Let's Get Together: Remastered / Himeko: Our Daughter's All Grown Up, Huh? Happy New Year, Everyone!

"Yes, but we can leave that out. I haven't been wanted, you know!"

Himeko had been about to laugh and ask why she was so proud of not being wanted, but then she saw the abstract painting on the wanted poster—so distorted that it was impossible to tell it was even human.

Himeko seemed to understand. Kiana wasn't proud of not being wanted; she was proud that she hadn't been drawn on the wanted poster.

Still, this wanted poster was more than worthy of being preserved as a souvenir. Even after countless years, it would still remind everyone of their time on this planet.

At last, it was the final person's turn.

Stelle was carrying a black bag. As she dragged it along, the sound of metal clashing came from inside.

Even Himeko was rather curious about what Stelle had brought back.

Looking at the familiar shape, Kiana guessed what was inside.

She glanced at March 7th and found March 7th looking back at her. After a brief exchange of glances, they confirmed that they had guessed the same thing.

"Ta-da! Himeko, this is the souvenir I brought back from Belobog—a trash can filled with beautiful trash!"

A brand-new trash can appeared before them. Inside it was a bundle of trash packed in a golden bag.

Fortunately, it wasn't kitchen waste, only some useless mechanical parts. So although Himeko's mouth kept twitching, she didn't make Stelle throw away the "souvenir" she had brought back.

"You really brought the trash can back. Aren't you afraid Pom-Pom will get angry when she sees it?"

"Nope. I'll put it on my bed from now on. No one will find out."

Just then, the finished mission left Ling with nothing to do. Silver Wolf was still playing a game, locked in a fierce battle, when the notification tone for a new phone message rang out.

"Silver Wolf, someone sent you a message."

"Kafka, could you check it for me? I'm in the middle of a game."

"Pause it first. What if it's important?"

"This is an online game. I can't pause it!"

"Why can't you pause it?"

Silver Wolf: ?

Silver Wolf froze when she heard Kafka's words. Then, wearing an expression that seemed to ask, Are you serious?, she glanced at the beauty lying on the sofa.

"All right, all right. Don't look at me like that. I'll take a look for you."

Kafka skillfully picked up Silver Wolf's phone. After unlocking it and opening the chat app, she found that someone Silver Wolf had saved as White-haired ball of fluff had sent her a message.

White-haired ball of fluff: Help me contact Kafka. Tell her that her daughter has found a lover.

Kafka rubbed her eyes, thinking she had read it wrong. But no matter how many times she looked, the words didn't change.

"Silver Wolf, do I have a daughter?"

Silver Wolf had just finished a match and was preparing to start a new one when Kafka's question left her completely dumbfounded.

"Huh? You're asking me whether you have a daughter?"

Kafka didn't know how to respond. She rose from the sofa and handed the phone to Silver Wolf.

Silver Wolf had been distracted, and after merely glancing at the screen, she intended to start the next game. But just as she was about to brush the matter off, she suddenly became alert.

"Hm? Wait. You have a daughter? No, why didn't I know you had a daughter? Why does Kiana know? Could it be that you two..."

"Don't be silly. See if she sent some kind of coded message."

After decrypting it, Silver Wolf found no such code. Then she suddenly seemed to think of something.

"Kafka, what if the daughter White-haired ball of fluff mentioned is Stelle?"

Kiana then sent another photo and a video.

The photo showed Stelle hugging a trash can, looking as if she were about to kiss it. In the video, Stelle hugged the trash can and rushed back to her room, shouting, "No! No one can separate me from my beloved!"

The good news was that their Stelle hadn't been taken away by someone else.

The bad news was that Stelle had fallen in love with a trash can.

Preferences could be niche, but they couldn't be downright bizarre.

Thinking of Elio's next prophecy, Kafka decided that the next time she appeared, besides checking on Stelle's current state and how she was getting along with the Express crew, she would also have to pay attention to Stelle's mental condition.

So she took out her phone and sent Elio a message.

Kafka: Elio, does the script mention Stelle falling in love with a trash can?

Elio: ?

By then, it was already night. Although the train had no true distinction between day and night, the viewing carriage was now completely empty. Everyone had returned to their rooms, waiting to fall asleep and welcome the arrival of a new day.

