Honkai, But With a Spirit Simulator

[The Herrscher was still rampaging, and as a member of Fifth Squad, Hua had no choice but to follow Himiko's lead, tirelessly moving from one battlefield to another]

[Finally, after an encirclement, the Third Herrscher was successfully defeated, and the war brought about by the Third Honkai finally came to an end]

[During this period, Hua not only contributed to the battles, but her weapon modification skills also gradually gained fame among the Moth Chasers to Fire soldiers]

In a Moth Chasers to Fire sub-base, the participants began to hold a banquet to celebrate the victory of this war.

"Hua, aren't you going? You rarely get to wear such a beautiful dress."

A woman in a cheongsam walked out of the ballroom, looking at Hua, who seemed a little lost.

"Captain... I... I can't quite understand," Hua said with a confused and troubled expression. "So many people died in the war, several sub-bases were destroyed, but why, in the blink of an eye, can everyone so happily forget the past, singing and dancing?"

Hua was not only asking Himiko, but also Liu Bai, and even herself.

"...No one is made of iron," Himiko shook the wine glass in her hand, her face reflected on the glass wall. "Maybe I forgot to tell you, for us, forgetting is a bitter medicine. No one chooses to forget for no reason. Forgetting is a means... what we get is happiness, but not entirely."

"Hua, although those people look like a bunch of drunkards now, you should know better than anyone how brave they were on the battlefield."

Liu Bai also said from the side.

"Remember the story I told you... that warrior named Reanna, who had served her organization for over a hundred years. She had everything she could want: power, status, fame. But even so, at the most critical moment, she resolutely chose to help us."

Hua remembered.

Even the desire of that warrior named Reanna in the story to become a "watcher" had greatly touched Hua.

"...Is it because they want to maintain hope?"

That warrior abandoned the ancient and decaying organization to protect something more beautiful.

"Hey, you're understanding pretty quickly, aren't you?"

Hearing Hua's words, Himiko was stunned for a moment, then laughed.

"That's right, perhaps this is to remind ourselves – we won this war, and we will win future wars."

Even if these battle-hardened warriors have realized that the strength of the Honkai is increasing, they must tell themselves that they can win.

Excessively indulging in grief will only crush them before the next war arrives.

Hua inexplicably thought of the story of that warrior named Reanna again.

She had a junior she once favored, who, after surviving the battlefield, chose to end her young life by suicide due to excessive self-blame and sadness.

"...Yes, I understand."

Hua glanced at the noisy ballroom, then shook her head.

"But I don't know anything about dancing, so I'll pass. Besides, I think I can still handle it."

"...Hua, your mentality is really resilient to the point of being frightening," Himiko didn't seem to intend to rejoin the party, sighing to herself.

"I... resilient?" Hua was stunned. "No, I just have a clear goal."

With Teacher Liu...

"That's why it's frightening. Not everyone can stare at their goal and move forward without wavering – at least I can't," Himiko lamented. "By the way, Hua, would you like to work at headquarters?"

"Headquarters?"

Hua was slightly taken aback by Himiko's suggestion, completely not understanding what she meant.

"Transfer... or..."

"Don't think too much, it's not a transfer, and it's not that I have a problem with you."

Himiko smiled.

"Actually, if we're talking about merit... you'd never guess, but in this war, just in terms of merit, you're qualified enough to take my position."

Himiko looked at the 16-year-old girl in front of her with emotion.

In the many battles, large and small, during this period, Hua had become the sharpest point of the entire Fifth Squad, leading the team to open up the battle and even deliver the final blow.

And in terms of gains, Hua was basically the leader, it was hard to imagine that this was something that could be done with a pair of fists.

"The original intention of my inquiry was actually further study."

"Further study?" Hua didn't quite understand.

"Hua, in every war, squads are wiped out while performing tasks or due to accidents. Therefore, in order to maintain combat power, squads must be quickly rebuilt. I mentioned before that your merits are actually enough to serve as captain."

"Then, what does this have to do with further study?"

"First, it's to build up your resume, and second, it's as training to be a captain."

Himiko explained.

"But you're a bit special. Aren't your weapon modification skills very strong? I submitted your Fist Blades Type II, and the response was quite good, even attracting the attention of those scientists in the weapon department, who asked me if I would be willing to let you go."

"Let you go..." This word made Hua a little embarrassed.

"But don't be happy yet, it's one thing for the weapon department to pay attention to you." Himiko suddenly showed a headache with a hint of schadenfreude. "As luck would have it, your combat talent has also attracted the attention of that great scientist in the biomedical department. It is said that that person is now very interested in your body, Hua."

In... interested?

Just from Himiko's words, Hua could feel a strong sense of foreboding.

At the same time, Liu Bai's expression turned strange.

That great scientist from the biomedical department…

"So, Captain, you're selling me off?"

Hua's tone couldn't help but become resentful.

"Ahaha… how can you say that?"

Himiko's eyes darted around, "The bookworms in the weapons department and those old geezers at headquarters are easy to deal with, since they only pay symbolic attention. But that big shot in the biomedical department…"

Himiko spread her hands, her face full of helplessness.

"I really can't afford to offend that one, Captain, and I wouldn't dare to."

Hua: "…"

"The weapons department and those old guys at headquarters, they wouldn't miss you if you weren't there, and they wouldn't care if you were. Even if I found a reason to refuse, they'd just express their regret verbally and then not ask again. But that one in the biomedical department… if I dared to refuse her, she could write my name on the experimental materials list tomorrow."

