There were supposedly three great things about petite girls—
Tsundere.
Flat-chested.
Easy to fluster.
The Silver Wolf standing before him, the hacker from Punklorde, fit the first two perfectly.
As for the third...
Yeah, that wasn't happening.
After all...
She was one of the Stellaron Hunters.
The legendary Wolf herself.
Naturally, she wasn't someone ordinary.
"So what does that have to do with you?"
Evan casually shoved Silver Wolf aside.
"Have your seventy-plus accounts been unbanned yet?"
"If not, shouldn't you be busy giving Herta another headache?"
"..."
Silver Wolf's good mood vanished instantly.
That bastard!
I'm gonna bite you to death!
She spun around and glared viciously at Evan's retreating back.
Her tiny fists clenched tightly.
"So..."
"This is what's been bothering you?"
Kafka looked at Firefly with a gentle smile.
Her body had finally returned to normal.
Yet this girl...
Was worrying about something like this?
Honestly...
Kafka had no idea what went on inside Firefly's head sometimes.
"...Mm."
"I..."
"I don't know what I should do next."
"Kafka..."
Kafka sighed softly.
"I think you've spent too long inside dreams."
"Does everything really need a meaning?"
"Take me, for example."
"When I joined the Stellaron Hunters..."
"I wasn't searching for the meaning of my future."
"What concerned me..."
"Was life."
"And death."
"You already know where I came from."
"I was born on a devil planet."
"A world where only devils existed."
"There were no ordinary humans."
"Even I..."
"Was one of them."
"No one's life has a goal forever."
"You see..."
"Your goal used to be surviving."
"So now..."
"Shouldn't your goal simply become living a more colorful life?"
Firefly froze slightly.
She had never heard Kafka speak like this before.
As always...
Today was another first.
Kafka had grown up on a world corrupted by a Stellaron.
A planet whose people knew nothing of fear.
Where everyone indulged their desires until they became demons.
She had never understood the value of her own life.
Later...
She met Elio in New Babylon.
Elio promised he could change her future.
So she joined the Stellaron Hunters.
As for Firefly...
Kafka had been the one who found her.
A weapon born for war.
Searching for the meaning of life after every one of her comrades had fallen.
And now...
"I..."
"I think I understand."
"Oh?"
"You understand now?"
A familiar voice sounded from behind them.
"It seems, Miss Kafka..."
"You're just as persuasive without using Spirit Whisper."
Evan walked over with a smile before casually sitting beside Firefly.
"It's been a while."
"Miss Kafka."
"..."
"Evan."
"The newest genius of the Genius Society."
"No one ever told me..."
"You're secretly a Masked Fool too."
Kafka immediately fired back.
Evan laughed.
"No, no."
"I'm not a Masked Fool."
"I'm just someone the Aeon of Elation happened to find amusing."
"S... Sir Evan..."
The moment Evan sat beside her...
Firefly immediately remembered what had happened not long ago.
She remembered...
Standing completely naked in front of him.
Even if this body had been reconstructed from Soulsteel...
Her consciousness now resided inside it.
Which meant...
This was her body.
And Evan had seen all of it.
The mere thought made her cheeks burn bright red.
"I told you."
"You don't have to be so formal."
"Just call me Evan."
"I..."
"I understand."
"I'll... I'll remember next time."
Firefly's flustered response made Kafka glance sideways at Evan.
Really?
Firefly.
You're Sam.
One of the Stellaron Hunters.
Where did all this shyness suddenly come from?
Seeing Firefly's embarrassed expression...
Kafka couldn't help narrowing her eyes with an amused smile.
Then she looked back at Evan.
"Evan."
"How about joining the Stellaron Hunters?"
"...Hmm?"
"I honestly think..."
"You fit us much better than the Astral Express."
"Come with us."
"I guarantee it'll be far more interesting."
"What do you think?"
The Stellaron Hunters...
Pathstriders walking toward the End under Elio's guidance.
Across the galaxy...
Countless rumors surrounded Elio.
But none were as interesting as the Astral Express Crew's own speculation.
According to the records left behind by the Nameless...
The so-called Destiny's Slave...
Might actually be the legendary navigator of the Astral Express.
The one known as—
I See.
His codename had been The Stargazer.
He witnessed both Akivili's fall...
And Nanook's birth.
Even during the Express's darkest era...
He never abandoned his duty.
Unfortunately...
That history had long since disappeared.
After I See resigned and vanished...
A mysterious figure known as the Omen Vanguard appeared throughout the galaxy.
The Omen Vanguard belonged to the followers of Finality.
Combined with Elio's title—
Destiny's Slave—
Many naturally believed the two were one and the same.
Evan pondered the offer for a moment.
Then smiled and shook his head.
"I'll pass."
"I admit..."
"The bond between the Stellaron Hunters is enviable."
"But the Astral Express isn't any worse."
"Besides..."
"Why would I willingly become a wanted criminal?"
"Jade already offered me a P45 contract."
"A mere Stellaron Hunter invitation..."
"Isn't enough to tempt me."
"...P45?"
Kafka frowned slightly.
She stared into Evan's eyes.
Trying to read him.
In the end...
She simply shook her head.
Just as before...
She couldn't determine whether he was telling the truth.
But one thing was certain.
Evan wasn't an enemy.
That alone was enough.
With that thought...
Kafka smiled.
Then handed him a small slip of paper.
"If the Stellaron Hunters don't interest you..."
"Perhaps..."
"This person will."
"...?"
Evan accepted the note and looked down.
There wasn't anything written on it.
Just a single name.
Calderon Chadwick.
"...Calderon Chadwick?"
"Genius Society Member No. 79?"
"He's in Penacony?!"
Back when this was just a side quest in the game...
Evan remembered Calderon Chadwick.
But he couldn't recall exactly where the quest began.
Calderon Chadwick.
The Oppenheimer of the Honkai: Star Rail universe.
A true ordinary human.
And at the same time...
A genuine genius.
One whose brilliance had even earned Herta's admiration.
To read advanced Chapters, head over to p@treon:
patreon.com/nani_kaito