The cold tide receded. Long-lost sunlight spilled across Everwinter Ridge, melting snow and ice. Meltwater streamed over the ground like the planet's tears—washing away old wounds.
1) After the Stellaron: rebuilding begins
In the council hall of Fort Qlipoth, Bronya sat at a long table buried under paperwork. Her Silvermane Guard coat hung over the chair back; she wore only a plain white shirt, sleeves rolled to the elbows, exposing slim but sturdy forearms. She rubbed her temples.
"Heating in the mines has recovered," Seele said, sliding a report toward her and tapping the numbers. "Wildfire's engineers say they can fix the energy pipelines in two months."
"Two months is too long," Bronya frowned. "The kids in the Underworld can't wait that long."
"Then build temporary heating stations first," a voice said from the doorway.
Cocolia entered carrying a stack of files, her blonde hair tied simply behind her head. No imposing Supreme Guardian uniform—just an ordinary military-green long coat.
Seele's body instantly tensed. Bronya lightly pressed her hand, calming her.
Cocolia set the papers down, her tone even. "I confiscated the resources the Upper City nobles were hoarding. Enough to carry Belobog through to the next spring."
Bronya flipped through the documents, surprise flashing in her eyes. "Pela's earlier inventory suggested this stockpile could keep the Upper City running for three years. How did you persuade them?"
"Not persuasion." Cocolia smiled. "I've collected plenty of leverage in this seat. And in a crisis like this, if they don't want to be thrown into the Fragmentum… they hand things over."
Seele couldn't hold it in and laughed. "Should've done that a long time ago!"
"Mother… you're a 'commoner' now," Bronya sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose.
"Exactly," Cocolia said, patting her daughter's shoulder as she turned to leave. "Some things are easier that way."
2) The "hero" pays interest: Huo Linfei gets shrink-nerfed
"So… this is what you've turned into?"
In the Underworld clinic, Natasha squatted down, gloved fingers poking Huo Linfei's chubby little cheeks.
"Hey! Stop poking me!" he protested, flailing short arms—unfortunately, he was now under 1.2 meters, short enough to share a table with a certain famous shrunken detective.
March 7th laughed so hard she nearly folded, then casually scooped him up and bounced him. "Aww, you're adorable. Way more pleasant than your punchable version!"
"Put me down! There are people watching! I'm the hero who saved the planet!" Huo Linfei struggled… unsuccessfully. (Or was it fake struggling?)
Hook tiptoed up, tugging his clothes. "You really beat that huge scary robot? You're even shorter than Clara…"
"Mr. Huo Linfei is really strong!" Clara waved her hands. "Mr. Svarog said the power inside him is far greater than the Engine of Creation!"
Seele came back from the Upper City and leaned against the wall, arms crossed, smirking. "Yeah, just… looks kind of pathetic."
Huo Linfei: "..."
He turned, grief-stricken, to Stelle. "You tell her!"
Stelle was holding March's camera, actively snapping his humiliation. She looked up innocently. "Wanna post it? I can switch phones for better quality. Caption idea: 'A Hero in Decline.'"
"You people are unbelievable!"
3) Mechanical Settlement: grudges get settled, Sampo gets threatened again
At the Mechanical Settlement, Andre—the Wildfire member who'd mocked Huo Linfei back in the jail—stood there staring at the tiny "hero" like his brain had blue-screened.
"Y-you're really that flame kid?"
"Flame kid?" Huo Linfei put his hands on his hips. "If I used a Thunder Art, would you call me 'shock kid'? Want me to demonstrate Firecloud Art?"
"Don't!" March slapped a hand over his mouth. "Doctor said you can't mess with energy right now—if you 'leak' again you'll literally turn into a baby!"
Andre was silent for a beat… then burst out laughing. He ruffled Huo Linfei's hair with a rough hand. "Alright, little hero. We owe you one."
Huo Linfei immediately smacked the hand away. "Did you wash your hands before touching people?"
Andre's face went dark.
Everyone laughed.
Then Sampo popped out of nowhere holding a camera. "Come on, come on! Group photo of Belobog's heroic team! Limited edition prints—only 998 Credits!"
Seele's scythe was instantly at his throat again. "You're addicted to偷拍 now?"
Sampo forced a grin. "Occupational hazard! Occupational hazard!"
4) Astral Express: Himeko and Welt admit they knew (kind of)
In the observation car, Dan Heng pushed a cup of hot tea toward Welt.
"So you already knew Huo Linfei could solve the Stellaron problem?"
Welt adjusted his glasses, awkward. "Not entirely. We monitored his condition while he was frozen. His 'energy' didn't drop—it rose, even reaching abnormal values… and yet the Stellaron didn't seem to notice at all."
