The Company's Big Shot

Astral Express, Parlor Car.

At this moment, apart from Bai Luoming who was still wandering outside, the rest of the train passengers were sitting on the sofas in the Parlor Car.

Himeko and Welt sat on one side of the sofa, talking in hushed tones, but their gazes would occasionally drift to the other corner of the sofa.

There, on March 7th, she curled up, quietly hugging a pillow. Unlike usual, she didn't chatter away sharing her new photos; she simply remained silent, her gaze fixed ahead.

Welt lowered his voice and said to Himeko, "At least she's willing to come out of the room, which is a good sign."

Himeko nodded slightly, holding her coffee cup, her fingertips tracing the warm rim. Although Himeko nodded, the worry between her brows did not disappear.

Xing sat opposite March 7th, her two fair legs propped up on the coffee table, her hands behind her head, observing the silent March 7th 7th for a while. Finally, as if she could no longer bear the dullness, she sat up straight and extended an invitation to March 7th.

"March 7th, want to play games together? I found a really fun one yesterday."

Hearing Xing's words, March 7th's empty eyes regained some sparkle.

She looked up at Xing and forced a smile as she spoke.

"No, you can play by yourself."

Her voice was flat, so flat that even Xing, who was usually oblivious, was taken aback and didn't know how to respond.

All eyes in the carriage, whether open or hidden, were focused on this direction, filled with caution and concern.

Sensing these gazes, March 7th took a deep breath and flashed an even brighter smile at everyone.

"I'm fine, I'm just a little tired lately. I've been busy in Belobog for so long, I just want to rest. I'm sorry to have worried everyone."

Her smile was still sweet, but it lacked its usual vibrancy, like a flower touched by the night frost, struggling to maintain its blooming posture.

Just as Himeko was about to say something, she heard a loud voice rang out at the carriage door.

"That's good, everyone's here."

Everyone looked up and saw Bai Luoming appear before them, carrying large and small bags.

"Bai Luoming, the passenger is back!" Pom-Pom jumped up from the sofa, her little ears twitching.

Bai Luoming looked around and, seeing that everyone had arrived, he dumped all the things he was carrying onto the central coffee table with a "whoosh."

"These are gifts for you; I hope you'll all like them."

As he spoke, he clapped his hands and began to introduce each item one by one, like a child showing off a treasure.

"Himeko, this is for you, a fully automatic pour-over coffee machine, the latest model."

Upon hearing this, Himeko's eyes lit up. She stepped forward, picked up the beautifully packaged box, and examined it closely, a look of surprise on her face. "This is the model I've been eyeing for a long time. It's always out of stock on the market. I didn't expect you to be able to get your hands on it."

"Old Yang, look what this is! This is a limited edition 'Titan Antimatter Legion' mech model."

Welt put down his newspaper, walked over, picked up the heavy model box, and looked at the intricate parts inside through the transparent packaging window. A rare hint of joy appeared in his eyes, but he didn't show it. Instead, he took it and put it aside, intending to look at it again when he got back to his room.

"Teacher Dan Heng," Bai Luoming picked up another thread-bound ancient book, "The Unofficial Anecdotes of the High-Cloud Quintet, a rare and out-of-print edition that can no longer be found in the Xianzhou Luofu."

Dan Heng looked up from the book and took the novel. He opened the title page and saw a flamboyant author's signature. He paused for a moment, then nodded slightly to Bai Luoming, accepting the gift.

"Xing, this is for you, a custom-made trash can model. I searched for a long time before I found it."

Upon hearing this, Xing rushed over, but her expression became somewhat subtle when she picked up the small, golden trash can model.

She held it in her hands, turning it over and over, muttering to herself, "This model... I think I just bought the exact same one..." She looked up at Bai Luoming, "After all, there aren't many trash can models to begin with, and I've basically collected all the ones available on the market."

Bai Luoming was taken aback, not expecting that this girl's niche hobby had become so competitive.

"Is that so? Then I'll look for something else next time."

As he spoke, Bai Luoming took out another gift and handed it to Pom-Pom.

"Ta-da, Conductor, here's your dessert gift box and a complete set of train cleaning supplies."

"Passenger Bai Luoming is so thoughtful, Pam!" Pom-Pom happily bounced around in the air, clutching a gift box bigger than herself.

Finally, Bai Luoming picked up a bag containing a snack gift pack and a camera, and handed it to March 7th.

"And Little March, this is for you."

On March 7th, he accepted the gift, his gaze lingered on it for a moment, and then he gently placed it on the sofa beside him.

"Thank you," she whispered to Bai Luoming.

