Boom—
The Astral Express tore through the clouds, slowly descending from the skies above Jarilo-VI.
The entire planet was almost completely consumed by raging blizzards. Oceans and continents alike were frozen solid.
Ice storms raged across the wilderness. Most structures were buried deep beneath layers of ice and snow. No life could survive here— even the Antimatter Legion was forced to halt its advance.
Beyond the snowfields, within the endless storm, only a single city retained a semblance of warmth. The shipboard AI detected signs of biological activity there.
At the center of Belobog stood the seat of governance: Qlipoth Fort.
This was the heart of the city's power, the place where generations of Supreme Guardians handled affairs of state and resided.
Inside a large office, a young woman with long silver wavy hair, dressed in a white off-shoulder coat, was arguing with a blonde woman seated at the desk.
"Mother, we shouldn't continue sealing off the Underworld. If this goes on..."
Suddenly—
Rumble—
Space trembled slightly, and a commotion erupted outside.
"A train?! How is there a train flying in the sky?!"
"What is that thing?!"
The people of Belobog broke into an uproar. After such a long period of isolation, many no longer recognized the name of the Astral Express.
Only a few vaguely recalled it from distant memories.
"The Astral... Express?!"
"Huh? What's going on?!"
The disturbance quickly reached inside.
"Let's go take a look, Bronya."
Under the protection of the Silvermane Guards, Cocolia and Bronya made their way to the plaza.
Looking up—
Hummm...
The black-and-gold Astral Express slowly descended from the sky.
After undergoing upgrades, it now possessed high-speed atmospheric mobility, and its appearance had become even more futuristic.
Several Tachyon Lance turrets were mounted on its armored cars, giving off an intimidating presence.
Click—
The train doors opened. Gudako and the Stellaron-born troublemaker poked their heads out first before jumping down.
"Yo! Hello there!"
"We're from the Starsea Empire, also the advance team of the Aeon of Trailblaze. We just happened to land in this world—no hostile intent."
"Hm? Trailblaze?"
Bronya stared at them cautiously.
Belobog had been trapped within the blizzard for so long that it knew very little about what was happening beyond.
Then, a red-haired woman with golden eyes, dressed in a white-and-gold dress, descended gracefully. Himeko greeted everyone with elegance.
Beside her, another woman who looked almost identical—Murata Himeko—also landed.
"Twins?"
Bronya Rand barely had time to process the thought.
Thud—
Bronya and Silver Wolf landed not far ahead.
"Tch, this new map's environment doesn't look too great..."
Silver Wolf scanned the surroundings, then the three of them looked at each other—and froze.
Bronya Rand wore the standard white coat of the Silvermane Guards, adorned with golden accents. She had black stockings and long boots.
Her expression was somewhat cold. From her hair color and facial features alone, she looked almost identical to Bronya and Silver Wolf—like they had been carved from the same mold.
However, she appeared more mature than them, more like a grown-up version.
"You two siblings from different parents or something?"
The gray-haired girl poked Silver Wolf and Bronya, tilting her chin toward Bronya Rand.
"Again?!"
Silver Wolf was stunned.
The white-haired girl looked at Cocolia and blinked.
"Ah! Cocolia!! I've seen you in the Honkai world!"
"???"
Cocolia and Bronya froze on the spot.
"Uh..."
The air stiffened for a moment.
Bronya Rand stared suspiciously at the train crew, especially at little Bronya and Silver Wolf.
"Who are you people?"
"My name is Bronya. Bronya Zaychik."
"???"
Bronya Rand was once again full of question marks.
"Bronya this, Cocolia that... Did we pick the wrong target and jump into some parallel Honkai universe or something?"
Kiana whispered to Seele.
"..."
"Ahem—"
After a brief pause, Cocolia cleared her throat.
Her gaze swept across the group.
"Visitors from beyond the eternal frost? Belobog hasn't seen new faces in a long time, nor have we received any messages from the stars."
Her voice was firm and composed, carrying the authority of a ruler.
She gestured, signaling the restless crowd to quiet down.
"I am Cocolia Rand, Supreme Guardian of Belobog. State your purpose here."
"We're here to Trailblaze this world!"
The Stellaron-born troublemaker answered succinctly.
"There's a Stellaron here. It's what's brought the cold wave to Jarilo-VI, along with fragmentation erosion and attacks from the Antimatter Legion."
"We're here to retrieve the Stellaron, resolve Belobog's crisis, and..."
"Retrieve the Stellaron?"
A sharp glint flashed briefly in Cocolia's eyes as she stared at them.
"You've come all this way just to search for this so-called Stellaron?"
"I'm afraid that, to Belobog, you are still nothing more than strangers..."
"Nope!"
Gudako shook her head, placing her hands on her hips.
"Retrieving the Stellaron is just one part. We're also here to rebuild and transform Belobog and Jarilo-VI."
"From now on, this will be a territory under the Starsea Empire. Don't worry—we're good at planetary transformation. Turning a polar world into a continental one? Easy."
"Ahem, the Aeon of Preservation ignored you for seven hundred years—that doesn't matter anymore. Now the great Aeon of Trailblaze has arrived!"
"Praise the Commander and the Starsea Empire!"
"?"
Cocolia was momentarily stunned.
When she learned they had come for the Stellaron, she immediately became wary.
But what were these people talking about? Incorporating the planet into an empire? Planetary reconstruction? Aeon of Trailblaze? None of it made sense.
She had never heard of this so-called empire. These people were definitely not simple—there were quite a few of them, and they all seemed... unusual.
"In that case, Bronya, arrange accommodations for our guests in the city. When time permits, we can discuss matters in detail..."
She attempted to stall for time and make further plans.
Whoosh—
The Herta puppet stepped forward, grabbed Cocolia's right hand, and swiftly removed her glove.
On her pale arm, a faint layer of light blue crystal-like substance could be seen.
"You've communicated with the Stellaron, haven't you? There are signs of erosion on your body."
"If I'm not mistaken, you can already hear the Stellaron's whispers—and you're planning to deal with us one way or another, correct?"
"That's also a typical symptom of being affected by a Stellaron. You don't have the same special constitution as the Stellaron kid—you'll be corrupted by its power."
As always, Herta only cared about her research. She simply found Cocolia to be yet another excellent research subject.
"!"
Cocolia hadn't expected her insight to be so sharp, exposing her secret in an instant.
She took two steps back, both shocked and furious.
"You... how rude!"
"Bronya!"
Clang!—
Unaware of the full situation, Bronya and the Silvermane Guards drew their weapons and moved to surround them.
"!"
Bronya materialized Project Bunny, while Silver Wolf casually used Aether Editing to generate a weapon.
The three Bronyas faced off against each other.
The situation was on the verge of exploding, a battle about to break out at any moment.
"Don't be so tense."
Step, step, step—
Kafka walked forward from behind, parting the crowd. She glanced at the tense group and smiled faintly.
She stepped up and gently grasped Bronya's spear.
"You are...?"
"Listen to me, we are not your enemies."
"Even if you don't understand who we are for now, you should believe that we have come to save this planet and this world."
"The power of the Stellaron is far beyond what you can control. Leave it to us to handle, alright?"
Her voice was soft and alluring, carrying a subtle power that made others instinctively want to obey.
"Oh..."
Bronya's gaze wavered. She shook her head slightly, her expression turning dazed.
The surrounding Silvermane Guards also became absent-minded, lowering their weapons in unison.
"Mm!"
Cocolia, on the other hand, felt several voices erupt within her mind.
One was the Stellaron's whisper, urging her to find a way to eliminate these outsiders. Another was Kafka's spirit-speech, compelling her to follow her words.
On top of that was her own will.
The three voices intertwined, making her head feel like it was about to split apart.
[Get rid of them, now!]
[Listen to me, we are not your enemies...]
[No, that's not right, this...]
"Ah—"
She clutched her forehead, stumbling as pain filled her expression, barely able to stand.
Kafka caught her smoothly, leaning close to her ear and whispering softly:
"Listen to me, your mind is in chaos right now. All you want is to forget everything and get a good sleep. When you wake up, everything will have been resolved for you."
Whoosh—
A small surge of Imaginary energy spread outward.
"Oh..."
Cocolia's body went limp, collapsing into her arms.
"All done."
Kafka turned back with a smile.
"Let's quickly take care of the rest."
"Huh?!"
March 7th, Kiana, and the others were so shocked their jaws nearly dropped.
Belobog's supposed final boss had been taken down by Kafka in just a few sentences.
Of course, judging by the Astral Express' luxurious lineup, dealing with someone like Cocolia and a Stellaron didn't seem particularly difficult.
Pop!
Silver Wolf blew a bubble.
"Yeah, skipping all the steps and speedrunning the boss kind of kills the fun, but it's efficient."
"Why does this first playthrough feel like a New Game Plus run?"