March stretched her arms back, moaning in relief.
"Ah... Well, now that we're done with that whole situation in the Underworld, we can finally look for the Stellaron."
Sunny, Dan Heng, and March 7th were returning to the Goethe Grand Hotel. Approaching it, Sunny could already feel the soft embrace of sleep…
Of course, he couldn't truly sleep unless he did so in the Dream Realm. Naturally, that was what he was going to do.
As long as he was unbothered…
March sighed.
"But thinking about it, I feel a bit bad about Clara... You promised her that our talks with Svarog would go peacefully... Svarog attacked first."
Somehow, Sunny felt like March was trying to insinuate something. He couldn't quite place his finger on it though.
"It's not like anyone got hurt. The worst that happened was a bit of landscaping."
There was now an endless tunnel in the middle of Svarog's base, which was probably a hazard.
Dan Heng nodded.
"You did well in persuading him, even if you had us running all over the Robot Settlement for you."
'Actually, it was Clara who dealt with it…'
Sunny was a little embarrassed about manipulating a child in order to solve the problem, but since Clara was a Transcendent, he preferred to add this to his list of intellect-related feats.
March gazed at him for a moment, before forcefully bumping into him to grab his attention.
"Look on the bright side — things turned out alright, didn't they? Now everyone knows that the real problem here is the Stellaron, and they're willing to help us out. All in all, the mission is going super smoothly!"
Sunny blinked. She… wasn't aware of what he had done earlier, right?
'Oh, right. She was there.'
Maybe he should silence her? Permanently, of course.
Dan Heng placed a hand on his chin in contemplation.
"But we still have a lot left to figure out. For instance..."
"...Who is this Sampo character!?"
He blinked at Sunny's sudden exclamation.
"...That's not of foremost concern. What's important is that we still don't have the exact location and coordinates of the Stellaron. Nor have we figured out the reason behind Cocolia's sudden change in attitude."
As far as Sunny was concerned, Sampo's entire existence was extremely important — not to mention suspicious. Even if the man changed his ways and became a non-sleazy individual, his vibe was enough to garner suspicion from… everyone.
March then asked:
"Well then that's as good as nothing for now... So, what should we do when we get back above ground? After all this talk, we're still back at square one..."
Dan Heng shrugged.
"We solve a puzzle one piece at a time. Let's get some rest. We'll talk to Wildfire tomorrow and get to the bottom of this."
He paused, seeming he had remembered something.
"Also, there's still one more key character we haven't talked to yet. Her connection to Cocolia may be the key to cracking this mystery."
'Huh? Who are they talking about?'
As he thought about the people he had encountered, the only person he could think of is Sampo. Since he's a Master, there is a possibility that he went into the Second Nightmare with Cocolia.
However, he isn't a 'her'. Since Bronya was automatically excluded, he couldn't think of anyone. He shrugged, deciding that he'd worry about it later.
'Hm… What are Seele and Bronya doing?'
They had left earlier in order to 'hang out'; that was according to Seele at least. He didn't bother asking anymore questions, as he desired sleep over all else.
'Yep. Not my problem.'
***
"Over there, see that? That used to be the worst street in Rivet Town... and it's also where I grew up."
Seele pointed to a specific street as she and Bronya looked over Rivet Town from the orphanage. The hill provided a great view of the town, allowing their vision to reach every corner. She held onto a sandwich that Natasha made for her — it was really just Snapper Jam stuffed between two pieces of bread.
'Who was the brilliant mind that put jam on chicken?'
She ignored the ridiculousness of it being stuffed between two pieces of bread and being called a sandwich, and simply took a bite. She supposed that it was simply to make eating while moving a bit easier.
After swallowing, she continued:
"My friends and I used to wander those streets thinking about where to find our next meal. That is, until Chief Oleg got me out and took me to the orphanage. There I learned to read and write from Natasha. At the age of ten, I started to patrol the mines with Oleg, occasionally getting into fights with the local thugs..."
'…Woah. I really was a delinquent.'
[Looks like we have a genius over here…]
Seele ignored Veliona's sarcastic remark.
After hearing her, Bronya sighed.
"...That sounds nice."
The purple-haired girl arched a brow.
"Nice? You being sarcastic with me?"
Everyone was being sarcastic today. Couldn't they stop it with the euphe— poorly disguised words?
Bronya's eyes widened as she apologetically shook her head.
"Oh! No, sorry. Life in the Underworld is difficult, I shouldn't be speaking about it so lightly."
Seele simply deadpanned, sighing at her stiffness.
"You're always so serious... It really gets on people's nerves sometimes, you know?"
An awkward smile appeared on her face.
"Right... Uh, what I meant was... I kind of envy you, Seele."
She looked down at the entirety of Rivet Town.
"For as long as I can remember, my days have been an endless cycle of studying, etiquette lessons, and training. Every day all I hear is 'Remember who you are, Bronya', 'This is against the Architects' Admonishments, Bronya', 'Ladies shouldn't use such foul language, Bronya…'"
She paused.
