He skillfully tore off two pieces of paper and burned them, then took out a cherry blossom-shaped pink candy from the cherry-colored bag and threw it into his mouth along with the ashes.
----------
[Although you don't want to admit it, the death of your team members still left a deep impression on you, and it also made you more determined not to be defeated by Honkai... You will survive and will never die in any battle against Honkai.]
[The next day, although you were reluctant to enter Mobius's laboratory, you had to fulfill your promise, so you ended up going there with Mr. and Mrs. Hen.]
[Here you also met an acquaintance - Kosmo. He and another team member, Destobia, occasionally come to look after Gresh. After you came, Gresh also ran briskly to her parents and greeted you obediently.]
[It’s strange to say, but Grayshu seems to like you very much, as if there is something about you that attracts her. Sometimes Hen would tease Grayshu that she is closer to you than to them… Naturally, Blanca rolled her eyes at this statement, and Grayshu responded with a puzzled look.]
[But this is just a joke between friends. After all, Hen has noticed that you, like Kosmo, are the type of people who really like children and are especially gentle to young children. Therefore, they don’t object to Grayshu getting close to you... They just didn’t expect that you would be so popular with Grayshu.]
[Of course, this will also lead to another problem... Mobius will be particularly "interested" in you, and this interest is different from the interest of "wanting to catch you and study you on the operating table". It is a slightly sour and hostile interest... Especially when Gray Xiu chose to get close to you first and then return to her side between you and her, her "interest" in you will be even stronger.]
[Perhaps this is why she wanted so badly to get you on the operating table?]
[Ah... But after what happened last night, Mobius's "offensive" has become more obvious. Although she hasn't resorted to outrageous methods such as "filling your room with hypnotic gas at night", "putting a sack on your back while you're walking", or "mixing sleeping pills into your food", she is indeed getting bolder and bolder, or... her interest in you is getting stronger.]
[By the way, the things mentioned above are all true. Mobius really used them. Although the parties involved were fine in the end, such brutal methods are still scary. I just don’t know why she didn’t use these methods on you... Maybe it’s because she is a good person? ]
[Also, as expected, a series of outrageous rumors began to circulate in the Fire Moth, such as "Captain Nozomi's tragic battle with three women", "Dr. Mobius's strong declaration of sovereignty", "Captain Nozomi's one night with Mobius, Sakura, and Alicia"]
[By the way, the mastermind of the last rumor mentioned above was caught by you within just ten minutes of his appearance. Then, he was hung in the training room for the whole day with a sign saying "I shouldn't talk nonsense" on his face, and became a new source of fun among the Fire Moths.]
[Things gradually returned to normal after that. You kept going back and forth between missions and resting in the base. At most, you were dragged by Alicia to meet other people and do some interesting things... at least things that were interesting to Alicia.]
[For example, go to Mebius's laboratory to tease the owner of the laboratory and suggest that she change into a pink skirt or something]
[But the other party is obviously more "interested" in you. Maybe because he can't win against Alicia verbally, he has set his sights on you? ]
[Or you can watch Weiwei's wonderful magic show in her workshop and ask her to make some weird or wonderful gadgets]
[It’s just that you don’t quite understand why this person who is supposed to be an “engineer” is so keen on magic… But her magic show is really good to watch. It would be even better if she didn’t drag you up to be a “lucky audience member”.]
[Then I'll invite Sakura and a few other friends to have a small tea party, and then go shopping together.]
[Although you don't know why you, a man, are dragged into a tea party that is attended by almost only girls, but since Alicia and Sakura are there, you have no reason to object... Maybe it's just to have someone to carry your bags when you go shopping later? ]
[You can see that Alicia is trying to help you expand your social circle, but the effect doesn't seem to be ideal... But you are still very grateful to her, so you don't resist]
[You know she is trying to help you, so you didn't refuse her request, nor did you want to refuse it]
[It was also during this peaceful and brisk day that the Seventh Great Collapse suddenly broke out.]
----------
pat-
He struggled to take out the candy box that was almost stuck to his combat uniform from his pocket, opened it skillfully, and tried to pour out the candy inside. However, after experiencing the horrific high temperature just now, although there was no problem with the candy box itself, the candies inside were stuck to each other. In the end, Xi Wang had to unscrew the lid of the candy box to take out the sticky candy, and threw one into his mouth.
Then, Xi Wang glanced at the knife that he had discarded and had completely melted, then looked at the familiar fiery red figure hovering in the air in the distance. He calmly took the new communicator and pressed the communication button.
"This is Wang. My weapon has been melted and my equipment has been damaged. I can't continue the mission. The other long-range weapons of the team can't cause effective attacks. I request to retreat."
"Received. Request for retreat rejected. Now immediately cooperate with other teams to carry out rescue operations in the surrounding area."
