March 7th's face practically melted as she threw herself into Sylvia's arms, looking like she was about to burst into tears.
This ghost of a place was pitch-black, completely deserted, and those bugs loved to turn invisible, giving her a heart attack every other second.
The bugs were already repulsive enough to look at, and March 7th absolutely loathed them. To make matters worse, she kept running into them face-to-face out of nowhere.
It really had almost scared the tears right out of her.
Coupled with the fact that they had just been hunted by a whole swarm, seeing a reliable "parental figure" at long last made March 7th so thrilled she could have kissed her.
"I finally found you! You have no idea what kind of monsters and demons this lady had to deal with along the way..." March 7th complained with a miserable face.
She had only wanted to find something to do; how did she end up being hunted like this?
Besides, the communications here were completely cut off, so she couldn't even send out a message. It felt just like a horror movie, which utterly terrified her.
"What are you guys looking for me for? Didn't I tell you I had things to take care of?"
March 7th's current look was a dead ringer for her own crying sticker, which thoroughly amused Sylvia. Even though it was a bit mean, Sylvia couldn't help but burst out laughing right in front of her.
"Waaah—you're laughing at me!! I'm seriously going to cry!"
March 7th was so mad she snapped her jaws as if to bite, which was actually quite adorable.
Meanwhile, further ahead, the Herta puppet—who had been buffed by Sylvia—was already charging forward with her massive hammer, dealing out destruction.
Although Herta herself always said her puppets weren't exactly high-tier combat units, after Sylvia's enhancement combined with that sturdy puppet body, smashing these bugs was absolutely no problem at all.
Plus, Sylvia had stuffed Silver Wolf's AI inside, so it was basically running on autoplay.
Standing to the side, Stelle saw that the crisis was averted. She had also heard Sylvia's voice and was just about to say hello. But the moment she turned her head, she caught sight of March 7th buried in Sylvia's arms.
For some reason, Stelle couldn't help but feel like her timing was a bit off.
"..."
She looked down at the fiery lance in her hand, then glanced at the bow and arrows March 7th had dropped nearby.
She thought about it carefully.
Then, she sheathed her lance.
Immediately after, she turned her back, executed a fierce backward leap, and sent her whole body flying straight toward Sylvia!
Amused, Sylvia reached out a hand and caught Stelle by the collar, swinging her around a couple of times before finally coming to a stop.
"What do you think you're doing..."
Spun around by her collar, Stelle felt a little dizzy. She blinked her eyes, trying to put on an indignant, huffy expression. But even when she puffed out her cheeks in annoyance, she just looked incredibly silly.
It was pure cuteness.
"Pfft..."
Sylvia started laughing again. Seeing a girl who usually looked so cool act like a total goofball in front of her was just too funny.
Hearing the laughter snapped Stelle out of it. She crossed her arms, completely ignoring the fact that Sylvia was still holding her by the collar, and glared directly at her.
Her meaning was loud and clear.
"...Stop fooling around, we're still in the middle of a fight. You were standing perfectly fine on your own just now, which is why I went to support March first."
"..."
Trying her best to diminish her own presence, March 7th looked at Sylvia, then at Stelle.
She really wanted to ask if the two of them could stop flirting and causing a scene right in front of her, or at least not trap her in the middle of it. It made it feel like she had willingly jumped into a messy love triangle.
It was so awkward!
But no, a person like Stelle didn't even have the word 'awkward' in her vocabulary. And Sylvia would definitely just stand there grinning.
March 7th, pull yourself together!
With that thought, March 7th quickly scrambled out of Sylvia's embrace. She reached out, caught Stelle under the arms, and dragged her away from Sylvia's grip, single-handedly putting an end to the bizarre tableau.
"Ahaha... thanks. If you hadn't shown up, Sylvia, I wouldn't have known what to do."
March 7th scooped up her bow and arrows again, then cast a shield over the Herta puppet ahead.
The Herta puppet was still locked in a noisy, clattering battle with the bugs.
Quite a few bugs had been drawn in by Stelle and March 7th, but fortunately, the corridor itself wasn't very wide, so there wasn't too much to worry about.
"You two seem pretty energetic to me, coming out completely unscathed after being hunted by so many bugs."
"Ugh... don't mention the bugs." March 7th's entire face crumpled. If given another chance, she wouldn't come down here even if it killed her.
Beside her, Stelle spread her hands with a thoroughly innocent expression. "I don't know why so many bugs chased us either. Truly bizarre."
"What do you mean bizarre? It's completely because of that box you smashed!" March 7th retorted fiercely. Who was the sole reason they had to run for their lives so miserably just now?
Stelle scratched her head sheepishly. "Hehe~"
"Sigh..." Seeing Stelle play dumb, March 7th finally gave up and let out a long sigh. "Sylvia, you should really move onto the Express soon... I don't think I can keep this kid in line anymore."
Seeing March 7th's dead-fish eyes, Sylvia laughed, spacing out with joy. "Easy to say, easy to do. I'll head over in a while. First, tell me what exactly happened with you two?"
The story wasn't complicated. After listening, Sylvia figured it might be some leftover scraps Ruan Mei had abandoned during her research. Once the two of them got contaminated by it, they became bug magnets.
But if that was the case... wasn't it actually perfect?
Sylvia had been stressing over how scattered the bugs were, thinking she'd have to scour over half the zone. Now, two ready-made pieces of bait had delivered themselves right to her door. It would be a waste not to make good use of them.
With that in mind, Sylvia let out a smile. "...I pretty much get it. Since that's the case, we can just use the two of you to lure the bugs over. Saves me the trouble of hunting them down."
"Oh—so we're bait! I want to do it!" Stelle looked raring to go.
March 7th, however, shook her head at lightning speed.
But Sylvia patted her on the shoulder comfortingly. "Since you're already here."
March 7th nearly lost it. "...That Xianzhou proverb isn't meant to be used like this!"
"Well, the meaning is pretty much the same anyway. Besides, with Herta in front and me behind you, nothing bad will happen."
Sylvia's reassurance was highly effective. Shaking off her psychological trauma, March 7th recalled Sylvia's sheer combat prowess, as well as the strength of the Herta puppet she had just witnessed.
"Then... you have to treat me to something delicious! I remember you know how to cook."
"Fine, fine, fine. I owe each of you a meal, how about that?"
Hearing that food was on the table, Stelle gave March 7th a big thumbs-up without hesitation, throwing in a wink for good measure. She hadn't even thought of demanding a meal from Sylvia just now.
Thus, Stelle made no effort to hide her gratitude and praise: "March, leave it to you to know how to beg for food."
"That is not how you use that phrase either!! You're infuriating me!"
Puffed up with annoyance, March 7th hoisted her bow, grabbed Sylvia by the arm, and spun around to leave.
Having already played out her jealous routine moments ago, Stelle was now highly enthusiastic about acting as bait.
Not only did she ignore March 7th's actions, but she also shouldered her bat and took the lead, marching up ahead to clear the path alongside the Herta puppet.
--+--
T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL