"Stelle——!!"
March 7th shouted while eating the round snacks she had bought on the roadside. Aside from her habitually anxious tone, her expression was exceptionally casual, seemingly not caring that a certain troublesome person had gone missing.
After all, it was easy to find her in a normal environment; just look for where people were gathered.
Thinking this, she quickly saw a group of people not far away.
"Found her!"
Focalors pointed towards Lumine's group.
Furina and March 7th turned their heads and saw a familiar figure squatting on the ground behind Navia.
"Oh no! They saw us!"
Stelle buried her entire face in Navia's calf, continuously muttering, "Can't see me... can't see me..."
"Uh..."
Feeling the touch on her leg, Navia didn't know what to say, her lips twitched twice, and she helplessly rubbed her forehead.
"This won't hide you at all."
Just as she said, March 7th strode over, followed by two girls with expressions of eager gossip.
"Stelle!"
March 7th directly went around Navia's back and pulled Stelle up from the ground like a chick.
"Damn it! Let go of me! You evil treasure hunter!"
Stelle kicked wildly, her hands constantly slapping March 7th's wrist, but unfortunately, it was useless.
March 7th shook her hand vigorously, and a pile of strange parts clattered out of Stelle's clothes.
It had to be said, Stelle was quite good at finding treasures. In just this short time, she had dug out a large pile of clockwork mechanism gears, and some incomprehensible parts.
"No! My treasures!"
Seeing all the good things she had painstakingly collected fall to the ground, Stelle cried out in grief, her body slumping as if falling into an abyss.
"Stop playing! Everyone around is looking at you!" March 7th poked Stelle's shoulder, exasperated. The surrounding gazes made her wish she could crawl into a crack in the ground.
"The God of Trash Cans will punish you! Hmph!"
Stelle, sitting on the ground, snorted coldly, crossed her arms, and turned away, ignoring her.
"What kind of god is that?! Get up!"
"Uh..." Paimon put her hands behind her back, unsure whether to be speechless or stunned by the scene in front of her.
"What a coincidence, I didn't expect to meet you here. I thought you were still at the opera house."
Furina greeted the group, ignoring the strange scene in front of her.
"Hydro... Furina! These two... um... are they your friends?"
Navia pointed to Stelle, who was sitting on the ground refusing to get up, and March 7th, who was so embarrassed her face was almost red.
"Can I deny it...?"
Furina felt the gazes of the surrounding onlookers also fall on her, and immediately wished she could dig a three-bedroom apartment with her feet.
"That seems to be Lady Hydro Archon..."
"I didn't expect Lady Hydro Archon to have such friends!"
"What a dramatic scene, I love it, I love it!"
"No way?! Shouldn't anyone who knows friends like this be cursed for eight generations? Look at how embarrassed the people next to them are!"
"So pitiful... Wuwuwu, just buy whatever this child wants. I just saw her rummaging through the trash can..."
...
The whispering voices grew louder and louder. Everyone present, except Focalors and Stelle, buried their heads like ostriches.
"Um... Stelle, can you get up, please? Let's leave quickly. I know a place with many trash cans, you'll definitely be able to rummage to your heart's content there!"
Furina awkwardly shook Stelle, her tone a little pleading.
"No." Stelle hugged her knees, pouting, "Unless Master Momo..."
[Impossible!]
Before she could finish, Momoshiki's voice echoed around them, like a bucket of cold water poured directly over them.
"Hmph!"
Stelle buried her entire face between her legs, ignoring him.
At the end of the group, Lumine quietly retreated, trying to sneak away alone.
"Lumine! Are you trying to abandon me and run away?!" Paimon crossed her arms unhappily.
"Damn it! At least call me too!"
"Alas..."
Seeing March 7th and the others looking over, Lumine shook her head helplessly.
She had thought that solving the missing girls' case would make her famous, but she didn't expect to become famous for passive social suicide first!
What a disaster!!
March 7th didn't want to say anything more. She directly grabbed both of Stelle's arms, intending to lift her up.
"Help! Someone's kidnapping a beautiful girl in broad daylight!!"
As expected, Stelle directly shouted at the top of her lungs.
"Stop yelling! Do you want me to tell Himeko to deduct your allowance when we get back?!"
"Anyway, it's only that much money normally, not even a fraction of Furina's! Deduct it then!! Someone's kidnapping me! Come quickly and save the soon-to-be-distressed Galactic Baseballer!!"
