Into the Cosmos (Star Rail SI, Chaos Gacha) (Patreon)

Chapter 6: All Aboard the Astral Express

With my decision made, I turned to Himeko and gave her a small bow, surprising her with the gesture.

“If it’s not too much trouble, I would love to join the Astral Express,” I said sincerely, keeping my expression calm.

Himeko blinked for a moment before a warm smile spread across her lips. I noticed her eyes flick briefly to the side in amusement, which made me curious. Turning as well, I just barely caught a flash of pink hair before it disappeared.

‘Was that March just now? She’s the only pink-haired girl aboard the space station other than Asta,’ I thought curiously.

“We would love to have you with us, Caelus~ I’m sure you will make a great addition to the Nameless,” Himeko said with a happy smile.

“There’s no need to rush into this, though. If there’s anyone you need to say goodbye to or speak with, I’ll be waiting for you by the platform.”

She sounded genuinely pleased before turning to Herta.

“It was good seeing you again, Herta. I’m sure we’ll be meeting again rather soon,” Himeko said with a small nod before walking away.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” Herta replied, looking away from the redhead before turning back to face me. “Anyway, twerp, before you leave my space station, make sure to stop by my office. There’s something I want to discuss with you.”

With that said, Herta didn’t wait for a response before turning aside and seemingly entering standby mode.

Knowing talking to her now would be futile, I slowly walked away myself as a thought surfaced.

‘Wasn’t Herta much nicer to me this time around, or am I imagining things?’ I wondered. From what I remembered of the game, and I had a surprisingly good memory now, she had been far more dismissive of the MC at the start.

‘Is it because she sensed the two different energies inside me, the Stellaron and my Curse, clashing? Or could my Blessing of Hestia and True Hero traits be affecting her?’

Almost as if answering my question, another notification popped up from the Gacha System. I opened it and read the contents.

Feat Achieved! Met Madam Herta’s puppet and left a good impression.

+1 Silver Random Gacha Ticket.

“…Guess I did make a good impression,” I muttered with a blink, honestly surprised.

Not wasting any time, I rolled it and waited for the result, not expecting much.

[Intermediate Interfacing]

|Uncommon Skill|

You are a tricky one, you know how to pick locks, pick pockets, figure out the kinks in mechanics and have a feeling for knowing your way around things. Your fingers may get a little restless.

“That could come in handy, I guess, but it doesn’t matter right now. I should be focusing on my main objective,” I muttered, shaking my head.

Subtly, I retrieved my Endless Purse of Gold from wherever it was being stored and tucked it inside my coat, grateful it was large enough to hide it.

I had a sugar mommy to find.

In the form of Asta.

It didn’t take me long to find her. Just like March, her pink hair stood out easily from the crowd, so I walked up to her calmly.

“Hey, Asta? Are you busy? I’d like to have a word with you if you don’t mind,” I called out, catching her attention from whatever she was studying on the ship’s interface.

“Oh, Caelus~ I’m a bit busy, but I can make some time for the hero who took down the Doomsday Beast and saved the space station along with all of us in it.” Asta immediately turned around and smiled at me happily once she realized who I was, setting aside her work for now.

Blushing lightly at the praise from such a pretty girl, I nervously scratched the back of my head.

“I-It was nothing. Besides, it was a team effort between all of us.”

“Huhuhu, spoken like a true hero,” Asta teased with a small shake of her head before her expression softened into concern. “Anyway, I heard about your condition. How are you feeling?” she asked gently.

I sobered immediately at the question and straightened up.

“I’m okay, all things considered. Himeko already told me there might be a cure out there, so I’m not giving up hope.”

I kept my answer simple, careful not to reveal too much about myself, or the Gacha System. While Asta seemed like a genuinely good person and clearly loyal to her friends, I couldn’t risk too many people learning about my abilities.

There was also the small detail I remembered from the game: Asta had been against the MC staying on the space station due to the danger he represented. I could understand her reasoning… but it still stung a little, considering I’d just risked my life for them. I had no doubt this Asta would feel the same if I chose to stay.

Seeing that I didn’t want to elaborate further, Asta nodded softly.

“I see. If there’s anything you need help with, please don’t hesitate to ask me. It’s the least I can do after everything you and the Astral Express have done for the space station,” she said sincerely with a small smile.

I returned the nod.

“Anyway, you said you wanted to talk to me about something?” Asta prompted, smoothly moving the conversation forward.

Thankful for the opening, I pushed ahead with my original plan.

“Right. Ahem— as you know, I lost my memory and don’t really know anything about myself except my name and a few scattered things,” I began, and Asta listened intently.

“Right… I can’t imagine how it must feel to not only lose your memory but then find out hours later about your condition,” Asta said softly, a small frown forming.

