Stelle: I'm Out of Here

Jingxing didn't know what the Herta, Himeko, and Xing had talked about, but not long after, Xing decided on the rooftop that she would travel with the Astral Express.

"I'll get in the car with you." She tucked the baseball bat under her arm. "It's nice here, but I think it'll get boring after a while. I'd rather go outside for a walk."

March 7th paused for a moment, then clapped her hands with a broad smile, "Really? That's great! I was worried you wouldn't want to leave this place!"

Dan Heng didn't say much, but simply took out a spare terminal from his pocket and handed it to her, clearly having saved it for her long ago.

Welt adjusted his glasses. "Welcome aboard the Astral Express."

Xing patted the baseball bat in his arms and nodded.

Himeko stood at the top of the gangway and glanced at the Herta Puppet and Jingxing not far away.

Jingxing glanced at the Herta Puppet who was watching with his arms crossed. "Aren't you going to try to persuade him to stay?"

"Why keep her around?" Herta rolled his eyes. "Even if she stays here for me to study, I'll lose interest in her after a while."

Jingxing raised an eyebrow. "I thought you'd be reluctant to part with the Stellaron inside her."

"So she's naturally mine," Herta said coldly. "It's perfect for the Astral Express to keep an eye on her."

"When I was in debt, did Ms. Herta think of me the same way?" Jingxing joked.

"Have I been bad to you?" Herta scoffed.

Not far away, March 7th cheerfully took Xing's arm and walked towards the gangway. Dan Heng naturally reached out and took the heavy baseball bat from her shoulder to carry it for her.

Halfway there, Xing suddenly stopped, turned around and shouted to Jingxing, who was leaning against a pillar, "Mr. Jingxing, I look forward to the painting you're going to give me!"

"Don't worry, you'll get your share." Jingxing chuckled. "I'll send it to you as soon as I finish drawing it."

"Words are no proof; you need to give me a definite answer." Xing shook her head.

"Are you afraid I'll run away?" Jingxing simply pulled out his sketchbook from his pocket and, under the spotlight on the berth, began to sketch with charcoal pencil.

A moment later, a figure carrying a baseball bat landed on the paper cover. He tore off a page and handed it to him. "Anyway, let me show you the draft first."

Xing took it, examined it from all angles for a long time, then folded it up with satisfaction and stuffed it into her breast pocket, patting it as she said, "It's a deal!"

The gangway slowly retracted. Xing stood by the cabin door and waved vigorously at him, while March 7th jumped and waved along beside him. Dan Heng and Welt nodded in greeting, while Himeko, standing at the innermost part, glanced at Jingxing through the porthole.

There was a hint of unspoken meaning in that glance, but Jingxing didn't read it; he simply smiled and waved, appearing harmless.

The Astral Express, a follower of Akivili. He hadn't met them before the Amber Era, over seven hundred years ago, but his reputation had always been quite good.

"I have a feeling we'll be dealing with each other quite often in the future," Jingxing thought to himself.

The Astral Express slowly pulled away from its berth. Bright lights swept across a patch of white light, then gradually shrank into a point of light in the sea of Star Rail, disappearing from sight.

"Have you seen the guests off?" The voice of the Herta Puppet drifted from behind.

"All delivered."

"Then come downstairs with me." The doll turned and walked deeper into the corridor. "We've finished watching the commotion; it's time for us to get to work."

The core server room for Simulated Universe is located in the Herta office.

The heavy alloy door slid open, revealing the nebula he had seen upstairs suspended in the center of the circular hall, only more than ten times larger, supported in mid-air by a metal ring filled with pipes. The outermost thin film of the nebula was almost invisible in the dark, only revealing a very faint dark golden glow when the light swept across it.

"Ms. Herta," Jingxing recognized the aura and clicked his tongue, "You used my life-saving material to plaster the walls without even giving me a heads-up?"

"Anyway, you've already sold it to me." Herta walked inside with an air of self-righteousness. "Besides, without this shell to protect me, I really wouldn't dare to start this business so easily. Who knows if that guy would come and cause trouble?"

There were already people at the experimental table at the other end of the hall. Ruan Mei let her black hair hang loosely, and looked down at a small piece of grayish-white insect shell with its edges smoothed.

When she looked up, a faint, cool fragrance wafted through the air. It was like plum blossoms mixed with a slightly bitter medicinal scent, like freshly cut flower stems.

"Now you shouldn't be afraid of her anymore, right?" Herta said casually.

"I've never been afraid of Ms. Ruan Mei," Jingxing stubbornly.

"Mr. Jingxing, it's been a long time." Ruan Mei put down the insect shell and walked over. "I got the remains of the King Bug you Destruction yourself from Pier Point. There are quite a few interesting things on it."

Jingxing's eyelids twitched, recalling the giant worm he had cleaved in two over seven hundred years ago. "Ms. Ruan Mei, you wouldn't be thinking of hatching one yourself in the space station, would you?"

"Of course it's not impossible." Ruan Mei's tone was as gentle as if she were talking about her own potted plants. "Even if problems arise, you can solve them, right?"

Jingxing looked into her unwavering eyes. Herta saw him as a useful tool, but this Ms. Ruan Mei saw him as a specimen yet to be sliced.

"I hope so." Jingxing forced a smile.

A soft sound came from the doorway, followed by a gentle, mellow male voice. "I'm so sorry to have kept you all waiting."

The newcomer was Screwllum, dressed in a fine suit. Upon entering, he first removed his top hat and bowed to everyone, his knuckles clicking softly like the gears of a pocket watch.

He politely explained, "The outer perimeter of the defense netting had a few holes, and seeing everyone so busy, I decided to lend a hand."

"Only someone as idle as you would go and do repairman work." Herta curled his lip.

Screwllum smiled gently, walked to the nebula, activated the wiring on the metal ring, and turned to Jingxing: "Mr. Jingxing, we previously planned to send space station staff in for a look around, but unfortunately they couldn't even touch the hem of those Simulated Aeon's robes. You, however, are a real Emanator, and this 'Image of Ten Thousand Jun' outside is filled with your aura. I think it's most suitable for you to go in and lure those guys out."

"To put it bluntly," Herta jumped onto the control panel, swinging his legs, "If you can't handle it, then I'll have to find that Stellaron spirit."

Screwllum took a thumb-sized silver metal piece from his palm and handed it over. "This is an emergency beacon. If those fake Aeon inside become too unreasonable, just crush it in your mind, and I'll fish you out from outside."

"It sounds like unplugging a power source." Jingxing took it and asked with a laugh, "Forcefully unplugging the power source, won't that burn out my brain?"

"At most, you'll have a headache for two days after waking up," Ruan Mei added calmly.

"Then I'll give it a try?" Jingxing gripped the beacon and strode inside.