Chapter 248: It’s time to start the [next scene]

[This "sparring" in the name of getting familiar with strength lasted a whole day. Under your intentional control, almost all the fusion warriors cycled through the process of "getting beaten → getting knocked unconscious → waking up a few minutes later → getting beaten again"... except for Elysia.]

[It's not that you treat her differently or go easy on Elysia. When facing her, you will deliberately increase your effort.]

[But facing Elysia, this level is not enough... After all, you are still fighting with your hands "tied up." Not to mention your most commonly used "Flowing Water" and "Light Wind," you don't even have a weapon.]

[Even with your hands tied, you can still overpower other fusion warriors with your sheer physical fitness. This is enough to show how outrageous you are...]

[As for Elysia, she is a special case.]

[If she were to fully exert her power, you would definitely not be able to defeat her now... But it is obvious that she does not want to do that.]

[In order to give you more opportunities to perform, or to give it to other people who are working hard, she deliberately suppressed her own strength. Even when fighting with you, she showed a bit of weakness...]

[Although she would still tease you in a lighthearted tone, or complain about you... but she would stop talking soon.]

[I can't help it. Who told you to hit her so hard? That heavy blow to her stomach almost made her unable to speak clearly.]

[For this reason, Elysia put away her playful demeanor and began to take your attacks seriously... She didn't want to endure that kind of pain again, especially since your attacks went straight to her face several times, causing Elysia to complain.]

['This is too much! He was facing his "companion," a cute girl as beautiful as a flying flower, but he still had the heart to hit me directly in the face... What if I got hurt?' Elysia couldn't help but murmur in her heart.]

[As for why she didn't say it... it's mainly because she found out that you were really fighting people on a "battlefield" basis, and many of your attacks were aimed at "killing." If it weren't for the proper control of your strength and the fusion warrior's strong recovery ability, I'm afraid that others wouldn't last more than ten rounds in front of you.]

[Yes, including her now.]

[Of course, all of this is based on the premise that everyone is still unfamiliar with their own strength.]

[Faced with your pressure that was so severe that it was close to death, everyone was more or less forced to unleash their potential, frantically tapping into their own strength in order to avoid being killed instantly by you... but this process was somewhat painful and torturous.]

[But the good thing is that they are indeed quickly familiarizing themselves with their own strength, and their combat effectiveness is visibly increasing... and then they are suppressed by you.]

[Except Elysia.]

[After discovering that you are really "serious," or that your standards are very strict, Elysia also began to deal with you seriously, and showed others that "under your threats and oppression, she quickly became familiar with her own strength and reached a stalemate with you."]

[You have naturally discovered this, so every time you fight her, you will kick her into the ground along with the pink crystal that protects her after a few rounds, and then you will tell her that she can go down and rest... Anyway, you can't really do anything to her. If you want to continue to increase your strength, you will have to do something "ruthless," but it's not time yet.]

[Elysia seems to understand this, and every time this happens, she will happily leave the stage, and then explain to others in the rest area how to deal with you and cheer them on... Then, after you knock others unconscious, she will go up and take the unconscious person away to rest, and repeat this process.]

[Until the end, when everyone was able to fight you, this so-called "competition" officially ended... And among them, Elysia's performance was the best (of course), and the second best... was Hua.]

[This is somewhat surprising, but after thinking about it, it doesn't seem too difficult to understand... Because of several previous experiences, when Hua first appeared, she didn't think of attacking you but focused on perception and defense... Although the effect was still not very good in the end, she did find some methods.]

[So after the second time, she successfully caught your figure and was able to react... The third time, she was able to receive your attack, but because of the difference in strength, she was still knocked unconscious by you... And the fourth time, she was able to use her own martial arts skills to resist your attack.]

[In the eyes of others, if Elysia is a genius who grows rapidly in a single battle, then Hua is a person who advances steadily step by step... Therefore, Hua appeared the most times in this "competition" and also fainted the most times.]

[To be honest, if the Honkai Beast gene she fused wasn't special, her body probably wouldn't be able to sustain so many battles. Her captain Himeko complained about this several times afterward.]

[However, due to Hua's tenacious spirit and overly calm fighting style, she became the second fusion warrior after Elysia who could not be knocked down by you within ten rounds... It can be said that her performance was quite outstanding.]

[In addition, under your coercion, Dystopia is also madly familiar with her own "telekinesis," and has successfully achieved the achievement of "using telekinesis to support herself to fly without accidentally hurting herself," becoming the first fusion warrior who can "fly."]

