While Firefly and the others were plotting their evil kidnapping plan, on the other side.
"I say... March, is it really okay to let Firefly misunderstand like that?" Stelle scratched her head: "If we don't explain this kind of thing clearly, we won't even be able to be friends later."
Earlier, Firefly had suddenly given a bitter laugh saying "I shouldn't be in the car, I should be under the car," then covered her face and ran off alone. They couldn't catch up, and it seemed like she had shut down.
Clearly, she had indeed misunderstood something, though this misunderstanding could very well evolve into reality in the future.
March 7th silently smoothed her hair to cover the earpiece on her right ear. Although she and Firefly were competing fiercely, she herself was still that girl who wasn't very good with words; otherwise, she wouldn't still be uneaten despite leading by two maps.
So, when a certain space station director offered to lend her a hand, she gladly accepted.
["Cough cough, can you hear me? If you can, cough once."]
"Cough cough." March 7th turned her head to the side and coughed lightly.
Stelle, hearing the cough, trembled and immediately began analyzing the situation rapidly: I just mentioned keywords like "Firefly," "misunderstand," "friends." Could March be expressing dissatisfaction with my perception?
But as far as Stelle knew, she hadn't done anything overly ambiguous with Firefly, right? Wait, that hotel incident doesn't count! That was a forced measure in an emergency!
Then what could be the reason...
Stelle was still guessing wildly over here, but Asta wouldn't wait for her. She chuckled lightly and said:
["Miss March, tell her, 'You should know I've always liked you a lot, right?'"]
!
March 7th suddenly widened her eyes, a shy blush appearing on her pretty face. Starting with such an explosive line right away?
And the child was still right beside them!
Although they were already old X old X, that was limited to actions! If it had to be said out loud, it was... it was still too embarrassing!
["Oh? You're shy already? This is just the first sentence?"]
Asta on the other end of the earpiece sounded a bit helpless.
["Come on~ Saying a couple of words won't kill you. If you don't say it, how can you seize the initiative and make Stelle nod proactively? Do you still want to get eaten or not?"]
["You have to trust your strategist here."]
"..."
After a long silence, March 7th took a deep breath, prepared herself mentally, and said the words somewhat smoothly:
"Stelle, you should know I've always liked you a lot, right?"
This sentence got straight to the point, directly stating the theme of the upcoming conversation.
The little stellaron nearby: "Aba aba?"
March 7th smiled slightly at the little stellaron: "This is a conversation between sisters to deepen friendship. Kids shouldn't overthink it."
The little stellaron nodded as if understanding.
Hearing this, Stelle's heart tightened, but she also knew this was an unavoidable topic, so she nodded gently and "mm"ed.
["Don't be nervous. I know this is just my one-sided liking. If it confuses you, then I'll apologize to you here first."]
March 7th: "Don't be nervous. I know this is just my one-sided liking. If it confuses you, then I'll apologize to you here first."
Asta's move was called "advance by retreating," because she believed she understood Stelle fairly well—soft-hearted. As soon as she said this, it would immediately make the other party feel guilty, achieving the effect of "retreat one to advance two."
Sure enough, as soon as the words were out, guilt and self-blame immediately surged on Stelle's little face: "Sorry March, I... I let you down. At first, I really, really just wanted to be good friends with Firefly. I'll pay more attention to boundaries in the future!"
Hearing this, Asta behind the scenes curled her lips into a smile. Yes, just like that. No need for arguments or tears; let the other party make the promise voluntarily, while she neither initiates nor refuses, always holding the initiative.
Sigh~ Stelle this kid is still too naive, taken down in just a few words. It's too easy—
—"No, Stelle, you don't need to deliberately distance yourself from anyone for my sake. That wouldn't be fair to you."
However, just as Asta thought she had victory in hand, March 7th suddenly spoke on her own. She looked serious and said: "Stelle, hearing you say that already makes me very happy."
"At least, you're already facing the complex relationship between us... Sorry, as a girl liking you, it might seem really strange in others' eyes, right?"
Asta behind the scenes: ???
The actor ad-libbed again! This is too easy to coax, right? The other side just showed weakness, and you immediately surrendered?
"March 7th, you blockhead... Sigh, can't carry, can't carry."
Asta behind the scenes shook her head helplessly, a bit frustrated. The situation had just come under control, and with that one sentence from March 7th, she directly handed over the initiative she had just gained.
Fine, after all, they're two young people. Using formulas is simple and crude, but... it also misses out on many precious experiences.
"It's clearly just normal interactions between same-sex friends, yet I feel dissatisfied and even jealous because of it... That's a bit selfish, right?" March 7th lowered her eyelids slightly and said softly.
March 7th still remembered what had attracted her to Stelle when she first met her.
It was that innocent, pure, warming energy about her. The things attracted weren't just her, but everyone in the train crew, and friends across the galaxy.
For Firefly, who appeared midway, March 7th hadn't been too surprised from the start. A warm light couldn't fail to attract others.
She was destined to become the light for more than one person.
If she made Stelle lose these things because of herself, she would definitely regret it.
Precisely because she liked her, she had to protect her, protect someone like her from being polluted by the dust of reality, forever radiating that brilliant light.
Seeing a flash of loneliness on March 7th's face, Stelle felt a pang in her heart. She gently hugged March 7th and whispered: "March... don't think like that."
Her tone became unusually firm as she said candidly: "I like you too."
This wasn't a lie made up to cope with the situation, but Stelle's genuine inner thoughts.
"I like all of you—everyone in the train crew, and the companions we met on our journey. But I promise you, if there's a favorability value between everyone, my favorability toward you is definitely the highest."
March 7th rested her chin on Stelle's shoulder: "...Thank you, Stelle, really."
...
The little stellaron nearby, watching the two embracing, murmured: "So, this is the way to deepen friendship?"