Only in March 7th and Kiana's room had the two of them not yet gone to sleep. Instead, Ling had removed her clothes and entered the bathroom once more.

Because dinner time had arrived earlier, the two had been playing around and hadn't finished their bath. Now that it was time to rest, they planned to wash themselves again before bed and soak properly in the bathtub.

It was as if time had turned back. Their positions had returned to where they had been several hours earlier. March 7th was lazily lying in the bathtub filled with warm water, while Kiana rinsed herself beneath the shower.

"Kiana, I'm thirsty. Could you get me a drink?"

After saying that, March 7th felt that the scene seemed strangely familiar. She then remembered what had happened earlier.

So March 7th hurriedly added, "Not a cold one. I want it warm."

Even if March 7th hadn't said anything, Kiana wouldn't have repeated what happened earlier. She took out a drink at room temperature and placed it in March 7th's hand. Then she was about to leave and continue washing herself, waiting until March 7th finished so she could soak properly herself.

But just as Kiana turned around, March 7th grabbed her hand.

"Let's do it together."

"Let's do it together."

Kiana's body stiffened when she heard March 7th's words. Although she usually liked making suggestive remarks, March 7th's direct attack happened to be her perfect counter.

Kiana turned her head stiffly, like a rusty machine, only to realize that she had misunderstood.

March 7th's eyes were clear, without the slightest hint of affection. There was only a lazy look brought on by enjoying the warm water soaking her entire body.

"March 7th, you mean we should take a bath together?"

"Yeah. The bathtub's pretty big. It'll be a little cramped with two people, but I'd feel bad making you wait for me alone. Besides, neither of us is exactly curvy, so squeezing in won't be uncomfortable."

What Kiana had thought was a direct confession turned out to be a misunderstanding.

Kiana therefore let out a sigh of relief. For some reason, she always felt that if she confessed to March 7th or accepted March 7th's confession, a Purple-haired Girl would appear with a sword more than two meters long, and with a slash as swift as violet lightning, sever her cat head.

The thought sent a chill down Kiana's back.

"What's wrong? Are you cold? Come in and soak for a while. Don't catch a cold on Yarilo, only to catch one after we return to the train."

Seeing Kiana staring blankly, March 7th grabbed her hand and gave it a hard pull.

Kiana was caught completely off guard. She nearly slammed into the edge of the bathtub, but fortunately, the residual power of the Herrscher of the Void had gradually increased after joining the Express crew. She hurriedly stopped herself before impact.

However, because of that, once Kiana released her power, she went straight into the bathtub face-first.

Like a kitten that had fallen into water, Kiana quickly turned herself over, then shook her head repeatedly, flinging the droplets from her face and hair.

Afterward, the two soaked in the bathtub without saying a word, simply enjoying the silence of the moment.

The bathtub was small, and it was still rather cramped with both of them inside. On top of that, neither of them was particularly good at sitting still.

Whenever either of them tried to move her legs, she would find a slender leg that wasn't hers tangled with her own. Every movement caused them to brush against each other.

After this happened again and again, both of them felt as if their body temperature were rising. Even the warm water in the bathtub seemed to be heating up along with them.

Just as March 7th was about to close her eyes and tense her body so she wouldn't think too much, she found that after shutting out her vision and suppressing her sense of touch, her sense of smell had grown increasingly sensitive.

The two leaned against opposite sides of the bathtub, less than two meters apart.

Because of that, the air was filled with the faint floral fragrance from Kiana's body. Along with it came a warmth like the kind found beneath the sun.

Just as March 7th was about to open her eyes and search for the source of the scent, she found that the bathroom had somehow become like a celestial palace, with mist swirling all around them.

Kiana, who had clearly been right in front of her, now seemed to appear and disappear like an illusion in a dream. March 7th didn't dare speak, afraid that everything was only a dream. Once she opened her eyes, perhaps she would discover that none of it had been real, and that this journey of trailblazing was merely a fantasy born within the Formless Ice.

Kiana was lost in thought as well. Feeling a little bored, she raised both arms from the bathtub and lightly tapped the flower-covered surface a few times.

The water rippled around them, one circle after another, as if telling a silent story. March 7th also came back to her senses and let go of her worries, because the person before her was not an illusion from a dream.

When the mist dispersed, Kiana's figure emerged once more, making March 7th unable to stop looking at Kiana's body, smooth and warm as jade.