[It's a pity that the training ground is too small, otherwise she would be "semi-invincible."]

[Then it was Hen. With the combat acumen of a veteran and the determination to show off in front of his daughter, he successfully became the second longest person to fight against you in this "competition"... Hmm? Why "second"?]

[Because there is also a Kosma who is being beaten the whole time.]

[This kid is really miserable. Because the Honkai Beast gene he fused with is too special, it is difficult for him to display his full strength in the training ground...]

[It's mainly because of the lack of energy that he can't "progress." He can only rely on his own uniqueness to constantly "adapt" to your attacks… In simple terms, he has become a sandbag, emphasizing his ability to withstand beatings.]

[Honestly, this time, Kosma was almost beaten into autism. It took Dystopia a long time to comfort him before he came to his senses... I heard from the grapevine that Kosma almost cried again, I don't know if it's true.]

[...Huh? Why did you say "again"?]

[Forget it, that's not important.]

[In short, after this "competition," except for Aponia who has special abilities and refuses to participate in the war, everyone has made great progress. At the same time, "Fire Moth" has also more clearly realized how outrageous you, the "number one," are.]

[The only pity is that no one knows what your "ability" is. After all, you fought with bare hands throughout the whole process, without even using weapons, relying purely on your physical fitness... According to Danzhu's words, it is a kind of "pure numerical beauty."]

[Hmm... maybe your "ability" is this kind of ridiculous physical fitness? After all, there is always a gain for every loss - many people speculated so, and you did not refute it, just smiled and said nothing.]

[Therefore, this statement is accepted by most people, and not many people care about what your "ability" is.]

[Even if you really don't have any special abilities, you can still make up for it with equipment. After all, you are half a member of the Engineering Department, and even your relationship with Vill-V is very "subtle." You also have a lot of exclusive equipment... No, I can't say any more. If I say more, the people in the Operations Department will be jealous.]

[All in all, everyone got what they wanted from this "exchange," which is cause for celebration.]

[And I don't know if it's because the effect of this "competition" was too significant, "Fire Moth" set a rule for the fusion warriors that after completing the initial familiarity with their own strength, they must come to you for an "assessment," and this "assessment" was also jokingly called "Subject One" by others.]

[Also for this reason, Irine, who was originally designated as a "reserve," was arranged by "Fire Moth" to become your "student" after completing the recruit training, so that you can guide her.]

[Anyway, it just so happens that since the crusade against Uriel, you have rarely stayed in the base's laboratory, except for occasionally conducting some research and optimizing some weapons. You have almost always been fighting outside or guarding the coast with the troops...]

[The only strange thing is that Mobius, who was watching you closely, was willing to let you go and let you wander around outside... This surprised many people.]

[But when others asked about this, Mobius gave a very good reason.]

["Of course the little guy, who has such strong combat power, should be deployed on the front line~ Isn't this what you expected? Besides, who made me a fusion warrior? After all, there is one less person who can contribute, so the little guy is also helping me... Since the little guy is so considerate, how can I not show some sympathy for him?" - That's what she said.]

["As for the laboratory matters, the little guy has been gradually handed over to Klein to handle... ah, you don't have to worry about this matter. Anyway, the little guy has never let anyone down, right?" - Whenever Mobius said this, most people understood that she didn't want to discuss this topic anymore, as if she really disliked this topic.]

[This also led many people to speculate whether the relationship between you and Mobius had broken down? After all, so many things had happened before... The discussion about this matter became a hot topic within the "Fire Moth" for a while, which was considered a small and interesting story.]

[Of course, these have no effect on you. After all, you are not going back to the laboratory. You just spend more time on combat.]

[After all... they don't know if it's an illusion, but ever since you joined the battle, the Honkai beasts that crawled out of the sea have become stronger and stronger, and the appearance of you and the fusion warriors has greatly reduced the pressure on the garrison.]

[But it doesn't matter, the plans of "Fire Moth" are progressing in an orderly manner, and everything is fine!]

————————

"Teacher."

"I've already told you, Irine, you don't need to use that kind of address."

"Then... [Senpai]?"

"Don't listen to Elysia either."

"Captain, is that okay?"

"If you really want to count, there are only two of us on our team, so there's no need to distinguish between captain and non-captain."

Nozomi shrugged and then said with a smile.

"Besides, you'll be the captain in the future, right?"

"...Teacher, how come you know everything in advance?"

Irine smiled helplessly... She originally wanted to tell Nozomi as a surprise, but it turned out that Nozomi knew it earlier than her.

"It's a matter of course, isn't it?"

