Honkai: Star Rail – From the Moment Tom The Cat Became My Passenger

"How did you end up looking like Tom?"

Raiden Ei walked gracefully forward, lightly smoothing down the rounded curves of her hips beneath her kimono and straightening the fabric along her slender thighs. She crouched gracefully, quietly observing Yevenko, who stood barely a meter tall in his current form.

She reached out gently with her delicate, pale hand and softly patted his head.

Having only ever patted Tom himself, Yevenko was startled at being on the receiving end in this form. He quickly held his head and hopped backward, embarrassed.

"It's complicated. Long story short, I used a special method."

"I'll probably stay like this for a while."

Raiden Ei nodded thoughtfully at his explanation.

Yevenko also fell into thought, carefully considering Ei's behavior. It seemed like Raiden Ei was already quite fond of him, as though they'd known each other for a long time. More interestingly, she clearly recognized Tom as well.

Additionally, when she first appeared, she saw Yevenko's true form rather than Tom's current shape.

Is this the effect of the summoning itself?

Forget it, why bother overthinking things without enough clues?

What mattered now was that this situation clearly worked in his favor.

Though he hadn't drawn the invincible, culinary-expert beauty he'd wished for, Raiden Ei's power was still exceptional. While perhaps not on the cosmic-destroying level, she was more than sufficient for Belobog.

The next curiosity was whether Raiden Ei would continue to grow stronger along the Star Rail, perhaps even embarking on her own Path.

More than anything, he couldn't help but wonder what would happen if Ei encountered Welt—or even Acheron. That would surely be entertaining.

And there was one more matter: in her original world, Raiden Ei was famously the only person who could never successfully prepare food. Rumor had it she created dishes so terrible they reduced the eater's health. If given the chance, Yevenko wanted to test this rumor personally.

Meanwhile, Tom swept through the train car energetically. He held a broom in his left hand, a feather duster in his right, a dustpan tucked under one arm, and a mop under the other, while sliding a rag beneath his feet.

Clouds of dust followed his frantic movements, yet every surface he passed sparkled brilliantly clean in his wake.

Halfway through his cleaning spree, Tom suddenly noticed a new arrival in the Astral Express, clearly emitting the familiar aura of another "passenger."

Instantly, Tom flung all his cleaning tools into the corner. Mid-air, the scattered tools abruptly stopped and lined themselves up, neatly hopping into a waiting bucket and settling down tidily.

In the next second, Tom vanished.

He reappeared right in front of Raiden Ei, his whole body still vibrating like a cartoon spring from the speed of his dash, his outlines blurred and jittery.

Grinning widely, he swiftly pulled out a huge bouquet of purple flowers from behind his back.

Seeing this, Yevenko nodded approvingly.

Not bad, Tom. Very considerate! With new girls, Tom would typically offer a single flower—but here, clearly sensing Ei was already a friend, he went straight for a large bouquet.

However, the next second proved Yevenko's assumption completely wrong.

Instead of handing the bouquet to Ei, Tom stuffed it firmly into Yevenko's paws and eagerly pointed toward her.

Yevenko lowered his head, silently looking at the bouquet.

Ah, so Tom's even smoother than I thought!

Come to think of it, Tom had plenty of experience wooing female cats from the cartoons—even if those attempts usually ended with him being played for laughs.

Still, he probably had better instincts than Yevenko himself.

Determined not to be outdone, Yevenko decided to up his own game a little.

He gave an exaggeratedly devilish grin, pulled a cigar from behind his back, tossed it into the air, and whipped out a revolver from nowhere, firing upwards.

Bang—!

As the muzzle flashed, Yevenko's jaw stretched comically forward, catching the now-lit cigar perfectly as it fell back down.

He casually exhaled smoke, the wispy trails above his head slowly forming elegant words:

[Hello, Raiden Ei]

Only then did he present her with the bouquet.

Amused by Yevenko and Tom's enthusiastic welcome, Ei's violet eyes softened with warmth. Her lips curved slightly, voice gentle:

"Thank you."

"If there's anything I can do for you, please use me as you wish."

"This body, though noble, holds countless flaws. My only true skill is martial prowess—I wish to become your blade, clearing your path and fighting solely for you."

At that moment, Raiden Ei felt a strange, resonant energy surge beneath her feet. She glanced downward instinctively but could only see the gentle swell of her chest, blocking her view entirely. With a gentle shake of her head, she smiled quietly to herself.

Ei could sense clearly that this world was filled with powerful beings. Here, she didn't need to protect a nation's dreams anymore—only Yevenko's.

Growing stronger here was a blessing, enabling her to better aid him.

Hearing Ei's heartfelt declaration, Yevenko nodded in deep satisfaction.

He heard only one clear message in her words:

Absolute! Loyalty!

"No problem! In that case, let's head out immediately!"

Thanks to his thorough exploration at Cocolia's expense, Yevenko's Astral Express had gained enough [Exploration Value] to enable direct jumps to Jarilo-VI.

As long as the train orbited nearby, Yevenko could teleport directly onto the planet itself, safely arriving in a suitable location.

Without hesitation, Yevenko took hold of Tom and Ei's hands, the three disappearing in a flash of golden light.

---

Belobog

Underground Mines

"I'll free you from your chains."

"Disappear among the sea of butterflies."

"Illusions of the past."

A large, spectral silhouette flashed into existence, followed instantly by a streak of vivid purple. The girl with violet hair swung her scythe, effortlessly cutting down a True bug.

Seele glanced upward from the depths of the underground mines, noticing a massive fissure opening high above. Bright blue skies peeked through, yet countless True Stings cascaded from the crack, greedily swarming iron ores and the scant available nutrients.

Members of Wildfire fought desperately, each able to handle one or two insects individually—but their numbers were overwhelming.

The bugs exploded on contact, spraying bodies with horrifying mixtures of red and green blood. Though bugs died steadily, their numbers never diminished due to constant multiplication.

At this rate, all of Wildfire's members here might soon perish. Seele's deep violet eyes narrowed in thought before she shouted decisively:

"Fall back! Everyone retreat—I'll hold them off!"

Hearing her order, the Wildfire members quickly started an organized withdrawal.

Despite their efforts, True Stings continued their ruthless attacks on retreating members. Each explosion signaled another death, the carnage increasing rapidly.

Amid the chaos, Seele suddenly spotted a strange scene: a purple-haired girl accompanied by two cartoonish creatures—cats, maybe?—appeared out of nowhere nearby. The girl had no visible weapon, clearly just an ordinary citizen from the town.

Three True Stings immediately rushed toward them!

Seele's pupils shrank in panic as she sprinted toward them, urgently calling out:

"Watch out!"

She watched helplessly as the bugs closed in swiftly, seconds away from disaster.

However, the next moment left her eyes wide open, utterly stunned.

One of the cartoonish cats instantly whipped out a flyswatter from thin air, striking each of the three bugs rapidly with three sharp smacks:

Smack! Smack! Smack!

Clear, crisp echoes resonated as the three True Stings flattened instantly onto the ground, reduced to harmless smears.

Seele couldn't help but think:

Even swatting regular flies has never been this easy!