Himeko stirred her coffee and sighed. "In theory, he should've been able to break out himself. But we didn't expect—"
"We didn't expect he'd wake up and keep pretending to be dead," Dan Heng said, rubbing his forehead.
Welt coughed. "Ahem. Anyway, the result was good—"
A silence followed.
Under Dan Heng's stare, Himeko and Welt spoke in perfect unison:
"…Next time we won't."
5) Night celebration: "Hero, breathe fire!"
That night, the Underworld hosted a rare celebration.
By the bonfire, Hook and the Moles kids crowded around Huo Linfei, chanting.
"Hero! Breathe fire!"
"It's not breathing fire! It's energy!" Huo Linfei protested, but still raised his little hand.
Pff— a tiny flame popped up between his fingers.
"Wooooah!"
March laughed until she couldn't stand straight. Stelle seized the moment to shove a lollipop into Huo Linfei's mouth.
Clara asked softly, "Mr. Huo Linfei… can you change back?"
Huo Linfei, lollipop clenched between his teeth, mumbled, "Doctor Natasha said once I recover, I'll be fine… probably…"
"This is our first time seeing something like this too," Natasha said,揉了揉他的头, smiling sweetly. "But don't worry—your big sisters will take very good 'care' of you~"
Huo Linfei felt an instant chill down his spine.
"Hey!" March suddenly lifted him high overhead. "Next adventure, you're coming with us too!"
6) Final scene: the distant, unknown malice moves
In a dim cabin, a Foxian woman stood by the viewport, slender fingers brushing the glass. But the face reflected in it wasn't the same—an eerie, dazzling, inhuman beauty.
"What a lovely body…" Her lapis-gold eyes flickered with the flames of Destruction.
Rustle—
From the shadows, a brown-furred monkey darted out, hopped onto a table, and pulled a banana out from behind its back, peeling it with practiced ease.
"Oh?" The Foxian arched a brow. "Where did this little beast come from?"
The monkey paused mid-peel, then spoke with a human voice:
"'Beast' isn't a very polite word, Phantylia."
Its eyes glowed blue. The voice was calm—male.
Phantylia narrowed her eyes. "…Dr. Primitive of the Genius Society?"
The monkey grinned, the expression far too sinister for something that cute. "Since you saw through it, I won't waste words. Yes—me."
Phantylia snorted. "A 'genius' reduced to using an experimental monkey as a mouthpiece?"
"Too many eyes on the Xianzhou," the monkey said, chomping the banana in a few bites and tossing the peel aside. "And you—possessing the Luofu's envoy—bold move."
Phantylia smiled thinly. "Mutual. Speak. You wouldn't risk exposure just to suggest using the Xianzhou as your next lab."
"I don't have that kind of reach," the monkey said. "I heard the Express's next stop is the Xianzhou."
"So?"
"I'm interested in a certain 'little friend' on that train," it said meaningfully.
Phantylia's gaze shifted. "The one fused with a Stellaron?"
"No, no." The monkey shook its head. "An 'anomaly' even the Silent Lord has deigned to notice."
"…Huo Linfei?" Phantylia recalled the one who briefly resisted the Doomsday Beast at Herta Space Station—then boarded the Express with the Stellaron troublemaker.
"Shh." The monkey raised a finger. "Say his name too loudly… and she might hear."
"The great Dr. Primitive is afraid?" Phantylia laughed.
"Afraid? Not at all." The monkey jumped onto her shoulder and whispered into her ear. "It's excitement. If she cares about an experiment… how exquisite must that specimen be?"
Phantylia's smile deepened. "You want the Xianzhou. I need the Luofu's Ambrosial Arbor. Convenient—our interests don't collide."
The monkey giggled. "Mutually beneficial?"
Phantylia gently stroked the monkey's head—then a thread of Destruction flame sparked at her fingertips. "Just don't get in my way."
The monkey flipped away in an instant, tail hooking a ceiling lamp as it swung playfully. "Relax I'm just a scientist enjoying the show"
Its figure faded into nothing, leaving only an eerie laugh in the air.
Phantylia stared out at the sea of stars, lips curling.
"The Xianzhou… is about to get lively."
What this chapter does (story structure notes)
Belobog's political pivot: Cocolia is alive, stripped of the throne, but still extremely useful—doing the dirty coercive work Bronya can't do publicly yet.
Huo Linfei's "balance debt": the shrink-nerf is the immediate cost of his forced compression/overload playstyle; "leaking" implies unstable energy containment, not just comedic punishment.
Main arc transition: The Express is pointed at the Xianzhou Luofu, and the antagonistic chessboard is set with Phantylia + Dr. Primitive both taking interest in the "anomaly," not just the Stellaron-host.
If you want, I can translate Chapter 15 the same way once you paste it.
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