The Flame-Chasers' New Lives

"Durandal..."

"I like it!"

The girl savored the name. Somewhere deep down, she felt an inexplicable affinity with it. Struggling to control her facial muscles, she gave Zhang Wei a smile. Though her brain injury had recovered considerably, she still found it difficult to control her body.

"That's good. Welcome to your new world!" Zhang Wei smiled kindly.

"Mm!"

Durandal blinked in place of nodding, then quickly fell asleep. Zhang Wei had intervened; by the time she woke up next, she would be able to walk. For now, sleep was more conducive to Durandal's recovery.

It was not that he had not considered restoring Durandal completely in one go, but recovering on her own would better stimulate her potential. That small body contained unfathomable treasure, and fully uncovering it would be immensely difficult.

Zhang Wei also thought highly of Durandal. In the normal course of the story, she was practically a chosen daughter of destiny. If Kiana had not been the protagonist, Durandal would truly have overshadowed her.

"Mobius, how is Durandal's recovery going?"

"Very well—so well that I can hardly believe it. I'm incredibly curious just how astounding White Mouse's future achievements will be!" It was rare for Mobius to give someone such a high evaluation.

"With seniors from the Previous Civilization like you teaching and guiding her, how could she possibly be weak?" Zhang Wei said with a smile.

"Hah? You want us to be her teachers?"

How could Mobius fail to understand what Zhang Wei meant? She spoke in a rather strange tone. He truly did not intend to let them sit around idle.

"Personally nurturing a monster would be quite fulfilling, wouldn't it? And all of us will take part. When Durandal makes her debut, she'll definitely shock the world!" Zhang Wei said confidently.

"Fine. I can only teach her some biological knowledge. For combat techniques and the like, you should look for Kevin and the others!"

Mobius sighed softly. She was merely a biologist and was not skilled in combat. Though she was stronger than a rookie like Pardo, that was entirely due to the power of a Fusion Warrior; she had rarely truly set foot on the battlefield.

"Come to think of it, all the Flame-Chasers are in Changkong City now. Who would have thought that such a small city would gather the Previous Civilization's strongest fighting force? Only Gray Serpent knows about it." Zhang Wei smiled.

Hidden in plain sight, Chrono had opened a ramen shop, "passionately" cooking food. His unique cooking style attracted many customers.

Pardo had opened a pawnshop, selling fine goods brought in from all over. By coincidence, some people could find their own belongings there—and still pay for them in utter confusion.

Aponia ran a psychological counseling center. Even those who arrived with lewd thoughts would be turned into people free of worldly desires by one of Aponia's commandments.

Eden and Elysia had opened Gold Entertainment Company. Both the older and younger Griseo were chief painters, Kevin was the chief programmer, and Sakura and several others helped out there as well. It had the largest number of Flame-Chasers.

Vill-V ran a workshop, with Cosmo serving as both an errand boy and a test subject. After all, it was truly difficult for a chuunibyou teenager to resist the allure of mecha, and little Griseo no longer needed him to look after her.

Su, who healed the sick and saved the suffering, had obtained a medical license and opened a clinic. Whenever there were no patients, he simply sat there drinking tea, living an extremely health-conscious life.

As for their startup funds, Gray Serpent said there was no problem. They were Flame-Chasers who had contributed to the world, after all; they would not be short on such a small amount of money.

In short, the Flame-Chasers had all found their own lives. Although this world still had Honkai, they would not participate directly. Instead, they would serve as witnesses. They belonged to the past, not pioneers like Kevin!

"They're all too idle. They might as well come do experiments for me!" Mobius curled her lip. At the end of the day, she was also an Otaku Girl. Even during the Previous Civilization, she had spent most of her time in the laboratory and rarely went out.

Zhang Wei smiled. She was just being stubborn—she was clearly very satisfied with her current life. He then left the Hyperion to tell them about Durandal.

"...That's fine... No need to disturb them..."

Gray Serpent spoke with Kevin in the Sea of Quantum through quantum communications. Upon hearing about the Flame-Chasers' current lives, Kevin remained silent for a long time. But then he felt relieved. The Memory Bodies in the Elysian Realm had gained physical bodies and returned to the real world. Though it was something he had never expected, now that they had new lives, he naturally would not disturb them. He alone could bear those burdens.

"Understood, my lord!"

Having received the order, Gray Serpent's single eye flickered. The Flame-Chasers in Changkong City had made no effort to hide themselves, so World Serpent, with its highly developed intelligence network, had easily learned their information. Organizations like Schicksal and Anti-Entropy might discover them as well, but apart from Void Archive and Fu Hua, whose memories were mostly gone, no one recognized the Flame-Chasers. As long as they did not unleash the Flame-Chasers' immense Honkai Energy, their peaceful lives would not be disturbed.

"Master Chrono, one bowl of noodles with extra cilantro, please!"

Zhang Wei arrived at Chrono's ramen shop and expertly ordered a bowl of ramen.

"Shut up."

"Hahahahaha! Fight! Can you feel this blazing fury!?"

"Turn to ash within this fiercely battling lava!"

Chrono was performing as reliably as ever. The crisp clatter of ramen against the cutting board, the gas flames roaring into an inferno, the broth bubbling like lava—the rich fragrance drifted through the ramen shop, accompanied by that passionate, unrestrained voice. Many customers had been drawn in by methods that seemed more like combat than cooking.

"Come, devour it all to your heart's content!"

Before long, a steaming bowl of noodles was set before Zhang Wei. Although the cooking process had been somewhat violent, it was perfect in color, aroma, and taste. Zhang Wei immediately began eating. Within the noodles, he could taste passion; they were so chewy they practically bounced against his teeth.

"Gulp, gulp... Hah..."

"Refreshing!"

Zhang Wei drained even the noodle soup in one go, crying out in satisfaction. Mei's cooking was delicious, but Chrono's food had a unique flavor of its own. The noodles alone made it clear—they were filled with a sense of power.

"Master Chrono, would you be interested in teaching Durandal someday? After all, your combat skills rank among the very best of the Flame-Chasers!" Zhang Wei asked.

"She's too weak. I'm not interested!"

Chrono said indifferently as he washed his hands. In his eyes, Durandal possessed no real strength. At present, she was beneath his notice.

"However... for Kevin's sake, once she becomes stronger and more qualified, I can guide her a little."

In the end, Chrono still relented and did not make his refusal absolute.