Honkai Impact 3rd, a simulator of lifelong regret!

Now, Mebius is practically indistinguishable from a real viper.

[How could a person possibly approach a snake?]

[Although Dr. Möbius's behavior is indeed somewhat strange compared to the moral standards here, it's at least a bit too straightforward.]

No matter how terrifying the temptation of truth may be, if you're faced with a snake, you might not even be able to utter a single word before being swallowed whole.

Most people wouldn't recommend making a deal with the devil for knowledge, provided that the knowledge can actually be obtained.

—This ending cannot be entirely blamed on others.

[Möbius himself was quite indifferent to other people, especially their opinions, and he never tried to hide his use of experimental subjects.]

Arrogance in one's words is not inherently problematic, but when combined with an act of ruthlessness and indifference, it becomes a serious issue.

No one would accept that a cold-blooded, ruthless, and talented person could perfectly showcase their talent.

This is an instinctive fear.

Most people's so-called admiration for the strong is more of a display of superiority and a sense that none of this concerns them. If they were truly placed in front of those despicable and ruthless strong individuals, their first thought would be to run away as fast as possible, and they would never want to appear before such a powerful person.

The superior attitude of most people actually stems from their detachment from matters that don't concern them.

In this situation, even if her assistant Blanca tried her best to salvage her reputation, how could she possibly overcome the Doctor's actions?

[They don't even care about their own reputation and image.]

[Originally, he was one of the creators of the Fire-Chasing Moths.]

[The most prestigious doctor in the world at one time.]

[Whatever the research lacks, a little trick can satisfy all the requirements, and even the leaders of those major powers dare not ignore it.]

Even now, my own research funding is easily blocked, and uploading experiments leads to questions about whether innocent people have been harmed.

Even something as normal as conducting follow-up experiments with death row inmates after the event was over was subject to constant scrutiny, with people fearing that Möbius might be using the guise of death row inmates to lure innocent children.

If the other party continues...

[His reputation will only get worse.]

You don't want things to end up like this for you and Vivi, even though your girlish nature is completely opposite to Möbius's, and you absolutely don't want it to happen to you.

【certainly. 】

These are just the results of idle daydreams. Even if a disaster really strikes, you can run away with the girl, move back to the Spiral Workshop, and continue your carefree life.

Compared to all this nonsense, perhaps you and the girl would rather spend your time together.

For example, try going shopping together, or agree to leave the room together.

Choose to go out in places with fewer people at night.

The world is still brightly lit, with dazzling neon night scenes. Various night markets have lit up with colorful lights, and all kinds of food stalls have started to open for business with their calls. Various izakayas are wafting out their aromas, whetting the appetite and making mouths water.

—It was brighter than daytime.

With the boy's support and his presence beside her, the girl is no longer as afraid to even go out as she once was, her heart crushed by the world's malice.

As long as you hold the boy's hand, you can move forward confidently even in crowded places.

No matter how noisy or chaotic it is, it doesn't matter. All I need is the company of my son.

All you need is your hand to hold the boy

All that's needed is for their eyes to still be able to see the boy.

As long as she can still hear sounds and smell scents, the girl will not be afraid of anything.

Face the crowd with composure, embrace the mundane with composure, and accept with composure the gaze of others that only exists in your heart and is never truly felt.

Being exposed to too much of other people's gaze is not a good choice either.

On the contrary, it will make them rely more on the people around them.

The reason they went out together was to help the girl overcome her self-loathing and at least live more like a normal person.

If life outside is the same as life inside a room, then going out becomes a meaningless thing.

Jiangcheng's footsteps have moved closer to sparser areas.

The other side of the street was quiet. It was past noon, and a large number of students who had just finished school were still pouring out. The rush hour had passed, and only a few people hurried by, their footsteps echoing softly, creating an indescribable tranquility.

These are the quiet and peaceful atmospheres that you can't feel in bustling streets.

Although the boy's life was not lacking in such tranquility.

Sometimes it was even too calm.

Just like the trip I took with that girl back then.

Extreme noise, extreme loneliness, walking through the bustling city yet being ignored by everyone, even made the young man feel as if he had returned to his past sadness.

But if you turn your head now, you will see a completely different person from the one who was with Alicia before—Velvie, dressed in a formal dress, gently pushes away the branches that are blocking her view. Her shoes, covered in mud, reveal a hint of flesh-colored black stockings, and her delicate earlobes are visible through her long brown hair that is lifted by the branches.

