Acheron's original intent was simply to say she feared Bai Ming might be in trouble and wanted to come over to lend a hand, but after a moment's thought, she felt that given Bai Ming's current situation, such words might be somewhat inappropriate.
So, after weighing her options for a beat, she added a few more lines.
She said it had been a long time since they last met, so she wanted to stop by and see her.
Of course, this wasn't exactly a lie. For Acheron, the fact that she could still exist in a relatively lucid state was entirely thanks to the other woman's help.
Naturally, if she insisted on plunging deeper into IX, she would likely end up in a bad state eventually, which felt a bit like squandering that kindness.
Consequently, Acheron's feelings for Bai Ming carried a hint of guilt alongside her affection.
Add to that the path she had chosen—one that kept her perpetually lingering on the borders of Nihility, unable to stay by Bai Ming's side or contribute her own strength—and Acheron became quite eager now that an opportunity to help had finally surfaced.
Of course, if her help wasn't actually needed, they could just consider it a chance to catch up.
Back when she was always forgetting things, she hadn't felt it much.
But now, after several hundred years of her memory improving, that perpetually hazy border of Nihility was starting to become unbearable.
Lately, she found herself constantly reminiscing about the scenes of Bai Ming coming to find her.
Even just having one more person to talk to made things much better for Acheron.
However, Bai Ming's reply was a bit slow.
Was she busy with something?
Acheron stared at Bai Ming's status, which had changed to "Read" even though no message had been sent.
She waited a while longer.
Finally, a new notification popped up:
[Nameless: It hasn't been that long, has it? Though I have been at the space station outside Amphoreus these past few days. Hmm, I might head over to Penacony next. Where are you? I'll come pick you up.]
Seeing the message, Acheron's lips curled into a smile.
[Acheron: No need. There are plenty of Star Rails to Penacony. It's a good excuse to get out and walk.]
[Nameless: Alright then. Message me when you arrive. I have some connections there; I'll treat you to a tour of the Dreamscape for free.]
[Acheron: Okay.]
Ending the conversation and tucking her phone away, Acheron headed toward the nearest jump point with a smile on her face.
While she technically could traverse the cosmos with her physical body alone, for a jump like this, it was always better to take a starship.
--+--
Meanwhile, on the other side.
After confirming that Acheron was coming, a smile appeared on 'Robin's' face as well.
She had been running around everywhere lately and indeed hadn't seen Acheron for quite some time.
Plus, there wasn't much more to be done regarding the "Hachimi Song" for the moment.
Shaking the foundations of Paths was no easy feat; for now, all she could do was wait for it to spread further.
"Who is it? What's got you smiling so wide?"
Herta's voice snapped 'Robin' out of her thoughts. She turned her head but noticed Herta wasn't actually looking at her.
"Acheron. You know, the Emanator of Nihility."
"Oh... that woman. What's she coming here for?"
"She says she's just out for a stroll, but I suspect she's worried I've run into trouble."
Even though Acheron hadn't said it, 'Robin' could guess.
"Which means you won't have much to do for a while?"
"Yeah, why?"
"What do you mean 'why'? Come help me with my work! Are you really going to ignore the rebooting and debugging of the Simulated Universe entirely?"
Herta was practically laughing from frustration at this girl's feigned ignorance.
It was fine when she was busy with other things a few days ago.
But now that those matters had settled and she had no immediate plans to leave the Simulated Universe space station, she still wanted to slack off? Was she just going to watch Herta work herself to the bone?
"Uh... actually, I had some other things I planned to do..."
"Really? Why do I feel like you just made that up on the spot to fool me?"
Facing Herta's skeptical gaze, 'Robin' remained defiant:
"How could I? I have plenty of things to do, okay? Remember that Glamoth Iron Cavalry I brought back? I need to find time to figure out a way to deal with her Entropy Loss Syndrome."
Herta's eyebrows shot up at that.
Whether she had thought of it just now or not, the excuse was at least valid.
This girl had brought the person back without arranging any specific experiments to treat her, leaving the poor lady aside to tinker with a mountain of other things.
But just then, Dreammaster Gopher Wood sent a rare communication request.
"What does Gopher Wood want with me at a time like this?"
