Chapter 220: March 7th: Trailblazer is Really Easy to Coax
"I have to say, your analysis is absolutely spot on." Rekka nodded with complete, unblinking sincerity.
Beside him, March 7th let out a long, suffering sigh, rolling her eyes so hard she nearly tilted backward off the sofa.
A sudden, poorly suppressed snort broke the silence. Rozaliya slapped both hands over her mouth, her shoulders shaking violently as she tried to contain herself.
The Trailblazer whipped her head around, her golden eyes narrowing with intense suspicion. "What are you laughing at?"
"Nothing, nothing!" Rozaliya waved her free hand frantically, her voice muffled. "I just thought of something really funny."
"What funny thing? Tell me so I can have a laugh too."
"It is just... I remembered the Dragon Master eating cockroaches this morning. It was too funny, I really couldn't help myself."
This time, March 7th cracked, a sudden giggle escaping her lips before she could stop it.
The Trailblazer's gaze snapped to the pink-haired archer. "Why are you laughing now?"
"I... I just thought about how the Dragon Master ate two cockroaches, and the second one jumped in entirely by itself..."
The gears in the Trailblazer's head visibly shifted tracks as she tried to picture the absurd scene. Her previous suspicion vanished into thin air, her attention successfully diverted by the sheer ridiculousness of the image.
A sharp, rhythmic knock suddenly echoed from the lounge door.
"I am a reporter! May I come in for an interview?"
March 7th tilted her head, tapping her chin. "That voice sounds way too familiar."
"Gooood evening!"
The door swung open, revealing that certain twin-tailed girl who thrived on absolute chaos.
"It is you again," March 7th groaned.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk." Sparkle strutted into the room, planting her hands firmly on her hips. "Sparkle here is an old friend of yours, after all. Have I ever done anything bad?"
Rekka leaned back against the cushions, raising a single eyebrow. "Sunday might still be holding a grudge over the time you sent Robin away with one shot."
"Ehehe, that..." Sparkle waved a hand dismissively, not looking guilty in the slightest. "I almost forgot about that if you hadn't mentioned it. I will swing by the Astral Express later and try to tease that chicken-wing boy just for fun."
Without waiting for an invitation, Sparkle plopped herself down on the lounge sofa, crossing her legs and making herself completely at home. With a flick of her wrist, she produced a sleek voice recorder from her sleeve, spun it around her fingers a few times, and shoved it directly into March 7th's face.
"Alright, alright, back to business! I am here for an interview, a real one. I am a special correspondent for a legitimate media outlet, fully licensed and absolutely genuine."
She yanked a plastic name tag on a cheap lanyard from her sleeve and dangled it in front of the crew. It looked like it had been printed five minutes ago in a back alley.
"That ID of yours looks extremely illegitimate," March 7th deadpanned, entirely unimpressed.
"Oh, details do not matter!" Sparkle chirped, tossing the fake badge aside. "What matters is this—Contestant March 7th! That 'One with the Sword' super storm move you unleashed at the Martial Arts Ceremony has already broken the Star-net! Everyone is calling it the Armstrong Cyclone Jet Armstrong Cannon now! As its brilliant creator, do you have any words for your adoring fans?"
"Who on earth came up with that name..." March 7th muttered, rubbing her temples to ward off an incoming headache.
"I feel like it is not quite as catchy as my 'Hallelujah Great Whirlwind'."
Sparkle giggled, the bells on her accessories chiming. "Oh well! Anyway, that is not important. Just say whatever you want, speak your mind!"
After the farce of an interview concluded, Sparkle casually tossed the voice recorder back into her sleeve.
"Alright, alright, official business is over. Seriously, you guys have absolutely no idea how lively you have made the Luofu lately. The Ambrosial Arbor sprouting right on the Jingfeng Ship, the Borisin Warhead breaking out of containment only to get instantly wiped out by three Generals, rumors about some Gaze of The Hunt dropping from the sky, and even a Dragon Master eating live cockroaches..."
Sparkle let out a highly theatrical sigh of lament, draping herself dramatically over the armrest.
"Sigh, nowadays the Masked Fools' pranks are just for harmless fun. Who wouldn't want to see serious people doing completely absurd things? Compared to all this, I, Sparkle, am practically a normal, well-adjusted person."
"Do you even hear yourself?" March 7th asked, staring at her in disbelief.
"Fine, fine, you are the most 'normal'person here. So, besides this fake interview, does a'normal' person like you have any other plans for crashing our lounge today?"
Hearing this, Sparkle immediately sat up straight, her eyes gleaming with mischief.
"Of course! I heard about that mysterious gentleman named Captain. I have already secured the exclusive scoop on that guy's secret identity! Although, the accuracy is not entirely guaranteed."
