The Vixen's Gambit: Tonight We Hunt

The train roared, a streak of light across the star-dusted canvas of space, hurtling towards an unknown future.

"Himeko, we'll be starting the jump soon!" A curious black and white creature with large, floppy ears plip-plopped over to the red-haired woman gazing out the window. "Whether or not the train functions properly depends on this, pa!"

"Heh, it'll be fine."

Himeko smiled, watching Pom-Pom return to the driver's cabin, then calmly sipped her coffee—though her heart wasn't as relaxed as she appeared.

The Astral Express, one of the greatest creations in the universe... ever since Himeko found it, she had dedicated herself to its restoration. So far, her efforts had been successful.

The train, stranded for who knows how long, was operational again, capable of traversing the sea of stars—but Himeko was still unsure if she had fully restored technologies like the warp drive.

Perhaps it only looked normal. Maybe the moment they warped, she, Pom-Pom, and the train would be torn to shreds... Despite her doubts, Himeko maintained her confident smile and gave the order to proceed.

Restoring a divine artifact with human ingenuity was a pioneering feat in itself. But she wasn't sure if she could succeed. The Astral Express was a crystallization of wisdom, not some ordinary train you could fix with a random wheel plucked from the roadside…

Yes, she was talking about that train heading straight for them, its left wheels mismatched in color and struggling to turn. Clearly, someone hadn't been careful with the maintenance—

Wait.

Why is there another train?

Hadn't the Astral Express routes been discontinued for years?

Himeko blinked, bewildered, as the other train's front rapidly grew larger.

I knew I should have tested this on a closed track. Who knew there could be space traffic accidents...?

BOOM!!!

Two colossal objects collided in the vastness of space. Despite the last-minute efforts of both drivers to avert disaster, the trains scraped against each other with a deafening roar.

"Hey! Do you even know how to drive?!?"

Even from the conductor's cabin, Pom-Pom's furious voice echoed throughout the Astral Express, reaching Himeko, who was still slightly dazed from the impact.

It couldn't be helped. The Astral Express was usually the one doing the hitting. Being hit by another train felt like a personal affront to Pom-Pom as the conductor.

"Pom-Pom, road rage isn't good for you..."

Smoothing her slightly disheveled hair, Himeko watched the other train continue on its merry way, seemingly in hit-and-run mode, warping into another dimension without a backward glance. 

The side of that train is completely scraped up, and it can still run? Is that good quality or bad...? And if the Astral Express routes are closed, then this should be considered a closed track, right?

Yup, definitely not my fault.

"Wah wah wah! Pom-Pom is so angry! That guy doesn't understand traffic laws at all!"

Pom-Pom, her hat askew, stormed out of the conductor's cabin while Himeko was still staring out the window. "That guy doesn't know how to drive a train at all! Popping out of warp right next to someone else's train—I'm reporting him for driving without a license!"

"There, there, Pom-Pom. At least no one was hurt."

Just the train, which will probably need major repairs again… Himeko straightened her hair ornament, looking at the slightly deformed interior of the carriage with a sigh. 

I wonder how long that will take. The culprit ran off too fast; it'll be hard to catch them… Oh well, as long as no one is hurt—

BANG!

As a brown-haired man was flung from the shattered space like a meteor, crashing headfirst through the train's window and embedding himself halfway into the carriage, Himeko decided that today was probably not a good day for train travel.

-----

"Otto, the wheels of the Cosmic Juggernaut are wobbling..."

"Doesn't matter. I'm sure my old friend can overcome such minor difficulties."

"Otto, I think we hit someone in the spatial turbulence..."

"No worries, that was also an old friend. You know, he's always had a thick plot armor."

"Otto, the Cosmic Juggernaut just hit another train. I think I saw someone familiar..."

"Minor issue. We accidentally entered a neighboring world. It's normal to encounter people who look like our old friends."

"Being your 'old friend' sounds hazardous. I've already experienced that firsthand." Fu Hua leaned against the wreckage-strewn carriage, pointing wearily at the mostly-gone section of the train.

"But the Cosmic Juggernaut is practically totaled. Are you sure we can even reach your destination alive?"

Otto responded to Fu Hua's doubt with a confident smile. "Trust my skills, old friend. Even if we only have half a train left, even if we're down to a single wheel, I'm confident I can get us to our destination."

"Please stop calling me 'old friend.' It's giving me bad luck..." Fu Hua sighed wearily, at a loss for words.

She'd been dragged onto this train by the madman Otto without warning, and she had no idea what was happening back on Earth... In the worst-case scenario, Kevin might have already launched the Stigmata Project.

And her own situation wasn't optimistic. Otto was driving like a maniac. She had thought they would reach their destination smoothly, but after warping through several wrong worlds, even the Divine Key was almost wrecked.

Hopefully, I won't get swept away by spatial turbulence… Just as Fu Hua was about to take a breather, Otto's voice suddenly became serious. "Get ready, old friend. We're almost there!"

"So fast this time?"

"The actual distance isn't far. I took a detour because the spatial barrier between our world and that world is too fragile. I didn't want to cause catastrophic damage to either of them!"

Otto's words surprised Fu Hua. "You actually care about civilians? I thought the moment you saw the person you wanted to see, you'd rush over even if it meant killing everyone else instantly."

"Believe me, if killing everyone else were the only way to reunite with her—I would." A rare flicker of weariness and unease appeared in Otto's eyes. "But right now, that's not the only option... I know it might sound ridiculous coming from me, but at least before I see her, I want to do something worthy of the title 'savior'."

Her last wish for me before she died… I don't want to disappoint her.

"Now then—brace for impact!"