"By this blaze—no blade shall go unbroken!!!"
Elias seized the moment when Elysia was distracted and shamelessly unleashed his ultimate move, stealing the kill. That single strike, imbued with 10,000HW of Honkai energy, instantly obliterated the Herrscher of Thunder.
The overwhelming flames surged into the distance, burning away the thick thunderclouds overhead, dyeing half the sky in fiery crimson.
And just a second later—dawn arrived.
The first light of morning spilled across the horizon, heralding the end of the long night. The golden rays fell upon Elias and Elysia, making the scene feel sacred and beautiful.
"Hooray~ Herrscher kill +1!"
"Uuuu, Elias, you cheater! Weren't you going to let me have this one?!"
"When did I ever say that? Besides, kills are meant to be stolen. You were the one who let your guard down, Ely~"
"Hmph! I, Miss Pink Elf, am officially angry now!"
Elysia puffed her cheeks and lightly pummeled Elias's chest with her tiny fists. Shesha had been taken down by Elias, and now the Herrscher of Thunder too.
She, the great Miss Pink Elf, had been working all night—and not a single kill to show for it. Was that fair?!
"Next time, for sure, Ely. I swear I won't steal the next one. Sound good?"
Elias immediately raised both hands in surrender. The boy who hadn't flinched before Herrscher lightning or the gaping maws of Honkai Beasts... instantly gave in to the girl's tiny fists.
"Nope! Just the next one isn't enough. I'm reserving the one after that too!" Elysia declared, holding up two fingers and snipping them together like scissors.
"Ely, you're so greedy~"
"Nope, you're the greedy one, Elias."
"Ugh, alright, alright. Since you're cute, I'll give you the next two."
Elias thought about the two Herrschers scheduled to appear next and couldn't help but smirk mischievously. Sure, he'd give her the kills... but if she couldn't finish the job, he wouldn't hesitate to jump in again. Hehehe~
But that was for later. For now, with the 'grueling battle' finally over, Elias couldn't contain the joy of victory and acted on impulse.
"Ely."
"Hm? Mmph—"
Before Elysia could react, Elias suddenly captured her lips. Her eyes widened, but a second later they softened, and she responded with gentle sweetness.
OOOOOHHHH!!! xN
Unbeknownst to the two, they were being watched by countless people.
Inside the Fire Moth's central command room, everyone cheered and embraced, eyes fixed on the massive screen. They shouted with uncontainable excitement.
The despair brought by the Herrscher had been shattered. In this moment, the world felt beautiful again.
And on the screen, the boy and girl locked in that kiss were the most beautiful sight of all. Everyone gave their most heartfelt thanks to Elias and Elysia.
A few minutes later, the white-haired boy and the pink-haired girl reluctantly parted lips. Elysia looked up, a bit concerned.
"Hey, Elias... are you really okay going all out like that?"
As the one closest to him, Elysia knew Elias had always been hiding his full strength.
Usually, during missions, he relied purely on his physical abilities—never once using his Herrscher authority.
But this time, he had gone all out, exposing his flames for the whole world to see. It made Elysia worry whether something had forced his hand.
"Don't worry, Ely. Before, the time just wasn't right and I didn't have a good excuse prepared. But now… things are different. The timing's perfect. Though... I might cause Mobius a teeny bit of trouble afterward."
Elias made a cosmic gesture with his fingers as he spoke.
"Oh, I see. In that case—no problem~!"
Elysia instantly relaxed.
Afterward, when the two returned to the Fire Moth base, crowds of soldiers rushed over, surrounding Elias and Elysia—and then lifted them into the air!
"We won! We really won!!"
"Great job! You two are heroes!!"
"Haha, welcome back, heroes!!"
"Captain Elias! Miss Elysia! Thank you for saving all of us!!"
Thunderous cheers erupted like a storm.
Everyone looked at Elias and Elysia with eyes full of passion and admiration, reverence and gratitude. Their blazing gazes regarded the two as nothing short of saviors.
And that wouldn't be wrong.
The sheer scale of this Third Honkai Eruption was so immense that not even Fire Moth and the United Nations could cover it up anymore. Soon, the general public would become aware of the Honkai's existence.
And the people who witnessed this disaster firsthand would surely spread word of the boy and girl who ended the crisis: Elias and Elysia.
"As much as I'd love to stay up here a little longer, don't forget—there's still work to do. Just because the Herrscher is defeated doesn't mean the crisis is over. Go clean up the remaining Honkai Beasts and search for survivors."
"Yes, Captain Elias!!" xN
The Fire Moth soldiers responded with a crisp salute, morale high from the victory.
