"I'm sorry, please let us go, Big Sis! Auntie! Mom!"
The young men, now bruised and battered, had completely lost their earlier arrogance. They pressed their foreheads to the ground in a deep, groveling bow, not even daring to glance up at Acheron.
Had they mustered the courage to look, they would have seen the purplish-green marks splotching her own face.
'What are you, some kind of college freshmen? Why do you keep calling everyone Mommy?'
Acheron stared down at the groveling figures, a muscle in her cheek twitching involuntarily.
She casually relieved them of their wallets, deciding not to press the issue any further.
After getting a few answers about where they were from, she simply turned and left the alleyway.
Not long after Acheron had departed, two figures appeared at the mouth of the same narrow lane, their forms gradually resolving as they approached from the distance: one tall and upright, the other petite and tinged with pink.
"Something feels off," the pink-haired girl murmured, her expression turning grave as she processed the information they'd just gathered.
"You're thinking a Herrscher might appear?" Kevin, pulled from his thoughts by her voice, responded.
"Oh? So you've already considered it," she said, a playful smile gracing her lips.
"Come on, think about it. It's been three years since the last major eruption. Do you really believe the Honkai would just go quiet like this? There's no way this strange aging disease isn't the Honkai's doing, right?"
Elysia looked at Kevin, her smile unwavering.
"If a Herrscher appears, I'll eliminate it immediately."
"Don't be overconfident, Kevin. Who knows? This Herrscher might be unexpectedly troublesome. I have a feeling." Elysia continued to watch him with her characteristic smile, then stretched languidly, her perfect curves outlined against the sky.
Even as she spoke, a trace of unconscious worry flickered in Elysia's eyes. After all, this was the first time abnormal signs had appeared before a Honkai eruption. All the previous outbreaks had occurred suddenly and silently.
This time, the prelude was unnervingly clear. This bizarre aging sickness was almost certainly linked to the impending Herrscher.
"I understand. While we grow stronger, the Honkai evolves as well. I won't hesitate," Kevin replied with a slight nod.
Though they were similar in age, Elysia was a "founding elder" of Fire Moth, having joined very early on.
In comparison, Kevin, despite having been a member for several years now, still felt like a fresh recruit next to her.
"Ah, it's such a pity, really. Why can't those Herrschers be more like... why can't they just communicate properly with humans? They're always such lovely girls. It gives me a bit of a guilty conscience, thinking about these cute girls falling by my hand~"
Elysia let out a soft sigh.
Three years without a major Honkai disaster—by all rights, Elysia should have been happy.
But lately, a persistent unease had settled in her, a feeling that many things were about to happen...
Just like in those novels, when the enemy goes quiet for a long time, it doesn't mean they've given up. They're just brewing a bigger scheme. That was exactly what Elysia thought.
"Let's just resolve this quickly. The sooner we finish, the sooner I can get back to Mei," Kevin said, shaking his head slightly.
"Eww~"
Hearing his words, Elysia let out a teasing, suggestive whistle.
Within Fire Moth, the most popular couple was undoubtedly Kevin and Dr. Mei.
One was a brilliant scholar with numerous published scientific achievements; the other was now one of Fire Moth's most powerful warriors, having piled up merits over the past few years.
Honestly, if not for concerns about promoting him too fast and causing dissent, Kevin could probably be leading his own squad by now.
"My, my, getting impatient after such a short time apart, Kevin? Are you trying to provoke this single dog on purpose? Just you wait, I'm going to steal your Dr. Mei away when we get back~"
"You won't. You can't steal her," Kevin stated matter-of-factly.
"You! Ugh, how annoying..." Elysia puffed out her cheeks, staring at Kevin's confident face.
She suddenly found herself fervently wishing she could meet someone who looked just like Dr. Mei, get all close and cozy with them, just to see the look on Kevin's face then...
As this thought crossed her mind, her eyes caught a fleeting glimpse of a purple figure disappearing around a distant street corner, and she momentarily froze.
"What is it, Elysia?" Kevin asked, noticing her distraction.
"Did Dr. Mei come here too?" Elysia looked back at Kevin.
"Impossible... This place is too dangerous for a researcher like her. Besides, even if she wanted to come, I wouldn't allow it," Kevin replied, shaking his head gently.
"Must have been my eyes, then... I just saw someone who looked just like Mei..."
"Probably just someone with a similar appearance. The world's a big place; it's normal for two people to look alike," Kevin said, completely dismissing Elysia's comment.
"Alright then! It's our first time in this city, and I haven't had a proper look around yet. Let's pick up some souvenirs for our friends. And don't worry too much about the Herrscher.
Who knows... maybe it'll be handled easily by someone else the moment it appears~ Just like the Fifth Herrscher that showed up last time!"
--+--
Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
During this time, Acheron had been continuously gathering information throughout the city. Just as expected, the situation with the aging disease had grown increasingly severe. There were even reports of infants developing full faces of wrinkles and dying from organ failure within a mere three days.
Panic was beginning to simmer among the populace, yet the source of the affliction remained elusive.
Until the moment a powerful Honkai energy fluctuation erupted from the city's First Hospital.
The immense force instantly leveled the entire hospital complex.
From within the rubble, a frail figure slowly rose from a wheelchair. Her crimson eyes and the potent Honkai energy radiating around her announced her identity clearly.
Surrounding her was the hospital's wreckage, and amidst that wreckage stood a collection of corpses, each in a different state of contortion.
They were the doctors and nurses who had worked there, their average age no more than forty-five. Yet, in this moment, their bodies resembled those of octogenarians: teeth rotten, lips sunken, hair brittle and dry.
Surveying the scene around her, the girl's eyes held not a trace of fear, but instead a glint of grim satisfaction.
The Sixth Herrscher, the Herrscher of Death, had descended.
"Humanity... deserves extinction!"
Just as the Herrscher of Death prepared to leave and spread her demise throughout the city, a slender figure approached steadily from the distance.
The moment the Honkai energy spiked, Acheron had headed straight for its source.
At the same time, alerted by the abnormal surge, Kevin and Elysia were also rushing toward the hospital.
--+--
T/N: Honkai: Star Rail fanfic up!
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T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.