『 To March 7th's slightly insincere remarks, Stelle only smiled slightly.
[ I'm ready. Let's go find everyone. ]
Stelle had packed everything up.
[ Let's go, let's go! There's still some time before boarding, let's head to the Dreamjolt Hostelry and meet up with everyone. ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Stelle: "The Dreamjolt Hostelry… that's the bar Gallagher took us to before, right?"
Stelle: "In the blink of an eye, we're going back there, but why does it feel like a lifetime ago?~"
March 7th: "You're not kidding, it really does feel like that."
March 7th: "It's like the scene where Gallagher took us to that bar happened such a long, long time ago."
Furina de Fontaine: "I remember, it was right there that everyone learned the news about the Watchmaker, Mikhail."
Paimon: "And also!"
Paimon: "I also remember Mr. Gallagher making several drinks that looked super delicious for Miss Stelle and the others, using all sorts of weird ingredients!"
Gallagher: "Heh, it's rare that you still remember it so clearly."
....
『 The scene shifts to the street.
At this moment, Hotaru is quietly standing by the railing.
Admiring the bustling crowd on the street below.
[ How extravagant, just like Epsilon. How was it? Did it live up to your Dreamscape expectations? ]
Suddenly, a projection of Silver Wolf appears beside Hotaru.
She looks at the street scene below and asks Hotaru.
[ Heh, you asked this question when we first arrived here. ]
Hotaru answers with a soft laugh.
[ Yeah, I remember your answer was 'no' back then. ]
[ But after so much has happened, I think you're actually quite fond of it. ]
[ But a word of advice: don't forget you're still on the Bloodhound Family's wanted list. Keep a low profile. ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Hu Tao: "Wow, it's Miss Hotaru!"
Hu Tao: "Miss Hotaru has appeared in the dream again!"
Stelle: "My Hotaru-chan is still as cute as ever; it makes me feel at ease just looking at her."
Stelle: "But Silver Wolf, can your holographic projection go directly into the Penacony dreamscape?"
Stelle: "What kind of black technology is that?"
Silver Wolf: "Don't you know what I'm capable of?"
Silver Wolf: "Is this even a big deal?"
March 7th: "Miss Hotaru looks like she's in pretty good shape."
March 7th: "That makes me less worried."
Acheron: "Looking at her now, you can't tell at all that she's experienced inhuman suffering before."
Acheron: "I can only say, her willpower has long been incredibly tough."
Furina de Fontaine: "Is Miss Hotaru trying to do something by appearing in the dream again?"
Paimon: "I guess, is Miss Hotaru trying to keep looking for Miss Stelle?"
Lumine: "Oh, right, they agreed before to meet again in the waking reality."
Lumine: "As of now, although they are still in a dream, it can be considered waking, right?"
Stelle: "Yay! I can see cute Hotaru-chan again!"
Stelle: "I want to play with the Sam transformation device!"
Qingque: "I knew you were greedy for someone else's transformation device, you shameless person!"
Stelle: "I am greedy, so what! None of your business!"
Hotaru: "(Covering mouth and laughing.jpg)"
Xiangling: "Miss Hotaru is still wanted by the Bloodhound Family… won't she get caught?"
Li Sushang: "But with the security quality of the Bloodhound Family… can they really catch anyone?"
Li Sushang: "Besides, they are trying to catch a well-trained warrior like Miss Hotaru?"
Guinaifen: "If I may be blunt, I don't think they can catch her."
Boothill: "I don't even want to talk about the level of those Bloodhounds."
Boothill: "They're only good at bullying ordinary people."
....
『 Hearing Silver Wolf's reminder, Hotaru nods.
[ And this time it's different from the past. The one in the photo isn't Sam, but Hotaru—for you, this should be a fairly novel experience, right? ]
Silver Wolf adds.
[ Indeed, in Kafka's words… this is also a missing part of my life. ]
[ However, not being able to move freely is still quite inconvenient. ]
[ Silver Wolf, can you help me? ]
Hotaru looks at Silver Wolf expectantly, seeking help.
[ I knew you'd say that—don't worry, it's already taken care of. I hacked the system completely, didn't leave a single trace. ]
[ Don't do anything eye-catching, don't provoke any guards who have an impression of you. Follow these two points, and no one will care about you. You can go wherever you want. ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
March 7th: "Sigh, I have to say, having a top-tier hacker as a teammate is really quite nice."
March 7th: "Dan Heng… tell me, why aren't you a hacker?"
Dan Heng: "…."
