As the transport slowly docked on Hyperion’s deck—
Xia Ling finally boarded the ship that had accompanied her for years.
Once the aircraft stabilized, she followed Himeko out and headed toward the bridge.
“Come on.”
“Cross the deck.”
“There’s an elevator ahead.”
“It goes directly to Hyperion’s bridge.”
Himeko led the way while glancing back to explain.
“We still need to get your injuries treated today, so I won’t give you a full tour.”
“You’ll probably come aboard often enough later.”
“You can explore by yourself then.”
Himeko brought Theresa and Xia Ling into a painfully familiar elevator.
The very elevator Xia Ling had once seen on her phone nearly every day.
As it slowly rose—
Xia Ling finally heard the greeting that had once frequently reached her ears at four in the morning.
“Captain on the bridge.”
“We’re here.”
“This is Hyperion’s bridge.”
“You’ll probably become a regular.”
“I need to assign the crew our navigation orders first.”
“Then I’ll bring you to the medical bay.”
“By the time your wounds are mostly repaired, we should arrive at St. Freya.”
Himeko called over a crewmember and quietly gave several instructions.
Soon, Xia Ling felt a faint vibration travel through the hull.
“Haha.”
“Don’t worry.”
“Hyperion’s stabilization system is extremely advanced.”
“Unless the captain deliberately causes trouble, even someone with severe motion sickness will barely notice movement.”
The instant Himeko finished—
A chorus of boos erupted from the control stations below.
“Right, right.”
“As long as the captain doesn’t deliberately cause trouble.”
Himeko’s adjutant immediately betrayed her.
“Himeko, have you forgotten how often you’ve drunkenly raced Hyperion around Nagazora?”
“Exactly.”
“And generally, you spend more nights drunk than sober.”
Theresa delivered another merciless stab.
“Hey!”
“There’s a newcomer here.”
“Leave me a little dignity!”
Himeko coughed.
Her face reddened slightly.
She quickly explained to Xia Ling,
“Drinking is just a tiny personal hobby.”
“Relax.”
“I never let it interfere with serious work.”
“All right, all right.”
“I only brought you here to learn the route today.”
“Do not learn bad habits from these veteran hooligans.”
“And all of you—”
“Stop sabotaging me and prepare the medical bay.”
“Can’t you see Xia Ling’s injuries still haven’t been treated?”
With that—
Himeko grabbed Xia Ling and fled the bridge.
Hyperion’s medical facilities were located near the center of the vessel.
That ensured patients would be protected from secondary injuries even if the ship sustained attacks.
“Here.”
Himeko activated the control panel beside a medical pod.
She tapped several settings.
“Parameters look good.”
“Xia Ling.”
“Take your clothes off and lie down.”
“C-Clothes off?”
Xia Ling’s cheeks turned faintly red.
She nervously pinched the hem of her outfit.
She was still wearing the System-provided Reserve Caster uniform.
Unfortunately, after battle—
It was heavily damaged.
Bloodstains.
Tears.
Cuts.
“Aw.”
“Are you embarrassed?”
Himeko immediately laughed.
Throughout the trip, she had basically confirmed that this girl was not merely physically petite.
Her mental age probably was not particularly high either.
Xia Ling simply looked like someone carrying a complicated past and had maintained a nearly expressionless face the whole way.
Seeing her finally display something appropriate for her apparent age made both Theresa and Himeko find the reaction unexpectedly endearing.
“I-I’m not embarrassed.”
Xia Ling realized resistance would probably lead to even more teasing.
Her pale fingers slowly undid the inner clasps.
One piece at a time—
The damaged clothing came away.
Her pale, delicate body gradually became exposed before the two women.
Under their intense gazes, Xia Ling instinctively covered her chest.
“Huh.”
“I thought Xia Ling would be one of those tiny, slender types.”
Theresa’s voice contained a faint note of disappointment.
“Turns out she’s the hidden-type…”
“Hmm.”
“No especially serious injuries.”
Himeko carefully looked her over.
“The wounds aren’t particularly deep.”
“If we treat them properly, they shouldn’t leave scars.”
“All right.”
“Get inside.”
“When the liquid rises around you, don’t panic.”
“Breathe normally.”
“The repair solution contains a mild sedative.”
“If you feel sleepy, don’t resist.”
“That’s normal.”
After finishing the explanation, Himeko pressed several controls.
The medical pod slowly closed.
Liquid began rising around Xia Ling.
Once the girl appeared to fall asleep—
Himeko turned toward Theresa.
Theresa shook her head slightly.
Her eyes signaled—
The two left the medical bay.
“Now explain properly.”
Himeko immediately asked.
“What exactly is going on with that girl?”
“It’s complicated.”
Theresa sighed.
“She literally fell out of nowhere in front of me while I was fighting Yuna…”
She began recounting the events of the past two days.
Meanwhile—
Xia Ling was not asleep at all.
Her consciousness had entered System Space.
She and the System watched the live broadcast together.
“See?”
“I told you.”
“Theresa thinks I came from a bubble universe.”
“My God.”
“She’s inventing a backstory even more tragic than the one I planned.”
[Boss Xia Ling is so fun.]
“How can you say that?”
Xia Ling smiled sweetly at the System.
“I haven’t told a single lie.”
“I merely didn’t tell them the entire truth.”
“See?”
“That’s the beauty of language.”
“Yes.”
“I allowed Theresa and the others to misunderstand.”
“But there’s nothing stopping me from eventually becoming the Xia Ling they imagined, is there?”
[Host, please stop.]
[The Otto aura is overflowing.]
[If you keep talking, I’m going to start sweating.]
[You may want to become Otto, but I have absolutely no desire to become Void Archives.]
[If someone throws me onto the Imaginary Tree later, I’ll have to roll myself all the way back down.]
Outside—
Theresa had mostly finished her explanation.
“So…”
Himeko summarized.
“This child is probably a survivor from a bubble universe that has already been destroyed.”
“She possessed something similar to the Second Divine Key, allowing her to travel through the Sea of Quanta.”
“Then somehow she drifted into our world.”
“Correct.”
“Oh.”
“And whatever she possesses may actually be considerably stronger than the Second Divine Key.”
“And her world probably had a counterpart of you.”
“That counterpart likely died because of something.”
“So the moment she saw you, her first instinct was to help you defeat Yuna.”
“Also her actual strength is unknown.”
“She’s weak right now, but may not remain weak for long.”
“Mm.”
“That’s basically it.”
“…Theresa.”
“Don’t you think this sounds a little too convenient?”
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