At the Stellaron Hunters' hideout, Kafka's brow furrowed more deeply as she listened to the radio broadcast.
"A trash can and the Aeon of [Eternity]." She propped her long, slender legs on the table, carefully recalling what had happened at the space station that day.
"Hey~ Want to play something?"
Silver Wolf leaned in front of her. "What's wrong? Why the long face... Ah~ I know the garbled text in the script makes your next move inconvenient, but a bug is a bug. It'll get fixed!" She patted Kafka's shoulder and continued:
"If you're worried, we can all go this time. Just like Jepella, bring Blade and Sam... and have an all-out brawl on the Xianzhou Luofu!"
Silver Wolf really looked forward to a [script] where the Stellaron Hunters fought side by side. Unfortunately, opportunities were few and far between.
Now that was what a team fight in a game should look like!
"If that doesn't work, I'll call Ye Yan over too... His hometown is over on the Luofu."
Having Ye Yan play games with her over the past few days had made Silver Wolf especially happy.
The thought that she could go play in Herta's Simulated Universe tomorrow made her even happier.
As long as her plan went off without a hitch, it would definitely be a thrilling adventure.
Kafka vaguely realized something and checked one last time:
"Does that friend of yours have any special abilities?"
"Oh... Let me think. He's already on par with an Emanator, so his combat power is MAX! I've never seen Ye Yan fight, but my instincts tell me he's really strong. Especially at games. I've never beaten him..." The more Silver Wolf thought about it, the angrier she sounded. "Damn that Aeon of [Eternity]! Who knows what mod they installed on Ye Yan that makes it impossible for me to ever beat him!"
"Where does this unprovoked competitive streak come from..." Kafka patted Silver Wolf's head. She had more or less pieced it together.
The garbled text in the script, the trash-can-shaped Aeon of [Eternity] and Aeon of [Destruction].
And something Ye Yan had said jokingly at the space station:
[Don't you know? That's the true form of the Aeon of [Eternity]...]
Mystery solved. Ye Yan was either the Aeon of [Eternity] himself, or he possessed an item or power blessed by an Aeon.
Kafka leaned toward the former. This was all pure speculation on her part.
Who would have thought her first encounter with an Aeon would be at Herta Space Station? Did all Aeons enjoy playing the pig to eat the tiger this much?
On second thought, having an Aeon along was hardly a bad thing.
At least Stelle's safety was guaranteed, and she wouldn't have to worry about the child being bullied.
The Aeon of [Eternity] was famous for protecting his own.
Hmm...
In that case, should she pay him some child support?
Ye Yan's office, [Herta] Space Station.
"Hey, how's the research on the gilded trash can coming along?"
"Screwllum and the others are researching it with me, just like when we developed the Simulated Universe. I don't want Ruan Mei nagging me." The Herta Puppet stood beside Ye Yan and began massaging his shoulders.
"I can tell Ms. Ruan Mei is very taken with the gilded trash can."
"The universe's myriad complexities are nothing but distractions to her. Only Aeons can fascinate her so much and set her heart racing." Herta massaged Ye Yan with an expressionless face.
"Speaking of which, Screwllum will be coming to the space station today. I'll let Asta know later."
"Ah, you geniuses are all after my body."
Ye Yan clicked his tongue. That was why he liked hiding his identity and didn't want his cover blown so soon.
"I'd very much like to disagree, but I can't find a reason to. Conclusion: you're very narcissistic."
"Why are you imitating Screwllum now? When it comes to how we conduct ourselves, I don't think I'm as narcissistic as you."
Ding!
At the notification chime, Ye Yan took out his phone.
[System notification: Kafka has sent you a friend request]
"Oh! Isn't that the Stellaron Hunters' second-in-command? She's adding you?" Herta couldn't be bothered to massage Ye Yan anymore and sat down beside him.
"Second-in-command? That's actually pretty accurate."
Kafka had the highest known bounty, a full 10.899 billion.
Poor Silver Wolf's bounty was only 5.1 billion, not even half of hers.
No matter. Her bounty would be going up soon.
"Speaking of the Stellaron Hunters, someone has already taken the bait from that game cartridge. I won't say who."
"I have to teach her a lesson this time, or she'll just keep provoking me."
"Why not just ban her game account? What do you think of that idea?" Herta pondered.
"No comment."
After Ye Yan accepted Kafka's friend request, she instantly sent him a message:
[Kafka: Hi~ Thanks for looking after Stelle. Here's some child support] [Kafka: [Transfer: 2 billion]]
"Oh! How generous. Sending you money right off the bat."
Ye Yan looked baffled. "Why does everyone like transferring money to me? I barely ever use the stuff."
"Hey~ Better than having no money, right? Besides, she's doing it for that Stellaron brat. She seems to see you as a stand-in guardian."
Herta egged him on from the side. As far as she was concerned, among these Stellaron Hunters, only their leader Elio had any real ability.
She had no interest in [Finality]. That time would be better spent researching the gilded trash can.
[Kafka: Keep an eye on Stelle. Don't let her waste money] [Kafka: ...My Aeon friend] [System notification: The other party has gone offline]
"So she figured it out."
Having his identity exposed was indeed within Ye Yan's expectations. From the moment he boarded the Astral Express, he had been prepared for his cover to be blown.
"Now there's one more person who knows your true identity. Are you really not going to consider giving them [Aeon numbers], like my [Herta numbers]?" Herta suggested.
"No need. I've gained three billion Credits out of nowhere these past few days. It's actually making me want to spend some money."
Ye Yan stretched. Despite saying that, he certainly wasn't going to touch those Credits.
Kafka had said it was child support. Ye Yan would transfer all the money to Stelle and let her spend it.
"You're really good to that brat. It's rare to see you care so much about a Stellaron."
Please, she was the game's actual protagonist! If Ye Yan didn't care about her, who would he care about? March 7th?
For someone like Stelle, having her memories wiped counted as being born a second time.
Less than half a month after her birth, Stelle had already become both cheeky and absurd.
Ye Yan was considering whether to report these things to Kafka. After all... he now counted as a nanny hired by the parent.
These days, even Stellaron Hunters hired Aeons as nannies.
"If you get the chance, you really should take Stelle to the church."
The moment Herta mentioned the church, a shiver ran through her.
How strange. She hadn't even turned on sensory-sharing mode.
"Don't worry. Three more stops and the Astral Express will reach the Hot Spring Planet. Didn't you go there for a field investigation too?"
"Uh... As the god they worship, is it really appropriate for you not to have set foot in your church for a whole thousand years?" Herta couldn't understand. Were all Aeons this laid-back?
"I advocate human governance. Let them do as they please. With those children there, there's absolutely no need for me to intervene."
Put plainly, Ye Yan just liked slacking off and couldn't be bothered to get things done.
Slacking off was comfortable, especially during working hours. While relaxing the body and mind, it also added a touch of vigilance against one's boss, effectively training one's powers of observation.
"That elven girl mentioned in the news? I don't think I've ever heard you mention her."
The corners of Ye Yan's mouth lifted slightly into a casual smile.
"It seems Ms. Herta doesn't know all that much about my church, either."
"Who would go there for no reason!"