Master Control Zone.
Asta and Himeko sat opposite each other at the desk, discussing the issues surrounding the Star Rail.
Currently, these two were practically household names throughout the Herta Space Station, known for both positive and negative reasons.
Their positive reputation needed no further explanation.
As for the negative…
Uprooting the 'thesis' sapling belonging to a researcher from the Department of Ecology, burying garbage in the cultivation soil, and concocting a biochemical waste bomb were among the more severe 'transgressions' attributed to Stelle and Caelus.
Other incidents included, within just three short days, the pair having rummaged through nearly every single trash can on the entire space station, from top to bottom.
It's worth mentioning that the living facilities on the space station were extremely advanced. The trash cans were intelligent units capable of automatically decomposing waste and releasing oxygen or other useful resources.
When Stelle and Caelus took the 'crystals' from inside these 'treasure chests', they had no idea that what they saw as treasure was, in the eyes of others, not just trash, but also components belonging to the trash cans themselves.
The space station engineer who first received the work order – 'Inspect intelligent trash can status and perform repairs' – dispatched by the system was quite puzzled.
The operating logs appeared completely normal, so how could parts from inside the intelligent trash can simply vanish?
He briefly suspected the manufacturer of cutting corners, but the Station Lead always purchased high-end products from the Interastral Peace Corporation.
The Corporation might be profit-driven, but surely not to the point of such blatant corner-cutting? Perhaps it was just bad luck, encountering a defective unit?
Just as the maintenance engineer was about to submit his findings truthfully on the work order, he received a second task to inspect and repair another intelligent trash can.
Bewildered, the engineer located the problematic bin and meticulously examined it inside and out. He discovered the same issue: missing internal components, identical to the previous case.
The only difference was which parts were missing.
Since when had the Corporation's quality control department become so sloppy?
Muttering curses under his breath, the maintenance engineer decided to draft a suggestion letter to the Station Lead, advising her to file a complaint with the Corporation's sales department.
However, he was only halfway through writing the message when he received a third trash can repair task.
And then came the fourth, the fifth…
Due to their rapid decomposition speed, intelligent trash cans were usually quite small. If one broke down, it would quickly fill up with garbage, leaving people in the vicinity with nowhere to dispose of their waste.
At this point, even the slowest on the uptake would realize something wasn't right. The maintenance engineer certainly felt things were amiss.
He hurried to the Defense Section to consult with security personnel and review the surveillance footage. He watched, utterly dumbfounded, as two sneaky gray-haired figures rummaged through the trash cans, dismantled parts, and pocketed them like precious treasures.
Damn it!
Are these two out of their minds?!
(╯°Д°)╯︵ ┻━┻
The maintenance engineer was furious enough to curse and nearly flip a table. But he quickly realized these two gray-haired individuals weren't station researchers, but friends from the Astral Express – and heroes of the space station, no less.
Frankly, he found it hard to believe that these two dumpster divers had any connection to the title 'hero'.
Regardless of the internal turmoil and disbelief raging within him, he promptly reported the situation to the Station Lead.
"I think, perhaps, we could inform everyone on the station about Stelle and Caelus's situation. I'm sure everyone would understand," Asta suggested.
Generally speaking, society holds a certain degree of humanistic concern for those with mental health issues. Moreover, Stelle and Caelus had saved everyone's lives; the station owed them a great debt.
"Hmm, let's try to get their opinion on it first," Himeko replied thoughtfully.
After all, nobody wants to be viewed through the prejudiced lens of 'mental illness'.
Just as Asta hesitated, her phone suddenly vibrated. A message window popped up.
Picking up her phone and unlocking it with iris recognition, Asta's expression turned incredibly strange the moment she read the message. Her beautiful eyes widened in utter shock.
"What is it? Is their condition very serious?" Himeko asked, her brow furrowing slightly as she noticed Asta's change in demeanor. She paused stirring the coffee in her porcelain cup.
She knew the space station's psychiatrist was currently assessing Stelle and Caelus's condition.
Asta looked somewhat dazed, hesitating for a long moment before speaking. "I... I don't know if you'd call it serious or not."
"According to the report the Medical Department just submitted, Stelle and Caelus were very cooperative and communicated enthusiastically with Dr. Jennifer. There was no resistance... although they still deny being ill."
"That's good. How did the consultation go?" Himeko felt a wave of relief hearing that Stelle and Caelus were somewhat cooperative with the assessment.
She lifted her coffee cup and took a delicate sip. Mm, the coffee brewed from these beans has a nice flavour. I should ask Asta for the purchase link later.
