Bonds at Odds and New Companions (Part 1)

Children's thoughts are very pure.

They are easily moved to joy, sadness, and grief, and their nascent values are easily altered.

The saying "human nature is inherently good" may be true, but how many people can maintain their initial kindness as they grow up?

At least in childhood, that sense of good and evil was not accurate enough.

But what if you had the chance to go back to your childhood? What kind of person would you become?

Faced with this question, our protagonist did not answer directly, but instead expressed another viewpoint:

"Sometimes, I hate the version of myself that's gradually maturing."

—The main feature begins—

"This strike pierced through the Stars!"

With some effort, Durandal successfully defeated these giant Honkai Beast.

Actually, for something this large, we should have deployed the God of War, Baldr, whom Sachi had always longed for, but unfortunately, the Clumsy Goose was too impatient and too strong.

(Tesla: We should send out my Hephaestus! And let me, this genius, debunk a rumor: which bastard is spreading the word that Baldr can instantly Hephaestus? Come out here!!!)

The Knight Princess fought swiftly and decisively, eliminating the threats in the shortest possible time and preventing the damage from spreading further. However, the two teams struggled with dealing with the ordinary civilians infected by the Honkai Energy emitted by the giant Honkai Beast.

According to the Valkyrie's regulations, these types of undead Honkai zombie and Honkai Beast that are beyond saving should be disposed of on the spot, and their remains should be carefully taken away and handed over to the professional department for destruction. However...

Kiana's finger was on the trigger, but she just couldn't pull it, and neither could the others.

Most of them couldn't bring themselves to do it when faced with this situation for the first time, and their seniors killed them on their behalf.

The elders told them that these people could not be saved. If they didn't want more people to be hurt, they should kill them, who had turned into monsters. This would also help them find liberation.

But now, a clear fact is before them—the process of humans infected by Honkai becoming either Honkai zombie or Honkai Beast can be reversed.

This is a miracle created by the future Saintess, bringing seeds of hope to mankind, but also quietly delivering a cursed Pandora's Box.

"What should we do about the other me?" White Seele couldn't bring herself to wield her weapon against them, and habitually turned to her inner personality for help.

Black Seele was silent for a moment, then tentatively asked, "Do you really want to hear my thoughts, Seele?"

"Huh?" White Seele was taken aback, a bad feeling rising in her heart.

"In my opinion, we should just kill him as usual," Black Seele said, observing her micro-expressions.

"Why? Can't Brother Xing turn them back into humans?!"

"What was the price? I don't know what method he used, whether he gained new power or developed unknown functions of the Divine Key. But you should be able to sense that it almost killed him. His body felt as if it were pierced by countless sharp thorns in an instant, and his skin felt as if it were being torn apart from the inside... The pain was simply unbearable for a human. If he hadn't simultaneously reduced our sensory sharing to the lowest level, we probably would have fainted from the pain like him." Black Seele sighed and poked the head of her secondary personality. "Think about it carefully. That burden was far too great for him."

"But life is priceless, isn't it?" The kind-hearted White Seele wanted to plead, but the next sentence from the other personality silenced her. "So you don't value your Brother Xing's life?"

Durandal landed safely after switching back to her Bright Knight: Excelsis. She spoke with her adjutant for a while to get a general understanding of the situation. She looked at Kiana, who was having a fierce internal struggle, and her expression was also very serious.

She walked over to her future sister, patted her on the shoulder, and snapped her out of her thoughts. "Go talk to her about it."

"...who?"

"(A voice only the two of them can hear) Your ace."

"And—" The Knight Princess turned around, planted her lance in the ground, and glanced at the members of the Immortal Blades around her. "The secrecy level of this incident is classified as SSS-Rank. Anyone who violates this will bear the consequences."

Her tone was calm, yet it was filled with an undeniable sense of pressure and absolute authority. Kiana, standing behind her, gazed longingly at her retreating figure, her resolve to become stronger only strengthened.

At this moment Luming's Courtyard—

Brother Jie was cursing and brandishing a kitchen knife in the kitchen. That damned witch brought so many people back for a party without telling him. In the past, she would only bring a croissant, a fluffy ball, and a girl with red and blue eyes like her to play. Why is she throwing a whole group this time?

Note: Refers to Miyouhime + Silly Pervert + Lingyi Niang

"It's okay, Luming just asked me to order takeout..." Stardust said weakly as he emerged from the wormhole.

