Calderon Chadwick?
The moment Evan looked at the name written on the slip of paper Kafka had handed him...
He froze.
Then everything came flooding back.
Calderon Chadwick.
The seventy-ninth member of the Genius Society.
A genius so extraordinary that even Herta and Screwllum held him in the highest regard.
And he was...
In Penacony?
"Evan."
"What do you think of this deal?"
Kafka smiled faintly.
"As thanks for curing Firefly..."
"Elio wanted me to pass this information on to you."
"Dr. Chadwick..."
"Is currently being held somewhere within Penacony's dreamscape."
"..."
Evan silently stared at the slip of paper.
To anyone else...
It was merely a name.
But to the members of the Genius Society...
He was a predecessor.
Someone Screwllum had only met a handful of times...
Yet still acknowledged as a friend.
"...Thank you."
"I'll take care of this personally."
"And..."
"Please thank the Destiny's Slave for me."
"Oh?"
"And tell him one thing."
Evan smiled slightly.
"If he ever has the time..."
"He's always welcome to come back to the Astral Express."
"I think our conductor..."
"Would be very happy to see him."
After saying that...
He turned toward Firefly.
"And the same goes for you."
"Firefly."
"The Astral Express will always welcome you as a guest."
"...Ah?"
"I..."
"I really can?"
Firefly stared at Evan in disbelief.
She had never imagined...
That he would actually invite her aboard the Express.
"The Astral Express doesn't reject anyone who sincerely wishes to board."
"Even if you're a Stellaron Hunter."
"I see~"
Kafka narrowed her eyes playfully.
"Then..."
"Does that invitation include me?"
"It does."
Evan nodded without hesitation.
"This is my invitation..."
"As your friend."
"Not as someone speaking on behalf of the Astral Express."
"The conductor won't reject any of you."
He chuckled.
"Well..."
"Unless one of you plans to blow up the train."
The joke made Kafka smile.
Firefly blinked in surprise.
As for Evan...
He silently added the rest of the sentence in his heart.
Except Blade.
If Blade boards the train...
Who knows what kind of disaster that'll turn into.
Kafka?
No problem.
Firefly?
Even less so.
Silver Wolf?
She at least knows where to draw the line.
But Blade...
Better not.
Absolutely not.
Before Evan could react—
Someone suddenly threw herself at him.
"!"
He was knocked backward onto the sofa.
A soft warmth pressed tightly against his chest.
Looking down...
He saw a girl burying her face against him.
Her shoulders trembled slightly.
A faint sob escaped her lips.
"My, my~"
"Our little Samuel..."
"Looks like she's already been conquered."
Silver Wolf's teasing voice echoed from nearby.
Evan looked over.
Kafka simply stood there...
Watching everything unfold with her usual gentle smile.
At that moment...
Evan finally understood why Firefly had suddenly hugged him.
"Firefly..."
"You don't have to..."
"Everyone's watching."
"Just..."
"Let me stay like this..."
"For a little longer..."
"It's so warm..."
"So..."
"Comfortable..."
She tightened her arms slightly.
"I haven't felt anything like this..."
"Since before we were even born..."
"Back when we were still inside the cloning facility."
"But this time..."
"I don't have to pledge my loyalty to anyone."
"I don't have to devote everything to the Empress..."
"I haven't breathed so freely..."
"For such a long..."
"Long time..."
Kafka simply watched quietly.
She understood.
But Silver Wolf...
That was another story.
Hold on.
I've played enough romance games to recognize this!
Isn't this basically the heroine route?
The classic "falls head over heels after being saved" ending?
Well...
The only difference was...
Firefly wasn't some blonde losing heroine.
Still...
The target of her affection...
Was Evan.
Wait.
That wasn't in the script!
Silver Wolf suddenly remembered her online gaming friend.
I wonder if they know anything about this...
I'll ask them next time we're online.
After thinking it over...
She eventually gave up.
As long as Firefly had found the meaning of her life...
That was enough.
Even so...
Silver Wolf couldn't help feeling...
Strange.
We aren't even that close...
So why does seeing this make me feel so weird?
How odd...
After quite some time...
Firefly finally lifted her head from Evan's chest.
Only then did she realize...
Both of her companions had been watching the entire time.
Especially Silver Wolf.
Who looked as though she wished she'd recorded everything.
"...Ah..."
"E-Evan..."
"I'm sorry..."
"I..."
"I got carried away..."
"R-Really..."
