My Honkai Star Rail: Reversing All Phenomena

"You know, although the Space Station seems to be bathed in starlight at all times, as it orbits Azure Planet, the source of that starlight changes too. I once observed a pre-stellar cloud core from the Space Station..."

It had nothing to do with the Legion Attack, nothing to do with the Stellaron Hunters, nothing to do with Paths or Aeons, nor was it an exchange of cooperation or scheming between factions.

Just as Hua Yi had shared amusing stories from his time testing the Simulated Universe, along with Silver Wolf's reactions, Asta was also sharing what she considered fun with him.

The girl was somewhat nervous. Even though Hua Yi would never be like those in her family who regarded astrology as an Unorthodox Path, the mysteries of the stars apparently still could not compare to the entertainment value of a super Hacker getting punished by Madam Herta.

She hoped he would be interested in what she shared, yet felt that hope was slim.

But how could the considerate Hua Yi fail to see through the girl's adorable thoughts?

"A pre-stellar cloud core? I've looked through the Space Station's relevant data. To observe the densest region of the molecular cloud near here, you'd need a telescope with a hundred astronomical units of resolution."

"That's right! I've got lots of high-precision Astronomical Telescopes stored in the equipment bay~"

"Then—did you pay attention to the particle density back then? After discovering the Superdense Structure, did you promptly preserve records of the Stellar Embryo?"

"Of course I did! Don't underestimate my professionalism as an astronomer. I'll show you right now!"

Asta happily operated her Smart Terminal, intending to share her precious stellar images. But when she happened to meet Hua Yi's smiling eyes, she suddenly realized that she had become the one whose emotions he was stirring.

Wrong, wrong. The important thing now was not the Stellar Embryo records, but... but...

One hand withdrew the Smart Terminal while the other remained interlocked with Hua Yi's fingers. Blushing, the girl spoke with her gaze drifting away.

"Want to watch the stars in my room?"

"Sure."

"B-but... we might watch for a long time... You don't have anything to do afterward, right?"

"For the next ten system hours, Station Master can spend my time however she likes."

Chapter 90: A Conversation with Topaz, and Asta the Sleepyhead

In the end, both Asta and Hua Yi forgot all about the stars.

Their hearts nestled close together, focused only on savoring the sweetness of love. They let that beautiful, pure emotion drive every part of their bodies, spending time and energy without restraint.

And then, ten system hours proved to be nothing more than a moment of joy, passing as swiftly as fleeting time.

The muted Smart Terminal emitted a faint vibration. That level of noise was not enough to wake the still-sleeping girl, but Hua Yi had already opened his eyes.

Moving carefully so as not to disturb Asta, he quietly picked up the terminal and lit the screen. It was a Friend Request.

[You have successfully added the other party as a friend. You may now begin chatting.]

"Hello, I'm Topaz from the Interastral Peace Corporation's Strategic Investment Department. Mr. Hua Yi, I heard the Antimatter Legion's attack has ended and the Space Station is carrying out its aftermath procedures in an orderly manner?"

"That is correct. Thank you for the company's assistance. The progress of the related matters has clearly accelerated."

"Whether it is fighting the Antimatter Legion or protecting the lives and Academic Achievements of personnel, both align with the ideals of [Preservation]. The Interastral Peace Corporation has always been a partner of Herta Space Station and will never be stingy with resources. In fact, when the company first received the news, it had already ordered me to lead a team over to provide support. However, Mr. Hua Yi demonstrated reassuring strength and eliminated the Legion Fiends before I could finish traveling across the stars."

"Being able to protect the Space Station while sparing Miss Topaz the trouble of rushing over is certainly good news."

Far away in another star system, Topaz carefully read Hua Yi's reply as she sent her messages.

Though she and Asta were close friends, as a qualified company employee, she had to distinguish work from private life. She absolutely could not let personal connections affect her professional attitude.

Madam Herta's shopping bill last time had been outrageous and failed to pass the company's reimbursement approval. Topaz had come to collect the debt. At the time, the Herta Automaton had dumped the mess onto Asta, but Topaz still had not relented because of their private friendship, much less waived the bill on her own authority.

Likewise, Asta understood where to draw the line. She paid the bill without hesitation and did not try to pull strings for a discount.

The two young women of extraordinary status understood each other's personalities and ways of handling matters. That was why they could skip so much unnecessary probing and become close friends.

If Topaz were not one of the directors of the Strategic Investment Department and so busy with work, and if Asta, as Station Master, did not find it difficult to squeeze out enough free time, they might even have chartered a spacecraft for a vacation together, gazing at the vast sea of stars while chatting about company gossip.

After becoming friends with Hua Yi, Topaz's somewhat official manner of communication was actually a form of probing. She wanted to determine what kind of person this hero, whom Asta had specifically mentioned, truly was.

When he replied in an equally polite manner, Topaz felt somewhat relieved.

Asta had previously said that Hua Yi was valued by Madam Herta, and Topaz had guessed it was because their personalities matched, that both were equally willful and uninhibited.

That would have been troublesome.

