"You wouldn't mind bringing us along too, would you~ Elysia~"
Hearing those sickly sweet words, Miss Elysia's smile instantly vanished—no, judging by Mobius's brilliant smile, it was clear the smile hadn't disappeared, it had merely transferred.
"Oh my~ Could it be you mind.... If that's the case, then I suppose I was being presumptuous~"
"....Haha, how could that be? We're good companions, after all," Elysia's laugh sounded somewhat forced.
Honestly, she didn't mind going out to play with lots of people. For Elysia, the more the merrier was naturally better.
Good things are always better when shared, right?
It's just—
This trip was meant to be just for her and Bad Jiang Qiao, a happy two-person tour.
It was supposed to be romantic; she had already indulged in countless fantasies about the future, but.... but how did it turn out like this?
Adding Eden and Aponia was one thing; perhaps it could even add some fun, give Bad Jiang Qiao a sense of 'crisis'.
But Mobius....
Elysia's smile instantly turned somewhat bitter and resentful.
"Traveling together is fine, but Mobius, you and Vill-V, logically speaking, shouldn't you both be very busy? Taking leave from your posts for a vacation, is that really allowed?" She tried to find an opening through their work commitments, hoping they would back down voluntarily.
However—
"Hehe~ Although our work is quite demanding~ we do get vacations eventually, you know. It's just that usually, neither I nor Vill-V rarely take initiative to go on leave."
"But you do have a point. Wasting time on vacation is indeed somewhat boring."
"Right, right!" Seeing a glimmer of hope, Elysia instantly perked up.
But, the next moment, Mobius's tone shifted.
"If it's for research, then wouldn't that be fine~?" Miss Snake smiled sweetly.
"Regarding the customs and traditions of other worlds, I'm quite curious, you see. Whether for research needs or just a brief relaxation after busy work, logically and emotionally, I have no reason to refuse, do I?"
"Mm-hm! Vill-V's magic show cannot be confined to just this small corner! I will make people from other worlds applaud my exquisite magic performance too!" Vill-V seemed to be in her Magician persona.
In fact, her other personalities mostly had reasons, more or less.
The Chef wanted to see recipes and ingredients from other worlds; the Engineer's reason was the same as Mobius's; the Politician, due to frequently dealing with humanoid creatures, was mentally exhausted and really wanted a break; and the simplest, most original Vill-V's intention was quite similar to Elysia's.
Extremely curious, she was also exceptionally interested in the scenery of other worlds.
However, compared to the increasingly perverted Snake, the original Vill-V was still quite thin-skinned, saying somewhat embarrassedly:
"Sorry, Elysia.... you wouldn't mind, right...."
"....Of course."
Not good at dealing with softies, Miss Pink Elf forced a smile, her face looking crestfallen.
You've already said that. Can Elysia still say no?
...Come on, everyone come, just come already!
She glanced resentfully at the provocative, teasing Mobius, thinking, Since you dare to walk right into my trap, don't blame Elysia for taking the chance to dress you up in all sorts of little skirts!
And you! Bad Jiang Qiao!
The pink elf, grinding her teeth, shot someone a glare—If it weren't for.... forget the process, you're just bad!
Blaming this rascal is definitely the right call!
...
Just as Miss Qingque received a boomerang from decades past—although she wasn't the one who threw it, you tell me if it hit Qingque or not.
Similarly.
Actually, Firefly had encountered the same situation.
For example, right now—
"Your Majesty."
Hearing the reverent mechanical voice, Firefly, snapping back to reality from a daze, felt as if waking from a dream—no.... perhaps it should be said, this felt more like a dream.
Her previous self was just a Glamoth Iron Knight adrift among the stars, homeless. Joining the Stellaron Hunters, she became an infamous cosmic fugitive.... Of course, such a life wasn't necessarily bad.
After all, as a Glamoth Iron Knight, fighting seemed to be her only strong suit.
But, her current self had become.... the Empress of the Glamoth Iron Knights, the supreme ruler of the Glamoth Empire—although this change in identity felt somewhat unreal, feeling the clearly visible memories flowing through her heart, she could distinctly recognize this fact.
The two sets of memories were clearly contradictory, yet they didn't create even a sliver of incongruity—after all, these memories truly belonged to Firefly, truly experienced and created by the girl named Firefly.
It's often said that in dreams, one meets their parallel selves.
Now, it seemed like just a clearer dream.
Her emotions remained turbulent for a long time.
Not just because of the changed circumstances, but more importantly, because of the surging feelings overflowing in her chest.
These unusual feelings were temporarily suppressed by the arrival of certain guests.
Undoubtedly, it was Mr. Jiang and his.... hmm, tour group.
The faces weren't unfamiliar to Firefly. After all, the beautiful memories left behind in the Elysian Realm seemed etched into her heart.
Sister Vill-V, who enthusiastically performed magic for her; Dr. Mobius, who looked somewhat cold but was actually a very good person; the generous rich lady who sang beautifully; and the very introverted, big-titted nun.
"....This is?"
"Sorry, things have settled down in that world, so I wanted to take them around to see the scenery of different worlds. It might trouble you a bit, Firefly."
"How could it...."
The atmosphere between Jiang Qiao and Firefly was incredibly harmonious—making Miss Elysia feel a growing sense of crisis. What's going on? This feeling of instant compatibility, like the shapes and textures just perfectly align, it's terrible.
She spoke up proactively:
"This child is Firefly, right? Speaking of which, this is our first time meeting."
"As expected, she's a very cute pretty girl~"
Physically, it wasn't their first meeting, since someone had used Firefly's 'account' and piloted Firefly's unit right in front of her.
But comprehensively speaking, this was indeed their first encounter.
