It's funny to say, although the Sword Maiden always wanted Ash to come to the Kingdom of Stars, and Ash always wanted to come to see the Sword Maiden, they never discussed what to do after meeting. It's like in fairy tales where the prince and princess being together is the ending, and they never consider the mundane aspects of life.

The main reason is that they both thought that crossing countries was a distant affair. Before inheriting the Heavenly Kingdom of Thousand Wishes, they didn't even have a concrete plan for crossing countries, just like not buying a lottery ticket and lazily fantasizing about how to spend the jackpot.

Who could have imagined that after inheriting the Heavenly Kingdom of Thousand Wishes, the concept of the Sky Gate and the Technique Spirit would explode, and Ash and the others would coincidentally arrive at the Kingdom of Stars?

If this crossing happened a few years later, Ash would have no doubts: at that time, they would surely be Legendary peak mages, using brute force to roam unchallenged, compelling the Kingdom of Stars to submit if they resisted.

If this crossing happened a few months earlier, Ash wouldn't have had many thoughts. Without sufficient strength, he would have had to go with the flow, obediently waiting in prison for trial, with no room for resistance.

But the crossing happened during Ash's awkward period of entering the Legendary stage. He was strong enough to handle the mage corps and top mages, yet only the mage corps and top mages could deal with him.

Of course, if Ash wanted to resist, even if he couldn't destroy the world, he could still devastate thousands of miles and breach the Kingdom of Stars. But the problem is, he came to see the Sword Maiden — Ash contemplated various possibilities of appearing in the Sword Maiden's life, but none involved a wanted poster.

More critically, after seeing the Sword Maiden, then what?

Take the Sword Maiden away? But the Sword Maiden's connections, career, and family are all in the Kingdom of Stars. She has more and more friends, becoming increasingly dazzling, and everything she likes, aside from Ash, is in the Kingdom of Stars. Would she truly be willing to give up nearly twenty years of her life for Ash and start over?

Stay? To be honest, Ash isn't opposed to this outcome. Upon realizing that this is the Kingdom of Stars, he started thinking about how to leverage his Legendary combat power to gain citizenship. Even if he couldn't stay, he could travel the Kingdom of Stars openly with the Sword Maiden, perhaps honeymooning...

He never thought it would be difficult — even if the Kingdom of Stars is hostile to invaders, they wouldn't push away a Legend, right?

What, the Kingdom of Stars doesn't trust me? Well then, I'll marry a Starians, that should prove my sincerity!

But Ash never expected that there was no green channel left for high-end talent smuggling — any invader had to die!

That's why Ash is hesitating about whether to meet the Sword Maiden at all: under these circumstances, unless the Sword Maiden is determined to run away with him, any contact with her would risk her unnecessarily.

But no matter what, Ash is determined to see the Sword Maiden at least once.

Even if only to keep his promise, to feel each other's warmth, to confirm each other's existence, he would risk everything to sneak into Jiale City.

What should he say to the Sword Maiden the first time?

"So, is this our last journey?"

Hearing Harvey's question, Igula thought for a moment and replied, "Although you make it sound like we're about to die... you're not wrong, this should be our last journey."

"Whether Ash stays here or returns to Gospel, he certainly won't continue the adventure, and neither will we... Actually, back when we were in Gospel, if we hadn't clung to the vines sprouting around Ash, we would have already lived a quiet life in the Kingdom of Gospel."

"A quiet life..." Harvey said softly, "sounds like it's not for us."

"What do you plan to do after settling down?" Ash looked at Igula, "Gospel is already your niece Liss's country, you're not thinking of running some criminal organization, right? Of course, if you want to be Liss's black glove, I'm very welcome. By the way, you haven't forgotten that Anfeier is still waiting for you to give her a home, have you?"

"We'll talk about it then," said the Swindler, "though I'm really not interested in old practices. As for what I want to do..."

"I want to be a photographer."

The Cult Leader and the Necromancer were taken aback, then scratched their heads together.

Ash speculated, "Do you want to be a Spirit Photographer who captures the filth and secrets in people's brains and then blackmails them for money?"

"I think it's about directly capturing the ugliness of people on film, used as casting materials for hypnosis, brainwashing, curses, and other uses of a Curse Photographer," Harvey offered his idea.

"Just an ordinary photographer," Igula said somewhat helplessly, "one who photographs the starry sky, mountains, clouds, ruins, natural landscapes. Ash, you know, I actually don't like human society, I've only wandered around in it for money. Now that I have the means, there's no need for me to share the repulsive stench of air with hundreds of thousands of people."

Ash asked, "Do you feel disgusted even when sharing a room with us?"

"Of course not," Igula shrugged, "we're all covered with Alice's corpse odor, I've long since lost the ability to distinguish the scent differences among us three."

