Chapter 200: Today, My Hands Tremble, Today, My Heart Aches
Kafka walked backward with light steps, arms behind her, moving away from the Astral Express crew with elegant demeanor.
The holographic projection became unstable due to signal weakening.
"Wait!"
Seeing Kafka about to leave, Stelle, who hadn't successfully "replenished her motherly love," instantly became anxious. She nervously stretched out her small hand and cried out:
"Will we meet again?"
Seeing Stelle's clinging and reluctant appearance, Kafka couldn't help but feel a hint of relief in her heart, as if even the emptiness within her was filled a tiny bit.
Although it seemed a bit off, Kafka was certain that the current Stelle definitely had no memory of performing missions with her.
Despite losing her memories, Stelle still liked and felt close to her so much, which genuinely made Kafka very happy.
The corners of her smiling lips seemed to gain a bit of warmth, but soon, Kafka's expression stiffened.
"When we meet again, you have to make me happy!"
"Kafka, you have to make me happy, you have to bring me joy, okay? Joy! Happiness!"
"Kafka, how can I live without you (ToT), Kafka, please take me with you~
Kafka.
Stelle (screaming) (drooling) (running forward) (falling to the ground) (crawling forward distortedly) (roaring) (trying to stand up), ran towards Kafka's projection.
Today, my hands tremble, today, my heart aches…
Seeing Kafka about to leave, Caelus first collapsed onto the sofa with a lost look, then immediately let out a heartbroken wail:
"Why is this happening? I give so much, yet I can't get a shred of the love I want? Why, heavens, do you give me such pain? What did I do wrong? What exactly did I do wrong?!"
With a few sobs interspersed, Caelus looked at Kafka, choking back tears.
Empowered by the Mask's ability, heavy, ragged breaths, hysterical emotions, painful, broken roars…
Causing Seele and March 7th to experience a soul-piercing pain!~
This could no longer be considered mere acting.
An immersive method actor could barely hold a candle to him.
Caelus scrambled up from the sofa, approaching Kafka amidst his wails:
"Kafka, Kafka, I… I… am also your child, why do you treat me like this?! Wuwaayaa—!! Kafka, Kafka!!"
When emotional catharsis reached its peak, pain transformed into madness. At this moment, Caelus seemed to have lost the ability to speak, only able to emit twisted roars and strange cries.
"Yi! Hou! Wa! Ya! Hehe… hehe hahahahaha!"
(Rushing wildly) (falling to the ground) (creeping darkly) (twisting) (rolling) (wriggling violently).
In an instant, inside the entire Scenic Car, only Stelle's desperate cries and Caelus's frenzy remained.
Old Yang, Himeko, Dan Heng, and Seele all stared, dumbfounded and greatly shocked, at the two of them.
Little March 7th's thoughts had already crashed, and her ability to speak was shut down.
Watching the two twisted "Anomalies" approaching, even Kafka's heart paused for a moment.
Stelle was fine, but Caelus's madness, like an ancient god's revival, made Kafka experience a sensation she had never felt before.
But, like trying to fill an ocean-sized void with a grain of sand, that feeling vanished in an instant; Kafka couldn't even clearly grasp it.
It was a feeling of fear that shouldn't appear in her!
In her pursuit of that emotion, Kafka's holographic projection completely disappeared.
Seeing "Mommy Kafka" leave, Stelle and Caelus both stopped their wailing. The smoothness of their temperament shift rendered the Astral Express crew completely silent.
"Everyone, why are you all looking at us like that?"
Stelle looked at everyone, perplexed.
Yet, deep down, she felt a slight, lingering sense of defeat and unwillingness to accept it. She felt that Mommy Kafka had just paid more attention to Caelus than to her. Did this mean her love for Mommy Kafka wasn't "up to par" yet?
"
…"
"She actually left so decisively? So this is how it was resolved?"
March 7th exclaimed belatedly, connecting Stelle and Caelus's performance with Kafka's retreat.
After a brief thought from her clever little mind, the intelligent Little March deduced that Stelle and Caelus had repelled the Stellaron Hunter with a method incomprehensible to the human brain.
"Resolved? What are you talking about, Ah Qi?"
Caelus patted the dust off Stelle's back, picked off a few specks of dirt from her grey hair, then spread his arms, letting Stelle help brush the dust off his coat.
"Isn't it? Then you two just… now… uh."
Stelle spread her small hands, stating: "Mommy Kafka is gone, she can't hear our crying anymore, so why should I still cry?"
As everyone knows, when children fall, they cry loudly if there's a familiar person nearby. Conversely, if there isn't, they'll just dust themselves off and continue playing.
"…"
The Astral Express crew fell silent once again.
The atmosphere during the confrontation with the Stellaron Hunter should have been tense, but because of these two, it became very strange!
Himeko looked at Stelle and Caelus. She was well aware of their experiences at Herta Space Station: Kafka had awakened them. There must be some kind of relationship between Kafka and Stelle/Caelus.
But, it couldn't possibly be mother and child, could it?
"Was that just now Sister Stelle's mother?" Seele asked curiously.
"Hmm, probably, after all, the first person I saw after waking up was Kafka."
