After Tiriandes had put away the 2D Great Duke, Nero suddenly raised his head and waved.
He saw that his companions who had gone to inspect the dream bubbles had returned.
Gallagher also noticed this and turned around, looking at the Nameless aboard the Astral Express. "Back faster than I expected... Got the result?"
"Mm..." Himeko nodded. "Now, it's our turn to open up the road ahead."
A smile appeared on Gallagher's face, and he seemed much more relaxed. "Heh, since his last wish has already been delivered, my final task is complete.
"Still, don't blame me for saying this, but having fighting spirit is a good thing. The road Mikhail left for you won't be easy...
"Otherwise, why would he have gone to sleep alone, putting everything on you Nameless of the future?"
"Even if it's not easy, we've already walked onto it..." Nero pursed his lips to the side, his little face drooping.
He spread his hands and complained a little, "We came here to attend the celebration at first. We came here to take a vacation. But look at the situation now... We can't really keep playing here if we don't settle this, right?"
"It's like being dragged out to play by a friend when you know there's a mountain of homework waiting and you haven't even started a single stroke. The guilt is like a thorn stuck in your chest, so you can't even enjoy yourself."
Listening to Nero's complaints, Gallagher twitched the corner of his mouth.
As expected of a kid connected to both the Beauty and the Nameless, even his complaints were straightforward. He was always so clear about his goal, leaving no room at all for hesitation or confusion.
Nero's attitude made him, unusually, joke about the matter, "Heh, there are more of you. Maybe you'll lose more slowly, and you'll have more time to play than we did."
"You're pretty good at comforting people, huh..." March crossed her arms and condemned Gallagher's nasty joke.
"That would've been better left unsaid..." July had the same attitude as March.
"In my opinion, relying solely on Welt to take part in the negotiations is nowhere near enough." Himeko paused for a moment before getting down to business.
"Regardless of whether the other side will obediently give in, negotiations themselves can only give us a chance to stand on equal footing with them. They can't give us any advantage."
"Penacony is the other side's home ground, and we have very few chips we can use in the first place. Rather than sit around and wait to die under the Family's blockade, we might as well choose to attack first."
"We're familiar with the properties of Stellaron, and as the core that stabilizes sweet dreams, the Stellaron is extremely important to the Family. If we touch their core interests, they will definitely rush to retaliate... and rushing precisely means there will be openings."
"Exactly. As long as we can threaten the Stellaron, whether it's negotiations or battle, we'll have a chance to gain the upper hand." Firefly quite agreed with Himeko's view.
"But the problem is, with the Charmony Festival about to begin, how can we get close to the Grand Theater? The Family will definitely set up layer after layer of defenses. Forcing our way through... even if we can do it, the risk is too high."
"Indeed." Nero nodded, agreeing with Firefly.
He had been listening carefully to the two of them. At this moment, he slightly furrowed his brows and put on a serious expression.
"If we force our way through, we might accidentally destroy this dreamland, and then we won't even be able to take a vacation anymore. Robin Sis might even get angry... The price is too high."
Firefly looked at Nero. "...?"
The price I was talking about doesn't seem to be that...
At this moment, March suddenly said, "I know the answer to this one!"
"So we still have a surprise force we haven't used." Stelle slowly turned her head toward March beside her, imitating Jing Yuan's always-carefree manner.
March looked smug. As she spread her hands, she deliberately struck a pose and said, "Aiya~ Without me, this train crew would probably fall apart."
But just as March was about to finish showing off and open her mouth, July, who had the same train of thought as her, snatched the words from her, "It's like this. I... We heard that before the Charmony Festival begins, a talent show venue will be opened to warm up for the grand event. What was it called... The SoulGlad Gala Auditions. It's being held at the Golden Hour."
"As long as we take first place, we can win the title of Gala Superstar and be personally received by Miss Robin... But that's not important. What matters is that we can enter the Grand Theater earlier than ordinary spectators."
When there was only one March around, everyone hadn't noticed it that clearly.
But at this moment, after the two Marches had stood together for a while, everyone could vaguely notice that there were still some subtle differences between the two of them.
July seemed to be just a tiny bit more mature and clever than March.
"Then... how can we take part in those Gala auditions?" Firefly asked.
"Hehe~" July and March smiled together. "Actually, we got several specially invited tickets from Miss Robin's fan group!"
And in the next moment, the two Marches spoke in unison. Even their expressions and body movements were synchronized, "To tell you the truth, I've been preparing to take part in this talent show all along."
"But now it seems that even if I manage to stand out, I probably won't get the chance to shake hands with Miss Robin..."
Nero blinked as he looked at the two identical girls and asked in confusion, "Although the things you prepared did indeed come in handy... but shaking hands with Robin Sis isn't that troublesome, is it?"
"Do you think everyone is like you? All you have to do is show your face." March glared at Nero.
"Nero is really someone who doesn't know how lucky he is. Aiya~ He's a big star himself. How would he know how hard it is to chase stars?" July added.
This time, even Black Cutter, who had followed them all the way here while looking no different from an ordinary oversized flying sword, began to shake its head and make sword cries.
It strongly agreed with the two girls. Thinking of the two times it had lost contact with its little master, it couldn't help sighing. Chasing stars really was too difficult, several times harder than chasing falling stars.
Gallagher, meanwhile, said with some surprise, "That thing is still being held...? It was originally just a gimmick Mikhail deliberately came up with to attract attention."
Then he shrugged. "Still worth a try."
"Let's go with Little March and Little July's idea," Himeko said. Then she looked at the person who had revealed the truth to everyone, the Watchmaker's friend. "Mr. Gallagher, will you travel with us?"
"...I'm afraid I don't have that time." Gallagher shook his head slightly at everyone. "As a fictional character... I've already completed my final task. Whether Penacony can awaken from its dream will be entirely up to you."
"If we meet again, please be sure to come sit on the Express." Himeko said.
"Sure." Gallagher nodded. "I'll add a few more lines to your Express's databank."
"Then, Miss Firefly." Himeko turned around and looked at Firefly.
"Thank you for the help you provided earlier. With a great enemy before us, as long as the Stellaron Hunters and the Astral Express share the same goal, we're also willing to cooperate with you."
As she spoke, Himeko gave her a friendly smile.
She actually had a complicated attitude toward the Stellaron Hunters, an organization notorious throughout the universe.
From the vast majority of perspectives and under most circumstances, there was no doubt that the Stellaron Hunters should be regarded as a hostile force, but...
Several of the children aboard the Express happened to have deep connections with this evil force in the universe. They could even be said to get along quite well.
Moreover, this time, the girl before them named Firefly hadn't done anything out of line. She had even provided them with quite a lot of help...
"Mm... We've already come this far, so let me finish the journey through Penacony with you." Firefly said. "I'm glad that in the end, we can stand side by side. This really is the best ending."
"This is also the meaning of the journey of Trailblaze." Himeko smiled. "Then let's set off, everyone."