The cabin of the Vagrance was clean. That was all. Sangatsu Nanoka stared at the ceiling without moving for a while. White ceiling. Impersonal lighting. Nothing by the bedside. In her room on the Astral Express, there were three stuffed animals and accumulated photos taped to the wall, so every morning when she woke up, she'd think "Ah, this is it." There was nothing here. ——I wonder what's happened to that room now. After thinking that, she stopped thinking about it. There was no point in wondering. "[serious]……Alright, let's explore" She psyched herself up and sat. Three days since docking with the Vagrance. There was no point staying in the room the whole time. It was better to get a proper grasp of the ship's interior. That was eighty percent of the reason. The remaining twenty percent was simply boredom. Stepping into the corridor, the black and purple interior caught her eye first. A calm but somehow oppressive color scheme. Completely different from the warm passages of the Astral Express. Sangatsu Nanoka walked slowly, confirming the sensation of her sneaker soles against the flooring. Entering the lounge, gaming equipment was piled high on the sofa. Four controllers and what appeared to be game cartridges from all over the galaxy scattered everywhere. She picked up one of the cartridges—it read "《Stella Breakers》 Vol.12." Must be Silver Wolf's. He was absent this time, but his belongings were definitely still here. "[laughing]So the concept of tidying up doesn't exist for him" She continued deeper, making the comment to herself. Passing by the door to what was supposedly Black Swan's study, she caught a faint scent of old books through the gap. And then she arrived at Kafka's private quarters. Sangatsu Nanoka put her hand on the door. Click. ——It was locked. "[serious]……Yeah, that figures" Looking closely at the door plate, small letters read "Kafka private / Wine cellar included." Wine cellar included. A wine cellar on the ship of a wanted criminal floating through space. Sangatsu Nanoka froze for three seconds, then laughed quietly. "[laughing]What even are you, seriously" Looking out through the round window in the corridor. Space was pitch black, with a few stars glowing distantly. They should be following the jump route toward Penacony. Kafka had said they were currently detouring around the Void's drift zone——the gravity anomaly area between Yarilo-VI and Penacony——. A distance that would normally take months of standard navigation, covered in about seventy-two hours using stealth routes. She thought it was an amazing ship. She also thought it was a ship of scary people. Both were true. When she returned to the lounge, Kafka was there. He'd removed his black coat slightly and was arranging cups in his shirt sleeves. His movements were efficient. Quiet, with not a single wasted motion. Because he was tall, standing in the kitchen space looked almost like a painting. His black hair with faint purple mesh glinted slightly in the light. "[gentle]You're awake" He said it without turning around. "[excited]Yeah! I was exploring a bit" "How was it" "[laughing]Your room was locked" "[sarcastic]That's right. Obviously" Kafka smiled and gestured with his eyes for her to sit as he pulled out a chair. Sangatsu Nanoka took a seat at the table. Kafka placed a warm drink in front of her——in that moment, the tip of his finger pushing the cup touched her hand. Just for an instant. But something jumped in Sangatsu Nanoka's chest. （……What was that） Kafka's expression was completely normal. Sangatsu Nanoka maintained her composure and held the cup with both hands. It was hot. It smelled faintly like roasted barley tea, somehow nostalgic. The meal was simple but proper. Hard bread and bean soup. Kafka ate in silence. Sangatsu Nanoka held her spoon and finally voiced something she'd been thinking about. "[serious]Hey, Kafka" "What" "[serious]You know something about my memories, don't you" Kafka's hand stopped. Just for an instant. Then he set down his cup and turned toward her. Silver eyes looked directly at Sangatsu Nanoka. "[cold]Sometimes ignorance is bliss" He was smiling. But his eyes weren't. Sangatsu Nanoka set down her spoon. "[serious]Does that mean you'll tell me? Or that you really don't know?" "[sarcastic]Well, which do you think" He took a sip of coffee. That was all. The conversation was over. Sangatsu Nanoka stared at his profile for a while. （He knows. He definitely knows.） But she couldn't extract it. This person's smile was like a wall, and from every angle she felt told "this far and no further." It was frustrating. Really frustrating. But——for some reason, it didn't turn into anger. Being near this person, something felt calm. The anxiety of missing memories, the fear of being on a wanted criminal's ship, all of it felt a little distant. That fact made it even more frustrating. After midday, Sangatsu Nanoka was taking photos of the view outside near the cockpit. When she looked through the camera, the world seemed slightly different. The universe through the viewfinder was quieter than what she saw with her naked eye, somehow more beautiful. She pressed the shutter. Then again. Kafka was operating a communication terminal near the pilot's seat. Quietly, staring at the terminal screen while inputting something. She thought absently that his back was nice, and casually approached. The terminal screen came into view from an angle. Data lined up vertically. Record numbers, coordinates, strings of symbols. Much of it was unreadable to Sangatsu Nanoka. When Kafka scrolled—— One line jumped into her field of vision. 