Chapter 419

He couldn't help but ask.

【......】

【I...... may not be leaving.】

【I plan to stay in Asdena, with Lazalina and Tieernan.】

After a moment of silence,

Mikhail answered.

【Oh..... does this place remind you of your home?】

Granholm was slightly surprised.

【The people of Asdena have won only a small victory; they still have a long way to go before true freedom...】

【Hanunu needs us.】

【Don't worry—not all journeys must lead to the stars and seas.】

【Even if we leave the train, our exploration won't end.】

Mikhail seemed to be comforting himself,

and also seemed to be comforting Granholm.

【It's fine—I always knew you few wouldn't stay.】

【Go in peace, friend. Take this with you.】

Granholm smiled lightly,

and handed the object to Mikhail.

【This is...... Mr. Amundsen's hat?】

【Why........】

Mikhail stared at the hat Granholm had handed him,

lost in thought.

【When he left, he said he wanted to leave it to his best student.】

【I think now is the time.】

【Goodbye, Lagwok. Take care of Tieernan and Lazalina.】

【Remember...... write to us.】

Hu Tao: "The young Mikhail has arrived in Pinoconny, or rather, the frontier prison."

Hu Tao: "And he has decided to stay here."

Hu Tao: "Once he stayed, it was for a lifetime......."

Xiang Xing: "I'll go!"

Xiang Xing: "Is Mikhail-senpai's hat really the legacy left by the legendary navigator-senpai?"

March 7th: "My goodness, the meaning behind this hat is a rare treasure for the Star Rail Train!"

Welt: "This is...... the true legacy of the Nameless Traveler......"

Himeko: "When Mikhail left the Star Rail Train, Qiming was already gone."

Himeko: "Another legendary navigator took his place..."

Brother Dan Heng: "Granholm, codename Chasing Light Child."

Brother Dan Heng: "He became the train's navigator at only seventeen."

Brother Dan Heng: "Yet he spent his entire life guiding the Star Rail Train."

Brother Dan Heng: "After the Cosmic Locust Plague, during the era when the myriad realms were severed, he was the one who reached out to countless worlds."

Brother Dan Heng: "The Star Rail Train's current reputation across the cosmos is largely due to him."

Amber: "Ah.... another legendary hero!"

Amber: "The Star Rail Train really does produce heroes in abundance."

Truth Doctor: "These people were legends in life."

Truth Doctor: "But few remember them after death."

Truth Doctor: "Sigh.... this world is just so foolish."

Robin: "Heroes should not be forgotten, let alone defamed."

Robin: "Just like Pinoconny—if those three Nameless Travelers hadn't chosen to stay back then, how could Pinoconny have become what it is today?"

Xiang Xing: "You're right. No matter what, our train crew will demand an explanation for those three-senpai!"

Xiang Xing: "We cannot let them die in obscurity!"

The video continues.

Time continues to pass,

the fourth act,

arrives at Mikhail's middle age.

At this point, he,

has become the Clockmaker.

【Clockmaker, where are you going?】

Mike watched Mikhail prepare to leave,

his expression filled with panic.

【Don't worry, Mike.】

【I'm just going on a long trip.】

"Someone has to rush to the interstellar frontier to pioneer. Now Penacony only has one former Nameless left—why can't it be me?"

Mikhail's voice sounded very calm.

"Precisely because you're the only one we've got left!"

"Have you forgotten Tieernan?"

"The galaxy isn't what it used to be—it's far too dangerous!"

"If we lost you too, what would become of Penacony?"

Mikey was unwilling to let Mikhail leave.

"If we can't find a way out, what will become of Penacony then?"

"Tieernan... how could I ever forget him? Every sleepless night I ask myself—why didn't I set out with him back then?"

"A Nameless's footsteps can never stop... Set your mind at ease, Mikey."

"Just picking up the old trade again. Wait for me to come back."

"But if—I mean if..."

"If I don't make it back in one piece, then you be the next Clockmaker."

Nahida: "In his youth, Mikhail had no choice but to personally rush to the pioneering frontier for Penacony."

Nahida: "And at that moment, he also came to understand the resolve of the Navigator Mikhail of old."

Welt: "If nothing unexpected happened, this was the period when the family was sought out by Mikhail, who was away from home, right?"

Welt: "Given the circumstances at the time, only by seeking outside aid could Penacony be fully preserved."

Stelle: "Sigh—it's hard to clap with one hand, hard to prop up a bridge with a single log."

Stelle: "If the other two Nameless elders were still here, it wouldn't have come to such a desperate pass."

Stelle: "If Elder Mikhail could have held on a little longer, until we arrived, then things shouldn't have ended up like this."

March 7th: "He's already held on far too long..."

March 7th: "He really couldn't hold on any longer, could he?"

March 7th: "After all... the safety of an entire star system rested almost entirely on his shoulders."

Diviner Fu Xuan: "A legendary hero who sacrificed himself for others—truly worthy of respect."

Silver Wolf: "Truth is, he also ran into bad timing."

Silver Wolf: "It just so happened that during his hardest stretch, the Astral Express suffered a great catastrophe, and the Nameless existed in name only."

Silver Wolf: "Otherwise, as long as the Astral Express had kept running as usual, the moment he sent word, some Nameless would surely have gone to help him."

Venti: "Always cutting through thorns and brambles in the most perilous circumstances, charging forward without ever retreating..."

Venti: "Sigh... this is what pioneering is!"

Venti: "Magnificent, yet tragic..."