Chapter 94: and ===GLOSSARY===

Upon arriving at the Sea of Stars, Dan Heng tried to send a message to Xing and March 7th, but both attempts failed.

"Why won't it send? The network is restricted, but some functions are still working."

He furrowed his brow slightly, sensing that someone had already begun moving against the Astral Express. Unable to contact them, Dan Heng had to search alone.

He ventured farther into the Sea of Stars and, off in the distance, saw a man and a woman encircled by a horde of Shade‑like monsters.

The girl, about fifteen or sixteen, wore her hair in two brown twin‑tails and looked exceptionally cute and lively. She confidently glanced at the blond young man, her face lit with smug satisfaction, and said, "Just stay over there."

"Leave urgent rescues to the professionals—"

The blond young man was handsome, dressed in a white formal attire, with a grand, elaborate coffin standing beside him.

... Luo, a Rakshasa!

Li Suoshang gasped, covering her mouth in disbelief as she watched the two figures appear on the light screen.

Though she had readied herself to see her own counterpart after meeting Bronya and Seele's variants, when the scene actually played out, the expected joy didn't come—only a deep‑seated bitterness surfaced.

Right now, it's just like it was back then.

At fifteen, she had tested her sword in the desert, and he had rescued her three times. Seeing the blond young man on the light screen, Li Suoshang felt a sudden wave of nostalgia, as a warm feeling welled up from her heart and overflowed.

That night, the fifteen‑year‑old girl asked the Rakshasa under the moon if he had been the one who helped her.

Later, on the road to the Gate of Ease, the girl and the Rakshasa rode together in a creaking carriage. It rolled slowly, she slept on his lap, watching the sunset.

Everything in the memory seemed to slow… the wheels seemed to grow corners, as if everything were sitting in the carriage watching the sun set slowly— the day's end, the year's waning.

She suddenly felt happiness rise within her, as if it had returned from the desert over five hundred years ago, bringing the joy of reuniting with an old friend.

"Suoshang, Suoshang…"

A familiar girl's voice suddenly echoed in her ear, pulling Li Suoshang out of her reverie. She lifted a hand to her forehead and finally made out the figure before her— Yurang Dai'er.

"What's wrong?" the girl asked anxiously.

"Nothing, really… I just remembered something from a few hundred years ago." Li Suoshang lowered her gaze slightly and gave a gentle shake of her head.

Only after Yurang Dai'er looked away did Li Suoshang finally raise her head, gazing at the girl in the sky who was an exact copy of her fifteen‑year‑old self.

Innocent, lively, and charmingly cute.

"... I wonder if this time his gaze will fall on me."

——

Seeing the two about to enter battle, Dan Heng rushed forward and fought alongside the girl.

Against the relentlessly respawning Shade‑like foes, Suoshang and Dan Heng inevitably got hurt. But in the next instant, the Rakshasa drew a slender sword, tapped it to the ground, and an endless flow of abundant life burst forth, radiating outward from him.

"This… this is…" Suoshang stared in disbelief as her wounds kept healing.

The Rakshasa grasped an exquisitely crafted cross, walked elegantly to the two, and said, "You fought to save me—how could I stay uninvolved?"

Wow, this guy is so incredibly handsome!!

His blond hair truly gives off the feeling of a Western handsome man. Butterfly Recall recalled walking Kyoto's streets with her sister years ago, occasionally spotting a blond Westerner like him.

Except their looks are worlds apart—one heavenly, the other earthly.

"Hey hey, what are you doing? Did you forget the Lord's orders?" Seeing the Love Pillar's cheeks flush, the Wind Pillar, Shinobu, slightly annoyed, tapped his sword sheath, the clear sound snapping the two ladies back to attention.

Remembering the Lord's command, the Love Pillar's face flushed with embarrassment.

The Lord had gone to recuperate due to his health, and before leaving he had urged them to carefully observe and learn the Astral Express's swordsmanship. But when this young Rakshasa appeared… she was instantly captivated by his face, causing her to completely overlook Suoshang's sword technique…

"This guy looks just like a woman, with such long hair… he has no trace of masculinity—what's there to like?" Shinobu crossed his arms, his gaze toward the Rakshasa tinged with antagonism.

"——Shinobu."

The Stone Pillar's somewhat muffled voice sounded from behind him.

"The Rakshasa's distinguishing trait isn't his swordsmanship; his special quality… is probably that strange healing ability." the Stone Pillar reminded, "Besides, haven't you noticed? His slender sword…"

"It's a Western sword." Butterfly Interject said, "Western swordsmanship differs greatly from ours—the blade is thin and long, excelling in thrusts… though I know little about the specific techniques."

The Serpent Pillar, Iguro Obanai, narrowed his eyes slightly: "Oh? Then it seems we ought to pay special attention to this Rakshasa's sword technique."

With the nurse's aid, Suoshang and Dan Heng fought without hesitation, unleashing broad, sweeping moves, and soon eradicated the entire group of Shade‑like foes.

"Are you two alright?" Suoshang wiped sweat from her forehead and turned to ask.

Dan Heng and the Rakshasa exchanged a glance and both shook their heads.

"All good then. I'm Cloud Rider Suoshang, just transferred from the Yaoqing Astral Express." Suoshang exhaled, then glanced at the Rakshasa with slight annoyance: "I told you swords have no eyes—what do we do if you get hurt?"

"If I don't act, you'll get hurt." The Rakshasa's voice was gentle, his face showing a hint of worry.

「……」

Watching the man on the light screen say those words, Walter's features almost twisted together.

He had thought that Otto had a counterpart.

He also imagined that his counterpart would have a vastly different personality from his true self, but this…

When the Rakshasa, bearing a face 100% identical to the Archbishop of Guilt, said "If I don't act, you'll get hurt," Walter felt something inside him snap with a pop.

Is this reasonable?!

... Totally unreasonable!!

This Rakshasa definitely has some scheme! Absolutely! Although he hasn't revealed it yet, he must be plotting something; otherwise, the coffin he carries… could not be explained!

In short, he absolutely does not believe that the isotope of Alto would be so simple in another world.