Honkai, why do you only play high-end games?

Lin Wei didn't care what Raven did.

All he wanted now was to go home and have a good sleep, a deep sleep. He felt like he was almost exhausted during this period of time.

God have mercy on me, I just wanted to be a salted fish in peace...

Lin Wei muttered to herself, and as soon as she got home she fell straight onto the bed and fell asleep.

After a while, the air beside the bed twisted, and a girl with pink hair and long ears appeared out of thin air.

Yaezakura stared at him for a while, revealing a helpless smile. She reached out to take off his shoes, helped him take off his coat, carefully covered him with the quilt, and then took his shoes to the living room and placed them at the entrance near the door.

Lin Wei also held the "cane" in her hand. Yae Sakura carefully took it out, and when it was in her hand, it automatically transformed back into the form of a sheathed demon sword.

Yaezakura reached out and pulled out a section, staring at its scarlet blade for a long time. After a long time, she put the sword back into the sheath as if nothing had happened and placed it high on the bookshelf.

After doing all this, Yaezakura took out a collection of poems from the bookshelf and sat at the table to read quietly.

Life goes on as usual.

Chapter 67: The Captain's Letter

Philippines, Manila, the headquarters of the Destiny Snow Lotus Team.

"Tuk, Tuk, Tuk..."

A crisp and polite knock on the door.

"Please come in."

Captain Jier, who was writing furiously at her desk, said this without even looking up. There was no need for her to look up specifically.

As the captain of the Snow Lotus Team, she could clearly tell who was standing outside the door just by the rhythm, strength and position of the knocks.

Anna, dressed in casual clothes, pushed the door open and said softly,

"Captain, the Coral Island operation report has been completed and sent to your personal terminal."

"Yes, I received it. I just read it."

Captain Jier continued writing furiously without even looking up.

"What's going on, my vice-captain? Why are you suddenly so reserved?"

After a few seconds, she seemed to realize something, closed her pen, looked up and smiled,

"If I hadn't known your purpose in advance, I would have thought you were here to hand in your resignation."

"Captain, you're joking..."

Anna felt helpless. She didn't want to, but there was a hurdle in her heart that made it difficult for her to be at ease in front of her captain.

"When we were packing up yesterday, I forgot to ask you one thing. There were several other innocent victims who were sent to Coral Island with me. How are they doing?"

Since Anna was asking about business matters, Jier put away the enthusiastic smile on his face and said seriously,

"The coordinates you sent were accurate. The team immediately took them in and moved them to a safe location. Also... the strange 'constructs' you mentioned in your report, two were found at the scene... uh..."

Jier was a little stuck because she didn't know what quantifier to use for that kind of human-like yet inhuman thing. After a little hesitation, she skipped over these details.

"They were already paralyzed when they were discovered. Along with the Honkai Energy Core you brought back, they have been dispatched to headquarters for analysis and destruction. We hope to find clues to the enemy from the technical details extracted from them."

After saying that, Jie Eryou smiled and praised,

"Well done, Anna. Very skillful."

"This is nothing..."

Anna felt a little embarrassed, feeling that she had done very little. If it weren't for Lin Wei's help, her only option would probably be to pretend to surrender, sneak into the base, and then act accordingly.

In that case, the risk factor would be too great.

"I will revise your report slightly later and then submit it to headquarters."

Jie Er stood up from her seat, stretched comfortably, and said casually,

"After all, some details are glossed over too briefly. If such a report is submitted directly to headquarters, I'm afraid the superiors will question it face to face~"

"Uh……"

Anna was stunned and looked at the captain in front of her with some surprise. The captain didn't look like a captain at all, but instead looked as lazy as a house girl. She felt a little at a loss.

She was not stupid, so of course she understood what the captain meant.

“It’s so comfortable~”

Captain Jier sighed contentedly after finishing his stretch.

"People aren't tools without their own will. Everyone has their own secrets and difficulties, right? You're my team member, my vice-captain. I trust you, and that's all."

"...Thank you, Captain."

Anna's heart was filled with mixed feelings. The two mutually exclusive emotions of gratitude and rejection were mixed together at this moment, making her a little confused.

Enthusiasm, tolerance, indifference, ruthlessness...

She didn't know which one was the true background of the Valkyrie captain in front of her.

"Okay, don't be so polite. I haven't finished yet."

Jie Er waved his hand, but did not return to his seat. He just sat on the edge of the desk and continued,

"Your discovery this time is very important. I've already contacted the other Valkyrie teams stationed in Southeast Asia, as well as the head of the Oceania branch. They're also taking it very seriously and have already begun investigating whether similar vicious cases have occurred in their respective areas."

Having said this, Jier suddenly lowered his head and sighed.

"Look at those poor people. They've lost everything, and have barely survived after enduring near-death experiences. Yet, they're being completely stripped of even the chance to start a new life... It's truly, truly cruel... isn't it?"

His tone was as low as if he was talking to himself, yet as sincere as if he was confessing something. Anna had never seen a captain like this before.

In his own impression, she has always been confident and calm, and has never shown such a moment close to "vulnerability".

It made her want to believe her again.

"Captain, I..."

Jier suddenly raised his head and interrupted Anna's words with his gesture. He pointed at her neck as if the scene just now had never happened and said with a smile,

"That beautiful pendant on your neck, I remember it was originally a complete heart shape, how come only half is left?"

The topic changed abruptly, which made Anna stunned for a moment. Then she suddenly reached out to cover her slender neck, blushing and taking two steps back, not knowing how to explain.

Or rather, she never thought that such a thing actually needed an explanation...

