For the Dawn of Hope

Zhu Yufeng and Elysia walked together in a park within the Fire Moth base. Due to the attack by the Herrscher of Binding, all the plants here had withered. The fully-formed Divine Blessing Barrier could annihilate the life of an ordinary human in a second, and the same was true for plants and animals.

The two of them remained silent throughout the journey.

Finally, Elysia couldn't hold back any longer and spoke first, "Maple, don't you have anything you want to say to me?"

Zhu Yufeng paused for a moment, then said in a somewhat uncertain tone, "Is my current physical condition considered healthy?"

"I... well, your physical condition is indeed within my concerns." Elysia was certain that Zhu Yufeng had roughly guessed what she was talking about, but he was still trying to feign ignorance and make a last-ditch effort. "But, Feng, you should know that's not what I meant."

Zhu Yufeng remained silent; this time, he didn't speak.

Judging from Elysia's attitude, it's clear that Lilith told her this. But why would Lilith tell her? Everything Lilith does is purposeful, and Lilith should know perfectly well why she doesn't want Elysia to know. So, did Lilith tell Elysia this because Lilith felt she had misjudged something?

Regarding Zhu Yufeng's "refusal to cooperate" attitude, Elysia pouted slightly and said, "At this point, I should tell you, 'Confess and you'll be treated leniently; resist and you'll be punished severely.' Feng, do you really still not want to say anything?"

Zhu Yufeng simply smiled and said, "Then, may I ask, Elysia, how do you plan to be strict with me?"

"I..." Elysia was speechless after Zhu Yufeng's retort. She was indeed a little angry that Zhu Yufeng was hiding something from her again, but to punish him severely... how could she possibly punish Feng severely? If she ignored Feng for a few days, she was afraid that she would go to him first before Feng even reacted.

It's impossible.

Zhu Yufeng's attack completely overwhelmed Elysia, leaving Elysia speechless. She could only look at Zhu Yufeng with pitiful eyes and say, "Feng... you're so mean..."

Zhu Yufeng looked at Elysia, lowered his eyes, and said, "Lilith told you?"

Elysia hummed in agreement and said softly, "But I'd rather you told me yourself, instead of... me only being able to hear about it from others, like before..."

Elysia reached out and cupped Zhu Yufeng's face in her hands. Their eyes met, and Elysia said earnestly, "Feng, didn't we promise to face this together? Didn't we promise to walk this path together? Why... now that things have come to this, you want to..."

Zhu Yufeng looked into Elysia's eyes and after a long while said, "Because... there is hope for survival."

"There's... a chance to survive?" Elysia was taken aback.

Zhu Yufeng had one hand in his pocket, while the other gently stroked Elysia's cheek. He whispered, "In the beginning, none of us knew where the future would lead. In all of Su's observations, your choices never changed, your path never wavered. Now, it seems that fate is once again heading towards destruction, and at this moment, someone told me there is a way for you to survive from this withering end..."

"And then the result of this method is that you'll die?!" Elysia's voice suddenly rose, her tone trembling slightly, "Why... why did you still..."

"So, Elysia, answer me, if humanity fails again this time, and we have to activate the various plans prepared for the next era, what will your choice be before the Finality meteor falls?" Zhu Yufeng looked at Elysia calmly.

"I..."

Elysia fell silent. She remembered what Lilith had told her: if she chose to sacrifice herself to save the next civilization, just like before, then Zhu Yufeng's final path would inevitably be exactly the same as in his previous life. The War of Finality could not be without sacrifice, and he would not allow anyone to sacrifice except himself.

"Elysia, please understand me..."

"I don't understand!" Elysia cried out, looking at Zhu Yufeng with teary eyes. "Besides, we might not even lose, right? It's just one failure. Didn't we succeed before? Human society still has order, and everyone's lives haven't collapsed. We... might not lose, right?"

"But I can't afford to gamble," Zhu Yufeng said. "We all know that humanity can succeed countless times in the war against the Honkai, but the Honkai only needs to succeed once... right?"

Elysia lowered her head, and the faint sound of thunder could be heard from the gloomy sky.

It looks like it's going to rain.

Both fell silent, each searching for a glimmer of hope in the chaos. One found a way: to sacrifice himself for the other's survival. The other, still uncertain of the future, wasn't afraid of repeating her fate, for the most valuable thing they had shared was their history together. If she had a choice, she would give him the hope of survival...

