『 [ I can't help but feel like everything is a bit… too perfect to be true… ]
After hearing the words of Dr. Ratio and Screwllum, Stelle felt as if she were in a dream.
[ Indeed. It is especially hard to imagine members of the Genius Society taking an interest in mundane research… ]
[ …Regardless, the outcome is a good one. ]
Welt shook his head, choosing not to overthink the matter further. 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Stelle: "Look, even the 'me' in the video thinks it's unrealistic."
March 7th: "Unrealistic? I'd call it straight-up nonsense."
Furina de Fontaine: "But why? Why is this happening?"
Furina de Fontaine: "Up until now, aside from those weird lines earlier, we still can't see what the problem is."
Hu Tao: "Is it possible that this is all real?"
Hu Tao: "Maybe everyone just changed their minds later, and that's why they made this decision?"
Madam Herta: "If I, Madam Herta, ever agreed to such a decision, I'd write my name backward!"
Jade: "The IPC would also have absolutely no reason to give up!"
Paimon: "Uh… then what on earth is going on…"
....
『 The trio from the Express returned to stand before Jing Yuan.
[ No wonder you all insisted on her presence. ]
Himeko looked at Stelle and spoke with a smile.
[ It is truly wonderful to know that you are all willing to help resolve Penacony's troubles. ]
[ I trust that you will reach a consensus in the upcoming negotiations. ]
[ It seems the future of Penacony is settled. ]
[ I wonder, do the members of the Astral Express have any other lingering concerns? ]
Jing Yuan inquired.
[ Peace is our greatest wish. Beyond that, we ask for nothing. ]
Himeko shook her head.
[ Haha, good. ]
[ Since you have no further burdens, Jing Yuan shall take his leave here. ]
[ Please set off with peace of mind. The Alliance will handle the subsequent matters. ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Stelle: "The General really handles things with such thoroughness!"
Stelle: "I've gotta give him a huge thumbs up for this!"
Jing Yuan: "You are loyal allies of our Xianzhou Alliance; it is only right that I do so."
March 7th: "Even though it feels a bit off…"
March 7th: "Based on the video so far, is our Trailblazing expedition in Penacony about to come to an end?"
March 7th: "Are we leaving next?"
Stelle: "Didn't you already go to pack your bags?"
Stelle: "We're definitely leaving."
Furina de Fontaine: "Everyone is leaving already…"
Furina de Fontaine: "So… is there actually anything wrong with this video?"
Stelle: "I can't figure it out either… let's just keep watching."
....
『 After some time, the trio from the Express bid farewell to Jing Yuan and began an internal discussion.
[ In that case, it seems we have no more worries in Penacony… It's time for us to embark on a new journey. ]
[ You two head back to the Express first. ]
[ I'll go get March and handle the checkout—also, Miss Black Swan has something to discuss with me, right? ]
As Himeko spoke, Black Swan, who had been quietly following the three, suddenly revealed herself. 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
March 7th: "Miss Black Swan always appearing out of thin air like that is really spooky."
Stelle: "Is that invisibility or some other ability?"
Stelle: "If I had that power, wouldn't I be invincible?"
Silver Wolf: "What? You want to turn into a Meme?"
Stelle: "Ahem, no thanks."
Stelle: "I just simply want the invisibility power…"
....
『 [ As expected of the Navigator. ]
Black Swan smiled at Himeko.
[ So you've been with us this whole time… No matter. Anyway, Stelle and I will wait for you and March on the Express. ]
[ Let's go, Stelle. Our journey in Penacony… ends successfully here. ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Stelle: "It really… ends successfully?"
March 7th: "We're already heading back to the Express."
March 7th: "The next step is to jump away, right?"
Welt Yang: "Quite eerie…"
Welt Yang: "And yet, I can't put my finger on exactly what is eerie about it."
Himeko: "It doesn't seem like we're being controlled by Order."
