"The next world to trailblaze…"
Wende was in a bit of a daze. Right, after Punklorde, they had to decide on a new destination. The train couldn't just stay parked above the planet forever, could it?
Thinking of this, Wende suddenly remembered he still had something he hadn't used: the right to establish 'miHoYo Interstellar Inc.' and launch a public beta for 'Honkai Impact 3rd'. Since it was just sitting there, he might as well find a time to launch the beta… he could think of it as finding a new game for himself to play. After all, due to the Punklorde incident, many of the Corporation's games were temporarily offline…
And…
Wende gently turned his head to glance at Welt. As if sensing Wende's gaze, Welt gave him a slight nod in return.
I wonder what kind of expression Uncle Yang will make when he sees the Honkai Impact 3rd public beta… Wende thought to himself.
"Our original destination was Penacony, at the invitation of The Family. However, while previewing the star chart, Dan Heng discovered an anomaly."
Himeko looked towards Dan Heng, indicating that it was his turn to speak.
"Mm."
Dan Heng nodded at Himeko, then brought up the train's holographic display.
"After Punklorde's star rail returned to normal, I detected an unusual fluctuation in a nearby star region. However, the star chart shows no signs of life in that area. After cross-referencing with the charts provided by the IPC, it was confirmed that this section is an uninhabited zone."
Dan Heng explained to the group.
"But… why would there be an abnormal fluctuation in an uninhabited zone?" Stelle asked.
"And even if there is an abnormal fluctuation, would it affect the train?"
"That's the crux of the problem," Dan Heng said, nodding at Stelle. "I discovered that there is a star rail passing right by the vicinity of this anomaly, and it happens to be on our direct path to Penacony."
"So, you're saying that if our destination is still Penacony, we have to pass through there," March 7th said, raising her hand.
"That's right. But we don't know what happened there, what the source of this so-called abnormal fluctuation is, or whether it will affect the star rail and cause problems with our route," Himeko said, taking over the explanation. "Therefore, this meeting once again requires a vote from everyone. Do we ignore this fluctuation and head directly to Penacony, or do we investigate this anomaly before continuing on? After all, we aren't the only ones who travel through the cosmos using the star rails."
Himeko's meaning was clear. All that was left was a show of hands.
"Alright then, those in favor of heading directly to Penacony, please raise your hands."
After Himeko spoke, the observation car fell silent. No one supported the idea of going straight to Penacony.
"In that case, does everyone agree to head to the location of the anomaly?" Himeko asked, a smile in her eyes.
"Of course! When faced with the unknown, we have to explore it thoroughly! I'm also super curious about that party, but isn't it still a while away? We have plenty of time to investigate the anomaly first and then go!"
March 7th didn't overthink it. She just felt that since they had enough time, there was no harm in investigating. Besides, it fit perfectly with her philosophy of [Trailblazing]. What if the cause of the anomaly was something really interesting? If she missed it, she might not be able to sleep… She absolutely had to capture it with her camera!
"March is right. If this anomaly could truly disrupt the nearby star rail route, then as [Nameless], it is our duty to maintain the normal operation of the star rails," Welt added in agreement.
"Indeed. We can just think of it as a stop along the way," Wende agreed as well.
Jingliu and Tingyun also expressed their approval. However, when Tingyun voiced her agreement, she furtively glanced at Wende before turning her head back, looking a bit like a thief with a guilty conscience. Her soft, fluffy fox tail swayed back and forth behind her.
"Very well. In that case, after twenty-four System Hours, the train will follow the star rail to the location of the anomaly. Use this free time to look around, everyone. Think of it as a vacation after all this hard work," Himeko announced with a smile.
"Yay! A vacation! Awesome! Hey, should we go back to the Xianzhou for a look? Last night I saw Sushang streaming with her friends!"
March 7th excitedly tugged on Stelle's arm, sharing interesting tidbits she had seen since getting back online while planning how to have the most fun possible during their day off.
"Uh… a single day seems a bit short, doesn't it? Should we add another two days?" Himeko scratched her cheek, feeling a little awkward as she looked at the hyper-excited March and Stelle.
If they were going out to have fun, one day probably wouldn't be enough, right?
"Let's not add more time. Although we still have plenty of it, it's not good to slack off for too long… Let's wait until we reach Penacony to properly relax," Welt said, gently shaking his head at Himeko.
With the departure of a few members, the train meeting came to an end. Before she left, Stelle made a point to find Wende, a pleading look on her face as she told him what she wanted for dinner… Then, to Wende's expression of utter resignation, she used a Realm-Restricting Anchor to teleport to the Xianzhou Luofu, promising to bring back some local specialties…
Wende didn't even have to think. The "specialty" Stelle was talking about was definitely Soda Mung Bean Milk. It couldn't possibly be anything else… When she got back, should he help her throw it away… or make her drink all of it?
After the meeting, Tingyun was pulled into Jingliu's room. It seemed they had some secrets to discuss. As a man of integrity, Wende chose not to use his eye to spy, nor to become someone who listens through walls.
He simply returned to his room and silently established "miHoYo Interstellar Inc."
The moment Wende chose to establish "miHoYo Interstellar Inc.," somewhere in the universe, an extraordinary planet suddenly appeared. Unlike any other planet, it was not bound by any gravitational orbit…
And on the planet's surface, a magnificent building stood abruptly on the seemingly barren ground. The building bore several large, eye-catching characters.
"miHoYo Interstellar Inc."