Zhu Yufeng looked down at Elysia, his gaze becoming distant. In the past few days, he had thought a lot, recalling everything between him and Elysia from their previous life to the present, remembering the many little things they had shared along the way... He examined himself once again, and his original intention had never changed. Knowing the beauty of the next civilization, he hoped she could see it all, not wanting her to wither away again, not wanting her to ultimately have to bear the cross of suffering.

Because he... loves her.

Although these words don't carry much weight coming from him, who's currently caught in the middle of a tangled web of complicated relationships...

"It has nothing to do with the survival of humanity, nothing to do with the ideals of the masses. I only want you to live. I am willing to be the light that helps you through the long night, to help you see the hopeful dawn."

Zhu Yufeng lowered his eyes, thinking to himself.

In the silence, raindrops finally began to fall from the sky. Elysia looked up and reached out as if to catch the falling raindrops. In a daze, she seemed to have returned to that time in the past.

At the end of the Tragedy of Binding, in order to provide timely support to Zhu Yufeng and Lilith, who were engaged in a fierce battle with the Herrscher of Binding, she was also rushing to the scene. However, when she arrived, it was too late.

In the rain, he never looked back, and she could no longer bridge the distance between them separated by the rain.

Why did we end up like this? Why did our ending have to be like this...?

Similar time, similar scene, the same people, and...

Zhu Yufeng also looked up at the gloomy sky. Although the rain stirred up memories of that time, everything was different in his eyes this time. Fate seemed unchanged, but it had made concessions. He could not prevent the tragedy from happening, but he could see a glimmer of hope for the end.

His only regret was not being able to save Seele and Michael, but their sacrifice would not be in vain. He would protect the rest of them, and that would be the best ending for him.

"It's time to go," Zhu Yufeng said. Although this little bit of rain was nothing to Fusion Warrior, and it was purely accidental that Pardo could catch a cold, he had never seen any other Fusion Warrior catch a cold before, but no matter what, standing here in the rain and getting their clothes wet would be uncomfortable.

Speaking of which, won't Kevin end up completely soaked in the rain by the end?

Just as Zhu Yufeng's thoughts began to wander, the words "It's time to go" seemed to trigger a switch, and Elysia suddenly said, "Don't go..."

Zhu Yufeng was taken aback. "But Elysia, we..."

We can't just stand here getting soaked in the rain. We can go back and continue our conversation.

But before she could finish her sentence, Elysia suddenly stepped forward and hugged him tightly. "Maple... don't leave me, okay?"

Zhu Yufeng was stunned for a moment before he understood what was going on. He and Elysia were indeed traumatized by the Tragedy of Binding, but in this incident, he had somewhat "come to terms with it"? He wasn't going to become an extremely sad and obsessive Demon Dragon like in his previous life, although... he might still be a crazy guy now.

He was just too greedy; he wanted everyone to live.

What a hopeless case, isn't he?

Elysia is different. For Elysia, the biggest impact of the Tragedy of Binding came from the breakdown of her relationship with her. In a sense, this conversation may be similar.

Neither he nor Elysia was willing to back down. Although the reasons were different from the previous life, for Elysia, the starting point of the rift between the two in the previous life was also that neither of them was willing to compromise.

That's why she's... so terrified right now.

Zhu Yufeng reached out and hugged Elysia. He could clearly feel the girl's body trembling slightly in his arms. He could only whisper, "Elysia, don't be afraid. At least I'm still by your side, aren't I? I know that kind of ending might be hard for you to accept, but it's the last resort we choose when there's no other way. We can't put all our hopes on one thing, can we?"

"But... you're really... so selfish... so selfish..."

The girl in his arms sobbed softly, and Zhu Yufeng could only hold her a little tighter, saying, "I'm sorry... Elysia, I'm such a selfish and self-righteous fool... Please forgive me..."

"I don't want to forgive you! I just want you by my side!"

Zhu Yufeng didn't answer again. The last time he saw Elysia so sad was in the dream created by Lilith, in Elysia's confession before the [The Final Banquet], and before that, it was right after her rebirth...