"How long will that take? Hundreds of mouths are waiting!" Brother Jie slammed the cleaver into the cutting board and roared at her menacingly.

Stardust trembled with fear, but at the same time, she felt a strange sense of familiarity; it was the scent of her second sister, Chi Yu ...

P. S.: I'm not entirely sure about Chi Yu's character in the official setting, but in my book, Chi Yu is an easily angered and short-tempered older sister.

Chenbao reluctantly widened the wormhole with his hands, only to find a truckload of takeout boxes neatly arranged on the other side of the wormhole.

Kalpas: "..."

In living room number 4—

Like a giant panda cub sent from China to the United States as a hostage for the first time by a brainless, stupid civilian organization, Susanna looked around with a mixture of curiosity and fear, marveling that she truly deserved to be a popular idol and a hidden S-Rank Valkyrie, living in such a luxurious and grand manor just like hers!

Anna, who was working on her Crimson Kite's Wings, looked up in bewilderment. Wait, did I just hear something that could make me furious?

Since there were quite a few people, Luming dispersed them to different living rooms and settled them in. She told them to wait patiently for dinner, and also to calm them down after their near-death experience. Later, they would collectively clear up the bad memories of the past few days.

The World Serpent must be very skilled at kidnapping people. They all come from different regions, and the Kidnapping methods vary. They are also quick and efficient, and they even inject them with a small amount of Honkai Energy Deactivator to prevent resistance.

Fortunately, it was just Honkai Energy Deactivator. If it were the kind of treatment that could completely remove Honkai Energy from Valkyrie's body, it would also remove the Valkyrie's potential, which would be even more painful than killing them, probably.

(What, you're asking why it's a trace amount? Why use a sledgehammer to crack a nut? The Jackal's super-concentrated inactivating agent is for her beloved Sachi, or maybe we should test it on another S-Rank Valkyrie?)

"Autograph and photo..." Just as Susanna was about to finish her meal and go to her idol for a photo and autograph, a dark shadow pounced on her leg. Upon closer inspection, she was so frightened that she almost lost her mind.

"Bear, bear, bear!!!"

The screams of a pig being slaughtered echoed throughout the entire manor. The Valkyrie, who had just calmed down, tensed up again. What was going on? Had an enemy invaded?

Anna looked at the two clumsy bears who had been scared of each other and rolled into a corner, curling up into balls. She sighed silently. Although she could tell from their previous interactions that the bears were rather silly and clumsy, they were still... kind of cute. Hey, what's that slippery thing under my feet?

"Mobius, snake!!!"

Another pig-like scream echoed throughout the manor. The Valkyrie, on edge, prepared for battle as if facing a formidable enemy. Only the old residents vaguely guessed the truth.

When Theresa arrived at the scene, the Anna duo were huddled together in a corner, trembling with fear, while the bear and snake involved in the incident crawled innocently behind their owner, Luming Lady quite helpless.

Note: The author is making references to characters from JoJo's Bizarre Adventure.

"Don't be afraid, Guotie and Mobius are my pets. As long as you don't provoke them, they won't attack you." She, now a loli, picked up Mobius and held her in her palm, completely unaware of Mobius's strange expression. What's wrong with this little lab rat? Could it be that her genes have been very effective, and Snake has died many times and regressed into a juvenile form?

No, they're just too weak and lack energy.

Uh, speaking of this, Luming was a little at a loss. She originally wanted to tell Brother Jie that she was the original Luming's sister, but the first thing he said when he saw her was, "Hey, witch, why have you shrunk?"

Forget it, Brother Jie is pretty resilient anyway, he'll turn back in a few days, so let's not explain. But I should still avoid other people, I feel like if Cosmo or Kane see me like this, there might be some unnecessary misunderstandings.

PS: In the future Elysian Realm Arc, the treatment of Happiness by the Elysian Realm Cosmo will be on par with that of Griseo.

After calming the two terrified girls down and fulfilling their expectations of their idol, I gave them a photo and a handshake.

"Um, patting their heads is okay too~" Noticing their eyes practically sparkling with hearts, the idol girl bent down, incredibly proactive.

"Really?!" Susanna and Anna couldn't believe it.

