In the outer perimeter of Herta Space Station, a spaceship floated within the shadow of a massive meteorite, concealing itself from any prying eyes.
Inside the spaceship, Silver Wolf chewed bubble gum while operating the virtual light screen before her, typing at an astonishing speed.
Her fingers moved so quickly that they seemed to leave behind afterimages, dancing across the interface without pause until she finally brought her hand down on the confirmation key and stopped.
"Alright, the space station's defense nodes have been scanned. I've also mapped out all the patrol routes."
Silver Wolf blew a bubble as she spoke, her voice carrying its usual trace of careless confidence.
"We're gonna follow Elio's script. On my end, I'll set off some 'small fireworks' first by luring the Antimatter Legion over to stir up a little chaos."
As she spoke, she pointed at several defensive turrets marked on the screen around Herta Space Station's outer perimeter before gesturing toward the cluster of red dots steadily approaching on the display.
Kafka stood beside her with her usual elegant black jacket draped loosely over her shoulders, her arms folded across her chest. A faint smile lingered on her beautiful face as she gazed toward Herta Space Station, as though she were quietly appreciating a grand performance that was about to begin.
"Mm, as long as things become chaotic."
Kafka's voice was like the sound of an expensive violin, smooth and exceptionally pleasant to hear. Hidden within that languid tone was a sense of complete confidence and control, as though everything were unfolding exactly as she expected.
"During the chaos, I'll infiltrate the space station, meet up with you there afterward, and then find the Stellaron and revive Stelle..." Kafka paused for a brief moment before adding with a faint smile, "Elio's script has never been wrong. I should be able to have a little fun outside the main course of events."
Silver Wolf, not even bothering to raise her head, simply blew another bubble before replying casually.
"Of course. How could Elio's script possibly be wrong? It's literally fate itself."
Even though she had been the last to join the Stellaron Hunters, during this period, Silver Wolf had already witnessed Elio's ability with her own eyes—there had never been a single error, with every prediction precise down to the very minute and second.
Even the wins and losses in the games she played could be foreseen by Elio in advance, and that was the point she admired the most.
"Alright, I'll come meet you after I finish setting up the fireworks. See ya at the space station, Kafka."
Silver Wolf pressed the confirmation key, causing the virtual light screen to dissolve into a stream of data before disappearing completely, then stood up and stretched her wrists.
Kafka smiled faintly, then stepped forward.
In the next second, her figure seemed to blend into the shadows before silently disappearing.
===
Inside the lounge area of the Railway Platform in Herta Space Station, Lucian, Himeko, March, and Welt sat around a small round table, casually chatting with one another while enjoying a rare moment of leisure.
However, despite the seemingly relaxed setting, the atmosphere around the table was somewhat delicate and difficult to describe, mainly because the list of wives Lucian had casually mentioned a moment ago was simply too shocking.
Lucian himself, meanwhile, looked completely relaxed, as though he had not just dropped an absurdly explosive piece of information.
After all, he had not lied, and he had even deliberately mentioned fewer names than he actually could have, only bringing up those who were familiar to Welt.
Compared to the full list, what he had revealed was already a heavily simplified version.
Lucian picked up his coffee and slowly took a sip, his movements calm and unhurried as he completely ignored the probing, suspicious, and slightly speechless look on Welt's face.
"If you don't believe it, then forget it."
Glancing at Welt, Lucian spoke calmly as he set down his cup, clearly too lazy to waste time explaining himself any further.
In any case, when Welt eventually saw his thirteen lovely wives in Izumo with his own eyes, just how interesting would his expression become then?
Honestly, the more he thought about it, the more amusing the scene seemed.
At this moment, he was beginning to understand why Sparkle enjoyed messing with people so much. Watching others struggle to process something completely beyond their expectations was, admittedly, rather entertaining.
"Hey, Lucian, you just said you have so many wives... Does that mean you're the King of Earth?"
Unlike Welt, who was clearly thinking far too deeply about the matter, March paid no attention whatsoever to any of the complicated implications. Instead, she simply cupped her face with both hands and leaned slightly forward, staring at Lucian with sparkling eyes filled with curiosity.
"I mean, only a king's got lots and lots of wives, right?"
Seeing March's imagination beginning to gallop off in an increasingly strange direction, Lucian glanced at her and raised his brows slightly.
Her eyes were clear and bright, completely free of any complicated thoughts, making her look less like someone discussing an important topic and more like a curious housewife who had just stumbled across an especially juicy piece of gossip.