“Thank you for your concern,” I said with a small smile before continuing. “As it stands, I have no money to my name and I’m basically broke… or at least, that’s what I thought at first.”

“What do you mean?” Asta asked, tilting her head.

Pulling out my Endless Purse of Gold under Asta’s curious gaze, I briefly showed it to her.

“I found this in my possession when I woke up, and inside I discovered it was filled with these,” I said, bending the truth slightly. There was no way I could just tell her it came from some weird Gacha System that handed out powers, items, abilities, and familiars without sounding completely insane.

Holding out my palm, I tipped the bag and spilled several gold coins into my hand, immediately capturing Asta’s full attention.

“From what I’ve been able to figure out, these are pure 200-gram gold coins,” I explained, gently turning one over and noting the unfamiliar face stamped onto it.

“Hmm, they certainly look like the real deal… and they’re quite unique,” Asta said. She picked one up and inspected it for a moment before placing it back.

“Right, so I was wondering…” I trailed off, a nervous blush creeping onto my cheeks at what I was about to ask. Still, I pushed forward. “Seeing as you’re rather rich, I was hoping I could trade with you?”

I looked at her with a hopeful smile.

Besides, Asta was mega rich from what I knew. And it’s not like I was shamelessly begging for money, though, knowing her personality where finances were concerned, there was a very real chance I could’ve gotten away with that too.

Asta was just one of those girls to whom money meant absolutely nothing. She spent unfathomable amounts on trivial things like it was pocket change.

Asta blinked at my request, then smiled a second later and pulled out her phone.

“Sure thing, Caelus~ It’s the least I can do after everything you’ve done for us. Now, how many coins are you willing to trade?” she asked cheerfully.

Feeling a weight lift off my shoulders at finally having more than pocket change to my name from the monsters I had defeated and the chests I looted, I answered immediately.

“Would 500 coins be okay?”

I wasn’t even worried about being cheated or finding a better deal elsewhere. The gold coins would respawn every twenty-four hours, I was never running out.

“That’s fine with me. Now, how does fifty million credits sound?” Asta asked calmly, as if she hadn’t just casually named a ridiculous sum.

It took my brain a few seconds to process what I’d just heard.

Then it hit me.

I blinked… and slowly nodded, still slightly out of it.

“T-That sounds good… I think.”

“Great~ Now I just need your phone for a moment,” Asta said, extending her hand expectantly.

Almost robotically, I pulled my phone from my pocket and handed it to her.

Asta took it and, with expert finger work, quickly tapped through several things before handing it back. She pocketed her own phone and gave me a satisfied smile.

“There, all done~”

Taking the phone, I noticed a new app had appeared. Still unable to read, I simply trusted Asta’s word and put it away.

“T-Thanks, Asta. Really. This will help me out a lot,” I said sincerely, finally regaining my bearings and offering her a genuine smile.

“Like I said, don’t worry about it,” she waved off casually. “If you have any remaining coins in the future and want to trade, don’t be afraid to give me a call. I decided to add my number to your phone.”

“W-Will do. Thanks again.” I nodded.

Soon after, she had someone bring over a bag, and I deposited the full five hundred gold coins. With that, our transaction was complete.

As I began making my way toward Herta’s office, one final thought crossed my mind.

Yep… Asta is officially my sugar mommy from now on.

Another sudden realization hit me just before I arrived at Herta’s office.

“Wait a minute… I’m basically rich now, aren’t I?” I muttered with a blink.

Then a giant grin spread across my face.

Unable to help myself, I threw my hands into the air and cheered.

“Wooo hoooo~ I’m rich, baby! Hahahaha, suck it to whoever said gaming would never take me anywhere!”

More than a few people turned to stare at me. I completely ignored them, far too happy to care about appearances right now.

In a much better mood, I entered Herta’s office with a skip in my step and found another of her dolls standing beside a massive contraption that I recognized from my memories.

The Simulated Universe.

Basically, a virtual world Herta had created, with help from several other geniuses, to study the Aeons.

“Hey, Herta~ I’m here,” I greeted the beautiful doll, still riding the high of my sudden fortune.

Hearing my voice, the Herta doll seemed to come alive. She turned her head toward me and, upon noticing my unusually cheerful expression, slowly raised an eyebrow.

Which was honestly both weird and impressive for a doll.

“And what’s got you so happy?” Herta asked, before immediately dismissing the question herself. “Never mind, I don’t care.”

She waved it off.

“Now, I’m sure you’re curious why I brought you here.”

Just like that, Herta launched into an explanation about the project she and several fellow geniuses had been working on, outlining its purpose before finally getting to the point.

“Now go and experience it for yourself. I will guide you inside the Simulated Universe to make sure nothing happens to you. I’ll even give you a substantial reward,” Herta said, hands on her hips as she looked at me expectantly.