"Sure~ After all, you've just suffered a big blow, right? Bringing joy to our fans and soothing their pain is my responsibility as an idol~ (Don't strain so much, I've already fixed my hair and clothes so many times. Being forced to do this is awful... Don't be so kind next time, it's exhausting.)"

Her voice was like a melody played on the world's finest instrument, or the whisper of an angel, healing the two who had just survived a great calamity.

But when an angel is hurt, who can heal her?

A young person who aspires to become a hero needs reliable companions to accompany them on their journey.

"Little Xing, can you come with me for a moment?" After Luming had finished comforting the last Valkyrie, Theresa pulled her to a secluded corner.

Her adoptive mother stared intently into her eyes, reminding her of the time in her past life when she came home with a failing grade and was questioned by her parents.

"Tell Mom honestly, where did you get that sword that can summon magical creatures? Mom may be small, but she's not an easy child to fool."

"It really was given by a nature spirit. If you don't believe me, I'll call her out." Luming waved towards the door, and Shi An ran over happily. She pounced on Luming, who was the same size as her, and rubbed her soft little face against Lu Meng's.

Haiyi, who was peeping outside the door, was itching to get back at him. That guy always liked to bully her. She had finally gotten the chance to shrink, so should she take the opportunity to bully him back?

Before the vengeful jellyfish could put her idea into action, the benevolent-looking Cang Qiong appeared behind her and dragged her away.

Don't ruin your sister's playtime with her friends!

Inside the house, Luming finally managed to push away the overly enthusiastic Shi An, and then affectionately rubbed against her Silly Mom, who had instinctively lay down on the ground to cushion her fall when Shi An tackled her. It seems that you are of some use besides being my pillow, huh?

"Look, she's the nature spirit who gifted me the Beast Emperor Sword!" Luming proudly picked up Shi An and introduced her new friend to her mother. Theresa felt insulted. My child, I may look silly, but I'm not really!

Seeing Theresa's expression that clearly said "Are you kidding me?", Luming helplessly covered her forehead, took out the Beast Emperor Sword and drew a circle on the spot, summoning a one-way wormhole leading to the Shi An Forest out of thin air.

"If you don't believe me, I can have Shi'an demonstrate her power to you appropriately, as a warning. I won't be responsible for any earthquakes or anything like that."

Seeing that her daughter's expression didn't seem fake, Theresa, whose body was instinctively screaming for help, could only temporarily believe her. Besides, this sword that could summon wormholes out of thin air... couldn't possibly have been given by the Herrscher of Void, could it?

Kiana, who was rushing towards them, suddenly sneezed.

"By the way, Shian, the Power Beast are really strong!"

"... Power Beast?"

"Ahem, I named them because you usually communicate with them telepathically, and you never thought of giving each beast a unique and convenient name."

"Oh! (Eyes light up) As expected of Luming!"

"Did I do anything praiseworthy? (Looking puzzled)"

——Divider——

Mei and Rita returned with the main group. Luming enjoyed a delicious meal. It was a pity that Sakura couldn't come out for the time being, nor could she be summoned in this situation. Otherwise, they could have gathered all the Rice Cooker for a hearty meal.

But as Luming ate, she noticed that the atmosphere at the table was clearly a bit off.

Since transforming into this form, her ability to sense the emotions of living beings has become stronger. Although everyone appears normal on the surface, they all seem preoccupied. Kiana, who used to finish a large bowl of rice in 10 seconds, now takes 9.53 seconds. Has she encountered some problem that even Durandal couldn't solve?

"Tell me, what do you need my help with?" The thoughtful little girl wiped her lips with a tissue and asked directly.

Kiana looked somewhat taken aback. "How could you..."

"Your face is written all over your face when you want to say something but are held back for various reasons, 'sister'." Luming idly fiddled with the chopsticks in her hand. "Just say what you want to say quickly, I'm very tired and want to sleep for a few days."

Everyone fell silent, their faces displaying different expressions. Seeing this, Luming felt even more exhausted. "Can't you all just stand here and play the riddle? This is making my blood pressure skyrocket!"

Rita came over to clear the dishes as if nothing had happened, while secretly observing everyone's expressions, and gave her second superior Luming, a meaningful smile.

Finally, it was Durandal who broke the silence—

"Kiana, are you still going to eat that cake? If not, can I have it?"

Author's Note—

Sorry, I was going to release the full story, but it's already over 9,000 words long... I was afraid it would be too long and you'd get confused, so I split it up.