"???"
When another Astral Express suddenly warped in, Asta and everyone at Herta Space Station were completely dumbfounded.
Asta had seen the Starsea Empire's ships when she and Herta went to Pier Point. Those massive vessels blotted out the sky, a truly spectacular sight.
She had even been wondering whether the space station could accommodate those gigantic space warships.
In the end, she never expected the other party to arrive in an Astral Express instead.
"Huh?!"
Himeko and March 7th were even more astonished.
"Himeko, look! That Astral Express looks almost the same as the one we're riding!"
"Could there be other Astral Expresses out there in the universe?"
The Starsea Empire's Astral Express had been modified from Vill-V's Second Divine Key, with additional modern technologies integrated into it.
Its overall appearance was slightly more futuristic than the original, especially the Starsea Empire emblem engraved along the side of the train, which was particularly eye-catching.
"Uh..."
"The Astral Express was created by the Aeon of Trailblaze, Akivili, as a tool to carry Them and the Nameless across interstellar journeys."
"In theory, there could indeed be more than one such vehicle. But when I repaired the Astral Express, I never found any records of others."
Himeko rubbed her temple.
"Also... why do I feel like there's something strange about that train?!"
Everyone collectively turned their attention toward the Starsea Empire's Astral Express.
Boom!—
"Slow down slow down slow down!! The landing distance is too short, hey!"
"This thing really isn't as easy to pilot as a warship... couldn't one of the shipgirls have given us a lift instead?!"
Under countless gazes, the train slowly descended from the starry sky.
It docked near the platform of Herta Space Station.
Click—
After the cabin door opened.
Kiana was the first to hop out.
She froze when she saw March 7th and Himeko.
"Instructor Himeko!"
"?"
"You know me?"
Himeko looked bewildered as she glanced at the white-haired girl.
She had absolutely no impression of her and did not remember ever meeting this girl.
"Kiana, mind your manners. Come with me to greet Station Chief Asta first..."
Murata Himeko landed lightly on the ground.
Then—
"Ah!"
Himeko's eyes met Himeko's, and both of them froze at the same time.
They stood roughly five or six meters apart, on two sections of the outer platform of the space station.
On the left stood the Himeko of the Astral Express, wearing a silky white short dress and a black-and-gold coat.
On the right stood Murata Himeko in the Starsea Empire's casual attire.
Both had identical long red hair, golden eyes, and faces that matched down to the finest detail.
The Astral Express' Himeko carried a sharp, spirited air unique to a scientist.
Murata Himeko felt more like an elder sister or a senior figure.
"..."
The two Himekos stared at each other for a long while, stunned.
March 7th, Kiana, Bronya, along with Asta and the space station researchers who had come to greet them, all looked left, then right.
"Uh..."
Kiana was the first to break the silence. She poked Murata Himeko.
"Instructor Himeko, is that your long-lost twin sister?"
"Huh?"
Murata Himeko quickly ran through everything she knew about Murata Ryuunosuke in her mind, confirming that she absolutely did not have a twin sister.
Even if she did, with the technological level of the Solar System at the time, there was no way they could have been separated across who knew how many light-years into another universe.
"Uh..."
At the same time, March 7th also poked Himeko.
"Your sister?"
"..."
The two exchanged a glance, then stepped forward simultaneously and introduced themselves in unison.
"Hello, my name is Himeko. I'm the navigator of the Astral Express."
"Hello, my name is also Himeko. I'm the captain of the Starsea Empire's advance team."
"???"
Another stretch of silence followed.
"..."
From their appearance to their names, they were completely identical. If not for the difference in hairstyles and clothing, Kiana would have thought a clone had appeared.
The white-haired girl quietly contacted Setsuna through internal communications.
"Commander, Commander, I think we've found Instructor Himeko's long-lost twin sister!"
"...They shouldn't be related by blood."
"Then they're sisters from different fathers and mothers?"
"What?"
"Uh..."
The Astral Express' Himeko paused for a moment, her gaze sweeping over Murata Himeko, Kiana, and Bronya.
Then she looked at the Astral Express behind them.
She pinched herself. Not a dream. Right.
At Herta Space Station, she had encountered another Himeko identical to herself, who was even piloting a nearly identical Astral Express.
I've run into another me.
The only difference was that the other train crew had more members.
