["Silly Loki, of course I understand what you mean, as for my response..."]
As Little Gui reviewed the latest month's communication logs, he discovered that Leslie had actually replied!
His breath caught instantly!
Could it be...
he was about to witness a pure and beautiful love story?!
At the space station, the observing scientists were initially surprised, followed by waves of excitement!
"That kid Loki, impressive!"
"We misjudged him; this is true love—here it comes!"
"Way to go, Loki! He won the heart of the goddess from the Confidential Records Department! Truly brings honor to our Earth Sciences Division!"
"This calls for a grand wedding ceremony, right? All the station personnel should attend to celebrate!"
However, just as everyone eagerly anticipated the next response, Little Gui suddenly froze.
"Huh? That's it?"
"What happens next?!"
"The crucial reply segment appears to be damaged!"
"Who the hell messed this up?!"
Furious, Little Gui pounded his fists in frustration. Without delay, he rushed to the Monitoring Room to retrieve the surveillance footage!
In the surveillance footage, a familiar figure suddenly appeared!
Upon seeing this person, the space station personnel erupted with astonished exclamations!
"Ah?"
"That's... Bernard, Loki's teacher?"
"He was already trying to dissuade Loki from pursuing this relationship earlier. Now he comes back to tamper with evidence?"
"I know Teacher Bernard too; he's quite stubborn, but I never expected him to do something like this!"
"Heard that in his youth, Bernard also experienced intense emotions. How can he not empathize with his own disciple's feelings?"
"Is scientific research truly more important than human connections? Damn it! Tomorrow, I'm quitting this job!"
Little Gui, equally furious, rushed back to confront the mastermind behind the sabotage.
Initially, the old man denied any involvement.
"I don't understand what you're talking about."
"Young people these days, always wandering instead of studying."
However, when confronted with the [surveillance footage], Bernard had no choice but to admit his actions.
"Sigh! You youngsters really give me so much worry!"
"—I sabotaged the records for Loki's own good! He was neglecting his studies entirely because of Leslie... and frankly, even that could be forgiven."
"But what bothers me most is your lack of understanding about the situation. Leslie, she..."
"She..."
At this point, everyone's hearts raced with anticipation.
Not just the researchers at the space station and Asta, but also Little Gui and players across the entire network were witnessing how this love story would unfold.
["Did something go wrong?"]
"No, she is unharmed. In fact, she accepted Loki's confession," Bernard replied.
"But they cannot be together."
"If you think I'm the one causing trouble, then you're mistaken! Clever little pup, aren't we?"
"They cannot be together... It will never happen."
"Do you know why? No, you don't. Very few people truly understand what a starquake entails..."
"Proper protection can prevent physical harm from a starquake to individuals."
"However, the gravitational collapse caused by a starquake leads to massive changes in the spacetime curvature of the affected region."
"This means our time flows at different rates compared to hers."
"Since the starquake occurred, the temporal discrepancy between Leslie and us will gradually increase. The time it takes for her replies could escalate from a month to a year, then extend even further to possibly ten years."
"Not just messages, but any of her activities will be affected similarly. Until she leaves this anomalous gravitational environment, every month she spends traversing the galaxy will require us to wait for several decades!"
Upon hearing this revelation, everyone was stunned.
A prolonged silence followed.
Tears welled up in Little Gui's eyes as he murmured, almost disbelievingly, "How could this happen...? This mission is truly unexpected..."
Bernard continued, "If we consider Loki, including all of us here, living at the 'present' moment—"
"Then relatively speaking, Leslie..."
"She has already entered the 'future'."
"...I too was once young," Bernard reminisced. "In my opinion, compared to being rejected, it's far more cruel to [desire] yet [be unable] to be with someone who shares your feelings."
Perhaps there's still a way...
At least honor your promise to him.
It's not your decision alone!
Wiping away tears from the corners of her eyes with the back of her hand, Guinaifen chose the first option.
Bernard shook his head and said, "There is no way."
"After learning the truth, Loki will merely have to wait tens of times longer for a response that should have been swift."
"Perhaps when he's old and gray, becoming like me, Leslie will finally return to Herta."
"But with so little time having passed for her, she might still appear as young as she does now."
"At that point, how could they be together?"
"Space can be traversed, but time remains untouchable!"
These words resonated like unyielding cosmic laws, delivering a crushing blow to those who still clung to their fantasies.
So icy!
So despairing!
Within the space station, a somber mood had enveloped the researchers.
Some female staff members couldn't hold back their tears.
The male staff shook their heads, sighed, and patted each other on the back, offering mutual comfort.
In Asta's office,
She initially wore a despondent expression as well.
In this small confined space, such a helpless and sorrowful love story unfolded!
But suddenly,
as if recalling something, her eyes lit up with a spark!
Suddenly, as if struck by inspiration, her eyes lit up with a spark.
