"All right, let's move quickly."
What mattered wasn't where March 7th had pulled the card from.
Had this incident already concluded, they might have taken their time. But with no confirmation it was over, they needed to regroup in haste.
"…Okay, finding the access key was enough. I'll override the elevator permissions right away."
Arlan strode to the console, tapped the screen, and swiped his card.
The elevator, which had been without power, hummed back to life and began to operate. As the group started to move, Arlan held them back.
"Wait. We only need to activate the top‐level elevator shaft—then we head up there."
"Huh? Why?"
March 7th raised an eyebrow in confusion. Arlan averted his gaze as if apologizing.
"Sorry… Herta at the space station assigned this mission. I have to prioritize the safety of Kevin Son at Main Control and the researchers."
"Well, if that's how it is, we don't have much choice."
"Thanks."
Arlan nodded gratefully at the rest of the group.
They turned and climbed the stairs toward the top‐level elevator that Arlan had set.
"Hang on."
"Bronie?"
At that moment, Bronie—who had been walking alongside Arlan—suddenly signaled everyone to stop.
The first to react was Dan Heng.
Clang! Dan Heng deflected the ore arrow hurtling toward March 7th. Before he could recover, Stelle darted forward and brought her baton down on the Honkai Mutator's skull.
Thud! The creature's head dented inward as the group stared in shock.
With a stern expression, Bronie seized Stelle by the nape, leaped back to join the others, and raised her hand overhead.
A transparent barrier sprang to life around the group, and a flurry of attacks struck the shield only to dissipate.
"What on earth…?"
When the barrage ended, they looked around, eyes wide.
Countless Honkai Mutators encircled them, readying their weapons.
If Bronie hadn't intercepted, what would have happened?
Arlan and Stelle exchanged glances with concern while Dan Heng and March 7th fell into familiar battle stances.
But Bronie simply smiled.
"Is this the best you've got?"
She turned to March 7th.
"What do you think, March 7th? Can you catch them?"
"Hmm… I think if you can buy me about three seconds, I can do it."
"Consider it done."
At her words, another wave of strikes hammered against the barrier.
Yet the barrier stood like a fortress wall—no blow even left a scratch. The mutators hesitated in confusion.
Seizing the moment, one of the ore‐arrow mutators poured energy into a shot. Dan Heng dashed forward as soon as the attack paused.
"Hah!"
To his surprise, the mutator released the uncharged arrow at him.
But the shot was shaky and inaccurate, and Dan Heng easily evaded.
"[Dongcheon Hwanhwa: Endless Dream]."
With a surge of acceleration, Dan Heng's spear pierced straight through the mutator's body.
The other mutators shifted their focus to Dan Heng—they recognized him as a stronger opponent.
That was their mistake.
"All right, charge complete! Taste the might of my power!"
Shouting that, the mutator fired its arrow high into the air. Stelle and Arlan exchanged puzzled looks, following its trajectory.
But the arrow split into multiple beams of light and transformed into teddy bears.
They cast [Hug Me], wrapping the hapless mutators in an embrace that instantly froze them solid—leaving the entire group astonished.
Bronie merely smiled.
"They've grown."
"That's thanks to someone dragging me through all that training."
March 7th stuck out her tongue in mock exhaustion. Bronie shrugged and reached out her hand.
Behind Bronie, dozens of Crusher Rabbit 19C launchers materialized, each glowing as if charging up energy.
"Fire~"
Bronie snapped her fingers. In a cascade of unleashed energy, the frozen mutators shattered like fireworks.
Stelle watched Bronie's unchanging expression—an aura of a true warrior's confidence.
It felt like she'd seen "that" before.
"…Huh? Who was he?"
Her memory was too fragmentary to identify him precisely.
It had only been for a moment.
"Shall we go? It seems someone came out to greet us."
At her words, a drone descended from above and fixed its camera on them.
Dan Heng and March 7th, unsuspecting, followed its lead.
Arlan and Stelle hesitated, but Bronie smiled reassuringly.
"Don't worry. That drone belongs to our Astral Express leader."
"Leader?"
"Oh, them, right?"
Arlan brightened at the realization and hurried after the others. Bronie reached out to Stelle.
"Come on, let's go together."
"…Okay."
When Stelle took her hand, Bronie squeezed gently and led her forward. Though startled at first, Stelle found herself smiling in return.