Anqi lowered her head in a submissive posture, yet this only revealed the sexy and graceful curves of her collarbone and neck more clearly, resembling a harmless and beautiful white swan.
"Click, click!"
Then, the sound of mechanical transformation rang out once again.
Anqi looked up, only to see that giant mech lower its arms, slowly beginning to cloak from its limbs, and finally vanishing before her eyes.
Taking its place was an electric wheelchair rolling slowly toward her, upon which sat a bald, thin-haired old man carrying the heavy aura of the twilight of death. Tubes were plugged into the old man's body and arms, connecting to the highly technological wheelchair, seemingly relying on this apparatus to sustain his life.
Anqi had already devoured the remaining memories of Young Lady Anqi's body, so she naturally recognized this old man's identity.
"Good day, dear Father."
Anqi lifted her hem and curtsied once more, speaking with respect and politeness.
The old man removed the oxygen mask from his face, exhaled lightly, gazed at Anqi, and spoke slowly in an aged, feeble voice:
"Poised, elegant, unfazed in the face of danger, and still able to calmly fight for survival amidst an inexplicable crisis... You are quite good!"
"It is all thanks to Father's wise guidance, which cannot be separated from your great affection and cultivation."
"Heh! The person I favored from the very beginning was actually your eldest brother. He has shrewdness and worldly wisdom, and knows how to painstakingly forge an image of magnanimity and honesty while hiding his fangs in the shadows... But now it seems the one who hid the deepest is still you. Like a venomous snake, until the time to hunt arrived, not even I could see a single flaw."
The old man revealed signs of fatigue, looking somewhat sentimental.
Anqi smiled, but rolled her eyes inwardly.
Of course he could not see any flaws, because the former young lady truly had aspirations higher than the heavens yet was foolish and naive, only knowing of the vast gap between herself and her two older brothers right before her death.
If Anqi hadn't put on Young Lady Anqi's skin halfway through, the victor now would surely have been the eldest brother favored by the old man, right?
"However, after successively eliminating your eldest and second brothers, you immediately turned your fangs toward me. Should I say you are acting with undue haste, or simply daring beyond reason?"
"Oh my! Father, you misunderstand me. How could I dare show disrespect to you? Surely it must have been my two elder brothers who acted naughtily. You mustn't wrong a filial and well-behaved girl like me!"
"Why be in such a rush? Once you got rid of two brothers, wouldn't you be the sole candidate?"
"Father, I already said those..."
"Give me the truth!"
As soon as the old man finished speaking, the silhouette of the Titan Mech reappeared faintly behind him.
Anqi's smile faded, her pure and harmless expression gradually turning cold as she said:
"Father's mindset is rather traditional. Regarding a daughter inheriting the family business, I have never dared to completely ascertain your attitude. Besides, who knows whether you might still be hiding a few blood-related brothers for me in secret? To do things is to do them thoroughly; any hesitation could lead to utter and complete defeat... Father, this is what you taught us, and your daughter deeply agrees."
"Hmph!"
The old man let out a disdainful snort.
Afterwards, he looked over Anqi, who resembled an ice beauty, and sighed:
"Though it is a grave disrespect, this ruthlessness and decisiveness truly resembles me... You can rest easy. My time is indeed short; even Anti-Entropy's technology can no longer prolong my life, and it is impossible for me to cultivate another successor comparable to you."
"Thank you for your recognition, Father."
Anqi took a deep breath, brought her hands together, and slowly bent at the waist, using the traditional etiquette of this country to express her excitement and joy.
This gesture clearly pleased the old man greatly, so without waiting for Anqi to "naturally" bring up a question, he began explaining of his own accord:
"This world is far from as simple as you imagine. There is technology and weaponry far surpassing nations, extraordinary powers capable of slaughtering troops single-handedly, and terrifying monsters breeding in the dark... Come with me. Next, you will understand the truth of the world and the true foundation of our Tachibana Family. You already have this qualification."
"Yes, Father!"
Anqi walked quickly to the old man's side, even solicitously steadying the wheelchair which required no pushing at all, and followed the old man deep into the villa estate.
Chapter Eighteen: Just This?
Young Lady Anqi witnessed the so-called foundation of the Tachibana Family, and sent the old man off with a face full of emotion and awe.
Immediately afterwards, Young Lady Anqi's expression instantly went blank, carrying a trace of disillusioned disappointment.
At the same time, the Anqis inside the Theater sat facing one another, all struck speechless in unison.
"Just this? That old man built it up for ages, and it's just this?"
"He's merely an electronic component supplier for Anti-Entropy! I thought he was some kind of executor!"
"Waa! I was so scared, and it turns out to be just like this?"