Chapter 68: Mobius is Getting Married!?

Write her own captain onto the experimental materials list?

Hua was stunned when she heard that.

That's so fierce? Fifth Squad was supposed to be one of Moth Chasers to Fire's elite, the sharpest of knives, but that scientist could just treat her own captain as an experimental subject?

"I'm not lying to you." Himiko smoothed her hair with a wry smile. "Anyway, you're definitely going, so let me tell you about that doctor first."

...Did she not even have the right to refuse?

Even Hua, with her unflappable personality, couldn't help but twitch at the thought.

"Can I refuse?" Although the other's meaning was clear, Hua still wanted to ask.

"...You can try," Himiko narrowed her eyes.

She didn't want to become a lab rat.

"...Captain, is it possible that you can't beat me?"

Hua didn't want to become a lab rat either.

As for Himiko's half-threatening tone, Hua didn't take it to heart at all.

Although she didn't like fighting by nature, if they were to go at it one-on-one without equipment… Hua was confident that she could pack up her own captain and send her over.

"Ahaha~~ Hua, you're such a joker."

Himiko looked away. If they both had equipment, she felt like she could give it a try, but in this cheongsam…

Forget it, Hua could beat her black and blue.

"Where were we? Right, that doctor."

Himiko pulled the topic back directly.

"Even if you don't want to go, it wouldn't hurt to learn more about the bigwigs at headquarters, right?"

...Hua couldn't refute that reason.

Yeah, it sounded a lot better than being a lab rat. Was being a lab rat something a normal person could agree to?

"First, there's the doctor's name, Mobius. Within Moth Chasers to Fire, whenever someone mentions 'the doctor' alone, it almost certainly refers specifically to Dr. Mobius."

"...Sounds impressive."

Himiko's opening introduction made Hua pause slightly. The fact that the term "doctor" could become a specific reference within Moth Chasers to Fire undoubtedly demonstrated Dr. Mobius's ability.

"Impressive is an understatement; even calling her a monster wouldn't be an exaggeration." Himiko corrected, with a hint of reluctance, "She alone is probably worth the entire biomedical department of Moth Chasers to Fire. If she doesn't feel like working, the entire department would probably be half-paralyzed."

"That's really impressive, but… 'old lady'? Is Dr. Mobius very old?"

Even though she hadn't met her, Hua unexpectedly felt that the other party wouldn't be too old, at least not an old woman in her sixties or seventies.

"Not old… otherwise, she wouldn't be called a monster." Himiko—this alternate-dimension counterpart of Himeko—revealed a weary expression and sighed deeply. "In terms of age, she's probably a little older than me."

"So, approaching thirty?"

"..."

Hua's words made Himiko choke for a long time.

What do you mean, "a little older than me" means "approaching thirty?"

I didn't know you'd become so tactless, Hua!

"...It's Dr. Mobius who's approaching thirty, not me. Besides, she's very beautiful and has an enviably good figure, consistently ranking in the top three in everyone's private votes."

No matter the time, Himeko always cared about things like age…

Also, Hua was curious, just how good was Dr. Mobius's figure that even her own captain couldn't help but envy it?

"Also, when you see Dr. Mobius, don't ever say that. I can't guarantee you won't go from a physical examination to being dissected."

"..."

"Believe me, although normal dissection requires a long process and procedures, unfortunately, Dr. Mobius is one of the few people who doesn't need those procedures—or, to put it more directly, she's the one who approves those applications."

Himiko clicked her tongue, seemingly quite dissatisfied with Mobius acting as both referee and player.

"She could just give you an anesthetic shot and strap you to the operating table to start cutting—the only things that could make her apply for a report to higher-ups are probably the body tissues of top-tier Honkai Beasts or even Herrschers."

"...That kind of authority is just cheating." Even Hua couldn't help but complain at this point.

But that wasn't all. Himiko, feeling she hadn't made it scary enough, added, "By the way, Dr. Mobius herself is one of the Moth Chasers to Fire's veterans. Although she's restricted in many ways, she still has her own voting rights in large meetings—which is why she was able to notice your outstanding performance."

No wonder her information was known by this doctor.

Hua now even suspected that the transfer orders from those bigwigs at the top... was that bigwig Mobius?

Is this even fair?

Hua really didn't want to go to the Moth Chasers to Fire headquarters at all now. With her physique, she'd just be at everyone's mercy if she went there, right?

She was strong, yes, but still within the realm of ordinary people—Liu Bai's buff aside.

In other words, the plot of fighting against many and breaking through the encirclement was simply impossible in the Moth Chasers to Fire base.

"But don't be afraid. Actually, when you get right down to it, Dr. Mobius is quite reasonable, and her contributions to humanity are unparalleled."

"Then why are you so afraid of Dr. Mobius, Captain?"

...A soul-searching question.

"Ahem, it's just youthful indiscretions." Himiko coughed lightly to cover up the embarrassment on her face. "Let me tell you more about Dr. Mobius's achievements. For example, most of the special medicines we use in the Moth Chasers to Fire now were developed under the leadership of Dr. Mobius."

"Hmm..."

This was unexpected for Hua. After so long, Hua had also realized just how effective the Moth Chasers to Fire's special medicines were.

Whether the Moth Chasers to Fire soldiers could safely return from a normal-intensity battlefield depended entirely on the special medicines in their hands.

Not only could they stop bleeding and relieve pain, but they could also suppress Honkai Energy at the wound site, preventing Honkai Energy infection.

It could be said that without these medicines, the casualties in each battle could easily double.