"COUGH"
'...Blue sky'
The sunlight hit directly.
She squeezed her eyes shut and turned her face away while blinking rapidly.
"Ngh-"
'...Where...'
She pushed herself upright. Her breathing was uneven.
'...Too quiet'
Buildings rose on either side, tall enough to cut the sky into a strip.
'No voices. No footsteps. Nothing moving'
'...Where-'
Her hand flew to the back of her neck.
Fabric.
'...Still there. Thank the AEON' She exhaled slowly.
Her hands moved next, running down her arms and sides, then lightly pressed at her ribs.
'No pain. No wound'
She checked her pockets.
'Phone. Nothing else'
Her gaze lingered on it for a moment.
'The Astral Express...'
"Good morning~ beautiful lady~"
Ena went still.
"I know you might be a little confused about the situation right now~"
The voice came from directly behind her.
Singsong and Playful.
Ena turned around slowly.
A young man in a clown mask stood there, hands clasped behind his back.
Ena's eyes narrowed.
'...That mask'
'The safe zone. The student who wouldn't hold still under my scan'
The man suddenly bent forward while clutching his stomach.
"Hehe~ I can responsibly tell you that I've prepared a quite wonderful journey for you~"
He straightened up again, spreading his arms wide. "You should be thanking me~"
Ena's eyes stayed on him. "...what wonderful journey?"
"WONDERFUL! JOURNEY!! HERE!!!!"
Ena took a step back and settled into a defensive stance.
The man stayed where he was.
'...He's not attacking'
She looked at him carefully, then slowly looked around.
The buildings. The street. The air quality. The light.
'This-'
"Is this Xianzhou?!"
She turned back sharply.
The man tilted his head and the mask smiled at her.
"That's right" he said, completely calm.
Ena's jaw tightened.
She took a breath and let it out slowly.
Then looked at him carefully.
'The aura. The way he moves. The mask changing expression on its own'
'...Joy and chaos... Elation!'
"You're Aha"
The head beneath the clown mask tilted the other way.
"You guessed it right~" he whined lightly.
"How impressive~ But it's not fun when you stay calm, junior~"
Ena was quiet for a moment.
"Senior... How about you take this junior back to the Astral Express" She kept her voice even.
"Ohh~" Aha straightened up immediately.
"My super cute junior already wants to go back~" He pressed a hand to his cheek.
"Then first, call me onii-chan~"
"..."
Ena looked at him.
Then she cupped her own face with both hands.
"Onii-chan"
"KUH-"
Aha stumbled sideways while clutching his chest.
Ena lowered her hands.
"...Daughter" he said, recovering with a grin. "I have a much better place back at my home~"
Ena crossed her forearms into an X. "No. Absolutely not. Not a chance"
"Ahh~ haaa~ my cute little daughter hates me~" Aha pressed the back of his hand to his forehead.
Ena began massaging her temple.
"...You walked the Path of Trailblaze once, didn't you"
"As a senior. For the sake of your junior..."
"Could you possibly, just once, not make entertainment out of me?"
Aha pointed at himself with great offense. "What~ No no no~ How could you misunderstand me like that?"
He clasped his hands together.
"As a senior on the Path of Trailblaze, naturally I look after my juniors~"
He gestured broadly at the street around them.
"Look~"
"I brought you to the Xianzhou. Isn't this also a journey of Trailblaze for you?"
He nodded firmly.
"You should... be thanking me. Pom!"
Aha stared up at her through Pom-Pom's face.
Ena stared down at it.
'...He just-'
She raised her phone. "I need to take a photo and send it to the Conductor right now"
"Wait. Stop-"
Pom-Pom form flickered.
"You're not showing any respect for your senior! Aha isn't playing anymore!" He crossed his arms.
He then turned on his heel and was simply gone.
"..."
Ena lowered her phone.
The street was empty.
'As expected. He was never going to let me leave'
She looked at the space where he had been standing.
'He wants the Abundance aura exposed on the Xianzhou'
'That was the whole point'
She looked at the robe.
'But he doesn't know about the Protection of a Hundred Herbs'
'And he doesn't know I can switch Paths'
She closed her eyes.
'Switch to Trailblaze'
She opened her eyes and glanced down at herself.
Nothing changed.
'...Switch Path to Trailblaze'
Ena blinked.
'Change to Trailblaze'
Nothing.
"..."
"Chibi Circuit"
Her voice stayed even.
"Give me a reasonable explanation"
(Master host, I know you're anxious, but don't be anxious yet. Life is like a breath of air)
"..."
