"Kafka, do you feel it too?"
Sensing the threat in the air, Silver Wolf spoke in a serious tone.
"Yeah, it's a very dangerous guy."
Kafka nodded gently, her voice still soft and refreshing, but not as brisk as before. "In your words, we seem to have encountered a hidden boss, which is surprising in a sense."
"What kind of surprise is this..."
Hearing this, Silver Wolf couldn't help but complain in a low voice, "Now I know why Elio didn't let me go to the containment section. I hope that guy isn't waiting for us downstairs."
The presence she sensed was quite dangerous, even more so than those people on the Astral Express, which gave her a bad premonition.
If the guy outside the elevator was waiting for them, then their next consideration shouldn't be how to sneak into Herta's collection hall without notice, but rather how to evacuate safely.
"Kacha—"
As the elevator door slowly opened, the cold air blowing on the two of them became increasingly icy and biting. Silver Wolf looked forward toward the source of the cold air and saw a familiar yet strange silver figure standing in the corridor not far away.
This is?!
Upon seeing the other party's true face, Silver Wolf's pupils trembled, and she immediately turned to Kafka beside her. This purple-haired beauty who usually remained calm in the face of danger also displayed an expression of disbelief.
"Sam?"
It was a silver-white mecha knight; his face armor and chest were azure, emitting cold air that caused the surrounding moisture to condense into white snowflakes that fell to the ground.
Surrounding him were the broken limbs of the weak soldiers, their corpses coated in frost, indicating that it was the mecha knight in front of them who had killed them.
"No, this guy is also a Glamoth Cavalry Knight, but it's not Sam!"
Recognizing the difference between the mecha in front of her and Sam, Silver Wolf's heart raced, and she did not dare to be careless at all.
She knew how terrifying Sam's combat power was. If the Glamoth Cavalry Knight in front of her was their enemy, their chances of winning in frontal combat were slim.
It is no exaggeration to say that if the two sides really fought, the scene that Kafka had mentioned jokingly just now was likely to come true.
After all, neither of them excelled in frontal combat. When facing the Glamoth Cavalry Knight which was known for its destructive power, they would likely find themselves at a disadvantage.
Of course, what Silver Wolf did not know was that the Snow Fyrefly-V Mech in front of them was of the same type as theirs, proficient in sneaking behind enemy lines than frontal combat.
"It seems that Elio is right. We should evacuate quickly after completing the mission..."
"It should still be possible to turn around and leave now."
"No, it's too late. It already noticed us."
Looking at the Iron Cavalry Knight staring at them, the faint smile on Kafka's face vanished, replaced by an unprecedented seriousness and vigilance.
"Let's go; we need to talk to him."
Whether he was an enemy or a friend was unclear at the moment. It depended on whether the next negotiation went smoothly.
Before that, she would make all possible preparations to avoid the worst-case scenario.
"Hmm?"
On the other side, Ilu, who was dealing with the Anti-Matter Legion invading the space station, also noticed Silver Wolf and Kafka emerging from the elevator.
Seeing them, she couldn't help but be stunned.
These are the Stellaron Hunters... Aren't they delivering the protagonist baby? Why are they here?
Could it be that they are coming for me?
Thinking this, Ilu's heart suddenly skipped a beat.
It's okay if there's only one Stellaron Hunter, but she really can't take on two of them.
Wait... No, they're not coming for me. They don't seem to know me.
Seeing Kafka and Silver Wolf's vigilant eyes, Ilu quickly dismissed this thought. It didn't look like they recognized her.
Maybe they associate her with Sam. After all, both Firefly and she are piloting the Iron Cavalry Knight made by the Glamoth Empire. It's normal for them to feel some sense of déjà vu.
In that case, let's say hello to them first.
"Pah!"
Waving away the corpse of the Voidranger hanging on the ultra-low-temperature air blade, Ilu retracted the mantis blade on her arm and turned to look at the two Stellaron Hunters approaching her. They stopped seven meters away from Ilu, maintaining a distance from the strange mecha knight in front of them.
"Uh..."
Just as Ilu was about to greet Kafka to show her familiarity, she suddenly realized something and immediately swallowed the words that were about to escape her lips.
You know, she had never seen the Stellaron Hunters before. If she suddenly called out their names or said they were the Stellaron Hunters, wouldn't it be confusing?
No, she has to think of a way to contact them without suspicion.
…
"He doesn't seem to know us..."
On the other side, because Ilu, the driver, was concealed within the Snow Fyrefly armor, Kafka couldn't see her expression clearly and could only roughly guess Ilu's thoughts based on her previous actions.
If she wasn't mistaken, this Glamoth Cavalry Knight was a little shocked by their arrival, which suggested that he didn't know them—perhaps this Glamoth Iron Cavalry Knight was merely the guard of this space station, responsible for eliminating the Voidrangers invading here.
But this was just her guess.
Kafka wasn't sure of the other party's true intentions. The threat posed by this figure in front of her was too great, so she didn't dare to let her guard down.
After all, the sight of this Glamoth Iron Cavalry Knight remained fixed on them, and it appears he didn't want to let them go.
"..."
Thus, the two sides confronted each other in silence, the air around them so oppressive that it was hard to breathe.
Both sides were visibly tense, even the rhythm of their breathing slowed, as they feared that an inadvertent small action might irritate the other and provoke a conflict. No one dared to act rashly.
Time passed minute by minute, and the atmosphere grew increasingly tense. Seeing that things were developing in an unfavorable direction, Ilu finally couldn't stand it any longer. She broke the silence first, extending a friendly olive branch to the two Stellaron Hunters in front of her.
"You two, are you also here to help eliminate these Voidrangers?"
"Uh..."
Clearly not expecting Ilu to say such a thing, Silver Wolf was momentarily stunned, then turned to Kafka beside her. The two exchanged glances quickly across the air.
"Is that what he meant, Kafka?"
"The other party wants us to stay with him; this may be a test for us."
"Should we agree? But we can't stay here for too long..."
"It doesn't matter; just agree for now, and then find a reason to leave later."
"Understood."
Soon, the two reached an agreement.
Even if the other party had other plans, they had to play along and continue the show.
"Yes, we are both Nameless Guests of the Astral Express, and we are here to help deal with the Anti-Matter Legion that invaded the space station."
Kafka showed her usual leisurely and confident smile, then reached out her hand to nudge Silver Wolf beside her, indicating that she should present the "evidence."
As an old partner for many years, Silver Wolf immediately understood what she meant and quickly forged two Express passes with gold edges on the spot, handing them to Ilu.
"My name is Sam, her name is Blade; these are our Express passes."
---