When Felicity stepped off the Herta Space Station and returned to the Astral Express, an unfamiliar presence was already waiting for her.
A figure that did not belong to this train stood arrogantly in her room.
Silver Wolf—her entire body a translucent, ethereal blue—materialized like a phantom from data, arms crossed, eyes brimming with the sullen air of a long-abandoned widow. The resentment in her gaze was unmistakable, as if she'd been spurned for years and had finally come to collect the debt.
"Unblock me."
She delivered the command bluntly, with all the grace of a seasoned negotiator unwilling to waste breath.
Untying her identity from Felicity's account wouldn't have been difficult on a technical level. But with countless accounts and data strands still tethered to her personal ID, a proper severance would require her physical presence at the company's main office in Pier Point.
—A place she had no intention of visiting.
Too tedious. Too boring.
Kafka had made her position clear:
"Wolfie, that Emanator of the Path of Abundance seems interesting. Ever thought about getting in touch with her?"
"Eh? Me? Contact an Emanator?"
"Relax, I'm not sending you to die. If that Emanator wanted us dead, we'd already be nothing but data dust back at the Space Station."
"…That may be true, but still…"
"Besides, hacking the company isn't your only option. Instead of whining about your account, why not talk to that Emanator? She might be more cooperative than you think."
"I wasn't whining!"
"Sure, sure. But if you do go, don't breathe a word to Bladie."
"…Got it."
The recollection faded.
Silver Wolf lifted her gaze, eyeing Felicity without a hint of guilt. As if appearing uninvited in someone else's room was her natural right.
Her curiosity toward Felicity was genuine—but it wasn't personal. It was professional.
After all, she had personally encountered Felicity's game design in the Simulated Universe. That system… that architecture… nearly flawless. With a few tweaks, it could dominate the charts. As a gamer, Silver Wolf saw it clearly.
Naturally, she became interested in the mind behind it. If only her own accounts weren't still locked…
"Eh? You actually came crawling back to me?"
Felicity blinked, her voice filled with delighted disbelief.
"Hmph. Don't flatter yourself. I'm just visiting. What you see is merely a holographic projection. No different from the Void Whale on the train—hey, what do you think you're doing?!"
Silver Wolf scoffed, folding her arms again—but her words cut off mid-sentence. Felicity had leaned forward, swinging a hand through her figure, the palm slicing through Silver Wolf's hips and passing straight through with zero resistance.
"Whoa… really?"
Felicity's eyes sparkled with mischief. A hacker as intangible as light—how utterly fitting.
"…Convinced now? If you're still uneasy, just unplug the network. That'll get rid of me."
Silver Wolf sighed. For a moment, she regretted this encounter.
Felicity was clearly insane.
"Unblock my account," she said, switching tracks without hesitation. "I'll agree to a few reasonable conditions in return. Fair, right?"
"I refuse—unless you call me Mother."
Felicity puffed out her chest, placing her hands on her hips with smug satisfaction.
Her eyes drifted to the corner of the room. The Herta figurine still stood motionless, dutiful and decorative, silently witnessing the absurd exchange.
"…In your dreams."
Silver Wolf's expression twisted, her gritted teeth barely hiding her fury.
"Well, I'm not completely heartless. Let's do this instead—play a few rounds with me. If you win, I'll let you call me Mother. If you lose, I'll reluctantly become your stepmother."
Felicity beamed, her voice musical.
The Express was quiet today. Stelle was buried in her obsession with the Simulated Universe. March 7th was tinkering with gadgets in her room. Dan Heng remained cooped up in his study, and Welt had left to discuss something with the Space Station's researchers.
Even Himeko's invitation for coffee had been met with a righteous refusal. The trauma from that day still lingered in her bones.
In short, she was bored out of her mind.
Fortunately, the wealthy Asta had furnished her room with a brand-new computer—top-of-the-line specs, sleek design, everything perfect for gaming.
"Not bad," Silver Wolf muttered, her eyes scanning the hardware. "Spent all that money just to play games?"
"And what if I did?" Felicity replied. "Besides, you can't touch anything, right? What's stopping you from using the same method you used in the Simulated Universe? Hack the system. Remote the other half of the keyboard. There's always a solution, you know."
Felicity's tone was as persuasive as it was annoying.
"…Tch."
Silver Wolf fell silent.
She did want someone to play with. She'd even asked another Stellaron Hunter before—only to be put off with a "once my hand heals" excuse. That hand had shown zero signs of healing since.
Felicity's method was stupid… but workable.
"Just so we're clear. No matter the outcome, I'm not calling you Mom."
Silver Wolf finally gave in, dragging the chair next to Felicity and settling beside her. Her fingers hovered briefly before she tapped the keyboard.
The screen flared to life.
"You got a game account?"
Silver Wolf gave her a sidelong glance.
"Nope," Felicity admitted with a sheepish grin. "Haven't touched a single one since I came to this world."
"Then unlock mine and I'll carry."
"Nope. I'm giving you ten hours to break through it yourself."
"…Tsk."
"Terrible," Silver Wolf muttered, twitching slightly as she turned to look at Felicity.
The so-called Emanator of the Path of Abundance had started with the pride of a mountain goddess, declaring things like 'An Emanator does not kneel in digital war!' and 'None may surpass me in the sacred field of gaming!'
Halfway through, she was crying out 'Silver Wolf, help me!' and 'Dear Silver Wolf, I'm dying!'
By the end, she was locked in an existential crisis.
"Could it be… there's something wrong with my keyboard?"
Silver Wolf had so many retorts ready, she didn't know where to start.
"I'm not a rookie. My healing is flawless. I'm just not used to this system. There's a latency issue. The opponent's build is clearly bugged—"
Felicity coughed, eyes flickering evasively.
It didn't make sense. She wasn't that bad. Her reflexes had improved after entering this world. Why… why did she seem worse?
No. It couldn't be her fault. Impossible.
"…Anyway," Silver Wolf interrupted, refusing to argue with this delusional woman. "When's the next round?"
Truthfully, she didn't mind losing herself in these games a little longer. It had been too long since she had someone to play with.
She could barely remember the last time.
And Felicity, for all her eccentricities, was oddly… fun. A strange one, yes. An Emanator who neither upheld her destiny nor behaved like a divine figure—just a fool with unkillable vitality.
"I'll open it now," Felicity huffed, eyes gleaming with determination. "There won't be any issues this time!"
--+--
T/N: Lazy Saint of Orleans, my new original Fanfic is up! DxD x Fate! Just updated this to tell youguys.