[Let the Galaxy Continue to the Next Stop]

Silver Wolf suddenly came to his senses.

She looked up.

The surrounding scenery has completely changed.

The familiar carriage, the familiar seats, the soft overhead lighting, and the sea of stars slowly passing by outside the window.

This is the Astral Express.

But there were only four people in the carriage.

Kafka.

star.

March 7th.

as well as--

Silver Wolf standing at the other end of the carriage.

Silver Wolf paused for a moment. "... Hmm?" She subconsciously looked down at her hands.

It's semi-transparent, has no solid form, and you can even see the seat behind you through your palm.

Silver Wolf tried clenching his fist, but felt nothing.

"Spectator mode?"

She quickly realized the situation: she couldn't enter the game, couldn't operate the controls, and could only watch the story unfold.

Silver Wolf looked up and gazed ahead again at the center of the carriage.

Kafka stood quietly by the window.

Xing leaned back in her seat, her hands pressed tightly against her chest, her face pale.

March 7th stayed by her side.

The Silver Wolf slowly walked up to Kafka. She looked no different from usual, except that she was obviously much more tired, and even her usual lazy energy had faded considerably.

Kafka was silent for a moment. "The fate of the Two-Phase Paradise cannot be changed."

She looked out the window. In the pitch-black depths of the universe, indistinct lights and shadows were slowly unfolding, like a curtain, or like some enormous creature opening its eyes. Further away, faint sounds were echoing, a mixture of crying and laughter.

Kafka paused for a moment, then continued, "Aha ultimately met the worst end; He retreated completely into the background." Her voice was calm, "And the God War will draw back the curtain of madness."

Silver Wolf frowned. "Good heavens." She raised a hand to her forehead. "I never expected it to end like this."

His tone was still indifferent, but this time, even his complaints sounded weak.

Xing suddenly lowered her head, "It's my fault..."

March 7th immediately turned around, "Don't think like that."

She reached out and grabbed Xing's shoulder. "If anyone's to blame, it's Return to Silence. If it weren't for him, Himeko wouldn't have made a wish on the Stellaron inside you."

Xing didn't speak; she just lowered her head, and the carriage remained quiet for a long time.

"But..." Xing's fingers slowly tightened, "For the past ten days or so, I've been thinking, if only I could have been faster back then... if only I hadn't made that wrong choice..."

She paused, and after a few seconds, whispered, "Himeko wouldn't..."

The conversation did not continue.

March 7th opened her mouth, but this time, she didn't know how to comfort her. In the end, she could only gently pat Xing's shoulder.

Xing was silent for a moment, then looked up again. "I want to make amends."

Silver Wolf turned to Kafka, "You have a way, right?"

Kafka didn't answer immediately. After a few seconds, she gently shook her head. "Silver Wolf. I can't help you either."

Silver Wolf paused, then leaned back.

"Oh my god," she looked up, "Isn't this a complete game over?"

Silver Wolf paused for a moment, then added, "It's still a terrible ending."

No one answered.

Kafka did not.

There is no such day as March 7th.

The only sound in the entire carriage was the very slight vibration from the train's movement.

Just then...

Xing suddenly stood up straight. "No," she clenched her fist, "There's still a chance."

Silver Wolf looked up at her.

Xing's gaze, however, had already fallen upon her chest. "I want to make a wish to Him."

Kafka's gaze followed, "He?"

Xing didn't answer; she simply raised her hand and slowly placed her palm against her chest.

The next second.

A ray of intense white light shone through her fingers.

It was very faint, but it was responding to her.

Kafka's eyes flickered slightly. "Stellaron..." she murmured, "Now, perhaps there's still a chance."

Xing closed her eyes, and after a few seconds, she suddenly smiled softly. "At least... I can make another choice."

She opened her eyes. "Isn't that right?"

The words had barely left his mouth.

Xing's hand suddenly plunged into his chest.

"Star!"

March 7th's expression changed drastically.

A burst of bright white light erupted, illuminating the entire carriage.

