Chapter 279: We Must Win

[As for everything that happened next, there is no need to say more. In order to completely put an end to the Honkai caused by the Herrscher and the Kaiji, the Fire Moth decided to take the initiative under Mei's suggestion and concentrate its existing forces to raid the Herrscher, and try to eliminate the one who was obviously commanding the Kaiji.]

[After discovering that the "evolution" speed of the "Kaiji" was getting faster and faster, to the point that some high-strength "Kaiji" units would make some fusion warriors feel difficult to deal with, the "Fire Moth" realized that it could not delay any longer.]

[You should know that many people have reported that the effect of their weapons on "Kaiji" is getting weaker and weaker. It seems that "Kaiji" is quickly adapting to their attacks. For example, if a certain weapon is used to repel "Kaiji" this time, then when "Kaiji" attacks next time, the damage caused by this weapon will be greatly reduced... It may even be completely ineffective and cannot even break their defenses.]

[This terrifying and extreme ability of "adaptation" and "evolution" made the Fire Moth realize that it could not delay any longer. If the Kaiji were allowed to develop, human civilization would inevitably be destroyed and the land would certainly be submerged by the sea.]

[But... fortunately, they are not completely helpless now.]

[Under Mei's leadership, the "Blank Keys" were perfected one by one, allowing people to briefly master the power of the "Herrscher" level. Although there will be a more serious burden when using it, this burden is within an acceptable range for fusion warriors.]

[Because of this, let's combine the two and use them both!]

[Now the Fire Moth has already given it their all, and it can be said that they have put all their existing and most powerful forces on the line... They must win.]

[As for whether these fusion warriors equipped with the "Blank Key" will become a new "threat" after the subjugation is completed... Don't think too much about it for now. If you don't deal with the "Herrscher" and "Kaiji", everything you say is empty talk.]

[After that, after the Fire Moth made some preparations, Kevin, Elysia, Hua, Dystopia, Irine, and Pardofelis, a total of six people, were used as direct combat personnel. They were divided into groups of two, with Kevin and Elysia as the main force, Hua and Dystopia providing assistance and support, and Irine and Pardofelis serving as mobile combat personnel and "scouts" respectively.]

[Aponia, who has a special ability, provided support from the rear and established contact with Dystopia, trying to communicate with the Fire Moth as much as possible, so as to provide some support to the team when they broke into the outer perimeter of Mu Continent...]

[However, once we reach the depths of Mu Continent, this connection may need to be severed... On the one hand, in order to avoid attracting the attention of the "Herrscher" and "Kaiji" and exposing the team's movements after getting close to the depths, this connection must be severed.]

[On the other hand, of course... under the influence of the Herrscher, this connection will most likely be severed naturally after entering the depths of Mu Continent.]

[At that time, if these six members encounter any special situations, they will have to handle them on their own...]

[Hmm? Why are there only six fusion warriors? Where are the other fusion warriors?]

[Ah... In fact, other fusion warriors are also here. Some of them will serve as "cover troops" to help Kevin and others break in, allowing them to successfully pass through the outer perimeter of Mu Continent and enter deeper areas, while the other part will be responsible for staying behind to guard the defense line to deal with the attacks from "Kaiji" that have never stopped.]

[Then, everything is done. Everything that others can do has been done.]

[Next, let's leave it to them…]

[And the Fire Moth can only silently wait for everything to end, and sincerely pray that everything will go as planned.]

[Those who can win will win; humans... will definitely defeat the Honkai.]

Clatter—

The sound of footsteps was so light that it was almost inaudible.

In the hazy drizzle, a chestnut figure moved quickly and almost silently, followed by a thin, slightly strange, furry tail.

Naturally, she is Pardofelis. As a "scout" who joins the team, she naturally needs to find out the situation for her comrades. Sometimes she even has to sneak into dangerous places and find out the way so that her comrades can avoid those meaningless battles and face the Herrscher directly.

Well... in other words, if she really encountered the Herrscher, she would most likely be the first one to see him.

Fortunately, Pardofelis was very experienced in stealth, and with her ability to make full use of it, the job of a "scout" was not difficult for her... Well, at least that's what Pardofelis thought before she met the Herrscher.

"Welcome back, Pardofelis."

She was greeted by the brisk voice of Elysia. Perhaps because of the surrounding environment, Elysia spoke in a very low voice, but even so, she could still feel the vitality in her words, as if it could dispel a rain cloud covering the sky.

"Thank you for your hard work, Pardofelis... how's it going?"

Kevin, who stayed behind with Elysia, also asked simply.

"Boss Kevin, Sister Elysia... Honestly, I don't know if this is good or not."

