"So, your Fire Moth organization is the one fighting against that Honkai?" Darwin asked, looking resignedly at Shu blocking the entrance.
He had to admit, the young man before him was truly a qualified warrior. Despite being less than 20 years old physically, his mindset remained constantly vigilant, as seasoned as a battle-hardened veteran.
Darwin realized he probably wouldn't be able to lower the other's guard anytime soon, even though he had clearly stated the fact that he had saved him.
Respect was respect, vigilance was vigilance. The ability to rationally separate the two was quite impressive.
Knowing the matter wouldn't be resolved quickly, Darwin simply took two steps back and sat down on the stone slab bed Shu had previously occupied.
Shu nodded in response to Darwin's question.
Darwin lifted his wrist, glancing at the expensive watch there, then turned his gaze back to Shu. "We still have plenty of time now. You might as well explain the situation outside in detail, along with all the specifics related to this [Honkai]."
Shu nodded again. But just as he was about to speak, he suddenly felt an indescribable sense of threat coming from behind him.
This feeling... it was like encountering a natural predator, a destined rival, instantly breaking Shu out in a cold sweat.
Did Sirin follow me? Or has another entity of her level appeared...?
Mind reeling, Shu didn't hold back this time. He materialized a long beam of light in his hand and slashed horizontally behind him.
At the height of Shu's shoulder, everywhere within sight, the hard stone wall was easily carved with a deep gash, like fragile tofu. The entire cave began to tremble, feeling on the verge of collapse.
Darwin leaped up from the stone bed, staring in shock at Shu's reflexive action.
Wait, what about your warrior's discipline?! Don't you even consider the surroundings before attacking?!
In that moment, Darwin wanted to retract the praise he had just given. What high-quality tactical sense? This person was just a battle maniac obsessed with the thrill of fighting!
Ultimately, the cave didn't collapse. Shu now received feedback from his strike.
Missed!
Even such a wide sweeping slash had missed!
Why?!
Before Shu could even analyze why the blow landed empty, a yellow figure darted right in front of him.
He reflexively took half a step back. That half-step bought him just enough time to see the "attacker's" face.
It was a very familiar large, round face—that cheeky grin, those short rabbit ears, the sack-like body, the stubby limbs...
"Homu?!" Shu finally lost his composure. In such a short time, he had taken too many blows from the outside world.
The sudden appearance of Herrscher Sirin, his own inexplicable transformation into the Demon Lord, Bella kidnapping Kiana, and he himself being smashed from heaven (sky) to hell (underground).
And now, a Homu! A single Homu managed to bypass his heightened senses, dodge his wide-range attack made under duress, and get right in his face?!
In that instant, Shu somewhat understood how Vakh must have felt when Shu defied him.
How could it?!
Though his mind reeled with questions, at this close distance, even seeing the attacker clearly meant it was too late to defend.
That seemingly ordinary punch landed squarely on Shu's face, predictably breaking through the layer of defense he hadn't had time to reinforce. Shu was sent flying backward, slamming against the stone wall.
Paji! The unremarkable Homu landed smoothly on the ground after punching Shu, making a comical sound effect.
Placing its cloth-stitched hand on its hip, the Homu pointed imperiously at Shu, who was slowly sliding down the wall.
"Homu! (Don't you know you can't use wide-area attacks here? What would you do if the cave collapsed?!)"
Shu, having slid smoothly to the floor, stared blankly at the cave ceiling, speechless, questioning his existence.
"Homu homu! (Hmph! Not to mention you even threatened Mr. Darwin!)" The Homu put its other hand on its hip, puffing out its... little belly.
"Homu, actually, Mr. Shu was quite respectful towards me," Darwin, who had somehow appeared behind the Homu, raised his hand, offering a defense for the dream-shattered Shu.
Shu still didn't speak, though his mind had roughly pieced things together.
His sword strike hadn't hit the Homu, likely because it was simply too short. Even against Sirin, that slash was aimed at face level and might have at least clipped her ahoge. But for a creature whose total height didn't even reach his waist, such a high slash, even if it jumped...
Ah no, if it jumped, it could at least hit his face...
Although the punch only seemed to send him flying, Shu still felt a stinging pain on his cheek.
He felt like something inside him had been shattered by the Homu...
"Mr. Shu?" Darwin called out to him. "You should be alright, shouldn't you?"
Alright, but maybe it'd be better if I wasn't.
"Even for a Fire Moth warrior, after sustaining such severe injuries, their combat strength is likely less than ten percent of its peak."
A new, unfamiliar voice came from the cave entrance. It was a somewhat cold female voice, yet it sounded strangely pleasant to Shu's ears.
A lifeline!
Shu, who had been lying flat in the corner for over a minute, finally lifted his head and looked silently towards the third figure appearing at the entrance.
The familiar cloak made Shu's eyelid twitch slightly.
She walked straight past Darwin and the Homu, stopping directly in front of Shu, looking down at him.
"Hello, friend from the outside. You seem to be in quite a bit of trouble?" the person under the cloak asked. "Do you require my assistance?"
Shu remained silent for one final second, then shook his head, pushing himself up.
"Thank you... but it's not necessary." He sighed, looking at the cloaked figure. "So... can you tell me who you are?"
The cloaked person nodded, reached out with slender, pale hands from within the cloak, and lowered the hood.
A cascade of long, deep blue hair spilled forth under the lamplight, and a pair of bright, light blue eyes shone in the darkness.
Shu fell silent, stunned, his mind, unknown to the others, reeling in chaos.
"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Joyce," the woman with the fine features stated, completely oblivious to the earthquake shaking Shu's pupils.
"?" However, she did notice the thick cloud of confusion emanating from Shu.
So she repeated her name.
"Welt Joyce."