HCB Chapter 306 Sealed Memories... May this journey ultimately reach the stars.
Chapter 306 Sealed Memories... May this journey ultimately reach the stars.
"Pinocconi, the Flying Boat, the Space Station, the Arillow IV... and the Star Train."
After a very natural conversation with Danheng on March 7th, Qiong ran to the sofa and sat down. She looked up at the ceiling, hoping to see through the sky and recognize the owner of the voice that had spoken to her.
Of course, this was impossible. Although it was his "dream," all he could see was the spotless ceiling of the carriage that Pam had cleaned.
But at this moment, the voice that had been urging him to cross the "door" ever since he had that lucid dream has suddenly disappeared?
"What did I drink? A hallucinogen called 'Lucky Potion'?"
Qiong, talking to herself, looked at San Yueqi and Dan Heng, who were bickering over "whether being late a little while or just once is more serious" after she had run away, and couldn't help but smile.
For some reason, perhaps it was innate laziness? Anyway, Qiong wanted to sit when he was standing and lie down when he was sitting. Ignoring the others, he lay down on the sofa, put his hands behind his head, crossed his legs, and was about to put his shoes on the sofa—just as Qiong was feeling comfortable, the train suddenly started shaking violently? He lost his balance and almost fell off the sofa.
"No, what happened?"
Qiong sat up abruptly and looked around. San Yueqi and Dan Heng also stopped bickering and looked at him. Dan Heng looked calm, San Yueqi covered her mouth in surprise, while Himeko and Welt stared at him with unreadable expressions—sympathy? Or pity?
Qiong felt uneasy under the stares of the four people: Why are they looking at him when the train is shaking?
"Hey, what is this—"
"Qiong—Cheng—Ke—, stand up!"
Before Qiong could react, Pam's roar startled him so much that he jumped up.
"Qiong, take care of yourself."
Himeko freed her hand from holding the coffee cup, patted his shoulder, and sat down next to Old Yang.
"What are you doing? How can you lie here with your shoes on? Pam works so hard cleaning every day! You're such a worry for Pam, doing something so dangerous in the blink of an eye!"
"Um, I'm sorry?"
For some reason, Qiong felt a slight fear in front of the lovable train conductor Pam? Watching the conductor still incessantly berating him, a thought flashed through Qiong's mind: Starry Sky Train Pioneer Survival Rule Number One: Don't mess with Pam…
【open up?】
The female voice that had previously told Qiong that she didn't know her own name rang out again.
"I'll let it slide this time, but next time Pam will make you do the big clean all by yourself!"
Qiong nodded hurriedly, and only breathed a sigh of relief after Pam finally stopped nagging and picked up his seemingly perpetually used little broom again.
[Starry Sky - Train? You, the Pioneers? From outer space.]
For some reason, Qiong suddenly felt a chill down her spine. But when she turned around, there was clearly nothing there.
Seeing that Qiong seemed a little strange, March 7th stopped "discussing with Danheng what kind of lateness was more serious" and leaned over to put her hand on Qiong's forehead.
"March?"
"Qiong, what's wrong with you today? How dare you make the train conductor angry? Even we troublemakers wouldn't dare to be so bold—"
"It's best if you don't. If you do, then I guess the train conductor's job tomorrow will be to supervise the three of us doing a thorough cleaning."
"Danheng!"
After his three-minute burst of enthusiasm, March 7th left, leaving Qiong leaning against the sofa, looking up at the ceiling to kill time.
No—it's not enough…
"What's not enough?"
Upon hearing the voice again, Qiong asked.
【…】
The scene that constituted the first trial was not enough. Her curiosity was not yet satisfied.
Can you—continue crossing the door?
"Why change the scene again?"
"Sora, who are you talking to?"
Qiong shook her head and did not answer.
Looking back at your past is for your sake—for the sake of your long-forgotten memories.
"Huh? My past?"
Qiong sat up again. His long-forgotten memories? Weren't these his game memories? Only from a first-person perspective...
[Go through it, and you'll see your long-forgotten memories!]
The voice grew more urgent, even more so than when it had initially urged him to leave the sandpit in St. Freya.
But this time was different from before; he had his own ideas.
Qiong glanced at the four people in front of him, and after a moment's thought, walked towards the "door" that only he could see.
Do you wish to enter the Court of Oblivion?
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"Thinking about it this way, our pioneering journey is going to turn into a 'happy journey' of eating, drinking and having fun everywhere."
As soon as Qiong opened his eyes through the mirror in the memory hall, he saw everyone, including himself, gathered in a circle—was it a flight route meeting?
"Quickly...fall?"
The train conductor, who was as thin as a glutinous rice ball, couldn't understand what March 7th was saying.
"Yes, eating, drinking, and having fun, a 'happy' life that quickly degenerates."
Qiong & a certain dragon & a certain unobservable Earth god: ...
"So, should we leave March behind to maintain the train this time?"
The intellectual leader of the pioneering trio interrupted March 7's "happy" topic, and March 7, who was originally smiling, immediately jumped up to object.
"I... I didn't say I didn't want to go. I really enjoy joining in the fun... I just hope the next place we go to join in the fun won't have some Friday or Saturday coming up to mess with us again."
[Keep moving forward—please…]
"I would do it even without you telling me."
Watching everyone discuss "Starry Sky Martial Arts," Qiong resisted the urge to stay and listen to their conversation, and once again walked towards the mirror that only he could see.
Do you wish to enter the Court of Oblivion?
……
"In March, I woke up one morning and couldn't find my glasses. Have you seen them?"
"Haha, even Uncle Yang can be careless sometimes! Let's guess..."