Dan Heng: "If you want the Express to have a hacker's help, you can become one yourself."
March 7th: "Me??"
March 7th: "Forget it!"
March 7th: "I'm completely clueless about this stuff!"
Stelle: "Silver Wolf, why don't you switch jobs!"
Stelle: "How much do you get paid at the Stellaron Hunters?"
Stelle: "THE ASTRAL EXPRESS WILL PAY DOUBLE!!"
Pam: "Ah, this…"
Pam: "With our operating funds… I'm afraid we can't afford to hire a member of the Stellaron Hunters, Pam…"
Silver Wolf: "Salary?"
Silver Wolf: "Do I look like the kind of person who cares about money?"
Kafka: "Oh my, Stelle, you can't try to poach someone right in front of me~"
Furina de Fontaine: "I can tell, Miss Silver Wolf's methods seem miraculous."
Furina de Fontaine: "As expected of someone with a bounty of billions!"
Aventurine: "Sigh, poor Family, their own security system was hacked without them even knowing. How embarrassing."
Silver Wolf: "What?"
Silver Wolf: "Are you very confident in your company's system?"
Silver Wolf: "Did you forget how I hacked it last time?"
Aventurine: "Ahem…."
Paimon: "It's so good, Miss Silver Wolf's position in the Stellaron Hunters organization is clearly a technical expert!"
Paimon: "Paimon also wants to be as excellent as Miss Silver Wolf!"
Lumine: "Paimon, you'd better not think about it. With your intelligence, you probably can't learn such complex things."
Lumine: "You should just honestly be my emergency food."
Paimon: "Damn it, Lumine, you bad person!"
Paimon: "Don't treat Paimon as emergency food!"
....
『 [ Thank you. ]
Hotaru smiles brightly and thanks Silver Wolf.
[ Don't mention it, Ms. Samuel—haha, I like this alias. ]
[ Our mission in Penacony is already complete. What do you plan to do with your free time? ]
[ I heard that people from the Genius Society are here too. Want to go do something big with me? ]
Silver Wolf invites Hotaru with interest.
[ You know, my script isn't over yet. ]
Hotaru shakes her head. 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Stelle: "Ms. Samuel?"
Stelle: "Good guy, Silver Wolf, you're quite thoughtful."
Stelle: "You actually got a fake identity for Hotaru."
March 7th: "With this fake identity, as long as she doesn't run into any Bloodhound acquaintances, she can really rest easy, right?"
Silver Wolf: "Don't look down on the Bloodhound Family that much."
Silver Wolf: "This fake identity can only guarantee her free movement in Penacony for a short time."
Silver Wolf: "After a long time, there will definitely be flaws."
Asta: "Silver Wolf said people from the Genius Society are here too?"
Asta: "Ms. Madam Herta, could it be you?"
Madam Herta: "I have no interest in going to Penacony."
Screwllum: "Deduction: I plan to start a new research project in Penacony."
Screwllum: "Conclusion: The Genius Society member Silver Wolf mentioned is likely me."
Silver Wolf: "Oh, so it's an old rival!"
Silver Wolf: "Then I have to go join in the fun!"
Furina de Fontaine: "Compared to this… I'm more concerned about the unfinished script Miss Hotaru mentioned!"
Furina de Fontaine: "What exactly is written on this unfinished script??"
Hanabi: "Hehehe~ you know, my 'knife' isn't finished yet."
Hanabi: "Next, I, Hanabi-sama, am going to randomly find someone to cut."
Hanabi: "Guess who this person is?"
Stelle: "Wuwuwu, Director Hanabi, I'm kneeling to you!"
Stelle: "Please don't 'cut' my Hotaru!"
March 7th: "Stelle, when did you become such a coward?"
March 7th: "You're already kneeling and begging for mercy?"
March 7th: "Didn't you say you wanted to spank her before?"
Stelle: "I can't help it, she's suspected of planting something big in Penacony."
Stelle: "I always have a feeling that it's going to be the end of me."
Hu Tao: "Could it be that in the end, Miss Hanabi is the ultimate villain of Penacony?"
Hu Tao: "Everything before was just a small appetizer?"
Navia Caspar: "I hope… Penacony won't really end up in a bloodbath…"
Navia Caspar: "Otherwise, all the effort will be in vain."
....
『 [ Sigh.... I didn't send you back just for you to do this kind of thing. ]
Silver Wolf sighs at Hotaru.
