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

Chapter 11: A New World Awaits

Without further delay, I had Virgo read Asta and Silver Wolf’s messages first, saving the Anonymous one for last.

Asta’s message was straightforward. She was following up on Herta’s payment for my time in the Simulated Universe. Apparently, aside from making me fifty thousand credits richer, which made me blink until I remembered Asta had no real concept of money, she had also given something to Himeko on my behalf that should help me.

That immediately piqued my curiosity.

“Hmm… she probably forgot to give it to me with everything I shared earlier,” I muttered, thinking it over for a moment before shaking my head. “Oh well. I’m sure she’ll hand it over tomorrow. Next.”

Virgo nodded and moved on to Silver Wolf’s messages.

“Hey fam, you wanna try out this new game that just dropped? Shoot me a DM if you’re interested.”

“I know you saw my last message. Are you too busy to respond or something?”

“Okay, now I’m getting a little annoyed. What’s the deal?”

“And that’s everything from her, Caelus-sama. Should I continue to the last one?” Virgo asked, looking up at me with her usual blank expression.

“Heh… yeah, that sounds like Silver Wolf alright,” I said with a small smile, shaking my head. “Go ahead.”

I gestured toward her, and she gave a small nod before continuing.

“Hmm… the first message says nothing, Master. There are only three dots,” Virgo said, blinking slightly before continuing.

“…Um, I know this might be a bit weird coming from a complete stranger, but are you okay? I heard you got injured on Herta’s Space Station. From a friend, F.”

“That’s the only message, Master. How would you like me to respond?” Virgo asked, finishing as she turned to me.

“Hmm…”

I fell silent, focusing on that last message.

‘F? Firefly? That’s the only person that comes to mind that both knows me and has an idea what happened in the Space Station…’ I thought, narrowing my eyes slightly. ‘She could’ve found out through Elio… or more likely Silver Wolf’s hacking.’

I had, after all, basically completed a side quest cleaning up after some of Silver Wolf’s pranks, which were basically just graffiti.

The more I thought about it, the more certain I became.

The concern in the message… and the initial.

Yeah.

It had to be her.

A faint blush crept onto my cheeks at the thought.

Firefly had probably gone off-script or disobeyed orders just to contact me.

That sounded just like the sweet and badass girl that I remember from the game.

Always worrying about the Trailblazer… even while dealing with her own condition.

But as my thoughts drifted further ahead, to what awaited us in Penacony, my expression slowly darkened.

‘Three deaths… huh?’

If things played out the same way…

I’d experience two of them firsthand. With the girl literally dying in my arms both times.

My fists tightened at my sides, a quiet crack echoing in the room.

‘Not if I have something to say about it.’

Another memory hit me, of the silver-haired girl asking, no, all but pleading to the Trailblazer not to let her die alone, and her faith in them to be at her side at the end of their journey even though Destiny’s Slave said otherwise.

‘Don’t worry, Firefly. I promise you that not only will I cure you of your illness, but if I have my way, I will make sure that you are able to travel with me in the future as a fellow Nameless,’ I thought with determination.

“…Master, are you alright?”

Hearing Virgo’s voice, I snapped out of my thoughts and turned to my spirit, seeing her giving me a small worried look.

“Yeah, I’m fine, Virgo. Anyway, this is how I want you to respond…” I said, shaking my head and focusing on the present, getting a small nod from her.

“For Asta, just thank her and tell her that I’ll be keeping in touch with her. Next, for Silver Wolf, just tell her that it’s my bad, but I couldn’t really respond because I couldn’t read, and to give me a few days to solve that issue.” I instructed patiently, having her read it back to me before sending it.

“Finally, for F or Anonymous… tell them that I’m fine now, but I’m flattered that a cute girl is worried about me,” I said, finally deciding on the correct words to respond to Firefly.

“And if they ask how I know they’re a cute girl, just respond that it’s a gut instinct, and it’s never been wrong.”

With Firefly, it was best to immediately throw her off balance right away, hopefully she’d focus on that instead of worrying about my condition.

‘Plus, I can’t deny that I’ll enjoy teasing Firefly. I just wish I could see her cute reactions when she reads my message,’ I thought as a playful grin grew on my face.

Virgo looked at me for a moment longer at that, but eventually nodded as a small blush grew on her cheeks, and she did as I commanded, fidgeting slightly in place.

“Head out of the gutter, Virgo,” I said with a deadpan, not even wanting to know what the pervert was thinking.

“A-Apologies, Caelus-sama. I’m just very happy to be in your service,” Virgo said with a blank face, even if it was betrayed by her deepening blush.

I rolled my eyes and relaxed on my bed again. “Whatever you say, you masochistic maid,” I said flatly, causing her to get even happier.

Ignoring her antics, I focused on another matter now that we were alone.

“By the way, Virgo. Since you’re a summon, does that mean you know everything about the Gacha System?” I asked curiously.

At my serious question, Virgo straightened slightly and nodded. “I have a basic idea, Master.”

Nodding at her response, I stayed quiet for a moment before thinking about a particular ability. I glanced at Virgo from the corner of my eye before deciding there was no real risk in asking.

“Do you know about my current curses?” I asked with a neutral expression.

“Yes, Master.”

Seeing the opportunity, I went for it.

“Well… you see, I have an ability that can somewhat mitigate the curse, but it requires… physical intimacy with the opposite gender.”

I paused for a moment to gather myself and make sure my face remained neutral before looking at Virgo again.

To my surprise, she didn’t seem bothered at all. Instead, all of her focus was on me, her face completely red.

“Ahem… depending on the level of intimacy, the more effective the healing. So I was wondering if you would object to helping me with that,” I said slowly.

Seeing her get even redder, her knees trembling, I hurried to explain myself, losing my composure slightly.

“I-I’m not asking for sex, of course! But I just thought it wouldn’t hurt to ask, and if you say no, I won’t bring it up again, and we can pretend this conversation never happened,” I added quickly, now blushing myself.

With steam practically coming out of her pink hair, Virgo turned to me with an intense expression that made me gulp nervously.

“I—”

Virgo never got to finish that sentence.

“It seems I came at a rather unfortunate time.”

The voice froze me instantly.

Himeko.

I turned slowly toward the center of the room.

There she stood, watching us with a composed expression… save for the faint blush on her cheeks.

Which told me everything.

She had heard.

And just like that—

I silently died of embarrassment.

“H-Himeko, umm, this is…” I stuttered terribly, wishing I could be swallowed by a black hole. I looked at her, mortified, convinced I had probably just lost all the respect she had for me as I struggled to find the right words.

“Ahem… since both of you are consenting adults, I won’t say anything about the matter you were discussing. Just make sure you keep it to yourselves,” Himeko said, looking a bit awkward herself as her gaze drifted to the side, her cheeks growing slightly redder.

I could do nothing but nod in embarrassment, not even noticing Virgo’s reaction.

“Though… I can now see why you didn’t mention this ability in front of the others,” Himeko added, sounding a little calmer as she turned to face Virgo properly for the first time.

“Anyway, you must be Miss Virgo that Pom-Pom and March mentioned. A spirit?” she asked, clearly steering the conversation elsewhere.

I was saved from having to answer, and likely stutter through it, by Virgo. From the corner of my eye, I noticed she didn’t look embarrassed or ashamed at all, which made me silently grumble. I made a mental note to punish her later, since with her position, it was impossible for her not to have noticed Himeko entering the room.

“Correct,” Virgo replied calmly with a nod, bowing professionally. “I am a Celestial Spirit contracted to Master Caelus for eternity. It is a pleasure to meet you.”

“A spirit, huh? I’ve heard the term before on the Xianzhou, but to see one with my own eyes… fascinating~” Himeko murmured, placing a finger against her chin as she observed Virgo more closely, her earlier embarrassment already fading.

“Y-Yeah, she’s great,” I said with a nod, still slightly flushed as I coughed into my hand. “S-So… what brings you here, Himeko? Do you need something?”

Blinking, Himeko turned back to me before her eyes widened slightly in realization. She quickly reached into her jacket and pulled something out.

“Ah, sorry about that. With everything that happened earlier, it completely slipped my mind to give you this,” she said, handing me a small bottle filled with pills. “Herta mentioned it should help with your withdrawal symptoms.”

Taking it from her, I nodded gratefully.

“Thanks, Himeko. And… s-sorry you had to walk in on that,” I said, turning my face away as I scratched the back of my head.

A moment later, I felt her hand rest gently on my shoulder.

I blinked and looked back at her—

—and let out a quiet sigh of relief.

She was smiling.

A warm, understanding smile I had already come to recognize.

“It’s alright, Caelus. There’s nothing to apologize for. This is your room now, and it’s my fault for barging in unannounced,” Himeko said gently.

I nodded silently, once again finding myself in awe of this mature beauty.

A second later, however, she blushed and looked away, making me raise an eyebrow.

“And like I said, I understand why you didn’t bring it up. With that said… how exactly does the ability work?” she asked in a soft, almost shy tone.

Blinking at her incredulously, a blush quickly spread across my cheeks as I ended up fully explaining my Tantric Healing ability to her, watching in silence as she actually seemed to contemplate it seriously.

‘What is happening right now?’ I thought in a daze as I noticed Himeko biting her lip, as if deep in thought.

Thankfully for my sanity, and my willpower, Himeko shook her head and faced me properly again. She smiled gently, and with the faint blush still gracing her cheeks, she somehow looked even more beautiful than usual.

“We still have time to find a proper cure. For now, you should rest. We’ll be jumping to our next destination tomorrow after breakfast,” Himeko said calmly, removing her hand from my shoulder as she straightened up.

“Good night, you two. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

With that, she turned and walked out of the room without another glance back.

…And was it just me, or were her hips swaying a bit more than usual?

“Night,” I managed to reply, my voice coming out quieter than expected as I stared at the spot where she had just left.