March 7th's performance was somewhat lackluster. Although this was within Bai Luoming's expectations, seeing March 7th like this still made him feel a little sorry for him. After all, this whole thing started because of him. Just as Bai Luoming was about to say something...

"I'll go test this machine." Himeko stood up at just the right moment, carrying the brand-new coffee machine, and headed towards the kitchen area, her face filled with undisguised anticipation.

The atmosphere in the carriage eased considerably as gifts were distributed, and everyone examined their own presents.

After Himeko's interruption, Bai Luoming was forced to swallow what he wanted to say, and he had to find another time to apologize to March 7th.

In less than five minutes, a rich aroma of coffee wafted out from the kitchen area.

Himeko, carrying a steaming cup of coffee, walked straight to Bai Luoming and handed him the cup.

"This is for you, would you like to try it?"

Bai Luoming looked at the perfectly presented cup of coffee in Himeko's hand, and his hand trembled slightly. He hadn't expected that by giving away a coffee machine, he would become the first person to taste the poison.

The painful Remembrance of my last experience with Himeko Coffee flooded back into my mind.

Seeing that Bai Luoming hadn't answered for a long time, Himeko smiled at him and said, "This is the first cup of coffee made with the coffee machine you gave me. Don't you want to be the first to taste it?"

Having said all that, Bai Luoming felt he had no way out. He looked around, casting a pleading glance.

As a result, everyone except March 7th tacitly avoided his gaze.

Welt picked up the mecha model and began to examine it closely, Dan Heng held the book even higher, almost covering half of his face, while Xing simply picked up the terminal and started watching videos.

As for March 7th, although their eyes met, Bai Luoming was too embarrassed to let the girl take the cup of coffee for him.

Seeing this, Bai Luoming cursed inwardly.

In this world, nobody's loyal!

"Why aren't you answering? Do you think there's something wrong with the coffee I made?" Himeko's voice remained gentle, but her eyes revealed a hint of unyielding resolve.

"No, no." Bai Luoming's survival instinct kicked in, and he quickly shook his head.

"If not, then drink it quickly." Himeko's smile deepened. "It won't taste good when it's cold."

Bai Luoming closed his eyes, looking resigned to his fate, took the coffee, brought the cup to his lips, and took a small sip as if accepting his fate.

The strong smell I had expected did not appear.

Instead, it offers a rich and mellow flavor, with the strong aroma of coffee.

This... this coffee is actually normal? In fact, you could even say it's quite excellent.

He took another big gulp, somewhat incredulously, but the taste in his mouth told him that this was just a normal cup of coffee.

"How was it?" Himeko asked with a smile.

Bai Luoming put down his cup and exclaimed sincerely, "This is truly unexpected, it tastes wonderful!"

Himeko's smile widened even more, "This time, I completely left it to the coffee machine; I didn't do anything."

As she spoke, she turned and walked towards the kitchen area. "I'll make a few more cups for everyone."

Inside the carriage, Welt and Dan Heng exchanged a glance, and finally, with Bai Luoming's affirmative nod, they both lowered their guard.

Himeko quickly returned with several cups of coffee, and after everyone took them, the carriage was once again filled with warm, casual conversation.

Bai Luoming glanced at March 7th in the corner; she was also holding a cup of coffee, sipping it slowly, seemingly indifferent to everything around her.

He wanted to say something, but his throat felt dry, and he didn't know where to begin. In the end, he chose to temporarily avoid this difficult problem and changed the subject.

"Speaking of which, has anything happened with Belobog since I left?"

He turned the conversation to the most active star.

Upon hearing this, Xing immediately perked up, put down the trash can model in her hand, and came over.

"Yes, brother! After you left, the Interastral Peace Corporation sent a big shot to collect the debt. We thought that Belobog had just escaped the Stellaron Disaster and was about to be exploited by the company again."

She took a sip of coffee, smacked her lips, and continued, "And guess what? That big shot was surprisingly easy to talk to. After touring the city and getting a feel for the situation, he actually decided to forgive all of Belobog's debts!"

Bai Luoming raised an eyebrow and subconsciously replied, "Huh? Sister Buying Rankings is here already?"

Xing blinked, looking confused. "Buying rankings sister? Who's that?"

"It's alright, please continue." Bai Luoming waved his hand, realizing he had accidentally let something slip again.

Xing glanced at March 7th, who showed no reaction, before continuing, "Speaking of which, Belobog can now use Credits too. It's Topaz, oh, that bigwig from the company, who seems to know you. She even asked us about you."

"Ha?"

Upon hearing Xing's words, Bai Luoming froze, unsure how to respond. After all, based on his experience with others, Topaz might also be one of the reborn.

Thinking of this, Bai Luoming sighed softly, shook his head, and banished the thought from his mind, no longer wanting to dwell on it.