Pardofelis greeted the two of them first, then adjusted her breath slightly before continuing.

"I didn't encounter any Kaiji that could transform into humans, let alone Herrschers. There were only ordinary Kaiji left there, and they were just patrolling. There were no additional traces."

"But... in those bases that once belonged to us, those instruments that we were unable to take away and had to destroy in the end... seem to have been repaired. They were repaired in a very strange way, and there are signs of use."

"That is to say..."

Pardofelis paused, a look of disbelief on her face and a hint of fear in her eyes, and slowly said something obvious.

"It seems that Kaiji is conducting research using the things we left behind."

"They are... becoming more and more like humans."

"Indeed."

Irine's capable voice sounded from the side, along with a reassuring feeling. Along with some faint flashes of lightning, Irine's figure came to everyone in an instant.

She swung the rapier in her hand slightly, and a light purple flashed at the collar of her combat uniform, or the "Blank Key." The lightning spread, clearing away the remaining blood on the rapier, and then she put it back into the sheath.

Then she lightly pressed the [lantern] on her waist. As the "light" swayed, a feeling of security spread. The warmth brought by the flame also dispelled the dampness around her, making her feel comfortable.

Of course, in front of Kevin, the warmth provided by the [lantern] is obviously not enough, but the sense of security is irreplaceable, and that is enough.

"Irine? You... encountered a battle?"

"Well, the remaining 'Kaiji' discovered it. As expected, they are too sensitive to things like [fire]. I'm afraid I will have to face a lot of battles in the next exploration."

Irine nodded, gave a brief explanation, then looked at Kevin and gave him some instructions.

"Kevin, you may have to be more careful next time. As the one with the strongest fighting ability among us and the one with the most obvious fire aura, it would not be good if you were discovered in advance."

"Yes, I understand."

Kevin nodded and did not object... After all, there is a big difference between rushing into a battle and facing it with preparation.

Therefore, he lowered his head again and looked at his waist... "Judgment of Shamash" rarely returned to the appearance of a pair of guns, and even so, Kevin was still not at ease, he also manipulated the ice and snow to freeze it, reducing the breadth of "Fire" as much as possible.

As the "absolute main force" of the entire team, Kevin knows very well when he should play his role. Now in the exploration stage... let him leave it to his teammates.

"Then... I have some bad news to tell you."

Irine spoke again.

"In the city I explored earlier... there were obvious signs of life."

"...Life?"

"Well, those buildings that were once destroyed or even reduced to ruins... have been rebuilt. Although the exterior is covered with a layer of azure material, and the internal structure seems to have some problems as if they were transformed from some kind of creature... But no matter what, those buildings have been rebuilt, and there are obvious signs of some kind of life inside."

"......"

Everyone present fell silent at once because they all realized one thing - those "Kaiji" were becoming more and more like humans.

If this continues, the civilization that remains on this planet may not be humans, but "Kaiji," or Honkai beasts.

Not only the appearance but also the buildings, technology... and even civilization that belongs to humans, will "Kaiji" take them all away and replace them?

The thought of there being such a being that would devour humans, put on their skin, and walk the world again, together with other "Kaiji" that were also transformed into humans, bit by bit eroding the entire human civilization, gradually covering and replacing it.

Eventually, with human civilization as nourishment, a new, weird "civilization" belonging to the "Kaiji" was born on the corpse of human civilization... That scene is terrifying to think about.

"...It seems that we must win."

Elysia forced a smile, trying to ease the atmosphere with her cheerful tone, but even for her, her words seemed a little bitter at the moment, and her smile was a little stiff... Obviously, after the speculation that the "Kaiji" were gradually replacing humans and were even preparing to replace human civilization, Elysia was in a bad mood...

"Yes, we will definitely win... definitely."

Kevin whispered.

fwooo--

It seemed to be the sound of a gentle breeze.

"Um?"

Everyone was familiar with this sound, and they could also sense the rapidly approaching breath... It was Dystopia and Hua returning.

"Wow, you're all back. It seems I flew too far... It took a lot of time to lead those 'Kaiji' away."

After putting Hua down and letting her land smoothly, Dystopia kept floating in the air, looked at the figures of Irine and Pardofelis, and sighed like this.

"How is it? Has the number of Kaiji on your side decreased? There should be fewer Kaiji patrolling, right?"

"Well, thanks to Sister Dystopia and Sister Hua, it went very easily on my end."

Pardofelis nodded and thanked him sincerely.

"I can't do that... They are still too sensitive to the 'lights', but I also tried my best to avoid fighting, so I shouldn't be in any trouble for a while."

Irine shook her head and repeated it again.

"That's fine... But have you noticed that those cities seem a little strange? The ruins are gone..."