‘Was she really just thinking of—’

I cut the thought off immediately, dismissing it as nothing more than my exhaustion and hormones acting up.

That is, until Virgo, of course, decided to ruin it.

“Master truly is the best person I could have ever met. I feel blessed~ Not even a day, and he’s already building his own harem~” Virgo practically swooned to the side, somehow managing it while keeping her expression mostly blank, aside from her blush and shining eyes.

“To answer your question, Master… you may use my body however you wish~ I am your servant, after all~” she added, looking at me expectantly as she fidgeted in place.

I stared at the pink-haired spirit in silence.

Then sighed.

Any remaining thoughts of intimacy immediately vanished as I let myself fall back onto the bed.

“…Just shut up and go to sleep already, you perverted maid,” I said flatly, far too tired to deal with this.

Of course, my casual dismissal only seemed to make her happier.

“As you command, Master~” she chirped before walking over to her futon.

Done with this day, I grabbed one of the pills from the bottle and swallowed it quickly. A moment later, I blinked as the earlier craving vanished completely.

A small smile tugged at my lips.

Now that I no longer had the urge to sneak downstairs for some booze, I clapped my hands lightly turning off the lights, slid under the covers, and finally let both my body and mind relax.

I’d leave the rest of the chaos…

…to future Caelus.

=====

Following Day

Feeling a gentle shake on my shoulder, I slowly began to stir from my peaceful slumber. As I opened my eyes, I was greeted by an unfamiliar ceiling, and an extremely soft bed beneath me that I knew I had never owned before.

It only took a few moments for me to blink away the drowsiness before the memories of the previous day came rushing back, making me release a quiet breath of relief.

So it wasn’t a dream.

Despite my… less-than-ideal circumstances, with multiple curses, one of which was essentially a death sentence, I still felt exhilarated to be here.

To be given this opportunity.

After all, how many people could boast about being aboard a magical train capable of traveling across the cosmos?

And more importantly… there were the relationships I had already begun forming in such a short time.

I wouldn’t trade that for anything.

And the best part?

My adventure had only just begun.

“Good morning, Master. How are you feeling?”

Virgo’s monotone voice pulled me from my thoughts. I turned to find her standing beside my bed, looking down at me, making it clear she had been the one to wake me.

“Morning, Virgo,” I said as I sat up and stretched, hearing my back pop in satisfaction. I smiled at her. “And I’m feeling great. I’m going to take a quick shower, why don’t you head downstairs and see if Pom-Pom needs any help?”

“Very well, Master. Your bath is already prepared. I took the liberty of setting it up before you woke,” Virgo replied with a small nod before bowing and heading out of the room.

Shaking my head, I pushed away the last remnants of sleep and made my way to my private bathroom to take care of my morning routine.

Just because I no longer smelled bad didn’t mean I was going to skip showering. I didn’t want to end up like the original Caelus after all, especially after all that dumpster diving.

About half an hour later, I made my way downstairs and found everyone already gathered in the Party Car. March waved at me enthusiastically, an open seat waiting beside her.

Greeting everyone as I passed by, I did my best to keep my expression neutral, though that quickly became difficult when my gaze landed on Himeko.

Memories of last night flashed through my mind, and I immediately looked away, a faint blush creeping onto my cheeks.

Thankfully… I wasn’t the only one affected.

Himeko quickly raised her coffee to her lips, partially hiding her face. The subtle reaction didn’t go unnoticed by Welt, who raised an eyebrow in curiosity, but wisely chose not to comment.

After a pleasant breakfast, and doing my part in cleaning up alongside Virgo, we all gathered once more in the Parlor Car as Pom-Pom took charge.

“Okay, everyone, hurry up and find a seat. Try not to be like March, always running around the Express like a headless chicken,” Pom-Pom instructed calmly. “Pom-Pom is going to begin final preparations for the jump.”

Taking a seat on one of the comfortable leather couches, I found myself flanked by Virgo and Himeko, while Welt and Dan Heng sat across from us.

My attention shifted to March, who stood in the middle of the car with a determined expression.

“I won’t fall over. I won’t fall over,” she repeated like a mantra, her eyes closed as she spread her stance.

“Hahaha, next jump I’ll join you, March. Let’s see who can stay standing the longest~” I called out teasingly.

Her eyes snapped open as she shot me a playful, determined look, sticking her tongue out.

“You’re on, mister~! Loser has to do the other’s chores for a month!”

“Deal,” I replied immediately with a matching grin.

The others watched us with either amused smiles, or, in Pom-Pom’s case, visible exhaustion.

A moment later, Pom-Pom began the countdown.

I straightened slightly as excitement bubbled in my chest. This would be my first experience—at least, the first I could remember—of interstellar travel.

“Let the adventure begin,” I muttered with a grin.

The next instant, a strange sensation twisted in my stomach.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed March immediately lose her balance—

—and then, in the blink of an eye—

we were no longer there.

Before us stretched a vast blue-and-white world.

Jarilo-VI.