Dragons.
"I hate seeing people deceive women and treat them roughly the most… and such a cute girl at that. Sigh, Aventurine really doesn't know how to cherish beauty."
In the VIP box at Takamagahara, the crystal chandelier's glow dyed the champagne in Caesar's hand red. He let out a long sigh.
"Aventurine?" Chu Zihang looked at him expressionlessly. "What does this have to do with Aventurine?"
"Isn't it obvious enough?" Caesar placed the champagne glass on the crystal coffee table. The crushed ice inside trembled slightly. "Firefly cooperated with Aventurine to investigate the Primitive Dream, but midway they were chased by both the Meme and SAM. Aventurine betrayed Firefly and left her alone in the room… That makes sense, right?"
"No, I think that's wrong." Chu Zihang countered. "Why would Aventurine cooperate with Firefly? Does Firefly have any value worth cooperating with?"
"Everyone has secrets. Maybe Firefly has something Aventurine is interested in."
Caesar narrowed his blue eyes slightly. "Only this can explain why a seriously ill girl like Firefly knew the contents of the invitation. Either she herself was an invited guest of Penacony, or someone told her the contents of the invitation."
"But she didn't know that when she came to this dream with Aventurine, only two outcomes awaited her—either dying at the hands of the Meme, or dying at SAM's hands. And with Aventurine's personality, even if they investigated some clues about the legacy together, Aventurine wouldn't spare her."
"Abandoned pawn."
Caesar suddenly said in a deep voice: "…That is this girl's final fate."
Chu Zihang's brows furrowed imperceptibly.
"Of course, I don't intend to convince you. You can have your own thoughts. If that girl can ultimately be safe and sound, I'd be happy too."
Caesar leaned deeply into the sofa, crossing his legs. The tip of his Italian handmade leather shoe tapped lightly to the music playing in Takamagahara.
"That girl is as pure as a gardenia flower—you like gardenias? Pure white, flawless… She and Nono are two completely different types of girls. From the beginning, she shouldn't have fallen into this vortex of fighting and killing. The best ending for her is to have a happy romance with Stelle. When I see her, I think of the love letters girls wrote to me when I first enrolled… beautiful like a white flower bud wrapped in morning dew."
——
["Perhaps to seize the legacy, perhaps to reduce the number of people who know, perhaps… because there is a deeper 'secret' hidden in this Memoscape, and to lure a big fish… a floating bait is needed." Black Swan said.]
["You mean… Firefly?"]
["This is just the worst-case assumption. But think about it. If the mastermind behind all this is nearby, why would he allow us to search everywhere? Unless… unless he has something he cares about more and needs—or rather, is confirming."]
[Black Swan pointed to the side corridor beside them: "She had no other path and could only leave through the side corridor."]
[Pushing open the side corridor's large door, Firefly was madly running downward: "There's actually a path here…"]
[Black Swan's tone carried some regret: "Ever-changing passages leading to wandering Memoscape Memes… She is completely lost in the Memoscape."]
[Pushing open the large door, it connected to the path to the lobby. Firefly was still secretly delighted: "Finally back at the lobby. This way…"]
[Watching the girl step by step head toward death, Stelle's mood fell to rock bottom for a moment. But suddenly Acheron's vigilant voice came from beside her ear: "Everyone, over there—"]
["Looks like someone has been waiting for a long time. Finally stepping onto the stage…" Black Swan said with interest. "…Stellaron Hunter [SAM]."]
[The three stepped into the lobby. The air was filled with a faint smell of burning metal.]
[SAM had his back to them. The silver-white mecha outline under the dim lights was like an unsheathed blade. He held the remains of a Dreamjolt Troupe member in his hand. A faint hydraulic hum came from his joints.]
["Careful." Acheron reminded in a low voice. She gripped her sword sheath tightly and unobtrusively stood in front of Stelle.]
[SAM slowly turned around. His gaze had already locked onto them like a beast: "A Galaxy Ranger, a… Memokeeper…" His voice carried the cold, mechanical quality: "Leave now, and no one will get hurt."]
[Before his words even finished, scorching fire waves suddenly erupted. The heat swept through the entire lobby, distorting the air. His figure appeared even sharper in the flames, as if the next second he would turn into a silver arc of light.]
["—Otherwise, you will all die."]
——
Honkai Impact 3rd.
In the laboratory, Tesla's fingertips flew rapidly across the floating holographic projection. Countless data streams flashed at her fingertips. her super-automatic mecha—that unfinished steel giant—was quietly standing in the experimental cabin. Some mechanical joints were being adjusted.
"Tesla!"
Suddenly the laboratory door was pushed open. Einstein stormed in: "Stop staring at your mecha and look at the sky!"
Tesla looked up. In the next second, her pupils suddenly contracted.
"This… this is…"
"The Cinder Knight—SAM. A mechanical creation very similar to what you're researching." Einstein raised an eyebrow with interest. "What do you think?"
In the sky screen, the silver-white mecha slowly stood up. Its lines were sharp as blades. The thrusters on its back spewed blazing flames. Every movement was precise to the point of elegance, yet carried devastating destructive power.
"So… beautiful…" Tesla's eyes flashed with near-obsessive light.
"What, you're enchanted by this mecha?"
"Not just the mecha…" Tesla murmured. "Its energy core, movement logic, armor structure… all different from my current technology! If it could be used to fight against the Honkai gods—"
"Would there be a chance of winning?" Einstein asked.
Tesla was silent for a moment, then shook her head: "I don't know. I still need more combat data from it… Who is its pilot? Where is the mecha's limit? Is it related to the pilot?" SHe stared tightly at the sky screen, wishing she could see through all the secrets beneath this mecha.
"I really want… to sit inside and try it."
——
["The detective game is over. You shouldn't be here."]
[SAM's mechanical palm suddenly opened. Blazing orange-red cracks burst between his knuckles, as if lava was flowing beneath the armor.]
[The next second, scorching fire waves exploded with a roar!]
[The scorching airflow swept through the entire lobby like a raging tide. Acheron and Black Swan protected everyone, so fortunately no one was seriously hurt.]
["Leave this stage to them, darling." Black Swan stopped Stelle's steps. She flipped out a card with her fingertips and gently brushed it. Stelle only felt the scene in front of her rapidly change. The flames and roaring sounds suddenly disappeared.]
[She blinked and found herself in a quiet room.]
["This is…" She was about to look around when a familiar laugh came from behind her.]
["Hahaha…" Aventurine sat on a collapsed pillar and slowly stood up. "…It was really a good show."]
["Thank you for your hard work, Memokeeper—Very brilliant 'drive the tiger to swallow the wolf.' When I first saw the Galaxy Ranger and the Stellaron Hunter gathered together, my heart really tightened… I didn't expect you to successfully provoke conflict between them."]
[Black Swan said unhurriedly: "As agreed, I have brought this child to you. The deal is complete."]
[Stelle turned back to look at Black Swan: "You two are in this together…"]
——
New Eridu.
"Bang!"
Nicole slammed her fist on the table, causing a stack of Cunning Hares' deficit reports to jump.
"As expected! Women like her are all bad people!" She gritted her teeth while staring at Black Swan's smile after completing the deal on the sky screen. "You can't trust women like her. You all need to be extra careful with this type in the future! Got it?!"
Anby raised her head half a beat late, with half a piece of lettuce from her burger still at the corner of her mouth: "Nicole, what kind of 'women like her'?"
"The kind like Black Swan and Kafka!" Nicole grabbed her own hair somewhat irritably. "They speak in a roundabout way, sometimes like riddlers, take the sexy mature route, have big breasts, and look very scheming!"
Nicole emphasized word by word: "Never chat with this kind of woman in the future! Otherwise you'll definitely be led into a ditch by them."
"Then… Boss Nicole, what if this type of woman is our employer in the future? Like an order that can throw five million Dennies at us in one go?" Billy asked curiously.
"Nonsense! Of course that's a different story! When you encounter this kind of sexy big sister, notify me immediately!"
"But, Boss Nicole, this kind of big sister who obviously looks very scheming… are we really okay?"
"No problem, I have my ways." Nicole sat down on the sofa. "I recently discovered that the Proxy has been going to the movies with many sexy big sisters, changing partners several times a day… He must be very good at handling this type of sister. We can ask him for help then."
Nekomiya Mana was startled and quickly lowered her voice: "The Proxy goes to the movies with several different women a day? Isn't… isn't that too much of a player?"
Nicole smiled lightly: "Heh, otherwise why would he be called the legendary Proxy?"
——
["Hahaha, looks like our Nameless friend still hasn't figured out the situation. No problem, I'll explain it to you." Aventurine slowly walked toward Stelle. "In short, my friend, you should thank this lady. Not only did she not scheme against you—on the contrary, she saved you…"]
[Stelle frowned.]
[Aventurine smiled even deeper: "…from that Galaxy Ranger's hands."]
["Ah?" Stelle didn't react for a moment.]
