March 7th: We'll Make Them Suffer a Crushing Defeat!

Lin Nai: "Come to think of it..."

March Seven: "Where's Stelle?"

Lin Nai and March had clearly noticed that one person was missing.

Dan Heng looked in a certain direction. "...She ran over there."

Lin Nai and March looked over and spotted Stelle in front of the Eternal Winter Monument.

That girl was mingling with a group of children.

Lin Nai got up helplessly, intending to bring her back.

In front of the Eternal Winter Monument.

A blue-haired girl in a Silvermane Guard uniform, with a bit of baby fat still on her face, spoke up:

"Let me introduce myself. I'm Pela, intelligence officer of the Silvermane Guard and the temporary guide for the 'Belobog History Tour.'"

"Just call me Sister Pela."

Children & Stelle: "Mm! Sis~ter~Pe~la~"

"Certain adults, please don't casually imitate children!"

Pela's eye twitched. What was with this girl?

March Seven: They Shall Be Defeated in Ruin!

"Alright, children, look here. This is the 'Eternal Winter Monument,' erected in memory of the great Architects."

"The Architects were followers of Aeon Ipe. They foresaw the crisis, built towering ramparts, founded Belobog, and preserved the Core Flame of human civilization."

"The Eternal Winter Monument consists of two parts: gears representing knowledge and industrial strength, and a massive ice crystal representing the cold wave."

"These two symbols are tightly interlocked. The gears restrain the frost, representing the Architects' spirit of refusing to yield to the savage forces of nature."

Listening to Pela's introduction, Lin Nai, who had just arrived, felt a splitting headache coming on.

It was like...

It was like being back in a high school language arts class.

Pela would probably make a great teacher, wouldn't she?

"Ah, Lin Nai, you're here."

"Mm." Lin Nai rubbed Stelle's head. "Why did you run over here?"

"Just joining the fun."

"Is that so?"

Meanwhile, after introducing the Eternal Winter Monument to the children, Pela immediately noticed Lin Nai.

"You?"

Mostly because Stelle beside him was far too conspicuous.

After all, no adult would be bored enough to come learn how children addressed her, right?

So the moment Lin Nai arrived, she noticed him.

Who would have thought they were companions?

Come to think of it, both of them really were strange.

One had gone for a walk outside late at night because he couldn't sleep, and his thank-you gift had been a pretty good song.

The other...

So far, she had only been seen learning how to talk from children.

"Oh! Good morning, Pela!"

"Good morning..."

"What's up? Is she someone you know?" March Seven, who had hurried over, poked her head out and asked curiously.

March Seven was genuinely curious.

Hadn't Lin Nai stayed with them at the hotel last night?

And hadn't he spent most of the morning dragging Stelle away to stop her from digging through that trash can?

"Yes, I met this lady last night. She's Pela, an intelligence officer of the Silvermane Guard."

"That's right! She's Sis~ter~Pe~la~!" Stelle declared with her hands on her hips.

Pela couldn't hold it in anymore and complained, "I told you not to imitate the way children talk!"

Stelle stuck out her tongue and hid behind Lin Nai.

Lin Nai rubbed Stelle's head. "Sorry, Pela. Stelle isn't even eight yet."

"...She's not even fucking eight?"

"Don't I look like it?" Stelle poked her head out.

"Not even remotely!!"

Pela clutched her head in pain. No, her blood pressure was getting a little...

Sigh.

These two were obviously the kind who needed constant worrying over.

"Hello, Miss Pela. I'm March Seven!"

"Dan Heng."

"Hello."

After exchanging greetings, Pela left since she still needed to act as the children's guide.

Then Stelle and March Seven both looked at Lin Nai.

"Uh... shall we talk back at the hotel?"

"Okay."

And so.

Not long after.

Inside Lin Nai's room.

Lin Nai: Blah blah blah blah blah.

Stelle: Wibbly babble?

March Seven: I think I get it now...

"So, last night, Lin Nai, you couldn't sleep, went for a walk, and got dragged into a place called the Engine of Creation."

"Right."

"Then you met a woman named Serval there, as well as that Silvermane Guard intelligence officer?"

"Right..."

"And you hit it off?"

"Uh... Serval and I sort of hit it off?"

At least when it came to music.

Dan Heng leaned against the wall by the window.

"That Pela is a Silvermane Guard intelligence officer. Could she affect us?"

After all, she was an official.

There was no telling whether their information would be sent to the so-called Supreme Guardian.

"Hard to say. We should be prepared."

He hadn't expected it either.

That he would run into Pela after going out for one night.

Ah.

Now that he thought about it, the lyrics to "Wildfire" seemed a little problematic?

At the time, he had only been focused on having fun with it.

Hopefully, Pela hadn't seen it.

But it probably didn't matter, right? They were just lyrics. Ordinary people wouldn't read too much into them, would they?

"It's fine! If soldiers come, we'll block them with generals; if water comes, we'll stop it with earth!"

March Seven patted her chest. "If they dare attack us, we shall make them return in utter defeat!"

"Return in utter defeat!!"

March Seven felt like she was gradually getting used to Stelle repeating everything.

So she merely gave her a helpless glance.

"Ahem. Alright, let's discuss this next."

Lin Nai lightly tapped the tabletop. "What we can be sure of now is that the cold wave was caused by the Stellaron."

March Seven sat at the edge of the bed, swinging her legs. "Isn't that obvious..."

"Isn't that obvious!"

"Stop repeating me!" March Seven still couldn't help glancing at Stelle, who was lying on Lin Nai's bed.

Stelle stuck out her tongue, hugged the blanket, and rolled around.

It smelled nice.

And it was warm.

"More than that... I'm curious why all the heaters in this city are outside."

Dan Heng, standing by the window, spoke up.

March Seven nodded. "Me too, me too! I really want to know that too!!"

"Mm... They're probably heating units powered by a special energy source. After all, those heaters really do keep out the cold."

Lin Nai set down his teacup. "Come to think of it, the place where we entered wasn't nearly as warm as the Administrative District."

"Oh!" March Seven suddenly realized. "That place was no different from outside the city walls!"

"Those streets didn't have any heating units. Either they were dismantled, or they were damaged." Dan Heng spoke thoughtfully.

"Oh! Right! Wait for me!"

Lin Nai remembered something. He got up and rushed out with Gauss Acceleration activated.

Leaving the other three staring at one another.

A few minutes later.

Lin Nai came back carrying a book. "I figured it out. Those heating units are powered by Geomarrow."

"Geomarrow?" *3

"Right." Lin Nai put the book he had just bought on the table and opened it. "Geomarrow is a mineral energy source unique to this planet."

"From citywide heating to the counters in your hands, they all get their energy from it."

As he spoke, the three had already gathered around Lin Nai to look at the book together.

"So what book is this?" March Seven asked curiously.

"Seven Hundred Years of Belobog." Lin Nai showed March Seven the cover and explained, "I just bought it from the bookstore."

After all.