As Elias and Elysia were about to grab something to eat before heading out again to help sweep the battlefield and assist in rescue operations—
A familiar face appeared, someone they hadn't seen in years.
"Long time no see, Elias, Elysia."
"Hm? That voice... Mei?!"
They turned and saw a girl in a school uniform with a deep blue side ponytail standing before them.
"Oh right—Nagazora is your hometown. It's been a while, Mei. I'm so glad you're safe."
After years apart, Mei had grown from a little girl into a stunning beauty.
Elias couldn't help but glance a few extra times. Honestly, he could barely tell the difference between Mei and Raiden Mei. They didn't just look alike—they were practically identical!
"It's thanks to you and Ely that we made it out safely... I really didn't expect that after a few years, you'd both be part of Fire Moth—and heroes, no less."
Mei spoke with emotion. She had always been a calm and rational person.
But when she saw Elias and Elysia fighting side by side against Herrschers and Honkai Beasts, even she couldn't help but feel stirred and overwhelmed with emotion.
"I hope I can rely on you both moving forward."
"Huh? Mei, you mean—"
"Yes, just like Ely's thinking—Fire Moth sent me an invitation. I hesitated at first, but after seeing the two of you... I've made my decision to join."
Mei adjusted her glasses and smiled.
After years of accumulating knowledge, she was finally ready to step into the spotlight.
Not long ago, Mei had published a paper on quantum mechanics that caught Fire Moth's attention. They immediately identified her as a once-in-a-century genius and extended an invitation.
Elias scoffed internally.
Once-in-a-century? Ridiculous. She was once in fifty millennia! The pinnacle of human intellect wasn't something to joke about!
Mobius and Vill-V were geniuses, yes—but each had their specialties: biology and mechanical engineering, respectively.
But Mei? Mei was a true, all-around prodigy!!
"Heh~ Welcome aboard, Mei."
"Thanks. And by the way, I've missed you a lot these past years, Elias. Let's find some time to talk privately, just the two of us."
"Ahem! Ahem ahem! Mei-chan, I'm Elias's girlfriend now, okay? No sneaky moves allowed~"
Elysia immediately stepped forward and stood in front of Elias, her gaze wary as she glared at Mei. Good grief—reuniting with your "bestie" after so long, and the first thing you do is eye my boyfriend?
Can we even be friends after this?!
"Mei-chan, maybe you shouldn't join Fire Moth after all. I'm telling you, it's not the kind of place you think it is."
"The higher-ups are always scheming and fighting for power, and there are crazy scientists like Aunt Mobius lurking around."
"You don't have anyone to protect you yet. It's easy to get caught up in political struggles. Offend the wrong person, and poof—you're gone. It's way too dangerous. Just don't join. Seriously."
Elysia put on a wise, big-sisterly face, pretending to be sincerely looking out for Mei. The surrounding Fire Moth soldiers twitched at the corners of their eyes, unsure whether to laugh or cry.
"Is that so? Sounds pretty dangerous indeed... In that case—Ely, why don't you just lend Elias to me instead?"
"???"
"I mean, you're super strong and all—you'll be fine on your own. But I'm just a weak little girl with no strength to protect myself. I could really use a knight in shining armor."
"Don't even think about it! Elias is mine!"
Seeing Mei latch onto one of Elias's arms, Elysia instantly flared up and clung tightly to the other. And just like that, the two began an impromptu game of tug-of-war.
Elias was caught in the middle, helpless and exasperated. Honestly, watching Mei—who had Raiden Mei's exact face—arguing with Elysia... gave him a very strange feeling.
"Ahem, let's all take a breather. One of you just finished fighting a Herrscher, and the other just barely escaped death—where's all this energy coming from? Anyway, what happened to Kevin and Su? Weren't they both living in Nagazora too?"
Elias tried to calm the situation and redirect the conversation.
Mei simply shrugged.
"No idea. After you left, I couldn't really get along with those two idiots. They're probably dead by now."
"Whoa, Mei-chan, that's ice cold... Can you please be that heartless toward my Elias too~?"
"No can do. Elias is my confidant and teacher. He's helped guide me a lot over the years."
"Hm? What kind of guidance? I didn't know about this."
Elysia's eyes widened in surprise. She thought the two had lost contact completely after parting ways years ago.
Mei smiled and patted her shoulder.
"You've never really been interested in research, Ely, so it makes sense you wouldn't know. Elias and I have been in touch through email. The quantum mechanics paper I published recently? I referenced some of his insights."
"???!!"
