"Well, well? Back so soon? I thought you'd be wrapped up with her for a few days before coming back. What's wrong? You don't look so good. Let me guess, don't tell me you drank that Miss Himeko's coffee? It's a miracle. How did you possibly survive?"
Silver Wolf's mouth hung open as she stared in astonishment at Kafka, whose face was as dark as thunder. Her guess was mostly right, but unfortunately, she'd had no chance to sample Himeko's coffee. Stelle's mung bean soda cooking, however...
Never mind, it was best not to recall it. For the first time, she, who had never known fear, felt a sense of revulsion towards something... She couldn't even imagine if Himeko's coffee, said to be even more potent than the mung bean dishes, could introduce her to the emotion called "fear"... If that were the case, maybe it wouldn't be so bad to give it a try?
"Isn't it because I missed my dear little Wolfie? It's only been a day, and you're looking much better. And it seems your tummy is a little rounder. Could it be..."
Kafka leaned in close to Silver Wolf's cheek with a smile, closed her eyes, and took a deep, deliberate sniff.
"Gross! What are you doing?! You're acting like a total pervert!"
Watching Kafka's actions, Silver Wolf recoiled in disgust, looking warily at Kafka who seemed to be savoring the scent on her body.
"Hmm... this faint smell of medicinal herbs, and the aroma of delicious cooking... It was that Wende, wasn't it?"
Kafka opened her eyes and frowned, looking at Silver Wolf with a heartbroken expression, as if she had just caught a cheating husband red-handed...
"Can you please not put on that face? It's so fake, and it's disgusting."
Seeing Kafka's melodramatic act, Silver Wolf could feel goosebumps rising all over her skin!
"Oh my, does my little Wolfie not like me this way? Or perhaps, you prefer something a bit more... aggressive?"
"Alright, alright! It's not like I didn't save you any food. Look, there's plenty left for you in the fridge. You can just heat it up and eat."
Seeing that Kafka was about to press the issue, Silver Wolf decisively threw up her hands in surrender, gesturing with her chin towards the refrigerator, looking utterly defeated by Kafka's antics.
"Oh, I just knew my darling Wolfie wouldn't let me down. I'm so happy~"
"Hey! That's enough out of you! It's time to talk business."
At the mention of business, the playful look in Kafka's eyes faded back to placidness.
"A message came from Sam. A weaker version of the Anti-Organic Equation seems to have started spreading from the outer edges of the universe's border. The Swarm is taking a slow and steady approach; they seem to be waiting for something. As for those blockheads from the Antimatter Legion, they're still out there, hitting one planet after another. But most of those planets only have their self-defense systems running. A portion of the population and important materials have already been evacuated by interstellar migration ships sent by the Corporation."
After relaying the information she had just received, Silver Wolf looked up at Kafka's still-gentle face.
"Should we tell Mr. Wende about this?"
"Sigh, little Wolfie, you really do still have him in your heart..."
"Hey, hey, hey! What is wrong with you? Did you get infected by that Stelle after going on the Astral Express?"
Silver Wolf looked at Kafka with an exasperated expression. If she kept this up, it would be going too far!
"Okay, okay. Don't worry, we don't need to tell him. Both the Xianzhou and the Corporation will inform them. Besides... lately, the Genius Society and the Family have also been subtly aligning with their front. Don't you find that surprising?"
Slowly shrugging off her overcoat, Kafka walked over to the refrigerator, took out the food Silver Wolf had mentioned, and placed it in the heater.
"Surprising how?"
Silver Wolf tilted her head, feigning indifference.
"Every war on a cosmic scale has only ever ended through the combined efforts of people who walk various Paths. Since it all relies on everyone's efforts in the end... then tell me, don't you think they must have something in common?"
Taking the now-heated food out of the appliance and looking at the fragrant meal before her, a faint smile appeared on Kafka's face.
"It's just like food. Everyone has their own preferences, but as long as there is one dish that everyone likes, that's enough."
