K424 of the Collapse World

Moreover, thinking of this, North found that a lot of questions emerged from the bottom of his heart...

This girl... why did she come here? What abilities does she have? Who... is she? ...

These questions lingered in the middle-aged man's mind. He was upset and had no intention of thinking about these questions on his own at the moment. He just wanted to get the answers quickly.

"Who am I? Haven't you already guessed this question?"

Lan Feng sneered. She remembered that it was this middle-aged man who first looked at her as if she were an orphan.

(Don’t you like to imagine? Then let yourself imagine.)

The middle-aged man frowned. It was obvious that Lan Feng did not want to answer his question. This statement was just a perfunctory one.

"So...what is your purpose?"

Lan Feng saw the deep vigilance in the middle-aged man's eyes and suddenly lost the mood to talk to him. Lan Feng was not very good at communication skills, especially when the person in front of her was someone who saw through her true face.

"Don't worry, I just want to find a place to stay first... But now it seems that it doesn't matter. It's your freedom to deal with me as you wish."

As she spoke, Lan Feng turned her head away and ignored North. She was exhausted and didn't want to waste time talking to this guy...

"Hey! I can't let a dangerous guy like you go..."

She turned a deaf ear to North's words and walked straight to the brother and sister's house. At this point, she had no other choice. If North wanted to drive her away, then let him do it. Anyway, Lan Feng followed them here just to get some information.

(What I need to know is the geographical location of this place and the terrain nearby... That girl named Elena should be willing to tell me, right?)

(I should have told her the truth about her brother and let her decide what to do. By the way... if I had known this, why would I have gone to such great lengths to act that scene...?)

Lan Feng thought with some self-mockery and left the spot.

North silently looked at the girl's petite and haggard back, and suddenly felt a little guilty for no apparent reason.

He was a little confused. There were too many mysteries about the girl named Lan Feng, and he couldn't see through them at all. Because of this, he was afraid of these unknown things, so North chose to confront Lan Feng directly.

But...now it seems that this decision was a bit hasty...

"Mr. North...! Why did Lan Feng go to Elena's house? Is Elena planning to adopt her? ...Mr. North?"

At this time, the people who had gathered had basically dispersed. Mike and Jera walked forward, but saw that North was concentrating on thinking and did not react...

"Mr. North? What happened?"

Mike spoke again, and North finally came back to his senses. His expression became tired, and his eyes were full of sorrow. He hesitated for a long time, and finally gave up the idea of ​​telling Mike a certain guess...

“It’s okay, that’s it, Lan Feng is willing to follow Elena, so it’s not bad for them to live together.”

"Oh, I see……"

After hearing what North said, Mike felt a little disappointed. He had originally planned to adopt Lan Feng himself... but now it seems that there is no chance.

·————————————·

Outside the venue, an unremarkable man touched his glasses. On the seemingly ordinary glass lens, a stream of data flashed...

"What an unexpected discovery..."

He lowered his head, muttering to himself, and his eyes lit up behind his thick glasses.

If Tesla were here, he would be able to recognize that this person was Bonnie, the researcher who was confirmed missing during the quantum leap that day.

"Mr. Bonnie, what are you waiting for?"

Seeing this man, a resident could not help but urge him. Because of Bonnie's polite words and deeds, many people had a good impression of this man who joined the settlement a few days ago.

"Huh? Nothing, let's go."

Bonnie came back to his senses and looked at the neighbor in front of him whom he had just met a few days ago. A steady smile returned to his face.

"Huh... Mr. Bonnie, why do I feel like... you seem to be in a good mood?"

The resident looked at Bonnie's slightly raised mouth and asked casually.

"…The child is safe and sound. Isn't that something worth being happy about?"

"Haha...Mr. Bonnie, you are so kind..."

The two chatted intermittently, and the neighbors didn't notice that Bonnie's expression was gradually becoming enthusiastic, which was obviously not just as simple as being happy...

030 Sense of Responsibility

"Excuse me...can I come in?"

Lan Feng knocked on the wooden wall next to him and spoke to the girl in the room.

