Aha!

How are you all doing? Are you all enjoying 2.2?

I finished the quest yesterday, and that's why the chapter got delayed. I enjoyed it a lot.

Roll wise...

well, my Robin looks a little odd; they are riding a sword for some reason...

Well, enough of that, here's the chapter!

******

[Aster POV]

With a burst of energy, I sprinted towards the race car bed, teetering on the edge of the bridge. Stelle and Himeko, their faces a mix of shock and relief, stood frozen in disbelief. I wheeled the bed towards them, my martini still in hand, the umbrella swirling around in the drink as I walked.

With a nonchalant air, I pushed the wheeled car bed towards the two, their eyes fixed on the spectacle while I continued to sip my martini.

While Stelle looked in awe as if she was viewing an idol, Himeko seemed to have a complicated look on her face. She scrutinized me from head to toe, taking in my impeccable style, before questioning me. 

"While the express is open to all who seek to traverse the stars…Who… are you?" She asked, her gaze filled with a mix of curiosity and suspicion. 

I smirk before looking upwards at the glass ceiling displaying the starry sky. "I…am just somebody very, very far away from home…" I turn back to look at her radiant amber-orange eyes. "I promise you from the depths of my heart that I am of no threat and just want to explore this next page in my long journey…"

She looked at me, scrutinizing me before sighing.

"Well…you did end up helping the crew get to safety and even ended the legion threat swiftly…" She then gazed compassionately at the two sleepy heads in the racecar. "I suppose I should officially extend the offer." She says as she turns to look at the boarding platform. 

The air began to warp as a sleek black train with golden trimming suddenly manifested into the station in a dazzling flash of blue light, filling the air with a sense of anticipation and wonder.

 As the surge in the wind ruffled her beautiful crimson-red hair, she turned back to look at my disciple and me while pushing her hair behind her ear.

"Welcome Aster and Stelle to the Astral Express," she said as the train blared its horn as if it were greeting us.

-

-

-

So apparently, we are a part of this cool space crew now, and the space station is hailing us as heroes. Unfortunately, I could not embrace the fame of being a hero as they all seemed incredibly busy trying to get everything back into order and recover from the invasion. 

I sat to the side, watching all the researchers running around as that Asta girl started taking command. I don't think she remembers me, as she seemed to not have even noticed me. 

'Well, I guess that worked out. I was afraid I would need to Neuralyzer her with a bat.'

I watched a man with a funny afro running around tearfully as he seemed to be looking for something. I saw many researchers mourning their lost comrades and still tending to the wounded. 

'Am I truly just in a game?…' I think as I watch the staff take injured members away in stretchers. The extent of the damages has been disastrous. 

My lack of knowledge about this game has regrettably made my actions a little much. I think back to all the damage I caused to the ship and the lead researcher.

As I watch my surroundings unfold, my regret for not playing this game grows. Most other times, I have an "expedition"; I at least have some background knowledge. This time, however…

The only thing regretfully I've come to recall is that gorgeous redhead because of all the Twitter fan art.

This will be a fresh adventure that I legit got no info on; I hope I can find another cool bat here… 'Wait, now that I think about it…Didn't I die?...'

I grip my hand into a fist as I think about the start of my journey. 'Gacha… The one true threat to humanity.' I've been isekai'ed because of gacha before, but not after dying…

Usually, it is one of the bats isekai'ing me, but this time I died…

'Died…

"..."

'I got killed losing a 70/30…'

"..."

'Am I stuck here?'

"..."

"..."

"NOOOO!" I scream in front of a white floating ghost with the word "wubbaboo" above it. 

"WHO'S GONNA FEED ALL MY DUCKS?!...WAIT!" I began to panic as the realization dawned on me…

"NOOO MY LOGIN STREAK!" I screamed into the heavens while a bunch of labcoat people looked at me confused. 

If I could be crying blood, I would, as my dailies and login streak would never recover. 

In an almost frenzied state, I started to steal any phones I could. 

Eventually, I was surrounded by a wall of phones as I tried every single phone to see if I could download and log in to my gacha games. 

However, the reality is often cruel as none of my games were available; instead, they were either knockoffs or completely different. They were all owned by some company called the IPC and had the same publisher. 

'What the hell is Atherium Wars?'

My frantic search for some familiarity continued before I fell to my knees, my eyes empty, as I looked at the time tick past reset time. I felt something snap as I flopped over like a dead fish.

"Heh life is just a game, huh…" I said while falling facefirst onto something before I saw black.

-

-

[Aster? POV][Location ???]

At some point, I woke up again, but…

I was floating in what looked like a black void.

"Damnit!" I screamed into the void, "NOT ANOTHER VOID SCENE!"

Suddenly, I heard a chorus of laughter behind me, making me turn around.

As I turned, the world around me transformed. The abyss was replaced by a riot of colors, and I found myself within a tent that seemed to have sprung from a child's dream. Like a candy cane, its red and white stripes stretched as far as the eye could see, and a chill filled the air, adding to the surreal atmosphere.

