"March, wanna go eat a big feast?"
"You're not planning to recklessly spend money again, are you? Even if Mr. Su Ran gave you a lot, you can't just waste it!"
The moment she heard the words big feast, March 7th immediately got worried that Stelle would start spending without restraint.
After all, she had amnesia and basically no concept of money.
If she developed bad spending habits now, that'd be troublesome later.
March herself barely had much allowance to begin with and didn't dare spend freely.
"It's Su Ran. He said someone's treating us to a feast, so he wants to bring us along."
Stelle held up the chat history on her phone.
"Uh…"
March glanced at it and realized it was indeed true.
But…
What was with that group photo of Su Ran, Kafka, and a little white-haired girl?
That Genius seemed awfully close with the Stellaron Hunters.
If that was the case, then what about Madam Herta?
"What's the deal with Kafka?"
Stelle put away her phone and glanced over.
"She's a woman who could become my mother!"
"Heh… funny."
March deadpanned.
Everyone knew the Stellaron Hunters were infamous criminals.
And she was talking about "becoming your mother"?
Did she realize this could seriously damage Mr. Su Ran's reputation?!
A great Genius like him shouldn't be associating with Stellaron Hunters!
"So are you coming or not?"
"...I'm coming!"
If there was free food and drinks, why wouldn't she go?
March was already considered relatively restrained.
"Alright, then I'll bring Yang too."
"Uh… is it really okay to bring that many people?"
Even if someone was treating them, wasn't it a little shameless to show up dragging everyone along?
"It's not our money. What's wrong with it?"
If messages could be sent out, Stelle would've even invited Himeko and Dan Heng over from the Astral Express.
Too bad Pom-Pom couldn't leave the train.
Otherwise the whole Astral Express family could've had dinner together!
"It's because it's not our money that it's bad!"
March loudly refuted her.
If they acted like this, what would people think of the Astral Express crew?
That they were freeloaders?
The Nameless already had a good reputation—what if Stelle ruined it?!
"Oh. So are you coming?"
"...I'm coming!"
Fine.
Free food was still free food.
March eventually surrendered her shame.
After all, this was a meal hosted by Su Ran himself.
A major figure in the galaxy!
Most people wouldn't even get the chance to meet him, yet he was personally inviting them to dinner.
"Eh? Miss Tingyun?"
After bringing Yang and March to the address Su Ran sent, Stelle immediately spotted an old acquaintance.
"What a coincidence. So all of you benefactors are here too?"
Tingyun also noticed the Astral Express crew arriving.
After a brief exchange, she learned Su Ran had invited them.
The corner of Tingyun's mouth twitched slightly.
But she said nothing.
It was only three extra guests.
Yet before she could even process that—
Two more people arrived.
Yukong and Fu Xuan.
At that moment, an ominous feeling rose in her heart.
Why were those two here too?!
"Lady Yukong, Lady Fu Xuan… why are you both here as well?"
Looking at Tingyun before her—
Exactly identical to the person in her memories—
Yukong suppressed the anger in her heart and calmly replied:
"Mr. Su Ran invited me to dinner. Coincidentally, Lady Fu Xuan also received an invitation, so we came together."
"...Mm. Was Miss Tingyun invited as well?"
Fu Xuan glanced at Tingyun without much concern.
She merely felt that Su Ran had invited quite a lot of people this time.
"Uh… not exactly what Lady Fu Xuan assumes. I… am actually the host treating Mr. Su Ran tonight."
Tingyun—rather, Phantylia—was beginning to panic internally.
Two members of the Six Charioteers had already arrived.
Would Jing Yuan show up next?!
The earlier people were manageable.
But if Jing Yuan came, her identity might actually be exposed.
"Then we've imposed upon your generosity."
"Not at all. Being able to host Lady Yukong and Lady Fu Xuan is an honor for me as well."
She truly didn't care about such a trivial amount of money.
Especially because she was spending the real Tingyun's money.
As fake Tingyun, Phantylia naturally wouldn't care about the expense.
With great enthusiasm, she ushered the two inside.
At the same time, she carefully observed whether anyone else might still arrive.
Even as a Lord Ravager—
Su Ran's shamelessness left her utterly speechless.
Calling it "a dinner invitation" was one thing.
Normally, dinner between two people would've been enough.
But counting everyone around Su Ran, there were now twelve people at this table.
And who knew if even more would show up later?
This was beyond ridiculous!
Could Jing Yuan still appear too?!
Thankfully—
Things didn't unfold as Phantylia feared.
Jing Yuan never came.
Still, once she returned to the private room and looked at the table packed full of people—
Her scalp tingled.
She had originally intended to approach this Emanator of Erudition.
But who could've guessed he'd bring this many people?!
This was absurd!
Bringing the Astral Express crew was one thing—
But why bring Yukong and Fu Xuan too?!
It made her suspect some kind of trap.
Had she already become a turtle trapped in a jar?
Filled with unease, Phantylia disguised as Tingyun cautiously survived the entire dinner.
She'd been fully prepared to flip the table and fight at any moment—
Yet the entire meal ended peacefully.
Phantylia: …
So what exactly was going on here?
Had they discovered her identity or not?
Was this really just a shameless case of someone dragging along half the world for a free meal?
The peaceful atmosphere completely baffled her.
If this had all been part of some elaborate scheme, she would've thought this Emanator of Erudition was deeply cunning and terrifyingly calculating.
But if it wasn't…
Then she only had one thing to say:
This guy's skin was seriously too thick!
And another thing—
How were Yukong and Fu Xuan calmly sitting at the same table as Kafka, a Stellaron Hunter?
Yukong had even clinked glasses with Kafka!
Or…
Was the little perception-distorting gadget Su Ran gave Kafka also affecting the two of them?
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