"……learn."
Xi Wang responded calmly, and then gestured to his new team members.
"As you have heard, we cannot leave. We need to continue our rescue mission, and headquarters will not be coming to pick us up for the time being."
"how so……"
"Of course, there aren't many people who can survive in this situation. It's just that it's very troublesome to search for them, and the Houkai energy will continue to rise because of the existence of the Herrscher... In short, it's easy to die if you continue to stay here."
"........."
Looking at their timid expressions, as if they wanted to say something but didn't know how, Xi Wang spoke casually.
"If you want to escape, just go ahead. Remember to report back to the base afterwards. I won't report you. After all, we all just want to survive."
"........."
They looked at each other, as if surprised that Xi Wang would say that. After a brief hesitation, one of them began to move slowly, and after confirming that you really had no opinion, he immediately turned around and ran away.
Once the first person took the lead, everyone else soon left and scattered.
"........."
Xi Wang watched the last team member leave, then calmly withdrew his gaze and looked again at the Seventh Herrscher who was not moving in the distance. He turned around and began to search outward with the Herrscher as the center and a radius of two streets, gradually moving away from the Herrscher - the temperature near the Herrscher was too high, and the combat uniform could not bear it.
But unfortunately, he did not find any survivors. This place was too close to the Herrscher. Ordinary people would basically die if they were exposed to such a high concentration of Honkai energy without special protection. Even if they did not die immediately, they would be burned to death by the flames caused by the Seventh Herrscher.
Trapped in a small space, surrounded by scorching flames, the only oxygen they have is taken away by the flames, and they eventually fall into a coma, with their bodies devoured by flames in the darkness, or they are discovered by wandering Honkai beasts and die in fear of those monsters. The wailing sounds are only heard briefly, and silence returns in a moment.
Every time this happens, we should sigh at how lucky those people who are not resistant to Honkai are. They can simply die when Honkai breaks out, without any pain and without having to struggle for survival.
"…This is Wang. No survivors have been found in the five streets near the Herrscher. I am applying for temporary retirement. When will the follow-up support arrive? I need weapons."
"Received. The support troops will arrive within half an hour, along with the weapons you need. You can now go to this location (a string of coordinates) to rest and search for the survivors of the Fifth Squad nearby. Also, please keep an eye on the movements of the Seventh Herrscher and report any abnormalities immediately."
“…Is there anyone still alive in Himiko’s team?”
"Yes, Hua, a member of the fifth team, was last seen here (a string of coordinates). According to our speculation, she should still be staying nearby."
"Hua Mo... Got it. I'll move towards the target point now."
Xi Wang raised his eyebrows, feeling a little surprised... Facing the Herrscher's explosion at such a close distance, she was able to retreat to this position in the end. She was really amazing.
As for why there was no subsequent contact with the Fire Moth, this is not very important. After all, anything can happen on the battlefield of collapse, and it is normal for communications to be damaged due to special circumstances.
After obtaining permission to temporarily retreat and rest, Xi Wang also quickly moved towards the target point, while not forgetting to pay attention to the movements of the Seventh Herrscher.
"........."
However, the Seventh Herrscher did not move. Instead, she stayed quietly where she was, floating in the air without moving. If the flames around her were not still active and the high-temperature area was not getting wider and wider, people would probably think she was asleep in mid-air.
I thought she would be like she was at the dance before, with passionate emotions, igniting the emotions of the people around her like a flame, driving everyone's passion, but retaining her own tenderness at the critical moment... just like a flame, the outer flame is hot, while the inner flame is gentle.
But I didn't expect that after becoming a Herrscher, she would become so quiet, so quiet that it was completely opposite to the nature of the power she displayed, so quiet that it was completely different from her past self... Maybe this is the collapse.
Xi Wang withdrew his gaze temporarily.
[Seventh Herrscher Himiko]... I never thought that we were partners fighting side by side some time ago, but in the blink of an eye we became enemies and one of the sources of disaster. It's really sad.
If possible, let her die a little more peacefully. At least she will feel less guilty for killing the people and her companions... if she can still feel this emotion.
But then again...
Xiwang raised his head slightly and looked at the huge ruins... This used to be a huge building, but now it has become ruins, and flames are still raging around it.
That seems to be the landmark building here, right? It's called the "Australian Dome". The famous star Eden seems to have held a concert here... but I don't know if she's still alive.
pat-
He gave himself another candy. The sticky feeling left on his hands was annoying, but there was nothing he could do. It was a good thing that the sugar didn't melt directly at this temperature. At this moment, Xi Wang was extremely glad that he accepted Alicia's suggestion and asked Wei Erwei to make a better candy box, otherwise he might not be able to eat it in this battle.
That somewhat neurotic magician is still useful sometimes... I'll prepare a return gift for her when I get back.
