"Miss Lumina, are you leaving The Reverie Hotel and the Asdana Star System?"
"Would you like an Interastral Peace Corporation fleet to escort you?"
Outside The Reverie Hotel, Jade posed the question to Lumina.
"No need," Lumina replied, shaking her head to decline Jade's offer.
While traveling on an IPC fleet to Xianzhou would indeed be more comfortable, if she were going to take a fleet anyway, why not choose the Astral Express?
It was faster, more comfortable, and she had three beautiful girls to boss around...
Lumina saw no reason to board the Interastral Peace Corporation's fleet—unless Jade and Topaz...
Then there might be a reason. But that was unthinkable.
Shaking her head, Lumina dismissed the thought. With a wave, she gave the group a simple farewell:
"Goodbye, everyone. Say hello to Diamond for me."
With those words, Lumina turned and walked away, leaving behind a pure white silhouette.
"Goodbye, Miss Lumina," the three Ten Stonehearts called out, waving as they watched her depart. They then turned and headed toward their own fleet.
Nearby, after confirming that the IPC group had departed, Lumina's gaze drifted to The Reverie Hotel before her.
While the Charmony Festival in Penacony might have been a rollercoaster for others, for her, it had been a surprisingly calm and ordinary journey.
No, not entirely ordinary—there were plenty of highlights.
For example, the blossoming friendships with Acheron, Sparkle, and Black Swan, and the deepening bond with Herta, evolving into something like best friends or even mother and daughter, added delightful twists to this otherwise uneventful journey.
Yet, upon reflection, Lumina realized she had spent most of her time accompanying Herta...
After a quick mental recap, Lumina couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
The main reason for her surprise was that she hadn't expected Herta to appear in Penacony, let alone to bring her Main Body.
Herta's sudden arrival had thrown most of Lumina's plans for Penacony into disarray.
After all, seeing Herta's Main Body for the first time, coupled with her aloof and tsundere demeanor, had instantly captivated Lumina.
It wasn't a major issue, though. Lumina had already completed most of her business in Penacony.
She had also met Acheron, Robin, Black Swan, and Sparkle, ensuring Herta's arrival didn't make her miss out on anything important.
Overall, Lumina would give her Penacony journey a solid 90 out of 100!
The only 10 points deducted went to Herta.
She had nearly fallen victim to Herta's manipulation over a mere "lap pillow."
Thankfully, she had concealed her act well enough to avoid being discovered feigning sleep. Otherwise, that alone would have cost her another 90 points...
Having reflected on her Penacony experiences, Lumina shifted her gaze from The Reverie Hotel to the Astral Express parked nearby. Through the hull, she could see Pom-Pom sweeping the floors, Welt reading a newspaper, Himeko sipping coffee, Dan Heng studying in the Archive, and March 7th curled up in bed, her phone clutched in her hands, doing who-knows-what.
Hmm... Judging by the way March 7th's bed is shaking, she's probably not doing anything... adult-related. More likely, she's just enjoying playing on her phone under the covers.
If that's all it is, then there's no need to worry. March 7th can play as long as she wants, as long as she doesn't get overheated and suffocate under those stuffy blankets.
Lumina shrugged it off and resumed her search of the Astral Express, trying to locate Little Swarm.
"Huh?" After searching for a while, Lumina let out a puzzled "Huh?"
Where did Little Swarm go? Is she not on the train?
There was no sign of Little Swarm near Stelle, and she wasn't on Penacony either. That meant she had to be on the train... So where could she be?
Growing suspicious, Lumina widened her scan range and began a systematic search of the Astral Express.
It didn't take long for Lumina to find Little Swarm.
She was asleep inside a large cardboard box in the storage room on the second floor of the Astral Express.
Wait... Has she been abused?!
Lumina blinked, wondering if she was seeing things. She refreshed her senses, but the scene remained unchanged.
But quickly, Lumina seemed to remember something and withdrew her gaze.
She then shifted her attention back to the front desk of The Reverie Hotel, where Stelle was "diligently" working. Lumina gritted her teeth.
Willing to work hard at The Reverie Hotel, but unwilling to tidy up, organize, or decorate the room with Little Swarm, huh?
Fine, you lazy child. Just wait until we get to the Luofu—I'll teach you a lesson!
Lumina scoffed inwardly and withdrew her gaze. With a flick of her small hand, she pointed toward the second-floor storage room of the Astral Express. A surge of green light poured from her fingertip, flowed into the storage room, and gradually coalesced into a small, soft bed.
The green light gently lifted Little Swarm from her slumber in the cardboard box, placed her on the bed, and tucked her in with a blanket.
Having completed this, Lumina added a final touch—a sign on the bed: Anyone but Stelle may use this bed.
Perfect.
Satisfied with her masterpiece, Lumina nodded in approval.
Lumina couldn't believe that Stelle, who spent every day lying in a cardboard box watching the Little Swarm sleeping comfortably in bed, wouldn't feel even a twinge of motivation to work...
Withdrawing her gaze, Lumina pulled out her phone, opened a chat app, and sent a message to a certain General.
[Lumina: Send me the coordinates for the Luofu. I'm leaving Penacony.]
[Jing Yuan: (xxx.xxx.xxx)]
An instant reply—truly worthy of General Jing Yuan!
Without further thought, Lumina memorized the coordinates and began treading the void, heading toward that direction.
Just as she was about to depart, Lumina suddenly turned back, waving goodbye to The Reverie Hotel and Penacony, which existed within Memoria.
"Goodbye, Penacony."
After this simple farewell, Lumina's figure gradually shrank into a tiny dot against the cosmic backdrop, eventually disappearing completely from sight...
-
Acheron - About Lumina
Friends... such a distant memory.
I'm glad we became friends, and I'm even more grateful for the gift she gave me.
Sparkle - About Lumina
Miss Lumina—Annoying Saint—Sister Lumina—Lumina. That's my emotional journey with her.
Why, you ask?
Why does there need to be a reason?
Do you think the Masked Fools need an excuse to give people nicknames?
Black Swan - About Lumina
Never do anything shameful in front of someone carrying an Image Stone. You never know what they might use your "shame" against you for.
Of course, I'm not referring to Lumina.
I hope I can dance with her again next time.
Robin - About Lumina
Sister Lumina... I... think I understand you pretty well now...
Hmm, pretty well...
Sunday - About Lumina
Miss Lumina...
Sigh... I don't know how to express the emotions in my heart. Perhaps, because she heard the hopes of Penacony's people, she struck at me in the name of Abundance.
Anger? Sorrow? Confusion? None of those.
Maybe I should even thank her?
Aventurine - About Lumina
Miss Lumina? Hmm... I'm grateful she saved my life on Penacony.
Topaz - About Lumina
Miss Lumina? We weren't particularly close, I suppose.
After all, her status speaks for itself. I have no reason to offer any judgment.
Jade - About Lumina
I didn't interact with her much, but she probably isn't the person the Cosmos propaganda portrays.
Huh? I guessed it right? That's quite unexpected.
Firefly - About Lumina
An unpredictable person. I still don't understand her motives.
But I'm very grateful for her intervention. She alleviated my suffering at the time...