The tension in Firefly's body eased a little.
But soon after, a heavy wave of dizziness hit her.
Even though she had only been out of Sam for a brief moment, Entropy Loss Syndrome had already caught up with her.
"Careful."
Kiana reacted at once and caught her before she could collapse.
Firefly looked up, a little embarrassed, and tried to pull her arm back. "Sorry, I…"
"Don't move," Kiana cut in again.
A moment later, a wave of Harmony power wrapped itself around Firefly.
Just as Kiana had said earlier, after her "training" with Phantylia, she had also managed to advance a little along the path of Harmony.
While it was not something she could use freely on her own, with Phantylia nearby, Kiana could temporarily wield Harmony authority at the level of an Emanator.
Like Penacony's dreamscape, this method treated the symptoms rather than the cause. It could only stabilize Firefly's condition for a limited time and within a limited range.
Still, for now, that was enough.
"…Thank you," Firefly said softly.
"You're welcome. It's only a temporary suppression, though. If you want a complete cure, my mother still has to step in. Feeling a little better now?"
Firefly blankly nodded.
It had been a very, very long time since she had felt like this.
Not barely clinging to life inside Sam, not enduring in a state of half-existence—
but truly, genuinely, feeling the world again with her own body.
"Then what do we do now?" Firefly asked.
According to Kiana, if she wanted to fully cure Entropy Loss Syndrome, she would still need Kiana's mother.
"Well…" Kiana answered calmly, "for the next little while, you probably won't be able to return to the Stellaron Hunters just yet."
Firefly tensed. "Why? Is the treatment process going to take a long time?"
There was a trace of unease in her voice.
She had already prepared herself for a lengthy recovery, but if she was gone for too long, she worried she might delay the Stellaron Hunters' plans in Penacony.
After all, during the time she had spent with them, she had been genuinely happy.
Everyone there was interesting, and this time, the moment they heard there might be a way to cure her Entropy Loss Syndrome, they had immediately emptied out their savings and sent her here with the entire payment.
Because of that, even if she were cured, Firefly had no intention of leaving the Stellaron Hunters.
But Kiana's next words left her at a complete loss.
"It's not that the treatment will take long. The main issue is that my mom isn't here right now."
Firefly: "...?"
What did that mean?
She blinked, unsure how to respond.
Had she… been baited into coming here?
"Ahem. Don't worry. Even though my mom isn't here at the moment, I do actually have a way to contact her," Kiana added quickly.
Hearing that, Firefly finally let out a breath of relief.
But this left Kiana in a rather awkward spot.
Judging by the current level of her Cecilia persona, it was probably still not quite enough to deal with Entropy Loss Syndrome.
That said, it wasn't as though there were no shortcuts.
Persona Adjustment.
Given the amount of points Kiana currently had saved up, she could absolutely afford it.
Besides, she had already spent quite a while at the station. It was about time she switched identities for a bit anyway.
…
…
At the IPC headquarters, Pier Point—
Wen Liang slowly opened his eyes.
"Director Wen Liang, is something wrong?"
The subordinate standing across from him spoke in a cautious voice.
It had just been an ordinary work report, but for some reason, their director suddenly seemed… different.
Wen Liang merely replied blandly, "I'm fine. I'm just a little tired. If there's nothing else, you can leave."
"…Uh…"
The employee was dumbfounded.
As far as he knew, Director Wen was famous in the Market Development Department for being the laziest of slackers. Recently, he had been holed up at headquarters and hardly went out at all.
And someone like that was saying he was tired?
More like he was tired from playing around.
"Yes, sir! I'll take my leave!"
Still, as a subordinate, there was no way he was going to question his boss.
Once the man had left, Wen Liang slowly stood up.
"Trying to control multiple bodies at once really is a bit exhausting…"
Thinking back to his conversation with Firefly just now, he could not help frowning.
Originally, according to his plan, the next step should have been to level up Theresa first.
After all, he had already laid so much groundwork for Theresa at Herta Space Station. Continuing the fabrication there would have been twice as efficient for half the effort.
But once he thought about Firefly still waiting on the other side for treatment, Wen Liang had no choice but to reconsider his priorities.
Honestly, letting Cecilia cut in line first would not be much of a loss.
Theresa had certainly been built up for a long time—but so had Cecilia.
And with Cecilia's identity as a Abundance Emanator, she could also provide some much-needed support when it came time to make contact with the Astral Express.
His gaze shifted toward the system shop.
Persona Adjustment (Cecilia Version): 150,000 points
Description:
Adaptive enhancements based on the persona's attributes. Unlocks or strengthens unique abilities, allowing the persona to better fit into this world's system and display the strength it ought to possess.
Remaining Fabrication Points: 172,909
Not bad. He could just barely afford it, and still have over twenty thousand left afterward.
Honestly, not that long ago he had been dirt poor. Who would have thought he would become such a loaded tycoon this quickly?
Knock knock—
Right then, another knock sounded at the door.
Before Wen Liang could respond, the door swung open, and a brisk figure stepped inside.
The newcomer had neat silver-white short hair and wore the standard IPC uniform.
Topaz, one of the Ten Stonehearts.
She was also probably the only person in the Strategic Investment Department who had a somewhat decent relationship with Wen Liang.
"Well, if it isn't Topaz. What wind blew you all the way over here today?" Wen Liang greeted her.
Topaz was as direct as ever. She strode right over and sat down across from him.
"What kind of question is that? Can't I come see you if there's no reason?"
Wen Liang raised an eyebrow and quietly studied this colleague who rarely visited without cause.
Topaz had always carried a rare sort of straightforwardness. Among the Ten Stonehearts, she was the one most to Wen Liang's taste.
And it was precisely because of that straightforward nature that, back when Wen Liang had been loafing around in the Market Development Department, the two of them had managed to maintain a fairly good relationship.
"Of course you can," Wen Liang said with a smile.
"But with your personality, you never visit a temple without a reason. So go on—what is it?"
At that, Topaz stopped beating around the bush. She pulled a file from inside her coat and placed it on the desk.
"Jade came back from Herta Space Station."
Then she looked at him and delivered the blow in one flat sentence.
"You've been found out."
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter108)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter82)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter144)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 70
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 99
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 95
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 99
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 92
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 47
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 44
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player 43
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