Chapter 28: Welt: His condition is very serious
Watching the video feed—seeing those two clinging to trash cans, lost in the wonders of wet garbage fusion—Kafka felt her composure crumbling internally.
Elio had told her that the Trailblazer's will would intertwine with Fate, guiding them towards the ending everyone desired. It would also change the demon inherently devoid of fear—her.
Because of this, Kafka had poured immense effort into nurturing the Trailblazer, treating them almost like her own child, truly.
But she had never, ever imagined that the reawakened Trailblazer would turn out… like this!
Gazing at the image of the gray-haired figure sprawled on the floor, tongue out, attempting to lick garbage, Kafka's vision swam. A strange, overwhelming emotion surged through her, leaving her utterly dazed.
Few things could rattle Kafka to this extent.
Did something go wrong during the memory wipe?
No, that can't be it!
She had erased the Trailblazer's past memories with more meticulous care than a seamstress threading the finest needle. So where did the problem lie?
A fractured smile played on Kafka's lips. She hesitated, mulling it over, before finally abandoning the thought of returning to the space station to perform a 'system reset' on the pair.
After all, a human brain wasn't a computer. You couldn't just click a mouse and restore factory settings. Even with computers, formatting and reinstalling required installing necessary drivers afterwards; manipulating memory was a thousand times more complex.
Besides, what if resetting their memories only made the symptoms worse?
Unaware that he had narrowly missed an early reunion with his dear 'mother', Caelus wore an expression of intense seriousness and solemnity.
His right arm rose, fingers splayed, clutching a puzzle piece depicting a basketball.
"Watch this!"
With the imposing aura of a master executing a grand technique, Caelus pressed the puzzle piece down, embedding it into the image before him—an image so deeply ingrained it felt like his very DNA could assemble it instinctively.
"Click!"
The piece fit perfectly, the seams vanishing in a flash of light. The puzzle became whole, manifesting into a tangible object.
"Center-part hair, suspender pants, I'm Chicken Bro, remember me!"
The figure gave Caelus a slight burp, raised a hand, and gestured, "Music~!"
Familiar tunes filled the air as the figure bounced a basketball between its legs, rolled it up an arm, spun it, caught it deftly on a fingertip, and then tossed it casually to Caelus.
As the basketball landed in Caelus's hand, it transformed into ten gleaming blue crystals.
[System, I didn't expect you to be a hater too!]
Caelus juggled the smooth crystals in his palm. Clenching his fist, they dissolved into blue particles, flowing towards the crystal icon on his system interface and merging with it.
The crystal count ticked up from 176 to 186.
[This is Herta Space Station. Throw a basketball around here, and you'd probably hit nine haters out of ten, alright?]
[Insolence! How dare you compare Herta, who merely solves a few universal puzzles, to my idol!? I demand you apologize to him right now!]
Caelus's tone was sharp, his words righteous.
[Bro, stop memeing. Seriously. Any more and you're done for.]
[I don't have a 'household registration' right now. Even if I did, I'd be the only name on it.]
Caelus possessed the ultimate defense against 'household registration' based insults in online arguments.
[...]
Engrossed in his excitement over the increased crystal count and his banter with the system, Caelus failed to notice the complicated looks Welt and Dan Heng were giving him.
In their eyes, there was no puzzle. There were only unknown chemicals Caelus had procured from some lab, mixed with wet garbage in a battered pot.
Like some vile potion brewed by a wizard in a dark fantasy, the indescribable grey-black liquid bubbled ominously ("glug, glug") before exploding, all while Caelus watched with an expression of someone enjoying a spectacular show.
It was a biohazard bomb more terrifying than a Voidranger Reaver's cannon!
As if witnessing someone toss a live grenade into a latrine, even the usually composed, middle-aged Welt couldn't maintain his calm, turning tail and bolting instantly!
"His condition... is quite severe."
The bizarre chemical reaction sent droplets of the unknown liquid spraying everywhere in a grotesque dance.
Watching Caelus gaze at this 'liquid dance' with a look of pure appreciation, even nostalgia, Old Yang pushed his glasses up his nose and let out a heavy sigh.
"Mm."
Dan Heng nodded, his stoic face still holding a trace of lingering fear. He had run even faster than Welt.
"But, it's rather strange."
Glancing around, Old Yang slowly furrowed his brow.
The walls and corridors were splattered with strange-smelling solid-liquid concoctions thanks to Caelus's 'performance art'. Welt couldn't even find a clean spot to place the tip of his cane. Yet Caelus, the architect of this mess, remained utterly untouched.