"I'm sorry..."
She hurriedly lowered her head again.
Despite being the infamous Stellaron Hunter Sam—
Someone capable of standing toe-to-toe against even one of the Ten Stonehearts...
Possessing both courage and intelligence...
When faced with this one man...
She completely lost her composure.
Especially...
After Evan had invited Firefly aboard the Astral Express.
Not Sam.
Not the Iron Cavalry.
But...
Firefly.
In that instant...
All the confusion...
Loneliness...
And grievances she'd carried for countless years...
Finally found somewhere to go.
A knight...
Could now truly walk beneath the sunlight.
Firefly didn't know what this feeling was.
The first—
And only—
Time she'd ever walked beneath the sun...
Had been during the Skyfront War.
But now...
Something inside her finally changed.
The fog clouding her heart...
Had quietly dispersed.
She still didn't know what the future held.
But...
For the first time...
She had something to look forward to.
Silently...
She tightened her grip around Sam's transformation device.
Then, inside her heart...
She gave herself one final order.
Iron Cavalry Soldier AR-26710.
Your mission is complete.
From this day onward...
Your future belongs to Firefly.
Soon after...
Firefly left together with Kafka and Silver Wolf.
After all...
Having three Stellaron Hunters gathered in one place was already dangerous enough.
Even if they were powerful...
The IPC also had three members of the Ten Stonehearts stationed in Penacony.
Each possessed power comparable to an Emanator.
A direct confrontation would only cause unnecessary trouble.
Not to mention...
The combined bounties on the three Stellaron Hunters amounted to tens of billions of Credits.
If their identities were exposed...
Things would become even more troublesome.
Before leaving...
Kafka stopped by Evan's room.
And quietly took Firefly's original body with her.
Once everything settled down...
Evan's phone suddenly vibrated.
He glanced at the screen.
It was Herta.
[Herta]: Hey! Evan! You irresponsible shopkeeper! You're in Penacony, right?
[Herta]: Screwllum's heading there too. We're planning to launch a new branch project for the Simulated Universe.
[Herta]: If you've got time, get in touch with him.
[Herta]: Oh, and Ruan Mei asked me to tell you something.
[Herta]: That little Foxian from the Xianzhou—Tingyun—has finally woken up.
[Herta]: Although... she's changed a little from before.
[Herta]: Honestly, that Lord Ravager's power really is something else.
[Herta]: Anyway, when are you coming back to the Space Station? I've got another collaborative project. Interested?
After reading the messages...
Evan quickly sent a brief reply.
Then returned to his room.
He already knew Screwllum would be coming to Penacony.
Although...
He couldn't remember every detail.
He only recalled that Screwllum intended to make use of Penacony's dream-computing capabilities...
To begin a brand-new Simulated Universe project.
If he remembered correctly...
It was called the Divergent Universe.
I'll text Screwllum first.
Then decide what to do next.
For now...
It was time to return to the dreamscape.
Asdana Star System — Penacony, Golden HourThe Radiant Feldspar
The second half of the meeting had yet to begin.
The IPC staff...
Along with members of the Family's Bloodhound security force...
Had already cleared the surrounding deck.
Only distinguished guests...
And visitors like Evan, representing the Astral Express...
Remained.
"Mr. Screwllum."
Evan smiled politely.
"I believe this is the first time we've met since that banquet."
"It's a pleasure."
Screwllum returned the greeting with equal courtesy.
"The pleasure is mine."
"Mr. Evan."
"The eighty-fifth member of the Genius Society."
As the ruler of Planet Screwllum...
And a mechanical lifeform possessing unparalleled intelligence...
Had he been born during the era of the Emperor's War...
He undoubtedly would've become an extraordinary figure.
Fortunately...
He had received the gaze of Nous.
Otherwise...
With intelligence like his...
The IPC would've undoubtedly tried to claim him long ago.
Screwllum quietly observed the young genius before him.
This...
Was their first true meeting.
In reality.
Well...
Strictly speaking...
Within the dreamscape.
Their previous encounter had only been during the Genius Society banquet.
Even back then...
Screwllum had developed a strong interest in this newly joined genius.
Especially after Evan created the Plasma Spark Tower.
With Herta herself assisting in the project.
Unfortunately...
Besides being a partner of the Genius Society...
He also bore the responsibility of governing Planet Screwllum.
Otherwise...
He would've loved the opportunity...
To collaborate properly with this remarkable young genius.
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