Little Shore Is Not Responding...

Aalto: "Tell me more..."

Lu Guan: "Be patient. As an information broker, you should know there's no such thing as a free lunch."

Aalto: "...Interesting. All right, if your information is valuable enough, I'll consider speaking up for Miss Dania with the committee."

Lu Guan: "The Tuner. Have you heard that name before?"

Aalto: "...Never."

Lu Guan: "Hasn't Shorekeeper told you about her?"

Aalto: "Shorekeeper? You actually know her name... Unfortunately, though, I haven't seen her since I joined the Black Shores. I've only heard people talk about her."

Lu Guan: "The Tuner founded the Black Shores, and Shorekeeper is her assistant, helping her manage it."

Lu Guan: "To travel more freely across this land, she left her authority behind and set off on her own. That's also why most people don't know she exists and have never seen her."

Aalto: "Wait... I need to report what you've told me so far and verify whether it's true."

Lu Guan: "Go ahead. Take your time. We have plenty of time to talk."

Lu Guan had originally planned to wait until Rover arrived, then use his connection to her to contact the Black Shores. But the matter of the Deep Space Union was pressing, and he had no choice but to reveal something big.

After witnessing the "Desolation," Lu Guan knew that he alone would never be enough to save this world. If possible, unless it proved necessary, he didn't want to resort to force against the Deep Space Union over this matter.

Problems didn't always have to be solved through conflict. Sometimes, devising a strategy and subduing the enemy without a fight was the best course of all.

About ten minutes later, Aalto returned.

Aalto: "Hello, this is Shorekeeper."

Lu Guan: "I expected this, but I didn't think you'd take over Aalto's account directly. I thought you'd add me as a friend on FliChat."

Aalto: "Calculations indicate this is the most convenient method."

Lu Guan: "All right. Now that the person in question is here, I'll get straight to the point, Second Instance."

Aalto: "???"

Shorekeeper, who was remotely controlling Aalto's terminal, was a little stunned. She hadn't expected Lu Guan to expose her identity after only a few exchanges.

Little Shore was thinking deeply...

Lu Guan: "Tethys should be able to monitor the situation at Aleph-1, right?"

Aalto: "That's right. Just two months ago, the Lament signal at Aleph-1 suddenly became extremely faint. A signal on the same frequency then appeared in Jinzhou, Huanglong. I even sent several elite Bloom Bearers to investigate."

Lu Guan: "Did you lose contact with them?"

Aalto: "...They have yet to report back."

Lu Guan: "That's unfortunate. I didn't see the Bloom Bearers you mentioned in Jinzhou. All I saw was a despicable imitator using a dead person's name to scheme in secret..."

Aalto: "...?"

Lu Guan: "Ahem... Time is short, so I'll stop speaking in riddles. Those Bloom Bearers were most likely murdered by the Fractsidus, so they could use the Black Shores' identity to get close to Dania."

Lu Guan: "A month and a half ago, Dania, Jinhsi, the Magistrate of Jinzhou, and I joined forces to defeat an avatar of Scar, the leader of the Fractsidus. She was using the name 'Chengxia' at the time."

Shorekeeper: "Wait... Let me check the database..."

Shorekeeper: "Chengxia... She was indeed a member of the Black Shores, but she's been missing for a long time. How did you know her name, and how did you use it to determine that the leader was impersonating her?"

Lu Guan: "Well... That comes at a different price. Anyway, don't underestimate my intelligence network!"

Shorekeeper: "...?"

Lu Guan: "Back to the matter at hand. The Fractsidus was conducting experiments on artificial Threnodian Resonators in Lahai-Roi, and Dania was one of the victims."

Lu Guan: "During the Fractsidus's inhumane experiments, she was forced to accept Aleph-1's power, and then, through a coincidence, became an incomplete Threnodian Resonator."

Lu Guan: "Afterward, I saved her from Aleph-1 and drove off the Tacet Discord of Nihility. She is no longer under Aleph-1's influence, yet she can still use a Threnodian Resonator's abilities normally."

Lu Guan: "That's why the leader of the Fractsidus has set her sights on her again, trying to capture her, study her condition, and replicate it."

