75. Journey of the Moon, The Coming Battle?
Five minutes later, the chaotic, uproarious room finally fell quiet.
"I brought you something to eat. Have some first. I'm sure it's better than what you've had these past few months."
Stealthily pushing open the door, Gao Qi walked in carrying two plates of reheated dinner and drinks, his gaze falling on the girl inside the room.
He had indeed been a bit rude to Kiana earlier, but she ultimately didn't actually give him a good kick. Compared to her flustered scolding, Gao Qi's sense of guilt over "having inappropriate thoughts about his precious girl" was far more severe.
So, using fetching food as an excuse, Gao Qi had stepped out. In the bathroom, he used the Authority of the Herrscher of Ice to cool down "Little Gao Qi," ensuring he wouldn't have any improper reactions tonight, at the very least.
Honestly, in this regard, the Authority of the Herrscher of Ice was quite handy.
Upon re-entering the room, Gao Qi saw Kiana seemingly staring blankly at half a photo in her hand; the other half looked like it had been torn off roughly.
"What are you looking at?"
Under the moonlight, Kiana's snow-white long hair reflected the pure, bright light, her bright blue eyes similarly glimmering, making Gao Qi unconsciously pause to admire her.
When she was little, on every clear, starry night, Gao Qi would hold Kiana in his arms as she pestered him to tell all sorts of stories until she fell asleep. Back then, little Kiana looked just like she did now, only less immature and carrying more melancholy.
"Ah, it's nothing. Just an old photo with my dad. It was ruined a long time ago."
Noticing Gao Qi's return, Kiana stuffed the photo with her father back into her pocket. Although she had brought many things related to her father when she left home, she had lost them all during her wanderings to the Far East, amidst battles with Honkai beasts.
Kiana even had a feeling that those Honkai beasts didn't necessarily want to kill her, but rather aimed to destroy these mementos of her father.
Kiana only blamed herself for being too young and ignorant back then; otherwise, she wouldn't have even forgotten her father's face.
Later, when she asked Headmistress Theresa, her "Auntie" patted her chest confidently, swearing she absolutely remembered that "annoying jerk," but then completely failed to describe his appearance. Even the underground database at St. Freya couldn't find any trace of that "traitor."
Not wanting to dwell more on her father, Kiana shot a glare back at the scoundrel who had just harassed her.
"Don't think just giving me a meal means I'll forgive you easily. I really don't know if Bianka hit her head or something, how could she let you join the Immortal Blades? It's like letting a wolf into the sheepfold... Wow, smells amazing!"
However, Kiana's muttering didn't last long. As the aroma of food wafted over, her eyes immediately widened, and her little nose twitched.
Although Kiana's own cooking skills were exceptionally poor—whether during her childhood wanderings or her recent months of hiding, she only cooked if she was starving—she was a connoisseur when it came to eating.
She could tell just by smelling whether food was delicious or not. And in the ten years she could remember, only her dad and Mei could make food that smelled this good; their skills were equally excellent!
Without much hesitation, Kiana directly took the plate Gao Qi handed over. As a Herrscher now, she wasn't worried about any sleeping pills or anesthetics. She picked up her chopsticks and began wolfing it down.
"Mmm, mmm, mmm, so good. Even though you're a pervert, your cooking is really good."
Kiana was an honest kid. Even though she had been wandering all this time, she never stole or robbed anyone, so naturally, her food wasn't that great. Coming across a good meal like this was rare, so she didn't hesitate and started eating voraciously.
"Slow down, eat slowly. There's more if you want."
A fatherly, affectionate smile finally spread across Gao Qi's face. He sat not far from her, quietly watching her eat, and poured her another cup of milk tea.
As for the "dad" she mentioned, Gao Qi knew she wasn't talking about him, but about that old rascal Siegfried.
Although he knew Siegfried was currently receiving treatment due to side effects from the MANTIS serum, for him not to come check on Kiana even after she became a Herrscher… even "free-range parenting" shouldn't go this far.
If it were up to Gao Qi to save his Kiana, the one wearing the Godsbane Battlesuit and injecting her with serum wouldn't have been Teacher Himeko...
Before long, Kiana had completely finished the food Gao Qi brought, even going back for several extra bowls. Finally satisfied, she patted her stomach and stretched.
"Burp."
Letting out a small burp, Kiana finally remembered she was currently in an Anti-Entropy stronghold, and the person before her was also an Anti-Entropy member. She coughed lightly, a bit embarrassed.
"Ahem, time to get down to business. Here, take this. Give it to your Captain Rita as soon as she gets back."
Soon, Kiana reached into the satchel at her waist, rummaged around, and pulled out a disposable syringe, a few access cards, along with some photos and an annotated map, handing them all to Gao Qi.
