Lilith Extra Story ② • Origin of the Fallen Angel

"Why?! Isn't he the person you love the most?!"

"Precisely because he is the one I love the most, I must return to reality. Because the him in reality is the truest him, isn't he?"

The world began to collapse. She watched Feng turn into scattered sand before her eyes, watched this fabricated world be destroyed.

She spread her arms, tilting her head to look at the shattered sky. That Herrscher was really something... getting even her hobbies wrong. What she wanted to hear were the beautiful cries of despair from humans, the sound of blood flowing on the ground.

But... yes, yes, she also liked this dream that the Herrscher had arranged for her, because here was the person she liked, the person she loved.

Could a monster like her actually fall in love with someone?

Then... when did she herself start liking Feng? She clearly wanted to kill him at first.

She didn't know the answer. She only knew that she had seen her heart clearly. She liked Feng, liked him very, very, very much.

So it didn't matter if she went against her own nature, as long as Feng was there.

"But... it's precisely because your gaze never rested on me that I knew all of this was just a dream..." she murmured, watching the world completely crumble.

In the ward of Fire Moth.

The girl who had been sleeping for a long time opened her eyes. A trace of laziness still lingered in her purple pupils.

"You're awake?" a voice that, as usual, couldn't convey any emotion sounded beside her. Yet, it was this voice that brought genuine joy to the girl's eyes.

"Feng..." She spoke the young man's name, only to find her voice weak. She knew she had probably been asleep for a considerable time, and muscle weakness was normal.

But she still had to turn her head. She wanted to look at that person properly.

Even if his gaze never lingered on her, even if she was never in his eyes.

Feng looked down at her. This was the first time she saw her own reflection in his ink-black pupils: pale, weak... She hated herself like this, appearing in his eyes in such a state.

But he wouldn't care. After all, he only cared about Elysia, and she was merely a mutually beneficial... ally?

"Do you need me to help you sit up?" Feng asked.

"Then I'll trouble you." She managed to force a smile.

Feng reached out and helped her up from the hospital bed, then supported her back with one hand while using the other to pick up a cushion and place it behind her back for support.

I didn't expect you could be so gentle, she thought, but she didn't say it aloud. She wanted to savor that gentleness from him a little longer.

Although she also knew very well that he was being so gentle with her mostly because he had something to say or some other matter to discuss with her.

Mutual benefit, after all. They were tools for each other.

"You've been unconscious for three days," Feng said. "I thought you wouldn't wake up. After all, many people who were attacked by the Eighth Herrscher these past few days not only didn't wake up but also turned into Honkai Beasts."

He paused again. "It's good that you're awake. Rest well these few days. If you need anything, just tell me."

Huh?!

She was a little surprised. This was the first time he had shown her such selfless concern. She knew him, so she knew he wouldn't care about her for no reason. He always adhered to the principle of equivalent exchange; he wouldn't do things without benefit, unless it was for Elysia.

As for trying to gain her favor, with Feng's emotional intelligence, which could give her a heart attack, could he even think of such a thing?

Then, another period of silence followed. She didn't mind. As long as she could be with him, it was fine even if neither of them spoke.

But Feng was the first to break. He seemed unaccustomed to being with a woman without saying or doing anything, just sitting there like a stone. So, he decided to find some topic. He said, "Since you've been unconscious these past few days, eating might be difficult. If you're hungry, I'll find a nurse to feed you some liquid food."

Although liquid nutrient could be injected directly, liquid food could supplement the body's nutrition while also exercising the muscles that had begun to atrophy due to lack of use these past few days.

She tried hard to put on her usual playful smile and said weakly, "Heh... you can't do without me handling things for you, can you? You're so eager for me to recover quickly so I can continue fulfilling our contract?"

He glanced at her coldly and said, "If you think so, then it is."

So it's not like that, huh?

She thought this, then said, "Then... to ensure I contribute more in the future, would you mind feeding me the liquid food?"

