"Can I take this as a date?"
Inside the spinning coffee cup ride, Elysia smiled as she asked Silas.
"Well… if that's how you want to think about it, then sure," Silas replied. "But actually, I've got a question I want to ask you too."
"Ask away~ As long as it's something I know, I'll tell you anything," Elysia said.
"I've always wondered—why did you fall for me?" Silas asked, looking genuinely puzzled. "I mean, you've said before that after the Sixth Herrscher incident you started paying attention to me, but… what exactly made you like me?"
That was the one thing he had never been able to figure out. Lilith he could understand—spending a lot of time together, feelings growing over time, that sort of thing. But Elysia?
Honestly speaking, his interactions with Elysia weren't that deep. Sure, he kept an eye on some of the things she did… but in his past life, after the Sixth Herrscher incident when he confessed to her, he didn't see her at all until the Seventh Herrscher incident, when he decided to join the MANTIS project. After becoming a MANTIS, when Kevin began suffering from severe psychological problems, Silas had gone to comfort him—he figured since they were both MANTISes, maybe his words could help a bit. That was when he and Elysia had their first real conversation again.
Later, during the Eighth Herrscher incident, he and Elysia briefly worked together. Before the Ninth Herrscher incident, the Fallen Angel Squad was officially formed, and from then on…
All in all, his exchanges with Elysia weren't much different from those with anyone else. They were somewhere between acquaintances and friends. So how had Elysia come to like him?
Elysia was silent for a moment before showing a slightly bittersweet smile.
"That's the question, huh… Silas, I… don't really want to answer that…"
Because every time she thought about it, she'd inevitably recall the moment Lilith confessed to Silas, and then… the events of the Twelfth Herrscher incident.
"Well, I won't—" force you, he was about to say.
He was just curious. If she didn't want to talk about it, that was fine.
But before he could finish saying "I won't force you," Elysia continued, "It's fine, Silas. Since you want to know, I'll definitely tell you… That time we met while you were on your way to comfort Kevin, I secretly used a device to measure your body temperature."
Silas: "?"
Why would she measure his temperature?
Elysia went on.
"After all, the MANTIS procedure wasn't perfect at the time… Kevin suffered such severe side effects—his Parvati fusion gave him ice powers. You, on the other hand, fused with Agni, which controls fire. So I suspected your side effect might be an elevated body temperature. But no… it was an even more severe side effect than Kevin's."
Yet even in that condition, he'd gone to comfort Kevin, while she had known nothing about it.
Silas thought for a moment. It was true—back then, his mental state hadn't been great. The constant, unrelenting pain was agonizing. More than once he had broken down, even considered ending his own life to be done with it.
But he endured, because he wanted to try—try to change the fate that seemed set in stone.
Later, he'd gotten used to it, even numb to the pain.
Elysia looked up at the multicolored dome above them and spoke softly.
"During the Eighth Herrscher incident, when we acted together… The way you calmly organized the cleanup of the Honkai beasts, and the way you visited Lilith's hospital room every single day to check on her… you looked really cool then."
"I don't even know exactly when I started liking you. I just know that before Lilith confessed to you, I already had faint feelings like that. I didn't want to see the outcome, because I was afraid it would be one I didn't want to see. You see, I'm actually a cowardly girl too."
Silas stayed silent.
Elysia closed her eyes. After a while, she opened them again and whispered,
"And later… I guess it was the last time we officially met. I wanted to comfort you, but you told me to leave… I always felt like you hated me, that you despised me. Silas, you say you never hated me, but back then… did you really not hate me, even a little? Hate that I pushed the other MANTISes into acting early? Hate that I nearly caused the Fallen Angels' annihilation?"
She looked into Silas's eyes, waiting for his answer.
Silas turned his gaze away. The truth was, back then, he had felt some resentment toward Elysia. Why couldn't she just wait a little longer? Were civilian lives really more important than those of the MANTISes? Without MANTISes, they wouldn't even have the right to survive!
That's what he'd thought then. So when he told Elysia those words—
"Please, let me be alone for a while"—there had been some emotion behind them.
But he knew it hadn't been her fault. In fact, if she hadn't acted that way, she wouldn't have been Elysia at all. She was someone willing to sacrifice herself for others. And when the plan to enter the Sanctuary of Blessing early began, Elysia had been the very first one to step inside.
Even if one took a step back, Elysia's push to start the Eleventh Herrscher subjugation ahead of schedule still required the agreement of the other MANTISes.
