[She suddenly jumped onto Koyomi Araragi's back, her cool chin rubbing against his burning earlobe. "In my view, they might be playing a borrow-a-knife-to-kill tactic~"]
"Hey hey!" Koyomi Araragi shook his body but couldn't shake off this piece of sticky candy. "Shinobu, aren't you thinking too sinisterly? Besides, Duke Inferno looks much more dangerous than any knife. Who kills who is still uncertain!"
"Sigh, you are still too naive." Shinobu Oshino flipped down and landed, sighing. "Usually, threats that float on the surface are not real threats. True threats never show their fangs too early."
——
[Stelle suddenly received a message in the Astral Express group chat. Pom-Pom said the train's jump drive was ready and they could head to the next stop soon. However, there would be a small train meeting before departure, and everyone was asked to gather in the observation car.]
[When she arrived at the car, March 7th, Dan Heng, and the others were already there. Pom-Pom was the last to arrive, saying there were some important matters to prepare.]
["Dear passengers, you should all know by now, right? The destination of this journey is [The Star of the Gala] Penacony. Although this conductor also knows that everyone has been looking forward to that famous cosmic star hotel for a long time, before departure, there are three things I must remind everyone again."]
["First, Asdana, where Penacony is located, is a star system filled with [Memoria]. It was historically one of the [Great Holes] where the Memory Zone leaked. Even after thousands of years, the Memoria concentration ahead is still higher than average."]
["Usually there won't be any major problems, but everyone's physical condition is different. If you experience dizziness, hallucinations, or memory disturbances, you must not take them lightly!"]
["Second, Penacony is the territory of the [Harmony] Family. This is also the first time the Family has publicly sent invitations to other factions. Remember, the train is invited as a guest. You must follow the rules that need to be followed."]
["Finally, the third point. Rather than a requirement… Pom-Pom would like to make an earnest request to everyone. If possible — I hope that while you are on vacation, you can also spare some time to help inquire about news of a few Nameless."]
[Himeko explained that thousands of years ago, Penacony was still a border prison of the company. It was the Trailblaze that connected it with the myriad stars. The Astral Express had also visited back then — just as journeys have gatherings and partings, some Nameless chose to stay behind and made Penacony their final stop.]
——
Marvel Universe.
On the balcony of the Wakanda Royal Palace, the setting sun dyed the vibranium spires golden. Steve had just picked up his teacup when he nearly choked on Pom-Pom's words.
"He said… the entire planet is a hotel?" There was a pause of disbelief in his voice, as if the word had to roll around in his mouth before he dared to say it.
Bucky leaned against the railing nearby, his metal arm reflecting the afterglow of the sunset. Watching Steve's exaggerated reaction, he raised an eyebrow, his expression somewhere between holding back laughter and bursting out laughing. "Honestly, the worlds in the Celestial Screen have refreshed our understanding many times already. You still find it strange?"
"Of course it's strange." King T'Challa walked over slowly from behind, a faint smile on his lips. "Based on our Earth understanding, hotels are usually related to tourism. But if an entire planet is a hotel, what would the people living inside tour? Do they just fool around in the hotel all day?"
"Maybe it's interstellar tourism or something?" Bucky guessed.
"I think you two should be bolder with your thinking." T'Challa shook his head gently. "That fluffy rabbit mentioned [Memoria] earlier. Combined with the methods of the Garden of Recollection, I think the Family might have turned 'memory' into a tourism project."
"Memory can be toured?"
Steve and Bucky looked at each other. Both saw the same Brooklyn-boy bewilderment in each other's eyes.
T'Challa did not answer directly but asked instead, "Do you still remember when March 7th and Fu Xuan recovered their memories? If you could place yourself inside someone else's memory and experience events they once went through, wouldn't you find it novel and interesting?"
"The key is that traveling in memories is different from reality. No matter how magnificent a real landscape is, you'll eventually get tired of it. But there are so many memories in the universe — there will always be newer and more novel ones waiting for you."
——
["According to the passenger roster, the three passengers who got off back then were named Tiernan, Legwork, and Lazarina. They were once the train's guard, mechanic, and surveyor. There is no other information besides that."]
[March 7th had a difficult expression and scratched her head. "Only names and occupations? They might not even be real names… Isn't this like looking for a needle in a haystack?"]
[Himeko smiled gently. "Just go with the flow. Considering the diversity of the Nameless… we might even find their descendants, or with extremely small probability — meet the originals themselves."]
[The meeting ended here. There was still some time before departure, so everyone could pack their luggage first.]
[Suddenly, Stelle saw that the latest Interastral Peace Broadcast had been updated, so she decided to listen to it to pass the time.]
["The Interastral Peace Corporation and the Xianzhou Alliance have once again signed a mutually beneficial trade agreement, which is beneficial to bilateral economies. At the signing ceremony, the spokesperson of the Interastral Peace Corporation's Pioneer Department and Miss Yukong, Helm Master of the Luofu's Sky-Faring Commission, friendly exchanged opinions and reached consensus on many issues."]
["Throughout history, Emperor Rupert I left behind many terrifying relics in the universe. Among them, the [Machine Emperor's Mausoleum] has attracted attention from all sides since its discovery. Initiated by Chief Scholar of the Intelligentsia Guild's Armed Archaeology School, Allen One-Arm Jones, and with the participation and cooperation of Genius Society member Screwllum, the excavation of this steel relic with a potential disaster rating of Ω has officially begun, unveiling its mysterious veil."]
[The Intelligentsia Guild spokesperson stated: We have no way of knowing what astonishing discoveries Scholar Jones will make, but we hope that his discoveries will allow us to further understand the Emperor and spare the universe from once again enduring the terror brought by his arrival.]
——
Dragon Raja.
"If I remember correctly, Emperor Rupert was a member of the Genius Society, right?" Caesar vaguely remembered hearing this name somewhere, but couldn't recall the details.
"Yes, but it seems he has already passed away. Like Screwllum, he was also an inorganic life form." Chu Zihang said.
"Why do I get the feeling from the company's tone that this Genius was not a good person?" Caesar felt that this Genius was not of [Erudition] but of [Destruction]. Not only was the company wary of him, even Screwllum, who was also an inorganic life, didn't dare to slack off.
"Geniuses don't necessarily stand on the side of justice and righteousness, right?" Chu Zihang said indifferently. "[Erudition]'s Nous doesn't look at moral standards when choosing people. As long as they reach His standards on the path of wisdom, He will cast His gaze — regardless of whether the other party has brought deep disasters to the universe."
"You say disaster. How disastrous could it be?" Caesar frowned. "Could it be more disastrous than the cosmic locust plague?"