Collapse Iron: Cosplaying the Near-Death Star, but with a full destiny.

As soon as Chang Yeyue finished speaking, that dangerous distance was once again brought closer.

She didn't actually do anything excessive.

He simply bent down slightly.

That delicate face was almost pressed against Hoshino's neck.

The exhaled hot air, mixed with the surrounding biting wind and snow, created an extremely strange temperature difference.

"Since it's about courtship..."

Her voice was very soft, like a lover's whisper.

"Should I... get it stamped?"

Before Hoshino could react.

A moist and warm sensation was then imprinted on her carotid artery.

That is……

Lips.

Or perhaps the tip of the tongue?

Chang Yeyue gently took a sip from that most sensitive spot, where the subcutaneous blood vessels throbbed most intensely.

They didn't suckle forcefully.

It left no trace.

Just...

taste.

"Alas--!"

Ye Xing shuddered violently.

It felt like being struck by tens of thousands of volts of high voltage.

The tingling sensation instantly shot up the spine to the top of the head, then down the groin to the soles of the feet.

She froze completely.

He gripped the hem of his clothes tightly, his knees buckled, and he almost collapsed to his knees in the snow.

That feeling was terrifying.

It's not just that our territory has been violated.

It's more like it's been marked as owned by some kind of apex predator.

Fortunately.

This suffocating ambiguity didn't last long.

Changyeyue seemed to understand the principle that too much of a good thing can be bad.

Or rather, she didn't want to waste too much time on this toy that was already almost broken.

After all, the real drama has only just begun.

She straightened up, a lingering, enigmatic smile on her lips.

It was as if that blush-inducing action was just a taste test before tasting a pastry.

"You're scared already?"

Changyeyue adjusted her lace gloves.

Looking at Hoshino, who was clutching his neck with darting eyes, he looked like a little rabbit who had just escaped from the jaws of a tiger.

She nodded in satisfaction.

"What a coward."

"but……"

She turned around and straightened the black parasol again.

"Their reaction is quite cute."

Hoshi rubbed his neck vigorously.

It was only slightly damp, but it felt as hot as if it were on fire.

Help……

I want to go home...

This woman is terrifying! This isn't March 7th at all! This is a succubus disguised as March 7th!

While she was internally ranting and raving, she secretly glanced at Xing, who was still watching the show.

That guy, Xing.

He was still holding sunflower seeds in his hand, with a regretful expression on his face that said, "It's such a pity we didn't get to kiss."

Just wait!

Hoshi made a silent vow in his heart.

I've made a mental note of this!

Since I can't afford to mess with this corrupted Changyeyue, then surely I can at least mess with you, this silly Galaxy Baseball Man?

Next night raid...

I will never go to the March 7th room again! It's too dangerous! That's like sending lambs to the slaughter!

If you're going, go to Hoshi's room!

Right there in that room that reeked of garbage, I was going to pin Xing down on the bed and...

Damn it!

Let her taste what it's like to be passive and powerless to resist!

That's right! I'm going to be the dominant one! I'm going to turn the tables and become the master!

Just as Hoshi was immersed in his beautiful fantasy of "the serfs rising up and singing songs of liberation," and even unconsciously revealed a strange smile on his lips.

Whoosh.

A white object cuts through the air.

Snapped.

Right in the bull's eye.

That is, the forehead of the star.

"Ouch!"

Hoshino covered her forehead, her thoughts interrupted.

There was no pain.

That snowball was extremely loose.

It shattered into powder the moment it hit his forehead.

It was less about smashing and more about breaking things.

It's more accurate to say it was "bumped" into something.

It felt like someone had gently tapped my head with a feather duster.

Hoshi looked up, somewhat bewildered.

I could only see a few meters away.

Changyeyue was retracting the gesture of throwing.

There were still a few snowflakes left in my hand.

"What are you spacing out for?"

Chang Yeyue looked at her, her eyes carrying a hint of warning.

