A heavy coffee aroma filled the train car.
Himeko frowned, tapping her fingertip lightly on the tabletop. In front of her sat the delicate music box sent by the Penacony "Family."
"We cordially invite the honored guests of the Family to Penacony, to join other visitors in a grand banquet…"
She'd listened to the melody twice already. The invitation wording was elegant and proper—exactly the Family's usual style. And yet, for reasons she couldn't quite articulate, Himeko's instincts kept whispering that something inside the music felt… off. A faint discord that didn't belong.
"What's wrong, Himeko?" Welt Yang came over with two freshly brewed cups. With practiced ease, he nudged aside the cup Himeko had made for herself and replaced it with the one he'd prepared.
"Welt, listen to this," Himeko said, still absorbed in the tune and not noticing his little sleight of hand. Instead of answering directly, she slowly rewound the music box again.
The airy melody flowed out once more.
Welt listened quietly, expression steady—until Himeko repeated the action a third time and, at one particular note, her finger paused for the briefest instant.
"Here." Himeko pointed. "That downshift… it's extremely subtle, almost swallowed by the main line. But it shouldn't exist."
"…You're right," Welt said, his tone tightening. "There's a trace of interference—buried deep. A low-level mistake like this on an invitation? That doesn't fit the Family's standards."
"Not only that," Himeko said. "I tried catching the dissonant band with an analyzer. Guess what it matched?"
She projected the data into the air. A familiar waveform appeared. Welt only needed one glance.
"This is… the Astral Express' warp-transition signature band."
"Exactly." Himeko's eyes sharpened. "Someone encrypted a message, disguised it as gravitational-wave noise, and embedded it inside the invitation's music."
They looked at each other—both seeing the same weight in the other's gaze.
[See all impossibilities within the dream; claim the legacy of Penacony's 'Clockmaker'; and then answer: why does life slumber?]
After a long stretch of explaining with gestures—he even mimed the tiny flame from back then—Huck's little brain finally matched the tall young man in front of her to the red-haired kid from memory.
She slapped her palm. "Ah! It's you! The little guy who could make fire! How—how did you get so big?!"
"What do you mean 'little guy'? Even if I shrunk, I'd still be taller than you!" Huo Linfei was sweating from the effort of explaining to children, his expression gradually twisting into something feral.
The kids' curiosity instantly swerved to a new target.
But Yulian suddenly blurted, deadly serious: "Pitch-Dark Hook the Great! Then… between this grown-up red-haired big brother and the strongest guy in the Underworld—'Iron Arm' Luka—who's stronger?"
Arina immediately shouted over him: "Of course Huo Linfei is stronger! He beat a huge bad guy!" She stretched her arms wide, trying to show just how huge.
Yulian pouted and argued back. "But Luka's fighting skills are the best in the Underworld! He trains at the boxing ring every day—his fists are super hard! Huo Linfei is just… just able to make fire!"
In a kid's simple logic, flashy technique was more convincing than invisible power.
"No, no, no." Huo Linfei shook his head and wagged a finger in perfect sync. "If your stats are high enough, you can ignore the gap in technique."
"Stats? I don't get it, but it sounds really awesome," Yulian said, looking half-convinced.
Huo Linfei was about to finally relax and turn away when—
"So Huo Linfei big brother basically can't fight, right? He just needs to light a little fire and the enemy falls—"
Huck didn't even finish.
Huo Linfei's face went completely dark, and a terrifying pressure rolled off him.
"Where is that Luka guy—?!" he demanded.
"Hmph~" Hook wore a smug all according to plan expression.
The Moles marched Huo Linfei straight toward Boulder Town's fighting club. As they walked, his anger cooled. He shook his head.
Seriously… why was he getting worked up over a bunch of kids?
The moment they stepped inside, the place hit them with a wall of sound: thudding impacts, men cheering, rough breathing. The air carried sweat, engine oil, and that raw metallic smell of blood-and-pride.
In the center ring, Luka trained bare-chested—lean, powerful, with those signature mechanical arms—sparring hard with an equally burly miner. His movements were sharp and explosive; the mechanical gloves cut through the air with a whistling rush, every block and counter packed with force.
"Luka! Luka! Over here!" Hook clung to the edge of the ring and shouted.
Hearing the familiar voice, Luka slipped a clever guard, pushed his opponent back, and turned, panting. Sweat flicked off his short red hair.
"Huh? Hook? What are you doing here? This isn't a place for ki—"
He stopped mid-sentence.
His gaze passed over Hook and locked on the unfamiliar red-haired young man behind her. The matching red hair made Luka pause, confusion flashing across his eyes.
Huo Linfei stepped forward and explained—flat-faced—the whole ridiculous situation.
"…So yeah. That's the story."
Luka wiped his sweat with a towel, sizing him up.
When he heard this was one of the Astral Express members who resolved the Stellaron crisis, the confusion turned into surprise—then, slowly, a burning competitive spark lit behind his eyes. Two redheads. A rumored powerhouse. In the Underworld, that could only mean one thing.
Luka grinned, teeth bright. His mechanical gloves knocked together with a metallic clang.
"So it's you! I've heard about the big hero who saved Belobog. Didn't expect you to be this young. Hook's idea… honestly? Not bad."
He hopped down from the ring, walked right up to Huo Linfei, eyes blazing.
"So? Brother—wanna get up there and play a round? Just a spar."
Instantly the whole gym crowded in. Catcalls and whistles exploded from every corner.
"Fight! Fight!"
"Luka! Show the Underworld pride!"
"New guy! Don't chicken out!"
Huo Linfei looked at Luka's eager grin, then at the roaring crowd—and especially at Hook's eyes, shining with expectation.
There was no dodging this "redhead showdown."
But he wasn't going to overthink it either.
The corner of his mouth lifted. A competitive flame flickered in his eyes.
"Alright." He rolled his wrists loose. "Let's play. But we're clear—point-stop. No going too far."
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 175)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League (Chapter 119)
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter105)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter100)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter79)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter125)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 70
From Junkman to Wasteland 60
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 40
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 73
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 55
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 66
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 64
The Way the Umamusume Look at 63
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 55
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 45
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 31
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 31
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 31
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