Pom-Pom Lost All Dignity When Gojo Loli Treated the Conductor Like a Cat
Pom-Pom had just raised her broom over her head.
Her mouth was wide open, but the scolding words had yet to leave her throat.
Little Satoru Gojo, sitting on the leather sofa, suddenly lit up.
She looked like a wild child who had spotted a new kind of candy.
Boom.
A muffled blast sounded in the air.
The white-haired girl vanished from the sofa.
She had launched herself so fast that the air around the sofa was sucked away, creating a brief pocket of low pressure.
The airflow rocked the glass on the coffee table. Its base struck the tabletop with a sharp clink.
Only one little leather shoe remained, bouncing twice on the leather cushion.
Then it rolled onto the red carpet.
It landed in the pile and left a little dent.
A tenth of a second later.
Pom-Pom felt something cold press against her back.
Two slender, deathly pale hands slipped under her arms from behind and scooped her up.
"Wow! So soft!"
Little Satoru Gojo's excited voice burst beside the Conductor's ear.
Pom-Pom's long, fluffy ears were seized and tugged.
Su Chen buried his face in the soft fur without hesitation and inhaled deeply, again and again.
The pleasant scent of cotton dried in the sun filled his nose.
Pom-Pom shrieked in fright.
"Let the Conductor go, pom! You ticketless passenger!"
Her short legs kicked wildly in midair.
Her little black leather shoes whistled through the air as she tried to kick the person behind her away.
Her small white-gloved hands pushed back desperately, trying to pry away the face pressed against her.
But her paws stopped dead half an inch from the little girl's nose.
It was as if they had struck an invisible rubber wall.
Limitless locked down every inch of space Pom-Pom needed to exert any force.
Even her struggles slowed almost to a halt.
She was like a fly trapped in a pit of sticky tar.
The harder she struggled, the greater the resistance around her became.
The pads of her paws rubbed comically against the spatial barrier without making a sound.
Su Chen paid none of it any mind.
She felt better than any ragdoll cat he had ever petted in his previous life.
He kneaded Pom-Pom's face with both hands as though it were dough.
The Conductor's red-and-white uniform, usually pressed without a single crease, instantly looked like a crumpled rag.
The fabric was yanked back and forth so roughly that it gave strained ripping sounds.
Her black bow tie twisted all the way around to the back of her neck.
One of the gold buttons on her chest even popped off.
It hit the wooden floor with a clack and rolled into a corner.
"Mmph, pom... let go..."
Pom-Pom's face was squashed flat, her voice muffled by her white fur.
The proud Conductor of the Astral Express had no dignity left.
She had become an oversized plush toy for someone to squeeze and knead.
Her signature Conductor's cap fell to the floor with a plop.
March 7th stood beside the armchair.
Seeing Pom-Pom bullied like that, her eyes instantly reddened.
Her short pink hair trembled as she shook.
She instinctively took a long step forward, wanting to snatch Pom-Pom back.
But her toe caught on the fringe of the carpet.
She pitched forward.
A rough hand caught her arm.
Welt hauled March 7th back.
His grip was frighteningly strong, making the bones in her arm ache.
She sucked in a sharp breath from the pain.
"Uncle Yang..."
March 7th kept her voice low, but it trembled with tears.
She bit down hard on her lower lip.
Even when she tasted the faint tang of blood, she did not let go.
Her pale fingers clutched her camera strap, her nails nearly digging into her palms.
The camera casing dug into her ribs, leaving a red mark.
Welt did not look at her.
His gaze stayed fixed on the little girl frantically kneading Pom-Pom.
Cold sweat ran from his temples.
It dripped onto his suit collar, darkening a small patch of fabric.
He could not move.
Reason gripped his nerves like a rusty wire drawn tight.
All he could see was the image of that little girl tearing a warship apart with her bare hands.
How could he save Pom-Pom?
Against a monster who could erase the origin point of space at will, no attack would touch a single hair on her head.
If he dared unleash the Star of Eden, the entire carriage would be swallowed by an artificial black hole in the next instant.
Was he supposed to sacrifice everyone to save the Conductor?
Welt's knuckles had turned white from the force of his grip.
His cane pressed a deep dent into the wooden floor.
He even slowed his breathing, afraid of provoking the slightest hostility.
Dan Heng leaned against the metal wall beside the Data Bank door.
He drew a ragged breath of cold air, his chest heaving.
The fingers of his right hand curled, twitching toward empty space.
It was the opening motion for summoning the Cloud-Piercing Spear.
But he forced himself to stop.
Vidyo-Dhara dragon blood surged through his veins, sending painful palpitations through his chest.
His instincts screamed a warning.
If he dared bring out his spear, his neck would be the next thing twisted into a knot.
Dan Heng lowered his head and stared at the grain of the floorboards.
Sweat dripped from his chin onto his shoes.
His throat felt packed with sand, dry and raw with every breath.
The helplessness of not even having a chance to fight back felt worse than death.
Himeko stood behind the bar.
The edge of the rosewood counter gave a faint crack beneath her grip.
Splinters dug into her fingertips, but she seemed not to feel them.
She watched Pom-Pom's utterly defeated expression.
Her heart ached as though it had been submerged in ice water.
Pom-Pom was the heart of the train, family to every one of them.
Now she was being manhandled like a cheap toy.
Yet Himeko could only watch.
She turned away and closed her eyes, forcing herself not to look.
The smell of coffee still lingered in the carriage. Now it only made her nauseous.
Her stomach clenched, and she pressed a hand hard against it.
Su Chen finally had his fill of petting her.
He held Pom-Pom up like a cat fresh from a bath.
Pom-Pom had given up struggling.
Her large, furry ears drooped over half her face.
Two streams of tears ran down her round cheeks.
Limitless stopped the tears in midair.
They became two clear droplets suspended before her.
The droplets caught a faint glimmer of light.
Pom-Pom's eyes brimmed with tears after all that petting.
She lay limp in the little girl's hands, all four limbs dangling.
She looked lifeless, utterly done with it all.
She could not even manage her signature "pom" anymore. Only faint sobs escaped her.
The atmosphere in the carriage was oppressive enough to make them sick.
The members of the Astral Express Crew stood frozen, not daring to shift their heels.
It was torment without a single shot fired.
The crushing frustration of the weak facing an overwhelming power beyond their reach.
Then, amid the painfully awkward silence.
A shrill alarm suddenly blared from the quiet rear of the carriage.
Beeeeep—
It was so loud it felt like a red-hot steel needle stabbing straight into everyone's eardrums.
It came from the direction of the Data Bank.
The alarm was so piercing it sounded as though it might tear the speaker apart.
Dan Heng whipped his head around toward the Data Bank door behind him.
The heavy metal door had not closed completely, leaving a narrow gap.
Blinding golden light poured through it.
It flickered so rapidly that no one could keep their eyes open.
On the Data Bank terminal's enormous main screen.
Several golden patterns representing the Path of Erudition appeared from nowhere.
Those intricate, ancient lines looked like a tangled mass burning in a raging fire.
They flashed and twisted wildly across the black screen.