Nozomi glanced at the pair of small black wings folded on Irine's head like a headband and said casually.

"After all, given the current situation, it wouldn't be a good idea to have you follow me. It would be a waste of your identity as a fusion warrior, wouldn't it?"

"The Honkai beasts that crawl out of the sea are becoming more and more dangerous. Our battle line is getting longer and longer, and there are more and more places to defend... It would be a waste if I let you follow me."

"It just so happens that your combat skills are gradually becoming more proficient, and you are also very skilled in using the equipment designed for you. The new batch of fusion warriors are also playing a role on the battlefield, and the next batch of names are also being screened..."

Nozomi turned around and looked at the lantern on the table while smiling.

"Well, I should probably go back and rest for a while, and prepare a set of [Subject One] for the new [Junior]."

"I still have to go back to see the doctor. From what I saw earlier, it seems Klein is working overtime again. I have to go back and teach Cang Xuan and Dan Zhu a lesson... Those two guys are too worrying."

"And I heard from Pordo that Griseo has been talking about me again recently. I have to go back and take a look. And Vill-V... I've also received news from the Fire Moth. It seems that Eden left some message for me as if she wants me to go back and take a look..."

"Ha... Looking at it this way, Teacher, you are really busy."

Irine couldn't help laughing out loud.

"Yeah, yeah, it's going to be very busy, but... it's okay, I'm used to it."

Nozomi shrugged.

"Oh yes... speaking of this."

Nozomi moved the lantern slightly outward and pushed it towards Irine.

"You becoming the captain is something worth celebrating. I'll just give this to you."

"...Teacher, this should be yours, right?"

Irine asked with some confusion... As far as she could remember, ever since Nozomi designed the [Lantern], Nozomi had always carried one with him, especially when he went out to fight.

When the [lantern] that looks like a little sun appears on the battlefield, a reassuring force will spread. No matter how dangerous the situation is, as long as everyone sees the lantern appear, they will feel at ease.

After all, it's Nozomi who's here… 'Ah, I always feel like this sentence has a bit of a double meaning, hehe…'

Sure enough, the teacher's name is very interesting.

"It's okay. I can get one myself when I get back. I'll leave this one to you. And you should be in charge of the defense here from now on. You must do your job well, okay?"

Nozomi blinked, with a hint of joking in his words.

"Or are you worried that your firelight is not enough?"

"Teacher... your provocation is already familiar to everyone. It's no longer effective, huh?"

"I'm not provoking you. I'm asking you seriously."

"I just don't think it's necessary..."

"Then consider it my gift to thank you."

"...ah?"

Nozomi's words made Irine stunned for a moment.

"Don't you remember? Your parents kept a book for me, a Bible, and I have never given you anything in return, so I'll use this to offset it."

"No, teacher, your life-saving grace has already been..."

"That's our duty, just like what you're doing now."

"......"

"Oh, this is really troublesome..."

Nozomi covered his head with his hands as he felt a headache.

"Then just think of this as my hope for you... I hope that you can hold this lamp in the future, like me, and illuminate everything around you the moment you appear. As long as you appear and light it up, you can give people a sense of peace of mind... Is that all right?"

"If you expect me to do so, I will try my best to do it."

Irine nodded seriously.

"Then... try to pick it up."

Nozomi pushed the lantern forward.

And after being silent for a while, Irine took it in her palm.

fowosh--

It was the sound of a flame starting.

The red flame burned quietly, radiating a feeling of warmth and security.

Although it was not as dazzling as when Nozomi picked it up, it was enough to illuminate the surroundings.

"…Sure enough, I'm still not good enough compared to the teacher."

Irine looked at the fire that belonged to her and sighed helplessly.

"Don't sigh like that... Look, the fire has weakened, hasn't it?"

Nozomi pointed at the flame which had weakened a little and reminded with a smile.

"It is your manifestation in consciousness, and it shines through your spirit. If your thoughts are so easily shaken, it will not recognize you."

"Teacher, don't talk like it's alive..."

Irine complained first, then looked at the [lantern] in her hand, was silent for a while, and after adjusting her thoughts a little, she continued.

"But I will work hard, teacher. I will do as well as you... no, even better than you."

"Okay, I'm looking forward to your performance."

Nozomi smiled, then looked at the time and continued.

"Okay, the break is over. I have an appointment with the captain of the fifth team... oh no, now the former captain of the fifth team. After I talk to her, I have to go back with her... See you later, Irine."

Nozomi stood up, reached out his hand, rubbed Irine's head, and stroked the pair of wings on Irine's head.

