About Little Teacher Te's journey on the Astral Express

I had a dream.

I dreamed of an ice field... not a pristine white wonderland, but a hellscape strewn with severed limbs and rivers of blood...

I dreamed of a landship, a young woman lying in a pool of blood, clutching a trembling little girl in her arms...

I saw a blood-red highland, where death storms swept across every corner, and waves upon waves of armored people surged towards a distant light source...

I seemed... to even see two figures, one pink, one green... before my eyes...

"Miss Himeko, what do we do now?" March 7th asked anxiously.

"Her pulse is very weak," Dan Heng said to Himeko, gently letting go of the girl's hand.

"Although her vital signs are faint, her body seems to be maintaining a stable condition..." Welt observed the girl before them.

"Wait..." Welt used his cane to gently move aside the area covered by the girl's hand.

"...It's a wound, and it's large." Before Welt could finish, Himeko spoke first, "March 7th, Dan Heng, go prepare the medical equipment."

"Oh, okay!" Hearing Himeko's request, March 7th quickly turned to run, only to immediately bump into the wall.

"I'll go. March, you stay here and help Mr. Yang..." Dan Heng offered.

"Er... perhaps... you should step outside for a moment?" Himeko asked Welt, slightly embarrassed.

"No problem," Welt took off his glasses, turned around, and walked out without looking back.

"Alright, little March, come help me."

"Okay!"

The wound on the girl's abdomen was large and deep, yet it seemed to have already been treated somehow, as not a single drop of blood flowed out. Nevertheless, the gash itself remained alarming.

I'm sleeping right now... no, wait, I'm unconscious. Yes, I'm unconscious...

After getting knocked out by something, I ended up here.

I feel like I'm lying on something soft and fluffy, and my body feels... taller?

Wait... wait, why does my stomach feel cold?

Could it be... after being kidnapped, my body was stretched out, and now they're harvesting my organs?!

No, no, that voice sounds so gentle, they must be good people, right?

Speaking of which, why does that voice sound so familiar?

"Little March, time for the bandages."

"Little March."

"March."

...

"Little March?"

Four calls in succession nearly made March 7th's brain crash.

"Oh oh, okay, let me find them..."

Hiss... wait a minute, Dan Heng... Miss Himeko and Mr. Yang... there should only be three people calling me... could it be... March 7th tentatively looked towards the girl on the bed.

∑(O_O;)

The girl on the bed was staring straight at her with wide, round eyes. Upon realizing she'd been spotted, she slowly closed her eyes again, feigning calmness.

"Hey, this young lady saw you!" March 7th immediately jumped up. The roll of bandages in the medical kit instantly followed her hand, unspooling dramatically... like someone trying to grab toilet paper from too far away, only to leap and send the paper flying everywhere.

"Pfft... Couldn't help but chuckle." (Translator Note: This line seems out of place, possibly internal thought or narrator comment, kept as is.)

Having no choice, the girl had to open her eyes again, facing the gazes of the others.

（ﾉ´д｀）

Inside, she was so embarrassed she could dig a hole in the floor.

"How are you? Do you feel uncomfortable anywhere?" Himeko was closest, so she asked first.

"Uh... I... I... I want..." Unsure if it was because she was unused to "speaking" or because she was seeing people she never dreamed she'd meet, the girl's lips trembled, stammering, unable to form a complete sentence.

"It's okay, don't be afraid. Everyone here is nice," Himeko quickly added reassuringly.

"N-no... it's not that... my stomach..." The girl struggled to point at her abdomen, where a small patch of clothing had been temporarily opened, revealing the horrifying wound beneath.

And then... all over the wound, dark grey liquid had been spilled, spreading onto the blanket and sheet underneath... with an overturned bottle lying beside it!

All the disinfectant water was spilled!

"S-sorry! It was an accident..." March 7th quickly gathered the bandages properly and handed them to Himeko to help clean up.

No wonder her eyes held a trace of pain, three parts hunger, and seven parts... what is this nonsense. (Translator Note: This internal thought about reading expressions seems intentionally absurd.)

Himeko immediately gave her an anesthetic shot and skillfully began treating the wound.

"March, what happened in there?" Dan Heng and Welt stood outside the door, listening to the commotion.

"It's fine, everything's normal!"

Standing outside, Dan Heng couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.

The girl... ah... it's time to call her Tian An. She kept her eyes closed the entire time, making it seem like she was undergoing some life-or-death stratum corneum removal surgery (just kidding), not flinching even once until the wound was fully treated.

She had no idea where this wound came from. Did she get shanked walking down the street?

No... kidneys aren't located there.

"Alright, miss, your wound has been treated. How do you feel now?" Himeko asked while packing up the remaining supplies.

Hearing this, Tian An merely nodded. She didn't even have the strength to speak now, feeling as if something had drained all her energy, a sense of powerlessness like having the entire ship's defense systems shut down and then being stabbed...

"Little March, let's move our guest towards the middle of the bed," Himeko said to March 7th.

"Okay, I'm pretty good at this," March 7th made a gesture of rolling up her sleeves and began assisting Himeko.

"Say, why aren't you talking... (sniff sniff) You smell really nice," March 7th was an enthusiastic person, not one to lose interest just because someone was aloof. Instead, she'd proactively seek opportunities for interaction.

"Don't tell me... you're a tragic princess from a fallen kingdom, betrayed by her best friend? An Ice Princess!"

"I..."

"See, see? I guessed right," March 7th said after they had positioned the girl in the center of the bed.

"...."

"I'm not....."

Could I be the princess of Kazdel...? Tian An吐槽ed internally.

"Alright, March 7th, the patient needs rest. Let's not disturb her. As for questions, we can ask them once you've recovered a bit more," Himeko intervened.

As expected of Himeko A-... Big Sis Himeko, so understanding, Tian An thought.

"We'll also need to discuss the cost of the treatment," Himeko added.

But not entirely... Tian An amended her thought.