"I heard you're leaving?"
When Acheron heard that Sora was about to depart, she came straight to find him. There was still one thing she had yet to do.
"Yeah. It's about time we brought our journey on Penacony to a close. We'll meet again somewhere in the universe."
"The universe is vast beyond measure. Are you certain we'll meet again someday?"
Acheron questioned him.
Such an uncharacteristic response caught Sora off guard.
He had assumed Acheron would not argue with him over something like this.
After all, she had always been remarkably calm throughout their interactions.
"Is something wrong?"
Sora could not help wondering.
"I came to return something."
Just as he had expected, Acheron took something from her waist and held it out to him.
It was a gleaming silver bullet.
Time had left its mark on the bullet, lending it the weight of history.
And the power of the HUNT within it told Sora exactly what it was.
This was a Galaxy Ranger's bullet.
What puzzled him was that he had already refused it once before.
"Why are you trying to give it to me again?"
"Because he wanted you to have it back."
"Who?"
Sora was confused.
He had fired the bullet into the universe thousands of years ago to help Penacony.
After firing it, he had kept his promise and used Timelord to return directly to the present.
That was right. Back then, he had promised Mikhail that he would fire the opening shot of the war.
Once that first shot was fired, he would no longer involve himself in the trials and setbacks Penacony would have to overcome as it grew.
But no one had ever said that opening shot could not be used to call for backup.
So Sora had fired the bullet he had treasured all those years.
Yet now Acheron was telling him that she had brought the bullet back for him.
Sora could not help feeling puzzled. He had never revealed himself back then.
The people who had dealt with the Rangers of that era should have been Mikhail and the others.
So who wanted to return it to him?
Acheron gave a name that took him by surprise.
"Tiernan."
"Him? How could that be?"
Sora was astonished.
He knew Tiernan.
Tiernan had been one of the three who chose to remain on Penacony with Mikhail when the Astral Express stopped there.
However, the two of them had never been particularly close. Unlike Mikhail, who had shared an adventure with him, Sora's strongest impression of Tiernan came from the time Martin attacked Penacony in armor.
Tiernan's aim had been extraordinarily precise.
With nothing but a handgun, he had pierced an armored unit's energy compartment and disabled the mech.
That was not something an ordinary person could accomplish!
But why would he have wanted to return this bullet?
"Obviously because... he learned from Mikhail that you would come to Penacony in the future."
Just as Sora was puzzling over it, another voice came from nearby.
Acheron looked over, and her eyes immediately lit up.
The speaker was none other than Sunday, disguised as a trash can.
In his hands was a steaming box of takoyaki.
Acheron's gaze locked onto it.
"Thank you for everything you've done for Penacony. Please accept this as a token of our appreciation."
Sunday handed the takoyaki to Acheron, then turned back to Sora and explained the full story.
At the time, Martin had mobilized the IPC fleet in an attempt to retake the Frontier Prison once and for all and recoup their earlier losses.
To be honest, the fledgling Penacony had stood almost no chance against such a vast IPC fleet.
Mikhail and Hanunue had chosen to fight because they believed in the Penacony of the future.
And so, they had stepped forward without hesitation for the sake of that dream.
Truthfully, they had all been prepared to die in battle.
But the moment Sora fired that silver meteor into the universe, everything changed.
Answering the golden meteor's call, a fleet far larger than the IPC's appeared near Penacony.
The IPC fleet that had originally surrounded Penacony suddenly found itself surrounded by the Galaxy Rangers instead.
If word of that got out, it would probably go down as one of the greatest humiliations in the IPC's records!
Worse still, they had provoked one of the last groups in the universe anyone should offend.
The Galaxy Rangers of that era were nothing like the largely inactive group they were today.
Even the IPC had no choice but to back down and admit fault when faced with Rangers like those.
And so, the IPC arrived in a blaze of aggression, only to slink away in disgrace.
