"Madam Herta," Asta said respectfully, rising from her seat to greet the visitor.
"I can't believe how much the Space Station has changed in just a few months," Herta remarked, hands on her hips. She nodded at Asta before turning her gaze to Lumina.
"You must be the renowned Lumina. I'm Herta, the owner of this place, just like the Space Station's name." Herta extended her hand in greeting, her intentions clear despite her casual words.
Lumina smiled faintly and clasped Herta's small hand. Hmm... hard and unyielding, not much to hold on to, she thought, inwardly assessing the Herta Puppet's hand.
Outwardly, she maintained a flawless composure. She shook her head gently and said in a gentle, humble tone, "Renowned is hardly the word. I'm just Lumina, a little-known physician."
"Hmph?" Herta scoffed. "If you, Lumina, are 'little-known,' then what am I, Herta?"
"A Nobody?" Herta's tone was sharp, but Lumina sensed no malice behind it.
Lumina chuckled softly. "Madam Herta, your personality is quite different from what I expected."
"Oh?" Herta raised an eyebrow, scrutinizing Lumina from head to toe. "My personality surprises you? But yours is exactly as I imagined."
Before Lumina could respond, Herta cut her off. "Enough with the pleasantries. I didn't come here for small talk."
"First, the Antimatter Legion incident has nothing to do with you, Lumina—at least, not with the ones that appeared on the Space Station."
"The Antimatter Legion on the Space Station was drawn here by the Stellaron Hunters."
"I don't know their ultimate goal."
"But their entire plan—coming to the Space Station and summoning the Antimatter Legion—was simply to shove a Stellaron into some brat's body."
Herta's voice dripped with bewilderment and disbelief as she spoke.
Herta couldn't fathom the Stellaron Hunters' motives, but that wasn't her primary concern. What truly baffled her was how they had managed to insert a Stellaron into a human body completely intact.
"To contain this Stellaron and protect The Blue from disaster, I built an entire space station," she said. "Yet someone managed to handle it with just a single body. How is that even possible?"
Even Herta, renowned for her ability to create miracles, was astonished by this extraordinary feat.
"The cosmos is vast and boundless, Madam Herta," Lumina gently interjected, noticing Herta's rising excitement. "All sorts of bizarre things are possible. There's no need to get so worked up."
"Hmph, you're right," Herta retorted, her voice still agitated. "If this had happened somewhere else, I wouldn't care. But it happened right under my nose! How can you expect me to stay calm?"
"So, you came all the way here just to tell me about something you don't know about?" Lumina sighed in exasperation, watching Herta's excitement grow rather than subside.
"That's not it at all," Herta said, regaining her composure. As her inner turmoil subsided, her expression gradually turned serious.
"As Miss Lumina, the savior of countless lives, worlds, and planets, you have honored my Space Station with your presence. It is only fitting that I personally extend a warm welcome."
Herta turned to Lumina, a genuine smile spreading across her face. "Miss Lumina, welcome to the Space Station."
Lumina nodded silently, her gentle gaze fixed on Herta.
"?"
"♪"
Herta stared at Lumina, who remained wordless and expressionless, for a long moment. Finally, unable to bear the awkward silence any longer, she blurted out, "What do you want to—"
"Dear Madam Herta," Lumina interrupted, "is your welcome merely lip service, or do you have something more substantial in mind?"
Herta froze mid-sentence, momentarily speechless.
Silence hung in the air as Herta processed Lumina's words.
Then, expressionless, she said, "I take back what I said earlier. Your personality is completely different from what I imagined."
"Mhm♪"
-
"That's wonderful, Sister Lumina! The Space Station incident had nothing to do with you."
After Herta left, Asta recalled the earlier events and couldn't help but smile happily.
When she first heard that the Antimatter Legion's invasion of the Space Station was due to Sister Lumina, Asta's heart had clenched with worry.
The incident wasn't a major catastrophe, but it wasn't trivial either. If word got out, what would the Space Station staff think?
Thankfully, the Antimatter Legion had been drawn here by the Stellaron Hunters, not by Sister Lumina...
Though it wasn't exactly a cause for celebration, Asta couldn't help but feel relieved and happy...
"See? If you could display affection levels, you'd definitely see a few '+1' numbers popping up above Asta's head," Lumina remarked, observing Asta's barely concealed expression and accurately guessing her thoughts.
Asta was simply overthinking things. There were no casualties, so even if word got out, it wouldn't cause a major uproar. At most, Lumina would give a brief speech, and the matter would be resolved.
The truth was, if Lumina dared to act so boldly, she must have taken every precaution.
[You'll be cursed for deceiving a beautiful young girl like this!]
"Deceive? When did I ever deceive anyone?" Lumina chuckled at the accusation. "How was I supposed to know the Stellaron Hunters lured the Antimatter Legion here?"
[...Beware of karma.]
"Heh," Lumina dismissed the warning without concern.
Looking at the adorable Asta before her, Lumina placed her hand on Asta's head and gently ruffled her hair.
"Umm..." Startled by Lumina's sudden gesture, Asta froze for a moment. But when she realized what was happening, she didn't resist, allowing Lumina to continue ruffling her hair.
Perhaps because Lumina had held Asta as a child, Asta felt a natural warmth and affection toward her, a deep sense of comfort and fondness.
"Hmm... I've patted Stelle's head, March's too, and now Asta's. Who's next?"
While Lumina made Asta feel warm and cherished, Asta had no idea that Lumina's mind was already wandering to other women.
"Maybe Herta... but she's a bit tricky to handle..."
Stelle and March were simply gullible, while Asta was a lingering opportunity from childhood.
As for Herta, that would require careful planning...
You'll get your comeuppance for this!
"Comeuppance? What kind of punishment comes from headpats?" Lumina chuckled dismissively.
There's an old saying:
"Retribution isn't denied; it's merely delayed."
But our pure Holy Maiden clearly hadn't learned that lesson yet...