Pom-Pom led everyone to the room at the end of the corridor, saying, “This is the room prepared for the two of you, pami! Considering that passenger mon3tr is a memetic entity, we’ve arranged a room with a large bed, pami!”
Kal’tsit’s cat ears instantly perked up.
“Wait, we don’t need…”
mon3tr had already floated in excitedly.
“Wah! It’s so spacious!” She bounced on the soft, large bed.
“Doctor, look! This bed is so comfortable!”
Kal’tsit stood at the doorway with a rigid expression.
“Conductor Pom-Pom, I think there’s been a misunderstanding. Although mon3tr is my memetic entity, we don’t need…”
Himeko leaned against the doorframe with a meaningful smile.
“Oh my, are you shy? Be a bit more casual on the Astral Express.”
mon3tr lay prone on the bed, blinking her large emerald eyes.
“Doctor~ I’ll be scared sleeping alone~”
Kal’tsit took a deep breath.
“You’ve lived for so many years; when have you ever been afraid of the dark while sleeping?”
“I started being afraid from today!” mon3tr replied righteously, purposely rolling toward the middle of the bed and bundling the quilt up into a ball.
Pom-Pom tilted its head.
“Is passenger Kal’tsit unsatisfied with the room? If you want to change…”
“There’s no need.” Kal’tsit rubbed her temples.
“This room is fine.” She stepped into the room and casually pulled back half of the quilt that mon3tr had rolled up.
mon3tr chuckled triumphantly, turning back into her small shadow form and rubbing against Kal’tsit’s feet.
Kal’tsit sighed helplessly, but her gaze softened involuntarily.
Himeko quietly gave Pom-Pom a wink.
“Then we’ll go prepare dinner first. You guys rest well~”
After the two left, Kal’tsit immediately closed the door, turned around, and glared at mon3tr.
“Were you doing that on purpose?”
mon3tr turned back into human form and spread her hands with an innocent look.
“Didn’t the Doctor say we are one~” She suddenly leaned in close and whispered into Kal’tsit’s ear, “And… the Doctor doesn’t actually hate this, right?”
The tips of Kal’tsit’s ears turned red at a speed visible to the naked eye.
“…Go pack your luggage.”
mon3tr chuckled and floated off to pack her things, humming an out-of-tune little tune.
Kal’tsit looked at her back and shook her head gently, a barely perceptible smile appearing at the corner of her lips.
Kal’tsit rubbed the space between her eyebrows, her silvery-white hair falling across her forehead.
“As expected, that Remembrance is affecting my subconscious.” She looked down at mon3tr, who was humming a song while organizing her clothes, a trace of complexity flashing through her light green eyes.
“To actually think that this isn’t bad… I must be crazy.”
mon3tr suddenly turned her head, her black hair tracing a graceful arc in the air.
“Doctor? What did you just say?”
“It’s nothing.” Kal’tsit turned her face away, pretending to tidy the desk.
But mon3tr keenly noticed that the tips of the Doctor’s ears had once again flushed a faint pink.
“Kal’tsit~” mon3tr floated to her side, deliberately drawing out her tone.
“Could you be blushing?”
“Go do your work, and also, why did you, mon3tr… suddenly become so erratic.” Kal’tsit said without raising her head, though the desk lamp on the table was obviously placed backward.
“I love Kal’tsit the most!”
“mon3tr!” Kal’tsit’s voice carried a rare panic.
“Let go!”
“No~” mon3tr buried her face in Kal’tsit’s shoulder and said in a muffled voice, “Anyway, we’re not at Rhodes Island right now, no one will see~”
Kal’tsit froze in place, only sighing after a long while and gently patting mon3tr’s head.
“…Suit yourself.”
The starry river outside the window flowed quietly, and the roar of the Astral Express sounded like a receding tide.
In this unfamiliar universe, perhaps indulging a little bit occasionally isn’t bad—Kal’tsit thought this, quietly tightening her arms around mon3tr.
Although tightly hugged by mon3tr, Kal’tsit’s mind remained clear and sharp.
“It seems that after becoming a traveler of the path of remembrance, one becomes even more sensitive to the influence of Remembrance.”
Feeling the warmth of mon3tr in her embrace, a trace of confusion flashed through her light green eyes.
“That Remembrance has been subtly changing my subconscious… To think I would actually come up with the thought that ‘indulging a little bit occasionally isn’t bad’.”
mon3tr nuzzled against the crook of her neck, a faint fragrance wafting from her black hair.
Kal’tsit subconsciously recalled the past.
“Aside from when Amiya was little… it seems no one has hugged me like this ever since.”
“What is Kal’tsit thinking about?” mon3tr raised her head, her emerald-like eyes gazing straight into the depths of Kal’tsit’s eyes.
Kal’tsit turned her face away, her silvery-white hair falling.
“Nothing. Have you hugged enough?”