'Robin' rubbed her chin, lost in thought.
Could it be that the Family has already come knocking? Is he under so much pressure from the main branch that he needs an outsider like me to bail him out?
She accepted the transmission, and Gopher Wood's figure appeared before her.
But just as Gopher Wood was about to speak, he froze slightly upon seeing her appearance.
"This look... could it be the grown-up Robin?"
Though one was a child and the other an adult, and the makeup here was exquisite and grand, those eyes and that aura were unmistakably Robin.
"Mhm. Indeed, I'm the Robin from a certain future—a galactic superstar and a steadfast, exceptional Pathstrider of Harmony."
"...I see."
Gopher Wood fell silent for a moment, then let out a sigh.
"What? Are you disappointed that little Robin didn't follow the Path of Order?"
Faced with 'Robin''s teasing, Gopher Wood displayed a smile that was hard to decipher—somewhere between being carefree and simply relieved.
"No. I simply feel that this child is truly remarkable. Besides, at this stage, even Ena the Order has refused to be revived. As a follower, how could I go against the Aeon's own choice?"
Gopher Wood had originally thought his actions in Penacony were a way of letting geniuses more capable than himself achieve what he couldn't, but the result had exceeded his wildest imagination.
In Gopher Wood's plan, there were only two outcomes: success or failure.
Either would have been fine for him.
The problem was... Ena, who had a chance to be resurrected, chose death once again.
This outcome had left Gopher Wood's "Determination" somewhat shattered.
Even now, he couldn't understand why.
Gopher Wood believed that Harmony was fundamentally insufficient—that only by granting the world Order could true equality and respect be achieved.
But if that were so, why would Ena, as the very incarnation of Order, choose Harmony so resolutely?
At that time, Ena wasn't being forced into Harmony by the Swarm Disaster.
In fact, Ena's own self-destruction had nearly allowed Propagation to rise again as the sole dominant power.
If the suicide had been due to an unwillingness to accept the false prosperity of Order, that would be one thing—but in that situation, that clearly wasn't the case.
'Robin' could tell his mindset was collapsing, but there was nothing she could do about it. This was a faith he'd held his entire life; it wasn't something a few words from a stranger could fix.
If anything, the fact that he could choose to let go after seeing the impossibility of the task, rather than suffering a total mental break, was already a fairly good sign.
She had even drafted a contingency plan for what to do if Gopher Wood actually went mad.
"So, what brings you to me today?"
"There is something I feel I must clarify with you. The main Family has dispatched envoys to Penacony. The previous events have made them nervous; they want to seize Lampmoth and 'rectify' Penacony's Harmony."
Gopher Wood spoke calmly, seemingly indifferent to the threat from the main branch.
Instead, it was 'Robin' who was more concerned about how much the timeline was diverging from her memories.
"Aren't you worried?"
"I am the Dreammaster of Penacony, after all; there is no need for concern. However, the Family doesn't just have their eyes on Penacony. Envoys have also been sent to Amphoreus. They wish to investigate the truth behind the 'Ena of Order' incident."
"...As expected. Still, thank you for the intel."
'Robin' nodded, offering her thanks.
Regardless of his motives, Gopher Wood's gesture was equivalent to forming a united front with her.
Gopher Wood shook his head.
"I am old... I cannot see where the path forward for Penacony lies. But before I fall, I want to pave the way as best as I can for those two children."
They say third time's the charm, but for Gopher Wood, the gap between these two failures was simply too long.
Moreover, seeing the plans he had spent decades on being surpassed so easily by 'Robin' and the geniuses was a massive blow to his ego.
He was old.
He couldn't imagine what place Order should occupy within the symphony of Harmony nor did he have the mental energy to keep trial-and-erroring.
If it weren't for Robin and Sunday, he might have gritted his teeth for a third attempt, but now, there were two exceptionally talented children who could inherit his position.
Lately, Gopher Wood felt that placing his hopes on these twins might be a wise choice.
"By the way, are you free lately?"
"Is there something you need?"
"Since your current identity is related to the future Robin, I was wondering if you could perhaps teach her a thing or two."
In Gopher Wood's eyes, it would be a good thing if Robin could build a relationship with this woman.