Of course, he knew why Alicia had made this suggestion at the time, but because of this, he did not ask Weiwei to modify the old candy box, but directly asked her to make a new one.
As for the old candy box, it was returned to Du Pupa for them to recycle. After all, there were traces of "sugar" left in it, and Du Pupa didn't want others to know about this kind of thing... This would also prevent it from being obtained by Alicia.
This is the only thing Xiwang will not let Alicia get...absolutely not.
Not even Sakura.
After replenishing himself with a wave of "sugar", Xi Wang temporarily interrupted his ever-diverging thoughts and began to search around the ruins, looking for shelters that might hide people. He was quite good at this.
Soon, he faintly heard a long sigh.
Chapter 23 Eden: You are unexpectedly a gentle person
"I'm sorry for bringing back bad memories for you... I understand, just like what I just went through."
It was a highly recognizable, angelic voice, but her words were tinged with deep fatigue.
"I watched helplessly as everything I was familiar with, everything I cherished... vanished in the blink of an eye. Sadness, despair, helplessness... these heavy emotions oppressed me, making it particularly difficult to breathe. Until just now, I was still thinking over and over again, whether this was reality, or an overly cruel nightmare..."
Xi Wang listened to the other party's words silently and gradually approached the place where the sound came from... He could hear that the other party was using these words to ease her mood and to comfort her companions. Therefore, Xi Wang did not deliberately make the sound of approaching footsteps, but just maintained silent steps according to his habit.
"...I can't bring back the past that's gone, but I can remember the present. This is what I can still do now."
"........."
She finished speaking.
pat-
Xiwang understood and deliberately made some footsteps approaching. Then he took out the candy box and added a candy to himself. Although the sound of closing the candy box was not loud, it sounded crisp at this moment.
"It looks like you're done talking... Miss Eden."
Xiwang looked at the gorgeous figure hiding in a corner of the ruins. Her beautiful performance clothes were covered with scratches and burn marks, and her long burgundy hair was now covered with dust. She was praised as the "brightest star" of this generation, but now she was buried under the ruins, covered with dust.
"you are……"
"...Captain Wang."
When Eden saw him coming, she asked with some confusion, and the shout of the girl sitting on the other side of the broken wall gave her the answer.
"You are here, Hua. It seems that the inference of the people at the headquarters was correct."
Xi Wang nodded to Hua who quickly stood up and approached, and said, then glanced at the equipment on Hua and reminded him casually.
"…Also, your team's communications are down."
"Feel sorry."
Hua seemed to have just noticed this and quickly checked, only to find that his team's communication had been cut off at some point, so he had to apologize.
"Be careful next time... Have you found any other survivors?"
"…Sorry, no more. Miss Eden was just someone I happened to save."
"Really? That's pretty good."
Xi understood what was happening, and then extended his hand to Eden who had already stood up.
"Captain of the Fire Moth Special Response Team - Wang, greetings to you, Miss Eden."
"Hello, Mr. Captain."
After the two of them exchanged a brief greeting, Xi Wang turned and spoke.
"Although finding you, Hua, and finding survivors are two good things, I still have some very unfortunate news to tell you - we currently don't have any external support teams, so we can only wait for the follow-up support team to pick you up. Judging from the time, the team should arrive within 20 minutes."
"We can continue to rest here until the team arrives."
"……us?"
"...Yes, my combat mission failed. My weapon melted as I approached, so my mission became a search for survivors."
Xi Wang first reported the situation through communication. After getting permission to rest and wait on the spot, he sat in the gap facing outwards of the ruins, paying attention to the surroundings while responding to Hua's questions.
"That……"
"Unfortunately, we have only found one now."
Without giving Eden and Hua time to ask, Xiwang spoke immediately and turned to look at Eden. It was self-evident who the survivor who was found was.
"........."
This caused the two of them to fall silent for a while, and their moods became even lower.
"Then...Captain Wang, may I ask your teammates..."
"They all fled."
"……what?"
"Nothing to be surprised about. Everyone is afraid of death, and soldiers are no exception... Moreover, with this level of collapse, there will be basically no one left alive, and rescue is not that necessary, so it is reasonable for them to escape."
Seeing Eden's slightly shocked expression, Xiwang responded calmly.
"Besides... there's nowhere to escape to now. The best we can do is find a place to hide and wait for this disaster to subside and for the flames to die down."
"……What's the meaning?"
"This fire has spread across the entire Australia and is rapidly spreading. Several small islands near Australia have also experienced abnormally high temperatures. We must first eliminate the Herrscher to stop this disaster and prevent the flames from spreading further... However, Australia is unlikely to be saved. A fire of this magnitude cannot be put out. We can only wait for the fire to die out naturally... We must first eliminate the Herrscher."
"how come……"