"I told you not to touch my feathers... not even if you are my teacher!"

Irine first lowered her head and let Nozomi touch her for a while, then she turned her head away and gently slapped Nozomi's hand away.

"You're right, but I'll do it again next time."

"...Teacher, if you continue like this I will have to give you a sword."

"It doesn't matter. You can't beat me."

"...snort."

Watching Nozomi leave, Irine snorted lightly, tidied her hair a little, and gently touched her wings. After making sure that no one else would notice anything, she took the [lantern] that Nozomi gave her and left.

......

"Ah... it feels so good to have nothing to worry about!"

Himeko lay down on the soft sofa and stretched, speaking leisurely while looking at Nozomi who was walking towards her.

"How about it, busy man? Do you want to learn from me? Find a chance to relax yourself?"

"What you mean by relaxing is to give your position to Hua and let her lead the team?"

"I've taught Hua everything she can do. What's left is actual combat... Besides, we're all fusion warriors, so what's wrong with leading a team? Isn't that normal?"

Himeko said confidently.

"Besides, I've been on the front line for so long, can't I even take a break?"

"I don't trust you. Don't think I don't know that you submitted an application to the Fire Moth, hoping to become the next batch of fusion warriors..."

"...Ah, damn, I forgot you could get the list... But it doesn't matter, anyway, I can rest while waiting for the notice, it doesn't matter~"

Himeko waved her hand and said indifferently.

"Besides, I still have to pass Subject One with you by then. You will eventually know... it's just a matter of time."

"You really can't sit still... Let me think, you will return to the Fifth Squad, or stay at the Fifth Squad's base for a while, right?"

Nozomi glanced at her and said casually.

"You really are worried about them..."

"I can't help it. Who made Hua so stupid? I have to take better care of her."

"Well... I think you would like to call her [senpai] in front of her and see how she reacts, right?"

Nozomi walked to the side, took two glasses of water, and then gently wiped the edge of the cup with his fingers. A drop of dark blue "blood" quietly seeped out, and then slowly slid into the water, quietly dispersing and fading away, without causing any impact on the water in the cup.

Then, Nozomi drank one cup himself and gave the cup with "blood" to Himeko.

"Hey, if you guessed it, don't say it out loud. It won't be fun if Hua finds out."

Himeko sat up with a smile, took the water handed to her by Nozomi, and drank half of it in one gulp.

"Tsk... Is it my illusion? I always feel that every time I drink water from you, it tastes sweet."

"That's normal. The water handed over by a beautiful girl is always sweet, and the same goes for a handsome boy."

"Okay, okay, so narcissistic, huh?"

Himeko laughed a few times but didn't take it too seriously.

"But tell me honestly, Nozomi, you didn't secretly put anything in there, did you?"

"If I really want to put something in there, I'll give it to you to drink?"

Nozomi rolled his eyes.

"Yeah... that's true. After all, besides Mobius, there are several other people on your side who are on good terms with you~"

Himeko narrowed her eyes, her pupils revealing a desire for gossip.

"Hey, tell me, what's going on between you two?"

"You get excited when it comes to gossip, don't you?"

"Hey, tell me, I swear I won't tell anyone!"

"That's a good point, but I don't believe it."

"It's just a casual chat, don't be so rigid~"

…

After that, they chatted about this and that for a while until the time was almost up. Then they separated and planned to pack up their belongings and prepare to return to the base.

"...Vill-V."

On Nozomi's side, it was only after watching Himeko leave that he contacted Vill-V using a separate channel.

"I'm here, Brother."

"Something is not right with Himeko. The 'blood' I left in her body sensed something was wrong."

"Is that so... Do you need me to find a reason to support you?"

"That's not necessary. I'm just telling you... I might have to take a little [intermission]."

"...I understand, Brother."

Vill-V understood what Nozomi meant, so after a moment of silence, she slowly responded.

"After that, I'll have to ask you to work harder. After all, your role and position are still very important."

Nozomi said with a smile.

"...Well, I won't let you down, [Brother]."

"So..."

After receiving the response, Nozomi interrupted the communication with Vill-V, lowered his eyelids slightly, adjusted his breathing a little, and then... laughed.

"It's time to start [the next scene]."

Boom!

There was a loud thunder outside the house.

Rain clouds gathered and slowly moved from the distant sea toward the coast.

Faintly, you can see the white rain approaching the shore from the distant sea, like a curtain gradually covering it.

In the distant sky, a vague and seemingly huge figure was floating on the sea.

The alarm... was sounded, of course.