Watching Seele and Bronya meet for the first time, Pela turned a curious gaze toward Seele and asked with a smile.
"Seele, I never expected your first meeting with the Supreme Guardian to be so tense. How did your relationship become so good afterward?"
Seele pondered the question for a moment.
"Hmm, I can't remember very clearly either. Although we went through the Former Supreme Guardian's incident together, it seemed our relationship changed because of something that happened afterward."
Pela had only asked casually, but she hadn't expected there to really be some hidden story behind it.
"What was it? Seele, can you think carefully? Please, this is really important to me!"
Seeing the curiosity practically shining in Pela's eyes, Seele could only scratch her head.
"Uh... there were a lot of things. I need to think about it carefully. Maybe it was... the time she drove to the Underworld to save me?"
After the two finished arguing, Seele said she would take Bronya to meet Oleg, the leader of Underworld Fire. The protagonist group followed along as well.
After arriving near the mining area and asking around, they learned that Wanderers and miners had clashed over a large ore vein. However, a force of robots had suddenly appeared and taken over the vein. Oleg was apparently dealing with it at the moment.
As they ventured deeper into the mining area, Clara finally appeared in the story!
Clara: [Mr. Svarog, look—what a huge ore vein. Clara has never seen this much Geomarrow before...]
The moment the white-haired, red-eyed Clara appeared, the audience erupted!
"Ahhh, it's Clara!"
"She's too cute!"
"Holy shit! Jade... jade feet!"
"Oh my God! How could there be such a coincidence? Clara has jade feet, and I have a mouth!"
"Goodness, it's freezing out here. Why is Clara walking barefoot on the ground? It's so dirty. Big brother will help wipe them clean!"
"Excellent jade feet, make my tongue spin!"
"Bro, are all of you this disgusting?"
"Aren't you afraid Svarog will send you flying?"
"The Clara Protection Association reminds you that the internet is not beyond the law!"
"By the way, does nobody like Svarog? Svarog feels so sexy!"
"From our human perspective, Svarog should only be wearing a coat, right? Doesn't that mean he has nothing on underneath?"
"Those streamlined curves, the occasional leaking engine oil, and those battle-worn scratches on his shell... so sexy!"
"The machine spirit is greatly pleased!"
"Mr. Svarog, you wouldn't want Clara to get hurt, would you?"
"Don't get too outrageous!"
"Uh... isn't this a bit..."
"Humans can't, and at the very least, shouldn't!"
"Star Rail · Welt · Phone.jpg"
"Although people are free to have their own kinks, I still suggest seeing a doctor!"
"Fuck, which freak said they wanted to drink Svarog's engine oil?!"
Even Lao Mu was left speechless by those freaks.
In the story, Clara called Svarog over to control the situation and prevent the conflict between the miners and Wanderers, but that was not a long-term solution.
By the time Seele's group arrived, Svarog had already taken Clara and left first because he needed to guard the furnace core.
After meeting Oleg, they learned that he did not know the Stellaron's whereabouts either. However, Svarog likely knew something, so everyone prepared to rest before heading to Svarog's territory.
This part of the story showed Bronya living in the Underworld and changing her way of thinking after personally experiencing the lives of its people.
Then they happened upon Clara searching for medicine for an injured Wanderer, eventually persuading her to lead them to negotiate with Svarog.
But clearly, according to Svarog's programming, any action involving contact with the Stellaron would bring severe consequences. The negotiations ultimately broke down, and the two sides fought.
After a battle with Svarog, the story entered a cutscene. Svarog lay paralyzed on the ground just as Natasha prepared to fire a shot that would take him down.
At that moment, Clara's small body stood in front of Svarog. She spread her arms and pleaded.
"W-Wait! Please don't hurt Mr. Svarog!"
Her face had turned red with anxiety, and tears filled her eyes as she looked at everyone, making the viewers' hearts ache.
"Clara is so cute! She's so brave!"
"I really deserve to die for making Clara cry!"
"You young punks have no sense of honor at all! You actually ganged up on an old man like Svarog, who's hundreds of years old!"
"Bullshit! You were the one fighting the hardest!"
"I'll be the one to protect Svarog!"
"Clara, you wouldn't want Svarog to get hurt either, would you?"
"Galaxy Rangers! Post the coordinates of the guy above!"
Irreplaceable Thing
In the story, both sides temporarily ceased fighting following Clara's intervention.
Clara: [Mr. Svarog... please stop forcing yourself. Can you tell everyone what you know?]
[Mr. Svarog said you would fulfill every one of Clara's wishes, right? Clara's biggest wish right now is for everyone to unite, like... like family.]
[Over this time, Clara learned something—getting the result you want does not necessarily bring everyone happiness.]
[Even if they know the world outside the cage is not all that wonderful... people still want to stick their heads out and take a look.]
Hearing Clara's heartfelt plea, Svarog paused for a moment, then actually began reassessing whether he should tell them about the Stellaron.
"Waaah, Svarog spoils Clara so much!"