This shabby wooden house has a full view of the room from the door. The uneven wooden boards are randomly built into a barely habitable shape, and there are only some simple wooden furniture inside.

The two children who lived in it...

Hearing the voice, Elena in the house turned around in surprise. She didn't expect that the girl who saved Kerry would follow her into her house.

"Sir...you...?"

"My name is Lan Feng. Your name should be Elena, right?"

Lan Feng saw the girl's trembling look and said helplessly. At this moment, thinking of the great change in the kind middle-aged man's attitude towards him, Lan Feng felt a little uncomfortable.

After she left, North did not chase her. However, as long as she concentrated, she could feel a faint sense of being watched. It was obvious that North did not trust her and must have found someone to monitor her.

So, Lan Feng was too lazy to pretend and started communicating directly with Elena.

(Forget it... This is normal for a dangerous guy like me with unknown origins.)

Lan Feng didn't know that North hadn't told anyone about his guess about her. At this moment, the one who gave her the feeling of being spied on was actually someone else...

"Um... Lord Lan Feng...?"

"Stop! What's with this weird honorific? Please just call me by my name."

Seeing the girl's servile manner, Lan Feng hurriedly called a halt. As a modern person, Lan Feng felt very uncomfortable with the feeling of adding a honorific title to his own name.

On the other side, although she saw the silver-haired girl casually found a wooden chair to sit down and waved her hand, looking nonchalant, Elena couldn't relax. The girl standing in front of her was able to eliminate the erosion of the collapse, and was obviously not an ordinary person. Moreover, she was also Kerry's savior. With this sense of awe, Elena was unwilling to call Lan Feng's name directly. She always felt that it would be very disrespectful.

"Then... Miss Lan Feng... who are you...?"

Elena hesitated again and again, and tried to ask. She didn't know why the girl wanted to help her, nor did she know why the girl came to her. She suddenly became curious about who this girl was and how she cured Kerry.

However, Lan Feng suddenly raised his hand and interrupted her question.

"Let's put these issues aside... your brother seems to be called... Kerry? Yes, the most important thing now is that I need to talk to you about Kerry."

Without getting bogged down in the question of address, Lan Feng went straight to the point. Sure enough, when Elena heard about her brother, she was stunned and her expression became nervous.

"Kerry...hasn't he been cured by you? How come..."

Her voice was trembling a little, but she forced a smile as she asked Lan Feng.

"No...it's not that simple. You know Honkai energy, right?"

At this point, Lan Feng looked at the girl in front of him. Seeing Elena nodded solemnly, Lan Feng continued.

"The Houkai energy that corrodes the human body has not been driven out, but has been suppressed in his body. As for the hidden dangers... I can't guarantee it either. In other words, he may be corroded again and become a dead soldier."

Lan Feng spoke slowly, and then fell silent. She wanted to give the girl some time to accept this matter.

Elena's bright eyes froze, and the next moment, she became flustered...

Lan Feng's words made Elena feel like she had fallen from heaven to hell! The huge gap made her feel a little unreal.

"How could this happen... Miss Lan Feng, do you have any way to save Kerry...?"

Suddenly, Elena looked at Lan Feng in front of her, as if she had grabbed a life-saving straw, and hurriedly stepped forward and asked.

"Don't panic... As long as I'm by his side, he won't be corrupted..."

Lan Feng spoke softly, trying to calm the suddenly nervous girl.

"Really...really?"

"Of course, as long as I can find it in time, I can stop the collapse from eroding him. Also... I feel a little uncomfortable, can you please let me go?"

Hearing Lan Feng's helpless voice, Elena was stunned, and then she realized that in her excitement, she actually went forward and grabbed the girl's shoulders and pressed her against the back of the chair. The silver-haired girl raised her head and looked at her expressionlessly.

“Ah! I’m sorry…! Are you okay? Does it hurt? I’m so sorry… I…”

Elena quickly let go of her hand, lowered her head, and looked apologetic. She had used a lot of strength without realizing it just now, and probably hurt the girl's shoulder, right?

"It doesn't matter."

