A golden light flashed from the Gate of Vows. It passed through the roof of the abandoned house as if it were nothing, without causing the slightest bit of damage, and shot up into the sky, piercing the clouds and disappearing into the unknown.
The clouds in the blue sky were pierced and scattered by the golden light. An unknown power surged from the heavens, a breathtaking force that seemed to change the very world. The azure sky turned pitch black, like a night of torrential rain. Suddenly, a single point of white light appeared in the dark sky, and then it was unstoppable. Countless white lights appeared one after another over the city, twinkling and forming a magnificent starry sky, scattering starlight… just like the night sky back home.
"Uh (⊙o⊙)…" Kiana stared out the window, dazed. But she quickly came back to her senses and tugged on Raiden Mei's clothes. "Mei-senpai, that, that…" Kiana's voice was a bit loud from the excitement.
"Kiana, keep it down. Bronya is sleeping…" Mei frowned, looking gently at Bronya, whose head was resting on her lap.
Normally, Kiana would have been jealous and thrown a fit by now, clinging to Mei and crying, "Mei-senpai doesn't love me anymore… I'm going to die…" or something of the sort. Today, she was acting so unusually that Mei actually felt a bit strange.
"Kiana, what's with you today…?" Mei turned her head, curious. But she stopped mid-sentence, her eyes fixed on the direction Kiana was looking. Outside the window was the golden pillar of light and the star-filled sky, just like she had seen before…
"Mei, Mei-senpai, let's go down and see what's going on!" Kiana suggested, her eyes darting around. A girl's curiosity is no less than a boy's, and might even be greater. How could she not want to go and see?
"Ah? Oh, okay…" Mei, her mind still reeling, was half-pushed, half-dragged out by Kiana. She was in such a daze that she didn't even notice Bronya, who had been sleeping comfortably on her lap, being pulled along as they ran downstairs.
"Bonk!~" Bronya's head hit the floor, dealing one thousand points of damage to herself. Then… she rolled over, rubbed her head… and went back to sleep. She had no intention of waking up until her system alarm went off.
…
At this moment, Li Xuan was crying, his eyes barely able to open. He felt both helpless and happy. He hadn't expected to get a golden light on his first try, so naturally, his "titanium alloy dog eyes" were blinded. The feeling was somewhat complex.
Of course, Li Xuan was very eager to see the unknown item he had summoned, but… he couldn't open his eyes. Tears were streaming down his face like he'd been chewing on Xtra gum; he just couldn't stop.
The golden light finally faded, and the twinkling stars in the night sky vanished without a trace, as if the scene just now had been a fleeting dream. Li Xuan had also recovered. With tears streaming down his face, he opened his eyes and saw the item on the Gate of Vows—a colorful… stone!
Li Xuan reached out and picked up the strange stone, which was covered in patterns of moons, water droplets, flames, leaves, and five-pointed stars. The moment his hand touched the stone, a piece of information popped into his mind…
"The Stone of Stellar Resonance, possessing the power of Divine Core Awakening…"
Divine Core? What the hell is that? Li Xuan stared at the stone, completely bewildered.
…
Meanwhile, thousands of meters in the sky, a battleship hovered above the clouds. This was the 'Hyperion,' the battleship of the Schicksal organization, which was dedicated to the deep study of the Honkai, and the location of St. Freya Academy, which trained individuals to fight against it.
"Phew~" A petite, silver-haired girl in a nun's habit sat in a leather chair, sipping a freshly brewed West Lake Dragon Well tea with her eyes narrowed. Everything seemed so leisurely and peaceful. However… just as the silver-haired nun took her first sip, an alarm suddenly blared from the computer in front of her.
"Pfft!~~~~" The silver-haired nun spat out a mouthful of tea. At the same time, the door to her room was violently thrown open.
"Principal! The Honkai energy detector just picked up a strange energy surge in Nagazora City…!" said a cute, chubby-cheeked girl in a crisp green military uniform.
"No kidding, I saw it already… Uh… clean up my desk," the silver-haired nun said irritably, pointing at the tea-soaked table.
"Yes, yes! Mission accepted!" the chubby-cheeked girl replied with a comically serious expression, giving a military salute.
"Sigh~" The nun sighed and turned to look at the scenery outside the floor-to-ceiling window. "What a pain…" she grumbled, puffing out her cheeks in annoyance.
…
"It appeared again…" Somewhere in Nagazora City, a girl with long, sakura-pink hair and wearing an old-fashioned outfit watched the slowly fading golden light and muttered to herself.
She lowered her head and murmured, "Li Xuan, how are you doing?"
I really want to eat Li Xuan's 'noodles with the taste of home'… Yae Sakura thought.