[The Reverie Hotel, Reality]
Lobby of the guest accommodation area.
A knight in silver armor with fiery red hair sat quietly in a chair. His emerald-bright eyes swept over everyone passing through the lobby, as well as the magnificent decorations throughout the Reverie Hotel.
He was still carrying out the task Nero had entrusted to him, but even now, he had found nothing suspicious in reality, no suspicious people or incidents.
Of course, that was a good thing. Even if it proved that Nero's concerns had only been an anxious guess, no one being harmed was clearly the better outcome.
Waiting here was not a boring task for a Knight of Beauty. Argenti had eyes that excelled at discovering beauty. To him, every second spent walking through the world was a trial bestowed by Beauty.
Whether from the countless different people around him, the splendid decorations, or the drinks mixed by the bartender and the stories shared with guests behind the bar, there was always something worth savoring.
The knight waited patiently. From time to time, Argenti took out the gray lump that was supposed to be Duke Ifrit of the Ever-Flame Mansion and looked at it.
This was also something Nero had asked him to do. Although it no longer resembled what it once had been, Argenti believed Nero would have a way.
Just as the legends recorded, a gentle kiss from Idrila, the Goddess of Beauty, could keep an apple perfectly fresh for an endlessly long time.
And in that strange dream, he had personally witnessed Nero lightly brushing a fingertip across a warped, worn record, restoring it to its original state.
Because of that, Argenti believed that if Nero truly had need of the Duke of the Ever-Flame Mansion, then when they met again, he would have a way to restore the Duke to his original form.
Suddenly, he received a message.
The knight took out his phone and checked it. After a moment, the smile on his face gradually faded.
Argenti put away his phone, stood up, then slowly sat back down.
He took a deep breath. He hadn't expected something like this to happen.
His first instinct was to get up and investigate the truth, but he still had a mission to fulfill. It was his duty.
Fortunately, this time, he was no longer walking the galaxy alone.
The followers of the God of Beauty would not easily accept Their silent departure once again...
———
[Golden Hour, Aideen Park]
"N-Nero disappeared!"
Huohuo's eyes, marked with paw prints, narrowed slightly as she stared in shock at the message that had just arrived on her phone.
"What? That kid disappeared?"
Tail floated beside Huohuo and let out an exaggerated cry. He found it hard to imagine that Nero could actually be threatened.
Huohuo nodded. Her eyes were filled with unease and worry.
The four people standing there all looked at the message on their phones. After hearing what Huohuo said, the atmosphere among them became silent almost instantly, completely out of place with the people around them who were enjoying themselves.
Yanqing took a deep breath. After a brief moment of shock, he quickly regained control of his expression and emotions and spoke to the companions beside him.
"This isn't good news, but it isn't the worst news either. He's only missing. Given Nero's strength, very few people could pose a threat to him."
Yanqing looked at his companions, each wearing a different expression, then at Bailu, who was anxiously pacing in circles. He spoke first to calm everyone down.
"Nero may not be in danger. He might have simply ended up in some corner of the dream. We should begin investigating immediately. We also need to speak with the Family. Since they control the dream here, they may have some clues."
As the genius youth who often accompanied Jing Yuan, Yanqing had occasionally been rather arrogant in the past.
But now, he calmed himself as quickly as possible and immediately began thinking through the situation and making arrangements.
Jing Yuan had probably never given Yanqing especially detailed lessons on strategy, but through admiration and constant exposure, Yanqing had ultimately inherited a little of Jing Yuan's way of doing things.
Guinaifen, who had been livestreaming here and showing Penacony's dazzling extravagance to her audience back on the Xianzhou without holding anything back, slowly walked over. Her equipment and software used up too many resources, so she hadn't received the message yet.
But as someone who had traveled far and wide, Guinaifen immediately sensed that something was wrong with the emotions of the "little kids" around her, at least in her eyes. She instinctively frowned and asked what had happened.
"Nero disappeared..."