Lan Feng said calmly. In fact, Elena did use a lot of strength to pinch herself, but with Lan Feng's current physique, he would not be hurt by such a little force.

Even though she was very close to the girl just now, Lan Feng remained calm this time. For some reason, she suddenly realized that she had gotten used to this situation...

"Anyway... As you can see, I can 'treat' the erosion of Honkai. I can do my best to heal your brother. In exchange, please take me in temporarily... Is that okay?"

Looking into Elena's eyes, Lan Feng said seriously with a solemn expression.

"What...? Take him in? You...?"

“Well…actually, I just

I am just a person who has no place to stay. I met Mr. North today and followed him here... So, is this suggestion okay?"

Lan Feng repeated it, and Elena couldn't help but be shocked after hearing this. This mysterious little girl turned out to be a homeless wanderer?

She looked at the girl in front of her again. Lan Feng's temperament and appearance were out of place in this simple village. However, when she saw her tattered clothes covered with dust from the journey, Elena was sure that Lan Feng's situation was indeed as she said...

030 Sense of Responsibility >>

"Of course...! I would like to ask you to help me with this matter. Please save Miss Kerry, Lan Feng..."

Elena was so nervous that she even spoke incoherently. Even though she knew that Lan Feng was not as noble as she had imagined, she still could not change her attitude towards Lan Feng.

(I tried my best...? I really made trouble for myself...)

Lan Feng looked at the unconscious little boy with a slightly strange look in his eyes, but he returned to normal the next moment. Since he had already decided to save the child, he would do his best.

(Although... I know basically nothing about these things...)

Lan Feng had accumulated a lot of experience in manipulating Honkai. But if it was the nature of Honkai, it would be impossible to understand it clearly without a lot of experiments. As for the erosion process of Honkai, Lan Feng seemed to have no idea.

Despite this, she had no choice but to agree to it at this time.

(Such a young child, who has not yet experienced the happiness that life should have, should not have lost his life so early...)

"Let's get to know each other again. My name is Lan Feng, and I'm from China...Shenzhou."

Lan Feng stood up and stretched out her hand to Elena. Due to her height, she had to raise her hand a little higher...

Elena looked at the little girl who raised her hand. It looked like she wanted to shake hands, right? After hesitating for a moment, she timidly stretched out her dusty palm and gently held Lan Feng's white and tender hand.

"My name is Elena... Elena Nosia, and this is my brother, Kerry Nosia."

Ukraine, the ruins of the Anti-Entropy Base...

"Welcome, Valkyrie of the headquarters."

Lucy looked at the two girls who came down from the transport plane and said with a smile. If she wasn't facing Claudia, as an A-level Valkyrie in charge of surveying and commanding, her manners would be impeccable at any time.

"Hi~ You must be Senior Lucy, right? My name is Claire! I'm Colonel Claudia's personal disciple!"

The short-haired girl Claire waved her hands happily, not showing the depressed look she had a few days ago. However, when Lucy heard the name Claire said, her expression suddenly became a little stiff...

"Hmm? Miss Lucy, what's wrong with you? Is the current situation very critical?"

Lillian, who was walking next to them, was not as thick-skinned as Claire. She noticed the change in Lucy's expression and asked with some concern.

"Ah? No, no, that's not the case. It's just my fault... Sorry to have embarrassed you two..."

Lucy explained somewhat awkwardly, but soon she adjusted herself again.

"Regarding this commission, I would like to ask you two to serve as the vanguard of the survey team and protect these scientific researchers. According to the test, the nearby Honkai beasts should only be around the Temple level... So, I'm leaving it to you."

"Hey~~ Temple level... Isn't that easy?"

Claire said nonchalantly, as she remembered that it was not difficult for her to defeat the Temple-level Honkai beast in the simulation training.

"Don't be careless, Claire. Think about how we failed in our last mission..."

Lillian frowned, thinking that her partner was a little arrogant. Sure enough, after hearing this, Claire immediately wilted.

"...Ah, it was just a sneak attack, I..."

"But the failure of the mission is a fact."

"Humph! But you, Lillian, weren't you defeated right away?"

“At that time I…!”