Inside the milk tea shop, upon seeing Himeko's message, Adrian shot to his feet.
Who made their universe's cutest Conductor emo?!
Silver Wolf looked up, and the next second, she also bolted upright: "No way… Got reverse-killed in that short time? This hero's unnerfed—playable? Does the planner even design heroes?!"
Adrian switched to deduction mode. Suspects for depressing the Conductor? First, rule out Stelle and the others—solid alibis.
Next, the Express's big-sis navigator, Himeko—she was even less likely. Adrian doubted HE could doubt Himeko; she was the one who chatted with Pom-Pom.
Hmm…
Wait, that left only HIMSELF as suspect?!
Adrian quickly dismissed it. No no no… It must be Aha's doing… Oof, this Elation Aha was too wicked.
HIS thoughts traced back, recalling that sealed memory.
Astral Express, parlor car.
"Your crimes are unforgivable, but the Conductor respects everyone's right to obligatory labor…" Pom-Pom stood before THEM, visibly angry.
"Sorry."
The blurry black shadow caved first, thoughtfully offering Pom-Pom a cookie.
"Bribing the Conductor now? Adds to the charges, Pom!"
Pom-Pom took the bribe snack anyway, then shooed the shadow back. "So, you—and the other passengers—do you admit responsibility for the following malicious acts—"
"You drove a snowmobile into the Tekko Amphitheater, disrupting the venue, halting the match, and causing twenty Trailblazers—and you—to labor unpaid for three months to repair the severe facade damage!"
"Do you… plead guilty, Pom?"
The three shadows stayed silent, exchanging glances before kicking the most hyper one forward.
"THEY take full blame." The other two shadows said in unison.
"Wah wah wah~ So this is betrayal's taste…"
The culprit of the first malicious act captured, Pom-Pom detailed the second:
"You infiltrated the Haei Eiibon National Zoo, using half an Amber Era's Express budget to buy 250 sniffer beast cubs, breeding them endlessly in the restroom—flooding other cars with sewage."
Pom-Pom's anger was palpable. "Do you… plead guilty, Pom!"
"Endlessly…"
No need for accomplices to point fingers—the shadow from before stepped up voluntarily, offering more cookies.
Alas, failure again. The fair and impartial Conductor wouldn't bite.
"You invaded the dining car kitchen, declaring it needed disinfection to everyone—making 42 crispy, fluffy Pom-Pom pies vanish, and swiping the last pot of Express stew from the top preservation shelf, starving the Conductor!"
"Do you… plead guilty, Pom!"
"Huh?"
The three shadows froze a second; the lead one spoke first: "That was you, right… But I did take the Express stew."
"Indirect admission, Pom! Ahem… Don't gloat—I'm not done listing, Pom!"
"[Conductor Think Tank Entries Mass Disappearance Case], [Soda-Watering Parlor Plant Pots Incident], [Noise Assault on Conductor During Rest Time], [Conductor Exclusive Snack Vault Intrusion Case] and so on…"
"Total: 46 malicious acts! Do you admit they're all your doing?"
"Sorry… I'm truly the world's worst Nameless."
What an unbearable memory. But now, priority was consoling the Conductor—Adrian tossed the shop keys to Silver Wolf.
...
Meanwhile, in the Shackling Prison.
"Those who enter here are either wardens or inmates."
"Which are you?"
Seeing Luocha barge in suddenly, Jing Yuan crossed his arms, unsurprised by his arrival.
"Neither—just a lost traveler."
"What fanfare! Stellaron Core, Ambrosial Arbor, Medicine King's Secret, Lord Ravager… Threats piled on, nearly diverting all eyes from that seemingly irrelevant issue."
"The one who brought the [Stellaron Core] aboard the Xianzhou—what was their intent?"
"Per Sky-Faring Commission traces, you arrived with a merchant convoy to the Luofu, stayed days—yet traded with no one. On departure day, the mara-struck disaster hit."
"Slipping into the Shackling Prison amid chaos, claiming responsibility for the Stellaron calamity—guilty self-surrender."
All signs pointed to the man before him being no ordinary merchant.
"Strange, strange—your actions are truly inscrutable." Arms behind his back, Jing Yuan intended to hear Luocha's explanation.
The interrogation room's chill congealed like iron, yet Luocha's lips curved, his smile piercing the frozen air, deftly deflecting the interrogation's edge.
"As a merchant, I was entrusted to deliver a [token]—unaware of the hidden motives. Entering the Shackling Prison had purpose, but now it seems the Luofu holds nothing I seek."
"And confessing to face punishment? Fear of reprisal. The galaxy's vast, but a mere merchant like me can't evade the entire Alliance's pursuit."
Jing Yuan turned. "Mere merchant? Mr. Luocha jests. Your deeds at Eulogy Castle, the traces left in the Veil Nebula—shall I recount them one by one?"
"Or do you need me to utter that tongue-twister of a name?"
Luocha hadn't expected: mere minutes after reporting to the Shackling Prison, the other side had dug up his dirt. Underestimated the Xianzhou Alliance's intel net.
Wait—someone aiding Jing Yuan in secret?
"…Oh, the [Arbiter-General] lives up to the reputation."
"Likewise. Fortunate I did homework beforehand—else this talk would've gone cold."
Tension dissolved unbidden. Luocha seized the opening, countering Jing Yuan: "Since the general finds it fishy, will you defend me—clear the [Stellaron suspect] charges?"
"That's beyond me. For crimes threatening the Alliance's fall, by law, you're bound for the Xianzhou Vichya—to face joint trial by the Ten-Lords Commission and the Seven Arbiter-Generals, then eternal punishment."
"So let's speak plainly." Jing Yuan summoned his weapon, pointing at Luocha: "Surrender, and I might grant a swift end… Yaoshi's abomination."
Luocha's lips twitched upward imperceptibly, hands spread behind him toward Jing Yuan.
"General, my power stems from Abundance, true. But like you, I'm Yaoshi's foe."
Words barely out, the interrogation room's air froze solid. Bone-chilling cold wrapped like substance; on Jing Yuan's lowered blade-tip, a translucent ice petal perched silently.
"Yes, Jing Yuan." A white-haired woman, identical to memory, stepped before him.
"Don't hinder us. The Ambrosial Arbor's revival is omen—it heralds the Xianzhou sailing to a Path's crossroads."
"Reignbow Arbiter, Plagues Author, Lord Ravager of Destruction… This is aeons' clashing chessboard."
Frost-white mist escaped her lips, followed by words sharp as icicles: "Not on the winning side makes you the loser."
"And this time… We must put Abundance to death."