Fu Zhu held Mimi by the scruff of her neck, looking back and forth between her and Herta before finally agreeing to Herta's suggestion.
Although he could do anything Mimi could, what if she brought some unexpected, pleasant surprises?
After all, her previous form was a data entity like Demiurge.
"Alright, here's the deal. Since you're coming with me, don't stray too far. I won't have time to go looking for you," Fu Zhu said, giving Mimi a warning first.
Just in case, it was better to lay down the rules beforehand.
Mimi immediately put her hands on her hips in mid-air, looking a little unhappy. "Mimi! (Do I look like the disobedient type?!)"
"Who knows?"
Fu Zhu shrugged, gave a nod to Herta and the others, and then turned to leave the data bank room. When he returned to the observation car, Himeko was already sitting in her original spot with two steaming cups of coffee on the table before her.
Seeing Fu Zhu walk over from the other car, Himeko spoke up. "Time to go?"
Fu Zhu nodded, walked over to her, picked up the cup of coffee placed opposite her, and gave her a small toast. "Sis Himeko, I promise I'll bring them all back, safe and sound."
"Mm, I believe in you."
With that, Fu Zhu downed the coffee in one gulp. This time, the coffee didn't inflict any negative status effects on him. It was a good omen.
Afterward, Fu Zhu gripped the Temporal Anchor, confirmed the coordinates recorded inside, and drew his Yamato to open a spatial passage. Without looking back, he took Mimi and plunged inside.
---o---
Amphoreus, Light Calendar 4931.
"Hiss… my back! Ouch, hah, my back…"
Stelle, her face contorted in a pained expression, reached out to rub her back as she stumbled out of the wreckage of the Express.
"Stelle, are you okay?"
The moment she emerged, she saw a similarly disheveled Dan Heng quickly walk over. He supported her and gave her a thorough look-over, discovering dozens of cuts, large and small, all over her body. However, they were all healing at a rapid rate.
This left Dan Heng both shocked and a little worried. With so many wounds, even a Pathstrider could die. But judging by Stelle's expression, she seemed to only be in some pain.
"Stelle, your injuries are very serious. Sit down first. I'll go get the first-aid kit and treat you."
Dan Heng helped Stelle sit down in an open area, then went back into the train car alone to look for a first-aid kit.
Stelle, looking bewildered, raised her hands to examine herself. Dan Heng said she was seriously injured, so why didn't she feel it?
Suddenly, something occurred to Stelle. She immediately reached into her skirt pocket to search for something, but couldn't find the Totem of Undying her big brother had given her earlier.
Before they had set off, Fu Zhu had made her and Dan Heng hold onto Totems of Undying, just in case the ship crashed. It would be a bad situation otherwise.
At the time, she had even teased her brother for his jinxing words. She never thought they would actually crash!
"You and your crow's beak! Wait… where's my brother?!"
Stelle shot to her feet and immediately ran towards the train car, bumping right into Dan Heng, who was coming out with a first-aid kit, a frown on his face.
"Dan Heng, did you see my brother?"
Dan Heng shook his head, a cloud of worry on his brow that wouldn't dissipate.
"No."
He had woken up earlier than Stelle and had immediately tried to regroup with their companions, but he couldn't find any sign of Fu Zhu.
Knowing Fu Zhu, it was impossible that he would have abandoned the two of them while they were heavily injured. This meant that something unexpected must have happened—for example, he could have fallen out of the car mid-air, forcing them to be separated.
Dan Heng thought about other possibilities as he forcefully pulled the agitated Stelle back down to the ground.
"Calm down first. Fu Zhu doesn't need us to worry about him. Right now, let's get your wounds treated. We'll go find him after that."
"Mm…"
Stelle, who had been frantic just a moment ago, calmed down and quietly cooperated as Dan Heng treated her injuries.
After Dan Heng had finished treating her wounds, Stelle quickly stood up. Only now did she have a chance to look around. She then turned her head and discovered that she and Dan Heng were sitting right where the Astral Express had crashed into the ruins of a temple.
"My brother shouldn't be in any danger, but where did he go? He couldn't have gone off on his own, could he?"
Stelle couldn't help but furrow her brow. According to March 7th's Theorem, every time Fu Zhu went off on his own, he would always come back with a new, unfamiliar beautiful girl.
"This is bad! Dan Heng, we have to find my brother quickly, or else Little March is going to cry!"
Dan Heng, who had been on high alert due to the completely unfamiliar environment and the separation from his companion, felt the corner of his mouth twitch stiffly when he heard Stelle's words.
Stelle paid him no mind and pulled him towards the outside of the temple ruins.
As they stepped out of the ruins, the magnificent scenery outside made Stelle subconsciously stop in her tracks.
Dan Heng also took this opportunity to try and talk some sense into her.
"Calm down a little, Fu Zhu will be fine."
Stelle turned to him with a puzzled look, scratching the back of her head. "I'm not worried that my brother will be in danger."
Dan Heng was stunned. He pressed on, "Then why did you just say Little March would cry? Isn't it because you're worried something will happen to Fu Zhu, and March would be heartbroken?"
"That's where you don't get it, Dan Heng!"
Stelle wagged a finger at him triumphantly. "I said Little March would cry for another reason."
"Another reason?"
"Right! According to the pattern summarized by Little March, every time my big brother goes off on his own, he always brings back a new, unfamiliar beautiful girl. What if the two of them spark something during their time alone? Wouldn't March's main heroine spot be in danger?"
"So, that's what you're worried about?!" Dan Heng was in disbelief. But then he remembered who he was talking to—Stelle. He calmed down in an instant.
Right, what else could be going through her mind?
Dan Heng shook his head, speechless. Sometimes, Fu Zhu really shouldn't be allowed to act alone. With him around, at least someone could connect with Stelle's thought process, and he wouldn't have to rack his brain over it.
"The scenery here is nice. I'll take a picture for March. Let's keep moving and see if we can find any local intelligent life."
"Okay."
Stelle took out her camera, snapped a picture of the distant view, and then followed Dan Heng as they continued forward.
In the mountain forest not far from the two, an Iron Golem covered from head to toe in green moss lumbered towards them with slightly stiff movements.