"You seem to have quite a bit of energy to speak. Your voice is weak, but your enunciation is clear," he said, getting up. "Just don't regret it."

Since it's you I'm talking to, how could I possibly enunciate unclearly?

She maintained her playful expression as she watched Feng leave. Only after he disappeared from her sight did her expression turn blank, and she shifted her gaze to the television mounted on the wall.

A moment later, he returned, carrying the liquid food specially prepared by Fire Moth for patients. He said, "You are one of the few who have awakened from the Eighth Herrscher's attack. Although you seem quite spirited, I have still applied to Dr. Mobius to postpone your investigation, allowing you to rest for a while longer."

This time, she didn't choose to mock him as she usually would. She knew that if she continued to mock him, she might truly have no chance left. She had to change slowly, so as not to make Feng feel that her attitude towards him had changed too abruptly.

She knew what kind of person she was in Feng's heart.

Therefore, she couldn't rush.

To be honest, Feng's technique for feeding people liquid food was really not great. To put it bluntly, he just shoved the spoon into people's mouths. Even though he was trying his best to be gentle, as a Fusion Warrior who had to endure side effects and act like a normal person, it was difficult for him to control his strength.

She looked helplessly at the serious young man, wanting to say, Your expression and your technique make people think you want to stab me to death with that spoon.

After feeding her the liquid food, Feng gave her some more instructions. After watching TV with her for a while, he helped her lie down, told her to pay attention to resting, and then left.

Before Feng closed the door, she noticed a hint of pink.

And Elysia's voice: "Wow, Feng, did you personally feed Lilith? How thoughtful~ You'll definitely be an excellent captain..."

The rest of her words were unclear because the door was closed.

If it were you, he... might not even feel embarrassed feeding you, and might even be too scared to say much, fleeing in disarray.

Thinking about it, did she get to experience something that Elysia probably never would?

She closed her eyes with a smile, looking forward to their next meeting.

A few days later, she finally regained normal mobility. Cooperating with Fire Moth, they conducted an investigation, and the Eighth Herrscher incident soon came to a close.

Fire Moth lost several psychic Fusion Warriors in the process.

At this time, the hyper-evolution surgery was still not widely available, and the mortality rate of the surgery was extremely high.

After fully recovering, she unhesitatingly submitted a request to the higher-ups to participate in the Fusion Warrior surgery, specifically requesting Mobius to perform it.

"First him, and now you. Although the success rate of the surgery has increased significantly, the mortality rate is still not negligible for ordinary people, and I can't guarantee you won't have side effects," Mobius said, looking at her with an inquisitive gaze. "So, what's your reason?"

"Me? Of course, it's interesting~" she said with a smile. "Becoming a Fusion Warrior, isn't that much more interesting than being a weak, ordinary human?"

How could she admit that it was for him? It wasn't time yet for her feelings for him to change. Mobius had a relatively close relationship with him, and she couldn't leave any evidence.

Moreover, to make him believe she understood her actions, she even chose to cater to his preferences, implying to Mobius that she believed the Fusion Warrior project was an evolution for humanity.

Mobius indeed didn't ask further. Instead, she picked up her volunteer application and said, "Since you wish it, I won't say anything more. Regarding the Honkai Beast you want to fuse with, which one do you want? If you want a higher success rate, I can arrange that for you too."

"Since I'm going to become a Fusion Warrior, how can it be an ordinary Honkai Beast?" she said with a smile, and under Mobius's surprised gaze, she chose the first Honkai Beast she would fuse with.

The Sixth Herrscher's companion Honkai Beast, a Judgment Level Honkai Beast, Yanluo.

She planned to apply for the Chimera Project with Mobius afterward, because she wanted to catch up to Feng, she wanted to be with Feng.

As for why she chose the Judgment Level Honkai Beast with an extremely low survival rate, she had her own considerations. Since Feng could choose that path of no return for Elysia, how could her feelings for Feng be less than Feng's feelings for Elysia?

