["In many people's eyes, Mother was an excellent Guardian... If the truth must be preserved, then let those mistakes, madness, evil, and dreams remain in my memories. Let me bear them alone."]
["Since I am destined to inherit the duties of the [Supreme Guardian]... then I must abandon naive fantasies."]
[Bronya looked apologetically at the girl beside her: "Sorry, Seele. This secret... please keep it with me... until the end of our lives."]
["Of course, I know what to do." Seele nodded firmly at her, her gaze resolute.]
"How about it? Feeling envious?"
Watching this scene on the Celestial Screen, Jinx nudged Silco beside her with her elbow and grinned. "Aren't you a little disappointed that you didn't get to see the war between the Underworld and the Overworld that you've been longing for?"
"...Hah, how could I be?"
Silco shifted his gaze away from the screen and stood up, walking toward her. He wasn't particularly tall, yet the room seemed instantly filled by his shadow.
"On the contrary, Jinx... I'm quite satisfied with this outcome."
He had spent his entire life fighting against Piltover, even resorting to selling Shimmer at the expense of Zaun's lowest class. The current situation in Belobog was something he was willing to consider, but while Zaun had the filth and violence of the Undercity, it didn't have an "outsider" like Stelle.
Zaun had no savior... except for the people of Zaun themselves.
To earn Piltover's respect, those high-and-mighty bastards needed to understand Zaun's strength.
The reason the Underworld and Overworld of Belobog ultimately reconciled was because of a shared crisis—the Stellaron. If possible, Silco wished Piltover and Zaun could also face a crisis of similar magnitude.
If the two cities could join forces to resolve it... then the respect he desired would surely come.
But what that crisis would be, Silco still had no idea. Would it be a cataclysmic disaster? A city-state eyeing Piltover and Zaun with hostility? Or perhaps an extremely dangerous individual?
...Unclear, but Silco had patience to spare.
Still, there was one thing on the screen that truly made him envious—seeing Seele and Bronya so affectionate and in sync, he never imagined a girl from the Underworld could influence the Supreme Guardian's decisions. It was almost unbelievable.
If Zaun had someone like that, someone who could marry into Piltover's Council and become a bridge between the two cities, the things he yearned for would likely become much easier to achieve.
What a shame, what a shame...
["Stelle, you suddenly appeared on the battlefield earlier, holding that ridiculously cool weapon... What exactly happened? You should tell us now, right?" March 7th asked curiously.]
["This is the second time I've sacrificed myself for you, March..." Stelle gazed at her with deep affection.]
[March scratched her head awkwardly: "Uh... thanks? But that doesn't really answer the question..."]
["She probably doesn't know herself, right?" Dan Heng crossed his arms and said calmly, "This isn't the first time. Back on the space station when we faced the Doomsday Beast, something similar happened—remember Nanook's gaze?"]
[Since further speculation wouldn't yield answers, they decided to leave the Stellaron for Welt and Himeko to handle, focusing instead on immediate matters.]
[Returning to the Underworld, they wanted to share the good news of the Stellaron's sealing with Natasha and the others. But after delivering the news, Mr. Yang also sent a message in the Astral Express family group chat:]
[They had successfully sealed the Stellaron and gradually cleared the passage. However, Belobog's situation was far from optimistic—though the Stellaron's influence had mostly receded, neither the Fragmentum nor the Eternal Freeze would allow the planet to recover its former vitality anytime soon.]
[Their mission as Trailblazers was complete. At this point, all they could do was trust in humanity's resilience and will.]
"Ah, how could this be..." Fern's expression fell. "Even though the Stellaron's been sealed, the biggest problem is solved..."
"That's just how it is, Fern." Frieren reached out and patted her head with a gentle smile. "Look, we defeated the Demon King decades ago, yet even now, the continent is still affected by his remnants."
"Disasters aren't formed overnight, and their effects won't vanish overnight either."
"Bronya and the others are now walking the path of undoing those effects, just as we are walking the path of undoing the Demon King's influence." Stark said. "In a way, we're fellow travelers, aren't we?"
"Yeah, compared to Bronya and them, we're more like Stelle, March 7th, and Dan Heng." Fern chuckled. "They're Trailblazers, we're adventurers—both explorers of new things... Once things settle in Belobog, they'll probably head off to new worlds in the cosmos."
"New worlds..." Fern's eyes lowered slightly. "...But I'll really miss Bronya and the others."
——
[They decided to wait for the right moment to relay these updates to Bronya.]
[Before long, news of the Overworld and Underworld's reconnection reached Natasha. The passenger cable cars, sealed for decades, would soon resume operation. Bronya also sent word, hoping everyone could return to the Overworld for her succession ceremony.]
[Stelle and the others naturally wouldn't miss it. Along with Natasha, they boarded the first cable car with Hook and the other children.]
[The moment Hook saw the blue sky, she gasped in awe: "Whoa...! T-This is such a big, blue ceiling!"]
[Natasha's voice was both melancholic and joyful: "That's not a ceiling, Hook... It's the 'sky.'"]
"These children are so pitiful. What's utterly ordinary to us is something these Underworld kids have never seen before..."
This scene reminded Tsukishiro Yanagi of the first time she brought Soukaku to New Eridu.
Back then, she had held Soukaku's small hand as they passed by countless shops along the way. From start to finish, Soukaku's eyes never left the colorful cakes and snacks.
"Yanagi-nee, what's this? Can I eat it?"
...In her memories, that was the phrase Soukaku had repeated most that day.
At the time, she hadn't yet joined the Anti-Empty Sixth Division, nor did she know how to interact with an Oni girl. But that day, she bought every snack Soukaku wanted to try, and seeing the girl's satisfied expression filled her with an inexplicable warmth.
Was it a desire to repay her?
Yanagi wasn't sure. But if she were the one bringing Hook and Clara to such a vibrant world, she'd probably splurge without hesitation.
Exchanging worthless money for the priceless smiles of children—was there anything in this world more worthwhile?