In stark contrast to Zhongli's evaluation, in another world within Tokyo, Japan, Yujiro Hanma watched as Stelle swung her bat and shook his head in disappointment.
"Too low purity."
At the Tokugawa residence, Yujiro and Miyamoto Musashi sat facing each other. Their duel had been interrupted by the anomaly in the sky, so they decided to pause and observe what would happen next.
Initially, when the Celestial Screen began displaying scenes from another world, Yujiro was highly intrigued—especially when Kafka demonstrated swordsmanship rivaling Miyamoto Musashi's. Instantly, he grew interested in this seductive and alluring woman.
It seemed beauty and charm were merely her disguise.
However, when he saw Kafka using her words to soothe Stelle, he frowned slightly in dissatisfaction.
"Her swordsmanship is indeed impressive—perhaps even on par with yours. Such skill can only be achieved through countless battles. It's a shame she's softened in front of this girl." Yujiro remarked regretfully. "It seems this girl named Stelle is her weakness."
"Possessing the power to manipulate minds, yet only using it to comfort others..." Yujiro snorted coldly. "If you want Stelle to join the Express crew, there's no need for all this pointless talk."
Miyamoto Musashi pondered for a moment, seemingly intrigued, and smiled faintly. "Oh? Yujiro, do you have a way to make Stelle join the Astral Express?"
"Very simple. It only takes two words—" Yujiro slowly raised two fingers.
"Beat them."
"Pfft— cough cough!" Tokugawa Mitsunari nearly choked on his tea.
"Beat them?" Miyamoto Musashi's face immediately showed confusion. He rubbed his chin repeatedly, trying to decipher the meaning behind Yujiro's words, but even after overloading his brain, he still couldn't grasp what Yujiro was implying.
"If you want the Astral Express to accept this girl named Stelle, there's only one way—command them to do so."
Yujiro's laughter sounded muffled. "Grab the heads of the unwilling crew members and force them to accept her. If they refuse... beat them. Keep beating them until they submit, then issue the command."
Yujiro lightly placed his fingers on the coffee table in front of him. With a seemingly casual flick, the hard corner of the table snapped off like brittle glass in his palm. He clenched his fist, and a series of crunching sounds could be heard. When he slowly opened his hand, the once-solid wood had turned to dust in his grip.
"With enough violence, even gods will yield to your will. If they don't submit, it just means you weren't violent enough." Yujiro was quite satisfied with his explanation. He loosened his grip, and the wood dust cascaded from his palm like a waterfall.
"I see... truly befitting of the Ogre." Miyamoto Musashi casually offered a perfunctory compliment.
He focused intently on the images on the Celestial Screen, not wanting to miss a single second. In his cautious view, the martial arts and magic-like abilities of these otherworldly beings far exceeded his imagination. The skills displayed by that woman, Kafka, were likely just the tip of the iceberg.
Miyamoto Musashi sneered inwardly.
Absolute violence can conquer everything.
Yujiro... is it really that simple?
——
[The scene on the Celestial Screen shifted. March 7th and Stelle had arrived at the central area of the containment zone, where a massive elevator connecting all levels of the space station stood before them.]
["We'll take the middle elevator down to the Master Control Zone later. Do you know the way there?" March 7th glanced at the distant elevator, then suddenly sized up Stelle from head to toe, puzzled.]
["Speaking of which, the clothes you're wearing aren't the space station's uniform... Are you really from here?"]
[Stelle shook her head blankly again. "I don't know either."]
["Your amnesia's pretty severe, huh?" March 7th pouted, looking a little dejected, but quickly perked up.]
["Ah, forget it. Let's not dwell on it. Come on, let's get you back first."]
[The two fought their way through obstacles and finally reached the elevator. However, no matter how March 7th fiddled with the control panel, the elevator showed no signs of activating.]
["Did you break it?"]
["It wasn't me!" March 7th immediately raised her hands from the controls, declaring her innocence. "It must've been the Antimatter Legion's fault! If only our all-knowing Dan Heng were here—he understands all sorts of random stuff. Who knows, maybe he can even fix elevators!"]
["I can't do that." Dan Heng's voice suddenly came from behind March 7th, startling both of them.]
[Dan Heng explained his route and mentioned that he had found Arlan's whereabouts. If they could regroup with him, the elevator issue might be resolved.]
[Without delay, the three immediately changed course toward the monitoring room. Fortunately, Dan Heng's combat skills were more than sufficient—he had already cleared out all the Voidrangers along the way. They reached the monitoring room with ease and finally saw Arlan.]
[Arlan wasn't particularly tall, with short white hair and a striking scar across his dark skin.]
["Are you all together?"]
[March 7th glanced at Dan Heng beside her and answered naturally, "Yep! He and I are both members of the Astral Express."
[Dan Heng explained why the Express crew had come to the space station and how they had unfortunately encountered the Antimatter Legion's attack. After clearing up Arlan's doubts, the group finally returned to the topic of the elevator.
["After the evacuation, the elevator's access was temporarily locked to prevent further attacks from the Legion." Arlan seemed to recall something and asked, "If Lady Asta sent you to find me, she must've given you an access key, right?"]
[March 7th tried her best to look like she was thinking hard, her face unable to hide her embarrassment. "Uh... I think she did give me a card..."]
[Dan Heng sighed helplessly. "March..."]
["I don't remember where I put it." March 7th put on an innocent, pitiful expression.]
——
In Teyvat's Inazuma...
Yae Miko watched March 7th's adorably silly expression with great amusement—much like how she enjoyed observing a certain clueless, country-bumpkin-like archon beside her.
How cute~
Ei, holding a half-finished dango milk, wiped her lips and distinctly felt Miko's gaze on her.
A faint, almost imperceptible smile crossed Ei's lips. Though Miko was her familiar, her gaze was far too brazen—sometimes like a casual tease on a whim, other times like a long-planned, burning stare.
Under the Sacred Sakura, countless shrine maidens bustled about, cleaning and working. Occasionally, their eyes would drift toward her—some filled with reverence, others with admiration. But none were as audacious as Miko's, as if this archon were someone she could freely bully.
...Wait, does she think I'm as silly as that March 7th in the Celestial Screen?
——
As Ei lost herself in thought, March 7th finally found the access key after some frantic searching and unlocked the elevator.
[The group turned a corner and arrived at the elevator without encountering any significant enemies. However, just as they were about to reach their destination, a sharp whistling sound came from behind them—a spear shot toward them like an arrow. Fortunately, Dan Heng reacted swiftly, deflecting the fierce strike with his own spear.]
[A centaur-like Voidranger stood before them, its imposing figure blocking their path as it prepared to strike.]
"Lady Frieren, look! It seems a powerful monster has finally appeared." Stark shook Frieren's shoulder, his eyes glued to the imminent battle on the Celestial Screen.
Tall, agile, and capable of long-range attacks—in their world, such a monster would be a formidable foe even among demons.
"Stark, if you were to fight this monster, what would you do?" Frieren turned to ask him.
"Hmm..." Stark began thinking seriously. As the warrior of their adventurer party, he would inevitably face a monster as challenging as this centaur.
"I'd probably use different combat techniques to close the distance, then look for openings in its defenses. This thing is fast... maybe I'd aim for its head or limbs..."
As Stark analyzed the situation earnestly, the group on the Celestial Screen had already sprung into action.
["Rules... are meant to be broken."]
[After uttering this cryptic line, Stelle's metal bat glowed with a blue aura. Before Dan Heng could react, she charged forward without hesitation and swung her bat straight at the Trampler's head.]