Even if he was not a member of the Genius Club, he had quickly risen to prominence at the Space Station, displayed powerful combat strength during the Legion Attack, and had a Genius backing him. He already possessed a certain amount of capital to act however he pleased.

Now, however, it seemed her estimate had been wrong.

Right. Asta had said Hua Yi had a good personality.

With the probing finished, Topaz changed the subject.

"The Department of Universal Matter at the Space Station says that half the Technical Shares for the Kaliba formula belong to you. In addition, the Department of Light Abyss Archives has a High-level Rite called the Seed of Erudition, and it has already finalized the details of cooperation with the company. I heard that is precisely Mr. Hua Yi's research achievement?"

"Yes. I optimized the Seed of Erudition Rite once again and created a superior product to the Key of Inspiration, the Key of Enlightenment. I can send it directly to the company through the courier service designated by Miss Topaz."

"A Path Product one level above the Key of Inspiration... I'm not an expert in this field, but even I can infer its value. Are you really only planning to use a courier, instead of having me personally come to the Space Station to receive it?"

"Miss Topaz is a Senior Executive of the company, so I assume you are busy. Besides, if I were to simply assume that the Key of Enlightenment is extremely valuable and that the company-designated courier is unreliable, wouldn't that be questioning the power of the Pan-Galactic Commercial Group? I'm sure the company has dependable Stellar Routes."

He knew when to advance and when to retreat, and he was exceedingly wise—unlike the petty cleverness of opportunists or the cunning of those with ulterior motives...

Topaz quietly formed a user profile in her mind.

"You're right. Just hand [Key of Enlightenment] directly to the engineer temporarily stationed at the Space Station by the company. I guarantee this special product will reach where it belongs, and the company will offer corresponding compensation—Credits, or perhaps strategic resources. Afterward, the people below me will not bypass me to disturb Mr. Hua Yi."

Hua Yi did not ask, "So will those above you disturb me?" That would have been a foolish question.

Even with the miracle of no casualties after a small Legion force had been wiped out—a miracle that perfectly embodied the ideals of Preservation—along with the Kaliba formula and the Seed of Erudition Rite, it was still not enough to alarm the company's top figures above Topaz.

"I don't need any more Credits. It sounds like I have an opportunity to make an additional request?"

"Indeed."

"Can I save it for later?"

"Of course, though it will not accrue interest~"

"Understood. I have no further questions."

"I really do have quite a lot on my plate lately. Thank you for understanding. Let's talk again when there's a chance."

The pink-haired head resting against Hua Yi's arm belonged to Asta. She had woken while he was messaging Topaz, yawned, and spoke in a lazy, soft voice.

"Everything with the company is settled?"

"Mm."

"As expected, I didn't need to specially remind you of anything. You got along with Topaz just fine, and her wording went from an official tone at the start to even making a little joke by the end."

After reading the chat history on the terminal, Asta rubbed her sleepy eyes and directly hugged Hua Yi's arm, completely acting like a girl unwilling to get out of bed.

"The Interastral Peace Corporation's influence extends throughout the universe. If you board the Astral Express and trailblaze the universe, having a company Senior Executive as a friend will be a good thing."

"I haven't left yet, so don't keep thinking about what happens after I leave. Besides, since [The Path of Exploration] can connect the universe, once I analyze the Domain Anchor, I might be able to open a portal with my own power. Being on another planet one second and back at the Space Station the next may not be a fantasy."

"Mmm, even if those are just pretty words to coax a girl, I'm willing to be fooled by you~"

Chapter 91: I've Actually Seen a Case Like Yours Before

Love was like Preserves. Asta was immersed in it, unable to pull herself free and unwilling to do so.

Of course, the longer she could stay all lovey-dovey with her lover, the better.

But during the Legion Attack, the Station Master had not been able to contribute much—at the very least, nowhere near as much as Hua Yi, the great hero. With the aftermath work still unfinished, having pursued her own happiness and already achieved final victory, it seemed she ought to know when to stop and take up her responsibilities as Station Master again.

She had to work properly during work hours so that she could reward herself afterward with peace of mind.

After struggling with the matter for two System Hours, Asta finally made her decision. After replenishing herself with another dose of Hua Yi Element, she headed to her office.

According to her usual schedule, she was undoubtedly late. Fortunately, Madam Herta did not care about such trivialities, and though the Space Station's official duties were heavier than usual, with Hua Yi's previous help, Asta could still easily handle her responsibilities.

While Station Master enjoyed happiness in love, she still ensured stable development in her career!

Asta, big victory~

The girl in an excellent mood hummed a nameless melody. Leaning back in her office chair, she logged into a shopping website and browsed the product interface, planning to see whether there was anything worth buying for Hua Yi.

Becoming an astronomer had been Asta's career plan since childhood. Yet pressure from the elders of her family had made her understand that even with the conviction to strive toward her ideal and the potential to develop in a manner befitting it, one's environment could still deny everything and become an enormous obstacle.

That was why, after receiving Madam Herta's favor and leaving her family to come to the Space Station to undertake management work, Asta was sincerely grateful. She treated being Station Master as her profession, astronomy research as her hobby, and found a balance between them.

As for the young lady's more ordinary hobby, it should naturally have been shopping.

Most importantly, she was not shopping for herself now. She was shopping for Hua Yi, so there was no need for even the slightest hesitation. She could buy as much as she wanted.

This High-end Clothing Customization Store from Penacony, the Moment of Festivity, was nice. Its design concept and fabric texture were both top-notch, so she would start by ordering a dozen or so outfits. That Tea Shop certified by the Xianzhou Alliance also looked good. Its product descriptions said drinking tea could relax body and mind, so she would get two boxes of every variety to sample.

She remembered Hua Yi mentioning that he wanted to spend money on games for Silver Wolf. He himself seemed interested in games as well, or at least knew something about them—

Mm-hm, she would add the widely popular video games from across the universe to the cart as well. There were the limited physical collector's editions, the Digital Deluxe Editions that included in-game items, and she definitely could not forget the High-performance Game Console. When he boarded the Astral Express to trailblaze the universe, he could use it to pass the time on the journey.

Problems that could be solved with Credits were not problems.

The young lady had her own online shopping tricks.

After opening a product interface, choosing to buy directly would add an extra jump process for automatic payment, even if Asta had activated password-free payment. It was truly a waste of precious shopping time. But if she added everything she liked to the cart and paid all at once at the end, it was convenient and fast.

The membership-based Interstellar Delicacies shopping website had another advantage: its customer service representatives responded promptly and could provide customized services according to users' needs at any time, saving Asta a great deal of trouble.

It even offered top-up services for gaming platforms. She could directly add funds to Hua Yi's Interastral Peace Network account. When he wanted to give Silver Wolf paid in-game items, or developed an interest in playing games himself, he would find that his Mall Balance was an extremely long string of numbers. He could simply buy whatever he wanted.

Otherwise, given the scale at which Asta spent Credits, if she followed the normal process to top up in games through ordinary channels, then even if she chose the largest top-up amount every time and used automatic confirmation of payment, it would still be terribly inefficient. She would have to top up for several hours before the number in the Top-up Currency field reached a barely acceptable number of digits.

"All done!"

As the girl busy spending Credits watched the number in the Terminal Notification Bar continually rise, she initially thought the Interstellar Delicacies customer service staff were messaging her to say some merchant had run into trouble and could not supply an order. But when she opened it, she found that people in the Fan Group were chatting.

"I heard Lord Hua Yi improved the Seed of Erudition Rite again. Lots of department heads have gone to the laboratory."

"Not just lots—the number is ridiculous. I'm a nurse in the Medical Department. Even those experts and Scholars with injured legs and bandages wrapped around them forced themselves out of the medical room on crutches. What Lord Hua Yi researched must be incredibly impressive."

"Hehehe, that's wonderful~"

"Sigh..."

"I say, Lord Hua Yi has achieved something new. Why are you sighing?"

"How long has it been since the Legion Attack? Those researchers who fell and sprained themselves during the evacuation haven't even recovered yet. The hero who personally rushed to the most dangerous battlefield and protected everyone from the Voidrangers has now produced another top-tier academic achievement. I feel like I'm getting farther and farther away from him. We're already people from two different worlds, boohoo."

"I've actually seen a case like yours before. Here, first open the file directory in the group and download a few novels uploaded by enthusiastic group members. Enter the document editing screen, replace the Keywords, change the heroine's name to your own, then read carefully and enjoy a sweet romance with Lord Hua Yi."

"A miracle doctor! Curing the patient with a masterful touch!"

Asta, secretly lurking in the chat, could not help snorting with laughter after reading the messages.

Everyone at the Space Station was becoming more and more interesting.

Uh, as the Fan Group's Group Leader, it was one thing that she had failed to upload romance novels as spiritual food. But now she had even formed the deepest bond with Hua Yi behind those innocent group members' backs, then laughed at their conversations. Wasn't that rather cruel?

For no reason, she felt like a victorious party looking down arrogantly upon defeated dogs from above.

No, no, absolutely not!

Asta deeply believed that since she was the Group Leader, she had to do something beneficial for the Fan Group.

Write a romance novel based on real events?

She definitely could not write during work hours, since that would affect her actual duties. But if she had free time, compared to writing novels for the group members, Asta would rather message Hua Yi, or buy him food, clothes, supplies, and games.

After weighing the matter for a moment, the clever girl had an idea.

As the Group Leader, she sent an important announcement.

"To ensure the Fan Group's long-term development, satisfy everyone's shared interests, and encourage group members with literary talent to continue displaying their skills, I have decided to hold a romance novel Writing Contest in the group. Credits will be awarded according to each work's popularity."

Chapter 92: Himeko the Scientist

"[Name Redacted], the Group Leader, has spoken!"

"Wow, whenever the Group Leader appears, it's huge news."

"Imagining a love story with Lord Hua Yi, writing it into a novel, posting it in the group, and receiving everyone's support is already an immense joy. And now there are even Credits as rewards? Am I dreaming?"

"What are the specific rules? I've already uploaded a novel. Does that count as default entry?"