Chapter 107 - 106: Silver Wolf, Full of Confidence (Part 1)

Silver Wolf: "?" Watching Pei Guang's challenge, Silver Wolf was momentarily dumbfounded. "What the heck?" She had been keeping an eye on Pei Guang's movements and knew they were supposed to be in Belobog, so how had they ended up back at the space station? And why was this 'player' so bored that he felt the need to provoke her? "Interesting!" Silver Wolf quickly investigated the situation and, upon discovering that it was all Herta's doing, she lost any interest in playing along with Pei Guang's little game. Elio had explicitly warned her not to engage with Pei Guang. His existence made the future even more unpredictable, his origins impossible to trace. It was as if he had just appeared in this world out of nowhere, with the potential to change it in a truly profound way! However, by analyzing everything Pei Guang had done since he appeared, along with the attention he garnered and the chain of events that had unfolded since the universe's creation, they were able to at least glimpse a vague outline of the future. According to Elio's prophecies, out of 14,000,605 possible futures, there was only one that led to a perfect ending beyond even his imagination. In the rest of the futures, if they stuck to the current plan, there was a one-third chance they'd reach an outcome similar to their original predictions. As for killing Pei Guang? According to the current prophecies, not only was it impossible for the Stellaron Hunters to kill him, but there was a high chance of them being killed in return. The methods of their demise were so gruesome that Elio had chosen to keep them to himself. What's more, Elio's analysis revealed that Pei Guang's nature was so complex that even he fell silent. Saint, calamity, chaos, bystander, trickster, Nurgle's servant, Slaanesh's follower, Khorne's devotee, adventurer, smooth operator, director of the Bureau of Control, savior of humanity, Griffin's commander, fleet commander, humanity's last hope, whale-tier gacha player, the most trusted sensei, doctor, pure-love enthusiast, connoisseur of certain "preferences", master of the Wind Spirit Moon Shadow Sect, top brass of SCP Foundation and more... These facets, both understandable and unfathomable, left even Elio at a loss for words. In Silver Wolf's words, Pei Guang was a 100% purebred "player." While she still had to follow this world's rules, Pei Guang only had to follow the rules of a 'player.' The irony was that, according to Elio's countless prophecies, the only way to reach the perfect ending—or even the one-third chance of an acceptable ending—was for them to "do nothing." This "doing nothing" didn't mean slacking off: it meant strictly adhering to the current plan without taking any unnecessary actions. By doing this, they could achieve the best possible outcome. Elio had emphasized this point: no matter what happened, they shouldn't do anything that targeted Pei Guang or March 7th. If they encountered Pei Guang, they should just let things play out naturally. However, as Pei Guang's actions progressed, Elio kept updating his predictions. Every choice Pei Guang made caused subtle shifts in the future, and these seemingly minor changes had the potential to alter the final outcome significantly. The biggest change so far occurred after they killed Cocolia and sealed the Stellaron—four new companions, three women and one man, appeared in the final vision. Because of this, Silver Wolf was unfazed by Pei Guang's "challenge." She was more curious about who was using Pei Guang to provoke her. Once she confirmed it was Herta, she lost all interest. After all, compared to achieving a perfect ending, a petty challenge held no appeal to Silver Wolf. Analyzing Pei Guang's behavior, Silver Wolf was confident she could easily beat him if they fought. But... She sighed. To avoid failing the mission, and to prevent complications with the future, she chose to ignore Pei Guang's taunt. After all, she just wanted to enjoy some relaxed PvE content, not engage in tense PvP with other players. Besides, just dealing with Pei Guang, who seemed to embody every cliché of an RPG protagonist wielding an overpowered village sword, would be a hassle. Silver Wolf muttered, "They'll be arriving at Xianzhou soon. That's when I'll make my move. A showdown... it does sound fun." Truth be told, Silver Wolf was tempted to mess around with Pei Guang. There were many who treated the universe like a game, but almost none who truly could be called "players" in the real sense. At the very least, she couldn't, like Pei Guang, pull random items from trash cans without interference—let alone summon a star-destroying battleship from one! She also couldn't stab an Aeon with a flaming lance or hide in a trash can to hide from an advanced enemy scan. But that's what made it all so interesting! The fun of playing alone is limited. Facing off against another player, especially when you can wipe the smile off their face, would multiply the enjoyment tenfold. With that thought, and out of sheer boredom, Silver Wolf decided to start a game—this time a multiplayer one. While she was happily PvPing as a Valkyrie, a message from Kafka popped up. Kafka: "Hey, honey~ You there?" Kafka: "You there~? You there~? You there~?" Silver Wolf quickly replied: "No." Kafka: "You're about to lose. Elio says so." As if her words were prophetic, at the exact moment Kafka sent the message, Silver Wolf's character got hit by an opponent-controlled insect in-game, knocking her out with a combo. Silver Wolf: "..." Staring at the defeat screen, Silver Wolf was speechless. First, Pei Guang's provocation, and now Kafka's interruption. All she wanted was to enjoy her game. Was that too much to ask? Silver Wolf sighed, "What's up?" Kafka: "Got some good news for you~" Silver Wolf: "What is it?" Kafka: "Before the Astral Express reaches Xianzhou, you're free to do whatever you want. No one will stop you~" Silver Wolf: "???" Silver Wolf sensed that something was off. Combining this with the video she'd received earlier, she began to piece things together. Silver Wolf: "Does this have something to do with me?" Kafka: "I don't know. All I can tell you is that until they arrive at Xianzhou, you're free to ignore the prophecies and do whatever you want. Your actions won't impact the future." At that moment, Silver Wolf felt a sense of danger. Testing the boundaries, Silver Wolf asked, "Even if I hack into the entire system and mess up the plan?" Kafka: "You can do whatever you want. But you'll need to deal with any consequences that follow. Sorry, this time, the choice is entirely yours." Hearing this, she lost her motivation. "Ugh, boring. If I can do anything, then I'll just keep gaming." Kafka teased, "Really? According to Elio's prophecies, if you meet certain conditions, you might even become a 'player'~" Silver Wolf: "Wait... what?! You're giving me a choice?" Kafka: "Yup! Let me see... what did Elio say? Ah! Once you complete the prerequisite tasks, you'll be able to teleport without restrictions, store items freely, and even pull treasures from trash cans like a true player~"