Before me loomed a towering wall of masks, each one a unique entity. They floated in the air, their shapes and colors a chaotic mix. Some were wide, others thin, and some only covered half the face, while others were full. The sight was both mesmerizing and unsettling.

But they all shared one similarity… 

They were all staring at me and smiling as the sound of laughter filled the area.

Instinctively, I reached for my bat, only to realize I was unarmed. Undeterred, I clenched my fists, charging them with determination. With each strike, the masks' laughter grew louder, mocking my futile attempts.

The masks shattered with each of my punches, but for every mask that fell, another two masks took their place. As for every mask that fell, the chorus of laughter became louder and more chaotic.

Eventually, I gave up, realizing that the masks were not doing anything to harm me actively, but just laughed mockingly the whole time.

Suddenly, the air in front of me started to displace as a familiar menu window appeared in front of my face. Its blue square screen constantly flickered as it continued to flicker with a glitch effect, and the words "Welcome Foreigner" were plastered on it with each letter in a different font.

'WTF?' I thought as my eyes widened at the sudden message.

The message on the window began fading as the masks stared at me as if watching how I'd react.

'There's no way I'm trusting anything this damn creepy,' 

I think they heard my thoughts as the laughter became even louder.

The window began to resume the message; it had an accept and decline button at the bottom as the offer began to be typed.

'I will give you one hundred and sixty stellar jades if yo-'

I slammed accept immediately 

"..."

"..."

The masks and the laughter all froze as if surprised at my sudden acceptance of whatever contract they had given me.

I look upward while crossing my arms. "What?" I say while scanning my eyes across the masks. "Give me my jades now!" 

"..." The ground began to shake, and the entire space began to reverberate over the sound of laughter. The masks all had grins reaching almost past their limits as the structures holding the tent up started collapsing, and dust blew up.

Eventually, the sounds settled as a glowing red ball floated down from the wall of masks and began descending in front of me.

I reached outwards to grasp the ball of light. 

As my hands reached the ball, it transformed into a strange mask. It looked like one of those Venetian masks that covered the entire face, but the color was pure white. 

I took a closer look and noticed the small patterns across the white surface, which almost looked like various gacha currencies carved into it like ivory. Small Originite Primes, Stellar Jades, Primogems, and many more were engraved like pieces of art onto the mask into a mesmerizing pattern.

The mask, adorned with saint quartz like teardrops, bore an enigmatic grin that seemed almost impossible. Its power radiated a force that could rival some of the bats from home.

I slowly put the mask to my face, and as I slid the mask on…

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA," I couldn't help but burst into maniacal laughter as I saw a window in view, my hand resting on my face as I held my forehead.

[You gained 160x Stellar Jades!]

[You gained 160x Stellar Jades!]

[You gained 160x Stellar Jades!]

[You gained 160x Stellar Jades!]

[You gained 160x Stellar Jades!]

[Satisfy Aha while wearing the mask to gain more…]

Watching the spam notifications saying I gained Stellar Jades, I couldn't help but grin.

Suddenly, the surroundings began to revert back to the space station. I started removing the mask because I didn't want to look "crazy."

I gazed at the mask in my hands while researchers ran past me, oblivious to what had just happened.

I couldn't help but shiver as the many ideas bounced around in my head.

"Hehe, now this'll be fun…"

******

[Accessing Database]

[Welcome Admin]

[Asters Bat Log]

[Bat-351 | Codename "Laevateinn"]

Description:

"An excellent firestarter for my grill!" - Aster

Bat-351, known by the codename "Laevateinn," is a formidable member of Aster's 'sharp series' arsenal. This 182 cm long bat, with its obsidian black hue and red symbols adorning the handle, is a sight to behold. Its "blade," a long, slightly curved extension, is complemented by a crescent moon handguard and a cross-like guard at the handle's end.

The origins of Bat-351, including its creation and acquisition, remain shrouded in mystery. However, researchers have speculated that the blade may have once belonged to a "Surtr." Whether this is the same Surtr from Norse mythology is a question that lingers in the air.

When activated, Bat-351 emits a scorching heat, reaching a minimum of 1200 Celsius. This unique ability allows Aster to summon a large, black figure made of obsidian, depicting a demonic heritage with its horns and hellfire theme, to fight on his behalf.

During his extensive journey, Aster found himself in Scandinavia. It was there that he mysteriously acquired Bat-351 'Laevateinn '. The thermal readings taken from an unknown conflict flared, threatening to permanently damage the earth with its sun-like heat. However, a mysterious force intervened, preventing the catastrophe.

When observers came to the scene and saw the aftermath of the conflict, Aster was naked, walking through a Norway forest, using his bat to cook some game he had hunted.

When asked about the huge surge in temperature and his whereabouts, he merely stated that he just had a "disagreement" and they wouldn't bother anyone anymore.

Ever since that day, this bat has not left Bat-335, as the usage of such a bat again has been predicted to usher in a new coming of Ragnarok.