Astral Express, Observation Car.
A moment later, Stelle, who had changed into her casual clothes, and March 7th, who still bore Himeko's appearance, sat side-by-side on the sofa in the Observation Car. Both had their faces slightly turned, trying to conceal the conspicuous slap marks with their hair or hands.
Sitting opposite them was "March 7th," elegantly enjoying her morning coffee—or more accurately, Himeko, whose consciousness was in March 7th's body.
Today, she had chosen a dress that was slightly more mature than usual, attempting to temper the overly lively and playful aura that March 7th's body exuded, but the effect was limited.
At this moment, she held a mug emblazoned with the Astral Express logo, her light pink eyes filled with gentle confusion, her gaze sweeping back and forth between Stelle and "herself."
"So,"
Himeko put down the cup, her voice still March 7th's clear tone, but her delivery was calm and steady, "can someone explain to me why both of you… hmm, are 'symmetrically' injured? And it looks like… it was caused by a slap?"
Stelle and March 7th's bodies stiffened simultaneously.
Stelle felt her cheeks burning. She quickly glanced at March 7th, who was sitting gracefully beside her, her mind racing.
She couldn't possibly tell the truth— "I was curious about Big Sister Himeko's body, so I touched it a few times in the middle of the night, and March 7th hit me. Then I sleepwalked and hit March 7th."
...If she said that, she'd be branded a pervert and thrown off the Astral Express!
"It's… it's sleepwalking!"
Stelle spoke first, her tone exaggerated with a "I'm shocked myself" quality, "Big Sister Himeko, I seem to have a sleepwalking problem! I didn't even know it myself!"
"Yes, yes, yes! Sleepwalking!"
March 7th quickly agreed, nodding vigorously with Himeko's body, her dark red long hair swaying, "Stelle suddenly sleepwalked last night, and her movements were terrifying!"
"Sleepwalking?"
Himeko tilted her head slightly, a flicker of thought in her pink eyes, "What exactly happened?"
Stelle braced herself and began to concoct a version that sounded as plausible as possible: "Well… I don't know how I got up. Maybe I was dreaming I was fighting… then I was groggy, and I think I slapped myself?"
She pointed to her left cheek, "And then… maybe I didn't control myself well when I turned around, and I accidentally… touched March?"
Her voice grew softer and softer, her confidence clearly waning.
March 7th nodded vigorously beside her, adding, "That's right! Stelle is so strong when she sleepwalks! And so fast! I didn't even have time to react!"
Himeko's gaze shifted between the two.
Stelle's explanation sounded full of holes, and March 7th's agreement also seemed a bit unnatural.
The identical, forceful slap marks on both their faces certainly didn't look like they were caused by an "accidental touch."
Moreover, Stelle already had one previous "sleepwalking" incident on record—the bump on her head.
She recalled that before returning to her room last night, she had indeed been a little worried that Stelle might "sleepwalk" again. She hadn't expected… her worries to come true, and the scene seemed even more "intense."
"Stelle,"
Himeko's voice was gentle but carried an unavoidable seriousness, "did you know you had a sleepwalking problem before? Roughly when did it start?"
Stelle scratched her head, a genuine look of confusion on her face: "No, Big Sister Himeko. If March hadn't told me, I wouldn't have known I had this problem."
She paused, muttering softly, "No wonder sometimes I feel especially tired when I wake up in the morning, like I've been running all night…"
That wasn't entirely false.
The high-intensity training with Kevin in the Paradise training room last night, and the subsequent danger after Sirin appeared, indeed left her feeling mentally exhausted, unlike the refreshing feeling from last time.
Himeko looked at Stelle's genuine bewildered expression, then at the bright red slap mark on "her own" face, and sighed inwardly.
She could probably guess that these two children were hiding some embarrassing details, but the core reason—Stelle's sleepwalking—seemed to be real.
Moreover, this sleepwalking seemed to possess a certain aggressiveness and unpredictability.
"I understand."
Himeko nodded, not pressing for further details, which would only make the already awkward children even more mortified. "It seems we need to pay attention to this problem. Stelle, try to relax before resting at night, don't think too much about battles or stressful things. March… ahem,"
She paused, still a little unaccustomed to calling herself by that name, "you too, if you find Stelle having similar situations again, don't approach rashly. Prioritize your own safety, then inform me or Welt."
"Okay, Sister Himeko/Big Sister Himeko!"
Stelle and March 7th answered simultaneously, both secretly sighing in relief. It seemed they had temporarily bluffed their way through.
Perspective shift.
In the main hall of the Elysian Realm, today's light had been casually adjusted by Eden to a languid, warm golden hue, illuminating the eternally magnificent decorations, and also a slightly peculiar atmosphere in one corner of the hall.
Cyrene sat upright in the center of a soft long sofa, her back habitually straight, but this time, she was not alone.
Elysia was intimately embracing her from behind, her chin gently resting on Cyrene's small pink head, her lotus-like arms loosely encircling the girl's slender waist, as if holding an oversized, adorable doll.
(So strange…)
Cyrene murmured softly in her heart, a flicker of confusion in her azure eyes.
(Madam Herta hugged me like this before, and now it's Miss Elysia… Why does everyone like to hug me lately? Is it because I look… very huggable?)
She wasn't used to such overly intimate physical contact, especially from such a stunning and passionate older sister.
But Elysia's embrace was warm and soft, carrying a faint floral scent, which made it impossible to strongly resist, so she could only allow herself to be held, albeit a bit stiffly.
The hall was quite lively at the moment.
Eden reclined on a high-backed chair opposite, twirling a crystal cup with her fingertips, observing them with a gentle expression; Fu Hua sat in a slightly distant armchair, her back poker straight, quietly explaining something to Li Sushang, who was curiously peering beside her; Yae Sakura, as always, stood quietly at the intersection of shadow and light, like a sheathed famous sword, her aura cool and detached.
Just then, a light, quick footsteps approached from afar.
"Oh my~ It's rare for everyone to be here! Let me see… Hmm? Wait!"
The newcomer was Vill-V, who walked into the hall with a smile. Her gaze swept over everyone, finally settling on Elysia and Cyrene on the sofa. Her expression instantly changed from curious to astonished, her eyes widening a few points.
She extended her gloved finger, pointing incredulously at Elysia, then at Cyrene in Elysia's arms, her voice slightly raised in surprise: "Well, I'll be! Elysia, when did you… learn such a realistic clone magic? Or have you finally developed the legendary self-replication technique?"
Evidently, Vill-V, busy with her workshop and major projects, hadn't yet heard of this "little guest" who bore such a striking resemblance to Elysia.
Elysia chuckled, releasing one arm from around Cyrene and wagging her index finger at Vill-V: "Wrong, wrong, Vill-V ♪ This isn't some clone of mine! She's a new friend, named Cyrene, a guest who unexpectedly came to our Paradise from a distant world called Amphoreus~ See, isn't she cute?"
As she spoke, she tightened her arm again, re-securing Cyrene, who had tried to subtly move away.
"I see, a visitor from another world… and so similar to you, Elysia… Interesting."
Vill-V's surprise quickly gave way to intense interest. She stroked her chin, scrutinizing Cyrene from head to toe, her gaze making Cyrene feel like some kind of novel gadget.
------------------------
I've posted 70+ chapters in advance on Patreon.
Webnovel updates will still be daily, as usual.
It might not seem tempting right now but who knows what the future holds?
[email protected]/SolyuraMT
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"