"Who are you?!"
"Whoa, that was close~"
"Ugh, let go!"
As soon as she stepped into the monitoring room, Bronie dodged the swinging blade and knocked it aside with a deft flick. She planted herself in her attacker's guard, struck their wrist to disarm them, then slipped behind to subdue them.
Despite Arlan struggling every which way to break free, no matter how hard he fought, he couldn't shake Bronie's hold.
Even though he was flexing every muscle, it felt like the strength in his wrist locked down his entire body, and Arlan could only grind his teeth in frustration.
"Calm down, Arlan."
"…You're Dan Heng?"
"Even in an emergency, you're deadly serious."
"Even March 7th is onboard? Then…"
"Yes, that's right. Bronie—who's pinning you right now—is also one of us on the Astral Express."
"…I see."
Seeing Arlan's misunderstanding melt away, Bronie released her hold.
Still rubbing his arm from the restraint, Arlan glanced at the four of them, then lowered his head.
"I apologize. Given the circumstances… I should've realized immediately that the Antimatter Legion wouldn't talk."
"It's fine. How are you feeling, though?"
"Ah, I'm fine. I was just subdued."
Bronie shook her head.
"I was asking about your leg and the arm you're not holding your sword with."
"…How'd you even know that?"
"I detected it through your energy when I pinned you."
Bronie reached into the pouch tied at her waist, drew out a single seed, and offered it to him as Arlan stared back, astonished.
Arlan turned the seed over in his hand inspecting it, then looked back at Bronie. She smiled and explained:
"It's called Seondu."
"Seondu?"
"Yes. It's a restorative tonic passed down in my family. Take it and your wounds and vitality will recover."
"Such a tonic?"
"Just pop it in your mouth and chew."
Arlan hesitated for a moment, then placed the Seondu in his mouth and chewed.
"?!"
His eyes flew wide as the change rippled through his body.
Every ounce of pain he'd felt moments ago vanished.
"…Truly worthy of being called a tonic."
"Right?"
In fact, he felt more energized than before his injury; his condition had improved.
"I'm in your debt."
"Not at all. We help each other when things get tough."
Arlan stared at her, eyes wide, a bitter smile creeping across his face.
The notion of helping each other when things were hard—he couldn't recall ever hearing that before.
"I will repay this kindness without fail."
"No need. But do you know why the Antimatter Legion is targeting this place?"
"…I'm not sure. Though the timing is suspicious."
"The timing is suspicious?"
"The station's defense system went offline, and shortly after, they appeared."
"…Hmm, that's something I noticed too."
"Something you noticed?"
"Yes. Before the Legion barged in, I sensed two other presences aboard this station."
"Really?! Where are they now?!"
Bronie shook her head regretfully.
"They're no longer on this station. But if what Arlan says is true, they're likely the cause."
"…Sigh. In the end, my guard was down, and I failed in my duty."
Arlan sighed at Bronie's words.
After all, he still had no idea who the intruders were, and when Miss Asta's order came to evacuate the researchers, he'd let his guard down at the end and gotten himself hurt, failing to see it through properly.
"Don't blame yourself. You did your part. Even with your leg and dominant arm injured, you avoided a direct confrontation with the Legion—that was a sound tactical decision."
"Right! Most of the researchers are evacuated. Now, our top priority is heading to the Main Control Cabin to plan a counterattack!"
In truth, despite his injuries, Arlan had essentially completed his mission by seeing the researchers to safety.
Now wasn't the time for fault-finding; it was time to prepare for what lay ahead.
"Agreed. Let's hurry to the elevator and head to the Main Control Cabin. The access codes are locked down right now to prevent the Legion from entering—didn't you receive anything from Miss Asta?"
"Receive… what?"
"A decryption key."
At this, March 7th quietly raised her hand.
"She probably gave it to me."
"Probably? What do you mean by that?"
"Well… I can't remember where I put it."
"…March 7th, might you have stashed it there and forgotten?"
"Bronie, there?"
Bronie glanced around and then leaned in to whisper in March 7th's ear.
March 7th snapped her palm against her fist in realization, then spun around and began rummaging.
The sudden movement caught Arlan and Stelle off guard, while Dan Heng sighed and turned his head the opposite way, as if he'd caught on to something.
"Got it!"
March 7th lifted her finger to reveal the decryption key.
As for where she pulled it from—
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