When Welt Yang led Stelle out of the simulated universe laboratory, March 7th, who was waiting outside, immediately bounced over like a lively pink rabbit, circling Stelle with eyes full of worry and curiosity.
"Stelle! You're finally out! Are you okay? What happened inside? It was chaotic out here just now, with Silver Wolf causing trouble and monkeys singing—it was terrifying!"
She fired off questions like a machine gun while scrutinizing Stelle, feeling that something was off.
Himeko also stepped forward, her elegant brow showing concern: "Stelle, how do you feel? The simulated universe didn't show any anomalies, did it?"
Her gaze keenly captured the indescribable change in Stelle's demeanor.
Welt adjusted his glasses, his expression extremely complex, a tangle of shock, helplessness, and a certain unspoken sense of "déjà vu."
He opened his mouth, but in the end, only managed to utter a few difficult words: "...No serious issues. It's just that... on the memory level, she might have experienced some... impact."
(Internal monologue: Whose simulated universe lets you meet Kevin, the one wielding the Divine Key of the Finality?! And even have a profound conversation about 'Deliverance' and 'Price'?! This is more ridiculous than seeing Cocolia resurrected and performing ballet! But he couldn't explain; these stories from his homeland were too distant for his current companions.)
Himeko frowned slightly upon hearing "memory impact," feeling puzzled, but still turned her gaze to Stelle and asked softly, "Stelle, are you alright? Are you feeling uncomfortable anywhere?"
Stelle stood there quietly now, her posture seemingly straighter than before, her back significantly more erect.
Her previous demeanor, which carried a hint of naivety and the boldness of a newborn calf, was completely gone, replaced by a deep composure, an introversion forged by countless trials. Deep within her golden eyes, a gravity settled that did not belong to her "age."
If the previous Stelle was like an unpolished, vibrant raw gem, the current her was like a sharp sword sheathed, yet faintly radiating cold light.
March 7th finally couldn't hold back, pointing at Stelle and exclaiming, "Wow! Stelle, you... you seem like a completely different person! You feel... so serious! You're not like yourself at all!"
Danheng stood a short distance away, observing calmly. At this moment, he also nodded slightly and commented concisely, "Her demeanor is completely different."
He keenly sensed that Stelle's current state resembled that of a... Warrior, rather than a Trailblazer who had just started her journey.
Welt nodded silently in his heart:
(More than just a different person... this is practically being possessed by a fifty-thousand-year-old man!)
Just then, Stelle turned her gaze to March 7th, her expression unprecedentedly solemn. She asked in a deep and serious tone, "March, do you know... why birds fly?"
March 7th: "...Huh?"
She blinked her large eyes, visualized question marks seemingly popping up above her head, completely unable to follow Stelle's train of thought. "Birds? Don't birds naturally know how to fly? Because they have wings?"
She found Stelle's question utterly baffling.
However, standing nearby, when Welt heard this familiar question, the veins on his forehead couldn't help but twitch. The hand holding his glasses tightened slightly, his knuckles turning white.
(Internal monologue: My fists are clenching.jpg This familiar formula, this familiar flavor...)
Just then, Ms. Herta, having finished dealing with the aftermath of Silver Wolf's and the Space Station's disturbance, walked past with an impatient look, apparently heading to inspect the Puppets that had been inexplicably controlled.
Himeko politely called out to her: "Ms. Herta, please wait. Stelle has just come out of the simulated universe, and her state seems a bit abnormal. Could you..."
Ms. Herta stopped, her purple eyes casually sweeping over Stelle, her face expressionless.
She didn't even wait for Himeko to finish, directly raising the Magic Staff in her hand and tapping Stelle on the forehead seemingly at random.
"Dong." A light sound.
Stelle was knocked back slightly, a momentary look of confusion appearing on her face.
A few seconds later, Ms. Herta withdrew her staff and said in a flat tone, "No major issue. The Stellar Core is very stable. Although her mental fluctuations are somewhat abnormally active, the structure is intact. What, did something happen?"
She clearly didn't take Stelle's change too seriously. In her opinion, as long as the Stellar Core was fine, everything else was a minor problem.
Welt could only struggle to organize his words, explaining vaguely: "Stelle seems to have... gone through an... extraordinary 'memory experience' in the simulated universe, leading to some... subtle changes in her current cognition and... behavior."
Hearing this, Ms. Herta examined Stelle carefully again, raising an eyebrow: "Memory? I can't deal with that. I'm not a Memokeeper from Fuli's side, specializing in this."
She brought up a Virtual Interface again and quickly checked the core data of the simulated universe. "As for the simulated universe itself, I just checked. The operation logs recorded no abnormal external data injection or logical errors. She probably just randomly encountered a rather... profound fragment."
She waved her hand, appearing impatient: "Looks like she hasn't gone stupid or crazy. If anything, she's become a bit more normal. Isn't that good?"
In her view, Stelle's previous noisy, curious baby state was what seemed "abnormal."
Having said that, she didn't linger, turning and leaving to continue handling her "major cleanup."
For Himeko, March 7th, and Danheng, although Stelle's transformation was abrupt, since Ms. Herta confirmed her body was fine, perhaps it truly was just the after-effect of a profound simulated experience, and she would slowly recover.
They were mostly just surprised and curious.
But for Welt Yang, the insider, looking at Stelle, who occasionally blurted out, "Humanity must triumph over Honkai!" or discussed the "meaning of Deliverance" in an extremely serious tone, he felt a massive headache.
Facing this Stellar Core Spirit full of "Kevin Quotes," he felt an unprecedented level of exhaustion and... difficulty holding back.
[Perspective Shift: System Space]
Madam Herta had no idea how much trouble the "Paradise of the Past" data packet she casually dropped caused for a certain Stellar Core Spirit and the former Herrscher of Reason.
She was currently walking down a newly appeared corridor leading to the "Cell" of an unknown Chrysos Heir.
This corridor was different from the Spiral Stone Staircase she took when she went to Cyrene; it was straighter and wider. The sides were no longer cold stone walls, but composed of constantly flowing dark data codes, as if she were walking within a solidified river of data.
The floor beneath her feet was black and smooth as a mirror, reflecting the outline of her swaying skirt and witchs hat.
The air was filled with a buzzing noise—the silent scream of countless information streams—which was unsettling.
(Internal monologue: I wonder what kind of scene I will see next? I hope it's not another sight that makes my heart clench... Although, judging by the style of the 'Iron Tomb,' hope is probably slim.)
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