The night passed in a quiet blur. The next morning, the Astral Express crew gathered in the Parlor Car to discuss the route for their next trailblazing journey.
Leon, for his part, had rested exceptionally well.
The sa could not be said for Cocolia. Upon learning that Serval was sleeping just on the other side of Leon's door, she had spent the entire night in a state of high alert, pressing a hand over her mouth, terrified of making the slightest sound that might give her away.
It was a hilarious, if unnecessary, precaution. The soundproofing in Leon's room was impeccable; no sound could have possibly escaped.
Serval, blissfully unaware, had also slept soundly. She had expected to be too excited to sleep on her first night aboard the Astral Express, but Leon's sofa proved to be so unexpectedly comfortable that she was out until dawn.
"Attention, passengers! The eting regarding our next jump is now officially starting, Pom-Pom!"
Seeing that everyone had arrived, Pom-Pom, the conductor, stood up straight and announced with due solemnity, "First of all, Pom-Pom would like to thank all the Trailblazers for successfully resolving the crisis at our last stop! This allows the Astral Express to continue racing along the Star Rail, Pom-Pom!"
"That was all us! Right?" March 7th chid in, practically bouncing as she eagerly sought credit. Her enthusiasm drew a round of knowing smiles from the others.
"Next, this conductor will announce the na of our next destination…"
Before Pom-Pom could finish, a phantom flickered into existence in the center of the carriage, materializing without a single warning. She held an umbrella, her posture exuding an elegance that was both mysterious and tinged with danger.
"Long ti no see, everyone on the Astral Express."
Kafka lifted her umbrella slightly, revealing an exquisite, composed face.
"Stellaron Hunters…" The warm smile vanished from Hiko's face, replaced by a polite but firm mask. Her tone was calm, yet it carried a clear and deliberate distance.
Stellaron Hunters? Serval's mind raced. She'd heard of the faction, of course. According to the Interastral Peace Corporation, they were a group of heinous villains, guilty of the most terrible cris imaginable. But from what she had gathered from Stelle, Caelus, Leon, and March 7th, the truth seed far more complicated.
"It seems I've arrived at just the right ti, since you're all here," Kafka noted.
Tap, tap, tap…
Her phantom took a few light steps forward, and the mbers of the Astral Express crew instinctively parted to give her space. Her gaze swept across the room, lingering for a fraction of a second on Serval with a flicker of surprise before her expression smoothed back into serene calm. Elio's script had long since been rendered unrecognizable; a few more variables were hardly worth dwelling on.
"There's no need for a charming self-introduction… Stellaron Hunter," Hiko interrupted without a trace of hesitation, a rare display of impatience coloring her words.
"Hiko, is it?" Kafka closed her umbrella, and her phantom form began to dissolve into shimring specks of light. She turned her head, leaning slightly in Hiko's direction and lifting a finger as if about to snap. A playful smile danced on her lips. "I'm sorry to interrupt your gathering. But after you hear my request, I think you'll understand the intrusion…"
"I want to ask you to… change your destination."
Leon watched the silent confrontation between Kafka and Hiko with a growing smile. Both were captivating, mature won, and the charged atmosphere between them inexplicably reminded him of the classic, subtle drama of a "birth mother eting the adoptive mother."
He silently pulled out a recorder, preparing to preserve this rare and precious mont for posterity.
Hmm? Who's faster than ?
Leon turned his head, only to see that one of Herta's puppets had already produced a small cara. Its lens was aid with unshakable stability at the unfolding scene.
The puppet seed to say, I started recording before you even thought about it.
"Stellaron Hunters. I've seen you before—though only on the Interastral Peace Corporation's wanted posters," Hiko said, her tone flat but every word ringing with clarity. "That's an astronomical bounty. And what's more… the posters say 'dead or alive'." She looked up, her gaze locking with Kafka's. "Do you have any idea how much your head is worth?"
"Oh?" Kafka's smile didn't falter. "I don't really pay attention to such things. The IPC's wanted posters?" She tilted her head, her voice relaxed and laced with amusent. "I'd hardly call it notoriety. It's more like high praise. The higher the number, the greater the complint."
