After hearing the strange noise.
Seele and Gepard both turned to look in the other direction at the same time.
In the snowdrift in the corner, a tuft of blue hair poked out, with two holes below it. Inside the holes, it seemed like eyes were staring intently at the three legends not far away.
"That voice sounds so familiar." Seele scratched her head, picked up her scythe, and with a stumble, swung it toward that side.
The large scythe spun continuously, accompanied by the whooshing sound of wind, and in almost an instant, it arrived in front of the snow pile.
"Ah! You're actually going for it!!"
In an instant.
A figure shot up like a rocket, launching into the air!
The scythe flew past right beneath him.
Then, the blue hair landed steadily again.
That scythe stabbed precisely into the snowdrift behind Sampo. He glanced back and immediately felt his legs go weak from fright.
He quickly turned to look at Seele, clenched his fist, and cursed:
"No way, is it really necessary! Why swing at me without even asking!"
"Oh." Seele replied lightly:
"I thought it was an enemy. You were lurking there the whole time—who knows what you were planning."
"What the fuck! An enemy?"
Sampo pointed at Seele in disbelief, gritting his teeth:
"My big bro already scanned this entire snowfield with his mecha—how could they miss a living person like me? They ignored me, but you're the one rushing to attack!"
Seele slowly placed her hands on her hips and said coldly: "Do you still want to hang around in the Underworld? Talking to me in that tone now?"
"Tch, what's there to be afraid of!"
Sampo puffed out his chest defiantly:
"You don't know yet, do you? I'm a legitimate citizen now—no longer the old Sampo! Heh heh, now I can trash-talk whoever I want!"
Hearing Sampo's words, Seele looked at Gepard in shock:
"What's wrong with him? Is he possessed?"
Gepard scratched his head awkwardly:
"Ahem, well… a few days ago, he paid all the fines he owed. Even the Silvermane Guards had no reason to arrest him anymore."
Seele's eyes widened:
"What? He actually paid his fines? Is that still Sampo???"
"Hmph!" Sampo puffed out his chest again, speaking proudly: "Didn't expect that, huh? Haha, Sampo has turned over a new leaf!"
"Ohhh~ Really~ now!"
Suddenly, a pair of gauntleted hands quietly placed themselves on Sampo's shoulders.
"???"
Sampo whipped his head around and met the eyes of a Silvermane Guard.
"Goddamn it! Why is it you again!"
Seeing the guard's face growing even redder, Sampo immediately pointed at him and yelled at Gepard:
"Didn't you say he'd been taken away for punishment? Why is this repeat-offender Guard still allowed on such an important operation!"
Gepard said awkwardly:
"At first, we didn't know this operation was that important. We thought it was just a regular merchant caravan in trouble. If it weren't for Mr. Dan Heng, we probably wouldn't have realized there were Stellaron Hunters here either."
Sampo's eyes bulged as he shouted:
"Didn't you hear my big bro say it? What Stellaron Hunters? Even if there were any, they're long gone! Let's just pack up properly and head back, okay?"
"Hiss~" A cold wind blew, and Sampo quickly hugged himself tighter. He'd been hiding in the snowdrift the whole time—his clothes were soaked.
"Baby~ Are you cold? If you're cold, come into my arms, okay?" Another pair of gauntleted hands wrapped around his slim waist from behind.
"…"
For a moment.
Within the Silvermane Guards' encirclement, two separate battlefields emerged.
The first battlefield was the silent confrontation among the three legends.
The second battlefield was old Sampo tangled up in a scuffle with a certain Guard.
"Fucking hell! You looking to die? Huh? I'll make you fucking annoy me, annoy me! I'll kill you! I'll fucking kill you!"
Sampo straddled the Guard, both hands viciously choking his neck, eyes practically splitting with rage!
Yet even though the Guard's throat was gripped and he was being beaten, in that moment he let out a sound of enjoyment.
"Ah~ Little greedy cat, I knew you missed me, hehehehe… cough cough cough cough…"
"I fucking—!!!!"
All the Guards, along with Gepard, stopped paying attention to the Astral Express group and gathered around these two to watch.
Seele squatted on the ground, covering her eyes:
"My god… Can things between guys really turn out like this? Is this some kind of twisted love?"
As soon as she said that, a Guard immediately stepped forward to retort:
"Miss Seele, that's not right. Does love have to be between a man and a woman? Does it only count if the genders are different? If so, what even is love anymore? That'd just be lust, right?"
Seele looked up, peering through her fingers at the Guard, and said:
"Hasn't it always been that way since ancient times? Love also has to take responsibility for the next generation. We exist now because our parents were one man and one woman—we have to respect that natural law, don't we?"
Another Guard stepped forward and spoke:
"Miss Seele, that's responsibility. But isn't love just about being responsible to each other?"
"?"
"Even if it's two guys, as long as they like each other mutually, have no objections, and can be happy together—why can't they be together?"
"?"
Seele scratched her head.
Why did she feel like what this guy was saying actually made sense!
…
"That's right—raising kids and all that, what does it have to do with our happiness right now? For old age? But retirement facilities these days are pretty good. Who knows, even if we have kids, we might still end up as empty-nesters?!"
"Yeah yeah, that esports retirement home sounds pretty nice. Once I save enough, I wanna give it a try!"
"We've gotta live in the present! After generations of hardship and blizzards, the tough days are finally over—can't we just live the way we want now?"
"…"
Seele silently turned her head to look at Gepard beside her.
"Don't you guys usually stay off the internet?"
"Ahem." Gepard gave an awkward laugh:
"I just don't go online much. Most Silvermane Guards don't either—but that doesn't mean no one likes browsing."
"6."
"Aaaaaahhh!! I'm begging you, stop acting like you're enjoying it! Just fucking scream already! Scream!"
Sampo rained blows down on the Guard. The latter, though bruised and swollen, was still moaning in ecstasy.
As if receiving a massage from a top-tier technician.
"Aaaaaaaaahhh! Fucking hell!!" Sampo raised his head, spread his arms, and howled at the sky.
He wanted to kill this Guard, but reason told him he couldn't!
If he really killed a proper Silvermane Guard, his life in Belobog would be over.
What awaited him wouldn't just be fines anymore.
"Ah—!! I fucking hate this so much!"
Sampo knelt down, hammering the ground with both hands, face full of indignation.
Tears flowed uncontrollably.
"Why… why is there such a lunatic! What's wrong with this world—getting beaten half to death can become some kind of pleasure now?!"
…
"Baby, are you crying for me?"
"…"
…
"Aaaaaaaaahhh—!!"