[Aventurine nodded in satisfaction: "That's right. I love this kind of shocked expression."]
["Friend, now let's be frank. This woman named 'Acheron' is far from as simple as you imagine. What Galaxy Ranger…"]
["—She is an Emanator. She brings death and finality."]
["Emanator? Emanator of who?" Stelle was even more confused.]
[Aventurine shook his head and said indifferently: "Maybe [Hunt]… [Destruction]… or even possibly [Finality]. It doesn't matter. One side of these Paths—all point to the same result."]
["Let me give you some Company intel, my friend. Do you know 'Duke Inferno'—Ifrit of the Fetora?"]
["The detective game is over. You shouldn't be here."]
[SAM's mechanical palm suddenly opened. Blazing orange-red cracks burst between his knuckles, as if lava was flowing beneath the armor.]
[The next second, scorching fire waves exploded with a roar!]
[The scorching airflow swept through the entire lobby like a raging tide. Acheron and Black Swan protected everyone, so fortunately no one was seriously hurt.]
["Leave this stage to them, darling." Black Swan stopped Stelle's steps. She flipped out a card with her fingertips and gently brushed it. Stelle only felt the scene in front of her rapidly change. The flames and roaring sounds suddenly disappeared.]
[She blinked and found herself in a quiet room.]
["This is…" She was about to look around when a familiar laugh came from behind her.]
["Hahaha…" Aventurine sat on a collapsed pillar and slowly stood up. "…It was really a good show."]
["Thank you for your hard work, Memokeeper—Very brilliant 'drive the tiger to swallow the wolf.' When I first saw the Galaxy Ranger and the Stellaron Hunter gathered together, my heart really tightened… I didn't expect you to successfully provoke conflict between them."]
[Black Swan said unhurriedly: "As agreed, I have brought this child to you. The deal is complete."]
[Stelle turned back to look at Black Swan: "You two are in this together…"]
——
New Eridu.
"Bang!"
Nicole slammed her fist on the table, causing a stack of Cunning Hares' deficit reports to jump.
"As expected! Women like her are all bad people!" She gritted her teeth while staring at Black Swan's smile after completing the deal on the sky screen. "You can't trust women like her. You all need to be extra careful with this type in the future! Got it?!"
Anby raised her head half a beat late, with half a piece of lettuce from her burger still at the corner of her mouth: "Nicole, what kind of 'women like her'?"
"The kind like Black Swan and Kafka!" Nicole grabbed her own hair somewhat irritably. "They speak in a roundabout way, sometimes like riddlers, take the sexy mature route, have big breasts, and look very scheming!"
Nicole emphasized word by word: "Never chat with this kind of woman in the future! Otherwise you'll definitely be led into a ditch by them."
"Then… Boss Nicole, what if this type of woman is our employer in the future? Like an order that can throw five million Dennies at us in one go?" Billy asked curiously.
"Nonsense! Of course that's a different story! When you encounter this kind of sexy big sister, notify me immediately!"
"But, Boss Nicole, this kind of big sister who obviously looks very scheming… are we really okay?"
"No problem, I have my ways." Nicole sat down on the sofa. "I recently discovered that the Proxy has been going to the movies with many sexy big sisters, changing partners several times a day… He must be very good at handling this type of sister. We can ask him for help then."
Nekomiya Mana was startled and quickly lowered her voice: "The Proxy goes to the movies with several different women a day? Isn't… isn't that too much of a player?"
Nicole smiled lightly: "Heh, otherwise why would he be called the legendary Proxy?"
——
["Hahaha, looks like our Nameless friend still hasn't figured out the situation. No problem, I'll explain it to you." Aventurine slowly walked toward Stelle. "In short, my friend, you should thank this lady. Not only did she not scheme against you—on the contrary, she saved you…"]
[Stelle frowned.]
[Aventurine smiled even deeper: "…from that Galaxy Ranger's hands."]
["Ah?" Stelle didn't react for a moment.]
[Aventurine nodded in satisfaction: "That's right. I love this kind of shocked expression."]
["Friend, now let's be frank. This woman named 'Acheron' is far from as simple as you imagine. What Galaxy Ranger…"]
["—She is an Emanator. She brings death and finality."]
["Emanator? Emanator of who?" Stelle was even more confused.]
[Aventurine shook his head and said indifferently: "Maybe [Hunt]… [Destruction]… or even possibly [Finality]. It doesn't matter. One side of these Paths—all point to the same result."]
["Let me give you some Company intel, my friend. Do you know 'Duke Inferno'—Ifrit of the Fetora?"]