"Jiang Yao... might be dead!"
Welt never spoke unless he had something shocking to say.
Himeko froze on the spot.
Even the takeout in her hand, which she had been savoring in tiny bites, seemed to lose its flavor.
Hold on, man.
What was going on?
Where was the Astral Express's head chef?
Where was my whole, entire head chef?!
You're telling me he was gone?
Wasn't he perfectly fine just a little while ago?!
"That isn't funny!"
Himeko clenched her fist.
"I'm sorry... When Jiang Yao first arrived on the Xianzhou..."
"The Luofu arranged for a foxian woman to receive him, but none of us imagined she was an Emanator of [Destruction]-Phantylia, one of the Lord Ravagers."
"...On Jiang Yao's way back, Phantylia... attacked him."
Himeko could hear the tears in Welt's voice over the phone.
She could also hear March 7th, Stelle, and Dan Heng trying to comfort him.
Himeko was dumbfounded.
Holy shit?
Phantylia, the Lord Ravager???
Her voice caught in her throat.
In her utter fury, she took a bite of grilled meat.
Then she stared at the meat.
Just quietly stared at it.
It was so, so delicious.
That perfectly crisp crust, without a hint of greasiness.
That distinctive flavor that captured her heart.
Every bit of it told her this was an unparalleled delicacy!
Himeko realized something wasn't right.
Wait.
Hold on.
Dude.
Phantylia?
On his way back?
That wasn't right!
Let's sort this out. Let's get the timeline straight.
Jiang Yao had clearly come back.
He had even brought me takeout.
Then he had gotten off the train.
He had gone down with the Security Department staff, carrying ingredients.
And then they had been attacked.
The Security Department staff had nearly been scared out of their minds.
*Jiang Yao had stepped in and