【Test Subject: Sangatsu Nanoka　Record Number███　Seal Status: Maintained】 The air left her lungs. Kafka immediately closed the screen. Had he noticed? Was it coincidence? She didn't know. Kafka didn't turn around. He placed the terminal on his lap and looked out the window. As if nothing had happened. Sangatsu Nanoka tried to open her mouth. Test subject? What. Was she being treated like an experiment—— At that moment. An alarm sounded throughout the entire Vagrance. 《Galactic Federation patrol ship detected——Identification Code███——Approach distance, within thirty thousand kilometers》 The terminal screen turned red. Warning lights flashed on the instrument panel. "[cold]They've come" His tone of voice didn't change. But his movement standing up was faster than usual. Kafka grabbed Sangatsu Nanoka's arm. "[serious]Come" She was pulled and pushed into a safety seat in the corner of the cockpit. Kafka's hands swiftly threaded the seatbelt and locked it with a click. "[whispers]Don't move. Don't make a sound" A lower voice than usual. Sangatsu Nanoka nodded silently. A communication signal sounded. 《Vagrance, stand down. We demand the surrender of all Stellaron Hunter members and passengers to the Galactic Federation》 All passengers. Those four words echoed slowly in her head. She was included. At this very moment, Sangatsu Nanoka was being recognized by the Galactic Federation patrol ship as a "passenger of the Vagrance." ——As an accomplice of a wanted criminal. Sangatsu Nanoka's head nearly went blank. Kafka spoke calmly toward the communication port. "[gentle]We apologize for the trouble. We're experiencing engine trouble and our navigation is a bit unstable. Please don't worry——" While speaking, he slowly raised his right hand to his temple. He narrowed his eyes. A face concentrated on something, quiet but intense. After a moment——the voice of the patrol ship's communications officer changed. 《…………Confirmed. Vagrance is……civilian registry. Pursuit……disengaged》 A vague tone. The tension from before had completely vanished. Like a voice speaking in a dream. The communication cut off. The warning lights on the instrument panel went dark. The alarm sound stopped. Inside the seat, Sangatsu Nanoka couldn't move for a while. That communications officer didn't understand what had just happened to him. The moment Kafka raised his right hand to his temple, his consciousness was directly manipulated, rewritten to "disengage pursuit." Interference with another's mind——one of the abilities connected to the Path of Nihility, the Aeon of Finality. The power Kafka possessed. The ability to hijack human consciousness. She thought it was scary. Genuinely, terrifyingly scary. Kafka walked toward her. He crouched in front of the seat and unfastened the seatbelt lock. Close. His face was close. Silver eyes looked directly into hers. "[gentle]Scared?" A quiet question. Sangatsu Nanoka tried to answer honestly, but the words wouldn't come. Scared. That power was absolutely terrifying. Rewriting someone's consciousness like that——it wasn't something that should be done. But. The sensation of his hands fastening the seatbelt. The voice saying "don't move." The moment the patrol ship arrived, without hesitation pushing Sangatsu Nanoka to safety. All of that came from the same person. "[gentle]But with this power, I can protect you" He whispered it. Scared. Safe. Wanting to believe. Not knowing if she should believe. Everything crashed down at once—— "[serious]……I don't know" That was all she said. Kafka smiled slightly. "[gentle]Honest" It was his usual smile. But somehow——something felt different. She couldn't quite articulate what. Before Sangatsu Nanoka could put it into words, she looked away. After settling down a bit, Sangatsu Nanoka sat on the lounge sofa with her camera. She looked at the universe outside through the viewfinder. That string of characters floated in her mind. ——Test Subject: Sangatsu Nanoka. Seal Status: Maintained. Seal. What was sealed? Was her memory sealed? Or something else entirely? The star core sleeping in Yarilo-VI's permafrost——a fragment of the Destruction Aeon's power——and the self that had been in the ice coffin, were they connected somehow? What did Kafka know, and what was he hiding? If she asked now, he'd probably give that smile again and say "ignorance is bliss." Sangatsu Nanoka pressed the shutter. The universe appeared in the frame. Stars glowed small and distant. （This person is hiding something from me） That was certain. （But I want to be near this person） That was also certain. Both were true at the same time, and she couldn't erase either one. Sangatsu Nanoka quietly acknowledged that this was her honest truth. The Vagrance moved silently through space. The stars outside the window flowed past one by one. The meaning of the word "test subject" remained unknown. What the seal status referred to. Whether Kafka truly intended to protect her or had some other purpose in bringing her along——she understood nothing, and yet the route to Penacony continued on.