"The Herta Space Station was attacked by the Anti-Matter Legion!?"
Stella had just been pulled into the Parlor Car by March 7th when she was met with this heavy, information-packed sentence from Aunt Himeko.
She subconsciously stopped in her tracks, and March 7th beside her let go of her hand, the excitement on her face instantly replaced by surprise.
Himeko, Welt Yang, and Dan Heng were already gathered in the center of the carriage, and the atmosphere seemed somewhat solemn.
"Yes, we just received an emergency communication. The situation might not be very optimistic."
Himeko nodded and looked toward Welt and Dan Heng.
"The space station's defense system seems to have been breached on a large scale. We need to head there to provide support as soon as possible, at least to ensure the safe evacuation of Ms. Herta's important research projects and personnel."
"Understood."
Welt pushed up his glasses, the gaze behind the lenses turning sharp.
"The Anti-Matter Legion invading Herta Space Station is by no means a coincidence."
Dan Heng didn't speak; he simply gripped the cloud piercer in his hand, showing his stance through action.
"Sister Himeko! Has Herta Space Station really been invaded? Did those scrap metal heaps actually break in?"
March 7th leaned forward, her tone filled with disbelief.
"Unfortunately, yes."
Himeko looked at March 7th and also noticed the bewildered Stella behind her, her tone softening slightly.
"By the way, Stella probably doesn't know what the Anti-Matter Legion is yet, right?"
Stella nodded honestly.
In her memories, she couldn't even figure out who she was, let alone these names that sounded like typical villains.
"To put it simply..."
Himeko explained in concise, easy-to-understand language.
"The Anti-Matter Legion are followers of the aeon of destruction, Nanook. They are composed of the most destructive creations in the universe. Their purpose for existing seems to be the destruction of all civilizations and life they encounter. They are an enemy that we, and most civilizations, need to be wary of and fight against."
Stella digested this information.
"Anti-matter," "Legion," "Destroying everything"... it sounded very troublesome and dangerous.
"We'll learn about the specific situation after we arrive."
Himeko glanced at the control console and turned to the two girls.
"Sit down for now; the train is about to perform a warp jump. Little March, especially you—don't try to stand during the jump like last time."
"Eh?"
Hearing this, Stella looked curiously at March 7th beside her.
March 7th's face instantly turned beet red. She scratched the back of her head awkwardly, her eyes darting around. "This... I definitely won't fall this time! I promise! Last time, and the time before that... those were all accidents! The acceleration of the train's warp jump is just too sneaky!"
Good grief, from the sound of it, she had fallen more than once.
Stella could almost see a scene of March 7th rolling across the smooth floor like a pink-and-blue bowling ball during a warp jump.
"I... am not good at fighting."
Stella suddenly said softly, her tone carrying a hint of genuine helplessness.
This wasn't playing the pig to eat the tiger; the pitiful LV1 on her characters' system panel was no decoration.
With a slight thought, she quickly checked her assets—all characters, including the recently pulled Clara and Hook, were Level 1.
Stella had no doubt that even if she summoned everyone, the overly energetic girl March 7th in front of her probably wouldn't even need to summon her Six-Phased Ice. Just with her fists, she could play Whac-A-Mole, knocking each of her "characters" back into the system panel to lie flat one by one.
Perhaps only "Dan Heng" could hold out for a short while with his exquisite spear techniques, but the outcome likely wouldn't be any different.
Level suppression was just that cruel.
"I need to quickly increase my combat power..."
Stella calculated in her mind, her consciousness sinking into that system panel only she could see.
She clicked on [Development] and fed the pile of green [adventure logs] and purple [Travelers Guide] from her previous ten-pull all at once to Clara, who currently had the highest level cap and came with her own "bodyguard" (Svarog).
It definitely wasn't because Clara was a white-haired, red-eyed little girl. Definitely not!
(Dan Heng: My level cap is the same as Clara's, and isn't the one with the highest cap Stelle?)
The experience bar jumped, light flashing...
[Clara: Lv. 1 → Lv. 8]
Stella looked at this result and fell silent for two seconds. Level 8... it still felt like the level of a random mob on the street. She could probably only bully ordinary space station staff without weapons. If she really encountered a Void Ranger from the Anti-Matter Legion, she'd likely still be one-shot.
The road of character development was long and arduous.
"Hey—hey hey—passengers, please pay attention, pom!"
Just then, Conductor Pom-Pom's unique voice, carrying a hint of nervousness while trying to maintain dignity, came through the carriage's broadcast, breaking the slightly heavy atmosphere.
Stella obediently found a spot near the sofa and sat down.
She saw Dan Heng and Mr. Welt also find places to sit steadily, while Aunt Himeko elegantly held a coffee cup, leaning against the bar as if what was coming wasn't a dangerous battlefield but a routine afternoon tea invitation.
Only March 7th remained stubbornly standing in the middle of the carriage, eyes tightly shut, hands clenched into fists in front of her, muttering under her breath: "This time will work... keep the center of gravity low... steady the lower body... a mere warp jump... this lady will never again..."
Seeing her look as if she were facing a formidable foe or a universal ultimate problem, Stella couldn't help but show a helpless and slightly amused expression.
This girl was truly exceptionally persistent in the strangest places.
"The warp jump is about to begin. Everyone please sit tight and hold on, or... at least find a place where you won't be flung away, pom!"
Pom-Pom's broadcast continued, the tone full of concern for a specific passenger.
"Countdown start! 5..."
Stella gripped the armrest of the sofa.
"4..."
Welt adjusted his sitting posture.
"3..."
Dan Heng laid the cloud piercer horizontally across his knees.
"2..."
Himeko gently set down her coffee cup.
"1!"
March 7th gritted her teeth, her body leaning slightly forward, making every preparation to resist the inertia.
Vroom—!!!
A familiar vibration came. The stars outside the window were instantly stretched into brilliant bands of light, and the entire train seemed to plunge into a tunnel made of radiance.
A massive acceleration acted upon everyone.
Stella felt her body firmly pressed into the sofa. She rolled her eyes to look in March 7th's direction—
The pink-haired girl, who had just been full of confidence and in a standard posture, looked as if she had been gently pushed by an invisible giant hand the moment the jump began. Her feet involuntarily slipped...
"Aaaaah—!"
Accompanied by a short cry of surprise, the balance March 7th had worked so hard to maintain completely collapsed. She fell backward uncontrollably, flailing her arms to grab something but catching only air.
Finally, with a "thud," she sat firmly on the smooth floor. Due to inertia, she even slid back a short distance until her back hit the edge of another sofa and she stopped.
"As expected..."
Stella sighed silently in her heart, looking at March 7th sitting on the floor with a face full of bewilderment and annoyance, trying hard to suppress the urge to smile.
It seemed that some "traditions" were not that easy to break.