Lucian could not help but smile.
"Well, something like that."
Hearing his casual response, which neither admitted nor denied anything and sounded more like a perfunctory answer than an actual explanation, the veins at the corner of Welt's forehead twitched almost imperceptibly.
'Bragging again...'
For a brief moment, he seriously wondered whether he should continue questioning this topic.
In the end, however, he took a deep breath, forcibly suppressed the complicated emotions rising in his heart, tried his best to maintain the composure expected of an elder, and unconsciously pushed up his glasses.
Although the gesture was calm and familiar, the faint twitch at the corner of his eye made it abundantly clear that maintaining that composure was becoming increasingly difficult.
Even when he had still been the leader and sovereign of Anti-Entropy, carrying the weight of countless responsibilities on his shoulders and standing at the forefront of humanity's struggle against the Honkai, he had never dared to boast so brazenly.
How could this young man dare to sit there so casually and claim that he was the King of Earth right in front of him?
Could it be that during the years he had been away from Earth, a new leader had truly appeared—someone he knew nothing about?
As everyone knew, after the end of the battles against the Honkai, Welt had stepped down from his leadership position. Having finally laid down the burdens he had carried for so many years, he had gone on to establish a company while pursuing a career in animation, gradually distancing himself from the center of Earth's political and organizational affairs.
"Lucian, are you... the current leader of some organization on Earth, such as Schicksal or perhaps Anti-Entropy?"
Welt asked seriously as he pushed up his glasses once again, his gaze fixed firmly on Lucian's face, unwilling to miss even the slightest change in expression.
"Nope."
Lucian shook his head and gave a brief, straightforward reply.
Seeing that the answer came without the slightest hesitation, Welt remained silent and said nothing further.
Since Lucian had said he was not, then everything he had said earlier must have been nothing more than bragging.
After all, claiming to be the King of Earth in front of a former leader of one of the most influential organizations on Earth was somewhat like showing off in front of a true expert.
No matter how one looked at it, the claim sounded absurd.
For a moment, the atmosphere around the table became subtly strange.
Seeing the mistrustful expression on Welt's face, Lucian merely raised an eyebrow. Not only did he not feel annoyed by the obvious disbelief, but an even deeper trace of amusement flashed across his eyes.
It was as though he had anticipated this reaction from the very beginning and found the misunderstanding far more entertaining than troublesome.
*WOOO—WOOO—!!!*
Just as Lucian was about to speak, a piercing alarm suddenly tore through the relaxed atmosphere of the Railway Platform without any warning, causing the previously peaceful space station to be instantly thrown into turmoil.
As red warning lights flashed wildly across the platform, dyeing everyone's faces a blood-red color, a cold electronic voice echoed throughout the area with unmistakable urgency.
[Warning! Warning!]
[Antimatter Legion detected!]
[All non-combat personnel! Proceed to shelters immediately!]
Upon hearing the repeated alerts, the expressions of all the researchers changed drastically.
Instantly, the calm and leisurely atmosphere from moments ago vanished without a trace. Some hurriedly gathered important data devices, while others abandoned everything and rushed toward the designated evacuation routes. Panic spread rapidly through the crowd as footsteps echoed in every direction.
"Mr. Lucian, the Antimatter Legion is approaching! Hurry, get to a shelter!"
One of the female researchers couldn't help but shout toward Lucian in concern before quickly following the flow of evacuees.
"Antimatter Legion?!"
March suddenly jumped to her feet, her expression instantly turning serious.
"Why are they suddenly attacking the space station?"
Himeko also sprang to her feet so abruptly that her coffee cup tipped over, spilling brown liquid across the table and sending it slowly spreading over the smooth surface.
However, she had no time to pay attention to it, because the sudden appearance of the Antimatter Legion instantly became the sole focus of her attention, wiping the elegant smile from her face and replacing it with solemn vigilance and unmistakable caution.
"Peaceful times are always short. Since we've run into this, let's lend a hand."
Welt, who had already risen to his feet, spoke with a gaze as sharp as an eagle's, his coat and scarf fluttering slightly despite the absence of wind, while not the slightest trace of age could be found in his bearing.
At this moment, the former Herrscher who had experienced countless battles seemed to awaken once more.
He tightened his grip on the cane in his hand, preparing to enter battle with it—the cane that possessed an extraordinary origin and had accompanied him ever since he arrived in this world.