Firefly looked at Elysia strangely, then turned to Jiang Qiao:
"?"
"There are some things involved that you don't quite understand yet. I'll explain them to you slowly."
"Alright then." Firefly didn't dwell on it. "....Anyway, let me help you with the procedures first and arrange a place for you to stay."
"Also, there's something I want to talk to you about...."
"Oh?"
Mobius shot her a strange look, seemingly understanding something, a subtle smile appearing.
Looking at Miss Elysia, she seemed to show no reaction.
Hmm, don't ask, the answer is: very angry!
The furious Miss Elysia fumed—then chose to take notes in her little book.
X Year, X Month, X Time, Bad Jiang Qiao was clearly supposed to go on a romantic two-person trip with me, but ended up hanging out with another pretty girl. Note: Add one liter (of fuel to the fire/grudge).
"Of course, no problem."
He even agreed!
Miss Pink Elf's cheeks puffed out.
With anger.
"Uh.... it should be fine, right?"
Seemingly noticing her expression, someone's tone held a hint of uncertainty.
This brought a slightly satisfied expression to Elysia's face.
Hmph, serves you right for being perceptive.
"Whatever you want~"
Her mood improving considerably, she said this. Jiang Qiao nodded, then added apologetically: "Sorry, since that's the case, let Phoebe show you around Glamoth's scenery first."
"I'll head over as soon as I'm done here."
Regarding this, apart from Miss Elysia harboring some resentment about not having a two-person trip, the other travel companions naturally had no objections.
They were here for a proper trip! Unlike someone else who was aiming for romance.
From a certain perspective, this arrangement actually suited their intentions quite well.
After all, Mobius definitely didn't want to look at boring natural scenery; she was more interested in technology and knowledge.
Eden preferred art.
With the rich lady as a temporary substitute, Miss Pink Elf could barely accept it.
After Phoebe led them away, only Firefly and Jiang Qiao remained in the vast Hall of Progeny.
"Um, about all this.... I'm a little.... confused...."
Although she accepted it all, she still wondered what exactly was going on.
Firefly knew that only the man before her could give her answers.
"It's just as you know."
"I returned to the past, had some wonderful encounters with your past self, and then did all this."
"....It's a bit... incredible."
It was simple and easy to understand, yet Firefly still felt amazed, sighing.... after all, it truly exceeded the comprehension of ordinary people.
"But, speaking of which, I'm actually quite curious about your current state."
"Me?.... Besides having an extra set of different memories, I should just be simply better, right? I'm still me, the me you know, and also Sam of the Stellaron Hunters." She said this, not discarding her identity as a Stellaron Hunter.
After all, although the title wasn't exactly glorious, for the nostalgic Firefly, Kafka and everyone in the Stellaron Hunters, who felt like family and gave her hope, were important companions.
She accepted herself as the Empress, but wouldn't abandon herself as the Hunter.
"Just stick to what you believe is right."
Jiang Qiao wasn't surprised by this; he even strongly approved and acknowledged it.
Using the power of several Paths, he had converged the deviated worldline with the original one.
Of course, this convergence was mainly on the 'person' level.
This also indirectly allowed Firefly to complete her own self-convergence.
Past and present, existing as one.
As for the future.... that was the most uncertain thing, and also the most difficult to converge.
Furthermore, given Firefly's current state, if her future was converged along with her past and present, then the lid on the Swarm King's coffin would likely be nailed shut for good—she would inevitably become the new Emanator or even Aeon of Propagation.
"Thank you...."
Although everything could hardly be concluded with a simple thank you, Firefly still felt immense gratitude.
After all.
Her current self, setting aside her identity—just having this healthy body, no longer plagued by Entropy Loss Syndrome, was already something she had dreamed of.
Ever since joining the Stellaron Hunters, for a long time, besides searching for the meaning of life, she had sought to resolve this pain. Never did she imagine.... the problem that kept her sleepless nights would be resolved just like that.
"You're welcome. For me, it was just a casual effort."
"A healthy body is great...."
"However.... um.... there are still some small problems...." Firefly's voice grew much softer as she raised some concerns.
"? Is something wrong?"
Amidst someone's puzzled expression, she licked the corner of her mouth:
"I.... feel a bit.... thirsty...."
If you're thirsty, just drink water—
Although he wanted to reply this way, recalling previous experiences and looking at Miss Firefly's current state, he instantly understood that this thirst probably wasn't so simple.
—And indeed, that was the case.
At this moment, Miss Firefly stared intently at the certain Mr. Jiang, her purple eyes brimming with 'appetite'.
Although [Firefly]—her own body was well-adjusted and maintained.
So well that Firefly had never felt as relaxed as she did now.
But because it carried nearly half the Path energy of 'Propagation,' this body inevitably developed a constitution similar to Brunhilde—the 'Mercy's Bane Swarm King'.
Every cell in her body constantly craved propagation.
Brunhilde chose indulgence—Craving? Then propagate. It's just laying a few eggs anyway.
Back when she was still an insect, the number of eggs she laid could be calculated in astronomical figures.
But Firefly couldn't possibly do such a thing. Faced with this craving, unable to indulge and finding it hard to control herself, she could only choose suppression.
However, craving is like a spring; the more you suppress it, the stronger the recoil.
The convergence of the past didn't mean the elapsed time was erased; it only settled.
And now, what Jiang Qiao seemed to be facing was a 'Propagation Broodmother' who had been holding back for ten years.
It was fine when they hadn't met. The moment they did, the settled recoil took effect, causing the Glamoth Empress's breathing to gradually become disordered.
Especially since they were alone now, just the two of them.
She slowly approached someone, like a wolf afraid of its prey escaping.
"Sorry.... just let me borrow you for a bit...."
"Just a little bit~"