Just as Flandre Scarlet was wailing loudly in her sister's arms, Yukari Yakumo turned her gaze toward the east, her eyes narrowing slightly. "Someone from the convoy is approaching. Who will go to meet them?"
"Sakuya, you go," Remilia Scarlet said, her tone regal despite the fact that she was currently acting as a human pillow for her sobbing sister. "Flandre is a bit... overwhelmed right now."
"Yes, Milady!" With a crisp response, Sakuya Izayoi vanished on the spot, leaving not even a ripple in the air.
At that moment, Zhang Wei was cautiously leading a small reconnaissance team forward. His nerves were frayed; the silence following those earth-shaking explosions was almost more terrifying than the noise. He was extremely worried because Flandre hadn't returned. He knew that if anything happened to her, even if the supplies reached the Reunion Movement, his head would likely be on the chopping block back in Lungmen, he could already imagine a certain tiger and a dragon tearing him limb from limb. Steeling himself, he guided the vehicle around a bend, only to see a maid in a pristine apron standing directly in the middle of the road.
Before he could even hit the brakes, the maid vanished. His heart hammered against his ribs, but before he could shout a warning, a calm, composed voice sounded right by his ear.
"The Ursus forces ahead have all been eliminated. The Second Young Lady is with the First Young Lady. Have the convoy proceed quickly."
Everyone in the vehicle turned their heads so sharply they nearly gave themselves whiplash. The maid was standing right there, just outside the window. When did she get there? A cold sweat broke out on everyone's back. Sakuya Izayoi offered no further explanation. She gave a slight, perfect bow and vanished into thin air once more.
"What should we do?" The team looked at Zhang Wei, their faces pale. After a moment of heavy hesitation, he picked up the walkie-talkie.
"The road ahead is clear. All vehicles, follow up and prepare to move through quickly."
Seeing the puzzled and frightened looks of his teammates, Zhang Wei explained his reasoning. First, the maid's accent was a strange, sophisticated mix of Victoria and Leithanien, with a slight Higashi lilt. As one of Wei Yenwu's trusted aides, he knew Flandre had mentioned an older sister. Connecting "Second Young Lady" to Flandre made perfect sense. More importantly, if a person who could move like a ghost wanted them dead, they'd already be corpses. There was no need for theatrics.
As the convoy slowly rolled onto the battlefield, the collective gasp from the drivers was audible over the engines. The land was a shredded mess of scorched earth and twisted metal. When Zhang Wei climbed to a higher vantage point and looked north, he forgot how to breathe.
Two massive, smoking lumps of metal sat in the distance, groaning as secondary explosions occasionally ripped through their hulls. Don't fucking tell me those are High-speed Battleships! he thought, his mind reeling.
He led his people toward the small hillside where several figures stood. Next to Flandre was a girl who looked roughly her age but radiated an aura so imposing it felt like a physical weight. Several other women stood around them, all appearing perfectly unscathed.
"I am—" Zhang Wei began, trying to sound professional.
"Zhang Wei, right?" Remilia interrupted, not even looking up from Flandre. "Although I am displeased that you used my sister and let her face danger alone, part of this was Flandre's own request. Considering you have taken decent care of her during this time, I can let it pass."
Zhang Wei felt no resentment at the interruption. He just felt lucky to be alive. He realized that if the younger sister was a "monster" who could change a battlefield, the older sister was something else entirely.
"Young man, we are all friends of Flandre," Yukari Yakumo said, stepping forward with a fan covering the lower half of her face. "We came out to find her and plan to travel around a bit. Could you spare a vehicle for us?"
Zhang Wei didn't hesitate. He gave up the command vehicle he and his guards were using, squeezing himself and his men into the back of a cargo truck. "It's no problem at all!"
However, the convoy didn't move far. The lead mine-clearing vehicle suddenly began beeping frantically—the road ahead was a five-kilometer death trap of Ursus mines. Flandre, having finally finished her crying, wiped her eyes and grabbed Remilia's hand.
"I'll go!" she chirped.
Remilia sighed, looking at the pockmarked road. "Forget it, I'll go with you. I can't have you messing up your new clothes the moment you put them on."
The others decided to join in to see the sights of Terra, except for Patchouli Knowledge. She had overexerted herself suppressing the Ursus regiment, and her naturally weak constitution was failing. Eirin Yagokoro and Sakuya stayed behind in the vehicle to tend to her.
While flying, Flandre counted the group: Remilia, Sakuya, Patchouli, Yukari, Eirin, Ibuki Suika, and the scout Aya Shameimaru, who had already flown ahead. Seven in total. Remilia explained that the "Border" between worlds was difficult to cross and consumed immense energy; for now, the rest of Gensokyo was waiting for Aya's report before deciding whether to follow.
At the head of the convoy, Flandre and Remilia held hands. A massive magic circle flared behind them, and a rain of Magic Bullets poured forth. They flew low, detonating the buried mines in a continuous, deafening roar. Though the road was left pitted and scarred, the danger was neutralized.
Back in the vehicle, Flandre snuggled into Remilia's embrace, looking happier than she had since arriving on this planet. The group watched her with silent intensity. Ibuki Suika had previously suggested that the only way to know if Flandre was "real" was her reaction to Remilia. A fake or a possessed soul would have been wary of the Scarlet Devil Mansion's mistress. Seeing her so clinging and dependent, they knew their Flandre was back.
An hour later, the convoy crossed the invisible line into Leithanien. Cheers erupted from the trucks. They were finally safe from Ursus jurisdiction.
They found a lush area near a stream to rest. Zhang Wei gathered the operators to unify their story. "Regarding today's events, unless Governor Wei himself asks, we know nothing. When we arrived, the Ursus army was already gone. Maybe the Sarkaz did it. We saw nothing but scrap metal. Is that clear?"
"Crystal clear!" the soldiers barked. They knew the geopolitical stakes; admitting that Flandre's "friends" wiped out two battleships would start a world war.
Meanwhile, Eirin and Patchouli finished a deeper scan of Flandre. She was indeed herself, but the "other soul" influence had acted like a stabilizer. It had essentially "patched" the volatile parts of her mind, preventing the sudden, violent loss of control she used to suffer from. For the first time in centuries, Flandre Scarlet was mentally stable.