After wandering around the Legendary Tower for a while, Wende received a text from March 7th. After confirming that they had safely exited the tower, the three of them also found a way out…
If you could call chiseling through a wall "finding a way." After all, the room storing the cartridges was semi-enclosed. It was a mystery how the Stellaron had suddenly erupted inside it and how it had gotten out…
Thinking about it carefully, there was only one possibility. Wende felt it was best to let it remain a secret. Rather than overthinking it, it was better to come up with some excuses to placate the others.
However, it was clear he wouldn't be the one doing the explaining. As the matriarch of the Express, Himeko's way with words was second to none across the universe…
After completing this main quest, Wende's system didn't make an appearance and remained silent. Unless Wende ordered it to "establish an interstellar miHoYo company and launch a universe-wide public beta for Honkai Impact 3rd," he felt it wouldn't show up.
And after emerging from that spatial rift, the Dragon no longer communicated with Wende. Connecting this to its previous secretive behavior, he could more or less surmise the reason.
It was nothing more than maintaining the illusion of its "disappearance" in the real universe, to prevent any other interested "parties" from noticing.
The space beyond that wormhole most likely didn't belong to the real universe. And if Wende wanted to enter that space again… he would probably have to find [Equilibrium] himself.
They descended the Legendary Tower, regrouped with the others, and called Welt to report that they were safe.
The Stellaron was sealed by the Express's systems. The process was completely uneventful, so smooth it was almost abnormal.
Himeko also personally made a call to Pier Point, arranging for them to send people to clean up the mess on Punklorde once the Stellaron's influence on the new star rail had dropped to a safe level…
Although Punklorde's upper echelons were now essentially paralyzed, someone had stepped up to take on the heavy burden of temporarily managing the planet's affairs. This person received the support of all Punklorde's residents; even the people from the Scrapyard acknowledged this new person in charge.
That person was Veyl…
As for why Veyl, by herself, had managed to win the hearts of the entire population of Punklorde?
Because her temporary network had covered almost half of the Neon Metropolis, re-establishing network communications for the people in distress.
For the people of Punklorde, network communication was of the utmost importance, especially for the hackers. Although they could build their own networks, would a hacker who just turtles in their own private network even be called a hacker?
When Topaz submitted her asset assessment plan for Punklorde, she also heavily emphasized Veyl. She believed that if the Corporation were to completely take over Punklorde now, it would be an incredibly massive mess. Not to mention the initial investment required to repair the Neon Metropolis, if the Corporation really took over, a lot of work that wasn't originally their responsibility would fall to them. This was completely inconsistent with the Corporation's business philosophy and contradicted the original reason they had sent Topaz in the first place.
Moreover, Veyl's background was clean, and her past as a member of the [Galaxy Rangers] gave her legitimacy. After all, who didn't know that Punklorde's most famous Legend was also a Galaxy Ranger?
Veyl's history was a significant plus in the eyes of the Corporation's top brass. Adding to that her years of groundwork on Punklorde, her extensive network of influence, and the fact that she was someone who had always strived for the good of the planet, what reason did they have to refuse such a perfect candidate to handle the mess?
Therefore, after deliberation, the council at Pier Point decided to strengthen commercial ties with Punklorde and proposed a series of aid loans. This was exactly what Punklorde needed right now, and it was also an excellent way for the Corporation to profit.
But Veyl would not become the Corporation's puppet. In her meeting with Topaz, she stated that she would establish a "cooperative" relationship with the Corporation, one where the rights and responsibilities of each party were laid out in excruciating detail, making it airtight and utterly unassailable.
And as the heroes who saved Punklorde, the Astral Express crew would naturally not be forgotten by its people. At Veyl's enthusiastic invitation, they held a simple, brief party. The only attendees were a few familiar faces…
On a side note, Jack, Meryl, Himeko, and others were angrily thrown out of the kitchen by Wende, who later also had to banish a certain Stelle who was trying to add some traditional Xianzhou "delicacies" to the dishes.
In truth, the trip to Punklorde was sudden and rushed from the start. The crew had arrived in a hurry, and they would leave just as quickly.
Compared to a relief force specifically sent to save Punklorde, they were more like kind-hearted passersby who lent a helping hand, rescuing the planet from fire and water.
But every story has an ending. The current outcome for Punklorde was already quite good. Compared to the lingering, unending blizzard in Belobog, at least the post-disaster recovery work on Punklorde would be a little easier…
Probably?
Actually, for everyone involved, the trip to Punklorde was also a fruitful journey. It would have been even better if you ignored some people's rather strange acquisitions.
The Express was still docked above Punklorde's atmosphere. But once the Stellaron's influence on the star rail completely vanished, the train would once again embark on its journey of [Trailblazing]…
However…
---o---
After confirming that his room was empty and that he had added several extra locks to the door, Wende finally lay down on his bed, still fully clothed. He then pulled the covers tightly over himself, ensuring not a single gap was exposed, before finally allowing himself to drift off to sleep…
He took these measures because he was exhausted. Right now, he didn't want to do anything superfluous besides rest. Even though he had now become [Order], as long as he didn't manifest his [Will], no one in the universe besides "those few" would come looking for him.
He needed a long sleep to process everything he had gained during this time. He needed…
To protect himself.
At the very least, he wanted to have a dream that belonged only to him!
---o---
"Hm? Wendy? What's wrong?"
At St. Freya Academy, on a small path after school, Bronya tilted her head in confusion, looking at Wendy who had suddenly stopped walking.
"I… I can feel it. It's him… It feels like he's coming back?"
Wendy seemed completely at a loss, her cyan eyes filled with a mixture of bewilderment and… excitement?
"This…"
For a moment, Bronya didn't know what to say to comfort her. She could only gently pat Wendy's back while casting a helpless, pleading glance at Mei, who stood beside them.
"Sigh, Mr. Wende has indeed been gone for a very long time… Let's head back first."
Seeing Wendy's crestfallen appearance, Mei didn't know what else to do but suggest this.
Ever since Wende had left… Wendy was often like this…
"Wende… Wende…"
On the way back to the dormitory, a cyan light flashed through Wendy's eyes.