Her life was free of gloom. No matter what difficulties or problems she encountered, she would face them with a smile. Even if she encountered setbacks, she would get up from the ground, dust herself off, and face the next tomorrow with positivity.

Yet this same girl, because of his intrusion, has fallen into such sorrow three times.

So... perhaps, meeting her was actually her misfortune...

After a while, the girl in his arms stopped sobbing. Leaning against his chest, she whispered, "You're so cunning..."

"Feel sorry."

"You might really die..."

"Um..."

"So you want me to just watch with a clear conscience? You barged into my life like that, intertwining our stories, you've captured my heart so tightly, and now you want me to just watch you leave?"

"... Forgive me..."

How can I forgive you? How can I possibly forgive you? We promised to face this together, we promised to walk this path together, but... have you still decided to abandon me and leave me alone?

"..."

"You're so selfish... so cunning... you're a complete and utter idiot..."

"Um..."

"... But it's someone like you who has captured my heart so tightly, made me fall in love with you. Meeting you is the luckiest thing that has ever happened to me, and also... the unluckiest thing..."

Zhu Yufeng held Elysia in his arms and listened quietly to her story.

"In my past life, before I left, I asked Eden and the others if I had become a [human] in the end. They told me yes. Yes... It's because I became a [human] that I have people I love, that I feel sadness, that I shed tears... Now, I have truly become a human, haven't I? That's why I have such heavy sorrow, that's why I want to leave someone behind, irrationally..."

Those who were absent did so because they believed in Elysia; those who were present were present because they believed in Elysia... You always believed in me, but I never believed in your heart until the very end, thinking you would hate my identity as Herrscher, and that I, as Herrscher, would extend an invitation to you to defeat me...

Thinking about it this way, I guess I'm a terrible person... I liked someone but didn't even have the courage to accept it, always choosing to run away, and only realized my feelings when it was completely too late to salvage the situation...

"Elysia..."

I don't regret liking you, or falling in love with you.

"Me too."

The two embraced silently in the rain. After a while, Zhu Yufeng said, "Let's go back. Your clothes are all wet. We can't predict what tomorrow will bring. Let's compose ourselves and greet the next sunrise. The rain will eventually stop, and the long night will eventually end."

Elysia gave a soft "hmm" and then fell silent.

The two returned to the villa, which was now empty.

After saying goodbye to Alicia, Zhu Yufeng and Elysia went their separate ways to shower and change. However, it was rather strange to be left alone with Elysia in such a large villa...

Mobius and Vill-V, who are often in the lab and the Spiral Workshop, are alright, but Klein's body is severely necrotic. Mobius and Vill-V are discussing transforming Klein's body into Gray Serpent to prolong her life, and Rovoc is also helping, so it's not surprising that the three of them are not here.

Nahamah... well, it's not surprising he's not here. He's probably off somewhere flirting with girls.

Where is everyone else? Is it just a coincidence that everyone has something to do today? Even Lilith isn't here—what's going on?

Speaking of Lilith, why did she tell Elysia all this? I'll have to ask her on my phone what she's thinking when I get back to my room...

He was a little late because he was thinking about some things. When he finished showering and opened his bedroom door, he saw Elysia sitting on his bed wrapped in a bath towel, seemingly lost in thought.

Zhu Yufeng: "..."

Close the door, then go outside to confirm that this is your room.

After confirming everything was correct, Zhu Yufeng walked in with a somewhat stiff expression. Elysia looked up and asked, "Are you done confirming?"

"Hmm." Zhu Yufeng's eye twitched slightly. "So, Elysia, what's wrong with you...?"

"I understand."

"Understanding it means..."

"If a girl says that, she'll be really clueless about romance."

"... Could you give me some time?"

"Cannot."

"In broad daylight..."

"Anyway, nobody's here, right?" Elysia smiled, walked up to Zhu Yufeng, and gently hugged Zhu Yufeng, saying, "Lilith has beaten us to the punch so many times, it's okay for me to take a little lead, right?"

Lilith?

Wait, this can't all be...

On the other side.

"Sister Lilith, you called everyone here for a tea party... are you sure you don't need to invite Sister Elysia?" Pardo looked at Lilith was calmly drinking her red tea, with some unease.

"Don't worry, she's busy right now," Lilith said casually. "Even if you asked her, she wouldn't come."

Pardo slowly typed out a question mark.