The expression on the Medicine Dragon Lady's face was full of sadness, and her voice was filled with urgency. Unlike Yanqing, Bailu, who still retained most of a child's innocence and optimism, couldn't calmly think things through.
Compared to everyone else, she showed her emotions much more openly. She was practically one step away from saying she wanted to call home and bring reinforcements.
But this wasn't something that could be rushed. To avoid causing an interstellar diplomatic incident, they had to negotiate with the Family first before doing anything.
Of course, acting first and explaining later wasn't impossible. But the Luofu had only recently recovered from disaster, and the Alliance still needed to negotiate over Phantylia and the Luofu itself.
Yanqing felt that unless there was a very obvious crisis, the Luofu could only spare limited manpower, and those people might not make much difference anyway.
After all, circumstances were stronger than people. The General had too many things to consider. No matter what, Jing Yuan's personality was different from Nero's.
If Nero were the General, he would probably have brought people charging over immediately and started raiding Penacony without another word...
Thinking about it that way, Nero really wasn't suited to being a General.
And the person they needed to find now was him.
While Yanqing was thinking, he suddenly realized something and looked up at Guinaifen.
Guinaifen had realized the same thing.
She hadn't ended the livestream.
Which meant the news of Nero's disappearance had already been sent back.
After all, Nero was extremely influential on the Luofu. His fanbase practically overlapped with the fanbases of everyone on the Luofu...
But after his brief surprise, Yanqing actually felt this outcome wasn't bad.
After all, circumstances were stronger than people. A "palace coup" would instead give the Luofu one more explanation to present to the Alliance.
People become like those they spend time with. After spending so much time around Nero, Yanqing's thinking had become much more "flexible." His ability to accept situations and ideas that went beyond the rules had increased dramatically.
Jing Yuan was actually pleased to see that, because he himself wasn't someone who always followed the rules.
When the time came, he would probably tell the Alliance Nero's true identity directly, then lead people straight to Penacony. As for the issue of "circumstances being stronger than people," he could leave the other senior members of the Alliance to deal with that headache.
———
[The Radiant Feldspar]
Golden light shone down, passing through the floating bookshelves and covering the knowledge and history contained within the grand library with a layer of gold.
Walking through the library entrance and looking at the towering bookshelves and countless books everywhere, Qingque sighed.
She already had to take care of books back at the Divination Commission. Who would have thought that after coming to Penacony, she'd end up in another place like this?
Earlier, she had actually been sunbathing in the Oasis Hour while casually promoting Celestial Jade to other people enjoying the slow pace of the afternoon park, playing a few rounds of cards along the way.
But as she played, Qingque suddenly felt like coming to the library.
Although she had no interest in diligently expanding her knowledge or improving herself, she still felt it would be a shame to come all this way and ignore such a huge collection of books.
Even though she lacked motivation, Qingque wasn't actually opposed to reading here.
She quickly figured out why.
Organizing the library at the Divination Commission was work.
Reading here was a vacation.
The difference was that one had to be done whether she wanted to or not, while the other could be done only if she felt like it.
Come in high spirits, leave disappointed.
If she deliberately avoided reading simply because she thought it went against her way of life, she'd only be trapping herself instead. That wouldn't be living freely.
Do it if she wanted to.
Don't do it if she didn't.
Their personalities might be different, but Qingque and Nero actually shared a highly similar outlook on life.
Besides Qingque, Clara, Svarog, and Lynx were also in the library.
Clara and Svarog hoped to find knowledge and designs in Penacony's grand library that could be used in Belobog, while Lynx was interested in Penacony's history and the adventure stories of Dreamseekers.
But bad news soon arrived.
The four people in the library remained unexpectedly calm.
Although they were surprised by the news, none of them panicked.
That was only natural.
After all, among the four were the leaders of the Robot Settlement, an experienced adventurer, and a master of keeping scores under control.
Their experiences allowed them to deal with sudden events more calmly and decisively. Each of them understood that simply panicking at a time like this would accomplish nothing.