From the perspective of ordinary people, anything related to Honkai was unfathomably mysterious and terrifyingly dangerous, while Schicksal and Anti-Entropy were behemoths that could alter the world's landscape at any moment—thus, being able to tie oneself to Anti-Entropy seemed, from an ordinary perspective, like a genuinely badass thing.
Yet to the Anqis, this insignificant truth completely failed to make up for the heart-stopping panic they felt when the Titan showed up at their door!
"I really don't know whether to consider this lucky or unlucky. I thought she was just an ordinary young lady with no ties to Honkai!"
"Now look. As a family business heir, we've gone and marched straight into Anti-Entropy's field of vision. While they won't pay us excessive attention, globetrotting or anything of the sort is definitely down the drain!"
"Not necessarily. We can still pull something off under some clever pretext, like inspecting branch companies or something."
"Besides, it doesn't strictly have to be the young lady casting avatars all over the world, right? With the wealth and resources we currently command, it's already easy enough to send avatars away. As long as our design is tight, there shouldn't be any problems... right?"
The Anqis grew a bit uncertain.
After all, bumping into a young lady's cold corpse by the roadside had somehow managed to get them indirectly tangled up with Anti-Entropy.
When it came to their own luck, the Anqis were truly unsure.
After a flurry of chatter, the Anqis decided they still needed to continue dispatching avatars outward to advance the plan of producing resurrection save files. Afterwards, they went right back to relentlessly hammering away at theoretical and physical combat courses.
At St. Freya Academy, Anqi woke up after a night of deep sleep.
Then she saw that her arm was suspended and fixed in mid-air, bound with wooden splints and thick bandages.
"You're awake? Does it hurt? Drink some water first, Bronya will go call a doctor."
Bronya walked out of the ward with bouncing, helical twin-tails. The mechanical exoskeleton supporting her lower limbs collided with the floor, producing a heavy, solid metallic sound.
Anqi scratched her head, synchronizing the information of the avatars in the Theater and the young lady during her sleep, then propped herself up to a sitting position with her usable left hand, drank some water, and quietly awaited the doctor's arrival.
"The bad news is that your arm muscles are extensively torn, and the bones also show signs of fracturing due to the Honkai Energy outburst. The good news is that your constitution is quite good, and your Honkai Energy adaptability is extremely high, so the surgery and medication yielded great results, and your recovery speed will be relatively fast."
"Come back for a follow-up checkup one week after discharge. If there are no surprises, you can remove the bandages in a month, and you'll probably fully recover in two months."
The doctor sister announced the result with a smiling face, and casually rubbed Anqi's little head.
Anqi did not speak.
However, Kiana, Raiden Mei, and Himeko, having caught wind of the news, swarmed around the doctor to express their gratitude one after another, unable to conceal their churning emotions and thankfulness.
After politely sending off the doctor miss, Himeko closed the door, strode toward Anqi, rolled up her sleeves, and brought a chop down unceremoniously with the edge of her hand.
"Ouch..."
"You still know it hurts? I heard all about it from Fu Hua! You little brat are getting quite capable, aren't you? You've only just learned basic combat arts, and you're already starting to develop your own Honkai Energy moves, and even felt confident enough to use them in a duel? You haven't even learned how to walk properly and you want to fly now, huh? Who gave you that kind of courage, you stinky brat!"
The more Himeko spoke, the angrier she grew, raining a few more chops onto Anqi's head before continuing with a fierce and menacing air:
"Do you know that independently developing a combat style is something only an S-rank Valkyrie with a hundred battles under her belt is qualified to consider! For a little squirt who just enrolled a week ago, this is sheer madness!"
"Ouch..."
"Serves you right if it hurts!"
Himeko gave Anqi's head a fierce slap.
The next second, she suddenly pulled Anqi tightly into her embrace, stroking the crown of her head, her high-strung voice instantly softening with a dense wave of anxiety.
"You almost scared me to death, little Anqi."
Himeko let out a tired sigh, dark, bruised circles lingering around her eyes from a sleepless night.
Anqi could be said to have been brought into the academy by her own hands, and she relied upon her deeply; in Himeko's eyes, she was long since a junior under her wing, with the obligation and responsibility to care for her.
Hearing that Anqi had an accident in the dueling ring, where it was said that blood stained a large swath of the ground red, Himeko had nearly suffered a cardiac arrest from fright.
Now seeing Anqi awake, with outcomes far better than imagined, Himeko was both overjoyed and furious, much like seeing her own child roll around in a muddy swamp all covered in filth yet returning home with a laughing face... No, it was ten times angrier than that.
In short, it was roughly that feeling of wanting to hit her yet feeling heartbroken, and not hitting her while her liver ached with rage.
"How do you feel now? You must be hungry, right? We brought breakfast over, eat a little bit first and we'll talk."
