"Are you okay, Clara? Are you hurt?" Seele asked.
Clara shook her head. "Th-thank you, everyone. I'm fine. Nero saved Clara. It's just a few small scrapes from when I was running away."
Seele sighed. "We really shouldn't have let you run around on your own. It's far too dangerous. By the way, what were you looking for here?"
"There was a malfunction in the base's power supply device. If it isn't fixed quickly, everyone in the settlement will suffer.
"I knew there was a workshop in this town, so I wanted to come and look for it. I found all the components I needed, but I accidentally ran into a monster...
"Thankfully, everyone came to help. Clara will tell Mr. Svarog about this."
"Sounds like a real hassle... If only everything could be fixed by just patting it twice, like the radio on the train." Nero said with a sigh.
"You can fix it by patting it twice?" March stared blankly at Nero. "I thought every time something broke, we had to ask Mr. Yang and Himeko to fix it..."
"I don't know." Nero said. "Anyway, every time I pat it twice, it's fine. Like this."
As he spoke, Nero raised his hand and slapped the small TV sitting on the nearby shelf twice.
The next moment, the small TV's screen actually lit up, though the image was nothing but static, since there was no signal...
"It really works!" March said in surprise.
Seele and Bronya also looked at the TV with some shock.
And the most shocked person present was undoubtedly Clara, who had already shown outstanding talent in mechanical engineering and had mastered quite a lot of it.
"How is this possible...?" Clara's eyes were filled with disbelief.
Only Dan Heng's expression remained relatively normal. He merely said in a calm tone, "The knocking method. An ancient and simple machine-spirit soothing technique..."
In those incomplete memories lingering within him, such scenes occasionally appeared, people knocking on malfunctioning automatons, after which the automatons returned to normal and resumed operation.
And according to information found in the databank, this method had existed long ago, but it truly became popular on the Xianzhou after the Rebellion of the Automatons...
"Clara knows about the knocking method, but..."
Clara opened her mouth several times, but in the end still stopped herself.
Just the fact that a person could fly was already far beyond her understanding, so someone who could fly and then fix and turn on a TV just by knocking on it... was normal, right?
'Normal... it should be... normal, right?'
"Actually, we're planning to go meet Svarog now."
Before Clara's brain could completely short-circuit, Stelle pulled the conversation back on track. This young girl shouldn't have to bear so much.
Clara blinked. "...Huh?"
Stelle's words shifted her attention. Like a drowning person grabbing onto a floating plank, she immediately latched on.
"Does everyone have something important to discuss with Mr. Svarog? Clara can help pass along a message..."
Seele shook her head. "No. This time, we have to talk to him face to face. Can you take us to see him?"
Clara said worriedly, "But... Mr. Svarog has always disliked communicating with others, especially the people of Wildfire..."
"I know that." Seele said. "But he's avoided talking too many times already. This time, we insist on seeing him."
"...Everyone is working for the people of the Underworld, but Mr. Svarog doesn't believe in human emotions. He only believes in the results of calculations."
"So I can't take everyone to see him... If you come into conflict with Mr. Svarog, someone will definitely get hurt. Innocent people might be affected too."
Clara refused everyone's request.
"You child..." Seele raised her hand, then lowered it again.
Nero, meanwhile, spread his hands and said, "See? Sampo is just a scammer. Back then, we should've done what I said, kick the door open, go in, pin Svarog to the ground, and make him listen to us!"
"Since the result we're pursuing is certain and must be obtained, then everything along the way before reaching that result should be swept aside!"
"Huh?" Clara understood what Nero meant, but she was also frightened.
Although she didn't know whether the cannons on Mr. Svarog's body or Nero's ability to slash people out of thin air were more powerful, she clearly didn't want to see a conflict happen.
After hearing Nero's words, Dan Heng also glanced at him. Although the target wasn't quite right, in many ways, Little Fish's way of thinking was very "Hunt"-like.
Even though Little Fish usually didn't like using titles like "The Reignbow Arbiter," in other aspects his Xianzhou flavor was unexpectedly strong...
As he was thinking this, Dan Heng suddenly sensed an inexplicable pressure. That pressure flashed by in an instant, and it even felt familiar.
At the same time, Nero also felt something and looked up, but saw nothing.
After Nero looked up, Stelle also raised her head, her gaze seeming to search for something as well, but like Nero, she found nothing.
As for the others, they didn't show any particular reaction.
Seeing Clara refuse, and then get frightened by Nero, Bronya spoke up.
Her tone was rather gentle. Paired with Nero, it gave the feeling of one playing the bad cop and the other the good cop.
"Clara, you said it yourself last time, didn't you? Svarog's duty is to watch over the Underworld and preserve the civilization here. If we share the same wish and seek cooperation, why would he refuse?"
Clara was just a child, and in a sense, she had been very well protected by Svarog. She was a little persuaded.
But at this moment, Clara still said, "I understand Mr. Svarog. He won't be moved by people's wishes. He only follows rational judgment."
"This world is experiencing something very terrifying... In his view, the surface has already nearly reached its end."
Hearing this, Bronya was slightly startled, her eyes widening.
Clara continued.
"According to Mr. Svarog's calculations, relying solely on the strength of the people of the Underworld makes it impossible to stop the disaster from arriving."
"His response plan is to keep the people of the Underworld far away from the source of the disaster, so they can survive a little longer..."
"Isn't that just locking us in a cage?" Seele crossed her arms, extremely displeased.
"Ridiculous. We're going to die anyway, so what difference does it make whether it's a couple days earlier or later? We're not even allowed to struggle a little?"
"Maybe his calculations are correct, but you also said it yourself, just relying on the people of the Underworld isn't enough."
Stelle smiled at Clara and said, "But now it's different. Besides the people of the Underworld, there are also people from the Overworld."
Stelle pointed at Bronya. "And besides the people of Belobog, there are also aliens, us, the Trailblazing Squad!"
March also smiled. "The times have changed! He has to gather new parameters and recalculate to get accurate results. Otherwise, what he's doing can't really be called rational, can it? Believe in us. We'll find a way."
Nero and Dan Heng also nodded, and unexpectedly spoke in unison, "Sticking stubbornly to one's own view can't be considered rational judgment."
"A-aliens?" Clara looked at everyone in confusion.