Perhaps because her hair had been covering her ears for too long, her earlobes were still warm and slightly red, as if they were faintly radiating heat.

The small earrings that were originally clipped to her earlobes were removed, seemingly because they were too inconvenient, thus revealing her fair and rosy skin.

Her clothes and makeup had changed, but the wariness on her face and the tenderness in her eyes remained the same.

[No special actions or deeper attempts are needed; simply walking like this allows the girl to learn more about the world.]

[Actually, you have no idea exactly when the girl started to feel less inclined to go out.]

Although this can also be categorized as a characteristic of mental illness.

【It doesn’t matter. 】

It doesn't matter.

You have ample time and are quite willing; traveling with a young woman is a completely different experience, yet equally precious.

[Just keep walking quietly, why not enjoy the silence?]

Silence can, in a sense, be called loneliness, just like your past life.

But if this is the kind of loneliness...

【—You really like it.】

It's not just one person's loneliness, it's a shared solitude. No matter how dim the stars in the sky or how long the night, there will always be someone standing by your side, someone whose presence and warmth you can always feel.

The silence continued until the girl suddenly looked up.

Her silver-gray pupils were still so beautiful, with a touch of pink in the middle as if a cherry blossom had fallen into them that day, leaving behind a touch of brilliance belonging to the west. Yet, hidden within that familiarity was an expression that was hard to understand.

At least at this moment, the boy, who prided himself on knowing the girl very well, couldn't understand the overflowing emotions contained in her pupils.

"Among the people you know, is there anyone whose disappearance would make you feel so sad, so very sad, that you might never recover from it in your lifetime?"

……

Collapse.

A wondrous, indescribable product.

It was just like the apocalyptic disaster in myths and legends.

It is extremely contagious and corrosive; any life that comes into contact with it is almost certain to die. Moreover, it can suddenly be born in any corner of the world at any time, without requiring any of the preconditions known to humankind.

The destruction of Berlin resulted in the deaths of tens of millions of people.

The credibility of the European continent has dropped to almost zero.

The former center of the world, even after its decline, still wields considerable influence; Europe, a world-class financial center, has been reduced to ruins.

Even with their combined abilities, their research on Honkai remains at the most basic level.

Terror, despair, like an abyss where no light can be seen.

Or perhaps it is precisely because the girl was born with unimaginable talent, and even if she could maintain a level of top genius even in the future, that she would realize just how terrifying this disaster called Collapse truly is.

What kind of despair?

Not a glimmer of light can be seen.

……

This was ultimately just a minor incident.

[This didn't interfere with your leisurely stroll through the streets; it merely made the already somewhat silent atmosphere even more subdued.]

Neither you nor the girl are outgoing people; let's set aside the girl's withdrawn nature and self-loathing.

Although you have had a long journey and met many people, you are ultimately just an unnoticed passerby. Even at your banquet, you are just an unknown guest on the sidelines.

Living outside is no different from staying in a room with someone else; in fact, there's less interaction because there are other people around.

You naturally can't accept all of this.

[Next time, there will be even less reason to take the girl out.]

Even if it's somewhat coercive, you still drag the girl along to play on the street.

When there are a few more people, standing together gives you a completely different feeling.

Although you can't form a sea of ​​people, you're like a small stream. The two of you, in your lone boat, go against the flow of people, battling against the tiny waves.

The warmth of their embrace felt almost unreal; the body heat, the scent of their bodies, the fragrance of their hair—all began to spread.

After sampling a few snacks, the girl's response was always the same: delicious and happy.

[It seems there's not much room for maneuver.]

[I know you walked a few more steps and saw a facility by the roadside that should never have been there, even if it's no longer the headquarters of the Firemoth, it shouldn't be in such an economically developed area.]

【--air gun.】

[A simple wall that has never changed; a row of red and green balloons; and a row of plastic guns lined up seriously less than ten meters away.]

[If there's anything special about it, it's that the balloon is pitifully small, probably even smaller than Wilvi's finger.]

【Perhaps you could try this amusement facility. Under Mebius's special training, your physical fitness has improved significantly, and you're even able to show off a little in front of the girls, which is quite rare for you.】

Even if Wilvie is an unimaginably talented genius, she can't have a perfect, all-around advantage; she can't possess both mental and physical abilities.

Although it may seem a bit naive and simple, who said that relationships have to be grand and sophisticated?