March 7th's mind raced with possibilities.
"Like how we tracked Sampo's location? Does that mean… Bronya's been imprisoned by Cocolia?"
Leon mused, "We don't know the full situation. The magazine I gave her has twenty bullets, exactly one full clip for her rifle."
"As Silvermane Guard Commander, she'd never be without her weapon on duty…"
"But right now, the tracking beacon hasn't moved for over half a day."
His words weren't hard to follow.
March 7th quickly caught on, offering a guess.
"Could she just be exhausted and resting longer?"
Stelle: "It's possible, but unlikely. Think about it—as a soldier, who gets to rest for half a day without reason?"
"Especially with Belobog's current situation, she wouldn't have time for leisurely breaks."
Seele: "Actually, exhaustion's a real possibility. She didn't sleep at all in the underground."
"If I went days without sleep, catching ten-plus hours in a quiet moment would be normal."
A subtle, intriguing expression crossed Leon's face.
"I'm a doctor too. Last night, before parting with her, I gave her a special treatment as a parting gift."
"March, Stelle, you've both experienced it. You know its effects."
At that, both girls had a moment of realization.
They exchanged a glance, nodding in unison, leaving Seele utterly confused.
What secret code were they sharing?
March 7th: "That makes it highly irregular. After your special breeze, even I can stay energized for a day and a night!"
"And you did it right before parting. Sleeping for over ten hours? Basically impossible."
At most, she'd need six or seven hours to wake up.
As March explained this to Seele, Seele's brows furrowed, worry spreading across her face.
Her worst fear had come true—Cocolia was actually restricting her own daughter's freedom.
"Where's Bronya being held?"
"Qlipoth Fort."
"How do we break in?" Seele asked instinctively.
March 7th, exasperated: "That's one of Belobog's most heavily guarded areas. Just the four of us—how do we even try?"
Stelle: "We don't know Qlipoth Fort's layout. Without a guide, going in blind is basically turning ourselves in."
Seele: "We can't just sit by and let Bronya stay imprisoned, can we?"
Leon glanced at her. "Don't rush. She's only temporarily detained, not facing execution."
"I brought this up to hear your thoughts on our next move."
"Sneaking into Qlipoth Fort isn't impossible, but it comes with risks. Getting caught means trouble."
"Last night, Bronya told me Serval used to be one of the Architects."
"Following the normal plan, we find her first. She might have intel on Qlipoth Fort's defenses."
Seele, decisive: "Then what are we waiting for? Let's head to the Machine Shop and find Serval."
March 7th: "No objections here. Finally, someone's more impulsive than me!"
Stelle: "You could be. Oh, and I've got no objections either."
March 7th: "What do you mean, I could be?"
Stelle grinned. "Let Leon give you a breeze, and I'll fan the flames—then you'd be the most impulsive, no?"
March 7th's eyes nearly rolled to the heavens.
"Big sis, that's not funny."
Leon: "Then let's head to the Machine Shop. No Silvermane Guards nearby, but I did find something interesting."
Seeing his odd expression, Stelle's curiosity piqued.
"How interesting? Enough to catch Aha's attention?"
"…"
Leon fell silent.
The air seemed to still.
It shouldn't have been possible.
But Stelle's words actually summoned it.
"Darling, Aha's got a bold idea…"
"Spit it out."
"Here's the thing, Darling—hurry and swap the wanted posters with the photos Aha gave you."
Aha's sprite perched by Leon's ear, whispering.
"Come on… quick, swap them out. Aha'll give you a hefty reward… go already!"
"Look, your relationship with Cocolia isn't great anyway. It's just a bit of fun at her expense…"
Leon switched voice channels, his tone unusually serious.
"I… if I swap those photos, you… you'll really give me a hefty reward?"
"Hmph… hehe~~"
Aha let out a sly chuckle, tempting him.
"Absolutely, Aha guarantees a reward so grand it'll send Darling to the heavens!"
"This is a deal—use Darling's flair to boost Aha's joy and get rewarded!"
"The photos are in your ticket space. Go, hurry up…"
Leon: "Daga, kotowaru."
Aha: "Nani?!"
"One of my favorite things is saying NO to those who think they've got me figured out."
"Noooo—Aha's overheating, and I've decided—"
"Shut it. I'll swap the photos, but not with the ones you gave me." Leon snapped irritably.
What did Aha give him?
A bunch of risqué photos from who-knows-where that'd scare kids.
Even if they didn't scare kids, they'd spook the flowers, grass, and playable players—not cool.
"March, we each need a photo."
"What kind of photo? I've got tons." March 7th blinked, not keeping up with Leon's train of thought.
Leon: "Fresh ones, memorable ones. Ideally, the kind that'd make someone angrier the more they see it, but it's fine if not—no need to force it."
Stelle's eyes lit up. "Mess with their heads, right? This is my specialty!"
March 7th tilted her head. "Uh… who's seeing these?"
Leon: "People not too friendly to us."
"Oh, I get it. Let's start with you, then." March 7th grabbed the camera, aiming it at Stelle.
Stelle pondered: "What pose would have the best rage-inducing effect?"
March 7th: "Didn't you say it's your specialty? Figure one out."
① "Pull down an eyelid with your finger, stick out your tongue, and make a taunting face at the camera."
② "Ciallo～(∠・ω＜ )⌒☆~~"
③ "Keep a squinting smile, hands up in the universal galactic friendly gesture."
The three options hit like a zero-frame blur, crashing some players' brains for a moment.
[This… this… these are just emoji faces!]
[Was gonna say it's wild, but they're all so tempting—what do I do?]
[Wait, they're not actually doing those moves, are they?]
Ah Xian was torn—she wanted to see all three.
No choice but to rely on her internet-wide network of savvy netizens to collect them.
She picked the third.
March 7th: "…You serious with that pose? Sure about it?"
Stelle: "Aww, just snap it already."
Click.
The screen popped up a photo.
In it, Stelle's eyes were squinted into crescents, her mouth in a small smile, both hands stretched forward.
凸(.^◡^.)凸
[Holy—official meme protagonist emoji, huh?]