"You're welcome," Harvey said, "the Necromancy Faction is surprisingly useful, right?"

"Sounds nice, but for you to become a photographer..." Ash bit his nail and said, "I wouldn't be surprised if the organization manipulating the world from behind was called the 'Photographer Union.'

"And what about you, Harvey?" Igula asked, "Still in mortuary services, right?"

"Of course, that's the research place I've dreamed of," Harvey said, "but I'm planning to expand my business scope a bit, moving the work node from 'post-mortem' to 'pre-mortem.'"

Ash and Igula exchanged a glance, then Ash cautiously asked, "Are you saying you want to be an assassin, a warmonger, or simply a serial killer?"

"It's end-of-life care," Harvey said, "I've always been fascinated by humans approaching death. End-of-life care allows me to watch the living gradually cross the Death Veil, and if I can help them embrace death calmly, I'll certainly obtain better corpse materials... Qikara has shown me a brilliant path."

"He is a qualified End-of-Life Caregiver and a competent Necromancer. I will realize his potential possibilities."

Ash was momentarily stunned, then turned to Igula, asking, "Is it because of Gwen?"

Igula looked at the starry sky outside the window and softly said, "Perhaps."

Gwen and Qikara's departure was too sudden, and then they encountered the Thousand Wishes Gate, Vishi's attack, and traversing the Dazzling Star without a moment to pause; coupled with the countless deaths of Senluoians, numbness was inevitable. Moreover, the three of them were inherently secretive and repressed individuals, seeing emotional outbursts as a shame.

But keeping silent does not mean they forgot. They entered Senluo as three people and left as three, yet something unseen and unspeakable was quietly etched into the depths of their souls, becoming both armor and vulnerability.

"What about you, Ash?" Igula asked, "Aside from eating, sleeping, and gaming, do you have any plans?"

"First of all, as a Mage, I don't sleep," Ash said, "Unless, of course, you mean more than two people in certain physical activities."

"If I can stay or take her with me, there are only two things I want to do: find a way back to the Heavenly Kingdom of Thousand Wishes. I'm not afraid of Tamasi ruining it; I'm only worried she'll starve inside. And then, I must make a trip back to Senluo."

"Senluo has already been destroyed," Harvey said, "Going back is dangerous."

Ash: "I know, but I have to retrieve something."

Igula was taken aback and sighed softly, "The Silver Lamp?"

"If being legendary doesn't suffice, then step into the Divine Domain; if a year isn't enough, then three or five years," Ash said earnestly, "I won't leave the Silver Lamp in the darkness."

Igula was silent for a moment, then asked, "Do you like her, or do you like everything she has done for you?"

Ash shrugged and smiled, "Do I value you two, or do I value everything you've done for me?"

"At this point, everyone is a tangled mess, impossible to unravel. She saved me from death, and I must pull her back from the darkness."

"Some people say they want to give up, yet their goals are grander than anyone's," Igula shook his head, "Setting that aside, what do you plan to do once we enter Jiale City?"

"First, find a local to integrate into the city," Ash mused, "Ideally, someone with a moral blemish. Whether through hypnosis or coercion, I'll live in their house, eat their food, and use them to gather intelligence and deliver messages."

Igula remarked, "If there are gangs involved, things will be much easier..."

As they were discussing, a gust of wind suddenly swept through the train compartment, quickly filling it.

Spirit Miracle · Inner Spirit Barrier.

Swords Miracle · Decisive Slash.

Fire Miracle · Internal Combustion Wasteland.

They instantly identified it as a Wind Technique Miracle; the Holy Domain couldn't completely block air movement, so they each used Defense Miracles to shield themselves. The few other passengers in the car slumped into sleep, and Ash, Igula, and Harvey exchanged a look, then feigned sleep as well.

At this moment, a handsome blond man suddenly dashed into the train compartment. It was the one Harvey and Igula had commented on earlier. He looked around and, seeing Ash, Igula, and Harvey sitting together, his eyes lit up. He first created a gust of wind to open the next compartment door, then transformed into a stream of air, slipping into the seat, wedging himself between Ash and Igula—his slender figure, like a shadow, used the airflow to naturally conceal himself among the three.

Then, several masked individuals burst into the compartment, armed with guns and melee weapons, wearing strange masks adorned with six lamps. They moved with utter silence. They surveyed the passengers before glancing at the door to the next compartment, which was pushed open.

Just as they were about to charge through the door in pursuit to the next car, the foremost six-lamp acolyte suddenly halted, saying, "There's no trace of footsteps—he's in this compartment!"

Thump!

Ash could almost hear a violent heartbeat beside him.

"Second Young Master, this chase game is over, and you've lost."

The six-lamp acolyte looked at the sleeping passengers in the compartment and coldly declared:

"Come out, Felix Vosloda, this is the end of your journey."

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