"Well, they have all been rebuilt, and... there are still signs of life."

Irine nodded again.

"......"

"…This is not good news."

Faced with this "breaking news," Hua frowned and remained silent, while Dystopia muttered something in a low voice after a brief pause.

Obviously, they also guessed that possibility.

"Well, now is not the time for us to sigh here... Since Dystopia and Hua have successfully led away most of the 'Kaiji,' and Irine has not been discovered for the time being, then we must seize this opportunity."

Elysia clapped her hands gently, drawing everyone's attention back.

"Take advantage of this opportunity to find the Herrscher and... defeat him."

"Only in this way can we end this [Great Eruption]."

"…Yeah, that's it."

Kevin nodded and echoed.

"Hey, Kevin, you should be the one giving the orders at this time. It's not good to always ask me to do it for you, okay?"

"Elysia now is not the time for you to play around... Focus."

"Yeah~ Kevin looks good like this, very handsome~"

"Elysia..."

"Okay, no more jokes... Next, let's continue exploring deeper. The aura of Honkai is stronger over there. The Herrscher... should be there."

Elysia smiled, then took the lead and moved deeper into the Mu Continent... The others had no complaints and just quickly followed her... The six fusion warriors began to move quickly.

Pardofelis was at the front, quickly clearing the way, while Dystopia was flying in the air to take care of her. Irine and Hua on the flanks remained alert, trying their best to control the range of the "lights" and restrain their own breath to prevent the "fire" from attracting the "Kaiji." Elysia was in the center, holding a bow to support the others.

As for Kevin? He doesn't need to do anything right now. The only person he needs to face is the Herrscher.

Then, as expected, as they went deeper and deeper, they also sensed a strong, awkward, yet familiar aura... It was the "Herrscher"!

The people who noticed this began to change their formation quickly, especially Pardofelis. Although her combat power was considerable, it was not enough for the others. Therefore, after finding the "Herrscher," she had to retreat to the back of the team and block the support from the "Kaiji" as much as possible... Although the "Herrscher" himself might not do this, they had to be careful as they were in the territory of the "Kaiji."

Of course, in addition to blocking the support of "Kaiji," Pardofelis also had an additional mission...

If their battle failed, if they really couldn't even succeed in this last desperate fight... Pardofelis would also bring this news out of Mu Continent and back to the "Fire Moth" so that they could make final preparations.

...Haha, it seems a bit too pessimistic. It's not good to say such discouraging words before the war even starts.

But... it's really hard not to think this way...

Really... it's a real headache when facing them...

Because what Kevin, Elysia, and others saw was not the "Herrscher" wearing the skin of Nozomi.

But...Griseo.

"...ha?"

When they saw Griseo, Kevin and the others subconsciously paused for a moment, with a look of surprise on their faces.

No, that Herrscher must be here, but Griseo just appeared in front of them earlier... No!

There's something wrong with it! It's not Griseo!

'Damn it! How dare these "Kaiji"? !!'

Everyone's hearts were filled with anger in an instant, but they quickly suppressed it... As warriors, they have learned how to control their emotions, especially at such critical moments.

"Uncle Kevin, Sister Hua...Sister Dystopia..."

Griseo looked at the people in front of her and blinked. She didn't seem to care about the changing expressions on their faces.

"Sister Irine...Sister Elysia..."

"And...Sister Pardofelis."

"It's great that everyone is here..."

Griseo smiled and seemed very happy.

"Brother Nozomi is right... Well, everyone is here."

"In the future, we will all be together."

"Don't be angry, the burning red is too harsh, and the painting you depict... will be uncomfortable to look at."

"Can you... take a break?"

Before they could take any action, Griseo raised the paintbrush in her hand and lightly "painted" a stroke in the air.

[Painting and dyeing]

[A thousand colors, just one stroke]

As Griseo finished her words and as she "painted" that stroke, the world around her... began to change rapidly. The originally dark scene became bright in an instant, and everything around was repainted, turning into a... no, several magnificent paintings.

And the few people who had originally gathered in front of Griseo, in the blink of an eye, only Pardofelis was left - they were separated!

"Sister Pardofelis..."

Griseo looked at Pardofelis who was a little overwhelmed for a moment, not knowing how to face her. She blinked and moved the paintbrush in her hand slightly, leaving some traces of brilliant colors in the air, but they disappeared in the blink of an eye, making people wonder if it was their own illusion.

"Let's play together..."

She made the invitation sincerely, with anticipation in her eyes and on her face... She really liked the feeling of painting with Pardofelis, even though now she only needed "one stroke" to depict many things, she still looked forward to painting and playing with Pardofelis.

But to Pardofelis, these words and this invitation sounded a little... scary.