Originally, she wanted to choose Maheshvara, but because there was only Elysia as a successful case, it was forbidden to be used for surgery again. Then there was Vishnu, too ugly, so no.

Before the surgery began, as the captain, Feng naturally knew what she was about to do. He was a bit surprised and found her, saying, "Didn't you kill your family and fiancé just for a new life? The risk of the Judgment Level Honkai Beast fusion surgery will decrease in the future, there's no need for you to do it now."

She could have used the same excuse she gave Mobius to placate Feng, but she didn't want to. However, she couldn't yet reveal her feelings for Feng honestly, so she replied, "I said it before, that was for my own freedom. And now that I choose to do this, that is also my freedom."

Feng didn't say anything more. He wasn't the type of man to get bogged down in meaningless things, except for Elysia.

"Then, Feng, before I undergo surgery, to prevent no one helping you if I don't come back, do you want me to teach you a few more tricks on how to pursue Miss Elysia?" she said, smiling at Feng.

Feng glanced at her, then looked away and said, "She won't fall in love with anyone because she loves everyone. I gave up long ago, so there's no need."

"Then you should make some plans for your future too, right? If I don't come back, who will help you deal with others? Besides, isn't it also necessary to learn how to use other girls' feelings for you?" She chose to directly target Feng's weakness. He might not care about Elysia's feelings for him, but his core objective was for Elysia. For this purpose, he could resort to any means, even using everything.

In fact, sometimes she felt that Feng and she were quite similar. They didn't care about the lives and deaths of others. But unlike her who liked strife and turmoil, Feng was almost devoid of desires. Although he seemed to have some special purpose. Anyway, it was always right to understand it as being for Elysia.

This special "date" didn't exceed her expectations. Feng's straightforwardness was enough to cause a myocardial infarction.

"What should you do at this moment?"

"...Hold an umbrella for you?"

"So? How is it that your umbrella, while being held, ended up being held for yourself?"

"..."

"Feng, I think I'm getting a little hot."

"You're so troublesome."

"Can't you be a little gentler?"

"Then... shall we stand in the shade over there for a while?"

"...Shouldn't you go buy me an ice cream or something?"

"Can't you buy it yourself?"

"..."

The only one who could make her go crazy was probably Feng. And although she looked exasperated, she was satisfied in her heart, because what Elysia had, she might not have, and what she had, Elysia might never have.

The surgery went smoother than she expected. Or rather, was Honkai Beast Yanluo quite compatible with her?

After completing the surgery, she easily defeated Xila in the training ground, experiencing this unparalleled powerful strength, she became even more convinced that she was one step closer to Feng.

After this battle, Xila also submitted a volunteer application for the Fusion Warrior surgery. Because for Xila, she felt she was Feng's sword, but a sword that couldn't kill enemies had no meaning of existence.

She wasn't too concerned about this, but instead focused her attention on Feng's upcoming birthday. She accidentally overheard Elysia and Kevin talking about wanting to hold a birthday party for Feng.

This should be a good thing for Feng, who liked Elysia, but this would mean her expression of feelings for Feng would have to be postponed. Moreover, liking someone, there was no such thing as first come, first served. Since Elysia didn't have that kind of feeling for Feng, and she had feelings of love for Feng, then it was okay for her to take away the opportunity to host this party, right?

As for the reason, she would say it was to thank Feng for taking care of her during her unconscious days.

This way, Elysia wouldn't be able to say anything more.

And after this, she had also figured out what to do, which was to formally establish a team consisting only of Fusion Warriors. This way, Feng's birthday in the future could legitimately become an internal team-building event, and Elysia wouldn't have a chance to join.

Only by reducing Elysia's contact with Feng could Feng possibly shift his gaze to others.

As for the team's name, it would be called the Fallen Angel Squad.