Chapter 69 Chapter 69: To Be or Not to Be, Choose
Chapter 69: To Be or Not to Be, Choose
"Welcome home, you three."
After everything was finally over, March 7th and the others, urged by Pom-Pom, returned to the Astral Express within a couple of days. Standing there, warmly welcoming them back, was naturally Welt, who had been worried about them from start to finish.
Thanks to the heart-palpitating feeling Kevin brought, he almost felt like he was going to have a heart attack.
"Pom-Pom believes we should depart this interstitial zone as soon as possible to avoid a recurrence of the spatial anomalies that have just begun to ease. Both Himeko and I agree with the Conductor's view, which is why we asked you to return to the train early."
Of course, whether Welt truly wanted to leave this planet early or escape from a certain someone as soon as possible was something March 7th and the others couldn't possibly know.
"Leaving early is good! I used to lament that the Trailblazers' journey always had to be on the road, never stopping... This is the first time I've ever wanted to leave a place so badly. That guy named Kevin—I both want to see him and don't!"
March 7th's complicated feelings are actually quite understandable—wanting to see him because his special training seemed very likely to take her combat prowess to the next level; not wanting to see him because... her butt really couldn't withstand that kind of torment!
Just look at little Elysia later on and you'll know; that guy definitely has some strange fetish in that regard. He did it on purpose!!
"..."
Hearing this, Welt fell silent for a moment before suddenly speaking up: "Then do you know that your Himeko originally wanted to invite that guy onto the Astral Express?"
"What's wrong with that, Welt? The train's journey is all about meeting all sorts of different people and then parting ways... I only said that because I saw you two getting along quite well." Himeko retorted, clearly displeased.
"Sigh..."
Whether they got along or not was one thing; if that guy Kevin pulled off something like that at every stop, his body would be drained dry first.
"Huh? So... he didn't agree, did he?!"
March 7th suddenly felt a tightness in her rear end. While looking around warily, she didn't forget to carefully shield her camera with her hands.
"No, he refused."
Even though Welt's heart wasn't exactly keen on traveling with that guy, when he said these words, there was a faint, almost imperceptible hint of regret in his tone.
"Whew, that's good, that's good..." March 7th quickly patted her small chest in relief.
However, compared to what they were discussing, Stelle was actually more concerned about another matter: "Back then, it was said that 'The Preservation' had abandoned Belobog. So why did it appear on me?"
Stelle even felt herself that if Cocolia had possessed the power of 'The Preservation' earlier, she might never have walked down such a path.
"That's easy to understand... 'The Preservation,' Qlipoth, is an indifferent Aeon. Unless you can maintain the extraordinary fervor of the 'Corporation,' it's probably very difficult to receive a portion of His power."
Who in the universe doesn't know that the Interastral Peace Corporation, in order to follow in the footsteps of the Aeon 'The Preservation,' has even bought enough special materials to fill an entire star system?
Himeko explained softly to the group: "Relying on a strong obsession with 'Preservation,' Belobog's Architects persisted for hundreds of years. But as the corrosion of the Fragmentum gradually deepened, their already fragile faith also developed cracks."
"That Supreme Guardian, Cocolia—she probably completely abandoned walking the Path of 'The Preservation.' In contrast, your actions and will at that time strongly aligned with the concept of 'Preservation.' The fact that you could wield that weapon and control that machine was likely also due to His glance."
"But we can't blame her either... That 'Supreme Guardian' probably suffered from the Stellaron's mental erosion very early on. If you or I were in her position, facing a gradually declining city every day... could we really hold onto that fragile faith without any wavering?"
Just as Kevin said, they shouldn't view this planet from a savior's perspective... Of course, those on the Astral Express could come up with many ways to deal with the Stellaron, but those were paths the people of Belobog hadn't found in seven hundred years.
Those who are hateful often have pitiable aspects. This saying holds true in many cases, though its concept is often distorted by a few extreme individuals.
"So it seems the people of Jarilo-VI are really pitiful... Since the Stellaron problem is solved now, can it return to how it was before?"
Stelle remembered seeing what the planet originally looked like in the data bank managed by Dan Heng—back then, it had pleasant scenery, oceans, forests, plains... Those were its main colors, not just endless ice as it is now.
"Generally speaking, time eroded by a Stellaron is difficult to restore to its original state in a short period. But that guy Kevin..."
To be honest, whenever this topic came up, Welt felt a bit irritated. But after thinking it over and over, he couldn't find any real fault. He could only explain truthfully with some exasperation: "Originally, even if the Stellaron was temporarily resolved, the effects of the Eternal Freeze and the Fragmentum wouldn't recede immediately. The people of Jarilo-VI would need at least hundreds of years of effort to gradually eliminate these afflictions."
"But as you probably saw, that guy's attack directly cleared away the century-old cold currents above the planet with a single strike... Clearly, such an extreme method could easily completely destroy Jarilo-VI's ecological environment if there was even the slightest misstep—"
Welt paused briefly for breath before continuing: "Also, most of this planet's Fragmentum power was used by the Stellaron to construct that giant Honkai... monster. After both the Stellaron and it were dealt with, the Fragmentum's influence is much less than before... Simply put, if they work hard enough, Jarilo-VI might even experience a revival during this current Supreme Guardian's tenure."
"We don't even need to worry about what comes next. The 'Corporation' people have already somehow heard about what happened here. They always spare no effort in pursuing anything related to 'The Preservation'..."
"You have sown 'hope.' That is enough."
He says not to interfere, but then his own strike is more impactful than anyone else's?
Normally, anyone hearing this would sigh and look forward to Jarilo-VI's future. But March 7th, after listening, just nodded her head and then belatedly exclaimed: "Wow! So that world-destroying attack really was unleashed by that guy in one go?!"
"......."
———— ————
Meanwhile, Kevin—the subject of their discussion—had once again arrived in that will-space resembling a starry river. He posed a soul-searching question to the figure ahead.
"To be or not to be. Choose."
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