At first, the security staff were reluctant, outright refusing to wear the Voidranger exoskeleton.
Its appearance was practically identical to an actual Voidranger.
For officers who had been ambushed by Voidrangers just hours earlier, it was psychologically hard to stomach.
However, after Arlan persuaded a few of them to try it out and they experienced its substantial buffs and performance firsthand, their attitude took a complete hundred-and-eighty-degree turn, shifting from disgust to delight.
About half an hour later, an entire Voidranger exoskeleton unit was marching through the Storage Zone, and a few damaged walls and potted plants were restored along the way.
After that…
A bizarre scene unfolded across the space station: “Voidrangers” hunting Voidrangers with terrifying efficiency.
As Su Yan had anticipated, the security officers’ new experience earned him another wave of favourability…
[Favourability +1], [Favourability +3], [Favourability +1]…
The increments were modest, but they were consistently going up.
Su Yan gained a fresh insight into farming favourability…
Roughly an hour later, the Voidrangers across the station were completely wiped out.
With their task complete, Su Yan, Stelle, and Dan Heng headed toward the Astral Express.
As for the Voidranger exoskeletons, Su Yan did not undo the fusions, leaving them with the Security Department.
On the way to the train, Su Yan did not stay idle; he pondered ways to step onto a Path…
He had already worked out a concrete plan.
According to the “script,” every instance of Stelle treading a Path occurred because an Aeon cast their gaze upon her, without exception.
The problem to solve was clear, and the solution was equally obvious.
The simplest, most direct approach was to make it so an Aeon had no choice but to look.
The concept for crafting the required item was crystal clear; all that remained was checking for flaws and filling in the gaps.
While Su Yan was deep in thought, the trio arrived at the platform.
The Astral Express, with its classic and elegant design, sat parked in its designated berth.
Seeing the Astral Express in reality for the first time, Su Yan took a moment to observe it closely, appreciating its harmonious blend of classic elegance and mechanical beauty.
A moment later, he withdrew his gaze and entered the train car alongside Dan Heng and Stelle.
Inside the car were two figures.
To be precise, one man and one rabbit: Welt and Pom-Pom.
“Are you Su Yan and Stelle?”
Noticing unfamiliar faces entering the car, Pom-Pom immediately recalled Himeko mentioning that two new people would be joining the Astral Express.
“Yes, I’m Su Yan.” Su Yan looked down at Pom-Pom.
[Pom-Pom’s Favourability unlocked.
Current Favourability: 20]
*Twenty…*
*That’s pretty high!
Did I do something Pom-Pom likes?*
*Or is simply becoming a Nameless enough to earn such high favourability from Pom-Pom?*
[Welt’s Favourability unlocked.
Current Favourability: 10]
“I’m Stelle.” Stelle introduced herself, mimicking Su Yan, her eyes fixed on the curious creature in front of her, clearly itching to pet it. This chapter is updated first at g.com.
“I am Pom-Pom, the conductor!” Pom-Pom introduced himself first, paying no mind to Stelle’s amazed expression as he got straight to business.
“Your rooms haven’t been cleared out yet, so you’ll have to share rooms with the others for the time being.”
The Astral Express was scheduled to remain docked at Herta Space Station for three days, making accommodations for the two new Nameless an urgent issue.
“Bunking with someone, huh?”
Su Yan glanced at Dan Heng beside him.
Sensing his gaze, Dan Heng immediately guessed his intent and nodded.
“You can stay with me.”
Stelle had already made her choice, turning to Dan Heng for assistance.
“Dan Heng, could you ask March for me?
I don’t have her contact info…”
Hearing this, Dan Heng remembered something and said to both of them, “I’ll add you to the group chat…”
After adding their communication handles, he pulled them into the Astral Express group chat.
Stelle found March 7th’s contact info in the group, sent a friend request, and began chatting…
Meanwhile, Dan Heng spoke to Pom-Pom.
“Pom-Pom, I don’t have any spare bedding in my room.”
The Data Bank served as the Astral Express’s library.
He lived inside the Data Bank and hadn’t remodeled it, only adding a few pieces of furniture—a shoe rack, a wardrobe, and storage cabinets tucked into the corners.
With limited capacity, there was no extra bedding stored inside.
Nearby, Stelle, prompted by Dan Heng’s words, asked March 7th if she had any spare bedding.