His black coat, adorned with gold trim, was pristine, as if brand new. The hand he'd used to stir the pot was just as unblemished.
Welt was absolutely, positively certain that what he and Dan Heng had seen wasn't an illusion. That stuff was garbage. But why…?
"Did he subconsciously use his power to shield himself?"
Pushing his glasses up again, Welt murmured the hypothesis softly.
That explanation seemed quite reasonable~!
After all, putting themselves in his and Himeko's shoes…
If Caelus (and potentially Stelle) made a habit of diving into trash cans to play with wet garbage every time they ventured out, returning to the Express covered in muck and emitting foul odors, plopping down on the parlor car sofa…
The mere thought made Old Yang's scalp crawl!
If that were the case, he and Himeko would undoubtedly rack their brains, exhausting every possible method to help them curb this behavior. Even if they couldn't cure the underlying issue, they'd have to manage the symptoms!
Training him to instinctively shield himself with his power at all times, to prevent these episodes from inconveniencing others, seemed like a very plausible solution.
"Mr. Welt, Dan Heng, I'm done here. We can go now."
Caelus waved to them, slightly puzzled as to why they had retreated so far. He knew the 'puzzle' might look like trash to others, but surely they didn't need to react as if he were handling high explosives?
Welt and Dan Heng exchanged glances, sighing almost in unison.
"Mm."
"Let's go."
Asta had only provided coordinates for a few nearby pockets of resistance to the Express crew; the Space Station's Security Department was perfectly capable, after all.
Having cleared the remaining Voidrangers at the designated locations, the trio was heading back to the Master Control Zone to regroup when Caelus had his 'episode', forcing the others to halt and wait.
Just as they were nearing their destination, the system interface suddenly flashed in Caelus's mind.
[Asta's Commission Quest: Calculating Results——]
[You successfully defended the Space Station against the Legion's invasion, rescued valuable 'assets', and provided ample 'emotional support' to these 'assets' so they could resume their normal work functions...]
Damn it!
Bloody system, you deserve to be strung up from a lamppost!
Having been a corporate drone in a past life, Caelus felt an instinctive revulsion towards the mission summary's phrasing.
[Overall Evaluation: A- Rank]
[Click to view scoring details]
[Reward: Crystals ×512.]
Good system!
You're my beloved, amazing system!
Caelus's attitude did a complete flip. He'd never dreamed of getting the theoretical maximum of 648 crystals – that would require wiping out every Voidranger the instant the mission started while ensuring zero casualties, utterly unrealistic. Getting more than half was more than enough.
A monthly 'salary' of 51,200… Corporate drone? No, the company is my home! What's wrong with sleeping in my own home at night?
And the cute little heiress!
If Asta were standing beside him right then, Caelus would have struggled to restrain the urge to pull her into a hug and plant a couple of kisses on her cheeks.
"Hahaha~!"
Startled by the sudden, loud laughter, Welt and Dan Heng stared at each other, nonplussed.
Is- is he having another episode?
"Caelus, are... are you alright?" Welt asked, concerned.
"I'm fine, just thought of something happy."
Seeing his crystal count reach 698, enough for a 'ten-pull' and then some, the smile on Caelus's face grew wider and wider.
He doesn't look 'fine' at all, does he?
Once this crisis is over, we absolutely must get Caelus to the space station's psychiatric department!
Welt and Dan Heng locked eyes again, recognizing the shared thought, and nodded grimly.
Just as they were about to enter the Master Control Zone, a commotion erupted from somewhere nearby.
"What's going on?"
"Is it leftover Voidrangers?"
"Let's go check it out."
Caelus turned and moved first. The mission payout was settled, but if people needed saving, they still needed saving.
The three picked up their pace, hurrying through the long, fibrous-metal corridors of the station.
"Is that?"
The scene that unfolded made Welt's gaze sharpen.
A white-haired youth with tanned skin wielded a greatsword nearly as tall as he was. Behind him stood a squad of armed Security Department personnel.
Facing them was a monster Welt had never encountered before. It had a hulking, dark green body wrapped in bronze chains, with strips of cloth around its neck. Its form was covered in a tough, keratinous hide, giving it a somewhat turtle-like appearance.
"Holy shit, Turtle Bro, you're still alive?"
Though he was seeing it for the first time in person, Caelus instantly recognized the creature: a Gurongi!
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