When March 7th found Felicity and Stelle, they were rummaging through trash cans in a corner of the space station.
"Ew, what are you two doing!?"
March 7th was utterly shocked. She stared blankly at her two new friends, unable to comprehend why they'd show such enthusiasm for a trash can.
"March, you came at the perfect time!"
Hearing March 7th's voice, Felicity's eyes lit up. She immediately turned her head and waved at March 7th, saying,
"This Stelle always finds good stuff in trash cans, but I never find anything. Come help me test whether it's my problem or hers!?"
She looked indignant, as if protesting some unfair treatment.
"Don't get angry about something like that!"
March 7th facepalmed in exasperation.
While they were talking, Stelle had already opened the next trash can. Her eyes sparkled as if golden light was faintly glowing from beneath the lid.
It seemed that in her eyes, this was no longer a trash can - it was a precious treasure chest.
She searched carefully and soon found the treasure she sought. She lifted it with both hands, raising it high above her head so everyone present could see its true form.
—Protein rice.
"You call this good stuff?" March 7th glanced at Felicity with a strange expression.
"Hey now, March, there's an old saying from my hometown: 'Every single grain comes from hard work.'"
Felicity wagged her finger, putting on a pained expression. "Protein rice is nature's gift to civilization, humanity's good friend, the savior of life! If even this doesn't count as good stuff, then what do we have left?"
"Hiss, that makes sense... Wait, no! What kind of logic is that..."
March 7th almost got swayed by the argument. She glared fiercely at Felicity and loudly retorted, her words filled with lingering fear of nearly being convinced.
"Tch."
"You just clicked your tongue, didn't you? You absolutely just clicked your tongue! You really want to drag me into garbage picking with you, don't you!"
"No."
Felicity guiltily averted her gaze.
"...Never mind, I didn't come here to argue about this."
March 7th deflated instantly. Though normally impulsive and scatterbrained, she found herself completely outmatched when facing the even more eccentric Felicity and Stelle, quickly abandoning the topic.
"Himeko said the train's all tidied up. You can go back and organize your rooms now. We can finally go on adventures together! Uh... what are you doing?"
March 7th seemed to be imagining their future travels together, growing more excited with each word, her face brimming with anticipation—until—
—Stelle returned from the trash can, stood before March 7th, bowed, and presented a thick stack of credits with both hands.
"Friendship fee. Good friends all do this. Felicity told me."
Stelle replied as if stating the obvious.
"You..."
March 7th turned to Felicity, momentarily speechless.
...
"Don't just blindly copy everything you see from now on!"
March 7th lectured Stelle with an exasperated expression, having spent considerable time convincing her that friends don't need to pay friendship fees.
Stelle merely nodded blankly, leaving it unclear whether she truly understood.
Meanwhile, the instigator Felicity sat comfortably on the observation car's sofa, engrossed in a comic book.
"Homu's Great Adventure"—looked quite interesting. How come she'd never heard of this comic series before?
"So, are you getting along well with the others?"
Himeko sat gracefully nearby, sipping coffee while regarding Felicity with gentle warmth.
"Not bad. Stelle's quite obedient, and March 7th is rather amusing."
Felicity flipped through the comic while answering absently.
"Hey! That's clearly not how normal people evaluate friends!"
March 7th immediately protested.
"Exactly! I've always been very receptive to advice."
Stelle chimed in from the side.
"See, even Stelle agrees... Huh?"
March 7th tried to press her advantage but suddenly realized Stelle wasn't actually on her side, her expression instantly turning wounded.
Damn it, Stelle—have you betrayed me too!?
"Heh, youth is wonderful."
Watching the group's interactions, Welt couldn't help shaking his head with a faint smile.
He glanced at Felicity's comic, his expression tinged with nostalgia.
"The train has finalized our next destination. If you want to bid farewell to anyone at the space station, now would be the time."
Himeko reminded her kindly.
"I've already said everything that needed saying. No need to worry about me."
Having finished the comic, Felicity stretched lazily. Gazing at the cosmos through the observation car's window, she took a deep breath and exhaled heavily.
She rarely visited the viewing platforms back at the space station—her cosmic drifting before Herta found her had left her with unpleasant memories of space.
But now, sitting safely aboard the train and quietly observing the distant universe through its windows, she could actually appreciate its subtle charm.
"The galaxy is beautiful, isn't it?"
Noticing Felicity's shift in demeanor, Himeko chuckled softly: "Even after visiting so many planets, I still know very little about the galaxy. It's just too vast."
"It's incredibly vast."
Felicity had quite the authority to speak on this matter.
"Hehe, exploring secrets in such a boundless universe is what we Nameless do!"
March 7th cheerfully joined in, taking Felicity's hand as if she'd been looking forward to this moment for ages, her eyes sparkling:
"This is your first time experiencing the train's warp jump, right? Must be pretty nerve-wracking? Hmph, let this seasoned senior teach you how to relieve anxiety and stress!"
Being the last to board the train, she had always been treated as the junior by everyone. Now that two peers had finally joined the train, how could she miss this chance to play the senior role?
Felicity blinked, hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
Partly because she couldn't bear to disappoint March 7th's anticipation, and partly because she wanted to see what peculiar methods March 7th would come up with.
"Hmph, just leave it to your mature and reliable Senior March! Stelle, you come over too - March's little class is about to begin!"
March 7th proudly lifted her chin, twirling a finger while her head swayed along in sync, chirping happily:
"Step one: identify the source of your anxiety."
"..."
It's clear that March 7th is really trying hard to play the role of a senior.