"It's over. Stelle and Caelus have already left the Psychiatry Department," Asta said, then paused, her face etched with disbelief. "It's just that..."
"Hmm?"
"It seems the doctor... has gone mad."
"Pffft—!"
Before Asta could finish her sentence, Himeko abruptly sprayed the coffee from her mouth, staining her elegant white, high-slit dress with brown droplets.
"Cough, cough, cough cough cough!"
Wiping her mouth, Himeko ignored the stains on her dress and the spilled coffee on the floor. She stared wide-eyed at Asta, her brilliant golden pupils filled with disbelief.
"What did you just say?"
"After chatting with Stelle and Caelus, Dr. Jennifer's mental state seems... compromised. Look..."
Asta handed her phone to Himeko.
Seeing the screen, Himeko's expression completely crumbled.
It was a short video clip. The subject was the psychiatrist she had met briefly before. Dr. Jennifer was currently cradling a lump of fermented garbage in both hands.
Dark, murky liquid and debris oozed from the garbage, smearing her hands and dripping onto her clothes, yet she paid it no mind. Her pupils seemed to reflect an inner light as she instinctively murmured, "So beautiful..."
Then, as if arranging priceless jewelry or fine art, she began to carefully handle the lump of garbage.
Watching the doctor, now filthy from handling fermented waste, Himeko fell completely silent.
What... What on earth is going on?!
"Are you really giving her that crystal?"
On the way out of the Medical Department, Caelus nudged Stelle's arm with his elbow and asked quietly.
It wasn't that he was being stingy, but he knew that to outsiders, the 'crystal'... probably wasn't considered a good thing.
The thought of the doctor cradling what was likely stinking garbage made Caelus feel completely floored.
Ahem, didn't mean for this to happen! Poor doctor... it's all the System's fault!
System:[???]
[Er, apologies, it's all Aha's fault! Everything is Aha's doing! Kekeke!]
"Of course! It's just one crystal! I've got over a hundred of them here!" Stelle replied nonchalantly, then a sly grin spread across her face.
"Hey, little bro, call me 'Big Sis', and I'll give you one too."
Caelus scoffed, making no attempt to hide the disdain on his face. "Big Sis! Big Sis! Big Sis! Big Sis! Big Sis! ... Mmph!"
Before the sixth 'Big Sis' could escape his lips, his mouth was covered by Stelle's hand, her face a mask of 'What the—?!' and 'Damn it!'.
Caelus extended his tongue and licked Stelle's palm. The sudden, unfamiliar sensation made Stelle instinctively recoil, spitting twice under her breath as she quickly withdrew her hand.
"One 'Big Sis' per crystal. That's five crystals in total. Thank you for your patronage."
A smile brighter than sunshine bloomed on Caelus's face as he held out his hand.
"How can that count!? That's not what I meant..." Stelle's face flushed red as she argued anxiously.
"Ah, Stelle, you wouldn't want your credibility to completely evaporate in my eyes, would you?" Caelus said with a gentle smile, uttering words that made Stelle choke.
After a long, conflicted pause, Stelle reluctantly pulled out five crystals, the pain evident on her face.
"Get lost!"
Thrusting the crystals towards Caelus with both hands, Stelle turned her head away, looking utterly heartbroken, as if another glance might cause her to shed tears.
"Alrighty then!"
Completely unbothered by Stelle's harsh attitude, Caelus maintained a warm smile.
Heh, such a naive Stellaron host!
Gently closing his hand around the crystals, Caelus glanced at the top-right corner of his system panel. The crystal count was about to break the 1000 mark, and he couldn't suppress the growing curve of his lips.
In three days, the Mask Monthly Pass had given him 90 crystals.
Ransacking the Herta Space Station yielded a total of 186 crystals from common chests, puzzle chests, and other conditional chests, adding to what he'd previously squeezed out of Herta.
His crystal count had reached 982. He gave Stelle 8, then got 5 back, bringing the current total to 979.
"March, Dan Heng, Herta just messaged me. Stelle and I are heading to her office first," Caelus announced, waving his phone as they reached a corridor junction.
Next up: run tests for Herta, complete the first phase of the commission task, and his crystal count would soar past 1100!
Would a Ten-pull be far behind?
"...Alright." Dan Heng nodded impassively, though a hint of lingering heaviness remained in his expression.
March 7th looked even more dazed and bewildered, clearly still reeling from the shock of these two managing to drive their own psychiatrist insane.
Heaven only knew what went through March 7th's mind when she saw the doctor, covered in grime, pockets stuffed with trash, and hands reeking of foulness, escorting Stelle and Caelus out.
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