Oh no. I was the one covering Kiana's mouth before, so how did things end up reversed now?
As for Cocolia, Kiana didn't offer any explanation. Stelle had only guessed the truth through intuition. Fortunately, March 7th didn't ask either and unconditionally trusted her companion.
"Right, so what do we do now? Should we tell Dan Heng first, or make a run for it?"
"No need. Just pretend we don't know anything. If nothing unexpected happens, someone will come looking for us soon enough."
"Okay."
Although she said that, March 7th had lost all desire to look around the city and followed Kiana out closely.
Stelle realized that she had nothing to do alone in the room, so she left with them as well.
As for Dan Heng?
Who was that? She didn't know him. He had already been forgotten.
"Guests, is there something you need?"
Old Goethe, who had originally been in charge of the front desk at the Goethe Hotel, was no longer there. The person handling reception now was a youthful and beautiful girl who looked only eighteen or nineteen—the age at which girls in other worlds would still be in school.
"Hello, beautiful miss."
Kiana looked at the purple-haired girl before her. For some reason, it was as though something in her DNA had been stirred and awakened.
Her counterpart was clearly stunned as well. It was her first time meeting someone who spoke to her that way, so although she should have offered assistance, she stood there without moving.
"Beautiful miss, I wonder if I might be so fortunate as to borrow some of your time and have you explain the recent situation to us."
Looking into those sky-blue eyes, which seemed as pure as the heavens themselves, the girl gazed at Kiana so intently that she could even see her own reflection in them. Her heart stirred despite herself.
Her voice immediately rose several pitches as she said, "Of course!"
From the girl, the group learned what Belobog was like for ordinary people.
They unconditionally supported the Supreme Guardian's actions. After all, they lived in the Upper District and had not been affected much by the Cracked Boundary. Their lives were stable and peaceful.
As for the strange orders Cocolia had issued, they believed everything was meant to give them a more stable life and broader space to move around in.
"Mm, thank you, beautiful miss. I hope you have a wonderful day."
After speaking, Kiana took a small accessory she had bought earlier from her space and placed it on the table as thanks for the information. Only then did she turn and leave.
"Ah! My prince! This must be the fated meeting of my life—my very own prince!"
Kiana had no idea that her actions had made the girl associate her with some prince from a book, causing the young woman to fall into lovestruck reverie.
But Kiana now had a new problem to deal with.
"March, what's wrong? Are you jealous?"
Seeing March 7th remain silent, Kiana moved closer and tried to take her hand, but March 7th dodged her.
"Hmph, I'm not. Why don't you go talk to that beautiful miss? It's not like I care."
"Come on, I was only trying to investigate the clues. Besides, if we're talking about beauty, March 7th is even prettier."
Kiana caught March 7th's hand and prevented her from pulling away.
Only after March 7th stopped struggling and Kiana saw her reddening earlobes did she take out a snowflake-shaped hairpin and put it in March 7th's hair.
"Mm, as expected, it suits March 7th perfectly."
The Encounter Between Stelle and a Trash Can
If it had been earlier, Kiana would not have believed she possessed such charm. But now, she recalled something Herta had once said.
Perhaps Herta had been serious back then. Maybe one of Kiana's words had truly given her a special attraction to the people around her. At least judging by the current situation, March 7th was one of them.
After all, March 7th wasn't the sort of jealous person who would get jealous over every little thing a companion did.
Just as Kiana was comforting March 7th, Stelle suddenly stopped and looked toward the area beneath the Goethe Hotel's staircase.
For some reason, Stelle suddenly felt that something nearby possessed a special attraction for her.
By the time Kiana had finished comforting March 7th and turned to prepare an accessory for Stelle as well, she discovered that Stelle was already gone.
"Huh? Where's Stelle?"
Kiana's words also brought March 7th back to her senses. She recovered from her uncontrolled state and realized that Stelle was gone.
"Ah! Did Stelle get lost?"
"That shouldn't be possible. She isn't a child! How could she possibly have disappeared without a trace?"
Just then, the two heard the surrounding people discussing something.
Seeing that many people were staring at the trash can beside the vending machine beneath the Goethe Hotel's stairs, Kiana seemed to realize what had happened. She quickly grabbed March 7th and walked down the stairs.
As luck would have it, they saw a pair of long, slender legs sticking out of the trash can.
No, wait. What did it mean for a trash can to grow legs?
Looking at the familiar thigh straps, there was no need to think about it. Stelle must have sensed destiny and gone to rummage through the trash.
No wonder everyone nearby was talking about it. No one in the Upper District had fallen so low that they needed to survive by scavenging, so seeing someone search through a trash can naturally shocked them.
Fortunately, the Silvermane Guards arrived before long, prompting the onlookers to leave.
"What are you doing!"
Kiana and March 7th watched from a distance, silently observing. They truly did not want to admit that the person rummaging through the trash was their companion.
But when Stelle poked her head out of the trash can, the leading Silvermane Guard froze.
"Don't rummage through trash cans for no reason. Let's go."
The leader was one of the people who had brought the group there before. After recognizing Stelle, he simply warned her and left with the others.
Only after everyone had gone did March 7th and Kiana come over.
"Kiana, do it!"
Before Stelle could continue, March 7th slammed the trash-can lid shut, then took out the tape used to seal Kiana's mouth and bound Stelle tightly.
Kiana used her ability as well, bringing the two of them back to their hotel room.
Fortunately, her ability had improved. Otherwise, moving with other people would have been rather troublesome.
As soon as they returned to the room, Kiana removed the tape from Stelle and tossed her into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her.
"Stelle, go wash yourself clean. You're not allowed out otherwise!"
Fortunately, Stelle wasn't actually a child. She didn't throw a tantrum or hide in the bathroom without bathing, nor did she try to sneak out.
When Kiana and March 7th heard the sound of running water from the bathroom, followed by Stelle throwing out her clothes, they finally relaxed.
Stelle might not have cared, but Kiana immediately used a tool to lift her clothes, then packed them away.
She contacted the hotel staff and asked them to find someone to wash them thoroughly.
"Right, Kiana, what should we do now? Continue looking around outside, or wait here for the person you mentioned?"
Kiana remembered that Sampo would appear, but his timing was unpredictable. If they waited until the Guards arrived to arrest them before he showed up, it would be too late.
Thinking of this, Kiana felt it was time to use her foresight and find some help.
Meanwhile, Cocolia had just awakened after being treated by a doctor when she saw her daughter sitting beside the bed.
The moment she saw her mother wake up, Bronya immediately perked up and began asking about her condition and whether she felt uncomfortable anywhere.
Even though Cocolia intended to follow the Stellaron's advice and reshuffle everything, a trace of tenderness still appeared on her face.
But in the blink of an eye, Cocolia's expression sharpened. She scrutinized her daughter. Even as the Stellaron's voice kept calling to her from within her mind, Cocolia had no intention of paying attention to it.
"Bronya, tell me. Exactly which brat tricked you?"
"Mother, what are you talking about?"
Seeing that Bronya's expression held confusion rather than shyness, Cocolia couldn't help but wonder if there was another possibility.
Perhaps it wasn't someone else's pig trampling her cabbage, but her own daughter trampling someone else's cabbage.
Maybe because her blood was still running hot and her mind was muddled from just waking up, Cocolia actually voiced the thought in her heart.
"Daughter, tell me the truth. Did you get some young lady pregnant? Tell me—I won't be angry. But why did you hide something like this from me? You're my heir. If you have someone you love, I'll bring a betrothal gift and propose marriage."
"Mother!"
Bronya wondered if she was suffering from terrible luck today. What kind of situation was this?
After a long explanation, and only once Cocolia's mind had fully cleared, Bronya finally made her understand that she had no relationship with Kiana.
"Bronya, what you said is true?"
"Of course, Mother. Setting aside how I could possibly get another girl pregnant, just look at her age. How could I possibly have a daughter that old?"
"That's true."
Cocolia had fully regained her senses by now. Her not particularly high intelligence had reclaimed the high ground. Listening to the Stellaron's endless temptations and its hostility toward the Express crew, she finally asked about the serious matter.
"By the way, Bronya, tell me what those visitors from beyond the world said. Did they mention why they came here?"
Cocolia listened as Bronya relayed the group's words one by one. When she mentioned the Stellaron, Cocolia's expression paused, but it returned to normal before Bronya noticed.
The Stellaron's tempting voice sounded again, and Cocolia made a certain decision.
"All right, Bronya. You did well. Go for now. After some time, I'll meet with them again and discuss this matter anew."
"Yes."
After Bronya left, Cocolia rose from the bed and picked up the group's brief information from the table once more.
"For the future of Belobog, for my people, and for my daughter, I absolutely won't let you destroy all this!"
Serval's Mechanical House
"Kiana, is this really okay?"
"Shh, keep your voice down. We're doing this for the future of this planet. Everything is for justice!"
Stelle followed behind them, watching the two sneak through the night and evade the Silvermane Guards as they headed toward the center of the plaza. She was speechless.
"Why are we sneaking around like this? Wouldn't it be better to just walk over?"
"We're going to meet someone secretly. What if we get discovered?"
"Still, isn't there a possibility that, Kiana, with the way you're dressed now, even if the Silvermane Guards saw you, they wouldn't dare say anything?"
"That's precisely why we can't let them find us!"
Seeing Kiana transform into her duck-like Herta form again, Stelle was baffled. When she saw Kiana change into clothes very similar to Bronya's daytime outfit, she had thought Kiana intended to use Bronya's identity to cause trouble.
Bronya.jpg
After changing clothes, the three of them played cards in the hotel room until nightfall. They waited until the hotel staff had all gone to rest, leaving only Old Goethe dozing at the front desk, before quietly slipping out.
Ling covered herself up.
"All right, we're here."
At last, they reached their destination. Kiana straightened her clothes and puffed out her chest.
But just as Kiana finished thinking of what to say and prepared to push the door open, she found that it did not move at all.
"Oh no, the door seems to be locked!"
"..."
"Leave it to me. I learned a little lock-picking technique while I was on other planets. Let me try."
"Wait, we're not thieves. Don't pick the lock!"
While Kiana and March 7th were still arguing, a blonde girl with long hair whose ends seemed to have been deliberately dyed light blue appeared behind them, carrying a large bundle of things. She quietly watched them.
Only when Kiana and March 7th continued arguing while Stelle, finding them troublesome, prepared to take out her bat and break down the door did the girl finally lose patience.
"What are you doing to someone else's shop door?"
When the three turned around and saw Kiana, Serval froze.
"Huh? Bronya?"
As soon as she said it, Serval realized something was wrong. Bronya had never dyed her hair, and blue hair tips were impossible. Besides, their heights were completely different.
What kind of change could make someone shrink so much in the blink of an eye?
"Serval, there's something we'd like to discuss with you. Could we find somewhere to talk?"
Before you continue