At the Stellaron Hunters' hideout, listening to the radio broadcast, Kafka's brows furrowed deeper.
"Trash can and the Aeon of Eternity." She propped her long, slender legs on the table, carefully recalling the events at the space station that day.
"Yo~ Wanna play a game?"
Silver Wolf leaned in close. "What's wrong? You look so glum… I know the script getting glitched messes with your next moves, but bugs are bugs—they'll get fixed!" She patted Kafka's shoulder and continued, "If you're worried, we can go all out this time. Like we did on Jarilo, bring Blade and Sam… and cause a big ruckus on the Xianzhou Luofu!"
Silver Wolf was thrilled at the idea of a [script] where the Stellaron Hunters fought side by side. Too bad there weren't many chances for that.
That's how a proper team fight in a game should feel!
"If that doesn't work, I'll call Adrian over… He's from the Luofu, after all."
Silver Wolf had been over the moon these past few days gaming with Adrian.
The thought of heading to The Herta's Simulated Universe tomorrow made her even more excited.
As long as her plan went off without a hitch, it'd be one thrilling adventure.
Kafka vaguely sensed something and confirmed one last time, "About that friend, does he have any special abilities?"
"Oh… let me think. He's on par with an Emanator, so his combat power is MAX! I've never seen Adrian fight, but my gut tells me he's crazy strong. Especially at gaming—I've never beaten him…" Silver Wolf's voice grew more frustrated the more she thought about it. "Damn that Aeon of Eternity! No idea what mod THEY slapped on Adrian, making it impossible for me to win!"
"Where's this random competitive streak coming from…" Kafka patted Silver Wolf's head, piecing things together.
The glitched script, the trash can-shaped Aeon of Eternity, and the Aeon of Destruction.
And that joking remark Adrian made at the space station:
["You didn't know? That's the true form of the Aeon of Eternity…"]
Case closed. Adrian was either the Aeon of Eternity THEMSELF or someone wielding an object or power blessed by an Aeon.
Kafka leaned toward the former, though it was all speculation.
Who would've thought? Her first encounter with an Aeon was at The Herta Space Station. Do Aeons really love playing the underdog like this?
On second thought, having an Aeon as a companion wasn't a bad thing.
At the very least, Stelle's safety was guaranteed, and Kafka didn't have to worry about her kid getting bullied.
The Aeon of Eternity was famously protective of THEIR followers.
Hmm…
Should she pay THEM some child support?
…
Herta Space Station, Adrian's Office.
"Yo, how's the research on that gilded trash can going?"
"With me and Screwllum working on it, it's like developing the Simulated Universe. I don't want to hear Ruan Mei nagging." A Herta puppet stood beside Adrian, massaging his shoulders.
"You can tell Ruan Mei's pretty smitten with that gilded trash can."
"The universe is a chaotic mess, all noise to her. Only an Aeon could captivate her like this, make her heart race." Herta's puppet massaged Adrian expressionlessly.
"Speaking of which, Screwllum's coming to the space station today. I'll go let Asta know later."
"Ugh, you geniuses are all after my body."
Adrian clicked his tongue. That's why he liked hiding his identity—he didn't want to blow his cover too soon.
"I'd love to argue, but I can't find a reason to. Conclusion: you're super narcissistic."
"What, now you're mimicking Screwllum? When it comes to dealing with people, I'm not as narcissistic as you."
Ding!
A notification chimed, and Adrian pulled out his phone.
[System Notification: Kafka has sent you a friend request]
"Whoa, isn't that the second-in-command of the Stellaron Hunters? She's adding you?" Herta stopped massaging and plopped down beside him.
"Second-in-command, huh? That's about right."
Kafka's bounty was the highest, a whopping 10.89 billion.
Poor Silver Wolf, with a bounty of just 5.1 billion—not even half of Kafka's.
No worries, her bounty would rise soon enough.
"Speaking of Stellaron Hunters, someone's already taken the bait with that game cartridge. I won't say who."
"This time, we've gotta teach her a lesson, or she'll keep provoking me."
"Why not just ban her game account? How's that for an idea?" Herta mused.
"I'm not commenting."
After Adrian accepted Kafka's friend request, she instantly messaged him:
[Kafka: Hey~ Thanks for looking after Stelle. This is child support.]
[Kafka: [Transfer: 2 billion]]
"Whoa! Talk about generous, sending you credits right off the bat."
Adrian looked baffled. "Why's everyone so keen on transferring me money? I don't even use this stuff much."
"Hey, better than being broke. Besides, she's doing it for that Stellaron kid. Looks like she sees you as a proxy guardian."
Herta teased. In her view, the only Stellaron Hunter with real strength was their leader, Elio.
She had no interest in the Path of Finality. She'd rather study the gilded trash can.
[Kafka: Keep an eye on Stelle. Don't let her blow the money.]
[Kafka: …Dear Aeon friend.]
[System Notification: The other party has gone offline.]
"She figured it out, huh."
His identity being exposed was within Adrian's expectations. The moment he boarded the Astral Express, he was ready to drop his disguise.
"Now there's one more person who knows your true identity. You really not considering giving them a [Aeon ID], like my [Herta ID]?" Herta suggested.
"No need. These past few days, I've inexplicably gained 3 billion credits. It's almost making me want to spend some."
Adrian stretched lazily. That said, he definitely wasn't touching those credits.
Kafka called it child support, so Adrian would transfer every bit of it to Stelle for her to spend.
"You're really good to that kid. Rare to see you care so much about a Stellaron."
Joking aside, she's the game's main protagonist! If Adrian didn't care about her, who would? March 7th?
Someone like Stelle, even after having her memories wiped and being reborn anew.
Barely half a month old, and she's already become so chaotic and abstract.
Adrian was considering whether to report all this to Kafka. After all… he was basically the nanny hired by the family now.
These days, even Stellaron Hunters hire Aeons as nannies.
"If you get the chance, you should take Stelle to the Church."
At the mention of the Church, Herta shivered.
Weird—she didn't even have sensory sharing mode on.
"Relax, three stops from now, the Astral Express will reach the Hot Spring Star. Didn't you visit there for fieldwork too?"
"Uh… as the god they worship, not setting foot in your Church for a thousand years—is that really okay?" Herta didn't get it. Are all Aeons this nonchalant?
"I believe in self-governance, letting them do their thing. With those kids around, I don't need to meddle at all."
In plain terms, Adrian just loved slacking off and couldn't be bothered with work.
Slacking off felt great, especially during work hours. It relaxed the mind and body while adding a thrill of staying alert for the boss, effectively training one's observational skills.
"That elven girl mentioned in the news? I don't think you've ever brought her up."
Adrian's lips curved into a casual smile.
"Looks like you don't know my Church as well as you think, Lady Herta."
"Who has time to visit that place?!"