Lu Guan: "And that's why I need the Black Shores to speak up for her with the Deep Space Union. After all, the Deep Space Union's primary backer is the New Federation, where the Fractsidus runs rampant..."

There was so much information in Lu Guan's call that even Shorekeeper, the "Second Instance," couldn't help freezing up as she processed it.

What do you mean, the Bloom Bearers I sent are all dead?

What do you mean, you drove off Aleph-1?

What do you mean, the leader of the Fractsidus has set her sights on her?

Little Shore was not responding...

A while later, a notification sounded from Lu Guan's terminal.

"Beep! You have a new friend request. Please respond promptly."

Lu Guan checked the request list. An avatar of a blue-haired, purple-eyed girl wearing a headscarf came into view. It was Shorekeeper.

Shorekeeper: "I've encrypted this channel. Our conversation from here on will not be recorded."

Shorekeeper: "This situation did not appear in Tethys's simulations, yet the Lament detection system shows that everything you said is true."

Shorekeeper: "This is a serious matter, and I don't know how to decide. But given her personality, she would probably be willing to trust you..."

Shorekeeper: "Although I can't appear in person... I'll have Aalto explain Miss Dania's situation to the Deep Space Union. That should change some of the committee members' positions."

Shorekeeper: "Also... If you have time, I hope you can bring Miss Dania to the Black Shores later."

Lu Guan: "Sure. Glad to be working with you."

Shorekeeper: "...Likewise. I'll have Aalto contact you about what comes next. As for the Tuner's existence, I hope you'll avoid telling anyone else for now... At least until she returns."

Lu Guan: "You got it!"

After ending his FliChat conversation with Shorekeeper, Lu Guan put down his terminal and looked north toward Jué.

"There's a storm brewing... The game's original plot is already on the verge of becoming a complete mess..." He sighed quietly. Even though "Sora" hadn't told him, he could still sense a faint, familiar presence coming from the Norfall Barrens...

That was... the scent of "Desolation"!

It seemed he would have to find another chance to come back when Jué awakened...

For now, though, he had to deal with Dania's problem first.

Gunchao Port.

"I didn't expect you to see me off personally, Magistrate. I'm flattered."

"There's no need for that, Young Master Lu." Jinhsi nodded slightly, as gracious and composed as ever. "If you hadn't stepped forward to eliminate a hidden threat, Jinzhou might have suffered another disaster."

"Huh...?" Her words left Lu Guan confused. "What do you mean, stepped forward? Magistrate Jin, have you misunderstood something?"

"All of Jinzhou lies under the Sentinel's watch," Jinhsi explained. "Jué has told me everything you did in Jinzhou."

"Though I don't know how you managed to pinpoint a potential threat that even Huaxu Academy failed to detect, Jinzhou cannot let a friend go unrewarded for their efforts..."

She stepped aside, and Sanhua walked over carrying a wooden tray covered with red cloth. A token engraved with a dragon design rested on it.

Jinhsi picked up the token and solemnly placed it in Lu Guan's hand.

"This token is a symbol of our alliance. Its bearer may travel freely throughout Jinzhou and may also use it to call for aid."

Lu Guan examined the token in his hand.

It wasn't very heavy, and Lu Guan couldn't tell what material it was made of. It even felt slightly warm to the touch.

But the cruise ship bound for Lahai-Roi was about to depart, and Lu Guan had no time to ask about its origins. Seeing that Jinhsi wouldn't take no for an answer, he had no choice but to hang it from his waist.

"In that case, I'll accept it."

Seeing Lu Guan accept the token, Jinhsi smiled slightly and bowed. "There is a time to part and a time to meet again. May all go smoothly on your journey."

Jinhsi gazed toward the horizon, the silhouette of the cruise ship reflected in her gray-white eyes as thoughts churned uncontrollably in her mind.

She murmured to herself, "What kind of future did the Sentinel see? Why did she specifically tell me to befriend him?"

Seeing Jinhsi still standing there in a daze, Sanhua stepped forward and reminded her, "Lady Jinhsi, it's time to go back."

Hearing this, Jinhsi let out a soft breath.

"Let's go. There's still work to be done."

The Sentinel surely had her reasons for doing this. Jinzhou's current situation allowed no room for complacency, so Jinhsi decided not to dwell on it...