Xing gritted her teeth.

She carefully removed the Stellaron from her body, its light flashing intensely in her palm.

Xing's hands were trembling slightly, but she didn't look down.

She simply gazed out the window at the Milky Way, which seemed to be almost at its end, and then spoke her wish.

"Let the Milky Way... continue to the next stop."

In an instant.

The world fell silent.

The sound of the train disappeared.

The vibrations in the Stellaron ceased.

Even the ever-changing starlight outside the window seemed to be frozen in time.

Then--

Boom!

A beam of light suddenly rose from the end of the Milky Way.

The Silver Wolf, who had been observing, suddenly looked up.

"... What?"

She saw it: a star trail that had faded to almost invisible was now shining brightly again in the depths of the universe.

At first it was just one point, then a second, then a third.

More and more silver light spread along the track, extending further and further into the distance, like a lost archive that had been forcibly reconnected.

It's as if someone has picked up a pen again and continued to draw the next section of the Milky Way, which had previously ceased writing.

Kafka raised her head and quickly spoke, "Silver Wolf, don't lose to Aha."

March 7th also stared blankly out the window.

The Stellaron in Xing's hand began to vibrate violently.

The next second.

A voice came from an extremely distant place.

"Fate took another turn here."

He brought hope.

"It also brought about a deeper despair."

"The God War will never end."

"Until--"

"The next dawn."

Silver Wolf suddenly looked up. "Who?"

She looked in the direction from which the sound came.

In the dark, starry sky, only a clock floats, and finally...

Everything before my eyes shattered with a deafening roar.

"!"

Silver Wolf suddenly opened her eyes, and almost instinctively, she reached for her Cartridge.

The cold touch came from her fingertips, and the familiar feel quickly helped her regain her composure.

Silver Wolf stood there, not speaking immediately, his mind still replaying the scene from earlier.

"Is this the past?"

She muttered something to herself, then immediately rejected it.

"Wrong."

She knew this plot point all too well.

Two-Phase Paradise 4.4.

But the route she remembered was completely different from what she had just seen.

In the normal course of events, the Trailblazer's wishes override Himeko's wishes.

But in that branch just now--

Himeko's wish has come true.

The Trailblazer, however, did not make another wish to the Stellaron until more than ten days later.

[Let the Milky Way continue to the next stop]

Silver Wolf stared at the air for a few seconds. If that wish really came true... what kind of plot would unfold next?

"Tsk." She rubbed her temples. "Without enough information, guessing won't help. Let's leave it for now."

Anyway, what Elio just showed her was clearly not a simple historical replay.

The Silver Wolf lowered its head.

Elio was still beside her, and the black cat was slowly circling around her.

Silver Wolf stared at it for two seconds. "So, how many Amber Era have passed since that ending?"

Elio paused for a moment, his tail swaying gently.

"..."

No answer.

Silver Wolf narrowed his eyes, "Elio?"

"Meow."

"..."

Just as Silver Wolf was about to ask more questions, he suddenly sensed that something was wrong with his surroundings.

It's too quiet.

She turned around, then stopped.

Windchaser, it stood still.

The Vernacular Poet remained unmoved.

The same goes for the Sunken Crow.

Daiya was also stunned.

Everyone's bodies remained in the same position as before, as if only the character models remained, while their consciousness had been pulled away to other places.

Silver Wolf blinked. "Wait."

She looked at everyone, then at Elio, and an idea popped into her head.

"This... could it be that everyone is just going through the motions?"

Elio: "Meow."

Silver Wolf immediately became interested. "Could everyone be a clue to the Finality?"

Elio continued to walk around her.

Silver Wolf simply squatted down. "So this is the Honkai: Star Rail Galaxy?"

"Meow."

"Was that a bad ending?"

"Meow."

"Is Galaxy corrupted?"

"Meow."

The Silver Wolf stared at it expressionlessly. "Say something."

Elio stopped in his tracks.

The black cat raised its paw, not pointing around, but instead tapping the Cartridge at the Silver Wolf's waist.

