"March, what's wrong with you?" Stelle asked, looking puzzled at March 7th. Ever since she picked up that hunting bow earlier, March had been acting strangely—not only did she seem tense, but she was also muttering something under her breath. Unfortunately, Stelle was too far away to catch what she was whispering.
"Ah! I-I'm fine..." Stelle's words snapped March 7th out of her daze. She shook her head vigorously, her gaze slightly evasive.
"Is that so..." Stelle scratched her head in confusion before suddenly perking up and turning her sparkling eyes toward Yun Fan.
"Ahem, so... where's mine?" Stelle coughed lightly and blinked at Yun Fan.
"Haha, of course. I prepared gifts not just for you and March, but for every passenger on the Express. But you'll have to let me inside first—there's no space to unpack them here." Yun Fan shrugged helplessly, as he was still standing at the doorway.
"Apologies, that was our oversight. Mr. Yun Fan, please, take a seat." At some point, Himeko—who had been talking with Welt earlier—had appeared behind Stelle. She gracefully apologized before inviting Yun Fan to sit.
"Haha, no need for formalities. I'm not exactly old, after all." Yun Fan chuckled and shook his head. From Blue Star to Teyvat, and then to the Star Rail universe, only three or four years had passed. At this point, he was roughly the age of a first or second-year graduate student. Compared to the two before him, he was still far too young.
At Himeko's invitation, Yun Fan quickly took his seat.
Of course, he wasn't the only one. Dan Heng, March 7th, and Stelle also gathered around the table.
So the current arrangement was—Yun Fan's right side was occupied by the "Cold-Dragon Young" Dan Heng, while his left was taken by the "Galactic Baseballer" Stelle. As for March, perhaps due to shyness, she chose to sit next to Himeko.
"You must be Mr. Welt Yang, correct? I've heard of your deeds before—it's an honor to meet you." Yun Fan smiled, standing up and extending a hand toward Welt, who sat across from him.
"You flatter me, Mr. Yun Fan. I am merely Welt, an ordinary traveler." Welt amiably shook Yun Fan's hand, his expression calm and humble.
However, his inner thoughts were anything but.
'This Emanator of Causality, Yun Fan, seems vastly different from the MANTIS warrior Yun Fan from the Previous Era. Could it be that, like Himeko, he is a counterpart from a parallel universe?'
Just as Welt was lost in thought, March 7th suddenly interjected. "Yun Fan, you've really heard of Mister Yang's past? Can you tell us about it?"
"I certainly can, but it involves personal matters. You'll need Mr. Welt's permission first." Instead of answering directly, Yun Fan gestured toward Welt, signaling that March should ask him.
"Pleeease, Mister Yang~" March 7th called Welt's name in a sweet, coaxing tone, like a child begging a favor from an elder.
"Uh... well..." Welt rubbed his temples, unable to resist March's pleading. Besides, he was also curious whether this man truly knew about his past in the world of Honkai.
"Yun Fan, Mister Yang agreed! Hurry up and tell us before he changes his mind!" March 7th urged excitedly, her earlier nervousness completely forgotten.
"Alright, March, sit down and let Mr. Yun Fan speak." Himeko sighed, placing a hand on March's shoulder and gently pushing her back into her seat.
It wasn't just March—Himeko and Dan Heng were also deeply interested in Welt's past, especially Himeko, the Astral Express's navigator.
She had known "Welt Yang" for so long, yet he had never spoken of his past. Now that there was finally an opportunity, she was determined to take notes.
"Well, to speak of Mr. Welt's past, we must first introduce a new concept: 'Honkai.'"
'He knows about Honkai!?' Welt's mind reeled at Yun Fan's words. If this man knew of Honkai's existence, could he truly be one of the Flame-Chasers from the Previous Era?
"And what is Honkai? Well... it's a bit complicated to explain, but you can think of it as another form of a Stellaron. Its purpose is..."
Over the next while, Yun Fan recounted events related to the Honkai. Of course, he also sprinkled in some... extra details. For instance: Welt, the leader of Anti-Entropy; Otto Apocalypse, the overseer of Schicksal; Kevin Kaslana, the head of World Serpent. Then there was Welt "infiltrating" an all-girls school as a teacher, Welt and Tesla, Welt and his "best frenemy" Otto's love-hate relationship... and so on.
Naturally, Yun Fan didn't leave out the story of Murata Himeko either.
By the time he finished, the way everyone looked at Welt had noticeably changed.
'So Mister Yang already has a wife... but he also has a 'special friend'... Does that mean Mister Yang swings both ways!?' March 7th shuddered at the thought. Suddenly, Mister Yang seemed... terrifying.
'Murata Himeko... the "Final Lesson"... So this is what happened in another world? No wonder Welt reacted so strongly when he first met me—he must have mistaken me for that teacher, Murata Himeko.' Himeko stroked her chin, deep in thought.
'Honkai... It seems that no matter the world, life faces its own disasters and challenges. Existence... heh.'
Stelle: "Blah, blah, blah…. blah, blah…. "
While everyone was lost in their own thoughts, Welt's mind was in shambles. The leader of Anti-Entropy felt that his reputation on the Astral Express had been thoroughly ruined by this guy.
And the worst part? Everything he said was true. There was nothing Welt could even refute.
Take the "girls' school infiltration," for example.
St. Freya Academy was a school for training Valkyries. While it technically admitted male students, at the time, there weren't any. Calling it an all-girls school wasn't wrong. And back then, as the leader of Anti-Entropy, his teaching position was part of a plan—so yes, it was infiltration.
But the way Yun Fan phrased it made it sound like Welt was some kind of pervert.
And then there was his relationship with Otto. They were mortal enemies, yet Yun Fan made it sound like they were some kind of bickering old couple. What kind of nonsense was that...?