Her skin looked even more delicate and supple beneath the rising steam.

"The hot spring water is clear and boiling, while fairies are born from cinnabar. Sun and moon bathe the skin smooth; fine waves leave rippling traces."

For some reason, those words suddenly appeared in March 7th's mind.

"Kiana."

"What is it?"

Seeing March 7th's face grow redder and her eyes become increasingly hazy, Kiana thought March 7th was about to say something. Instead, after calling Kiana's name, March 7th's gaze turned completely unfocused, and she fainted.

"Hm? She passed out from soaking!"

Kiana had no time to continue enjoying herself. She quickly climbed out of the bathtub, carried March 7th out, dried her body, and opened the bathroom door.

At that moment, a chill swept over them. It wasn't because the room was too cold; quite the opposite. Even naked, they wouldn't have felt cold in the room.

The bathroom was simply too hot. Combined with the rising steam, it had become like a steamer.

Fortunately, Kiana had embarked upon the Path of Abundance. Although she hadn't received systematic training, a simple examination and treatment were still within her abilities.

"Good, she only soaked for too long. The bathroom was also a little too hot, and there was too much steam, making the oxygen somewhat thin. That's why she fainted."

"But that makes sense. March 7th went to soak as soon as we returned to the room. She was still soaking while I showered, and she was still soaking after I had nearly finished. It would be strange if she hadn't fainted."

Everyone had already gone to rest by then, and Pom-Pom had returned to the conductor's room. Kiana didn't want to disturb her, so she went to the kitchen alone and found some smoked plums, hawthorn, and licorice in the train's supplies.

She then made a pot of sour plum juice from memory. After letting it sit until it reached a drinkable temperature, Kiana carried the pot back to the room along with two cups and straws.

By then, March 7th had already woken up.

The towel that had originally wrapped her body had been thrown onto the floor. She was now holding a set of pink animal pajamas and appeared to be preparing to change.

"Eek!"

"Shh, don't make so much noise. Hurry up and change so you don't catch cold, then lie down on the bed and don't move around."

March 7th changed into her pajamas and returned to bed. Like a well-behaved baby, she lay perfectly still, blinking as she watched Kiana and the things in her hands.

"Kiana, what's that?"

This is the author's little health reminder: regardless of age or gender, no one is advised to soak in a bath or use a sauna for too long. Be especially careful not to fall asleep or lose consciousness in the water or sauna. If you feel unwell, leave immediately and replenish your fluids. If you see someone unconscious, or if your own awareness becomes hazy, call emergency services at once.

Chapter 50: Himeko—Our Daughter Has Grown Up? Happy New Year, Everyone

"Lie down first. You woke up while I was only out getting something, and you even changed into your pajamas. I was going to ask whether you wanted a cold drink, but it looks like you should have warm sour plum juice instead. Don't stimulate yourself into getting sick."

Looking at the sour plum juice Kiana handed her, March 7th felt warm both inside and out, but she still tried to argue.

"How could I? I'm a Pathstrider, and I have the Blessing of the Trailblaze, too. Besides, I was frozen by the Formless Ice before and nothing happened to me. How could I catch a cold?"

Hearing March 7th say that, Kiana felt that March 7th might have been fine before, but had now stacked every possible flag. She should probably prepare some medicine and give it to March 7th first thing the next morning to stop the illness from worsening.

However, when March 7th saw Kiana take a pile of medicine from her storage space, the hand holding the cup trembled twice.

"W-wait, hold on! Don't be like this. You're scaring me. I only soaked for too long and fainted. Why did you take out so much medicine? Isn't that a little excessive?"

"March 7th."

"Here!"

"From now on, don't casually set flags for yourself. Our team already has a cold-blooded small green dragon, and me, Dominating Moon Sea Fish Fish Cat. There's no need to give yourself the title of Flag Master as well. March 7th, just be March 7th."

After pouring March 7th another cup of sour plum juice, Kiana stored the rest in the train's refrigerator.

To keep Pom-Pom from becoming confused upon seeing so much sour plum juice in the refrigerator the next morning, Kiana also left a note on the door.

It's just ordinary sour plum juice. I made too much.

Feeling that the wording was a little stiff, Kiana drew a cute, cocked-head expression in the empty space on the note.

"Hehe!"