After a good meal, Dixue and Yue Liuyi sat on the Skyship’s terrace, soaking in the jeweled night.

Starlight braided itself into a dreamlike sea, gem-points pinned to a bolt of night-silk.

No clouds, only a clear, clean vault that felt close enough to touch.

Ancient galaxies and far-off glows pressed near, weaving a grand celestial palace right before their eyes.

“Xiao Yue, do you know how the Sky Voyager slips between planets?”

“Hmm… through spatial wormholes, right? If it were just moving physically, even light speed would take centuries.”

“Mm. Then where does a wormhole’s power come from? Teleportation magic uses wormholes, but it’s crazy energy-hungry.”

“LittleSnow, are you testing me? Fine—I’ve got this. It’s the application of Life Force!”

“Correct. Reward: head pats~”

“Don’t use someone else’s body to hand out rewards again!”

Laughing, Yue Liuyi let the thread of Life Force spool back through her memory.

The cosmos bloomed from a single origin point; matter and energy surged out like a newborn flood.

Stars and worlds condensed from that tide. Beyond the energies science has tallied, one more current runs deep—mysterious, root-dark, still not fully read by humankind.

Different cultures named it in their own tongues: mana, qi, the tilt of heaven and earth.

Because this current nurtures life and sparks hope in civilization, people came to call it Life Force.

Life Force pours outward from the cosmic source.

The closer a world sits to that fountainhead, the richer its mana, the more resplendent its civilization.

On those worlds, abundance keeps the thread unbroken; progress climbs without gaps, until the heights make you gasp.

Spells, gifts, flying carpets, skyborne citadels, giant beasts, even the Sky Voyager—all of them ride on the back of Life Force.

Such cultures are the Inner Ring civilizations, set within the Inner Ring systems.

Dragon Heaven, birthplace of the Sky Voyager, is among them.

Far from the source lies thinner air.

In the Mid Ring, a few solid arts still work.

In the Outer Ring, every spell spent is a coin gone—refills are rare, slow, and dear.

Life Force feeds non-corporeal beings—little spirits, ghosts, guardians of the land—and it keeps the biosphere cycling, breaking down poisons.

So on worlds flush with Life Force, the ecology sings.

But people squandered nature. On many Outer Ring worlds, industry burned the last embers of mana before dawn.

Species vanished. Air soured. Heat rose. Energy ran short.

Most such cultures hit their ceiling around Tech Level 4.

Many died out before they ever met a neighbor.

Ruins litter the Outer Ring, dangerous and still.

Old machine guardians keep their watch long after their masters turned to dust.

Without magic reserves or fuel, you don’t set foot there.

On worlds rich in Life Force, a world-spanning plant grows as if by instinct—the World Tree.

It is a node where Life Force gathers and circulates, a lighthouse that steers the current, keeping it from drifting aimlessly into the void.

The technology Dragon Heaven mastered links World Trees between worlds, knotting gates that large ships can use—wormholes open, routes bloom, and distance stops being a wall.

For the first time, people can reach the star-fields beyond the sky.

“So that’s the plan. At midnight, the Sky Voyager will leave Greyglow Star and head for the next tropical gas world—Seasand 14.

We’ll get to see the World Tree’s silhouette. Xiao Yue, want to watch it with your own eyes?”

“Can we? But… once the Sky Voyager raises its shield, won’t the glare block the view?”

For safety, the Sky Voyager coats itself in protective magic before a jump.

A skin of gold clings to the hull—strong enough to guard the ship, bright enough to wash the outer decks in shine and haze.

“But our Skyship doesn’t need shielding magic.

We just pilot it, and go.”

“Th-That’s allowed?”

“Mm. Rangers Lodge privilege. We could even sell tickets, let some passengers join the viewing.”

The blue-haired girl’s eyes turned, clear as running water—this wasn’t a joke. Dixue meant it.

“LittleSnow, you’re a business prodigy… but can we handle the crowd? And aren’t you afraid of letting in people with foul tempers?”

“Appointments only. And we accept applications by family units.”

“Oh—great idea!”

…

And so the Rangers Lodge spun up a new subsidiary, the Skyship Planetarium.

Barely an hour old, the news boiled across the Sky Voyager like a kettle at full roll.

To witness Greyglow’s World Tree in person had been a privilege for the captain and a chosen few.

No wonder the passengers were thrilled.

Applications flooded the Sky Voyager’s inbox.

Some even threw together last-minute “families,” but Maria’s sharp eyes cut through the act at once.

“You… you’re in your twenties, right? Why claim you’re a little girl?”

A girl in full goth-loli dress stood at the door, pacifier in mouth, clutching her “mom”—actually her bestie.

“A l-legal loli doesn’t count?”

“Nope. We’re not running a content rating board.”

“Maria, look at how far they took the cosplay. They must really love this. Let them in?”

“All right. Since Xiao Yue asked—just this once.”

“T-Thank you, ladies!”

…

“And you two—you’re boyfriends, right? Why pose as a married couple and hide a puppy in a stroller?”

“Why!? My crossplay… exposed!?”

The man in a dress spoke with tragic dignity.

“Akiyama-chan… even after fleeing to the New Land, are we doomed never to be together?”

“No… I refuse to believe it…”

“Forget it. Star-crossed lovers, the pair of you. Let them in.”

That’s how popular the Skyship Planetarium was.

Even so, Yue Liuyi didn’t fret about safety.

LittleSnow had told her the Skyship is one of the safest places in the world.

Not even a Murder Fiend could slip inside, let alone the Third Princess.

Yue Liuyi checked IDs and swung open the Skyship’s doors, one guest at a time.

Step into the entryway, and a bright dessert case met you, glittering like a treasure shelf.

Dixue’s idea—midnight stirs appetite like a tide.

Strawberry cake glazed with cream, steaming oden, omurice hot off the pan—

Most passengers couldn’t help themselves and ordered a plate.

Warm, sweet aromas curled through the air. Pure delight.

Fifteen minutes after opening, the Skyship’s hall had filled, dozens thrumming with quiet excitement.

It didn’t feel crowded.

The hall was spacious, with two-story panes like a waterfall of glass, carrying the outside view straight into the room.

At ten o’clock, the Sky Voyager would draw near the World Tree.

From here, everyone could drink in the world’s beauty.