Seeing Asta's surprised expression, March 7th quickly shook her head: "No, no, it's just… uh~ after hearing Ah Guang talk about some stuff related to the Luofu today, I randomly guessed a few things, and I actually guessed right. Could it be that I've gained the power to foresee the future too?"
March 7th was now wondering if she had somehow picked up Pei Guang's ability to predict the future just from spending so much time with him.
Watching March's shifting expressions, Pei Guang lightly tapped her on the head: "Stop imagining things!"
March 7th: "Ouch! That wasn't imagining things, look! We've been to so many planets and I never once guessed what would happen next. But this time I got it right on the first try, hehe~ That must mean I've learned your amazing future-predicting ability too! Otherwise, how could I have guessed it so accurately?"
Seeing how smug March looked, Pei Guang spoke up: "That's not predicting the future~ You just heard me talk about something related to Heliobi and linked it to those horror stories you've read. You just came up with a possible theory. But now that I think about it, March, every time you randomly say something, even if all the details are wrong, the result somehow ends up being right."
March 7th: "Really? How come I didn't notice?"
Stelle: "It's true, it's true!"
March 7th: "Tsk! When this is all over, I really need to think back on all the things I've ever said."
Pei Guang then looked at Asta: "Oh right, Asta, what kind of mission are you here for?"
After watching the two finish their banter, Asta chuckled lightly: "You two still get along so well."
Asta cleared her throat before starting her explanation.
As it turns out, because of Aetherium Wars, Herta's Space Station, which had always been rather isolated, had started opening up more to the outside world. Even between departments, the topic of Aetherium Wars had become common.
To Asta, this was a very good thing. The Space Station was still in its recovery phase, and participating in an event helped ease the tension and anxiety. On top of that, it encouraged communication between staff members from departments that normally didn't get along. It was perfect.
From the moment the Space Station was selected as a competition venue until today, it had been just about a week. But in that time, people from various departments had been researching strategies and competing together.
Work wasn't affected, and everyone was in good spirits: Asta was genuinely pleased.
However, this increased communication also led to a strange situation. A new "Emotional Counseling Service" from the Luofu suddenly appeared in the Space Station. And this service had convinced quite a few staff members to request a transfer to the Xianzhou Luofu to meet it in person.
At first, things seemed fine. The staff just submitted applications to leave, and Asta managed to use her own methods to cool things down. But right after suppressing those requests yesterday, three more staff members became hysterical today.
Where there's strangeness, there's mischief; where there's mischief, there's something supernatural. After getting to know Pei Guang, Asta had come to understand this principle. She felt something was off, but she didn't have the time to go to the Luofu herself—nor the time to speak with anyone there.
So she could only turn to Pei Guang and ask for his help investigating the situation.
After explaining everything, Asta sighed: "I'm not some old stick-in-the-mud. I absolutely support the well-being, lifestyle, and even romantic lives of our staff. If someone wants to pursue freedom, I won't stop them. But this case is just too strange.
Do you know? There are five people who've applied to go to the Luofu, all of them enchanted by this so-called 'Foxian Beauty'. And one of them already has a family, yet he's still acting obsessed, like he's lost his mind trying to go…"
At first, Asta thought this Foxian girl was just some idol, and the group of them were simply fans. But after seeing their reactions today, she was convinced this wasn't about an idol anymore.
Pei Guang fell into thought: "That already sounds shady. Your staff might be under the charm of a fox spirit. So, you're asking us to investigate what's going on with this Foxian Beauty, right?"
Asta nodded: "Exactly. I have no one else to turn to. As for the mission reward: I've already prepared it~"
Asta gave Pei Guang a playful wink, and the mention of a mission reward instantly piqued his interest.
"No problem! I promise to get to the bottom of this Foxian Beauty's secrets."
In that moment, Pei Guang's fighting spirit ignited. March 7th also nodded firmly: "That's right, that's right!"
Asta: "This… won't interfere with your Aetherium Wars matches, right?"
Pei Guang shook his head: "Not at all. We've already challenged everyone we need to. Now we're just waiting for the finals to face the other championship contenders and the previous champion. In the meantime, we were only planning to mess around and research strategies. Skipping half a day won't make any difference~"
Pei Guang gave Asta a thumbs-up. Hearing his answer, Asta let out a breath of relief: "That's good to hear!"
Pei Guang stroked his chin thoughtfully: "Whether or not this turns out to be Heliobi messing around, I think we need to get those affected staff members to calm down completely before we act."
March 7th: "Huh? Why? Shouldn't we go after the culprit first?"
Pei Guang: "Think about horror stories: don't the people bewitched by monsters or spirits always end up causing trouble for the protagonists?"
March 7th recalled: "That's true! Every time I watch horror stories, even though they scare me so much my heart races, sometimes the stuff those people do really makes me mad. Oh—wait! Let me guess~ hmm~ if we don't handle those staff first, are they going to mess up our operation?"
Pei Guang: "Exactly~ See? You've got plenty of experience yourself."
March 7th: "But… a story is just a story. Reality—"
Pei Guang interrupted: "Stories come from life. Trust me: sometimes the stuff that happens in real life is even more like a story than the stories themselves."
Stelle: "So, what should we do?"
Pei Guang: "Let me think… Since they're so obsessed with this 'Foxian Beauty,' why don't we play the part of the Foxian Beauty and lure them in—then show them what a real 'honey trap' looks like!"