“Not yet~” mon3tr pushed her luck and hugged her tighter.
“The Doctor has a nice scent of disinfectant on her… Ah!” She let go as if suddenly remembering something.
“I forgot Kal’tsit doesn’t like this…”
“…Mhm.” Kal’tsit said in a low voice, her tone so soft it was almost inaudible.
She reached out to straighten her rumpled collar and added casually, seeming nonchalant, “It’s good that you know.”
mon3tr looked at Kal’tsit with a puzzled gaze.
“I somehow feel like Kal’tsit… is blushing?”
Kal’tsit didn’t answer, but her flushed ear-tips explained everything.
She turned and walked toward the desk.
“Later, we’ll go collect Himeko’s physical data.”
mon3tr floated happily behind her, like a little cat that received a reward.
In the starlight-dappled room of the Astral Express, their shadows overlapped on the wall, as if they were meant to be one from the start.
Kal’tsit quickly found Himeko chatting with Pom-Pom in the Observation Car.
Hearing footsteps, the two turned their heads to look at the same time.
“Miss Himeko, come to my room for a physical examination if you have time.” Kal’tsit said straightforwardly.
Himeko stood up gracefully.
“Sure, but is there physical examination equipment on the Astral Express?”
Kal’tsit nodded.
“I’ve moved most of the equipment into my room, although they are all Old Timers.”
“It seems we’ll need to purchase some new equipment later.” Himeko looked at Pom-Pom with a smile.
“What does Conductor Pom-Pom think?”
Pom-Pom bounced up and down and said, “Of course you can, pami! There’s no need to ask permission for such minor matters, pami! If your Credits aren’t enough, you can come find this Conductor, pami! The previous Trailblazers left quite a lot of Credits on the Astral Express, pami!”
“Huh? Kal’tsit, have you turned this room into an office?”
The room was filled with all sorts of old-style medical equipment, and right opposite the door was a desk piled high with documents.
To the left was the bathroom, and further inside, one could see two large wardrobes, a large bed, and a sofa.
The originally spacious room was packed tightly, leaving only a narrow passageway leading to the bed.
mon3tr poked her head out from behind the equipment.
“Hello, Miss Himeko~ These are all Doctor Kal’tsit’s treasures, she doesn’t even let me touch them!”
Kal’tsit gave a light cough.
“Cut the chatter and start the physical examination. Let’s measure basic vital signs first.” She picked up a stethoscope that looked somewhat aged.
“Take off your jacket.”
Himeko looked around and gave a wry smile.
“Having a physical examination in the middle of this pile of ‘antiques’ feels like going back to the last Amber Era.”
mon3tr chuckled aside.
“The Doctor just loves this retro style~”
Kal’tsit glared at her.
“mon3tr, go preheat the electrocardiograph.” Then she turned to Himeko, her tone professional and calm.
“Please lie down on the examination bed over here; we need to perform a comprehensive check-up.”
After a series of meticulous checks, Kal’tsit held the final report in her hand, her brows slightly furrowed.
“Miss Himeko, you need to reduce your sugar intake recently and eat more calcium-rich foods. Your bone density shows signs of mild osteoporosis.”
Himeko nodded thoughtfully.
“I see, no wonder I’ve been feeling weak all over these past two days.”
Kal’tsit gently shook her head.
“No, Miss Himeko, the fatigue symptoms are mainly caused by staying up late.” She tore a page from her notebook and handed it to Himeko.
“This is the recent diet plan I’ve formulated for you; please be sure to follow it.”
Neatly written on the paper was:
[Breakfast: 2 slices of whole wheat bread, 1 boiled egg, 200ml milk Lunch: 150g steamed fish, 100g broccoli, 1 bowl of brown rice Dinner:…]
Himeko took the note, the corners of her lips curving into a gentle arc.
“Of course, I still take medical advice very seriously. A balance of meat and vegetables, nutritional equilibrium…”
She carefully folded the note and put it into her pocket.
“Alright, Dr. Kal’tsit, I’ll go find Conductor Pom-Pom first to prepare the ingredients for the next few days.”
Kal’tsit nodded slightly, watching Himeko leave.
After the door closed, Mon3tr immediately floated out from behind the instrument.
“Kal’tsit is amazing~ Even the crew members on the Astral Express obey her every word.”
“It’s just professional habit.” Kal’tsit was tidying up the examination equipment when her movements suddenly paused.
“Mon3tr, did you steal and eat glucose again?”
Mon3tr’s dark shadow instantly froze.
“Eh?! How… how did Kal’tsit know…”
Kal’tsit pointed at the residual powder on the ground.
“Remember to wipe your mouth next time.”
Mon3tr panicked and used her shadow tentacles to wipe the ground.
“I… I just saw that the glucose was just sitting there…” Her voice grew smaller and smaller, until she finally curled up into a ball and hid in the corner.