Chapter 35: Sampo's Little Sampo

Voices echoed again in Stelle's dream.

"...They will suffer, they will sacrifice, they will die because of my orders."

It sounded like a young Cocolia, her voice more pained.

[They will not meet death... They will be wrapped in the swaddling clothes of a new world.]

The chaotic, raspy voice seemed to be constantly tempting her.

"And the people of the Underworld? They will lose the protection of the city builders. They will see me as... a tyrant."

[You have seen... the world we promise. Brief misunderstanding... in exchange for eternal prosperity.]

[You decide... we respect.]

"...I understand."

...

...

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Stelle opened her eyes.

She looked around; she was in a small, dark room.

Right, after escaping the Iron Guards' pursuit, they found an abandoned hut on the edge of Belobog to rest for the night.

"Phew..." Stelle looked out the window; dawn was just breaking.

Considering they had been pursued by the Iron Guards all night, she hadn't had much sleep.

But she really wasn't in the mood for sleeping now.

"Gu Tang..."

Stelle murmured.

Gu Tang and that girl named Bronya had fallen down together.

According to Dan Heng's analysis, they should have fallen into a place called the Underworld.

Their phones couldn't connect, possibly due to interference from the Stellaron, as long-distance communication technology was still immature.

Gu Tang was a frail scientist, and Bronya was an Iron Guard trying to capture him, which made her very worried.

Stelle pushed open the door.

In the living room, March 7th and Dan Heng looked at her as she walked out.

"It seems everyone can't sleep," Dan Heng said, arms crossed.

March 7th murmured worriedly, "I wonder how Gu Tang is doing now."

"Don't worry, our friend is very capable; he won't get into trouble so easily," Dan Heng said confidently.

"The most important thing now is to reunite with Gu Tang as soon as possible," Stelle said to Dan Heng.

Dan Heng frowned, "Of course, but the problem is... according to the information from Serval, the Upper and Underworlds have been cut off for a long time. It's not going to be easy to get there, especially since we're wanted."

March 7th scratched her head in frustration, "Ugh... if only someone who didn't care that we're wanted, knew Belobog inside out, and could take us to the Underworld would appear."

Thud, thud, thud.

There was a knock at the door.

The three of them drew their weapons cautiously, looking at the door.

"...I only sense one person's presence, shouldn't be an Iron Guard," Dan Heng said, staring at the door.

If it were the Iron Guards, they wouldn't send just one person to capture them.

But the three didn't lower their guard; March 7th pulled her bow, the arrowhead aimed at the door, and Stelle stood beside the door with her bat.

Dan Heng cautiously opened the door.

An unexpected person appeared before them.

"Hey~~ good morning, everyone."

Sampo, with his usual flirty smile, greeted them.

He thought his friendly smile would make March 7th and the others put down their weapons.

But March 7th shot an ice arrow directly at him.

In an instant, the arrow hit Sampo's... weak spot.

Stelle clearly saw two words pop out from Sampo's crotch.

[Weakness]

Behind the word "Weakness" was a snowflake symbol.

"Aahhhh——!!"

Sampo let out a scream and fell.

Even Dan Heng felt a bit sorry for him.

"You still have the nerve to show up!" March 7th yelled angrily.

Stelle, having a sudden insight, looked at the twitching Sampo and murmured, "Someone who can take us to the Underworld, found..."

...

...

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"How long are you going to sit there, young lady?" Gu Tang looked at Bronya sitting on the ground. "We should be looking for people, not admiring these not-so-beautiful rocks."

Bronya, hugging her knees, sitting on the tent's white cloth, turned to look at him. "I am under the Great Guardian's orders to capture you; that hasn't changed... I'm not your friend."

"If you truly thought that, your expression wouldn't be so hesitant." Gu Tang unceremoniously sat next to her. "You actually have many doubts about this order, don't you?"

How did he see through me, such a keen person...

Bronya thought to herself.

Of course, with Gu Tang's emotional intelligence, he couldn't have guessed someone else's thoughts just from their expression.

And his IQ? Definitely not.

The reason he said that was because when he fell onto her earlier, the system issued a task.

[Ding! Task "Wavering" activated]

[Task objective: Convince the confused Bronya to join our side]

[Reward: Level 7 enhancement item]

Bronya was silent for a moment, then slowly said, "I saw Jepard take you to meet Mother... the Great Guardian. He told me you were visitors from the sky."

She looked at Gu Tang's face, staring into his eyes. "Just like in ancient legends, those carrying the will of the Aeons, various interstellar travelers... Jepard also told me you want to help us stop the eternal freeze and the Fragmentum from harming this planet."

"Hmph, I guess things didn't go as you expected," Gu Tang said.

Bronya lowered her head, burying her face in her knees. "That night, Mother summoned me and ordered me to arrest you. What happened? The Great Guardian didn't tell me the details, and Jepard was sent to the front lines by her. I don't understand... I never understood..."

Gu Tang raised an eyebrow, looking at the curled-up Bronya, and slowly said, "You... are more fragile than I thought."

"Hey! What do you mean!" Bronya immediately raised her head, glaring at him angrily.

"Just what I said." Gu Tang stood up and stretched. "So, are you going to arrest me now, or shall we temporarily truce until we get back to the surface?"

Bronya hesitated for a moment, then sighed, stood up, and extended her hand to Gu Tang. "Alright, given the uncertain situation around us, let's cooperate for now."

Gu Tang nodded and shook her hand. "Nice to meet you, I'm Gu Tang. I hope we work well together, Ibuprofen."

"It's Bronya. Are you bad at remembering names?" Bronya corrected him helplessly.

"Alright, let's go. First, let's find some residents of the Underworld."

Gu Tang said and took the lead in one direction.

Bronya quickly caught up and walked beside him, asking, "How do you know this direction will lead to people?"

Gu Tang: "Instinct."

Bronya: "I see, very logical."