Silver Wolf was taken aback.

"Cartridge?"

Elio looked up, his eyes gazing at her silently for a second.

The next moment, the black cat's body suddenly began to fade.

Silver Wolf frowned.

"Etc."

Elio did not stop; its body gradually transformed into wisps of flowing wind.

The Silver Wolf reached out to grab it.

"Hello--"

My fingers passed right through the gust of wind, grasping nothing, as the last bit of blackness dissipated completely.

Silver Wolf's hand froze in mid-air.

"..."

A few seconds later, she slowly withdrew her hand.

"The Finality..."

Cartridge.

Elio.

That was a completely different future.

Silver Wolf's gaze darkened slightly; the possibility of his worst-case scenario had risen to a new level.

[Elation] may have truly been Voracity...

But what did the Trailblazer ' wish ultimately bring? And shouldn't they have just restarted the game instead of Destruction the world by holding up the Time Wheel...?

Just then...

Suddenly, a noise came from the side.

"Hmm..."

Daiya took a deep breath; she was the first to wake up. The girl blinked blankly, looked around, and then looked down at herself.

"W-what happened?"

Silver Wolf turned his head, "Hmm?"

She was slightly surprised. "You woke up quite early."

Daiya scratched her head. "I don't know, I just suddenly ran off to somewhere."

She frowned, trying hard to recall. "Then everyone was very friendly and happy, like it was a holiday. I was completely stunned."

Silver Wolf paused.

'joy?'

She glanced at Daiya.

'My galaxy is almost wiped out, isn't this gap a bit too big?'

Silver Wolf didn't immediately ask any further questions; he simply noted the information down silently.

"I'll explain it all at once later, so I don't have to read the plot explanation twice."

"Oh." Daiya nodded obediently.

Not long after.

The surrounding moonlight suddenly rippled with very faint waves.

The Forest Moon God slowly opened his eyes. His consciousness seemed to have just returned from some distant place. He first looked at the people who were still asleep.

Then.

His gaze fell on Daiya.

There was a brief pause.

Finally, they moved towards the Silver Wolf.

Silver Wolf didn't waste any words, "Tell me, how do I find Him?"

The Forest Moon God looked at her quietly for a moment, "If you really want to know..."

He said softly, "Then let that blank card be reborn."

Silver Wolf's eyes flickered.

The Forest Moon God continued, "At that time, it will lead you to the Queen of the Moon."

Silver Wolf immediately looked up. "You know that card?"

"Hmm." The Forest Moon God nodded gently. "It once gave me enlightenment."

"Revelation?"

Silver Wolf reached out and flipped his hand, revealing the card between his fingers.

The card design is completely different from the original; the red square symbol in what was once a blank black area has become increasingly clear.

Although it is not yet fully formed, the outline is already quite clear.

[Block A]

Silver Wolf stared at it, then lightly tapped the card with his finger.

My mind was already racing with the process.

'Card games—that's exactly the kind of gameplay Aha likes.'

She had almost no doubt about this.

The problem lies ahead.

'But in that branch of the story, Aha had completely gone mad and eventually retreated to the background.'

Silver Wolf narrowed his eyes.

'Then where did these cards come from?'

'Is that ending not from the same save file as this one?'

'Or is the timing simply wrong?'

'or...'

Silver Wolf's fingertips stopped; she suddenly thought of another possibility.

'Was the card issued ahead of schedule?'

If the blessing itself is left before everything happens.

Whatever state Aha becomes in later has absolutely no impact on the card's continued existence.

But in this way--

New problems have arisen.

The Silver Wolf lowered its head.

The gaze slowly shifted from [Block A] to the Cartridge at the waist.

Just before Elio disappeared, the last thing she pointed to wasn't the cards, but her Cartridge.

Cartridge -- Blank Card -- Elation -- Finality.

Silver Wolf stared at his Cartridge for a moment, then clicked his tongue softly.

"Alright, consider this foreshadowing. We have to go to the next film set later."