Star Rail, Starting as Kiana

When they returned to the train car, Dan Heng's first order of business was to share the data he'd collected and recount their journey with the others.

Meanwhile, Kiana and the other two temporarily put away the souvenirs they'd brought back before heading to the bathrooms in their respective rooms.

"Ah~! I feel alive again. Even though the Pioneer's blessing keeps me from getting cold or dirty after not showering for days, it still feels so comfortable to soak in a bath."

"Yeah, after all, in Belobog, especially in the lower city, heat sources are mostly used for survival. Wasting water and heat to take baths is probably considered too luxurious by them."

March 7th rested her hand on the edge of the bathtub, her chin on her arm, quietly watching Kiana shower.

Since the Pioneer's journey had just begun, they hadn't had the chance to gather the resources needed to expand the train's interior space, so the two were still sharing a room.

If it were before, March 7th would have felt like she finally had a peer to chat with. But after their travels in Belobog, returning to their previous life made her feel like her mindset had changed.

Watching Kiana, whose white hair was tied up and draped over her shoulders, as water droplets trickled down her body, March 7th felt the water temperature was a bit too high, making her feel parched.

"Kiana, do you have anything to drink? The water temperature seems a bit high, and my throat is dry."

"Yeah, do you want it at room temperature or chilled?"

"Room temperature is fine."

Kiana summoned a canned drink directly from her space and tossed it toward March 7th's location.

"Ah~! So cold!"

The sudden chill that shot through her hands made even March 7th, who had emerged from Formless Ice and wasn't afraid of the cold, let out a soft cry.

And with that slight looseness of grip, the drink slipped, grazed March 7th's undeveloped chest, and landed between her legs, causing her to cry out again.

"Ah~~!"

A surge of heat followed, instantly dispelling the ambiguous and intimate atmosphere that had settled in the bathroom as they relaxed in their shared space.

"Ki-a-na!"

March 7th gritted her teeth as she called out the name of the white-haired girl in front of her. She got out of the bathtub, her tender, pink feet stepping onto the cool tiles, her fair skin blushing like a ripe apple ready to be picked.

But Kiana wasn't in the mood to admire the scenery. She couldn't help but step back, afraid that the enraged March 7th would freeze her into an ice sculpture and leave her in the bathroom.

March 7th advanced step by step, while Kiana retreated. Perhaps it was because Kiana had just finished washing, but the body wash on the floor hadn't been rinsed away yet.

Kiana's retreating foot slipped.

With a "thump," she fell onto the bathroom floor, her head hitting the ground hard.

Just as Kiana was about to get up, a warm sensation spread through her, accompanied by aches in various parts of her body.

Kiana looked at March 7th, who was now pinning her down and gasping in pain.

Her panic and fear vanished. Now, seeing the pretty face approaching, Kiana felt the urge to tease her again.

"March 7th, you're in such a hurry to push me down. But if possible, I'd prefer my first time to be in bed. The bathtub would be okay too, but the floor is a bit too intense. I'm still too innocent for that."

March 7th had also forgotten what she was doing. The pain in her knees and palms didn't matter anymore. Seeing Kiana feigning weakness, March 7th felt another surge of anger.

Looking at this girl who always teased her with her words, March 7th felt she should teach her a lesson about playing with fire.

The emotions she had been suppressing erupted. March 7th decided to go all out, closed her eyes, and slowly lowered her head.

This, however, made Kiana panic.

"Wait, wait! Is March 7th serious? I like March 7th too, but shouldn't I be the dominant one?"

In Kiana's mind, three options appeared, like in a gal game.

Option A: Flee in disarray, gain the title "Weak-Mouthed Kiana Cat."

Option B: Go with the flow, gain a cuddling partner, but likely gain the title "Kiana 0."

Option C: Counterattack, teach her a good lesson! The glory of Kiana is unshakable!

However, just as Kiana was preparing to counterattack.

The room door slowly creaked open. Stelle poked her head in. Seeing no one inside, she guessed the two might be in the bathroom and, without barging in, called out from the doorway:

"Kiana, March 7th, hurry up and finish washing. Pom-Pom said dinner is ready and is urging everyone to come over."

After relaying Pom-Pom's message, Stelle closed the door, leaving the two frozen in their previous positions.

Chapter 47: What?

"March 7th, didn't you lock the door?"

"I did, but to make it easier for Stelle to visit, I registered her fingerprint on the door..."

With Stelle's intrusion, March 7th calmed down. The desire to stay there any longer vanished.

Although she hadn't finished washing or enjoyed a proper soak.

But since Pom-Pom had sent Stelle to hurry them, she had no choice but to dry off and go eat. Then, after dinner, she could continue her bath and enjoy it thoroughly.

However, as the two dried themselves and changed into their clothes to go eat, March 7th's mind drifted back to what had happened in the bathroom.

She remembered the drink Kiana had thrown at her, its bottle covered in frost, and how thoroughly frozen it was. She felt her mood sour again, and she pouted the entire time, ignoring Kiana beside her.

She was still angry even when they sat down to eat.

"Little March, what's wrong?"

Seeing March 7th tearfully ignoring Kiana, the person with whom she had the closest relationship recently (even living together), the white-haired cat-like figure.

Himeko didn't know what Kiana had done to make March 7th so angry.

When March 7th heard Himeko's question, the resentment she had been holding back seemed to reach its peak, and she poured out everything that had happened in the bathroom.

"You're saying you asked Kiana for a room-temperature drink, and she gave you one that was completely frozen, causing you to jump up in shock?"

"Mhm, mhm, Himeko, please do something about Kiana, she's being too much."

Himeko looked at March 7th, who had thrown herself into her arms and was acting spoiled. Himeko didn't directly scold Kiana but instead gestured for Kiana to explain why she had done it.