What are you looking for?
"Danheng, Uncle Yang's glasses are missing!"
"Isn't it right on his face?"
"You need to enter—"
……
"Hey, you're here? I've been waiting for you for ages!"
Don't listen to March; it's only for five minutes.
"You need to go in—"
……
"Sora, have you heard? Our next stop is Pinocchio. I heard it's a beautiful world, like a dream. I'm so excited!"
"you want--"
--------------
The more Qiong passed through the mirror of the Memory Court, the more a strange sense of familiarity and impulse surged in her heart.
Each time she travels through time, the timeline seems to regress, and the urging voice grows softer. Eventually, the voice disappears, and all that remains in Qiong's ears are the sounds of the train crew and the lines that the Memory Maker can never finish saying.
For a fleeting moment, Qiong considered stopping to look at everyone, but when he saw the one who remembered standing there again, and heard the voice in his ear, "Do you want to enter the Garden of Oblivion?", he stopped waiting and resolutely ran towards the past.
Until the Mirror of Memories disappeared.
--------------
Is this where it all started?
Qiong looked around and saw that everyone was still gathered in a circle, but this time everyone was surrounding him.
Shouldn't the very beginning have been the space station?
"Ahem... Passenger Qiong, would you be willing to join the Starry Sky Train and become an 'Anonymous Passenger'?"
"Uh, what's this?"
Pam's sudden question caught Qiong off guard; he didn't recall this part at all!
Could this be the sealed memory?
"There's no need to rush to give an answer. Becoming an anonymous visitor means you're no longer dwelling on the past, but choosing to forge a future."
Perhaps sensing that Qiong was still hesitating, the understanding teacher Danheng added at the right moment.
"You prefer exploring the world to taking care of yourself."
March 7th picked up the conversation, but Qiong could feel that her hands were actually trembling.
"It's time to leave behind familiar life and embark on an adventure in an unknown world."
With his arms crossed, the mature and composed senior, Lao Yang, said this.
No longer yearning for the earth beneath their feet, they now regard the distant stars as their home.
Himeko calmly met Sora's gaze, awaiting his answer.
"And most importantly, becoming an anonymous guest means that the responsibilities you bear will far outweigh the rewards. Qiong, even so, do you still want to become an anonymous guest?"
Unexpected information flooded Qiong's mind, and even in his dream, he couldn't open his mouth for a moment, because for some reason he felt he really wanted to say, "Don't become an anonymous stranger"...
But doing so would be extremely inappropriate! Therefore, he simply nodded cautiously.
"Great! We'll definitely become the best development partners in the future!"
Upon receiving Qiong's shy acceptance, March 7th immediately cheered.
"Welcome! But there's one last step, Sky Passenger. Are you ready to undergo the ritual of becoming a nameless guest?"
"ceremony?"
Qiong nodded nervously again. All his nervousness stemmed from the unknown; the fact that he had no recollection of it made him slightly uneasy.
"Don't be so nervous, it's just reciting the pioneering creed."
With her tiny feet, Pam swayed and walked up to Sora, instructing Sora to place her hands on her chest, just like everyone else.
"First, even if fate brings rise and fall, pioneers should have their own ideas."
Second, even when facing raging waves, the train crew should move in the same direction.
Third, even when facing a life-or-death situation, one should still resist injustice.
Fourth, even if forgotten by the world, one should not care about the pros and cons afterward.
Fifth, even when the Milky Way is shrouded in twilight, the long night should still be illuminated.
Sixth, even in a chaotic situation, we should still look forward and crush the disorder.
May this journey ultimately lead to the stars.
After Pam finished reading the creed, everyone on the train spoke at the same time, their voices merging together and piercing through Qiong's chaotic and unclear thoughts.
"May this journey ultimately reach the stars..."
As Qiong muttered to himself, he looked at the Starry Sky Train crew, including Dan Heng, who were smiling and welcoming him to join them. The philosophical question that had flashed through his mind again during the physical impact of March 7th, which was disguised by Sangbo (Hanabi?).
Who am I? Where am I? Where am I going?
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"That wretched Ajeta..."
Frustrated, Kiana desperately wanted to vent her anger, but she couldn't find or touch anything. If she used Honkai to cause a major incident, it might damage Sora's mental state...
Therefore, she could only sulk in silence.
Through this dream, Kiana learned many things that Sora and Teacher Welt had mentioned before, but only in written description, as well as some things that had never been mentioned before. This allowed her to understand Sora's past better and learn about Sora's pioneering path.
But so what? She wasn't happy.
Qiong dreamed about these things, but acted completely unaware of them in the dream. What does this mean?
This means that even without Kafka, Sora's memories are starting to return! And Sora's relationship with those alien friends is, at least for now, far superior to her relationship with her fellow Earthlings besides Mei...
Unlike her, who relies on the power of the End to steal pleasure, every single one of those fireflies from March 7th is one of Sora's old flames. If Sora continues like this, even if he returns to Earth, will he still be able to decisively reject Silver Wolf and Fireflies for Mei as before?
She didn't know, she really didn't know...
Could it be that she intends to use the Feather of Dust, which she had reserved for aliens, on Qiong? To keep Qiong's sealed memories sealed away?
No, let's be even bolder and find a way to do it for him on Mars! Although she's currently just a physical Honkai being, which theoretically doesn't count as cheating, if she succeeds, given Qiong's sense of responsibility, he would never abandon her!
Also, we need to speed up the promotion of Yaya Le! We absolutely cannot let Qiong leave the solar system for the Star Sea! The enemy is on the other side of the sea!