That was also why, when the IPC later began cooperating with Penacony, one of its conditions was that Penacony could neither publicize nor investigate that chapter of its past.
If people learned that the IPC had once provoked the Galaxy Rangers at that point in history, it might take several Amber Eras for the company to restore its influence.
"But... what does any of that have to do with Tiernan returning my bullet?"
Was that not exactly why Sora had fired it in the first place?
He had chosen to fire that shot, and he had never regretted it.
"Whether you regret it has nothing to do with Tiernan wanting to repay you."
Sunday chuckled.
"Tiernan was a stubborn man. He said that after you sacrificed something so precious, his conscience would never let him leave the debt unpaid."
"I'll return it to him, no matter what. He's already sacrificed far too much for our dream."
Those had been Tiernan's exact words, and Sunday still remembered them to this day.
Because afterward...
"He left Penacony with the Rangers."
Tiernan had remained at the Frontier Prison because he was afraid that Mikhail, who lacked the strength to defend himself, might be threatened by others.
Once the crisis at the Frontier Prison had subsided, it was only natural for Tiernan to set out in pursuit of his own goal.
He wanted to return that precious item to the person who would one day visit Penacony.
And so, he chose to leave with the Rangers.
Only by doing so would he have any chance of obtaining something so immensely valuable to a Galaxy Ranger.
"According to Tiernan, after leaving Penacony, he followed the Rangers as they lured the Swarm."
After finishing her takoyaki, Acheron picked up where Sunday had left off.
The Rangers' reason for luring the Swarm was simple.
They were preparing to accomplish something earth-shattering—something nearly unprecedented in the universe.
"To hunt Zulo."
Many Rangers fell in the hunt for Zulo. Tiernan lost an arm in the battle, but he also obtained the item he wished to return.
Unfortunately, after finally acquiring that precious object, he was unable to return it in person.
The spirits of his comrades continued to rage in torment because their enemy had not been completely destroyed.
"I traveled with him for a long time. In his final moments, he entrusted this to me."
"And I sent an invitation addressed to 'Crocodile,' the Ranger alias Tiernan used."
That was the full story of how Acheron had come here.
The invitation sent to Acheron had not come from Misha, but from Sunday.
"Because I knew you would come."
After all, the beating he had taken had not been for nothing.
After hearing the whole story, Sora silently accepted the bullet he had once refused.
This bullet now represented more than the determination of the Galaxy Rangers.
It also carried one man's promise.
"That guy..."
Sora had never imagined that Tiernan, with whom he had barely interacted back then, would go so far for the sake of a promise.
"It couldn't be helped. That was simply the kind of stubborn man he was."
Tiernan was stubborn to a fault, yet also a hopeless romantic.
He came from a frontier world.
Inspired by the legendary local gunslinger Oakley, he had boarded the Astral Express, eventually choosing to disembark at the Frontier Prison.
Because of his promise to Sora, Tiernan later chose to leave Penacony.
He passed through Penacony several times afterward, but each time, he merely met briefly with his friends before departing once more.
Every one of those choices had been made for the sake of a promise known and honored by him alone.
That was also why, after the campaign against Lord Ravager Zulo, he became one of the few survivors of that brutal battle and disappeared without a trace.
The reason for his disappearance was simple.
He had gone to guide onward the Sin Thirsters formed from his fallen comrades, resolving their lingering resentment so they would not become puppets of NIHILITY.
Eventually, a Self-Annihilator found Tiernan, helped him lay his regrets to rest, accepted the relics he left behind, and learned of the promise known and honored by only one man.
"He was a truly pure, noble, and stubborn man."
That was Sunday's assessment of him.
After thinking for a moment, Acheron suddenly remembered something else.
"Before Tiernan faded away, I believe he left another message for someone who called himself trash."
At that, she looked toward Sunday.
No wonder he had seemed familiar when she first saw him.
The message itself was simple.