Yes, it was no ordinary cane, but a powerful Divine Key capable of manipulating gravity and simulating black holes powerful enough to tear his targets apart—the Star of Eden.
"Lucian, come with me! I'll take you somewhere safe!"
March shouted at Lucian, genuine concern evident in her voice.
Although she had only known him for a short time, he had already become someone she considered a friend, and as such, she naturally had no intention of leaving him behind in such a dangerous situation.
"Yes, March will protect you well. Go with her. Welt and I will stay here and help."
Himeko also suggested to Lucian, her expression solemn and serious.
Having faced the Antimatter Legion more than once, the Astral Express crew understood better than most just how dangerous those monsters truly were.
However, at the very moment the chaos erupted, when everyone stood ready for battle, Lucian showed not the slightest trace of panic, nor any change in expression.
He merely shook his head gently, silently rejecting their kind offer, then glanced through the transparent barrier at the small force of Voidrangers and a Doomsday Beast that had already arrived outside before falling into thought.
A guess quickly formed in his mind.
Astral Express, Antimatter Legion, Herta Space Station—didn't the appearance of these three together mean that Silver Wolf and Kafka had already arrived to awaken the protagonist?
'Is the main story about to start?'
Lucian silently calculated the timing.
Based on his memories, the event should not have happened yet.
'Is the protagonist gonna be born earlier than expected?'
If that were the case, then it seemed his own appearance had already caused subtle changes to the original timeline.
Originally, he had planned to simply wait for the protagonist to be born, just as in the original story. However, when he recalled the grudge between himself and Elio—one that had started because Elio warned Silver Wolf not to associate with him anymore—he instantly changed his mind.
A faint amusement appeared in Lucian's eyes.
'Well, you can only blame yourself, Elio.'
With that thought in mind, Lucian casually raised his right hand, the movement so natural and effortless that it looked as though he were merely brushing away a nonexistent fly.
In the next moment, under the confused gazes of March, Himeko, and Welt, his fingertip lightly pointed toward the Voidrangers and the Doomsday Beast beyond the barrier, and then—
*Whoosh!*
Suddenly, countless crimson-red beams condensed throughout the surrounding space.
Every troop of the Antimatter Legion that radiated the aura of Destruction and had been relentlessly assaulting the space station's energy barrier, already tearing open breach after breach—whether the savage Doomsday Beast or the numerous Voidrangers surrounding it—was struck by beams forged from the power of Elation and completely obliterated.
Everyone within the space station saw countless crimson-red beams erupt from the Railway Platform like a raging storm, and then, in the very next second, the entire Antimatter Legion was pierced through by that overwhelming barrage of beams.
Just as the massive Doomsday Beast spread its wings and prepared to force its way into the space station through one of the breaches in the barrier, a crimson beam instantly pierced straight through its head.
Before it could even release a single roar, several more beams followed in rapid succession—one after another, they tore through its colossal body.
Its wings shattered.
Its shells exploded apart.
Its flesh and bones disintegrated into fragments of light.
Within mere moments, the terrifying beast that had always caused countless civilizations to tremble was torn apart piece by piece before everyone's eyes.
At the same time, the surrounding Voidrangers suffered the exact same fate, with not a single one of them possessing even the slightest chance to resist.
Just like that, the legion of Destruction that had filled everyone's field of vision only a moment earlier was completely annihilated in the next—not a single enemy remained.
In the next second, the blaring red alarms that had been flashing wildly throughout the space station suddenly seemed as though an invisible hand had seized them by the throat—they emitted one final, pitiful whimper before falling silent.
Just like that, as the harsh buzzing faded away and the flashing warning lights gradually dimmed, the chaos that had swept through the space station only moments earlier came to an abrupt end, and peace once again settled over the space station.
===
A few minutes later, aboard the concealed spaceship of the Stellaron Hunters, Silver Wolf and Kafka returned almost simultaneously.
*Psss—*
*Psss—*
One automatic door slid open, followed by another, as the two stepped into the cabin from different directions.
Kafka walked in with her usual calm and composed demeanor, but there was a faint trace of puzzlement in her eyes.
"Silver Wolf, was Elio's script really written like this?"
Kafka crossed her arms beneath her chest and turned toward Silver Wolf, who had only just entered the room herself, asking with a slight frown.
"Where's the so-called firework you mentioned? Where's the chaos?"
At the question, Silver Wolf hesitated for a moment before speaking slowly.
"Kafka... I think... someone might've meddled..."
===
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