Furthermore, she had said she was a possibility from the future.
And as far as he could see, it wasn't a bad future. Having a future version of oneself give a lesson to one's younger self...
No matter how you looked at it, it was a fantastic educational opportunity.
"Hmm..."
'Robin' didn't think little Robin was so naughty that she needed "special" education.
But having her sing a few songs like "Hachimi" while she was still small and cute sounded pretty adorable.
"Sure, I'll stop by when I have a moment."
"I am deeply grateful for your generosity."
Gopher Wood bowed in gratitude.
Then, the transmission cut out.
Herta didn't say a word, she just squinted her eyes at 'Robin'.
Didn't she just say she was busy? And now she's running off to Penacony to play with a kid?
While Entropy Loss Syndrome certainly wasn't something that could be fixed overnight, and playing with a kid wouldn't take much time, a point was a point.
Besides, Herta felt this girl definitely knew what she was about to say.
Yes, she had to know!
If she didn't, then she was in big trouble!
"..."
Under Herta's gaze, 'Robin', who had originally intended to say something else, ended up swallowing her words.
That look... she had a feeling that if she said she had things to do and needed to leave, she'd be hunted down by Herta all over again.
And honestly, dumping all the troublesome work on Herta wasn't quite right.
The Simulated Universe was different from other projects; it was something the geniuses handled personally, and it was hard for outsiders to intervene.
And this reboot incident was, in fact, the result of the experiment 'Robin' wanted to run.
To say nothing of how much of a headache the reboot was, the lost Credit Points from a single downtime were astronomical.
A lot of high-precision equipment had been fried and needed replacing.
Thinking about it that way, Herta's anger seemed perfectly justified.
So, 'Robin' immediately became well-behaved, looking Herta in the eye with a cheeky grin.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have dumped everything on you the other day. How about we get the Simulated Universe rebooted today?"
"Hmph. Suit yourself."
Herta gave a small huff and turned to leave. Though she didn't say much, her mood had clearly brightened.
'Robin' chuckled and quickly followed after her.
Together with Herta, she finished the entire reboot of the Simulated Universe.
Of course, a project as massive as the Simulated Universe couldn't just be used immediately after turning it on. It required a vast amount of debugging and environmental setup after startup.
There was plenty of work, but luckily, that was the part Screwllum was primarily responsible for.
'Robin' took a moment to contact Reveria.
Surprisingly, the Glamoth Iron Cavalry was having a blast on Amphoreus, looking like she was in no hurry to leave.
She mentioned plans to go sightseeing in the coastal city.
It was also possible she was being mindful of 'Robin's' limited free time.
After all, such a huge incident had just occurred; Amphoreus was already overwhelmed just dealing with the inquiries from various factions.
The space station likely wasn't having it easy either.
So, Reveria very thoughtfully said she would wait until 'Robin' was truly free to deal with the Entropy Loss Syndrome.
Anyway, as long as she stayed attached to the Swarm, she could basically take off her armor and move around freely.
With no immediate threat to her life, Reveria didn't want to seem too demanding.
And regarding this young woman's thoughtfulness, 'Robin' truly felt she deserved a happy life.
'Robin' arrived at Penacony as promised.
At the Reverie Hotel, she met Acheron, who was waiting for her.
Originally, 'Robin' thought that since she was wearing yet another new face, Acheron might not recognize her.
As it turned out, before she could even get close, the other woman looked up and locked eyes with her.
Acheron was slightly stunned at first, but then she smiled and waved.
"This identity is very beautiful too. You look like a superstar."
'Robin' walked up to her and returned the smile.
"You hit the nail on the head. This identity actually is a superstar—just a future one. I came to Penacony today to see her while she's still a child."
"Still a child?"
Acheron blinked.
How should she put it?
Although she had known this ability would involve corresponding people, but when 'Robin' mentioned a future superstar, she had only assumed the person just wasn't famous yet.
She hadn't expected them to be literally underage.
That was quite a gap.
"Yep. Let's go see her together in a bit."
After 'Robin' helped Acheron register at the front desk, she used her authority to waive all of Acheron's expenses in Penacony.
She then led Acheron to her guest room—to enter the dream together.
--+--
T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL