Star Rail, Starting as Kiana

Hearing that voice she hadn't heard in years again, even though Serval was certain the person before her wasn't the same as Bronya, she still couldn't help but let down her guard.

"Come inside with me. The shop's empty now—there's no place safer than here."

Serval set the bag on the ground and pulled open the door.

Yes, that's right. The door wasn't locked—it just didn't push inward, but pulled outward.

Seeing this, though the sky was dim, Kiana still felt the resentful stares from the two beside her.

"Don't look at me. You didn't notice either!"

"Alright, hurry up and come in."

Once the three were inside, Serval pressed a button on the counter.

"Click."

The door instantly locked, startling the others into thinking they'd been tricked.

Seeing them bristle as if sensing danger, Serval found it amusing and couldn't help but let out a snicker.

"Alright, alright, relax. Didn't you have something to tell me? I locked the door to keep outsiders from interrupting. Follow me upstairs—I'll prepare some snacks and tea, and we can talk slowly."

As the backbone of this operation, Kiana met the questioning looks from March 7th and Stelle, chose to nod, and followed Serval's steps up to the second floor.

March 7th and Stelle, seeing Kiana follow, also put away their weapons, sizing up the room full of mechanical parts as they headed upstairs.

"Alright, spill it. What brings you here so late? Don't tell me you want big sis's autograph? If it's for a few cute little ones, that's fine, y'know."

Faced with Serval's teasing, Kiana showed no embarrassment at all.

Instead, feeling provoked, she instinctively fired back.

"Big sis is the one who's beautiful and charming. To think I could visit such a unique boudoir at night and discuss life with you—just sitting across from you, gazing at your face, would let me release the stress of the night and sleep soundly."

"Cough, cough, cough!"

Though Serval had more life experience, seeing Kiana use the face of her late best friend's daughter to nearly run her over with that line still got to her.

"Alright, no more jokes."

Kiana returned to her normal appearance and signaled March 7th to bring out the promised items.

Serval looked at the photos March 7th handed over, along with the records of the Stellaron's danger and this planet's history of change.

The attention she'd had on Kiana shifted back.

"You're saying that Cocolia's current abnormality and this planet's crisis are all because of the Stellaron?"

"You should have known that for a while now, former Builder, Miss Serval."

Serval set down her teacup, her expression turning serious.

"That's right. But this one who can turn into Bronya—"

"Just call me Kiana."

"Fine. Then Miss Kiana, as you can see, I'm just the owner of this mechanic shop now. Even as a former Builder, I couldn't stop it back then. What can I do now?"

"Simple. Just show up and tell Bronya and Gepard the whole story."

"Oh? Why don't you tell them yourself?"

"Because one of them is a child you watched grow up, and the other is your brother. They don't need to believe it—just plant a seed."

Serval rested her hand on the table, tapping it lightly.

Kiana wasn't in a hurry for a reply either, and helped herself to the snacks Serval had prepared.

March 7th, on the other hand, looked completely baffled at the two riddlers, her expression screaming, Why can't you just talk normally? What Builders? What seeds? What are you even saying?

Stelle, meanwhile, was the calmest, her gaze fixed out the window, staring intently at a trash can outside the mechanic shop, as if considering sneaking a peek inside once things were done.

"Alright, I agree. But I'm not sure about Bronya's side—I haven't seen that child in a while."

"Don't worry. Tomorrow morning, go to the Goethe Hotel's ground floor. You'll find her there."

Chapter 20: March 7th, Don't Look at Me, I'm Not an A Either

"Ah, Kiana, what were you two talking about? I didn't get it at all."

"Emm... In simple terms, Serval was Cocolia's close friend, a former Builder, and the sister of that Gepard we met. Because of the Stellaron, the Supreme Guardian kicked her out of the Builders."

"Wait, isn't Cocolia the Supreme Guardian? Why are you saying them separately?"

"Because in Serval's eyes, her close friend was always just Cocolia, not the current Supreme Guardian."

Kiana had just finished explaining to March 7th when she grabbed Stelle by the collar and pulled her away from the trash can.

"Stelle, why do you always want to dig through trash cans?"

"I don't know. I feel an unusual pull from them. I sense the threads of fate on that one."

"Don't form a bond with a trash can! Kiana, don't just watch—talk some sense into her! I don't want to see Stelle carrying a trash can onto the train one day!"

When the group returned to the hotel, they saw that the light in Dan Heng's room was still on, and the door wasn't shut—a crack let the light spill into the hallway.

"Could it be the legendary demon of the Goethe Hotel?"

Remembering the rumors she'd heard during the day, March 7th felt a chill run down her neck, but with two companions beside her, she mustered the courage to head toward Dan Heng's room.

As soon as she entered, she saw Dan Heng holding a spear, pinning a blue-haired woman to the floor. No matter how she struggled, Dan Heng remained unmoved.

Hearing the door creak, Dan Heng turned around and saw the three looking at him with expressions that screamed, So this is the kind of person you are.

Before Dan Heng could explain, Kiana gave him a thumbs-up.

"Dan Heng, never thought you'd be into this type. We can understand. Tonight, Stelle and March 7th will share a room with me. The two rooms in between are separate—play as wild as you want, no problem."

Seeing that the others actually believed Kiana, Dan Heng panicked.

After an explanation, they all gathered around, looking at this "old acquaintance."

"You're Sampo?"

"That's right, my friends. I'm your old pal Sampo, your lovable long-legged uncle."

"Not a long-legged aunt?"

