Pei Guang knew this person well: he was the one who took away the treasure chest when it was first discovered!
Pei Guang loudly complained, "Damn it! He's the one who took my treasure chest, and now he's guarding it. This makes it hard to get."
Stelle pulled out her bat, looking fierce, "Let me knock him out."
March 7th pondered, "That's not good. After all, he's a staff member here: knocking him out goes against the rules."
Stelle: "No worries, rules are meant to be broken!"
March 7th couldn't help but retort, "But not like that! Why knock someone out for no reason? Ah Guang, stop her! Stelle is turning bad."
Pei Guang nodded, "After all, he's an NPC guarding the chest. Maybe there's a task we need to complete to open this chest. Knocking him out isn't appropriate. If we get caught, we'll lose out on the task rewards."
March 7th looked at Stelle, "You see! ...Hmm?" Upon closer consideration, she noticed something was off.
Pei Guang continued, "In such an open and free game, it's not worth doing a task just for a treasure chest. But I have an idea; as long as we don't get caught, our rewards won't be reduced."
March 7th: "?!"
Stelle: "Tell me!"
Pei Guang pulled out the coffee he had picked up on his way out. When Stelle saw the coffee, a smile appeared on her face.
Pei Guang spoke seriously, "This task can only be entrusted to you. He might recognize me and March 7th, so us offering him coffee probably won't work."
Stelle: "No problem! Leave it to me. I'm impressed, your thinking is so quick."
Pei Guang: "Naturally. In an open-world like this, every strange and unusual item you find has a specific use. I figured if we came across this sleeping coffee, it must be useful somewhere. See, now's the time to use it. This kind of item from the beginner's village will probably be useful again later on. Make sure to keep it safe after we're done."
Stelle: "But here's the question—what if he doesn't like coffee?"
Hearing this, Pei Guang took out a bottle of milk, drank half of it, and then poured the coffee from the cup into it. He then shook the bottle and said, "Then offer him coffee-flavored milk. If that still doesn't work, just shout out. Don't worry—I'll swoop in like a guardian, pretend to be security, and take him away. Then you can open the chest."
Stelle took the coffee and smiled confidently, "No problem, leave it to me!"
March 7th watched this scene and fell into deep thought. Her body and her last bit of conscience were waging a battle. But when she turned around, she suddenly noticed something: quite a few people in the base cabin were watching them, and some were even filming, unbeknownst to them broadcasting live for post-battle interviews.
Because they were speaking rather loudly, many people had already focused their attention on them. Seeing this, she knew she was facing a choice: fully become Pei Guang's companion or step away now and appear to be a more "normal" person.
All their previous actions had been in private, allowing her to fully let go, but now...
She looked around. The surroundings were so unfamiliar. Even if one day she stopped exploring, this wasn't a place she would choose to return to.
She looked at Pei Guang again, recalling what he had said earlier:
"Perhaps only death will let me return to my hometown."
She didn't have any past memories, nor did Stelle, and although Pei Guang did, to her, his memories might be more painful than having none at all. Himeko had her own hometown, and although Uncle Yang couldn't return, his home was safe before he left, and as long as he could come, he could return, so he would eventually go back to his hometown. But the three of them had already lost everything.
March 7th's lips curled into a smile. "Hmph! Without me as the C (carry), do you think you could succeed? What does this operation require me to do?"
Pei Guang placed his hand on March 7th's shoulder. "Great, with you here, we've already won! But if you're really uncomfortable, you can wait here for us. The two of us are quick. I'm really good at sneaking in and picking locks or opening chests right in front of people."
March 7th, her body firm, said decisively, "It's okay! We're in this together!"
Pei Guang was somewhat moved. "March!"
March 7th looked at him resolutely, "Ah Guang!"
Seeing this, Stelle scratched her head, "Am I out of place here?"
Pei Guang and March 7th looked at Stelle. "No! You're exactly where you should be! We're a team, so being together is just perfect."
None of the three noticed how many people in the base cabin actually heard their conversation clearly. If they were whispering, some might have believed it, but with them plotting this loudly, passersby could only chuckle.
Moreover, among the people present, not all of them had been helped by Pei Guang, but you could bet the majority had been.
Word has spread about Pei Guang's odd behavior, but what can you do? Most people here are researchers. Eccentricities may be rare, but everyone has seen some before.
Moreover, they had just received news that Pei Guang and his group had wiped out all the enemies, so naturally, they drew a lot of attention. Their loud plotting drew even more eyes to them.
At the same time, in the main cabin, Asta saw a post in the Herta Space Station's fan group:
"Is this some kind of performance art?"
"I think they're heroes who came here to perform just to lighten our mood, right?"
"The word 'hero' sounds too lofty. Honestly, he seems more like a brave warrior from a novel—full of courage, wisdom, and kindness. Sure, he might be a little crazy, but I don't see that as a flaw."
"I really like the brave warrior~"
"Tsk~ The guy already has two princesses by his side. You all should just think about it. Plus, a hero! We can't handle that kind of thing. I wouldn't dare to plot so loudly in public. Sigh, he even lowered himself to perform for us to make us happy."
"No wonder he's called a hero..."
"But I really think it's funny. Here we have three people who can fight against the Antimatter Legion, yet they are planning tactics to snatch a box, which looks like a treasure chest, from an ordinary staff member. So serious, yet so amusing—I feel like the gloom in my heart has lifted quite a bit."
"Agreed!" x10
Seeing the conversation in the group, Asta used a small account to ask, "Where's the link?"
As soon as she sent the message, someone provided the link.
While everyone was chatting, someone had even started a live broadcast! As soon as Pei Guang and his group appeared, someone was secretly recording, and some people showed the footage during the live stream.
As the replay of the footage was being shown, Pei Guang and his group's loud plotting and actions were also being broadcast.
On the other side, aboard the Astral Express, Himeko and Welt had just finished watching the trio's highlight reel and were enjoying a moment of peace when she received a link from Asta.
"Live stream! You can't miss it! Check it out!"
This time, Himeko remembered to put her coffee down before opening the link. Welt hadn't left yet, so he also got to see the scene on the live broadcast.