After showering, Mithra put on her tattered pants and jacket and opened the door.
She immediately saw a familiar figure.
Nie Hong seemed to be leaning against the door across the hallway. Seeing the door open, he glanced over. "Huh? Wow! Beautiful woman, who are you?!"
He had only seen Mithra covered in dust before, so it was understandable that he was surprised by her appearance.
"Why are you going out wearing only pants and a jacket? Do you want someone to get you some clothes? Ah, actually, I'm here to give you some clothes," Nie Hong said cheerfully, showing the bag in his hand.
Mithra: "..."
"Aah! Why are you using Control Object to grab my hair again?! What did I do wrong?!"
...
Nie Hong, clutching his head, entered Mithra's room.
After receiving the clothes, Mithra went to the bathroom to change.
It was a thick set of winter clothing, all black, unremarkable, and without any visible brand. It seemed to be provided by the center.
Mithra emerged and saw Nie Hong touching everything, seeming curious about the room.
Had this kid never stayed in a hotel before?
"Ah, that was fast. Chén Shào said you can basically move freely within the campus. Want me to show you around?" Nie Hong said.
"Go take a shower and change your clothes first. Don't get my room dirty," Mithra said.
Only then did Nie Hong realize how dirty he was. A week without a shower, plus rolling around in the tunnels, had left him incredibly grimy.
"Ah, right," he said, looking frustrated.
"What procedures did you help me with?" Mithra asked directly.
"Some guarantees. Since I brought you here, I have to take some responsibility if you get into trouble. Also, it's about answering some questions about our encounter," Nie Hong said.
Mithra nodded and said nothing.
Nie Hong immediately became restless. "I didn't say anything bad about you."
He had told most of the story, but he had omitted details that might be unfavorable to Mithra.
He had originally planned to simply cooperate, but seeing Mithra's fight against the encirclement and her transformation after her arm was severed, he was reminded of Mithra helping him save the child.
He had unconsciously omitted that part.
He knew this was irresponsible, but he had instinctively made that choice at the time.
Besides that, he was severely criticized for his initial thoughtless attack on Mithra.
"It's fine. Just go take a shower, you stink," Mithra said casually.
"I didn't mind you stinking in the tunnels... Hey, hey, hey! I'm going to take a shower! Don't pull my hair!"
Nie Hong left, grumbling.
Mithra picked up a remote and turned on the TV, intending to get a feel for this world.
Most of the TV programs were similar to what she remembered from Earth. It seemed that the influx of miraculous powers hadn't significantly altered this world.
Perhaps because Dreamland's influence on Planet Blue was limited, creatures from Dreamland couldn't travel to Planet Blue. Creatures larger than a human couldn't pass through the teleportation point.
The biggest impact was the introduction of miracles.
Planet Blue's history of contact with miracles had been less than a hundred years. But thanks to its well-established social system and relatively stable and peaceful world environment, the introduction of these new elements hadn't caused any major problems. They had even developed rapidly.
It was a pity that because the influx of miracles happened at a peculiar time, it caused some deviations in Planet Blue's technological development. Although it still looked like a modern city, its level of pure science and technology seemed slightly behind Earth when Mithra had last been there.
Mithra didn't have much knowledge about specific scientific and technological fields, so her assessment might be inaccurate.
Maybe Planet Blue might suddenly unveil some inexplicable black technology in the future?
Seeing an advertisement for new sense intermediary products, Mithra turned off the TV, stood up, and decided to go out and explore.
This time, she wasn't disturbed. She successfully left her room.
Looking at the campus map in the hallway, Mithra decided to go to the central library.
The library was quite large. Bookshelves were everywhere. Mithra saw a few students of similar ages sitting at some tables, seemingly working on essays on their computer screens.
Hard work.
Her arrival attracted some attention, but no one seemed particularly interested and quickly looked away.
Although she wasn't fond of reading, Mithra enjoyed browsing libraries and bookstores, checking out the collection and choosing a few pages of anything that caught her interest.
She found that the books in this resettlement center were mostly basic texts, covering history and culture.
She picked up a copy of "Planet Blue History" and looked for a quiet spot to sit.
Going deeper into the room, she found a long table situated amongst the bookshelves. Someone was already sitting there.
A very striking person.
Her hair was a striking slivery-white, and it was hard to miss.
Mithra sat down at the other end of the table. The person looked up.
She was a woman with exquisite features and a stunning appearance. Even from the back, her tall, slender figure, unusual for a woman, was noticeable. Her long, silvery-white curly hair was styled into several small braids, and her eyes had a slightly dull golden color.
She didn't look like an ordinary person.
She was wearing the same style of clothing as Mithra, white instead of black.
Was she also someone who had been brought back from Dreamland?
"Hello. Are you also someone who has returned from there?" The woman smiled warmly and greeted Mithra.
"Yes," Mithra replied casually, opening the book she had taken and starting to read.
Seeing that Mithra didn't seem inclined to talk, the woman looked a little disappointed but quietly lowered her head and continued reading her book.
Time passed quickly. Mithra unknowingly spent a long time reading.
Planet Blue's history was largely a version of Earth's. However, upon closer inspection, there were many differences. They weren't the same world; they weren't even parallel worlds.
The current date on Planet Blue was February 21st, 1995.
The Planet Blue Federation had attempted to contact some of Dreamland's authorities, but mostly encountered obstacles. Only the Sanctuary had established friendly relations with the Planet Blue Federation. Planet Blue's systematic miracle education had learned from and referenced the Sanctuary extensively.
Apart from the Sanctuary, most of Dreamland's authorities disliked Planet Blue citizens. Dreamland couldn't directly interfere with Planet Blue, but Planet Blue citizens could freely travel to Dreamland, leading to a perception among Planet Blue citizens that they were superior to Dreamland citizens, which created many negative impressions.
Combined with Dreamland's xenophobic customs, the experiences of Planet Blue citizens in Dreamland were far from the idyllic portrayal in propaganda.
But the hidden benefits were too tempting to resist.
Especially since the risks, while not insignificant, weren't particularly high either.
Extra lives from the life lock and incredibly convenient teleportation—these two factors alone gave Planet Blue citizens a significant advantage.
They had a large margin for error in any research activity.
After reading for a while, Mithra became curious.
The activation of miracles produced strange phenomena, even potentially leading to the appearance of beings like the Wandering God.
Dreamland's influence on Planet Blue was limited, but the introduction of miracles had no issues. So, did the miracles brought to Planet Blue cause any problems?
"Is there a problem?" The woman across from her seemed to notice Mithra's thoughtful expression and proactively asked.
Mithra looked up. She was curious why the other person was so eager to speak to her, but she still replied, "Won't the miracles here come to life?"
The other person closed her book. Mithra noticed that she had been reading...a fashion magazine?
"On Planet Blue, the influence of miracles is weakened. The senses here aren't as profound as in Dreamland. Conversely, the conditions for miracle activation are also lacking. Even activated miracles are weakened here. Planet Blue citizens are the same. On Planet Blue, life locks can't protect them."
"It's more like a different kind of protection mechanism. It's just that life locks and similar things are excluded from this mechanism," Mithra offered her explanation.
The woman nodded and smiled. "Maybe that's right."
Mithra observed her again. "I'm Mithra. What's your name?"
"I'm Matsuri. I'm a returnee who arrived here about two months before you. Besides you, I'm the only returnee in this resettlement center."