Elysia was dumbfounded. She had no idea Elias and Mei were still in contact! Right now, she felt like a wife discovering her husband had been hiding a mistress right under her nose.
Elias shrugged innocently.
His correspondence with Mei had really been just academic discussions. Nothing more. Well... maybe the occasional chat about what they'd had for dinner or sharing interesting things from his travels. But that's it!
Sigh~ Honestly, when Mei was using that face—the one with a direct crit modifier against Elias—how was he supposed to refuse?
With that face, raising Mei's favorability score was child's play.
"Mei-chan, I'll remember this grudge!"
"Hehe~ Then I'll be looking forward to it."
"...Ugh, I suddenly feel exhausted."
Elias looked toward the distance. At this moment, he'd rather go ten more rounds against a Herrscher than be the focus of this double-girl battlefield. Someone, please come save him!
And as if heaven heard his prayer—
"Ahem! That was way too close—we nearly died!"
"Kevin, it's your fault for charging those monsters with nothing but a baseball bat! If you've got a death wish, don't drag me along with you!"
"That's what makes us brothers, Su! We don't need to be born on the same day, month, or year—as long as we die together, that's enough! Plus, if Elias can take down someone that strong, I can't fall behind either!"
A white-haired husky and his blind companion stumbled in, covered in dirt. Upon spotting Elias, the former immediately lit up and waved energetically.
"Hey! Long time no see, Elias!"
"Yeah. It's been a while, Elias, Elysia."
It was Kevin and Su. Seeing that they were safe—though not surprising—still gave Elias a small breath of relief.
"I knew you two wouldn't kick the bucket so easily."
"Of course! I even took down two or three of those white monsters myself! One day, we'll fight side by side. You two looked so badass during that battle—it fired me up!"
Kevin raised a fist, his eyes full of admiration.
"Haha, sounds good. I'll look forward to that day."
Elias bumped fists with him in return.
He genuinely did look forward to fighting alongside this future hero. Though, judging by the current situation, that title of "Savior" might just end up being transferred to someone else entirely.
Beep beep!
Just then, a message arrived. Elias glanced at it—it was from Vill-V.
[The Honkai Beasts in the area have been mostly cleared. I'll withdraw for now~ Though 7% of the mech legion was lost, we got tons of live combat data! Look forward to my next creation — Vill-V.
P.S.: As expected of my perfect partner/sugar daddy, you were so cool today!]
The mech legion had played a massive role this time—not only did it eliminate far more Honkai Beasts than Fire Moth's forces, but it also rescued quite a number of survivors.
Elias nodded in satisfaction. Even if it meant saving just one more life, building those thousand-plus mechs had been worth it.
Vill-V's performance had definitely left an impression. No doubt Fire Moth was in shock.
After all, who would've thought there was another anti-Honkai force out there with a development path completely different from Fire Moth?
But that's exactly the scenario Elias had engineered.
Now, Fire Moth and Helixcraft mirrored the dynamic between Schicksal and Anti-Entropy from the Current Era—two powers competing and growing side by side. Far better than a single unchecked authority.
Of course, conflict was inevitable in the future.
But their overall goal remained the same: resist the Honkai.
"Alright~ With the Herrscher defeated and the beasts cleaned up, the protocol for survivors is the usual—recruit those we can, relocate the rest somewhere safe. That means it's time for..."
Elias propped up his chin and tapped his fingers on the table.
As he predicted, a group of Fire Moth higher-ups soon approached.
"Captain Elias, Miss Elysia—thank you both once again for saving the world. The leadership asked us to pass on a message: whatever may have happened in the past, let's put it behind us. Please accept this as a token of gratitude for your heroic contributions."
They opened a small box, revealing two gleaming medals.
"Hmm, not bad. We'll take them. Honestly, I thought you guys were going to offer us money or promotions."
"Ahaha…"
The officials laughed awkwardly.
They knew full well these two had no interest in material rewards—but they'd prepared for it anyway. Still, it wasn't exactly tasteful to just slap cash and rank increases in their faces.
Elias toyed with the newly awarded medal as he tilted his head and continued.
"Alright, what's the real reason you're here? You came too urgently for this to be just about medals. What do the higher-ups want to ask?"
Surprised by his bluntness, the group exchanged glances—then dropped the formalities.
"Captain Elias, you're sharp as ever. Let's be frank—this isn't meant as a challenge, but we do need an answer... about your powers. What exactly are they?"
"Heh~ I figured it was about that."
Elias smirked, cleared his throat, and prepared to begin his grand performance.
"To be honest, my powers originate from Dr. Mobius. I'm the result of a special experiment under her MANTIS Project."