It was as if he could see through her rebellious thoughts.

"If you're going to teach the guests, then focus on it."

"Don't think about those... nonsense, impossible dreams."

㳉星：……

How did she know what I was thinking?!

Is this the mind-reading ability of "Memory"? That's too unfair!

But she didn't dare to argue back.

He could only rub his forehead, which wasn't injured, and hide his little thoughts again.

He turned his head and looked at the envoy next to him who was staring blankly at the snow.

Messenger 7582's current state is a bit strange.

Its six legs twitched restlessly, and its compound eyes scanned back and forth between the stars and the long night moon.

Although it didn't understand what that strange atmosphere was all about.

But it understood one action.

That is—make a snowball and throw it.

This seems...

It's not difficult?

The messenger tentatively extended its forelimbs.

Those three-toed paws carefully scooped up a pile of snow.

It's so cool.

That was my first impression.

The low temperature travels along the carapace to the nerve endings, making its movements somewhat stiff.

It imitated what Hoshino had just done.

The claws came together.

Squeeze hard.

Click.

That was a bit too much force.

The pile of snow was crushed into ice shards.

The envoy was taken aback.

Its antennae twitched, as if it were considering the issue of force.

Then they picked up another pile.

This time it was a little lighter.

Rotate.

extrusion.

Repair.

Although the movements were still clumsy, it was as if they were performing some kind of delicate surgery.

But this time.

A crooked snowball that looked a bit like a potato finally took shape in its hands.

"squeak?"

The messenger held the "snow potato" and let out a questioning cry.

It looked towards the star.

It's as if they're seeking some kind of confirmation.

Looking at the ugly-cute snowball, Hoshi couldn't help but laugh.

The gloom from before was swept away.

"Yes, that's it!"

She walked over and pointed to a lone, withered tree standing on the snowfield not far away.

That tree had been dead for a long time, leaving only its black branches shivering in the wind and snow.

"Do you see that tree?"

Hoshino gestured as if he were throwing something.

"Try throwing it over there."

"The target is that tree trunk."

"Use a little force, don't worry about breaking it."

The envoy nodded.

It turned around and faced the tree.

Six feet firmly planted on the snow, finding a stable center of gravity.

It raised the forelimb that was holding the snowball.

Aim.

work hard.

Whoosh!

The snowball slipped from my hand.

But this was, after all, its first attempt at such a completely unfamiliar sport.

In addition, the coldness of the object in my hand affected my muscle control.

The snowball traced a strange arc in the air.

It did not fly towards the tree trunk.

Instead, it skimmed the edges of the branches and flew into the depths of the vast snowfield.

Finally, with a "plop," it disappeared into the snow.

Crooked.

And it's ridiculously crooked.

The messenger's antennae drooped instantly.

It scratched at the snow on the ground with its paws, somewhat annoyed.

As a race with the ability to manipulate three toes, this mistake made it feel somewhat...ashamed.

"It's okay, it's okay!"

Hoshi quickly offered words of comfort.

"It's normal for it to be the first time."

"The first time I played it, I threw it right onto the back of my foot."

(Although this is made up, white lies are sometimes necessary to encourage children.)

"One more time."

"I encourage him," Hoshino said.

"Move slightly to the left this time, relax your wrist."

The messenger looked into Hoshino's encouraging eyes.

That sense of loss has dissipated considerably.

It rallied.

He grabbed another handful of snow.

This time it was more focused.

The speed at which the ball is squeezed has also increased significantly.

They even learned to pat the surface to make it more rounded.

Aim again.

This time it adjusted the angle and corrected the previous deviation.

They even held their breath.

Go on!

The snowball flew out again.

This time the trajectory was smooth and powerful.

It hurtled straight toward the dead tree.

boom!

A muffled thud.

The snowball hit the middle of the tree trunk with pinpoint accuracy.

It exploded instantly.

White snow powder scattered and flew everywhere.