"..."
Silver Wolf frowned, as if a thought had occurred to her.
"Don't think too much about it right now. Time... will prove everything. Just wait. More people will join this big family. Because this disaster..."
"It is intimately connected to everyone, whether they are organic or inorganic life; whether they are short-lived or long-life species; whether they are tangible or intangible beings..."
---o---
"It looks like the entire border is a chaotic mess right now. But thankfully, the enemy's offensive hasn't reached an overwhelming, all-encompassing stage yet."
Welt distributed two intelligence reports to everyone. They were from the Xianzhou and the Interastral Peace Corporation, mainly containing necessary strategic deployments and some star-rails that the Astral Express was needed to secure.
On the Xianzhou's side, the biggest concern was the Anti-Organic Equation. The Yaoqing was currently modifying its Aurumations. Once testing was complete, the Yaoqing would be ready to take the initiative and hopefully fire the first shot in the counter-offensive.
The Corporation was still busy fortifying the defensive lines of its core territories. This approach was very similar to the philosophy of [Preservation]. They wanted to go on the offensive as well, but with too many variables at play, a rash advance could lead to unnecessary losses.
It had been less than a week since this universal war began. On the cosmic scale, the war had only just started.
However, one detail in the Xianzhou's intelligence report greatly interested Wende. The Lord Ravager named Xingxiao... seemed to be relentlessly pursuing the followers of [Abundance]? The Boliren and Wingweavers on the border seemed to have become her targets.
But this was a good thing. At least the Denizens of Abundance, those guys who were basically "Swarm 2.0," wouldn't be joining the other three to take advantage of the chaos.
"By the way, Supervisor Zaitian from the Corporation and General Jing Yuan have jointly invited the Astral Express to a major meeting tomorrow evening. We'll need to send a few people to attend."
Welt pushed up his glasses, then looked at the group.
"Hmm... I think this is best left to Uncle Yang and Miss Himeko. I can't get away right now, and it's the same for Dan Heng. Besides, for those two factions, your credibility is obviously much greater."
Wende promptly suggested. It was better for him not to make frequent public appearances right now. For some reason, he always felt that whenever he was exposed to the limelight, many eyes would turn to him... and there would be no fewer than four of them!
"Very well. Himeko and I will attend this meeting. Although it's a joint invitation from the Xianzhou and the Corporation, the attendees will certainly not be limited to just the three of us. Since this is the first meeting of the war, many other factions will surely participate. It will be safer if Himeko and I go together."
Welt nodded, then looked over at Himeko.
"I have no problem with that. But the four little ones are still on Belobog. If we're to set off, your Uncle Yang and I will have to leave soon. I'll have to trouble you with matters here."
Himeko smiled, her gaze falling upon Wende. Her meaning was self-evident.
"Rest assured."
Wende gave Himeko a solemn nod.
"Sigh, why must there be war?"
March suddenly said, her voice full of sorrow.
"..."
"March..."
Seeing the dejected March, Stelle stepped forward and gently placed a hand on her back, looking at her with concern.
"Don't worry, I was just sighing."
March shook her head at Stelle, indicating she was fine.
"There are many reasons for war. It could be for survival, or for ideals, or because of hatred..."
Dan Heng quietly shook his head.
And one more... instinct. Or... you could call it a Path...
Wende didn't say this out loud, but recited it in his heart.
After the meeting on the Express concluded, Welt and Himeko boarded the train and followed the star-rail to Pier Point, the location of the conference.
As for the four little ones, Wende chose to send the three little ones back to the Honkai world. Although they hadn't experienced a truly thrilling [Trailblazing] journey, for them, it was enough for now.
Wendy, however, made the choice Wende had expected: she stayed on miHoYo Planet.
Through his observations, Wende noted that the Honkai energy in Wendy's body had been completely replaced by pure Imaginary energy. The Gem of Desire within her also seemed to have completed some sort of ascension. Although her control over her own abilities still needed improvement, the current Wendy possessed power at least on the level of an ordinary Emanator.