"Wow, you criminals sure have a positive outlook," March 7th muttered with a shrug. Although she felt that Silver Wolf and Firefly were decent people, that didn't automatically an this Kafka woman was. And seeing Hiko so serious, March subconsciously categorized Kafka as an enemy.
"Why did the tension suddenly get so high?" Serval whispered, leaning closer to Leon. "And this Kafka… isn't her attitude a little too relaxed?"
Across the room, Stelle and Caelus exchanged a wide-eyed glance. Their silent communication was a frantic mix of panic and desperation. The birth mom and the adoptive mom are about to fight! What do we do? Send help!
"It's normal," Leon said leisurely. His voice wasn't loud, but it was clear enough for everyone in the quiet carriage to hear. "The birth mother and the adoptive mother are fighting for custody."
Serval blinked. "…Huh?"
Dan Heng and Welt remained pointedly silent.
Stelle and Caelus's shared expression scread, Please, for the love of Akivili, stop fighting!
Hiko and Kafka both paused simultaneously, and the atmosphere in the car froze for a strange, awkward mont.
"…In that case," Hiko said, taking a steadying breath and turning her attention back to Kafka, "Herta has also 'praised' you. She called you a madman who claims to glimpse destiny, leading a group of reckless lunatics who chase after the most dangerous things in the universe." She raised a single, elegant eyebrow. "And Herta rarely praises anyone."
"Chasing after the most dangerous things in the universe…" Kafka repeated the phrase softly, then suddenly let out a light, airy laugh. "On that point, you on the Astral Express and I are actually the sa kind of people."
Thanks to Leon's interjection, the previously suffocating tension had inexplicably relaxed.
"You've co to the wrong place, Kafka," Hiko said, shaking her head. "We have no intention of accepting your request, nor do we plan to get involved with the Stellaron Hunters." Her tone was polite but unmistakably distant. "It was nice talking to you. Perhaps one day you'll be willing to visit in person. We can talk then."
"Did you catch that?" Leon tilted his head, helpfully "translating" for Serval. "What Hiko ans is: 'You, the birth mother, gave birth to the child but didn't raise them. Now you only dare to show up as a phantom, which shows a complete lack of sincerity. So, I don't want to talk to you.'"
Hiko's eye twitched.
Kafka's smile froze.
"Is that what she ant?" March 7th asked, looking utterly bewildered.
"That is definitely not what she ant," Dan Heng sighed, rubbing his temples.
"Everyone," Kafka said, unable to suppress a chuckle before composing herself. "Have you heard of the 'Luofu'?"
"One of the six flagships of the Xianzhou Alliance," Welt replied, adjusting his glasses. "We are aware of it."
"But what you might not know," Kafka continued, her tone slow and deliberate, "is that this very ship is currently quite close to Jarilo-VI—close enough that it would only take two jumps to reach."
She paused for effect, her voice dropping to a near whisper.
"And, not long ago, a Stellaron… erupted on the Luofu."
Kafka looked up, her gaze sweeping across the faces of the Astral Express crew, lingering on each one.
"A disaster, appearing out of nowhere… isn't it?"
"Stellaron Hunters, what exactly are you planning?" Welt's brow furrowed, his gaze sharp and penetrating from behind his glasses. "The Xianzhou Alliance isn't as easy to deal with as we are. Once you're targeted by The Hunt, you'll no longer be the hunters, but the prey. The Alliance will chase you to the ends of the universe."
"Just say what you need to say, Kafka." Hiko stared directly at the phantom, her tone filled with a seriousness that brooked no evasion. "Stop beating around the bush. You can't possibly be unaware of the risks involved."
[Inorin's Note:
Enjoying the story? Dropping a quick review, comnt, or Power Stone ans the world to and keeps these daily updates flowing!
Want to read 50 chapters ahead or just want to help keep a shaless translator alive? (My livelihood actually depends on this, haha 😭). You can support directly here:
(P.S. Just remove the brackets and replace the [.] with a regular dot . to use the links!)
✨ Patreon (50 Advanced Chapters): patreon[.]com/InorinTL
☕ Ko-fi (Support / Sponsor): ko-fi[.]com/InorinTL
Thank you so much for reading and keeping this project alive!]
User Comments
0 comments from readers