Stelle held her hands together like a ball, nodding her small head very seriously.
"Are you some oviparous animal? You'd treat the first creature you see as your parent!" March 7th couldn't help but quip.
"You scared this young lady."
March 7th lightly patted her delicate chest and let out a sigh of relief: "I thought you two were really Kafka's daughters… uh, or son?"
Thinking of Stelle and Caelus essentially being one human, she wasn't sure how to phrase their relationship.
"Why can't it be?"
Stelle put her hands on her hips: "Just like Caelus said, Kafka is the kind of woman who can be my mother!"
"Alright, stop playing around."
Himeko shook her head, a wry smile on her face, then stared at the dusty Stelle for a while, sighing helplessly:
"Stelle, you should go wash your hair first, then we'll discuss the next destination."
"Oh, oh, Caelus, the Mask!"
As she shook her head, her hair tips brushed Caelus's nose. Stelle prettily extended her hand to Caelus.
"I suspect 'our' brains are all in my head. Are you a goldfish?"
Stelle paused for two seconds before reacting, stomping her foot in annoyance, remembering that the Mask was still being researched at the Space Station:
"Damn it! It's so inconvenient without the Shadow!"
"I need to get the Mask back quickly."
Muttering to herself, Stelle was pulled by Caelus to wash her hair. During the process, Little March vented all the complaints she had just accumulated.
Afterwards, she egged on Stelle and Caelus, saying that if there was a democratic vote, "we good bros" should all vote against it!
Seele would either abstain or side with Caelus, and Bronya would definitely side with Caelus. So, where they went was just a matter of "us three bros" saying the word!
Upon their return, the Astral Express crew began the meeting.
"There's something fishy. The Xianzhou Alliance is one of the few factions that draws power directly from an Aeon. Their strength is immense; I don't think a Stellaron would be much trouble for them."
Welt was the first to express his opinion.
"I think so too. Although Elio, the leader of the Stellaron Hunters, does possess the ability to foresee the future, Kafka might not have told the whole truth." Himeko nodded.
The two "old foxes" immediately saw that this matter wasn't simple; at the very least, it wasn't as simple as Kafka made it sound.
"But if what she said is true, and we ignore it, the people on the Luofu will be in danger."
The Astral Express crew gathered in a circle. As March 7th expected, Himeko, after a brief thought, initiated a sacred meeting:
"Therefore, whether to divert course to the Xianzhou, we will decide by democratic vote. Extending your palm represents agreement, not extending it represents disagreement."
"Three, two, one."
As the countdown finished, everyone except Dan Heng raised a hand.
"Seven to one! So, it's decided we're heading to the Xianzhou!" Himeko announced the result with a smile.
"Didn't you say you'd vote against it?"
x2
The overlapping voices made March 7th choke a bit. Her left eye went left, her right eye went right, but unfortunately, her eyes couldn't support her attempt at reverse cross-eyes, despite the two grey-haired individuals being the source of the voices.
"Uh, well, didn't I just think Himeko made a good point? What if Kafka wasn't lying, and many innocents would suffer if we didn't go to the Xianzhou? This isn't the time to be willful… hehe."
March 7th chuckled awkwardly.
Caelus: "You principled woman!"
Stelle: "You unprincipled woman!"
Praised and criticized simultaneously, March 7th didn't know whether to be proud or give an awkward smile. Then she saw Stelle and Caelus's outstretched hands and suddenly realized.
"Wait, why am I being accused by you two, who also betrayed our agreement?"
"Because, since Kafka told me to go to the Luofu, she'll definitely go too, so I have to find her."
Stelle declared righteously.
"Damn it! You actually tricked Little March's feelings!"
"Dan Heng, what do you say?"
Everyone looked at Dan Heng, the only one who hadn't voted in favor.
"If it were another Xianzhou, perhaps it would be fine, but… I am forbidden from entering the Luofu." Dan Heng shook his head and closed his eyes.
"Oh."
Seeing Dan Heng's reluctance to say more, March 7th didn't press further. Everyone on the Express had secrets; personal privacy must be respected~
Caelus also didn't say much. Although the information he knew came from fan-created works, Dan Heng would definitely get off the Express.
Rather than wondering when Dan Heng would get off, it was better to wonder when Li Sushang would be released.
On a side note, since Midnight Absinthe was a trial character, Caelus didn't recall her to his Valkyrie space but left her in Belobog, letting Raven steadily use the Inter-galactic Network as a plagiarist.
The trial period had expired last night, and Midnight Absinthe had now disappeared.
It was unknown when Raven could be summoned again; there would be a vacuum period of no contact.
"Ahem, I'll take charge of this Trailblaze journey."
Old Yang lightly coughed, volunteering to lead the team.
Himeko looked at Welt with a wry smile: "Don't worry, I won't fight you for it."
She had already seen Welt eager and restless to act.
The reason, of course, went without saying.
Himeko had heard Welt grumbling several times about missing the Archon Mech last time because he didn't join the team.
Little March raised her hands high, her smile exceptionally bright, and shouted loudly:
"Destination Xianzhou—let's go!"
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