Thinking about all this, Pei Guang got so excited he started jumping around the room. Mei's eyes widened as she saw Pei Guang spin and jump around the room before circling her and performing a bizarre dance.
"Amazing! Wonderful! You've solved a huge problem for me! You're the best NPC ever! I'm giving you a promotion! A raise! Ten years of marriage leave with Kevin! And maternity leave!"
Pei Guang bounced excitedly around Mei. It looked less like a dance and more like some primitive ritual, like a caveman dancing around a fire.
"Uh…"
Elysia covered her mouth as she watched. "Is this your first time seeing this? Ahem! Don't be surprised, our dear Commander Pei Guang really likes to express his joy physically when he's excited. Isn't it fun?"
Mei: "I don't think being circled like this is fun at all."
Elysia: "Eh? You make a good point~ I remember talking with March about this: hopping and dancing along with Ah Guang might seem absurd to outsiders, but it's super stress-relieving. Perfect chance for me to try it too~"
Elysia had seen how happy Stelle and March 7th were when bouncing around with Pei Guang. Back then, there were too many people watching, and she felt too self-conscious. But now? There were no outsiders here. No one would walk in on them.
Thinking that, Elysia joined in. The room wasn't big, but there was enough space for the two of them to hop and jump around.
At that moment, Mei felt like her brain had taken a hit.
Because the two people dancing around her gave off completely different vibes.
Pei Guang was spinning his arms, jumping up and down, beating his chest: he looked like he was undergoing evolutionary regression. Just watching him felt like someone was hammering her brain.
Then there was Elysia: eyes closed, humming a tune, gracefully swaying. Just looking at her was enough to soothe the soul.
One moment Mei's brain was bashed by Pei Guang, the next it was healed by Elysia. Mei really wanted to scream: what did I do to deserve this!?
Just as she was debating whether to leave, the door to the room burst open.
"Well, look who finally decided to show up, you heartless slacker?"
The voice arrived before the person did. It was none other than the Herta puppet. Having heard that Pei Guang was back, she'd come to tease him a little: but the moment she entered, she saw Pei Guang leading Elysia in a dance around Mei.
In that instant, the Herta puppet fell silent. Mei spotted her savior. "Lady Herta…"
But Herta ignored her. After a few seconds of serious contemplation, she pulled out a speaker.
"Doo-loo doo-loo, doo-loo doo-loo, doo-loo doo-loo doo-da-da~ I'm playing with mud in Northeast China~"
As that strange music and song started to play, the Herta puppet nodded in satisfaction. As Pei Guang's puppet, she possessed a unique sense of aesthetics not even the original had.
With rhythmic music syncing to Pei Guang's movements, and herself joining in? Perfection!
Thinking that, the Herta puppet jumped right in. Now, alongside the caveman and the beautiful maiden, a spinning puppet completed the trio.
At this moment, Mei fell silent. She felt as if her reason had taken a hit: so much so that her mind forgot to flee, forgot to intervene, and could only stand there and watch.
Though her mind had frozen, her body was still attempting to save her. Instinctively, she turned to her lover for help.
Meanwhile, Kevin, off for the day, was at home working out and studying while waiting for Mei to come home. That was when he received her distress signal.
Looking at the location tagged in the distress signal, Kevin was baffled. Why would Mei send a distress signal from that particular place?
Still, Kevin rushed over immediately. He couldn't rule out the possibility of an enemy. After all, the war with the Legion wasn't over yet: who knew if they would resort to sending an assassin after multiple defeats?
With that in mind, Kevin equipped his transdimensional backpack and arrived at the scene.
When he got there, however, he fell silent.
He couldn't understand why the Herta puppet was playing "Playing in the Mud in the Northeast", nor could he grasp why that song even existed. (TL Note: Basically this is the 'Tunak Tunak Tun' song but chinese version)
More than anything, he couldn't figure out why Pei Guang, Elysia, and the Herta puppet were all bouncing and dancing around Mei in different styles.
What might be a mental shockwave for Mei, actually seemed kind of amusing to Kevin.
At that moment, the three dancing around Mei silently made space for one more. Seeing that empty spot, Kevin felt as if he saw a beam of light.
Look at that—just the right size. He could fit in perfectly. It was as if it were calling out to him!
Kevin didn't know what they were doing, but when he saw the slight smile unconsciously forming on Mei's face, he decided to join in.
And so Kevin joined in.
But he had no idea how to dance. After pondering for a while, a spark lit in his eyes. With a quick flip, he planted his head on the ground and began spinning upside down. While spinning on his head, he kept up with the others, dancing around Mei.
At the same time Kevin joined in, Su, one of the great Flame-Chasers, was also on his way, looking puzzled. He didn't understand why Mei would send out a distress signal from this location.
Kevin had also shared his coordinates with the group when he acted, and while the others took note, none made a move at first.
The problem arose when Kevin, after arriving at Mei's side, began circling her in a patterned movement. That raised the alarm among the other Flame-Chasers. As the closest one, Su rushed to the scene.
The moment he opened the door, however, he felt a wave of pure psychic damage.
Right then and there, he seemed to see some mysterious being waving at him. He couldn't tell whether this being was friend or foe—but he understood the message.
"Join or be destroyed. You have no other choice."
There were things he would rather die than join, sure, but watching Kevin, watching Elysia, watching "Lord Herta" doing what she was doing… Su went quiet.
Then the four of them made space for one more, and for a moment, he found himself thinking, "Maybe giving it a try isn't so bad."
And so Su joined the group.
He didn't do anything fancy, just closed his eyes and walked along with the rhythm. Even though it was a simple walk, the presence of the four others made it feel strangely out of the ordinary.
And then, more and more people started arriving.
Since Mei had sent out a distress signal, more and more people were showing up: which naturally drew the attention of the other Flame-Chasers. But when they got there, and saw such a harmonious scene, and saw that a spot had been left open for them as well, they decided to temporarily embrace this so-called harmony.
At this point, Mei had already given up on thinking. Her body had also stopped trying to seek help. At first, she thought the whole scene was pure madness, but as more people joined, she found it… kind of fun.
No need to think, just follow the music, let loose, and do whatever you feel like.
With more Flame-Chasers joining, she too began to feel the charm of harmony. She joined in as well.
Follow the music. Empty your mind. Move your body. Release the fatigue!
And in that moment, her thoughts began to clear, her body felt relaxed: this really was great.
As for why everyone was dancing around Pei Guang, it had absolutely nothing to do with Harmony. It was purely the unique infectiousness of a player that made others want to join in.
As everyone knows, in multiplayer games, when a random passerby starts doing something, there are always others bored enough to follow along.
Whether it's parading down the streets or dancing in circles, no external influence is needed: this is the unique charisma and cohesion that only a player can bring.
As for the charm of the player, the masked Aeon of Harmony had this to say:
"He has a voice that even Robin envies, a dance that makes thousands of dancers look up in awe. Say no more: I'm going to go dance with him too."