"Mm… I had a really nice time talking with you. The last time I felt this happy… when was it?"
Kafka spoke gently to Stelle. The restraints on her hands had come loose at some point, but she made no move to attack Stelle or the others. Instead, she gently caressed Stelle's face.
"Kafka…"
Seeming to understand Kafka's intentions, Stelle's voice was low.
"You've always been very smart, there's no doubt about that. With you around… that sliver of hope Elio spoke of… seems all the more worth fighting for."
Kafka withdrew her hand, and Stelle watched her, reluctant to see her go.
"Well, for today… let's end it here…"
As Kafka's words fell, the ground began to shake violently, and the entire pocket dimension started to tremble!
In the distance, the Ambrosial Arbor began to glow once more, a dense power of Abundance surging from it. In an instant, the heavens and earth changed color as a great tree, seeming to hold up the sky, once again stood tall over the Xianzhou. The power of Abundance had returned.
"This… This is…"
Wende set down March, who had nearly fallen over, and looked with a grave expression at the "resurrected" Ambrosial Arbor.
The powers of Yin and Yang were running rampant within the tree; he could see the two forces intertwining.
"Goodbye… Stelle."
Kafka turned away without a trace of hesitation, slipping off Stelle's coat and tossing it back to her.
"Wait…"
Stelle clutched the coat, which still held a trace of warmth and fragrance, wanting to say more to Kafka. But at her side, the Stellaron Hunter Blade, who had appeared out of nowhere, brandished his sword and forced her back.
"…"
Seeing this, Wende quickly moved forward, pulling Stelle behind him. This man before him… the Yin energy on his body had reached an irreversible state, yet he could still maintain his sanity…
He… was extremely dangerous!
"Alright, let's go, Blade. We have two more places to be."
Kafka walked to the edge of the Matrix of Prescience, bent down to glance at the situation below, then turned to look back at Stelle and Wende one last time before leaping off.
The man called "Blade" gave Stelle a cold, dark look before shifting his gaze to Wende.
"Hmph… We will meet again."
After leaving that cold statement, Blade followed Kafka's direction and vaulted off the edge.
"Are you okay?!"
March rushed to Stelle's side, asking with concern.
"I'm fine, I'm not hurt…"
Seeing that Stelle was unharmed, March let out a sigh of relief. Then, she put her hands on her hips and looked at Stelle with exasperation.
"I told you not to trust that bad woman! You even gave her your coat, honestly…"
"March… I'm sorry."
Seeing how much March cared, a warmth spread through Stelle's heart, and she spoke with genuine guilt.
"Uh… I didn't mean to blame you! Here, put your coat on. It's pretty cold in the Divination Commission. It'd be bad if you caught a cold."
Little March took the coat from Stelle's hands. She wrinkled her nose slightly at the mature fragrance clinging to it but still helped Stelle put it on.
"Mmm…"
Feeling the lingering warmth on the coat, the corners of Stelle's mouth turned up slightly.
"Now… the Xianzhou has a really big problem on its hands."
Welt murmured, staring at the sky-piercing Ambrosial Arbor.
"That is…"
Dan Heng's brow furrowed deeply as he watched the Ambrosial Arbor rise from the ground.
"How is that possible? How could the Arbor…"
Sushang's almond-shaped eyes went wide, her mouth agape in astonishment.
That was… that was the Ambrosial Arbor. The thing her tutor had rapped her knuckles over countless times to make her memorize. How could it be alive?
"What on earth happened…"
Dan Heng turned his gaze to the person from the Ten-Lords Commission they had just rescued.
The man wore a similar look of disbelief, staring intently at the massive tree.
"Hmph…"
Behind them, Luocha watched the Arbor grow, a faint smirk playing on his lips.
"MOM! COME BACK! HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO LIVE WITHOUT YOU, MOM!"
Dogzi started thrashing around again, frantically shaking her gaming chair. But the moment Blade appeared on screen, her gaze was completely captivated by his magnificent physique.
"Ohoho, so big, so deep… No! Dogzi, get a grip! How can you be seduced by another man's pecs! Your Father Wende has the best pecs in the entire game!"
"Hehehe, but Blade's aren't bad either. They look really firm…"
"No, no, no! It's all a lie! A conspiracy! Pecs without any healing output are completely meaningless!"
"But… Wende x Blade… hehehe, that doesn't seem so bad either…"
[…How very yabai.]
[What a truly degenerate dog.]
[Dogzi! Snap out of it! Don't fall into the trap of pecs! Wake up! WAKE UP!]
[Oh no, I feel like this stream is in danger again.]
[It… can't be, right? They're just male characters, and the chat isn't going crazy.]
[Since when did you think the streamer wouldn't go crazy?]
[No way? Didn't she just have a frenzy session? Another one?]
[Is it possible… that Dogzi… doesn't have a Sage Mode?]
[…]
"Hehe, heeheeheehee! Wende's pecs and Blade's pecs rubbing together! Hehe, the white stuff will come out…"
[This livestream has been banned.]
[See, what did I tell you?]
[As expected of you, Super-Mod-sama.]
[Super Mod: Phew, almost got my pay docked again.]
[Super Mod: But I gotta say, I thought about it for a second too. It does sound pretty hot!]
Ding ding… ding ding…
A certain artist, her eyes bloodshot, worked with frantic speed. A family portrait of Kafka x Trailblazer x Wende was being rapidly completed, the final lines taking shape under her hand.
Suddenly, a sound that made her want to collapse came again.
"Hello? Is this the great artist? Oh, yes, I'd like to commission a piece of Wende x Blade fanart. When do you think you might have time?"
"Hello? Great artist? Hello? Are you listening?" the voice on the other end asked, confused.
Snap!
The artist furiously threw her digital pen to the floor… then carefully picked it up, checked that it wasn't broken, and gently placed it back on her desk.
Then, she viciously ripped open the curtains and threw open the window. The bright, clear moonlight spilled onto her face.
"MIHOYO!!!! DAMN YOU TO HELL!!!!"
Her shriek was so piercing that all who heard it felt a wave of resentment shoot straight from their tailbone to the back of their skull.