I am a hero of the former civilization.

Chapter 197 Is that enough?

Ah, that feels so good! You definitely have to experience a bath when you come to Japan.

Ryan nestled comfortably in the bathtub. The cold weather only made the bath more enjoyable. The fatigue accumulated over the past ten hours was rapidly diminishing. He couldn't help but lift his head and yawn as he looked at the steamy bathroom.

This period of rest has been really enjoyable. My schedule was very regular at the Moth of Fire headquarters, even better than when I was at the academy.

Back then, he went to school during the day and occasionally had to go out to carry out missions or deal with Honkai. This time, he hadn't done anything for more than a month, and hadn't even participated in a simulation battle.

Combat skills were already ingrained in his bones, and Ryan wasn't worried about becoming rusty. He even thought it was a good thing for a Herrscher to play it safe.

They don't jump out, which saves me from having to hunt them down all over the world.

I leaned my head against the wall. Lately, most of my brain cells have been consumed by research, and I only occasionally think about the moth-to-a-flame thing.

'Since I entered this apartment, the electromagnetic signal has tripled; some people should start to get nervous.'

That's for sure. Even Hua wouldn't believe my excuse about taking a vacation, let alone those special agents. It would be very difficult for them to monitor me. The person in charge here is probably cursing.

Ryan grinned. He didn't mind causing a bit of trouble in Tokyo. He was just idling around anyway, so it wouldn't hurt to practice.

If I stay for another two days, someone should come looking for me.

He stood up, the water droplets slowly rolling off. After drying himself, he put on a new shirt, then spread his hands, and the water droplets in his hair peeled off on their own, leaving him even drier than with a hairdryer.

"Who says authority can only be used for fighting?"

As a time management master, Ryan integrated practice into his life, gradually making it an instinct.

"Hua, is dinner ready?"

He peeked out and saw that Hua hadn't cooked at all; instead, he was standing with Carol, doing something.

"What are you two doing?"

“No, Carol said she’s already eaten and is going home.” Hua said, pushing her out the door all the way to the entrance.

Carol resisted, whispering in her ear, "Remember courage, courage! Childhood friends can't lose. You don't want to be treated like a little sister forever, do you?"

boom--

The door closed, finally shutting this annoying guy out. With her back to the door, she saw Ryan come out of the room carrying a bag.

Courage? How could I have courage in front of him? My senior brother didn't think about it that way. In a sense, I'm not even as good as Möbius.

Despite his stubbornness, that PhD student acted swiftly. The so-called childhood sweethearts, precisely because they are too familiar with each other, lack surprises, which is a big no-no.

Hua had also secretly read those magazines, even more carefully than Carroll, and the more she read them, the more she felt something was wrong.

"What are you muttering about? Didn't you want to eat?" Ryan noticed her strange expression. He had just confirmed that there was no alcohol in the room, otherwise this wooden stake would have been a real headache.

"Oh right, please take a seat."

The two returned to the living room, and Hua then served the dishes and rice. Her cooking skills were average; she could only cook some simple home-style dishes.

The meatball soup, wood ear mushrooms with sliced ​​pork, and stir-fried gourd were all pretty good, except the pork slices were too salty.

Ryan shoveled a mouthful of rice into his mouth, shaking his head and saying, "It's been so long since I've had home-cooked food. Those idiots are so picky; they're always finding ways to torture me."

Hua lowered his head and ate his rice, asking in a muffled voice, "It seems you're quite happy at headquarters?"

Ryan was about to nod when he suddenly smelled a sour smell and changed his mind, saying, "It's better than sleeping in the open and eating out, and I'll also get to know how to cook. Let me cook tomorrow night."

"Yes, I haven't tasted my senior brother's cooking for a long time." Hua's expression finally improved, and he even put a large piece of meat on Ryan's plate.

He's still just a kid.

Ryan chuckled inwardly. In a few more days, Hua would be almost eighteen. Right now, he's just a spoiled brat.

"By the way, aren't you planning to transfer to headquarters? The situation here in Japan is pretty bad, isn't it?"

“It was really bad, so I can’t leave now. You taught me that a martial artist can’t retreat.” Hua held his face, slightly lost in thought. “I’ve learned a lot this past year. I’ve experienced failure and regret. I’ve made friends and watched them pass away before my eyes.”

I also taught you what it means to be a wise person who knows when to yield.

Ryan glanced at her and noticed that Hua had matured not only in appearance but also in her mindset.

"You don't sound sad?"

“Sadness is useless. As long as I have a breath left, I must continue to fight. But don’t worry, I will not waver.”

The girl had a faint smile on her face. To be honest, her resume was very ordinary among the heroes. She didn't have many impressive achievements, and her strength was just average. She seemed to represent the vast majority of ordinary people in the world.

“But this stubbornness is your greatest strength. The world is changing too fast, and fewer and fewer people can stay true to themselves,” Ryan encouraged her as usual, pointing to the photo on the table.

"Take Himiko for example, she should know who the Fourth Herrscher is by now, right? Has anything changed?"

This put Hua in a difficult position. She was naturally dull and had no idea how to observe micro-expressions, so she tilted her head and thought for a while.

"I sometimes space out, but most of the time I'm pretty normal. Oh, I'm drinking more heavily than before, but I just remembered something."

"what's up?"

"The captain seems to be investigating something related to Lieutenant Rose, but I don't know the specifics."

Lieutenant Rose?

