Himeko: A Kiss?!

Hold tight to your Lucky Star on March 7th.

It shone brightly.

Lin Hai's figure appeared inside the Astral Express carriage, accompanied by light.

The first thing he did after regaining his footing was to examine this legendary place with great curiosity.

The interior design of the carriage combines retro mechanical aesthetics with the sleek simplicity of futuristic technology.

Outside the enormous viewing window lies a vast, silent sea of stars.

Countless stars are scattered against the black backdrop of the universe.

The words "tranquil" and "spectacular" are insufficient to describe the impact of that experience.

The feeling of being touched in one's soul!

However, this leisurely enjoyment of the beautiful scenery was soon shattered.

Directly in front of Lin Hai, the train navigator Himeko, sat upright, her long, bright red hair framed by eyes as sharp as an eagle's.

Although she held the coffee cup with an elegant posture, the aura she exuded carried an undeniable scrutiny.

March 7th, who was standing to the side, also put away her usual carefree attitude and stood nervously behind Himeko.

Lin Hai vaguely sensed that in the shadows of the blind spot in the carriage, there was more than one invisible lock-on aimed at him.

That was a sign that the train's security system had been quietly activated.

The air in this space seemed to have frozen.

Lin Hai took a deep breath and broke the silence first. His voice was calm. "Nice to meet you all. Please allow me to introduce myself. I am Lin Hai, a traveler from... Otherworld from yours."

"Otherworld?" Himeko gently put down her coffee cup. The word had piqued her interest greatly, but she remained wary.

What kind of world is it?

"A vast universe, but one whose technological development lags far behind that of this place," Lin Hai summarized.

He had no intention of revealing too many details at this time.

Himeko nodded slightly and pressed on directly, "So, Mr. Lin Hai, what brings you to the Astral Express?"

"I mainly wanted to get to know everyone here, the renowned members of the Astral Express Crew..."

Lin Hai smiled and then added, "Of course, there is indeed a specific matter. I wonder if you have all heard of a city Belobog Belleburg?"

Upon hearing this, Himeko quickly tapped a few times on the control panel beside her to access the train database.

Soon, records about Belobog were retrieved.

A planet long frozen by extreme snowstorms, nearly cut off from the galaxy, and mired in an existential crisis.

"You're from Belobog?" Himeko's gaze was inquisitive.

"Not entirely..." Lin Hai shook his head, "But I have deep connections there. There are some very important people on that icy plain, struggling for survival."

He took a half step forward, his tone becoming solemn, "The main purpose of my trip is to represent the people of Belobog and request that the Astral Express travel to that region, giving them more opportunities to connect with the outside world."

Himeko remained silent for a moment. Her mission to Trailblaze made her almost instinctively willing to respond to such a request.

"Helping the world in distress is one of the Astral Express's responsibilities in fulfilling its Trailblaze Path, so going to Belobog is, in principle, no problem."

Himeko changed the subject, looking directly at Lin Hai, "However, before that, I also have a request."

What request?

"I'm very curious about the Otherworld you mentioned, and I really want to see it for myself. I wonder... is that even possible?"

Lin Hai seemed to have anticipated this question. After a moment's thought, he replied, "There is a way, but... it's extremely difficult, and the conditions are very special."

"What level of difficulty?" Himeko pressed.

"That depends on..." Lin Hai's gaze met Himeko's, "Whether you're willing, and to what extent you're willing to go all out."

"I don't understand what you mean." Himeko frowned slightly.

A hush fell over the carriage.

The outer sea of stars was even more silent.

Lin Hai gazed at Himeko and said, word by word, "The only known way to obtain the key to my world is... to become my partner."

Upon hearing this, the entire carriage fell silent; you could hear a pin drop.

Himeko's hand, holding the coffee cup, hovered in mid-air, her face filled with shock.

To become partners?

Is this reasonable?

That's unlikely!

The most crucial question is, why does becoming partners allow us to travel to Otherworld?

Himeko couldn't figure out what the connection was between the two.

March 7th, standing to the side, was so shocked that she covered her mouth and her eyes widened in disbelief.

To Himeko's own surprise, upon hearing such an almost offensive suggestion, she felt not anger at being slighted, but rather a sense of inquisitive curiosity.

This unusual tolerance towards a strange man reminded her of the inexplicable sense of trust she had felt before March 7th.

At this moment, Himeko could also vaguely sense that feeling.

It is not blind trust, but a judgment based on intuition that the other person is not inherently bad.

She took a deep breath, suppressing the turmoil in her heart, and asked seriously, "What you just said... were you serious? Not a single word of a joke?"

"Every word is true!"

"I need an explanation." Himeko took a half step forward, pressing for the root of the matter, "Why... does becoming your partner grant me the key to another world? What's the logic behind this?"

"The key lies in the Contract Lucky Star." Lin Hai's gaze swept over the Lucky Star in March 7th's hand. "Only by establishing a sufficiently deep and intimate relationship can you condense Contract Lucky Star."

Upon hearing this, March 7th observed the stars in his hand but remained silent.

Himeko's mind raced.

Trailblaze the unknown is the inherent mission of the Astral Express.

Connecting to Otherworld is undoubtedly one of the most revolutionary feats Trailblaze history.

This temptation is irresistible to a true Trailblazer.

Himeko asked, "What steps are needed to become your partner?"

"At the very least, there was holding hands and hugging, and maybe more..."

Lin Hai hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.

Himeko pressed, "You can just say so, I won't mind."

"Maybe we should also add playing with your toes."

"Um?!"

Himeko felt even more confused. After a moment of contemplation, she adopted a more cautious approach. "The necessity and effectiveness of the steps you described, as they currently appear, lack verifiable evidence. I believe that rigorous and controlled scientific verification is necessary before putting them into practice."

She was very careful with her words.

Lin Hai said, "The steps I've provided have worked successfully on other people, otherwise I wouldn't have told you. As for what you said... scientific verification, some people have tried it."

"So, you've studied the composition of the Lucky Star? And its other functions?"

"It wasn't my research," Lin Hai shook his head. "Ms. Herta tried it."

"The Herta?!" This name shocked Himeko.

That being, renowned for his wisdom and even capable of building space stations, had actually come into contact with this matter?

"What were the conclusions of her research?" Himeko asked.

Lin Hai thought for a moment and gave Himeko an answer that astonished her.

According to her, its essence has not been fully analyzed, and conventional scientific instruments are insufficient to probe its core mysteries; however...

He paused, then stated a verification result. "Kissing has been proven to be effective and is one of the key steps."

He concealed the deeper relationship between himself and the Herta.

This is the only relatively basic, yet impactful, experimental conclusion presented.

This answer both responded to Himeko's scientific inquiry and brought that bold proposition back to Himeko.