Himeko: "Otherwise, we should have lost our own sense of self…"
Black Swan: "Hehe, don't be in such a rush."
Black Swan: "The truth will always come to light."
Furina de Fontaine: "Eh?"
Furina de Fontaine: "Has Miss Black Swan noticed something already?"
Furina de Fontaine: "Is that why you need to discuss things with Miss Himeko?"
Black Swan: "I have a lead, but it still requires more verification."
....
『 [ The journey in Penacony ends here… ]
[ Hmm… I guess it was a success. ]
Stelle muttered to herself as she slowly made her way toward the Express.
A moment later.
[ Passenger Stelle! The navigation meeting is about to start, we're just waiting for you, Pam! ]
Upon returning to the Express, Stelle immediately heard the shout of the Conductor, Pam.
[ When did the Express get so lively…? ]
Stelle looked around and actually found Black Swan and Boothill on the train. 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
March 7th: "Huh?"
March 7th: "Black Swan and Boothill…"
March 7th: "How did you two end up on the Express?"
Stelle: "What's the meaning of this? Are you two joining us to become Nameless?"
Boothill: "Son of a nice lady! I'm doing just fine as a Galaxy Ranger. Why would I switch careers?"
Boothill: "I reckon… I'm just hitching a ride?"
Black Swan: "As for me… my purpose for boarding the Express… perhaps it is just to verify certain things."
....
『 [ Ahem… Now that everyone is here, Pam. ]
[ Let's begin the navigation meeting! ]
The group gathered together, and under Pam's lead, the Express meeting commenced.
[ So this is the meeting to decide where we're heading next, yeah? ]
[ How do we do this? A vote or what? ]
Boothill asked.
[ Hold your horses, cowboy. ]
[ Guests should follow the host's lead. Let them decide. ]
Black Swan said with a smile.
[ Where did you all come from?! ]
Stelle looked at the two of them, finally unable to hold back her question.
[ Let me explain. ]
[ Mr. Boothill and Miss Black Swan, out of their own respective needs, have requested to travel with the Express crew for a while… ]
[ As you all know, the Astral Express has never turned away any traveler who looks toward the horizon. ]
[ So, they will be traveling with us for a period of time until we reach the destination. ]
Himeko explained in detail.
[ Whoa... The Express is going to be much livelier now. ]
[ But Miss Black Swan, you'd better not use your Memokeeper abilities to pull any pranks! ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Hu Tao: "Does this mean the two of them are going to be temporary Nameless?"
Himeko: "Hmm… you could say that, more or less."
Stelle: "Tsk, the Express really is getting crowded."
Stelle: "But where exactly are you two following us to?"
Black Swan: "I do have a place I wish to go."
Black Swan: "But that is not my current objective."
Boothill: "I haven't even thought about where I want to go."
Boothill: "Logically speaking, I can roam the sea of stars on my own. I shouldn't need a train ride."
Boothill: "Could it be that after arriving in Penacony, I suddenly found a place I wanted to go?"
March 7th: "You never know."
March 7th: "After all, the start of many journeys is just the result of a sudden spark of inspiration."
....
『 [ Very well, Miss March 7th. ]
[ I promise you, you definitely won't see me in your room during break time. ]
Black Swan teased.
[ Uhm... Don't, you're freaking me out... ]
March 7th felt that Black Swan was being intimidating.
[ Alright, alright. ]
[ Since all the passengers have introduced themselves, let's continue the navigation meeting, pom! ]
[ First, the Conductor wants to give everyone a big thank you. ]
[ If you hadn't uncovered the truth of Penacony, I might never have learned what happened to Mikhail and the others… ]
[ Although their experiences were a bit tragic, I think they must have fulfilled their respective wishes… and it's all thanks to you. ]
[ Thank you very much, Pam. ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Stelle: "Hmm? Something's fishy!"
Stelle: "Why is the Conductor so optimistic?"
Stelle: "Shouldn't they be crying their eyes out?"