"You're so energetic! It seems like you've gained a lot from this outing..."

Seeing her embarrassed look, Jier found it amusing and couldn't help but chuckle twice. Then he sighed and said meaningfully,

"Since half of my heart has been given to me, I must protect the half that belongs to you. Don't lose it, don't damage it..."

"I'm not, I'm not..."

Anna's face turned even redder, and she stamped her feet anxiously, but she didn't know how to explain.

"Haha, are you still shy?"

The captain's "just right" teasing made her feel even more embarrassed and annoyed. She couldn't help but want to go up and cover her mouth to make her shut up, but when she was about to do it, she got stuck and fell into embarrassment.

The action was too intimate, and the barrier between her and her captain made her feel deflated.

Captain Jier looked at this scene, sighed with disappointment, and asked softly,

"You still hate me, don't you?"

Anna shook her head first, thought about it, then nodded hesitantly, and said in a daze,

"I don't know either……"

She really didn't know how to face this captain and senior who cared so much about her.

Although she did not encounter any danger during this adventure with Lin Wei, it was full of ups and downs for her.

After this journey, her previously extreme heart has gradually calmed down. After meeting and getting along with the captain again, she has vaguely understood that she also has her own difficulties in her heart. As she said, "Everyone has their own secrets and difficulties."

However, the thorn stuck in my heart cannot be removed easily. It hurts every time it is touched.

Even though she told herself that she should no longer be hostile to her captain, she couldn't deceive herself and still wanted an explanation.

I wonder what he would do or say if Lin Wei was around?

Will you laugh at yourself for being pretentious, then tell yourself where you are wrong and what is right; or will you touch your hair gently and then tell yourself firmly: There is nothing wrong with sticking to your position?

Anna couldn't help but be distracted, and her hand unconsciously touched the ends of her hair.

"It's okay, I don't blame you. I know I've gone too far."

Seeing her distracted, Jier thought she was struggling and hesitating, so he smiled self-deprecatingly, expressing his understanding and not forcing her.

"No, Captain. I just... need some time..."

Anna wanted to explain anxiously, but her voice became lower and lower.

"Time... Haha, it's so good..."

Captain Jier sighed meaningfully, then sat back in his chair, uncapped his pen, and continued writing. The room fell into silence for a moment, and the rustling sound of the pen tip sliding across the paper could be clearly heard.

Anna felt that she was being too harsh on Captain Jie Er, who had helped her, so she wanted to say something to break the awkwardness. She looked at her writing, hesitated for a moment, and then asked,

"Captain, are you writing a mission report? Why are you writing it on paper instead of typing it directly into the terminal?"

Anna was not just making small talk, she was genuinely curious about this scene, because Tianming rarely used paper for communication anymore. Apart from the necessary library and some training materials, even the students in the Valkyrie Academy had long stopped doing their homework on paper.

"You misunderstood. This is not a mission report. It's just some of my personal habits."

Jier said with a smile,

"It's okay to tell you, but please don't laugh at me. I'm writing a letter to a friend, a very good friend..."

"write a letter?"

Anna looked in curiously, then quickly retracted her gaze. Fearing that she had violated someone's privacy, she asked doubtfully,

"Since you're good friends, why not just call? Technology is so convenient nowadays. Even if the other person doesn't have time to answer the phone, you can just send a text message. They'll see it quickly! Writing or mailing letters takes up so much time..."

Jie Er paused his writing and said calmly,

"Because she's gone..."

"He's not here...Ah! I'm sorry!"

Anna didn't react for a moment and was still a little confused, then she suddenly realized how rude the word she blurted out was, and quickly apologized.

"It's okay, it's just my personal habit... I say I'm writing a letter... but actually, only I can see it. I just hope that the other person can receive my thoughts..."

"It doesn't matter if she doesn't receive it... I wrote it down, I remember it, and I will pass it on to her one day..."

Captain Jier's tone was gentle and calm, but Anna felt an inexplicable pang of sadness in her heart.

Jier continued writing, but his speed slowed down significantly, and he used half of his attention to talk to Anna.

"Anna, you know what? For me, I prefer the feeling of writing on paper bit by bit with pen and ink to those cold symbols made up of 0s and 1s on the screen... Haha, maybe one day, I'm gone, and these words are buried underground, maybe for hundreds of years, maybe thousands of years... But as long as humans exist, they may dig up a piece of broken leaf in some corner of the earth and piece together a simple, even story from the few fragmented lines inside..."

Jie Er wrote and spoke as if talking to herself.

"Even though it's not much, it's proof that I, she, and they, we once existed... Proof that insignificant, unnoticed stories like these once happened in this world."

Anna couldn't help but burst into tears, and she didn't understand why she wanted to cry.

Maybe it’s because it’s really too small and too humble?

"Oh, why am I saying this? It really spoils the mood..."

Jie Er laughed and changed the subject.

"Really? Why are you acting like an old woman? Don't mind me, don't mind me... By the way, Anna, let me give you a tip. If you have something on your mind, you can try writing a letter to someone important, like I did."

Jie Er picked up a piece of white letter paper and raised it, revealing a mischievous smile.

“If you want it, send it out; if you don’t want it, or the time is not right, keep it well and tell yourself that one day, the other person will receive your love.”

"Well, I'll try..."

Anna nodded heavily.

Jier smiled and continued writing. After a moment, he carefully picked up a few pages of letter paper filled with tiny handwriting, folded them and put them into a white envelope. He sealed it carefully, wrote the recipient and the date of mailing seriously, then stood up and carefully put it into a safe.

Anna could see clearly that the box was completely filled with the same envelopes.