(In the end, everyone lets out a fart)
Ena stood very still.
"Chibi Circuit"
(Ahem)
(On one hand, due to the intervention of an AEON power, some functions of the System are temporarily disabled)
(On the other hand, if the host uses the Path of Abundance on the Xianzhou, there is a certain probability of obtaining simulation attempts)
A notification appeared.
(Mission Issued: Spend a pleasant journey on the Xianzhou using the Path of Abundance)
(Reward: Simulation attempts)
"WHAT THE-"
"...Hah" Ena pressed two fingers to her forehead.
"...Be that as it may"
She looked at the notification very carefully.
"I suspect thee both of conspiring to make sport of me"
She looked at Chibi Circuit.
"...Or rather. Thou hast already been corrupted by Aha"
(Please do not slander me. The System is not that easily hacked)
Ena stared in silence for a moment.
"...So you're doing this on purpose"
(Question invalid)
"..."
Ena slowly looked at her surroundings.
The street stretched in both directions, quiet and unhurried. Morning light caught the edges of the buildings.
Somewhere further down, she could hear the faint sounds of the Xianzhou going about its day.
'Kidnapped to the Xianzhou by the AEON of Elation'
'One of my double insurances gone'
'The only thing standing between me and a very bad afternoon is the robe Bina gave me'
She looked back at the mission notification.
'...New simulation attempts. And it doesn't specify how many'
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
'In other words...'
'As long as I remain on the Xianzhou while using the Path of Abundance... I might be able to stack multiple attempts'
'Fine'
'Fine, fine, fine'
She exhaled.
'But first things first'
She opened her phone.
(Astral Express - Family Group Chat)
Himeko: Is there any word on Ena's whereabouts? Reply immediately if you have any clues.
Dan Heng: I've checked the surveillance footage. The last place she appeared was Herta's office.
Dan Heng: It may be related to the Simulated Universe research Herta has been conducting, but it's difficult to say with certainty right now.
Stelle: If that's true, I'll definitely let that scum Herta witness the power of the Galactic Baseballer.
Stelle: (Justice Sanction) (Justice Sanction) (Justice Sanction)
Welt Yang: Ena's safety is extremely important.
Welt Yang: If the situation is as Stelle suspects, we must also prepare to seek justice for Miss Ena.
March 7th: Before that, Stelle, how's the search going on your end? Any leads?
Stelle: This Galactic Baseballer has already searched every trash can on the Herta Space Station, but not a single clue was found.
Stelle: The kidnapper must have been well-prepared. They erased all traces of Mom without anyone noticing.
Stelle: I need to Trailblaze to places even lower than the Space Station base. Maybe I'll find clues there.
Stelle: As long as I keep rummaging like this, one day I will definitely discover Mom's whereabouts.
Stelle: Next, I shall Trailblaze even more distant maps. Places unknown to mankind.
Stelle: Once I conquer every trash can on this ugly Space Station, the clues will naturally reveal themselves.
Ena: You can go on adventures, but you are not allowed to rummage through trash cans! It's unhygienic!
March 7th: Ena?! Are you okay?!
Ena: I'm okay, March.
Stelle: Waaaah! Mom! I knew nothing bad would happen to you!
Stelle: I won't touch trash cans randomly anymore.
Stelle: Unless Mom isn't around.
Ena: Good girl. Pay attention to hygiene. It's not good to get yourself dirty.
Stelle: Mm-hmm.
Himeko: Ena, are you alright?
Welt Yang: Ena, What happened?
Ena: Nothing. It's just...
Ena: I'm in the Xianzhou.
Ena stared at the screen.
The chat immediately exploded.
She quietly turned her phone face down.
'...One problem at a time'
She looked up at the Xianzhou skyline.
The buildings rose quietly around her. Further down the street, distant movement, voices, and a vendor setting up somewhere out of sight.
She took a breath.
The air was different here. Thicker. Older.
'...The robe will suppress the aura. That much holds'
'And the mission wants a pleasant journey'
Ena looked at the empty street ahead.
'...Pleasant'
She exhaled through her nose.
TBC
...
...
...
Hey Hey. Reader, Nilvan Here.
Aha is doing something here, something intense and hard.
If you have any questions about the previous chapter, feel free to ask here.
Today, while editing this chapter, an outage happened and half of my progress was lost. So if you spot anything off, just tell me directly here.
Anyway, that's all for now. Good night, and have a good sleep.