"Our era has already ended. An old-era trash can can't hold the trash of a new era. It's time for an upgrade."
After hearing that, Sora looked at Sunday, who was still disguised as a trash can.
Sunday stood frozen.
After a long moment, he finally moved again.
"Honestly... You stubborn old fool. Now you're lecturing me too..."
The words sounded like a complaint, but his voice held unmistakable warmth.
That was right.
He had watched over this place for far too long.
It was time for him to move on and upgrade as well.
...
The unrest within the Family came to a complete end after Dominicus, one of XIPE's Harmonic Strings, descended.
This defied many people's expectations.
Many had previously stood on the sidelines, hoping to watch the Family's turmoil for their own amusement.
Yet XIPE unexpectedly sent Dominicus back so quickly to preside over Penacony and quell the unrest.
That alone revealed XIPE's unusual concern for this place.
Further investigation revealed that this was not the end of it.
"What did you say? The Family didn't hold Robin accountable and actually acknowledged her standing?!"
Everyone was shocked when they received the news.
They all had only one thought.
Was the Family of HARMONY really that generous?
Although the lingering influence of ORDER had caused many people to gradually forget the previous cycle of ENA's Dream, the Family members could not possibly forget it so easily.
That had been ORDER—an ORDER capable of devouring even HARMONY.
And the person nurtured by that ORDER had been Robin's brother, Sunday, the former head of the Oak Family.
In other words, Sunday had been a Pathstrider of ORDER hiding within the Family while plotting to kill XIPE.
What did that make him?
An obvious infiltrator. An obvious spy!
No matter the faction, a traitor like that would probably be judged with ruthless severity.
And Sunday was not someone without attachments. He had a sister. He had family.
If they had been the ones handling the matter, Robin certainly would not have escaped an interrogation.
Even if they did not interrogate her, they would at least have made an example of her to show everyone else the consequences of such actions.
But what had happened?
Not only had the Family declined to hold Robin responsible, it had even acknowledged her standing within the Family.
"Is the Family really this kind?"
Everyone who learned of the matter could not help voicing the same thought.
The Family of HARMONY had treated the family of a traitor who tried to assassinate XIPE with such generosity.
It exceeded everyone's expectations.
Naturally, once word spread, it attracted a great many people with malicious intentions who wanted to infiltrate the Family.
As for the result...
"It's a trap! It's a trap!!!"
The moment they tried it themselves, they let out anguished cries.
They learned firsthand exactly what punishment awaited those who betrayed the Family and experienced for themselves how the Family dealt with traitors.
Nearly every ill-intentioned infiltrator ended up completely under the Family's sway.
This outcome left everyone both astonished and confused.
Why had the same kind of act produced such different results?
Especially when Sunday's crime had involved plotting against XIPE.
So why had Robin received no punishment whatsoever?
"What in the world is XIPE thinking?!"
Or rather...
"What is so special about Robin that XIPE would make such a decision?"
Only Robin herself was likely to know the answers.
Unfortunately, Robin had already left Penacony and was now traveling through the universe.
And Sora was not the only person accompanying her.
There was also someone no one would ever have expected.
"So your ship really is this fast. No wonder I couldn't catch you back then."
Seated aboard the ship, Sunday looked around and sighed in admiration.
Although the chase lay far in Sunday's past, the memory had remained lodged in his mind like a fishbone.
Now that he had experienced the ship himself, he could finally accept why he had failed to catch it.
Even in Sunday's eyes, the speed of the Silver Radiance could be surpassed only by the Astral Express.
"Buying a ship like this must have cost quite a fortune."
Although Sunday had spent all that time watching over DESTRUDOS, he had not been cut off from news of the universe.
That was why he recognized it as the new model that had been developed and released only recently.
Its extraordinary speed left little room for doubt.
If he remembered correctly, had its price tag come with nine zeroes or ten?
"I don't think it cost anything..."