———
[Golden Hour, Clockie's Statue]
After another discussion, the members of the Astral Express once again decided to split up and investigate.
At this moment, everyone else had already left.
Only Welt remained.
He let out a quiet breath, then turned toward a certain direction.
"Honored guest, would you be willing to come out and meet me?"
The next moment, a blue-purple-haired woman resting a hand on her sword appeared beside him.
Welt turned his head slightly to look at her.
The instant he saw her face, even someone as composed as him showed a look of surprise.
But immediately afterward, his expression became serious. Frowning, he stared at the woman before him.
Acheron looked at Welt. After a brief silence, she said, "Being stared at like that puts me in a difficult position."
"My apologies. My name is Welt Yang, a member of the Astral Express. I believe you've already met my companions."
"Welt..."
Acheron lowered her eyes slightly, quietly repeating the name.
"Is there something about that name?"
Seeing her reaction, Welt frowned even more deeply.
"...Before that, aren't you going to ask my name?" Acheron asked in return.
"I'm afraid there's no need, Miss Acheron. You're quite well known on Penacony by now."
Acheron looked at Welt, then let out a quiet breath.
"...What have they been saying?"
"Someone claims you're the one who murdered Miss Robin. The Annihilation Gang who came to attend the banquet also died beneath your blade, and now you're trying to stir up another bloody storm on Penacony."
"The Annihilation Gang... died tragically? That Duke transformed his dying body into flames and gave his life in devotion. He was a steadfast and magnificent follower of his Path. Even if he was a villain, he shouldn't be slandered like this."
Welt narrowed his eyes slightly.
He had no desire to comment further on Acheron's opinion.
In fact, he also respected those with unwavering determination.
But after spending so much time around Nero, another line of thinking surfaced in his mind.
For example...
'A determined villain is still a villain. Should he get a good reputation just because of that?' That was how Nero would think. 'What does his determination have to do with me? Villains should be punished. If you've done bad things, what's wrong with criticizing you? Besides, Duke Ifrit really did die a miserable death.'
However, now wasn't the time to debate viewpoints.
After remaining silent for a moment, Acheron looked at Welt and asked in return, "Besides, there are plenty of suspicious guests who came here by invitation. Do they really think... that a single blade is more dangerous than the black hole in your hand?"
"...Your instincts are remarkably sharp. Even the Family failed to recognize the true nature of this cane."
Welt looked at Acheron.
"So you surely understand, Miss Acheron, that staring into a black hole is not a wise decision. As a potentially dangerous individual, your understanding of us has already reached an unsettling level. Reveal your true identity and your purpose. Otherwise, you'll have to prepare yourself to be torn apart by gravity."
"I don't think that will happen... But if it can help the Nameless lower their guard, I'm willing to cooperate."
Acheron said, "Believe it or not, Galaxy Ranger, Acheron... that is my identity now. As for my visit to Penacony, it's only to fulfill an old wish."
"I came for the Watchmaker's legacy... That's all. I believe I've been quite honest."
"You still refuse to reveal your true identity?"
"It's not that I refuse. I cannot."
"The road I've walked is too long. Everything that has been placed upon me cannot be explained in just a few words."
"Everyone has a past they cannot speak of, secrets they don't wish to reveal..."
"I won't ask why the Astral Express carries a Stellaron across the galaxy."
"And besides, among the Nameless, there seems to be someone far more dangerous than a Stellaron..."
"Are they alright? That Memokeeper didn't do anything, did she?"
"..."
Welt remained silent for a moment.
"They're not in danger. Let's return to our previous topic. Whether you can earn my trust depends on how much you're willing to reveal."
Hearing Welt's words, Acheron's expression froze for an instant.
Soon afterward, her expression became serious. A few seconds later, it softened slightly.
She seemed to think of something. She instinctively tightened her grip on the sword in her hand before slowly relaxing it again.
[🙇🏻 You Can Support the Story Through P@treon—AmbitiousTranslator. It also has 40+ Chapters of all the novels and fanfics. Thanks for reading~]