Honkai Impact 3rd: The Girl Who Chases the Flame

"..."

"Ha ha……"

Vervi opened her arms and shouted loudly.

"Welcome to the magic show of the great magician, Vilvie. Since loss is inevitable... then I will take it away!"

……

"Sister Fusion Warrior, will we be sent underground?"

A girl who looked to be in her teens looked up at Melutina, who had horns, in front of her.

At this point, no one is afraid of fusion warriors anymore, because it has long lost its meaning.

"kindness."

Melutina glanced at her and simply gave a perfunctory "hmm".

It's not that she lacks compassion, but rather that what is now called compassion has lost its original meaning.

"Little sister, are you scared?"

Padophilia knelt down in front of the little girl, took some snacks out of her pocket, and handed them to her.

"It's alright, don't worry about it, stay with us."

Are you alright...?

Melutina leaned against the wall, her dark, almost purplish pupils glancing at them before she closed her eyes.

"Sister Mei, why are you looking so gloomy again? Can't you smile?"

Padofilis scratched his head.

“Pado”.

Upon hearing this, Melutina opened her eyes, a warning glint in her dark pupils.

"Don't do anything unnecessary, and don't hold onto unnecessary emotions. I don't want to attend your funeral."

"..."

Padofilis silently turned her face away.

"Let's leave it at that. The calm before the storm is necessary."

Eden spoke, her eyes weary, appearing far more burdened than Melutina's.

"Let's continue..."

"Dudu."

"It's me. Is that Kevin over there?"

Melutina tapped the communicator on her wrist.

"No, it's me."

Dr. Mei's weary voice came through.

"Kevin hasn't fully recovered yet. Sue is with me. You'll be in command for now."

"……Understood."

"Then, report the situation, Melutina."

“Mebius and Thousand Calamities are gathering available resources, while I, Padophilis, and Eden are searching for survivors.”

Melutina spoke up.

"Gresh is at the base. Aponia, Vervie, and Hua are on Freedom Operations."

"...It's a complete mess."

Mei didn't even need to think about it; these groups of people were almost all without a leader, which was why they were in such a disorganized state.

"Dr. Mei, regarding the rescue efforts..."

Melutina hesitated, wanting to speak but stopping herself. She was also a researcher, and she had actually seen the current state of the surface.

"...Stop, rescue personnel."

Mei remained silent for a long time before speaking.

"Wait a minute! Dr. Mei! What, what does this mean?! There are no resources left on the surface that humans can use!"

Padofelis quickly interjected.

"So you mean, you want them to die?"

Eden said quietly.

"Yes. If the end cannot be stopped, all humanity will die."

Dr. Mei's voice carried an undeniable authority.

"And in order to stop the end, we must concentrate all the remaining resources... all of them."

"This is the most reasonable choice, but..."

Melutina had actually guessed it, but she didn't fully understand it.

"Won't this lead to...unrest?"

"The plan is in place. Thanks to 'her,' and with the combined efforts of the remaining major groups, the satellite and underground base have been successfully established. All that remains is preparation for the moon landing. As for the remaining civilians on the surface..."

Dr. Mei paused subtly for a moment.

"Yes, it's unnecessary."

"How can this be..."

Padophilia didn't finish her sentence because she saw that Eden and Melutina remained silent, both looking exhausted, and with a kind of...

Acceptance of the status quo.

"If only Sister Ellie were still here..."

Padofilis knew she shouldn't say that, but she just couldn't help it.

"We will definitely not agree!"

“...You’re right, Padofilis.”

Dr. Mei's voice also carried deep and complex emotions.

"But she's gone."

"..."

.........

"call……"

Wilvi looked at Hua, who had already fainted, and wiped her sweat.

"This girl is so easy to fool."

She simply said she'd perform a magic trick for her, and the girl actually did exactly what she was told.

"So, id, are you really sure?"

"Yes, conductor, let her out. Leave the rest to me."

"Okay... um, are we going to die?"

The conductor crossed his arms and asked earnestly.

"Yes, if the plan goes smoothly, we will die at the hands of that child."

The id, the original Velvet, speaks.

“This is an extra burden for her, but…”

"But we should die at her hands."

"That's what the experts said."

"No one else is worthy."

"Looking down at the stars," said Vervière.

“A rising star of the new era, she should receive some… more special memories from us.”

So said the great magician.

"So, this is the fraudster's last deception."

Illusory Wilvi smiled.

"This time, all I need to do is fool that child..."

"That's good." x7

……

"At least let's take that child with us..."

"Padophilia said, her head bowed."

"Alright."

Eden did not refute this; after all, they were merely forced to be rational, not cold-blooded.

"……etc."

Melutina suddenly reached out and pressed down on Eden's shoulder.

Something's... not right.

"You're saying..."

Eden paused for a moment, then his expression changed.

"The smell of blood?!"

"what?!"