Stelle's one sentence shattered Sampo's mental defenses. Whether faked or real, Sampo lay on the floor looking emotionally crushed, as if some phantom was drifting out of his mouth.

"No soul-leaving! Get back in!"

"Explain yourself. How did you end up like this, and why come at night?"

"Your uncle here—"

"No 'uncle'! Talk properly!"

Seeing Kiana press a gun to his temple, Sampo quickly raised his hands in surrender, stopped messing around, and stated his purpose.

"Oh, so you say you're here to help us? Well, aren't you just so kind."

"Yes, my friend. So, can you lift this curse for old Sampo? I'm not ready to become Auntie Sampo yet."

"Curse? What curse?"

"Wasn't it you? That day, when we had to split up to avoid dragging you down, I felt my body heat up, fire burning in my chest and crotch. Then, when I almost got caught, I noticed the Silvermane Guards didn't arrest me—they avoided me and ran off."

"I thought they just didn't see me or had other business. But when I got home, I found I'd turned into this. Lately, I haven't seen anyone but you all. It can't be the Silvermane Guards' doing, can it? I know their tricks well."

Hearing this, the group couldn't help but look at Kiana.

If anyone among them could pull off something like this without a sound, the only thing they could think of was Kiana's mouth.

Sampo followed their gaze to Kiana.

"Miss stranger, we shouldn't have any grudges. Why treat old Sampo like this?"

"Ah, I remember now."

March 7th suddenly shouted. Luckily, the hotel had excellent soundproofing, and since the group were honored guests of Belobog, this floor was booked out—otherwise, that yell might have sparked public outrage.

Realizing she might have been a bit noisy, March 7th awkwardly covered her mouth. After confirming no other sounds came from around, she whispered her guess.

Ignoring Sampo, March 7th directly asked the train crew.

"Do you all remember what Kiana said when that guy ran off?"

"She said..."

They recalled Kiana's final words.

"Don't worry, little March. That man is no gentleman—he'll get what's coming to him."

They'd thought it was just Kiana holding a grudge against Sampo, but they never expected it to trigger her ability.

"So, this is what 'what's coming to him' means?"

For some reason, Dan Heng felt he should be more careful around Kiana, in case he ended up like Sampo one day.

Thinking this, Dan Heng quickly shook his head, but a figure wrapped in bandages surfaced in his mind.

"Hey!"

Suddenly, March 7th sidled up to Kiana and hugged her arm.

March 7th's gaze lingered on Sampo's chest, and a bold idea struck her.

She leaned in close to Kiana's ear and whispered:

"Kiana, how about you try again? I don't think this is punishment at all. If it gets me a 36D, I'd take that punishment any day!"

Though March 7th's voice was low, the twitching at the corners of Sampo's and Dan Heng's mouths—suppressed so no one would see—proved that everyone had heard her.

Feeling the softness against her arm, Kiana didn't know how to respond.

Stelle, however, said seriously, "March 7th, yours isn't small. Look at Bronya—she's the Supreme Guardian's heir, and she's still..."

"Ahem."

Good thing Bronya wasn't there, or Stelle's comment would have offended two people at once. March 7th wanted to argue, but remembering the figure under Stelle's loose clothes, she swallowed her words.

"See, Kiana's my real friend."

"March 7th, don't look at me. I'm not an A either."

That day, March 7th learned what betrayal felt like.

At the start of the comic, Kiana and Herta were both as unremarkable as each other when they enrolled. Then the main story gave her a B rating, but that's just for reference—The Transcendent is also a B.

Chapter 21: Remember to keep a certain distance from strangers from now on, okay?

After a "peaceful" discussion among the group, the Express crew finally struck a deal with Sampo.

The deal was that Kiana would be responsible for lifting the "curse" on Sampo, while Sampo would be responsible for getting them out of the upper district if they ran into danger.

But honestly, this deal wasn't worth much.

Given Sampo's personality, even without the deal, he'd still step in when they got wanted.

But looking at it from another angle, Kiana couldn't control her abilities at will either. Back at Herta Space Station, the Researchers who got turned into pandas all recovered naturally.

The question was just how long Sampo's condition would last.

The next morning, since March 7th and the others had gotten the news in advance, when they woke up and heard the commotion downstairs from the hotel and saw the Silvermane Guards cordoning off the area through the window, they immediately understood what was happening.

"Kiana, what do we do? Do we really just go down like this? We know they're here to catch us—isn't this practically walking right into the trap?"

At some point, Kiana seemed to have become the backbone of the team. Whenever March 7th faced a problem, she instinctively asked for Kiana's opinion.

But Kiana didn't have a good solution either. If they ran, it would only confirm their suspicion, and who knew if Cocolia would sling more mud at them.

Plus, this was the only way to trick Bronya into coming down to the lower district, so even though they knew it was a trap, they had no choice but to go.

Stelle, watching Kiana who had once again turned into her Herta form, couldn't help but feel curious.

"Kiana, why are you changing into that again? If you show up in your original form, they wouldn't recognize you, right?"

Stelle's blunt remark hit Kiana like a thunderbolt.

"Stelle, you're actually this smart?!"

Stelle: ...

It was a good thing Stelle had a good temper. If it were someone hot-headed, hearing Kiana's words, they'd probably lunge over and teach this thoughtless idiot a lesson.

Watching Kiana revert to her original appearance, her clothes also swapped for the Princess of Winter outfit that had been rush-ordered from the Interastral Peace Corporation back at Herta Space Station, Stelle couldn't help but sigh—money really was nice.