But one thing puzzled Wende. Logically, Wendy should have drawn the gaze of a certain Aeon by now. Yet, he didn't sense that she had embarked on any particular Path...
Could it be that...
---o---
"..."
"..."
"..."
"?"
Right now, in the miHoYo building, on Wende's exclusive floor, four girls were staring at each other.
"Uh, it's really lively here today... hahaha..."
March looked at Wendy and Silver Wolf sitting across from her and scratched her face awkwardly. She had originally planned to bring Stelle here to get Wende to cook them a private meal, but she hadn't expected...
"Er... what a coincidence, you guys are here too..."
Silver Wolf also felt a bit awkward, so she chose to take out her phone and start grinding a game.
As long as she didn't act awkward, the awkwardness would belong to someone else.
Stelle, on the other hand, didn't seem to care at all. Awkward? Could awkwardness be eaten? It would be even better if she could get Wende to give her a massage!
"Hehehe..."
"Hey, what's wrong with you again?"
Seeing Stelle suddenly lost in a fantasy and starting to giggle foolishly, March patted her shoulder with a worried look.
Wendy, seeing this, didn't feel awkward at all. Instead, she stood up from the sofa herself and, with a smile, took four cans of drinks from the refrigerator, acting every bit the part of the hostess.
Hiss...
March instantly sucked in a breath of cold air. This was bad, she thought. It felt like the winner had already been decided.
Silver Wolf simply lifted her eyes, said thanks, and returned her attention to her mobile game.
Not long after, Wende returned. Of course, Jingliu, Tingyun, and Dan Heng returned with him.
"Hmm..."
Looking at the four girls in the room, Wende fell into a moment of deep thought. He then turned to Tingyun and Dan Heng, his eyes seeming to ask:
"Did you invite them beforehand?"
Tingyun shook her head in confusion. Dan Heng, however, looked at the four girls, then shot a very subtle expression at Wende.
"Forget it. This saves me the trouble of calling them over."
Wende shook his head with some resignation. He had originally planned to use the time while Himeko and Welt were away to plan out the future of miHoYo Planet and have everyone get together for a meal. But since they were all here, they might as well eat first.
And so, a dinner party began in an ordinary fashion, and ended in an ordinary fashion.
Silver Wolf left immediately after eating. Although she really wanted to listen to their future plans, unfortunately, there was a certain bad woman back in the dorm waiting for her to bring back food...
That night, aside from Dan Heng who had to leave to handle work, everyone else chose to stay the night on Wende's floor.
After all, the floor was huge, with plenty of empty rooms...
Wende decided to give them all the rooms on this floor. For his own safety, it was best he didn't come back to sleep here tonight...
---o---
The night on miHoYo Planet was tranquil. There were no city lights here—perhaps there would be in the future, but for now, the dazzling lights had yet to obscure the brilliant canopy of stars.
"Why the long face? Are you upset because the young ladies are clinging to you? Let me tell you, back in my day, I was..."
"Alright, alright, you were an object of reverence for all life back in your day, who wouldn't want to follow you?"
Wende replied to Dragon with utter resignation.
"Fine, if you don't want to talk about that, let's change the subject..."
"I don't think I want to chat with you at all. Let me have some peace and quiet, will you."
"Of course."
"Mmm."
"By the way..."
"Shh..."
"Alright..."
And so, Wende watched the stars for a whole night, thinking about certain things...
He was an Aeon now. So, could he grant his power to others, allowing them to become his "Emanators"?
If that was the case, could Tingyun and Jingliu already be considered "Emanators of Order"? After all, the power of Chaos was already within their bodies. He felt as if he had never truly seen the combat power they could unleash when they went all-out...
Back on Punklorde, those half-human, half-metal monsters were not worthy of their full strength, so they never had the chance to truly cut loose.
"Emanators... Paths... Aeons..."
Wende muttered to himself, lost in thought.