[ Don't worry. ]
[ The script just says that the Planet of Festivities will grant me three deaths. ]
[ But it also mentions that I will gain unforgettable harvests here. ]
[ You won't know unless you try. ]
[ Before the result actually happens, all possibilities exist, right? ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Guinaifen: "Fam, let's just say, this 'death' definitely isn't literal, right?"
Qingque: "That's hard to say."
Qingque: "At least Miss Hotaru's first two deaths weren't real deaths."
Qingque: "But this last one…."
Feixiao: "For this last one, who knows if it'll be a big one?"
Feixiao: "I can only say that people who write scripts like this are usually crazy."
Jiaoqiu: "Heh, it's called a script, but in my opinion, it's more like a riddle."
Boothill: "Fudge, the thing I hate the most is riddlers!"
Stelle: "Silver Wolf, tell me honestly, what is the ending of this script?"
Silver Wolf: "You're asking me?"
Silver Wolf: "Unfortunately, Elio's scripts are always short and concise."
Silver Wolf: "Before things actually happen, no one knows the true direction of the ending."
Silver Wolf: "Maybe it's good, maybe it's bad."
Silver Wolf: "It depends on… the choice of the person involved!"
Acheron: "Choice, huh?"
Acheron: "In other words… even Elio, who can see a corner of the future, cannot assert that it is the definite future."
Acheron: "Heh… it seems he is also doing his best to fight against fate…."
Welt Yang: "Hmm…. I have gained some understanding."
Welt Yang: "Elio's script likely only serves as a guiding role."
Welt Yang: "If it were written too much, it would instead limit the infinite possibilities of the future."
Welt Yang: "That is something he would not want to see."
March 7th: "In other words, the result of Miss Hotaru's last death is really hard to say?"
March 7th: "Wuwu… please! IT MUST, MUST BE A GOOD RESULT!!"
....
『 [ You might not know that you have a bad habit: Whenever you seem to be asking a question, you've actually already made up your mind in your heart, and nothing anyone says can dissuade you. ]
[ Never mind, Kafka asked me to bring a message: If you see anything good in Penacony, help me bring one back too, just swipe my card, you know the password. ]
[ She didn't specify, I guess it's a dress, coat, or sunglasses or something….. anyway, you know more than me, you two are usually the ones talking about these fashion topics. ]
Silver Wolf relays Kafka's words to Hotaru.
[ Okay, I'll keep an eye out. ]
[ Oti Mall has many choices. Do you think she would like pretty little decorations, like… hair accessories and brooches? ]
Hotaru asks after thinking for a moment.
[ Hmm… sounds more suitable for a little girl, you should keep them for yourself. ]
[ Oh, also, Blade told you to be careful. ]
[ He didn't say it explicitly, but that's mostly what he meant—Temptation will show up again in Penacony—he is really subtle when he speaks. ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Hotaru: "Haha, Silver Wolf mimicking Blade, she really sounds like him."
Silver Wolf: "Blade's way of speaking is just hard to understand."
Silver Wolf: "Might as well rename him 'Riddler Blade'."
Blade: "….I am not speaking in riddles."
Blade: "You can understand what I mean."
Stelle: "Oh? What kind of riddles does Blade usually say?"
Silver Wolf: "There are so many."
Silver Wolf: "What he used to have on his lips all the time was something like—Of the five people, there are three prices… whoever, you are not one of them, etc."
Silver Wolf: "How about it? Doesn't it give people a feeling of being pretentious?"
Dan Heng: "….."
Lumine: "Uh… there is indeed a bit of that."
....
『 [ It's okay, he's just being kind. ]
[ Don't worry, Silver Wolf, you know me. ]
[ I won't do anything, I just want to walk around, use my own two legs, and feel this world a bit more. ]
[ I want to buy some Oak Cake Rolls. I've had a cake roll every day since I arrived in Penacony, from the first day to the last. ]
[ But today, I'll buy two and give you one. And if you don't like them, I'll enjoy double the pleasure. ]
[ Or I can bring it to Kafka, she would never refuse, or… give it to Blade, he would like it. ]
[ Ha… there won't be any of this in the script, right? But as you see... ]
[ I've added new footnotes to my destiny. ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Furina de Fontaine: "Miss Hotaru cannot defy the script…."
Furina de Fontaine: "But before the scene described in the script arrives, she can choose the way of life she wants!"
Paimon: "So…. this is what a choice is?"
Paimon: "Hmm…. Paimon suddenly feels like she understands a lot."
Dr. Veritas Ratio: "A very positive attitude towards life."
Dr. Veritas Ratio: "Worth affirming!"
Dr. Veritas Ratio: "I wish you could get what you wish for."
....