NIKKE, When the Milky Way Blossoms

Phoenix never imagined that while he was secretly practicing his sweet talk, Marian and Yin Hua would overhear him.

Not only that,

Instead of alerting its host that someone was eavesdropping, the vengeful AI cooperated with the two, chatting incessantly with Phoenix in its head to try and distract the unscrupulous person.

As the saying goes, "the more you watch the show, the better," and Anik went to great lengths to ensure that his host frequently found himself in chaotic situations.

no way,

She loved watching it so much.

……

……

The next day.

Phoenix, who knew nothing about the future, woke up from a blissful sleep in bed.

I opened my eyes and looked out the window; the sun was already high in the sky. Judging from its position, it was probably close to noon.

Didn't Marian wake me up?

The man, who had gotten out of bed and gone straight to sleep in his combat uniform, walked out the door with a belly full of questions.

To his surprise, as soon as he opened the door, a strong smell of burnt coal hit him.

Turning out of the corridor, you can see six girls sitting around a campfire, staring longingly at the dozens of strips of meat hanging above the flames.

Smoked meat over an open flame?

Seeing the almost blackened strip of meat from afar, Phoenix didn't seem too surprised.

Wilderness survival has its own methods of smoking meat over an open flame, and the resulting dried meat does indeed have a dark reddish-black color.

The taste is definitely not very good.

However, compared to the simmering process of smoking with fruitwood for ten or twenty hours, the method of roasting over an open flame is definitely more suitable for the present.

"Thanks for your hard work."

Phoenix immediately recognized that Marian and the others had stayed up all night for those few dozen pieces of jerky, and naturally thanked them.

But it would have been better if he hadn't said anything.

These words suddenly gave Marianne the illusion that "her husband was very grateful to his wife for preparing dinner for him when he got home."

Therefore, the girl's face inevitably flushed slightly.

Yin Hua, on the other hand, glanced at someone sideways, looking like she was saying, "Don't bother me, I'm in a bad mood," which left Phoenix completely bewildered.

what happened?

One with a red face, the other with a white face—are they putting on an opera?

Meanwhile, the commander was still reflecting on which small detail he had offended Yin Hua.

Over there, Honglian, who had some experience with barbecue, confidently waved to her "comrades" and smiled:

"Young master, come and judge the results of our work last night."

This time, we bled them dry, boiling them in water before baking the finished product.

bass--!

No sooner had she finished speaking than a flash of silver light appeared, and Honglian grasped what appeared to be a homemade dagger, slicing off a large piece of dried meat from the smoked meat strip.

Then the tip of the knife thrusts forward again, and the swift force instantly pierces through the jerky in mid-air.

Honglian walked up to Phoenix with a dagger in her hand and handed him the wooden handle.

"Please, young master, take a look."

……

……

The meat was roasted until very dry.

The salt content was also just right, without being too salty.

Aside from the lack of spices, which makes the taste less than ideal, these dozens of jerky strips can be used as long-term stored food.

then,

Once Phoenix confirmed that there was nothing wrong with the food, he told everyone to pack their necessary belongings and prepare to cross the H region again.

……

Are you sure this is the way?

Inside the narrow tunnel, Honglian looked down at the vertical passage that could only accommodate one person at a time, her expression far from pleasant.

She could pass through a narrow passage that was only half a person's width, but she couldn't pass through her beloved straw hat.

This won't do, absolutely not!

"Is there really no other way, young master?" The white-haired girl, unwilling to give up, frowned like Yin Hua and said, "Is there truly no other way?"

"The road conditions are all pretty much the same; this narrow road is the only way to get through."

Below the passage, Phoenix poked his head out of the "well" with a very helpless expression.

"How about this... you can leave your straw hat here for now, and I'll find a chance to bring you back to get it next time. Or I can get it for you, and you can come and get it yourself when you have time."

These words immediately drew sidelong glances from Marian and the others.

next time?

How can there be a next time?

Hearing this, Honglian, who was just looking for an excuse to abduct someone, was not about to let the opportunity slip by. Her furrowed brows immediately relaxed, and she smiled happily:

“Excellent~ Then next time, I will wait for you to bring me to get it.”

Having said that, the old woman didn't give Yin Hua and Marianne any chance to refuse. She took off her straw hat, grabbed her beloved knife from her waist, and jumped down in front of Phoenix without thinking.

Boom-!

The weight of 100 kilograms, combined with the bizarre high heel design of the Red Lotus, easily poked four holes in the solid soil.

　"Then I'll trouble you to continue leading the way, young master."

Being a senior member of the Nikis, the drunken woman with a hairpin still on the back of her head had no idea what "shame" meant. She cheerfully re-tied her beloved knife back to her waist and said:

"Next time, you may come alone to keep the appointment. With me here, no one will hurt you."

blah blah blah...

A certain pilgrim's scheme was openly discussed right next to Niki's ears, prompting Marian to immediately issue a warning:

"The pilgrim contacted the Ark commander alone; are you trying to frame our commander?!"

"Oh, is that so?"

Upon hearing Marian's words, Honglian's eyes lit up at first, but then she shrugged, feigning nonchalance, and lazily replied:

"I know, I know~ I'll be careful."

"Then, please continue to lead the way."

……

……

A few more days passed.

Phoenix proved that the decision to return to the H region was wise and correct.

When he led his team to evade the Lechers' patrol lines and bypass their sentry posts, the area centered around Secret Material H had completely disappeared from the Lechers' presence.

During this time, he even went to the body of Secret Material H to retrieve the gun for Marian, and also took the opportunity to dismantle Secret Material H's broken Tyrant-class Rachel core.

Afterwards, Phoenix led the team back to the ground.

As the northward advance became increasingly smooth, the atmosphere among the team shifted completely from a relatively relaxed state to a more relaxed one.

Aside from each other's precautions against their commanders being attacked by the other side, the group's relationship has become quite familiar.

Diesel reveals that she was a survivor of a train bombing; Gin-Hwa recounts her past as a commander; Marian tells of the farcical events she had with her teammates during her time in the Silver Spears; and Guren occasionally mentions her past with the Goddess Squad.

Ark betrayed the Goddess Force.

The truth, buried in the long river of history, was told to everyone by Honglian herself.

“Hate? I’ve long forgotten it. Perhaps there are people among my friends who hate the Ark, but I don’t want to go through such troubles again.”

The white-haired girl leisurely sipped her wine and said:

"Besides, I have made a promise with my friends to find the captain's body. This is the most important thing to me. I have no time to talk about past betrayals and hatred."