If she wasn't losing her mind, then perhaps this was another one of Aha's malicious pranks. That one did have a prior record of causing incidents aboard the Astral Express.
"Ah!"
Asta stared at the two silent Himekos and the two train crews, stunned for a while as well.
"Um, how about everyone come over first? ...Let's talk together?"
"Miss Himeko—ah, I mean, Miss Himekos?"
...
Twenty minutes later.
Master Control Zone of Herta Space Station.
Inside the sci-fi styled main chamber, the two groups of train crew members sat in separate rows, introducing themselves to each other under Asta's coordination.
It took them some time to clarify each other's identities.
Yet the two Himekos' gazes kept drifting toward the other side.
Locking eyes with oneself was an extremely bizarre experience. One glance—so strange, so awkward.
They lowered their heads in unison.
When they looked up again and met each other's eyes, it was even more awkward. They both turned their gazes away at the same time.
Kiana, March 7th, and the others couldn't help but look at Murata Himeko, then at the Himeko across from them.
Their faces were identical, though their temperaments differed slightly.
"Ahem. In any case, it's a pleasure to meet you."
Himeko decided to set aside the matter of appearances for now and prioritize business.
She stood up and shook hands with the other version of herself.
"We represent the Starsea Empire and are temporarily stationed at Herta Space Station for inspection and resupply."
"A pleasure. We are members of the Astral Express."
Himeko and Himeko exchanged greetings.
"Hm?"
The moment they made contact, both sensed a subtle difference between the other and themselves.
One wielded Honkai energy.
The other wielded Imaginary energy.
"Oh..."
"So that means you're from another world?"
March 7th didn't notice anything unusual and leaned forward curiously to ask.
"I've heard of you. The nation that went to war with the Interastral Peace Corporation recently—that was you, right? Hmm... When the announcement was broadcast across the universe, it really startled me."
"Are you from an even more distant world? There's never been any record of the Starsea Empire along the Astral Express' routes."
The war between the Starsea Empire and the Interastral Peace Corporation had caused a tremendous stir. Aside from primitive civilizations in remote galaxies, almost anyone capable of receiving IPC transmissions had heard at least something about it.
But for the vast majority of people, the Starsea Empire was still a completely unfamiliar concept.
"Hmm... The way we define 'world' is a bit different from how you define it. If you insist on understanding it that way, then the Solar System could be considered our forward base."
Himeko thought for a moment before answering.
"Oh..."
The Astral Express had been created for the sake of Trailblaze. Those who boarded it did so to explore ever more distant and unknown worlds.
They immediately developed a strong interest in this faraway civilization from another world.
"Then then then... where exactly is your country? How did you build an Astral Express that looks exactly like ours? How many worlds here have you visited? ..."
"Are you followers of Akivili too? ..."
March 7th fired off a barrage of questions in one breath, her eyes sparkling as she looked at them.
"Well... that's not something I can explain clearly in just a sentence or two. If you're interested, you can visit Pier Point. It's currently serving as the Starsea Empire's base."
Murata Himeko marked a location on the star chart.
"Oh!"
"Wasn't that originally the headquarters of the Interastral Peace Corporation? Ordinary people couldn't even get close..."
March 7th could directly feel how the war had reshaped the balance of power in the universe.
"Himeko, Himeko, when we have time, can we go take a look?" She shot Himeko a meaningful glance.
"...I'll consider it."
Himeko was still full of questions about the Starsea Empire's train crew—especially after encountering another version of herself who wielded a different kind of power. It was simply too strange.
"The Astral Express will be docked at Herta Space Station for a while. Mm... perhaps we can take this time to get to know each other better?"
"The situation here feels a little... unusual."
Seeing that the Starsea Empire's attitude seemed fairly friendly, Himeko took the initiative to extend the invitation.
"With pleasure."
The two Himekos reached an understanding once more.
Pfft—
Sitting off to the side, Bronya—who was usually expressionless—suddenly let out a soft laugh.
"Hm? What are you laughing at?" Kiana leaned over to ask.
"Bronya just thinks it's very interesting to see two Instructor Himekos together. Mm, if we all return to the Starsea Empire together in the future, it would probably be even more interesting," Bronya replied.
"..."
Kiana didn't find it particularly amusing.
"What's so funny about that? Maybe someday we'll even run into another you."
"If we get a few more Bronyas, we could sit down and play Landlord together. Wouldn't that be lively?"