If that was the case… should he also hate those MANTISes?
In the end, it all came down to different positions and beliefs.
"You're right," Silas said, staring at his shoes. "At least when I said those words to you, I did feel some resentment. But the reason I avoided you during that time wasn't because I hated you. I only hated myself—for not doing well enough, for failing to consider everyone's perspective, and letting things end up the way they did."
"But… what exactly did you do wrong?" Elysia recalled how, after the Twelfth Herrscher incident, Mobius had unleashed a furious scolding on all the Flame-Chasers present—
Condemning their incompetence.
Condemning their hearts.
The unending pain that struck without warning…
The sleepless nights, every single one of them…
"Actually," Elysia said softly, "at the final banquet, I wanted to confess to you too. I was ready to be rejected if it came to that. I even prepared a crimson crystal flower just for you, decorated the whole venue… but the one who showed up with that invitation was Kevin."
Silas: "…"
Well, that explains why Kevin got punched. Turns out, he really did bring it on himself.
The two of them fell silent for a long time.
It was Silas who broke the silence first.
"This topic's too heavy. Let's never bring it up again. It's all in the past—digging it back up will only make us feel worse… Alright, your turn to ask a question, Elysia."
Elysia steadied her emotions, then asked,
"In that case, let me ask this… What's the next era you've seen like? And what kind of Herrschers do they have?"
Silas began counting on his fingers.
"The First Herrscher—the Herrscher of Reason—gave his life to protect humanity's freedom. He entrusted his core to his chosen successor. That successor, the Second Herrscher of Reason, had his body shattered countless times, but rebuilt himself each time to continue fighting for humanity, and passed on that will to the Third Herrscher of Reason."
… Though her track record post-inheritance was… less impressive.
"The next era's First Herrscher is also a Herrscher of Reason? Wait—he's a guy?" Elysia blinked at him in surprise. No way… Aren't Herrschers supposed to all be girls?
…Oh, right, Silas was a Herrscher too. Never mind then.
"Not just the First Herrscher," Silas added. "The Ninth Herrscher is also male. He's actually in a relationship with the Fifth Herrscher."
…And then the Herrscher of Thunder smashed them to bits.
"Are there any cute girls?" Elysia asked.
"Of course. The Third Herrscher of Reason is a deadpan little loli," Silas replied. "She even came up with the legendary math problem unique to that era—8 > 50,000."
"Mhm, mhm… and?"
"The Second Herrscher is like a pufferfish—gets all puffed up the moment she gains some power."
"Uh… what?"
"The Third Herrscher is… a talking rice cooker."
"Eh?"
"The Fourth Herrscher got knocked out cold by a few mechas."
"?"
"The Seventh Herrscher is an idiot with a single brain cell and an insane appetite."
"Huh?"
"The Eighth Herrscher is a brat who's not even a year old yet."
"…Wait a second, isn't the next era's set of Herrschers way too ridiculous?!" Elysia quickly called for a halt. She never would have imagined Silas describing them like this. These were Herrschers—creations born of her own powers—
And what was up with that Fourth Herrscher? Mechas… having combat capability against a Herrscher-level being?
"Alright, alright, I was just joking~" Silas chuckled. "The real Third Herrscher is actually a very gentle girl. She's an amazing cook, too. She had her Herrscher powers sealed away, but in order to protect the one she loved, she took the risk of being swallowed by the Honkai and became a Herrscher again."
To become a Herrscher again… for the sake of someone she loved…
Elysia glanced at Silas. It felt like there was an example standing right in front of her.
Oh, wait—by that time, he didn't like her anymore… Heartache…
"The Seventh Herrscher," Silas continued, "was the first Herrscher in the truest sense to be born for the sake of humanity. The Third Herrscher had actually overcome her Herrscher persona, but the Seventh was created from the very beginning to fight the Honkai."
"As for the Eighth Herrscher… I guess you could call her Hua's daughter."
"Hua's daughter?!" Elysia's eyes went wide.
"Yeah… She, too, wanted to fight the Honkai from the very start, but her good intentions always backfired. After Hua gave her a stern lecture, she ran away from home. And if that wasn't enough, Hua later stole her Herrscher authority."
"Hua… she… No matter what, the poor thing was just a baby, not even a year old. That's just… sigh… And… what about that Fourth Herrscher?"
"…That one's exactly as I said."
"…"
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