Yan Zheng glanced at her, pressed his index finger to his lips, and lowered his voice to warn her, “Keep it down. The attendant is about to come out. We'll talk more when the time is right.”
The cleaning woman immediately understood. Nodding quickly, she retreated to her corner and picked up her rag, pretending to continue scrubbing the floor.
Before long, the attendant walked out of the kitchen carrying two trays, his expression still thoroughly listless.
He set one tray down heavily on the table in front of Bai Ci, then placed the other on the table next to Yan Zheng and the young girl.
“Here's your order,” the attendant grunted. Turning back to lean against the counter, he returned to his vacant, daydreaming state.
Bai Ci picked up her silver fork, poked a small piece of the muffin, and popped it into her mouth. It was a bit too sweet, but not terrible.
Chewing slowly, she discreetly observed the duo at the next table from the corner of her eye, trying to figure out a natural way to strike up a conversation with the players.
Bai Ci had no intention of revealing her player identity right away. For one, she knew nothing about their personalities. Although one of them was a famous powerhouse on the forums, she had never actually interacted with them.
Secondly, a shift in identity would inevitably lead to a shift in attitude. Such a change would be glaringly obvious to an observant eye, easily exposing flaws in her cover.
How could she explain why a total stranger would suddenly trust them completely, or why she would treat them as one of her own?
Besides, her current identity was her most valuable asset for gathering information.
Before Bai Ci could even come up with a script, she felt a gaze land on her.
Looking up, she met the young girl's eyes.
Resting her chin on one hand, the girl's single red eye sparkled as she sized Bai Ci up with great interest.
Although the other eye was hidden beneath her eyepatch, it was clear that her entire focus was locked onto Bai Ci.
A second later, the girl nudged Yan Zheng with her elbow and gave a slight nod in Bai Ci's direction.
“My familiar, Yan Zheng, behold the maiden seated within the interplay of light and shadow. Her very being is shrouded in a thread of destiny akin to my own, like a rose blooming silently in the dark of night. Our fates are bound by this trial. I wish to forge a covenant with her and march together toward the glory of this journey.”
The girl's voice wasn't loud, but it carried an undeniable theatrical flair. Her tone was solemn yet deeply chuunibyou, her voice rising slightly at the end of her sentence.
Without missing a beat, Yan Zheng turned to Bai Ci and translated in a calm voice, “Apologies, miss. Milady feels a deep connection with you and wishes to be friends.”
Bai Ci feigned a momentary daze, letting a look of surprise wash over her face.
She had been racking her brain for an excuse to get close to these two players and fish for clues about the train.
To her surprise, they had approached her first, saving her a great deal of trouble.
After her brief display of surprise, Bai Ci offered a warm smile and replied politely, “Of course. It is my honor to make your acquaintance.”
Putting down her silver fork, she introduced herself, “I am Lora.”
The girl nodded, leaning forward slightly as her speech sped up. “I am the emissary who presides over the end and the judgment of destiny—Xu End Glazed-Rain Sakura-Blood Charm R Hurt-Dream-Scent Rose-Tear Feather-Spirit Arbiter Erya! I bear the sacred duty of safeguarding justice in this mortal realm.”
“You may commit my sacred name to memory and bear witness to my glory.”
Bai Ci made a mental note. Ah, so her real name is Xu Erya.
Her warm smile didn't falter, and she showed no hint of judgment. Chuunibyou was actually quite cute, and besides, this was literally her class requirement.
“What a unique name. How should I address you?”
Hearing this, a satisfied smile spread across the girl's face. She waved her hand dismissively. “Companion of destiny, there is no need for such formalities. You may address me simply as Arbiter. This is a privilege I bestow upon you, and the proof of our covenant.”
Yan Zheng chimed in to translate at the perfect moment. “You can just call her Arbiter. I am her butler, Yan Zheng.”
“Understood. Nice to meet you, Arbiter,” Bai Ci replied.
Arbiter nodded and spoke again. “My companion, tell me the sanctuary in which you reside. Once my trial for today is complete, I shall seek you out to speak of destiny, so that we do not squander this fated encounter.”
“Milady is asking which carriage you're staying in. She wants to visit you later,” Yan Zheng translated.
At the same time, he shot Arbiter a subtle look, warning her not to be too loud lest she attract unwanted attention.
Bai Ci's heart stirred. She answered honestly, “I'm in Carriage One, right at the front.”
To Arbiter and Yan Zheng, she was currently just an NPC. They wouldn't randomly seek out an NPC to play with without a good reason. There had to be an underlying motive.
Since she had such top-tier powerhouses who had achieved multiple S-ranks in the same instance, Bai Ci resolved to assist them as much as possible, regardless of what they were planning.
If their operations went smoothly, she could ride their coattails to a better evaluation score.
But what advantage did she possess that made them approach her when she hadn't shown any of her cards yet?
It was because they knew she came from a carriage ahead of Carriage Four.
They most likely wanted to head to the front of the train to investigate the driver's cab and the trainmaster, Wisteria.
If so, they had probably already started investigating the Mary, and might even have made some progress.
Bai Ci calculated her moves. Since Arbiter had taken the initiative to approach her, she could use their newfound friendship to pry some useful clues out of them.
However, these were top-tier players with their own methods of clearing instances. She had to be extremely careful when fishing for information.
Upon hearing the words “Carriage One,” Arbiter discreetly flashed a peace sign to Yan Zheng under the table.
Yan Zheng playfully responded with a rock gesture. He had won.
Spotting his response from the corner of her eye, Arbiter mentally grumbled that he was being childish, but she shifted her hand to a paper gesture anyway.
On the surface, however, she sat up straight, her face returning to its previous solemnity as she looked at Bai Ci.
“So you dwell in the foremost sanctuary. Surely, the revelations of destiny must be hidden there. My companion, where does your journey lead you? Are you pursuing the guidance of fate, or hastening toward unknown glory?”
“She's asking where you're headed,” Yan Zheng translated.
Bai Ci gently stirred her black tea, her tone flat as she said, “Something came up at home, and I need to go back to handle it.”
She didn't elaborate, leaving it at that. After all, she didn't know any more details herself.
That said, she looked up at Arbiter and asked in return, “What about you two? You look like you're out traveling.”
Arbiter tilted her head. “My familiar and I travel to seek the trials of destiny and explore the secrets of the stars that lie beyond.”
Yan Zheng patiently translated and polished her words. “We're on vacation. Milady recently learned a few things about the Mary's route, and it sparked her interest in collecting stories. She wants to find out more.”
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