March 7th: "Exactly! The Conductor cried just from watching the video, let alone knowing the actual truth, right?"
Pam: "I told you, Pam didn't cry, Pam!"
Pam: "It was… it was just that while cooking, I accidentally got chili oil in my eyes, Pam!"
Stelle: "But none of our recent meals have been spicy??"
Himeko: "Ahem…"
Himeko: "Perhaps Pam is preparing future meals…"
March 7th: "Right, right, right. I was wondering why the Conductor would cry. It was the chili oil after all."
Pam: "That's right! The chili oil was just too spicy; it made Pam's eyes all red, Pam!"
Pam: "It wasn't because I was sad, Pam!"
....
『 [ And now, for the highlight of this navigation meeting—we need to decide the Express's next stop, pom! ]
[ The Conductor will introduce the current options to everyone. ]
[ The first choice is from Himeko: The oceanic planet of Lushaka — a planet composed entirely of water. Many aquatic races reside there. Of course, it's also the home planet of the venerable Nameless, Mikhail. ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Hu Tao: "The oceanic planet, Lushaka?"
Hu Tao: "It's all water?"
Hu Tao: "Wow… a planet like that must be amazing, right?"
Paimon: "I don't know if it's amazing, but I think traveling there would be really inconvenient."
Paimon: "If the planet is all water, you'd definitely need a boat to go anywhere, right?"
Furina de Fontaine: "Not necessarily. Maybe they swim?"
Qingque: "But we're humans, not fish."
Qingque: "If we had to swim everywhere, we'd probably die of exhaustion…"
....
『 [ The second choice is the 'Agate World' Melustanin, suggested by Welt. ]
[ It's famed as one of the initial sites of the Stellaron Disaster and the place where "the Beauty" Idrila ascended. Today, it's celebrated as a planet of undying allure.] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Argenti: "Oh?!"
Argenti: "Are you all actually going to the sacred land of Beauty?!"
Argenti: "Then please, you must take me with you! I shall lead the way for everyone!"
Nilou: "Mr. Argenti really never misses a moment to practice the path of Beauty."
Stelle: "Ahem, old friend, I know you're excited."
Stelle: "But don't get ahead of yourself!"
Stelle: "This is just one of the candidates. We haven't decided to go there yet…"
Argenti: "If you do decide, you must inform me!"
Argenti: "The Knights of Beauty are willing to escort you all!"
....
『 [ The third choice is Edo Star. ]
[ A planet nestled within a vast ion storm region, currently under assault by the Antimatter Legion. ]
[ However, the distress signals from there have recently ceased, prompting the IPC's wish for us to check in on the situation. ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Stelle: "Alright, say no more."
Stelle: "The destination is definitely this Edo Star."
March 7th: "A planet suffering under the Antimatter Legion… As Nameless, we absolutely cannot let such a thing happen!"
Welt Yang: "Indeed. We should lend a helping hand to this planet."
Himeko: "So, in reality, from the very beginning, we only had this one choice."
Stelle: "I get the logic, but why does the IPC want us to go confirm the situation?"
Stelle: "Why doesn't the IPC go themselves?"
Stelle: "What, are they using us as errand runners?"
Dan Heng: "Hmm, the IPC likely has exactly that in mind."
Dan Heng: "As long as the Astral Express can send back information, they won't have to waste time and effort sending their own people to explore."
Qingque: "They've really got their abacus clicking on this one!"
....
『 [ The last choice, courtesy of Black Swan, is the 'Glass Belt' Patrevia. ]
[ A massive belt of asteroids that was turned to glass by the Lord Ravager Zephyro...]
[ These days, it's apparently known to house one of the branches of the Mourning Actors troupe. ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Navia Caspar: "The Glass Belt?"
Navia Caspar: "Wow, that sounds like a very dreamy place!"
Silver Wolf: "Heh, dreamy?"
Silver Wolf: "It was done by a Lord Ravager."
Silver Wolf: "Take a guess as to why he did it."
....