The shock even caused the snow on the tree branches to fall in a flurry.

bingo!

The envoy was stunned.

It retained the posture it had adopted after being thrown, with its antennae raised high.

Its compound eyes were fixed on the piece of bark that had been hit by the snowball.

A white circular mark was left there.

A strange feeling.

It surged from deep within its chest cavity.

That's not the thrill of hunting prey for survival.

It's not about the satisfaction of working to complete a task.

Rather, it is a kind of pleasure that arises without any purpose, simply because "I wanted to do it and I did it".

hot.

It's itchy.

It made its antennae want to dance.

"How is it?"

Mohoshi walked over and looked at it with a smile.

"Doesn't it... feel good?"

"That feeling of a 'thump' followed by a 'thump' in your heart?"

The messenger turned his head.

Looking at the stars.

Then he nodded heavily.

"squeak!"

This time, the sound was no longer the monotonous, mechanical one.

Instead, it carries a distinct, uplifting joy.

"That's what you call a sense of accomplishment."

Dan Heng walked over at some point.

He crossed his arms and looked at the messenger who was still excitedly staring at the tree trunk.

This provides a precise definition for this emotion.

"To put in effort for a useless goal and get feedback."

"This is the first step for intelligent life to break free from the 'survival instinct' and move towards 'self-actualization'."

Although Teacher Danheng is usually a man of few words.

But each concluding statement is very philosophical.

On the other side...

Nguyen Mai's pen never stopped moving.

"The secretion level of dopamine analogs increased by 300%."

"The brainwave activity exhibited an unprecedentedly complex curve."

"It's not just a simple stimulus response; it's even the beginnings of creative thinking."

Nguyen Mai watched the messenger who was trying to make a third snowball.

His gaze remained indifferent.

But the pen tip drew a heavy circle on the notebook.

"For a race that has long lived in a high-pressure environment and whose emotional modules have degenerated to an extreme degree."

"This positive emotional fluctuation that arises from 'playing'."

"It's simply...a miracle."

She didn't even bother to consider whether these emotions were meaningful or not.

Because I am a life scholar.

This process of "creating something from nothing" is itself.

That is the greatest significance.

"It seems..."

Xing patted the sunflower seed shells off his hands.

He jumped off the big rock.

"That's enough warm-up."

"This child has also learned how to 'throw things'."

She walked to the center of the field.

The pink pen in her hand drew a golden arc in the air.

"So, what's next?"

"It's time to go see the real 'big scenes'."

The star looked towards the long night moon.

Changyeyue nodded slightly, gently turning the parasol in her hand.

The surrounding wind and snow began to distort.

The white wasteland, as if erased by an eraser, began to become transparent.

Rumbling--

The sound of massive gears turning came from deep underground.

That was the roar of steam.

It is the roar of steel.

The white snowfield turned into a black iron plate.

The dead tree has been transformed into a giant metal pipe.

And the snow was falling all over the sky.

It turned into thick, hot steam with a coal-smoky smell.

When the messenger 7582 opened his eyes again.

It found itself standing beneath a massive steel wall that was so grand it took its breath away.

That door soared into the clouds.

It is covered with intricate gears and levers.

The massive piston rose and fell slowly, propelled by steam, producing a deafening roar.

Belloberg.

The last bastion of humankind against cold waves.

The gate to the city of eternal winter.

Right in front of it.

It burst open with a roar.

small theater:

Messenger 7582: I thought the snowball was the limit, but I didn't expect you guys had Gundam?! This door is even more spectacular than our Crystal Dome!

Dan Heng: That's called steampunk, don't you understand?

Ruan Mei: The sense of accomplishment is truly addictive. Look, the way it looks at the gate now is like it's looking at a giant snowball.

Hoshino: Stop looking, my neck is still burning... This psychological trauma will probably last until the next version.

Xing: It's okay, next time you come to my room, I'll rub the shadow off for you.

Hoshino: ? ? ? How are you going to rub it?