Kiana was a bit embarrassed but still told the truth.

"Didn't March 7th want a room-temperature drink?"

"Yes."

"I figured March 7th had probably tried all the drinks from the Interastral Peace Corporation, so I decided to bring out a drink I bought in Belobog."

"So, what does that have to do with you playing a trick on Little March?"

"Well, there is a reason. After buying it, I didn't put it directly into storage. I returned the way I came and brought everything back to the train. So, the 'room temperature' here is the room temperature of the snowfield."

Himeko: ...

Others: ...

"This..."

After hearing Kiana's explanation, Himeko fell silent for a moment. After all, if Kiana's explanation was to be believed, she was at most careless, not intentionally pranking March 7th.

"Himeko, see? I didn't do anything wrong. Isn't 'room temperature' just the normal temperature? Jarilo-VI is covered in snow year-round, and most of the land is covered in ice and snow. So, if March 7th wanted room temperature, it wasn't wrong for me to give her ice."

Seeing that no one was speaking, Kiana immediately started to twist the narrative.

However, Ouyang, who was standing nearby, intervened at this moment.

"Ahem, although Kiana, you didn't do it intentionally, as your former teacher, I still need to give you a quick lesson. 'Room temperature' is also called normal temperature or ambient temperature, generally defined as 25 degrees Celsius. In chemical engineering, it's often represented as AMB, which means ambient. Although the room temperature used in industrial applications varies slightly in different regions, it's mostly between 15-25 degrees Celsius. Of course, room temperature in the chemical engineering system does include sub-zero temperatures."

This obscure "common knowledge" immediately rendered Kiana speechless. Fortunately, because Kiana had provided an explanation and Ouyang's little educational interlude.

After Kiana apologized to March 7th, March 7th no longer held a grudge against Kiana, and their relationship was restored.

"By the way, you mentioned bringing back local specialties in the group chat. What did you all bring back?"

After dinner, Himeko and Ouyang listened to the trio recount their experiences on the Pioneer's journey. Himeko suddenly asked this question.

In response, she saw the three of them tilt their heads back in unison, looking incredibly proud, much like children returning with souvenirs from a field trip.

Ouyang and Dan Heng, however, weren't very interested. They returned to their respective rooms, one to organize data in the library, the other to assemble his favorite Gundam models.

A moment later, the group brought back the local specialties they had acquired during their journey.

First was March 7th, whose specialty was the various scenic photos she had taken with her camera.

"Himeko, look quickly! Although Jarilo-VI's environment is harsh, whether it's the endless snowfields or the aurora over the creation platform, there's no scenery anywhere else that's as moving as this."

Of course, it was moving, but it was also freezing. March 7th had flipped to photos taken when they first arrived in the snowfield, the snowdrift where they had discovered Sampo.

"Ah, I forgot. Sampo was a guy when we first met, wasn't he? I almost forgot."

Speaking of which, March 7th looked at Kiana strangely, as Sampo's current appearance was all due to Kiana's unintentional words.

"So, my dear Kiana, please, please, say something about me too! I want to grow up too!"

Faced with March 7th's pleading, what could Kiana do but oblige?

However, Kiana was also puzzled. What was going on with Sampo? This was the first time she had seen her words have such a long-lasting effect on someone.

Suddenly, a shadowy figure shrouded in a mask appeared in Kiana's mind.

"Damn it, could Aha be playing tricks? We're both entertainers, why must we hurt each other?"

Under March 7th's expectant gaze, Kiana looked back at her and said very solemnly:

"I hope March 7th's chest will develop a pair of plump mounds, as big as steamed buns."

Just then, Pom-Pom arrived in the observation car with several drinks.

"What buns, Pom? Are they the specialties Kiana brought back? Does Pom need to help heat them up, Pom?"

"No, it's not steamed buns."

As Kiana finished speaking, March 7th's chest suddenly swelled. Judging by her clothed appearance, she could already contend with Himeko.

However, March 7th couldn't help but question:

"Huh? Didn't they say that bigger breasts cause shoulder pain and that carrying a burden is tiring? Why don't I feel anything?"

March 7th wanted to stretch, and with that jump, two fragrant steamed buns slipped out from inside her clothes.

March 7th: ...

Kiana: ...

Himeko: ...

Stelle: ...

"Passenger March 7th, don't play with your food, pa!"

Just as Pom-Pom placed the spilled food scraps on the table and was cleaning up the fallen bun crumbs, Himeko shared another tidbit of knowledge with everyone.

"Human instincts cannot accept negative words like 'no,' so..."

Upon hearing Himeko's words, March 7th understood the situation. If, according to this theory, Kiana's response to Pom-Pom earlier had rendered the steamed bun invalid, then that's why two buns appeared inside March 7th's clothes.

"Pom-Pom!!!"

Chapter 48: XP Can Be Unpopular, But It Can't Be Weird

March 7th's beautiful dream was shattered. Even after Kiana tried again with Himeko, it didn't work even once.

Next, Kiana presented the special souvenirs she had brought back. When everyone saw that it was a book, they were all stunned.

Especially the cover of the book – it was far too revealing.

March 7th looked at the publication with a title that read "Zero Kiss," and combined with the intimate pose of the girl on the cover, she couldn't help but blush, thinking Kiana was hinting at something.

Himeko, however, looked at Kiana with a strange expression. Although Ouyang hadn't explicitly said anything, it now seemed quite obvious what Kiana's sexual orientation was.

But what was the meaning of this souvenir? Was she trying to preach to them?

"Ah, sorry, sorry, I grabbed the wrong thing."

Afterward, some small trinkets bought in Belobog and a few wanted posters appeared on the table.

"Could it be that these were your wanted posters from back then?"