After giving it some thought, Sora answered with uncertainty.
When Anna came to see him before, she seemed to have mentioned that all the credits used to purchase the ship had been refunded.
But it had happened so long ago that he could no longer remember clearly.
Sora therefore turned his gaze toward Hotaru.
It was time for their Pathstrider of REMEMBRANCE to take the stage!
The memory she replayed confirmed that Sora had remembered correctly.
Anna had specifically sought him out to tell him the news. Afterward, she had also said:
"It seems it isn't just this ship. You appear to have left traces of yourself in all sorts of things connected to the IPC..."
His name appeared in everything from videos, music, and shopping records to corporate shares, investment funds, and maternity and infant products...
By the time she reached that point, Anna's expression in the recording had become rather strange.
"I know you've been doing very well for yourself out there, but you still need to be a little more careful with your spending."
At the very least, maternity and infant products did not appear to be of much use to Sora at the moment.
Even Sora himself was stunned when he saw the recording.
"Did she really say all that?"
He had not even noticed.
Still...
"Anna was probably just joking."
Why would he have anything to do with so many unrelated products?
Investment funds and stock trading in particular had nothing to do with him at all.
But just because Sora did not take it seriously did not mean everyone nearby felt the same way.
"Hmph. My dear sister, you heard that, didn't you? Some people become completely reckless with their spending the moment they come into money."
Sunday began earnestly advising Robin.
"So when it comes to certain matters, you should exercise greater caution."
For example, by staying away from a certain brute who only knew how to use violence!
Robin could only sigh helplessly.
"All right, Brother. I know what I'm doing."
Sora might not worry about these things, but how could Robin possibly ignore them?
Having so many things registered under his name without his knowledge could mean someone was using his identity for dangerous purposes.
For example, someone might be using his identity as a stand-in for something.
Concerned that Sora's personal information might have been leaked, Robin had specifically investigated these matters.
To her surprise, the privacy protections surrounding those records were extremely strict.
Had she not possessed Sora's authorization at the time, she might not even have been able to uncover certain crucial information.
And when she saw everything registered under Sora's identity, she could not help falling silent.
She discovered that, aside from being the leader of the Federation, Sora also held investments and shares in nearly a hundred companies of varying sizes.
The value generated by those holdings alone was enough to support an extraordinarily lavish lifestyle.
And yet...
Robin would probably never forget the sight of Sora browsing listings for inexpensive restaurants when they first arrived on Penacony.
No one would ever imagine what thoughts might be running through the mind of a man whose holdings generated enough value each day to support an entire planet as he searched for budget restaurants.
However, when Robin saw the delighted expression on Sora's face as he tasted the food there and invited her to join him, she understood that certain things did not need to be investigated too deeply.
As long as he remained the same person at heart, neither wealth nor luxury could ever change him.
Surely no one could possess such an enormous fortune without knowing it.
Something that absurd could never happen in reality.
And so...
"I'm happy with my life here. You don't need to worry about me anymore, Brother."
Sunday's reply caught in his throat.
He had never imagined Robin would turn the matter around and use it to silence him.
Sunday immediately glared viciously at Sora.
What kind of spell did you cast on my sister, you little brat?!
I'll uncover your true colors. I absolutely will—
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!"
Sunday suddenly cried out, followed by a heavy thud.
Everyone aboard the ship looked over and found Sunday sitting alone on the floor, clutching his backside.
"What are you doing?"
Sora was puzzled.
Was Sunday trying to attract Robin's attention by making himself look pitiful?
Surely not. The man was already several thousand years old. He shouldn't need to resort to something like that.
"How should I know? One of your ship's seats suddenly folded away beneath me."
Sunday rubbed his aching backside as he complained to Sora.
"Maybe the seat's broken. Where's the nearest star?"
Sora suspected the ship simply had not been serviced recently. It was probably time to let it bask in some starlight and repair itself.
