The scene began to scroll.
It was a galaxy, utterly silent.
A blinding white light tore through the darkness.
Immediately after, Phainon, clad in a black robe and golden mask, appeared out of thin air in the galaxy, as if sculpted by an invisible printer.
The next second, the whistle of the Astral Expressroared into existence.
Once.
Twice.
The frequency of the whistles grew higher and more urgent, like a death overture on the verge of spiraling out of control!
The train's speed drastically decreased in front of Phainon, their massive steel body almost frozen on the star tracks.
Unfortunately, it didn't come to a complete stop.
The train's wheel hub precisely rolled over Phainon's head.
Thump—
Another sound.
Thump—
The dull thud of impact was exceptionally clear in the dead silence of the universe.
The train finally stopped completely.
In the scene, Welt Yang, wearing a space mecha suit, emerged from the carriage and eventually brought Phainon onto the train.
Then, the screen went completely black.
"Rewind."
Ms. Herta's voice was cold, devoid of emotion.
"As you command, great Ms. Herta." The mirror responded humbly, and the image immediately reversed.
Phainon appeared out of nowhere.
The Astral Express roared into view.
"Thump—thump—"
Crushed twice… "Again." Ms. Herta's command was not to be questioned.
The scene rewound once more.
Phainon appeared… "Stop."
This time, Ms. Herta called for a stop.
The entire Space Station's massive computing power was running frantically, countless data streams flashing in her eyes.
She was absolutely certain that at the moment Phainon appeared, an extremely faint but incredibly clear signal had emerged.
A signal from the Erudition, Erudition!
"Why…"
Ms. Herta fell into a long silence, even her genius brain feeling a touch of bewilderment.
"Oh! Great Ms. Herta, is there any trouble your humble servant can share?" The fourth mirror asked fawningly.
"The path of the Aeons is inherently unpredictable, but I happened to establish a hub between the Space Station and the mechanical head."
Ms. Herta mumbled to herself, as if speaking to the mirror, or perhaps to the entire universe.
Her beautiful brows were tightly furrowed.
"Could it be that my observations… are also within the mechanical head's calculations?"
"Destruction, Elation, and then the original Erudition…"
"One person, unexpectedly intertwined with three completely different paths."
"A… very challenging research, isn't it?"
The mirror quickly echoed: "Ah! Yes, yes, yes! What great Ms. Herta says is absolutely correct! So, how may I help you resolve your worries?"
"Forget it."
Ms. Herta glanced at it, a hint of pity in her tone.
"If you answer this question, you will turn into a pile of useless scrap metal within the next Planck time."
"Thank you, Ms. Herta, for sparing my life!"
… "Thump-thump—"
A dull knocking sound, particularly jarring in the dead of night.
A Staff Member who had just fallen asleep was startled awake, rubbing his blurry eyes.
Still a bit disoriented, he fumbled around and put on the glasses from his bedside table.
"Thump-thump—"
The knocking continued, unhurried, with a heart-pounding rhythm.
"Stop knocking, I'm coming!"
The Staff Member, suppressing his irritation at being woken up, yanked open the door.
"What do you want? Don't you need to sleep in the middle of the night?!"
The next moment, he saw the figure standing outside the door.
A familiar black robe.
A cold golden mask.
The Staff Member instantly broke out in a cold sweat, his blood seemingly congealing!
"The… the black-robed masked man!!!"
His tongue tied, he stammered incoherently: "B-b-brother! I-I didn't know it was you… You, you're so… so refined… What I said just now, it was, it was… all a misunderstanding!"
Phainon ignored his fear, coldly spitting out a few words.
"Give me… the trash can…"
"Huh?"
The Staff Member's brain froze for half a second.
But the instinct for survival had already driven his body to swiftly grab the trash can from the corner of the room.
Phainon glanced at it and shook his head.
"Inside… the trash… I don't want it."
He paused, then added.
"The cans… the bottles… give them to me."
"Yes!"
The Staff Member felt as if he had been granted a reprieve, immediately pouring the sundries from the trash can onto the floor, then frantically finding several empty bottles from the table, carefully placing them into the can, and presenting it with both hands.
Phainon took the trash can and casually tossed it into a huge, bulging sack behind him, taller than he was.
Then, he dragged the clanking sack and turned to leave, his black robe merging into the shadows of the corridor, disappearing completely.
The Staff Member collapsed to the ground, touching his pajamas, which were already soaked with cold sweat, and gasped for breath.
"My heavens… why hasn't he left the Space Stationyet?"
He stared at the empty corridor, a ridiculous thought appearing in his mind.
"But… what does this Deliverer want with so many trash cans and bottles? Is he going to steal cans?"