“Just stand in front of the machine. The system will read your brainwaves and automatically generate an immersive simulated experience…”

She pointed toward the machine.

Looking at the beautiful doll’s expectant expression, I let out a resigned sigh and stepped forward.

“Haah… I better be well rewarded for this,” I muttered.

And just like that, I experienced my first true virtual dive.

Honestly, it was surreal.

Less than twenty-four hours ago, at least from my perspective, I’d been a regular guy hanging out at a bar with friends.

Now?

Now I was standing inside a hyper-advanced virtual universe after meeting some of the most powerful, and not to mention beautiful, people from a game I used to play.

Life was funny like that.

I didn’t know how long I spent inside the Simulated Universe, but with Herta’s guidance, I navigated what appeared to be another recreation of the space station.

The most important thing, though, was that during the simulation I’d had virtual encounters with three more Aeons:

Qlipoth, the Aeon of Preservation.

Fuli, the Aeon of Remembrance.

And Aha, the Aeon of Elation.

Unfortunately, for some reason I didn’t receive any notifications from my Gacha System like I had with Nanook. I chalked it up to needing to be gazed upon in the real world.

That didn’t stop me from freaking out a little when I met them.

Even in a simulation, the pressure they gave off was overwhelming, the same suffocating presence I’d felt when Nanook stood before me. I was just thankful they weren’t actively dangerous in this environment… though Aha worried me for a bit when it immediately realized it was inside a game, much to Herta’s obvious annoyance.

What felt like several hours—but was apparently only a few minutes in real time—later, my testing of the Simulated Universe was finally complete. Any further progress would have to wait until Herta and her fellow geniuses upgraded the system.

“Thanks for everything today, Caelus~” Herta said, wearing the biggest smile I’d seen on her face yet.

Considering her default expression was usually blank, very fitting for a doll, it really showed how excited she was about the project’s success.

“Sure thing, but I thought I was getting paid for this?” I replied, raising an eyebrow. So far, I’d basically been working for free.

“Asta will take care of your payment, don’t worry,” Herta dismissed casually. “Now, if you don’t have any more questions, you’re free to leave. I’m going to be very busy upgrading this thing.”

“Throwing your responsibilities to others, huh?” I muttered under my breath.

Herta definitely heard me.

She also expertly ignored me.

“Alright, just let me know when the real version is ready. Though next time…” I paused, then smirked slightly, pushing forward with more confidence than I actually felt. “…I expect payment from you personally. I’d even accept a kiss on the cheek.”

If I was going to get worked this hard, I deserved to tease her a little.

Herta’s lips curved slowly, like she’d just discovered something entertaining.

“Oh? Already thinking about kissing me?”

She hummed softly, clearly pleased.

“You really are an honest one.”

Her eyes narrowed just slightly, glittering with mischief.

“Careful, Caelus… keep looking at me like that and I might start getting the wrong idea~”

Heat crept onto my cheeks.

I quickly looked away, trying to hide it, but one glance at her knowing expression told me I was far too late.

With nothing else to say, I turned and walked out, head held high.

I had just reached the door when Herta made one final comment that nearly sent me face-first into the floor.

“I’ll consider your offer if you do good work next time. Bye, Caelus~”

Her voice was teasing… with just a hint of something dangerously seductive.

“Wha—!?”

I spun around with wide eyes—

Only to find the Herta doll already back in standby mode, standing motionless beside the Simulated Universe.

“…That tease.”

A slow grin spread across my face as I finally turned to leave.

I will get my revenge next time, Herta. You can count on it.

‘Huhuhu… you have no idea what kind of monster you’ve unleashed. With the Gacha System supporting me, it will be you who will be running away in embarrassment next time.’

It only took me a few minutes to find Asta again. She simply informed me that my payment had already been sent to my account, so after properly saying goodbye to my sugar mommy, I briefly tracked down Arlan and said my farewells there as well.

With nothing else left to do, I finally made my way to the platform where the Astral Express was parked.

Himeko was already waiting beside the train.

Hearing my approach, she turned toward me and greeted me with a warm smile.

“Ready?” she asked softly.

I glanced back at the space station, the place where I had arrived in this universe, where my new life had begun.

Then I looked back at Himeko.

Drawing in a deep breath and slowly letting it out, I smiled and nodded.

“Yeah… I’m ready.”

My answer only made Himeko’s smile grow warmer as she extended her hand toward me.

“Then come with me.”

As I took her hand—smaller than mine, yet fitting oddly perfectly—I remembered the song that had played when the MC first left on his journey.

Without thinking, I found myself quietly muttering the same lines.

"The way, to celebrate... I'll be waiting... till we make it... the day, to celebrate... I'll be waiting... till we make it..."

"Come with me, take the journey~"