Until then, Sunday would have to use one of the intact seats on the other side.
"You didn't do this deliberately, did you?"
Sunday found the explanation that the seat had simply broken highly suspicious.
Why had it failed at that exact moment instead of any other time?
Sora could only stare at him, speechless.
"I was originally going to sit there."
But Sunday had insisted on sitting across from Robin and had claimed that seat for himself.
Now that his backside had taken a beating, he was actually accusing Sora of setting a trap.
Where was the justice in that? Where was the law?
After thinking about it, Sunday realized Sora had a point.
Even so, he could not shake the feeling that something was strange.
But no matter how much he considered it, he could not find any evidence.
And so, he moved to the other side while continuing to stare fixedly at Sora.
If Sora really had done it, he would surely show some unusual reaction.
Sunday intended to watch closely and determine whether Sora was responsible!
However, after observing him without blinking for a while, Sunday gradually lowered his guard.
Sora had already closed his eyes and was leaning back for a brief nap.
As soon as his eyes shut, the seat beneath him seemed to receive a command. It slowly reclined and shifted beneath him, supporting his body in the most comfortable position possible.
"Did he specifically reprogram the ship's intelligent systems?"
Sunday was certain Sora had not touched any controls.
In other words, the ship had acted autonomously.
He therefore guessed that Sora had specially programmed its behavior.
For example, whenever someone closed their eyes, their seat would automatically adjust itself.
"He certainly knows how to make himself comfortable."
As far as Sunday knew, very few people bothered programming this sort of feature into a ship.
If one wanted to rest during a voyage, wouldn't it be better to simply use one of the cabins?
With that thought, Sunday also closed his eyes and decided to rest for a while.
The journey would still take some time, so he might as well enjoy the special service aboard Sora's ship.
But after closing his eyes and waiting for quite some time, he realized that his posture had not changed in the slightest.
That was right.
Nothing had changed at all!
The seat had neither shifted beneath him nor transformed in any way.
It seemed to be nothing more than an ordinary seat.
Realizing something was wrong, Sunday looked over at Sora again.
Sora was reclining even more comfortably, and his seat had begun gently massaging him.
The sight alone was enough to make anyone feel relaxed.
Yet Sunday could not enjoy any such treatment.
He discovered that his own seat also possessed a massage function, but it would work only if he adjusted it manually.
"Could this be a program he wrote solely for his own enjoyment?"
Why else would Sunday have to adjust everything manually before he could use those features?
"Of course not."
Hotaru, who was seated not far from Sunday, answered him.
"This ship has always been like this."
Even though Sora had never configured it that way, strange things would happen around him.
A seat automatically changing shape and giving him a massage was merely one of the most common examples.
"Come to think of it, this function isn't even listed in the ship's operating manual."
"It isn't listed?!"
Sunday looked at Sora, his brow gradually furrowing.
"Could he have installed it later?"
"Impossible. We've handled all of this ship's maintenance since it was delivered. If Sora had installed any new modules, we would definitely know. Besides, the ship is still in its original factory condition. No additional modules have ever been installed."
"Then what exactly causes these things to happen?"
Sunday still wanted to investigate, but Hotaru had little interest in the matter.
"Who cares? As long as Sora can rest comfortably, that's all that matters."
More importantly, she had some business to handle with the Iron Cavalry.
"Use one of the guest cabins if you're tired. I have something to take care of, so I'll leave you to it."
After saying goodbye to Sunday, she left.
With Hotaru gone, Sunday had little chance of uncovering what was strange about the ship.
After all, this was his first time aboard it, and he would only ever be a temporary passenger.
Once they arrived at their destination, he would leave.
As for where he was going, that was simple...
He intended to retrace the path Robin had traveled and see the sights he had never witnessed before.
He also intended to find someone who had left Penacony long ago.
It was a special command ship...
---
T/N: wait is this the AI that he made back then oooooooooooh
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