"I'm not any research personnel, but I know if those Honkai beasts and zombies were really created by the overflow of my Herrscher energy, then they'd only appear near me. I've investigated the common points among the zombies in each Honkai incident."
At this moment, Kiana became calm and rational. She lowered her voice and began methodically explaining her findings to Gao Qi.
When she was little, her father taught her to be calm and discerning. After experiencing all this despair, Kiana finally remembered her father's teachings again. She knew that at a time like this, naivety and willfulness were meaningless; there would be no dad to shelter her from the storm anymore.
"Those zombies all developed Stigmata on their bodies, like the ones Valkyries use, but they were just ordinary civilians. The only common point is that they all received vaccine injections from Shenzhou Pharmaceuticals!"
Solid evidence, meticulous logic—Kiana's eyes now shone with intelligent brilliance!
"So, is this enough to convince Rita to investigate Shenzhou Pharmaceuticals?"
That light of wisdom was so dazzling it made Gao Qi widen his eyes in spite of himself. He gently applauded Kiana's meticulous logic. My goodness, the ancestral graves of the Kaslana family—Kevin's and Mei's graves—must be smoking with pride! Get this kid into university, quick!
"A perfect deduction. I think this is more than enough to convince Miss Rita to investigate Shenzhou Pharmaceuticals. However, Kiana, you missed one point. The vaccines from Shenzhou Pharmaceuticals are provided by Anti-Entropy. Haven't you considered that these Honkai incidents might also be another experiment by Anti-Entropy—just like what they did to you? Only this time, the subjects are the people of Shenzhou?"
Picking up the vaccine syringe, Gao Qi gave Kiana a mischievous grin. She froze for a second, then immediately placed a wary hand on the firearm at her waist.
This logistics officer of the Immortal Blades probably knew more than she thought! If what he said was true...
"Wha... You—explain yourself clearly!"
Seeing Kiana's flustered expression, Gao Qi smiled slightly and placed a cup of milk tea in front of her, signaling her to calm down.
"Alright, don't worry. Anti-Entropy truly knows nothing about this. Even with the authority Archbishop Otto holds now, many of his inhumane experiments are highly confidential—at least on the surface, Anti-Entropy's core philosophy remains protecting people and saving the world. The Valkyries here are the same."
Gao Qi shrugged, repeating to Kiana what he had once said to Siegfried, though this time without the same mischievous intent he'd had with the old man.
"At least, most of Anti-Entropy's warriors are still fighting for humanity. If Otto wants to continue using Anti-Entropy's power, he must maintain a righteous, glorious image on the surface. Otherwise, Anti-Entropy would turn against him—that's the prevailing trend. He can use it, and so can you. Understand?"
Unable to resist offering Kiana a piece of advice, Gao Qi's words left her somewhat stunned.
"Huh, what you said sounds like you're siding with the outsiders... You don't seem to respect Otto at all?"
To this, Gao Qi simply shrugged.
"Over fifty years ago, Schicksal was still the North American branch of Anti-Entropy. A few months ago, St. Freya Academy was still the Far East branch of Anti-Entropy. Counting ordinary staff, Anti-Entropy has millions of members worldwide. Even a country doesn't have everyone obeying the head of state—guess how many people and factions are dissatisfied with that old geezer Otto?"
Kiana blinked. Gao Qi certainly didn't want Kiana to see him as a devoted follower of Otto.
His current strength wasn't particularly great, but traveling alone wasn't difficult either. The reason he temporarily stayed with the Immortal Blades squad was partly because he couldn't stop worrying about the Valkyrie girls, and partly because he knew that the Immortal Blades' upcoming missions were crucial plot points.
If the Herrscher of Ice incident could be resolved smoothly, Gao Qi thought he might temporarily leave Schicksal—his previous contact with Raven had been for this very purpose.
Later, Kiana would still clash with Raven, and both were dear to Gao Qi. He didn't want either of them to get hurt.
Picking up the vaccine syringe Kiana had given him, Gao Qi took out a device he'd casually found in the technical analysis room and pretended to analyze the remaining vaccine liquid while hinting to Kiana about the upcoming events.
"I've analyzed this. The vaccine originally utilized the Schicksal HBA-022 model but was modified to become an activator that enhances human resistance to Honkai energy. However, too much resistance isn't necessarily a good thing. I suspect the Stigmata on those zombies were generated under the influence of this vaccine."
Gao Qi wasn't just speaking to Kiana; he also seemed to be explaining a horrifying truth to another observer.
His poor old friend Kevin was destined to walk this path of madness—the Stigma Project, a last resort even Mei, the cold and ruthless pure scientist, treated with extreme caution, only to be used as a final plan.