Receiving a negative reply, Stelle turned to Pom-Pom.
“Pom-Pom, I need a set of bedding too.”
“Understood, passengers!”
“Please follow Pom-Pom.
I’ll take you to the storage room to pick out your bedding.”
The Astral Express maintained a stockpile of bedding for replacements, available in a wide variety of styles.
The storage room where the bedding was kept was located above the Party Car.
Inside the spacious room, various miscellaneous items were scattered along the right side, while the left side was lined with storage lockers filled with daily necessities.
Pom-Pom opened one of the lockers, revealing neat stacks of bedding sealed in transparent plastic bags.
“…Passenger Su Yan may take one full set of bedding, and Passenger Stelle may take a quilt.”
Pom-Pom gestured for them to help themselves.
Stelle browsed for a moment before picking a rather ordinary quilt that was yellow on one side and gray on the other.
Su Yan couldn’t be bothered to browse and picked the exact same one.
As Pom-Pom closed the locker, he said to the two holding their bedding, “Tomorrow, everything in this storage room will be moved to another compartment.
Once cleared out, this room will be your quarters.
You two can start thinking about how you’d like to decorate it.”
“Wait, Pom-Pom, do you mean Stelle and I are sharing a room?” Su Yan raised an eyebrow.
He had no objections to rooming with a pretty girl, but the key question was whether she agreed.
“I don’t mind,” Stelle’s voice chimed in before Pom-Pom could answer, stating her stance without hesitation.
Hearing that, Su Yan looked at her expressionless face in surprise, but Stelle offered no explanation.
“Alright then! This chapter is updated first at g.com.
If Stelle has no objections, I’m fine with it too.”
Seeing them both agree, Pom-Pom breathed a sigh of relief.
In the past, the Astral Express had hundreds of cars, making room shortages impossible.
But now…
The Astral Express had only three cars left, with only one passenger cabin car.
*…Perhaps adding another passenger car should be added to the to-do list.*
Considering the growing number of Nameless and the tight living quarters, Pom-Pom was already contemplating the addition of a new passenger car.
Calculating the Express’s stored energy and shared funds, Pom-Pom did not forget Su Yan and Stelle.
“…Since neither of you object, it’s settled.”
With that, Pom-Pom hurried out of the passenger car to find Welt in the Parlor Car.
Constructing a new passenger cabin car required consulting both the Navigator and the Nameless.
Paying no mind to Pom-Pom’s hasty departure, Su Yan carried his and Stelle’s bedding.
Rather than asking why she had agreed to share a room, he brought up another topic.
“Stelle, do you have any suggestions for decorating the room?
Any particular style you like?”
“You decide.
I don’t really have any requirements for where I sleep.” Stelle’s tone was completely nonchalant, as if she genuinely did not care in the slightest.
Beside her, Su Yan recalled the original storyline.
From the moment Stelle boarded the Astral Express all the way through their Trailblaze expedition on the third planet, her room was never decorated, lacking even a bed—she had slept in a cardboard box the entire time.
She really didn’t care at all…
Carefree and indifferent to an absurd degree!
Remembering Stelle’s eccentric tastes, Su Yan dropped any thought of trying to persuade her.
“I’ll handle the room design.
Tell me, what kind of things do you like?”
“What I like?” Stelle pushed open the door to the Data Bank, turned around slowly, and looked at Su Yan with a deadpan expression.
“Did you forget I have amnesia?”
Saying that, she picked up her quilt.
“My bad!” Su Yan carried the remaining bedding into the Data Bank and set it down beside Dan Heng’s bed.
Then, stepping out of the Data Bank and closing the door behind him, he walked with Stelle toward March 7th’s room.
“In that case, let’s search online for some interior design layouts first.”
Su Yan pushed open the door to March 7th’s room.
Staring at the overwhelmingly pink room, Stelle froze for a moment.
*…Talk about a night-and-day difference!*
After silently roasting the contrast in her mind, Stelle walked inside, placed her quilt on the edge of the bright pink bed, and stepped back out.
As she closed the door, she replied to Su Yan’s earlier remark.
“We could also ask Asta…”
As the lead researcher running a space station—and being filthy rich—Stelle figured Asta was bound to know talented designers and have access to high-quality, reasonably priced procurement channels.