After watching the Version 1.7 Special Preview Program at the Herta Space Station, Lumina briefly checked the online reactions before putting away her phone.
She retrieved her most prized possession—the Herta Puppet—from her room and stored it in her Storage Ring. After tidying up the room, she left for the Astral Express platform.
Seeing March 7th and Stelle already waiting there, Lumina approached them with a smile and waved.
"Hey, March, Stelle! Time to depart."
"Yay! I can't wait to see what Sister Lumina's homeland is like!" March 7th's already bright eyes sparkled even more at Lumina's arrival.
Hearing this, Stelle nodded in agreement, indicating she shared March 7th's excitement.
Seeing their excitement, Lumina gently shook her head and smiled. "If you're going with that expectation, you might be disappointed."
"It's just an ordinary planet. It can't compare to Penacony, the Xianzhou Luofu, or even the Space Station."
"But with Sister Lumina there, even an ordinary planet becomes extraordinary!" March 7th retorted innocently, her large eyes brimming with conviction.
"Uh..."
Lumina didn't know what to say. She shook her head, chuckled, and reached out to gently pat March 7th's head, savoring the silk-like softness beneath her palm. She began to lightly rub her head.
That's right, Lumina thought. For March 7th, the truly extraordinary person is her own Sister Lumina, not some planet...
Perhaps the planet's scenery was naturally beautiful, but in March 7th's heart, Sister Lumina remained the most beautiful thing in the entire Cosmos!
As Lumina gently stroked March 7th's head, two pairs of slightly expectant eyes fell upon her.
Without needing to look, she knew exactly who those eyes belonged to.
"Alright, standing here won't do any good. Let's board the Astral Express."
Surrounded by beautiful girls, anyone else would have instantly succumbed to their charms. But Lumina was different. A paragon of indifference to beauty, she refused to be swayed by appearances. Ignoring the stares of Little Swarm and Stelle, she subtly withdrew her hand from March 7th's head.
Gazing at the Astral Express before her, she smiled, murmured something softly, and began walking toward it.
Seeing this, the others followed without hesitation, boarding the Astral Express.
Hiss... Thump!
As the group boarded, the train's doors slowly closed with a soft hiss...
"Welcome aboard the Astral Express, Miss Lumina~"
"Welcome aboard the Astral Express, Miss Lumina."
As Lumina boarded the train, Conductor Pom-Pom and Navigator Himeko immediately approached her to offer a simple welcoming ceremony.
"Thank you~" Lumina inclined her head slightly, offering a polite smile in return.
"Sister Lumina, why are you walking so fast?" March 7th's voice came from behind Lumina, tinged with playful reproach.
"Between the time it takes to travel from the Space Station to Apricot Grove and then from Apricot Grove to Penacony, even with the Astral Express's warp speed saving us considerable time, the Charmony Festival in Penacony is fast approaching. We can't afford to waste any more time."
Though Lumina knew March 7th was merely teasing, she still took the time to explain her reasoning patiently.
"Hmm... I guess that makes sense. Let's hurry up and go, then!" After a moment's thought, March 7th nodded in agreement.
March 7th was already itching to use her camera to capture every corner of Sister Lumina's homeland!
Seeing March 7th's lively demeanor, Lumina smiled gently before shifting her gaze to Himeko. "Miss Himeko, I don't think I have your contact information yet," she said. "Let's exchange contacts so I can send you Apricot Grove's coordinates."
Lumina pulled out her phone, opened the QR code scanner for adding friends, and gestured toward Himeko.
Noticing the gesture, Himeko also pulled out her phone and scanned the code on Lumina's screen. After a few taps, she sent a friend request.
Ding-dong! Ding-dong! Ding-dong!
Lumina:xxxx.xxxx.xxxx.xxxx
As soon as Lumina accepted Himeko's friend request, she immediately added Himeko to her [Special Group]. Then, she opened their chat and sent a string of real-time, dynamic coordinates.
"These are Apricot Grove's real-time coordinates, which effectively serve as permanent coordinates," Lumina explained with a sincere smile. "If the [Astral Express] ever wishes to visit Apricot Grove, or if you encounter any intractable problems, you're always welcome to come here."
"Miss Lumina..."
Himeko was somewhat surprised to see the permanent coordinates Lumina had sent her.
Sharing the permanent coordinates of one's home planet with another party... isn't that practically an alliance?
Lumina's actions had certainly caught Himeko off guard.
But the surprise was fleeting. Himeko quickly regained her composure, nodded to Lumina, and headed toward the Astral Express's cockpit, intending to add the coordinates to the train's navigation system.
"Pom-Pom, um... Sir?"
Watching Himeko's retreating figure, Lumina turned her attention to Pom-Pom, holding out her phone as if to gesture something.
"On the Astral Express, please call me Conductor Pom-Pom!" Hearing Lumina's words, Pom-Pom first crossed his arms, correcting her incorrect phrasing. Then he took out his phone, scanned Lumina's QR code, and sent a friend request.
"Alright then, Conductor Pom-Pom ♪"
Observing Pom-Pom's demeanor and fully absorbing his appearance, Lumina chuckled softly, accepting the correction.
"In any case, though we're pressed for time, we still need to complete a series of checks and procedures. The entire process should take about half an Hour System Time."
"Although you've boarded the Astral Express before, Lumina, you left in such a hurry last time that you barely had a chance to look around, right?"
"You can take advantage of this half-Hour System Time while the train undergoes maintenance and system checks to explore the Astral Express properly."
Seeing Lumina's obedient nod, Pom-Pom nodded in satisfaction, gave Lumina a final instruction, and then scurried off toward the Cockpit on his short legs.
Lumina nodded in agreement to Pom-Pom's suggestion, without hesitation.
After all, in the game, the Astral Express only allowed access to specific areas; many parts remained unexplored. Lumina was naturally curious about these restricted areas.
Of course, even setting aside her status as a Player, who wouldn't be curious about the creation of Akivili, the Aeon of Trailblaze?
Without dwelling further on the matter, Lumina first picked up her phone to accept Pom-Pom's friend request. Then, when it came to categorizing her contacts, she found herself in a dilemma.
"Hmm... Pom-Pom... hmm..."
Lumina murmured to herself, pondering for a moment before adding Pom-Pom to her Special Group.
Lumina's Phone: The Special Group
No one knew exactly how Lumina organized her Special Group. It contained Swarm, Stellarons, puppets, and even animals!
But one thing was certain: when the Special Group's ringtone sounded, Lumina would immediately drop most of her current tasks to check the message...