Ryan thought of this old acquaintance again. It was through her that many things changed, and then she died at his hands, the power still fresh in his mind.

"That's an unfortunate story. What's wrong with her?"

"I heard that Lieutenant Rose was supposed to receive psychological treatment, but she was instead sent to that fleet and became an executioner." Hua answered as calmly as possible, sighing.

"The lieutenant's incident had a great impact on the captain. Lieutenant Rose was her adjutant and good friend. After this incident, the captain received a lot of criticism."

That includes you, since you all have a good relationship.

Ryan silently added in his mind that there was nothing that could be done about it. The Herrscher of Wind had nearly ten million lives on her hands, and someone had to be found to take the blame. It was already quite remarkable that Himiko was able to escape from the endless investigation.

Could there be something wrong with the lieutenant's situation? He should be similar to the Third Herrscher in essence.

"I'll keep an eye on this. I'll personally visit Himiko in a couple of days; maybe we can get involved in the Honkai invasion."

Why are they connected?

Hua didn't quite understand, but firmly believed in Ryan's intelligence. He quickly finished the meal and got up to clear the table, but Ryan stopped him again.

"The brass knuckles I gave you last time are probably broken by now."

"Uh, yes, after becoming a Fusion Warrior, ordinary metals can't withstand Honkai energy." Hua answered honestly. She was heartbroken for a long time when the brass knuckles were dissolved, and she specially put the remains into a box to keep them safe.

“I knew it. Sorry the gift is a little late.” Ryan opened the bag, revealing silver-gray gauntlets. “I asked Velvi to make these. The main material is soul steel, with some fluid metal added. Please stand a little further back.”

Hua stepped back a few paces and saw Ryan put on his boxing gloves and casually flick them.

woo-

The air exploded, and a flash of silver light streaked past, like a fleeting sword blade.

"It has a certain transformation function, which can be very effective at critical moments. Let's give it a name."

Hua took it in his hand, his eyes shining as he stroked the metal surface. After a long while, he finally replied, "That sound just now, let's call it 'Tiger's Roar'."

"It sounds too powerful, not like a girl's weapon, but I'm glad you like it." Ryan didn't hesitate and took the plate from her hand. "Since you cooked it, I'll wash the dishes."

"Don't you hate washing dishes the most?"

“It has to be fair, I hate it even more when honest people are bullied. You’re just too honest sometimes.” Ryan tapped her on the head, picked up the plate and went to the kitchen, then remembered something else on the way.

Mebius, you're so useless to be so easily defeated by such an honest Hua.

Hua held the tea, curled up on the sofa, and stared at Ryan's back as he washed the dishes.

Carroll is wrong. This is not a retreat, nor a lack of courage, because I didn't ask for much to begin with.

My senior brother keeps me in his heart, thinking of me even though we're thousands of miles apart, then—

Is that enough...?

Chapter 198 You've gone too far!

The night passed uneventfully. Ryan washed the dishes and then sat down with Hua to watch TV. They watched a variety show that wasn't funny at all and chatted about recent events.

It doesn't require much thought, and there's nothing to hold back.

Ryan briefly talked about the pseudo-Herrscher, telling her to be more careful around the Firemoth in the future. Then they discussed some research breakthroughs, omitting the process and only mentioning the results.

"The Key of God was actually created? I thought Wilvi was joking." Hua held her tea, her eyes widening slightly. This kind of thing was far too profound for an outstanding high school student like her.

"She may seem unreliable, but she is actually very important. It was worth all the effort I put into getting her into the Moth of Fire."

"But you just said that moths that chase fire are unreliable."

“However, there is no other platform that can replace it. For example, Edwin from the Far East branch has a good relationship with me, but he may not necessarily be on my side.” Ryan spread his hands and then gently clenched them into fists.

“Power and authority are sometimes similar, but they are by no means the same; the latter is much more complex.”

Hua still didn't quite understand, only knowing that Ryan didn't have the appetite to devour the entire Firemoth, and that the world couldn't be saved by just a few Supermen. He nodded hesitantly.

"Dr. May probably doesn't approve of rushing things. I guess she'd rather separate enemies, friends, and neutrals."

"Pretty much. Mei has also made preparations, but the world doesn't follow my will. It would be best to take over smoothly, but I can't stand those people constantly dragging me down." Ryan replied in a deep voice, then suddenly clapped his hands lightly. "Alright, you don't need to think too much about this. Just be careful. At least the Far East Branch and the Southern China Branch are friends."

He suddenly didn't want to talk about these brain-teasing things, so he changed the subject:

"By the way, are you still playing that Doomsday Ark game?"

"Yeah, I play when I'm resting." Hua excitedly took out his phone and said with some pride, "I drew two six-star characters, both of which are my favorites."

How many draws are there in total?

"It's probably around 150. Anyway, as long as it's not crooked, I'm very satisfied."

That's practically a guaranteed win. When you see Kevin's golden fleet, you'll probably have your mentality shattered on the spot.

Ryan suppressed a laugh and pointed to the screen: "One more ten-pull left, do you need my help?"

"Uh, that won't be necessary." Hua still remembered the shock of receiving the double yolk, but seeing Ryan's regretful expression, he gritted his teeth and said, "Alright, let me see how lucky my senior brother is."

She couldn't believe that the difference between unlucky and lucky people could be so big, when she saw Ryan take the phone and press a button lightly.

A burst of colorful light illuminated Hua's blank face amidst the soaring golden light—

It's a double yolk again!!