Himeko beckoned, signaling Raiden Mei to spread out a food box on the nearby table. The aroma of the food soon lingered, chasing away the scent of disinfectant that had previously permeated the air.
Himeko glanced at Anqi's cowering, pitifully obedient appearance as she took her scolding, then looked down at her right arm still suspended in mid-air, sighed once more, and helplessly picked up the knife and fork.
Himeko: "Hey, open wide. Ah~"
Anqi: "Ah~~"
Himeko: "Honestly, hasn't this just gone right back to the very beginning? Ever since you went on a hunger strike and passed out, I didn't expect to be feeding you again so soon, and you'll probably need feeding for quite a few days to boot. Tell me, you better feel grateful, you know not even my father has ever received this kind of treatment! Open wide, ah~"
Anqi: "Ah~~"
Himeko: "You're only cute at times like this. No practical combat classes for you during these days of recuperation, and you can forget about those reckless moves of yours too. If you really want to learn something profound, once your performance is good enough, I'll find you a way in. Did you hear me? If you understand, open wide, ah~"
Anqi: "Ah~~"
At that moment, the morning glow streamed in through the window, and the specks of dust in the ward slowly drifted in the light, bringing a sense of peace and reassurance.
Kiana, Raiden Mei, and Bronya watched the scene of Himeko feeding Anqi—the mature and beautiful red-haired woman, and the well-behaved, adorable little girl. This sight couldn't help but fill all three of them with a sense of heartfelt envy.
On one hand, Himeko had truly never cared for them with such gentleness and intimacy; on the other hand, a scene with such stark contrasts made it hard not to draw associations with a mother and child.
Yet none of their memories of their own mothers could remotely be called complete!
"Must be nice."
Kiana muttered to herself softly, then took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to shed tears for reasons unknown.
"Let's head out first to handle Anqi's discharge paperwork. Keep it down, don't disturb them."
Raiden Mei pressed a finger to her lips and whispered to the other two.
The two nodded in unison, then stepped out of the ward, leaving the space to Anqi and to Himeko, who in their eyes was the person Anqi trusted and relied on the most.
Chapter Nineteen: Well-Behaved Anqi
After being discharged and returning home, Anqi, with her right arm suspended in a sling, received meticulous, all-encompassing care from Himeko.
Although Anqi knew that this injury was purely the result of her trying to be clever and showing off her talent—knowing full well she wouldn't die, she subconsciously cast aside many of her inhibitions and marched right into death-seeking territory with a single step—
In Himeko's eyes, however, this was a dereliction of her duty as a guide, failing to make Anqi comprehend the danger of Honkai Energy, and a deficiency and dereliction in her instructional parenting.
The next morning, after patiently finishing feeding Anqi, Himeko straightened her skirt, changed her into a pair of little white shoes, and led her toward the principal's office.
Upon stepping out, Anqi clutched the hem of Himeko's clothes with her sound left hand. The more she recalled Himeko's thoughtful care, the guiltier and more sheepish she felt.
"Himeko QAQ..."
Anqi raised her head from behind, looking up with tear-filled eyes at Himeko's silky, wine-red long hair.
Hearing the sound, Himeko glanced back, then couldn't help but chuckle as she patted Anqi on the head.
"What are you doing?"
This was the first time Himeko had seen Anqi looking teary-eyed, and as she sensed Anqi's remorse and regret, her heart instantly softened, feeling amidst her gratification that the exhaustion from two days without sleep wasn't all that much after all.
"Himeko, I'm sorry. I'll treat you well from now on!"
Anqi knitted her fine brows and spoke with a resolute expression.
Himeko Big Sister, although I have to hide a lot of things and lied to you several times, I will definitely make it up to you doubly in the future. You have to believe me, gomennasai!
The Anqis all swore together in their hearts.
An expression of unstoppable laughter hung on Himeko's face as she stroked Anqi's little head.
"Little brat..."
Himeko scolded with a smile, then took hold of Anqi's left hand and led her all the way to the principal's office.
"Now then, you just got out of the hospital last night, so don't go to classes these next two days. There's no one at home during the day, so just stay here with the principal for the time being. She's got plenty of snacks here, plus manga and game consoles, which makes it perfect for a little squirt like you."
Himeko pressed Anqi down onto the couch, then, acting as if no one else was around, retrieved a fruit platter and a fruit knife from the corner refrigerator, chopping up a platter with a swoosh, swoosh, swoosh before placing it right in front of Anqi.
"As a side note, the principal likes to slack off and read manga during office hours. So I'm giving you a task: if you catch her loafing around midway, remember to notify me. I'll give you a reward, little Anqi~"
Himeko leaned close to Anqi's ear, whispering with a smiling face.
Her warm breath blew against Anqi's sensitive ears, causing her to flush red before obediently nodding her head.
Before you continue