Unlike the panicked March 7th, the adorable conductor Pom-Pom seemed to have found its protector.
It “pitter-pattered” over to the mature and elegant red-haired woman, reached out with its small, ball-like hands that lacked individual fingers like a plush doll’s, and hugged Miss Himeko’s long leg.
Miss Himeko, full name unknown, currently served as the navigator of the Astral Express.
But in reality, she was the absolute core of the entire train, the soul who led everyone back to the sea of stars.
When Himeko was just a girl, she encountered the then-stranded Astral Express in her hometown.
From that day on, she formed an unbreakable bond with the train.
Several years later, when Himeko finally repaired the train and set sail into the vast expanse of stars with Pom-Pom.
She realized this was only the beginning.
The path of “Trailblazing” new worlds required more companions.
Thus, as the journey progressed, a group of uniquely skilled crew members gradually gathered by her side.
First was Mr.
Welt Yang, who carried a cane, favored suits and trench coats, and had a mature and steady demeanor.
Himeko still remembered when she first met him.
He stared at her, stunned, for a long, long time.
Finally, Himeko smiled and asked if there was something on her face.
Welt lowered his gaze, the strong emotions swirling in his brown eyes hidden by his glasses.
He said, “No, it’s just that you look a lot like an old acquaintance of mine.” It wasn’t often you saw someone use such an old-fashioned pickup line these days.
However, Himeko wasn’t offended.
On the contrary, she found the older man quite interesting, possessing a charm that contrasted with his personality.
Later, Welt and the golden-haired man by his side named Void Archives boarded the Astral Express.
They were among the very first passengers after the train set sail again.
However, Void Archives was soon kicked off the train by the seemingly soft but actually not-so-authoritative conductor for teasing and angering Pom-Pom.
To this day, no one knows which corner of the world he is drifting in, or if he has stopped thinking.
And Welt didn’t seem worried about him in the slightest.
After that came Dan Heng.
Dan Heng was a cold and taciturn young man.
At this moment, as usual, he was leaning against a corner of the train’s porthole with his spear, named Cloud-Piercer, in his arms, his head lowered, lost in thought.
Finally, there was March 7th, the girl with a mysterious origin.
When the Express found her, she was frozen inside a piece of eternal ice drifting through space.
When the girl awoke and realized she knew nothing about her identity or past, she understandably fell into a slump.
But before the crew could comfort her, the lively and optimistic girl quickly digested her situation and cheered up.
It was so fast it was astonishing.
It seemed as if nothing in this world could trouble this energetic and charming girl.
She even named herself after the date she was reborn.
From that day on, March 7th was “born.” Himeko made the decision on the spot to keep her on the crew.
After all, the girl’s personality was a treasure!
It was definitely not because Welt and Dan Heng were both usually as quiet as clams!
“Sister Himeko, March 7th bullied me!
She must be punished properly!” “With… the coffee you brewed, Sister Himeko, Pom!” This was already the most inhumane punishment Pom-Pom could think of.
However, upon hearing this, Himeko’s elegant eyebrows twitched.
“But suddenly, I feel more like punishing Pom-Pom.
What should I do~” “Waaah!
No, Pom!” Ignoring the bickering between the two jesters, March 7th and Pom-Pom.
Himeko walked to the center of the carriage, to an area surrounded by a circular red leather sofa, and announced in a soft voice.
“The train’s next stop, the Herta Space Station in the near-earth orbit of the Blue Planet, is now approaching.
All passengers, please prepare for arrival.” “It really is the Blue Planet!” Hearing Himeko’s words, March 7th quickly moved to the train’s porthole to observe the distant starry sky, exclaiming in an excited tone.
“It’s so beautiful, fam!” Click!
Click!
Growing excited, March 7th couldn’t resist taking out the camera she always wore on her hip and snapping a flurry of pictures of the distant Blue Planet.
She loved taking photos, using this method to record her most precious memories with others.
It was as if anything, once captured in a photo, would never be forgotten again.
Welt Yang, sitting on the train’s sofa, raised a hand to adjust his glasses.
He understood the girl’s behavior but wasn’t particularly enthusiastic about it.
He also rarely spoke of his own past, much like Dan Heng.
However, Dan Heng’s situation was more extreme.
He was deeply secretive about his past; even boarding the Astral Express was a way to escape everything he had caused.
“Let’s focus on the Herta Space Station in the distance.” Welt suggested.
After all, that was their true destination.
The train’s mission this time was to deliver a Curio requested by Herta to the space station and receive payment and supplies in return.
After that, they would likely have to depart for the next star system quickly.
Therefore, March 7th’s longed-for trip to the Blue Planet would probably have to be canceled.
The perpetually silent and stoic youth, hearing Mr.
Yang’s words, raised his eyes and glanced out the window on his side.
In the distant sea of stars, a sapphire-blue planet shone with a lonely, clear light.
And above the Blue Planet, a museum-like starship, seemingly tiny but actually colossal, silently orbited the planet at a uniform speed, influenced by the laws of mechanics.
That was the Herta Space Station, the destination of the Astral Express’s current journey.
However, what caught Dan Heng’s attention was something else.
Since when were there so many floating black holes outside the Herta Space Station…?
Dan Heng didn’t quite understand what they were, but from within the annihilation particle space of these suspected black holes, monsters of various shapes, all pitch-black, were continuously emerging!
His gaze sharpened in an instant, and his grip on the Cloud-Piercer spear tightened.
It was at this exact moment that a request for an emergency communication came through the train’s communicator.
Sensing that something was wrong, Himeko raised her hand and quickly tapped on the train’s intelligent system.
Soon, a transparent screen materialized before everyone.
On the other side of the screen was Miss Asta, the client of the Astral Express and the lead researcher of the entire Herta Space Station.
She was pleading for help from the crew in an extremely anxious tone.
“Please help us, Miss Himeko!” “Our space station has suddenly come under attack from the Antimatter Legion!
You’re the closest rescue we can contact!” “This is quite a troublesome, and dangerous, situation.” “You must understand, while the members of my crew are not my own flesh and blood, they are like my family…” A look of hesitation appeared on Himeko’s beautiful face.
“I’m willing to pay more!”