March 7th: "..."
It's all the Astral Express's fault!
As Stelle was shouting, a Melusine in a guard uniform was attracted over, followed by four patrol clockwork mechs.
"What's going on?! Forcibly kidnapping a beautiful girl in broad daylight! This is outrageous! Is there no law?!"
This cute Melusine put her hands on her hips, indignantly pointing at March 7th.
"Arrest them, arrest them!!"
"No! I...!!"
March 7th, looking bewildered, was about to explain, when the robots behind the Melusine walked over.
"Wait."
At the critical moment, Furina, with black lines on her face, stood in the middle of the group.
"It's not like that. It's a bit troublesome to explain. Leave this to me. You go back to your duties. I'll personally report to Neuvillette later."
"Lady Hydro Archon!!"
The Melusine's eyes widened slightly, then she glanced at Stelle, who was still struggling, and felt her brain short-circuiting.
"Listen to me, go back quickly. This isn't your concern," Furina patted the Melusine's shoulder, her expression suggesting she had a bright future.
"Hmm... okay, Lady Hydro Archon!"
Although confused, the Melusine still nodded, turned, and left with the robots.
As she left, she kept muttering.
"How strange... Lady Hydro Archon would actually forcibly kidnap someone, and a cute beautiful girl at that. Could Lady Hydro Archon actually be..."
"No, no, I can't think about it! Hurry, hurry!"
Furina: "..."
Don't you whisper without avoiding people? Everyone around heard that!!
"Pfft...! Hahahaha..."
Looking at Furina's expression of utter despair, Focalors couldn't help but laugh.
"Don't go! Champion of Justice! Save me quickly!"
Stelle cried out heartbrokenly, her hand reaching towards where the Melusine had left, as if trying to grasp the only light in the darkness.
"Stop yelling! No one's coming to save you!" March 7th glared at the pitiful Stelle with a demonic expression.
"I'll help too."
Navia walked to Stelle's legs, grabbing one leg with each hand, and together with March 7th, directly lifted Stelle up.
"Damn it! Galactic Umbrella Hero! Why do you betray justice?!" Stelle kicked her legs heartbrokenly, trying to struggle free, but was fixed in place by a circle of Geo elements.
At this moment, Stelle was like a lamb to the slaughter, only able to struggle helplessly, then waiting to be dragged into the abyss.
"Sorry, I can't help myself," Navia said with a smirk, firmly gripping Stelle's legs.
"Thanks," March 7th said gratefully.
Just as the group was about to carry Stelle away from the crowded area, a roar filled with a sense of justice rang out.
"Stop!!"
Everyone was startled, turned to look, and then widened their eyes.
They saw the trash can Stelle had originally rummaged through suddenly grow two arms and two legs, slowly crawling up from the ground, flexing its iron muscles, and striking a bodybuilding pose.
"Kidnapping my follower and insulting me, you deserve to die a thousand deaths!"
Saying this, the trash can directly revealed a face with a JoJo-like art style, and then stood in an ultimate lifeform pose.
"No! What the hell are you?!"
Paimon's eyes almost popped out in shock.
She had lived so long, but this was the first time she had seen a trash can come to life!
"Remember, my name is the God of Trash Cans, I am 3333 years old, I live at 22nd Street, East City District, Court of Fontaine, I am unmarried, I work by the street, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year."
???
March 7th and Navia blinked their bewildered eyes.
What was this guy talking about?
"I don't smoke, I only lightly taste alcohol. I often slack off and sleep at work, but before every sleep, I drink a cup of hot milk, then do 20 minutes of stretching exercises, and can usually sleep for about 8 hours, like a baby, leaving no fatigue or stress."
"Every sanitation worker who passes by says I'm very healthy. If possible, I want to live another 3333 years."
"What are you talking about?" Lumine's eyelids twitched twice, striking a battle pose.
Seeing this, Furina took a step back and hid behind Focalors.
"Momoshiki, what exactly is this thing? I've never seen it in Fontaine for 500 years!"
[...]
[Uh...]
Momoshiki in the Kamui Dimension, listening to the familiar self-introduction of this trash can, almost didn't recover for a moment.
[I feel an aura of elation, very familiar, I seem to have seen it somewhere.]
Momoshiki said truthfully, while constantly recalling that strange feeling that appeared when he came from the Honkai universe.
Damn it! So it wasn't an illusion!
He really let that troublesome guy in!!
===
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