"He was practically beaten to pieces and still wouldn't say anything. It's confirmed—Svarog is a total doting dad!"
"Spoil her! Spoil her as much as you want! I love this stuff!"
"Who could refuse Clara's request?"
"It's a promise, not an order!"
"By the way, have you seen the description for Clara's Signature Light Cone? It's really good!"
Seeing a Barrage comment about Clara's Light Cone drift past, Lao Mu immediately grew curious and opened the archive to check it out.
Five-star Destruction Light Cone—Irreplaceable Thing.
In the Light Cone artwork, Svarog's huge hand held Clara high in the air. Clara's pure smile seemed capable of healing one's heart, making the viewers smile knowingly.
However, when they read the Light Cone's description, the smiles on their faces immediately froze.
["Svarog, if one day I'm gone too, I'll leave this database to you."]
[(Who... Why is there a recording like this in my records...?)]
["Svarog, is there anything you find irreplaceable?"]
[(Irreplaceable... Broken parts... They only need to be replaced...)]
["Svarog, one day you'll find it."]
[(That sort of thing... would only be troublesome...)]
["When that time comes... leave this place."]
Judging from the Light Cone's description, it seemed that after someone left, Svarog discovered a recording of unknown origin in his own records!
Just a few short passages were enough to make countless viewers break down!
"Fuck, is this the lifespan trope? Stay away from me!"
"From the description, could this be Clara?"
"No! Don't say any more!"
"I've already found my Irreplaceable Thing. It's you, Clara!"
"It hurts, it hurts so much!"
"Why is this game hiding knives even in the Light Cones?!"
"This was probably left behind by the person who created Svarog. It definitely wasn't Clara. Svarog won't forget Clara!"
"Yeah! The Light Cone art looks so wonderful! It definitely can't be Clara!"
"And Clara always calls him Mr. Svarog. This definitely wasn't a message left by Clara!"
After some careful deduction, the viewers also felt that the person who left the recording in the description was not Clara, and they all breathed a sigh of relief.
"Damn it, who said the Light Cone description was nice? Stick your head out here so I can give you some buffs!"
After that interlude, Lao Mu continued the story. Svarog opened access to the memory bank, and that rotten, burning history began unfolding before everyone.
As early as the era of Svetlana Land, the second Supreme Guardian, it had already become clear that the Stellaron was the root of every disaster.
It was Alisa Land, the first Supreme Guardian, who had wished upon the Stellaron for the Eternal Freeze to descend and freeze everything in order to resist the endlessly appearing Anti-Matter Legion.
The Eternal Freeze that had continuously compressed Belobog's living space had actually been caused by the first Supreme Guardian herself.
Unless they could remove the Stellaron and resolve the Eternal Freeze, once this news was made public, Belobog would likely face riots!
"So... that was what really happened?"
Pela stared at the historical truth revealed in the story, her face filled with shock.
As a resident of Belobog, she had been taught since childhood that the first Supreme Guardian had protected Belobog from the Anti-Matter Legion.
But the disappearance of the Anti-Matter Legion had meant the arrival of the Eternal Freeze!
The Eternal Freeze steadily closing in around them in reality was far more despairing than the Anti-Matter Legion described in history books!
If this true history had surfaced before the Eternal Freeze disappeared, then the consequences...
A hand landed on Pela's shoulder as Seele spoke.
"That's why I also believed that history should be concealed back then. Sometimes, people simply need hope. Even if that hope is only the moon reflected in water, it can still give them the strength to move forward."
The Barrage was also buzzing with discussion about the story.
"The encroaching Eternal Freeze was actually brought about by the first Supreme Guardian herself. If the people of Belobog found out, all hell would break loose!"
"There was no other choice. It was the Anti-Matter Legion! What planet survives after getting targeted by them?"
"Yeah, and this planet's civilization wasn't technologically advanced either. Being able to rely on the Stellaron to hold them off for several hundred years was already pretty good!"
"Sigh, Destruction!"
"Sigh, Stellaron!"
"Fuck it, let's fight Nanook!"
After learning the truth behind the Stellaron's history, only one question remained: why had Cocolia changed so drastically?
The hidden truth struck Bronya's mind, leaving her somewhat lost. Seele said it was time to make a decision.
While waiting, Lao Mu looked through the interaction dialogue between Clara and Svarog.
Clara: [Has the memory module been damaged? Clara wants to help as much as possible too.]
Svarog: [Beginning memory module search... Records from the Builders' mechanical era are intact... Records of Clara creating a miniature magnetic-flow drill are intact; records of Clara explaining human behavior are intact...]
Clara: [S-So, the memory module should be fine now?]
Svarog: [Records related to Clara have already been backed up. There is no need to worry.]
Clara: [...Related records too?]
Svarog: [Multiple backups have been made and can be retrieved at any time.]
Clara: [...Mr. Svarog, can Clara... delete some of them?]
Svarog: [Request denied. Memories related to Clara are important data and must be preserved in their entirety. To Svarog, these are memories of family.]