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At the outskirts of Belobog, near the city gates.
Bochang descended from the sky and gently landed beside the Trailblaze squad, his clothing billowing in the gusts he created.
The current time was... 4:37 PM.
With twenty-three minutes remaining until the scheduled 5 PM rendezvous.
Bochang had arrived early.
Meanwhile, March 7th, Stelle, Serval, and Dan Heng had already assembled, waiting for an unknown duration.
Upon seeing Bochang's arrival,
Pascal, which had been crouched on the ground in a curled-up position, instantly activated... With the sounds of mechanical movement, it stood up and said, "Master... Pascal... has been... awaiting... mission completion..."
"Hmm."
Nodding towards his pet robot, Bochang glanced around at everyone else.
March 7th, with one hand on her hip, remarked, "I thought you'd arrive just at the last minute... didn't expect you to be quite early."
Stelle asked, "How did your errand go?"
"Don't worry, everything's taken care of. I even made two new friends in the Underworld."
The friends Bochang referred to were naturally Seele and Natasha.
Unfortunately, time was running short now.
Otherwise...
Bochang could have visited Hook as well.
Wait... Hook is too young; I suspect... there wouldn't be much for us to do together.
Dealing with very young children was not something Bochang had much experience with.
"Friends?" March 7th's eyes shifted, forming a vague suspicion, "They're not girls, are they?"
Both Serval and Stelle immediately turned their gazes towards Bochang.
Under the scrutiny of all three, Bochang cleared his throat. Initially intending to lie, he ultimately decided against it and chose to tell the truth instead.
"Um... indeed, they are girls, but that's not important."
"Not important? Then what is?" March 7th countered.
Bochang had no intention of revealing anything about Aeon Aha to the rest of the Astral Express crew. After pondering briefly, a sudden realization struck him, and he exclaimed, "What's important is... I've learned a new skill!"
"Skill? What kind of skill?" Serval asked, genuinely curious.
Bochang glanced at March 7th, known for her penchant to speak out of turn.
"My new skill... it's called 'Stealthy Snatch,' allowing me to obtain any item from a target."
With that...
Bochang swiftly extended his hand towards March 7th, forming a grasping motion.
"Hand it over!"
A white glow emanated from Bochang's palm. He felt something warm, akin to fabric, appearing within his grasp.
In the next moment, March 7th stood frozen on the spot.
Feeling something amiss with the texture... Bochang refrained from immediately opening his hand. Instead, he lifted both hands, widened a slight gap between his fingers, and discreetly peeked at what he had obtained.
"Phew... I thought it was something extraordinary, but turns out... it's just socks..."
With that realization, Bochang stretched his hands apart, straightening the pink ankle socks.
The black-haired youth smiled and said, "See? This is the power of stealing."
Serval, Stelle, and Dan Heng were all taken aback, surprised that Bochang could learn such peculiar abilities.
"What kind of freakish skill is this..." March 7th's face darkened as he reached out, "Give me back my socks."
"Sure." Bochang handed them over.
Grumbling, March 7th put on his socks again.
For some reason, after being gripped by Bochang, the pink ankle socks felt slightly warm upon touching his feet once more.
Seeing everyone's attention diverted, Bochang seized the opportunity to strike while the iron was hot.
"Now that everyone is gathered, let's set off. The sooner we return, the earlier we can rest."
When they first arrived on Jarilo VI... Bochang and his companions had descended using a landing pod.
To go back now, they would rely on the same landing pod again.
Since the Astral Express's dedicated landing pod was sufficiently large, there was no concern about accommodating them all.
Dan Heng nodded in agreement. "Yes... Let's go. On our way, we'll pick up the snowmobiles as well."
Under the command of the stoic little azure dragon, the entire Trailblaze squad embarked.
Serval, dragging her rolling suitcase with its rhythmic clicking sounds, felt a sudden sense of melancholy as she walked past the watchful eyes of the Silvermane Guards and left Belobog.
"Leaving already? But... it's alright, I can come back to visit when I have time, since we have the teleportation rings."
With this thought, Serval's gaze fell upon the shimmering teleportation ring on Bochang's hand.
Serval's gaze fell on Bochang's hand, where the teleportation ring seemed to shimmer with a dazzling light.
At that moment,
near the city gate from which the Trailblaze squad had just departed, Cocolia and the newly appointed Great Guardian, Bronya, stood watching them leave. Sensing something, Serval turned back instinctively but saw nothing.
All she could make out were the solitary walls and a few Silvermane Guards standing atop them.
"Serval, hurry up! Don't fall behind," Stelle's voice called out.
Shaking off her thoughts, Serval quickly caught up with the group, responding, "Right..."
Unbeknownst to them, Cocolia and Bronya reappeared on the city wall, gazing after their departing figures.
As the team vanished into the swirling white snowstorm...
Bronya said, "Mother... they've left now. Let's return too."
Without saying a word, Cocolia silently turned and left.
Bronya followed closely behind her.
Meanwhile...
After Bochang's group located their hidden snowmobiles outside the city,
a new dilemma arose:
Who would drive, and who would ride as passengers?
[Dating Options activated.]
[Option 1: Let Serval Drive: "Serval, you take the wheel with Stelle to guide us; we'll follow behind." - Completion Reward: Obtain a random skill.]
[Option 2: Let March 7th Drive: "March 7th, you drive with Stelle; we'll follow behind." - Completion Reward: Within one kilometer, a guaranteed traffic accident will occur.]
[Option 3: Drive Yourself: "I'll drive. Dan Heng, come with me." - Completion Reward: Obtain a random item, ranging from small items like matches to large ones like star destroyers. Note: These items may...]
"If I hadn't let Serval join earlier, there probably would only be two options now..."
Bochang realized that previous choices could influence later options. In summary... having more people around seemed to provide him with additional decisions.
Following this line of thought, Bochang began pondering.
"If only I could invite a few more individuals to join the Astral Express... Bronya? No chance... She's committed to guarding Belobog, I know that. Natasha? Probably not either; leaving would worsen the situation in the Underworld. But maybe Seele and Pela could be persuaded."
"No, wait, Pela definitely can't leave. If she doesn't stay in Belobog, how will I get here in the future?"
Although Bochang now possessed another teleportation ring,
he...
intended to save it for when he could give one each to March 7th, Serval, and Stelle. He couldn't use it recklessly.