"The probability of awakening a natural Stigma is extremely low, and not everyone can receive this blessing. Schicksal's selection process for artificial Stigma implantation requires multiple levels of review, and even then, the surgery carries significant risks. I can imagine how many volunteers died on the operating table when this technology was first developed."
Gao Qi knew that Fu Hua, the serious class monitor and guardian of Shenzhou (and not his sister), must have thought of something by now.
"Now, considering that Shenzhou Pharmaceuticals is providing free vaccine injections to the citizens of Shenzhou on a large scale, I suspect they plan to conduct Stigma activation experiments on ordinary people—it's terrifying just thinking about it."
Upon hearing this, the illusory Fu Hua beside them furrowed her brows deeply.
"The Serpent, World Serpent. I thought they had already perished—come on, Kiana, we must leave immediately. We need to prepare right away. I know who is behind Shenzhou Pharmaceuticals now!"
Before Kiana could finish her milk tea, Fu Hua called her to action. Without hesitation, Kiana set down her half-finished drink and opened a portal beside her.
"Well... I'll be off now. Be sure to tell Rita, and it would be best if Durandal knew about this too... Your name is Gao Qi, right? I'll trust you for now!"
However, just as she was about to leave, Gao Qi suddenly blocked her path.
"Wait, one minute, just one minute!"
Then, before Kiana could refuse, Gao Qi rushed out of the room and quickly returned carrying a large bag stuffed with spare clothes and emergency food, placing it in Kiana's hands.
During their last encounter, Gao Qi hadn't had much to give her, so this time, he had prepared suitable clothes and food in advance, just waiting for Kiana to take them.
"Hey, wait, I..."
Kiana instinctively wanted to refuse, but when the heavy bag was placed in her hands, she couldn't bring herself to say no.
Perhaps, even as a Herrscher, she still yearned for others' care. It even reminded her of her father.
"Hmph, you're definitely one of those popular nice guys, huh? Thanks!"
She reached out and playfully punched Gao Qi's chest. Although they'd only met twice, Kiana felt an inexplicable closeness to him—a good person!
"Honestly, Miss Kiana, you shouldn't fight alone. I don't expect you to trust Schicksal, but... you should go back to Lady Theresa and the others."
After hesitating for a few seconds, Gao Qi cut off Kiana's refusal before she could shake her head.
"Please don't say things like 'I don't want to hurt them.' Your distance and avoidance might be the greatest harm to those who love you. Emotional wounds are worse than physical injuries. And to put it bluntly—if you truly lose control and become the Herrscher of the Void, the entire world will be destroyed, and you'll end up hurting them anyway."
Gao Qi didn't want Kiana to remain lonely. If she could change her attitude of deliberately distancing herself from others, perhaps she wouldn't get "domestically disciplined" by Mei—though it's wrong for Mei to hit anyone, it was Kiana who kept giving the cold shoulder!
"So, what do you think? Will you consider it?"
Waving his hand, Gao Qi watched as Kiana stepped into the portal.
"Yeah, I'll think about it. Be sure to tell Rita in time. Don't forget!"
Deep in thought, Kiana nodded, hoisted the supplies Gao Qi had given her, and disappeared on the spot.
As for Gao Qi, he wore a bright smile, satisfied, and began clearing the empty plates.
"Good luck, my moon."
Glancing at the clock, which was now past 2 a.m., Gao Qi finished his chores and lay back in bed.
"Next up is a big battle, and it just so happens that all three sides involved are people I care about... Is my current strength a bit insufficient?"
Thinking about the upcoming conflict between Raven, Rita, and Kiana, Gao Qi felt a headache coming on. Without expending his life force, it would be too difficult for him to move freely and mediate between the three parties.
"Maybe... another simulation?"
——————
Above the buildings of Arc City, Kiana also wore a bright smile—one of genuine joy, something she rarely showed.
"Alright, I get it, Class Monitor. Next, we're dealing with the World Serpent, right? But... maybe I should call Aunt Theresa to let her know I'm safe?"
Kiana looked up at the vast starry sky.
"I hope Mei picks up the phone. If it's anyone else, I feel like I'll get scolded terribly, especially Aunt Theresa, and..."
Kiana thought that the advice from this man named Gao Qi... might be worth considering?
"Maybe he and I could become good friends?"
——————
Meanwhile, at the Sea of Quanta where the Hyperion was located, chaos had broken out.
"The main system is out of control! The Hyperion has activated on its own!"
"The Sea of Quanta's defense system has failed! Oh no, the Quantum Sea gate is opening!"
"Theresa, where are your people? The Anti-Entropy forces are scattered. I must rally the troops immediately!"
"Abandon ship! Abandon ship!"
Note: I'm new to translating so please be kind and tell me any mistakes you all find, I will try to release a chapter a day but don't expect much
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Raw: 崩坏模拟器,你找的人是我么?