckie' is."
"You're… not?"
Bai Ming blinked, pulling back slightly.
"Right. I'm not."
Hands on her hips, Silver Wolf gave her a flat, exasperated look.
"Tell me—does that 'Duckie' you're talking about have my level of hacking skills?"
"Hacking skills…"
Bai Ming repeated the words softly, thinking for a moment. Then she nodded with a thoughtful expression.
"Yeah, you're right—you're definitely not Duckie."
"Whew—" Silver Wolf exhaled in relief. "Okay, so that's settled—"
"You're the hacking Bunny, right?" Bai Ming blurted out immediately imagining Silver wolf wearing Haxxor Bunny outfit
Silver Wolf turned to look at Kafka. "Maybe we should just put her down?"
"Eh?!" Bai Ming stumbled back a few steps.
"Hmph…" Kafka shook her head.
"No way. That would be boring—such an interesting specimen shouldn't be killed."
Kafka stepped forward and tugged at Bai Ming's chin, forcing her into a pout like a little octopus. "You're Bai Ming, right?" she asked.
"Y-yes, yes." Bai Ming stammered.
"All right then."
Kafka pinched Bai Ming's cheek lightly until the girl made a comical expression. Her tone softened as she spoke more seriously.
"Listen to me: this is not a dream."
Seeing the surprise bloom on Bai Ming's face, Kafka released her and continued in a low voice, meeting the girl's eyes.
"Look—your head's a mess right now. You might know who you are, but you don't know why you're here or what comes next. You may not know me well, or whether you can trust me…"
"No—" Bai Ming shook her head. "Your voice does sound familiar…"
"Oh? Is that so?" Kafka smiled faintly. "Even better."
"All that other stuff doesn't matter. What matters is I'm leaving—you'll be left alone on this station. From now on, don't dwell on the past, and don't doubt yourself."
"Listen: you'll face a lot of danger and terrible situations, but you'll also meet wonderful things. You'll find companions who'll feel like family, and go on adventures you could never imagine in your dreams…"
"And at the end of the journey, every riddle that haunts you will be solved. This is the future that Elio foresaw-the future you will one day reach. Do you like it?"
Bai Ming hesitated, then suddenly interrupted,
"Can't you take me with you instead?
If this is really reality… then isn't it dangerous to leave me here alone?"
Kafka smiled gently and shook her head.
"That won't do. We have to follow the rules."
Her voice softened, calm and reassuring.
"Listen to me—remember how you feel right now. As long as you hold onto your direction, you'll reach the end of your story."
"That's exactly why I like you!"
Bai Ming immediately grabbed her hand, her eyes sparkling with childish determination.
"Then you should take me with you! I really like big sisters like you!"
Kafka froze for a moment, clearly caught off guard.
Silver Wolf, standing to the side, sighed and gave her a flat look.
"How long are you two going to chat? According to the script, the Astral Express crew will arrive soon. We're not supposed to meet them."
"I know, Silver Wolf. Just a moment longer… only a moment."
Kafka turned back to Bai Ming, her gaze soft and warm.
"Time's almost up. I have to go now. Listen carefully: soon, others will find you. Go with them without fear. Other than me—you won't remember anything."
Her tone grew faintly distant.
"And when the time comes to make your own choice… don't let yourself regret it."
"I'm not regretting anything right now!" Bai Ming protested passionately. "Miss Kafka, take me with you!"
Silver Wolf groaned, looking annoyed.
"She's so noisy! She looks cute enough, but why won't she stop talking?!"
"Kafka, what are we supposed to do now? She clearly isn't going to just close her eyes and behave!"
Kafka smiled faintly.
"That's easy."
She stepped forward, slipped an arm around Bai Ming again, and gently pressed her against the cold wall of the space station.
With the same tender smile as before, Kafka leaned close and whispered—
"Bai Ming, could you close your eyes for me?"
> "Eh… o-okay…" Bai Ming murmured softly, blinking in confusion.
Kafka's voice carried a natural sense of calm—soothing, almost hypnotic.
Bai Ming nodded softly and slowly closed her eyes.
Kafka's face drew closer—inch by inch—toward Bai Ming's lips.
Then, in one swift motion, she grasped Bai Ming gently by the neck and pushed her lightly against the wall with a thud.
Bai Ming's body went limp almost instantly, her consciousness fading as she slid down the wall and collapsed quietly onto the floor.
Silver Wolf frowned, glancing at the unconscious girl.
"You sure that won't cause any problems…?"
Kafka smiled faintly.
"Don't worry. Anything Elio didn't write into the script doesn't matter."
She turned away, her tone casual but firm.
"Let's go."
"R-right…"
Before following, Silver Wolf turned to look once more at the cute gray-haired girl lying peacefully on the ground.
Her cheeks flushed slightly.
'Damn it.'
Why had her heart suddenly started racing when Bai Ming called her wifey earlier…?
She shook her head, scowling to herself.
She's a girl too… what the hell am I thinking…
"Silver Wolf, why'd you stop? Want to meet the Astral Express crew after all?"
"No way! I'm coming!"
And with that, she hurried after Kafka.
After they had gone, a faint, mechanical voice echoed beside the unconscious Bai Ming—
[Host life signs detected.]
[Honkai Impact 3 – Date Exchange System activated.]
-------
A/n: While I am a new translator, I have a Patreon! While it may be a bit empty right now both this and the other book on my page has advanced chapters posted on patreon. Set up for my web novel will be 2 chapters for every book a day and if you go to my patreon you'll see the set up there.
patreon.com/deadlygoober