She leaned in, confidently throwing out the topic she thought would build maximum suspense for her audience.
"Hey, hey, hey, can you guys not look so dismissive?"
"Okay, go on, go on," Rekka said, gesturing lazily for her to continue.
"Actually, that Captain is Dan Heng."
The Trailblazer crossed her arms and nodded with absolute, unshakeable certainty.
Sparkle froze. A visible question mark seemed to pop up over her head. That guy in the oversized cloak was the Little Azure Dragon from the Astral Express?
"No way." Sparkle's brow furrowed.
As a top-tier Pathstrider of Elation, she could naturally perceive the faint cosmic trajectories clinging to that Captain. It felt heavy, echoing with Finality, but not quite exactly that.
"Impossible... I do not think that guy has anything to do with Permanence at all. He is not even a Dragon-kin." Sparkle stared at the floor, beginning to severely doubt her own life choices and cosmic intuition. "You guys... aren't teaming up to play a trick on me, are you?"
"That guy is definitely Dan Heng!" The Trailblazer insisted, her voice ringing with total conviction.
Sparkle was genuinely thrown off by the sheer force of the Trailblazer's confidence. "Really? Is it really?"
Her intuition screamed that it was definitely not Dan Heng. But the gray-haired girl's earnest, dead-serious expression was far too deceptive. After all, these people were companions who spent every single waking day together on the Express. Logically, they should never misidentify their own teammate.
"I keep feeling like you are all teaming up to play me." She narrowed her eyes, carefully sizing up the group in front of her. No, something was fundamentally wrong here.
"Do you think I would joke about something as serious as this?" The Trailblazer patted her chest proudly. "The way that guy walks, his edgy finishing moves after a fight, and that whole silent-but-cool vibe—I have seen it eight hundred times on the Astral Express. I would recognize him even if he turned to ash! If you do not believe me, I will drag you over to confront him in person after the match."
Sparkle opened her mouth, then closed it. Could she really have misjudged him that badly? The chaotic illusionist actually began to waver under the pressure of such absolute certainty.
"Even so, I still feel like something is completely off... Forget it, I just came here for a bit of interview fun today anyway."
Deciding to cut her losses before her brain melted, Sparkle swiftly slipped out the door and vanished down the corridor.
Once the coast was clear, March 7th turned to her companion. "Um, Trailblazer... actually, that Captain really isn't Dan Heng."
The Trailblazer frowned, tilting her head.
"Should I tell her?" March 7th nudged Rekka with her elbow.
"Go ahead, tell her," Rekka replied, a faint smirk playing on his lips.
"Actually, that Captain is Rekka..."
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible." The Trailblazer waved her hand dismissively, scoffing at the very idea. "Rekka is acting so normal today, how could it possibly be him? Hasn't he been sitting right here with us this entire time? When would he ever have the time to sneak off and defend the arena?"
"Do you think it is possible that there isn't just one person under that cloak?"
The Trailblazer fell into deep thought. Slowly, the color drained from her face, leaving her pale with absolute shock. She gasped, taking a step back.
"Are you saying Dan Heng's ghost is underneath?!"
"No! Why are you so completely obsessed with Dan Heng!" March 7th threw her hands up in utter exasperation. "Rekka is the Ferryman. That 'Hyperion'is just'Hyperion'read with a slightly different tone, and'Captain'literally just means'Captain'."
The Trailblazer blinked. Slowly, she turned her head to look at Rozaliya and Liliya. The two sisters were clutching their stomachs, their faces red from stifling their laughter.
"Wait!" The Trailblazer pointed an accusing finger. "You guys just sat there and enjoyed watching me do all that blind analysis?!"
"We were just afraid you would be crushed..." Rozaliya wheezed, wiping a tear from her eye.
Defeated, the Trailblazer shuffled over to the corner of the lounge and crouched down, sulking. She began drawing imaginary circles on the floor as if trying to grow mushrooms in the carpet. Her back radiated a thick, suffocating aura of resentment, making it look as if her entire being was wrapped in a gloomy cloud of low atmospheric pressure.
Rekka walked over, crouching down beside the sulking Trailblazer. He reached out and gently poked the stubborn tuft of gray hair sticking up on the back of her head.
"Trailblazer."
"I am not listening, I am not listening!" she grumbled, covering her ears.
"I have prepared something really good for the Astral Express's absolute best Trailblazer."
The Trailblazer instantly dropped her hands, peeking over her shoulder with wide, curious eyes. "What good thing?"
March 7th watched the exchange from the sofa in stunned silence.
The Trailblazer... is really way too easy to coax.
Of course, in that moment, March 7th completely forgot that she was also one of those people who were incredibly easy to coax.
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