"...Some may envy this kind of life, but I have felt... trapped. When every choice and every goal has already been made for you... You probably can't imagine how that feels."
…Seele couldn't help but imagine what Sunny would have said if he had been standing here. It would probably go like:
'What's that? You don't want your very luxurious life anymore? More for me! From now on, I'm going to be calling your very attractive mother: 'Mommy'. No blood relation by the way.'
[…That's pretty exaggerated.]
'Yeah, but it's funny. Besides, he'd probably say that if the questions are right.'
[…True.]
In response to Bronya's words, she simply shook her head.
"...No, I can't... But more importantly, what kind of 'foul language' were you using?"
Bronya froze for a moment, before clearing her throat.
"In the name of the Architects, I shall stick this spear into your nostril!"
The glee on her face reminded Seele of a kid who just learned their first swear word. Considering the gated life that Bronya had, maybe Sunny wouldn't want it for himself.
'He'd probably say a slur in the first ten minutes.'
Seele couldn't help but laugh at the 'foul language' of the Overworld.
"That's it? That's nothing. Looks like I'll have to teach you some Underworld slang before you go back."
The Overworld Princess' face flushed, seemingly embarrassed at getting caught up by the freedom in the Underworld.
"No, no, that won't be necessary."
Seele stuffed her sandwich in her mouth, speaking while chewing on the fried chicken — which got a disgusted face out of Bronya.
"It'll be better than poking people's nostrils at least..."
She swallowed.
"I never thought that I'd be here having a heart-to-heart with the future guardian. As a kid, I didn't meet many people who lived in the Overworld. I only heard stories from the grown-ups and figured you were all just a bunch of cold snobs."
A wistful look appeared on Bronya's face.
"I've heard from some Silvermane veterans that before the orders were made to seal off the Underworld from the Overworld, there was no difference between the two places. Everybody ate the same food, chatted about the same topics, celebrated the same festivals..."
She sighed.
"Even though times are different now, things like the joys and sorrows of life, the ties between people... These precious things must certainly still connect us all."
Her gaze went beyond Rivet Town, spreading across the Underworld as a whole.
"If there is a way to bridge the gap between the two worlds, we can definitely go back to the time when you and I were not divided. When we could stand side by side against the Eternal Freeze and the Fragmentum."
Seele pursed her lips, finding herself feeling self-conscious. After hearing Bronya's vision, she couldn't help but feel somewhat inferior.
"…I'm not like you. I don't have that many grand plans for the future. But... if that's the future you want, I'm willing to build this bridge with you."
'…Man, that's embarrassing to say out loud. It sounded way better in my head.'
Bronya blinked, clearly not expecting such words to come out of Seele of all people. In response however, the corners of her lip curled upwards.
"Thank you, Seele. Your trust is very important to me."
Seele couldn't help but blush. Maybe Bronya was too innocent to see the effect that her flattering words have on people.
Attempting to change the subject, Seele asked:
"Speaking of which, what are you going to do next? What Svarog revealed must've made quite an impact, huh...?"
The gray-haired girl paused for a moment, before nodding.
"...Yes. I thought I was prepared for anything, but... as long as I am the guardian's successor, those truths will come out sooner or later. But why does my mother hide it from me, and why does she want me to hunt down the outsiders who know about the nature of the Stellaron... It just... it doesn't make sense."
She took a deep breath.
"I've thought it over. There's only one thing I can do — go ask her directly."
Her words didn't register for a moment, but when they did, Seele became very alarmed.
"You... Hold on, you're not really going, are you? Alone? You can't, this plan is..."
Bronya shook her head.
"I've already thought it through, Seele. I am Madam Cocolia's daughter. That will never change. Be it my duties as her heir, or a Silvermane Guard, I must face my problems head-on. Even if..."
She trailed off, a grimace tearing through Seele's face.
"Bronya…"
Suddenly, Bronya reached into a pocket. She pulled out an envelope.
"This is for you, Seele. Please help me pass it on to the outsiders. If... If I'm unable to see you again... They'll know what to do."
Seele hesitated as she held it out towards her. After a few moments of thought, she nodded.
"...Okay, I understand. You've made up your mind, and there's nothing I can say that will change it. But remember this — if you run into trouble, I will come to save you, no matter what."
Veliona stayed silent despite her obvious desire to point out Seele's embarrassing words — even though the latter didn't really want to say them in the first place. However, she felt like she had to say them. It wasn't like she was lying.
Bronya simply stared at her, a hint of amusement flashing in her eyes.
"Then I'll be waiting for you."
She looked off towards the town below.
"So... did you come to this spot when you were a child?"
Seele snorted.
"Of course. I just didn't appreciate how nice it was at the time."
[…No, seriously, what is up with this tension? This triangle is really getting on my nerves. Or is it technically a square?]
Seele frowned.
'What are you even on about?'
[…You'll get what I mean someday.]
'…I'm not sure I want to.'