Sylvia once again boarded the parked Astral Express.
This time, her guide was March 7th.
Bright lights illuminated the main passenger car after boarding, and not a single member of the crew was in sight.
March 7th beckoned, pulling Sylvia inside.
"Everyone should be resting in their rooms right now, and the Conductor... probably resting too."
Come to think of it, March truly had no idea what the crew was tinkering with these days.
Although Pom-Pom showed up every day, they could be a bit elusive in a way.
Leading Sylvia through the parlor car, March chatted as they walked:
"That girl Stelle hasn't come back to the train to sleep for days. When asked, she just says she's staying at that hotel in Aurum Alley."
"She even sleeps in Aurum Alley?"
Sylvia looked at March 7th, surprised.
She kind of figured Stelle would at least come back to the Express to sleep at night. Turns out she doesn't even bother coming back to the train at all, huh?
Tsk, tsk.
Sylvia clicked her tongue and chuckled:
"Rebellious phase?"
"Pfft... at her age, having a rebellious phase?"
March 7th passed through the automatic door connecting the cars.
The second room down was March 7th's bedroom.
"Come in, come in! Hehe, I never thought you'd actually ask little ol' me to take your picture, Sylvia."
March pushed the door open, revealing a room full of girlish charm.
It was a bit messy, but not dirty.
The bed was unmade, clearly showing its owner never bothered to fold the blankets after getting up.
Maybe she caught Sylvia's glance, as March rubbed her head sheepishly: "Hehe, we don't usually have guests here, so it's pretty casual..."
"No worries, it's actually nice."
Sylvia sat on the chair March pulled over. A display board on the adjacent wall cycled through photos March had taken.
Sylvia spotted some of herself, and some of Belobog, a place she hadn't visited.
"Is this a place you all stopped before coming to the Luofu?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah, yeah! A place called Jarilo-VI. Don't know if Stelle ever told you the stories from there, but there's a bunch of really interesting people there too."
March 7th enthusiastically dug out a few photos of Belobog to show Sylvia.
Among them was a picture of a fluffy white little bear.
"Hehe~ Pretty good at this, aren't I? Look at this thrilling action shot!"
As she spoke, March laid out several photos of Doomsday Beasts, giant mechs, and Phantylia.
March's photography perfectly captured the oppressive presence those enemies should have as final bosses.
There was also a picture of Sylvia with her back to everyone, facing down a Doomsday Beast.
After some lighting adjustments and retouching, it gave off a powerful sense of destined confrontation.
Sylvia understood the logic, but what she couldn't quite grasp was, okay, using CG screenshots from a game as photographic Easter eggs made a certain kind of sense.
But in this reality—
"…Not bad, not bad at all, but how exactly did you manage to snap these moments while fighting enemies?"
Sylvia tapped the photo of the Doomsday Beast.
She wouldn't even question how March took it.
"But if I remember correctly… weren't you almost hit by that Doomsday Beast's attack back then? And you still had the presence of mind to take pictures?"
"Hehe, that's my little secret~"
March 7th winked playfully at Sylvia.
"A girl's secrets are what keep her charming! Anyway, just tell me, are the photos good or not?"
"They're pretty good…"
"Hehe, glad you like them! Then let's get started. If you need to change clothes, want me to look away?"
Camera ready, March gestured at Sylvia, bubbling with enthusiasm.
"Just turn around."
"Okay, just give me a holler when you're done."
March faced the photo wall, waving back at Sylvia.
Seeing this, Sylvia transformed her body into the likeness of Mei.
Then, using the tech device again, she materialized the outfit she'd designed earlier.
Following that, she used the Heliobi's power to replicate the Herrscher of Thunder's weapon.
The asymmetrical armor, black with red accents.
It suited Mei's mature yet aloof features perfectly.
"I'm done—"
Even her voice had become a touch cooler.
"Okay— Whoa?! Y-y-you— you're Sylvia?!"
March turned around with a smile, then jumped back in shock at the completely transformed person before her.
You call this changing clothes?
You literally changed into a whole different person!
"Yeah, it's me."
"But this— your height and build changed too!! How can changing clothes do that?!"
"This is just a little ability of mine. It's my secret too~"
"…"
The boomerang returned so swiftly, March was left speechless.
But this kind of behavior definitely wasn't something that Acheron could pull off.
"March? Let's start shooting."
"Oh, right…"
Her professionalism helped March push aside her confusion for the moment.
She raised her camera.
Seeing this, Sylvia struck the pose she remembered from the Herrscher of Thunder.
At the same time, flames burst forth with a fwump, replicating the form of those armored arms.
March, having seen stranger things, pressed the shutter.
Even though the room's background clashed a bit, Sylvia's look was still pretty good on camera, at least.
The white stockings, which should have made legs look thick, instead gave Sylvia's legs a fuller look on her.
Especially the black inner fabric subtly pressing into her skin—March's eyes widened a bit.
"My room's not really suitable. Let's go outside and shoot?"
A slightly dimmer setting would work better.
"Sure."
Sylvia stepped out, March following behind, watching her stand in the slightly dim corridor.
She raised the camera and snapped away at her silhouette.
"Woo-hoo! Next, the parlor car!"
March trotted ahead, even purposely dimming the lights.
A good model sparks creativity.
Clearly, March was feeling that spark now.
She had Sylvia pose from one end of the train to the other.
She even stepped outside the train and took several shots with the Astral Express as the backdrop.
--+--
Meanwhile—
Welt, who had some rare free time lately and had been visiting the Artisanship Commission often, heard a commotion outside his room while resting.
And March 7th's peculiar shrieks.
He picked up his glasses, a faint smile appearing.
After everything they'd been through lately, it was good to see March so energetic.
But still…
It was this late.
Probably best not to be too loud.
Thinking this, Welt put on his coat and left his room.
He planned to remind March to keep it down, and also see what she was so excited about at this hour.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.