"Perhaps there's still a chance!"
"I can help him!"
"And assist her too!"
"Arlan, quickly check Loki's movement records to see if he left the space station!"
"Yes, miss, right away!"
Meanwhile, within the live stream:
Little Gui faced two crucial choices.
After Bernard explained, he handed her two backup signal translation recordings.
The red backup represented truth, containing Leslie's genuine response and the facts about the starquake.
The blue backup symbolized lies, featuring Bernard's fabricated rejection message.
Guinaifen suddenly recalled something Kafka had said at the beginning of the game:
"When you have the opportunity to make a choice, don't let yourself regret it..."
Indeed, this was the moment she needed to decide!
"I... I'll give him the truth. He deserves to know, allowing him to choose his own path!"
Guinaifen chose to hand over the Red Translation Script.
Loki initially struggled to accept it, "She went to the future, while I remain in the present... Is that how it is?"
"And all the time I spend missing her, for her, would just be an insignificant instant, wouldn't it?"
"I never realized even time could be so unfair."
After reading through everything, Loki gradually comprehended the situation.
He pondered for a moment.
Suddenly, Loki burst out laughing.
"Spending an entire lifetime waiting for someone, enduring endless longing and loneliness..."
"Honestly, mate, do you really think I'm that naive?"
"Haha! Of course, I won't wait for her! I won't!"
In that instant, Loki decided he would no longer wait!
Upon witnessing this,
all the researchers at the space station couldn't help but sigh.
"Sigh... Loki's right; there truly is no way to endure such a wait..."
"I understand Loki, my heart goes out to him..."
"In the vast scale of the universe, we ordinary beings indeed feel incredibly insignificant."
"I'll go find Loki later; we should all have a proper drinking session together."
In Little Gui's live stream, numerous viewers flooded the chat with comments:
"I didn't give him the red truth, I chose the blue lie."
"You heartless truth-seekers! Why make two people who will never meet suffer by waiting? Don't you understand? Tell me, how could he ever catch up to her?"
"Definitely the blue lie, he talks too much—just focus on working for Miss Herta!"
"I went with the red truth; he deserves to know that someone loves him, unlike me."
Glancing at the barrage of comments, Guinaifen couldn't help but question whether her choice was right or wrong.
Just as she thought the final outcome would be Loki accepting reality, he suddenly spoke again, jolting her awake and causing her to bolt upright from her seat.
"I won't wait..."
"But I'm going after her!"
"I'm going to chase after time!"
Suddenly, the background music of "Embarking on a Journey" began playing!
All players witnessing this scene were stunned, their eyes fixed on the screen!
They thought Loki was about to give up on his feelings!
But unexpectedly, he made a decision that astonished everyone—a remarkably bold choice!
"... If her space-time curve has become a vast canyon, instead of waiting for her to emerge, why not traverse this canyon myself?
"It might take me ten years to find her, having only experienced one month, but from then on, our time would flow synchronously. That's certainly better than sitting here helplessly.
"I've grown weary of staying put... As a member of Herta's Universal Geography Division, I haven't even seen the true galaxy yet; mentioning it would surely invite ridicule.
"I imagine you're as curious as I am about what wonders lie within the depths of space.
"The awe-inspiring solitude, the unknown beauty fraught with peril, and the person I've been desperately seeking...
"Someday, when I find Leslie, I will return to share everything I've witnessed on this journey with you...
"And at that time, I'll ask you to be our maid of honor—don't forget this promise!"
"Chasing time itself? Now that's hardcore!"
"A pure-hearted lover bites the dust."
"I hereby dub him the Pure Love Aeon God!"
"Fucking hell! That takes some serious guts!"
"I wasn't mistaken! I truly wasn't mistaken about him!"
Within the space station, all personnel erupted into cheers and spontaneously applauded for Loki!
"Go for it!"
"You can do this!"
"What a romantic decision!"
In one of the compartments,
Loki, just about to embark, was suddenly called back.
It was Arlan from the Security Division.
Confused, Loki asked, "What's wrong, Mr. Arlan?"
"I've already submitted my resignation to Miss Asta, and the procedures for this trip comply with regulations..."
"No, Loki!" A voice interrupted from behind.
Asta rushed over from the Master Control Zone.
"It'll be difficult to catch up with her using a regular spaceship!"
"This interstellar spacecraft... I'm lending it to you!"
"Not only does it have the latest propulsion system, but it also features warp capabilities, allowing you to find her even faster!"
"All necessary supplies are prepared; quickly get on board!"
Loki stood frozen, taken aback.
He wasn't sure how the station director had learned about his plan to pursue Fading Star. However, seeing Asta's approving gaze, he felt questioning further seemed pointless.
"Thank you, Station Director Asta," he said sincerely before boarding the ship, deeply bowing to her.
"Make sure you catch up with her!" Asta waved farewell as the spacecraft departed.