Seeing this, Gwen could only hold the girl pressed on top of him, gently patting her back as if soothing a child and whispering words of comfort.
It would have been better if Gwen had said nothing. The moment he tried to comfort her, Anna's fragile emotions completely collapsed. Tears streamed down her face as her little fists kept pounding his chest. She mumbled things like, "I'm so scared," and, "Why did you take it all on yourself?" All her usual poise and composure had vanished, and she was like a child.
Gwen could only exchange a smile with You Lan Dai Er before soothing the girl in his arms as if she were a child...
Careful, or I'll Be Supporting You for Life
She cried for quite a while. Only when footsteps sounded again in the distance did Anna, whose rationality was gradually returning, suddenly jolt and realize her current situation.
Yet after realizing it, Anna found herself caught in a dilemma—
Should she get up before the others arrived?
But Gwen would definitely laugh at her, right?
Definitely, right?
That guy loved making fun of her...
Should she just pretend she had not snapped out of it yet?
Wouldn't that make her the laughingstock of the entire headquarters?
She had clearly only been providing support from the rear, yet she had ended up collapsing into the arms of the main force responsible for the front lines and even needed him to take care of her... Wouldn't she disgrace the name Schariac?
Just as Anna's pretty face burned and she struggled inwardly, seemingly forced to choose between those two options, Gwen's voice suddenly reached her ears—
"Anna seems to have fallen asleep..."
Sensing the intense emotional turmoil of the girl in his arms, Gwen spoke softly to You Lan Dai Er beside him.
As he spoke, Gwen blinked hard, signaling You Lan Dai Er to pay attention to Anna.
You Lan Dai Er blinked in confusion. She had no idea why Gwen was giving her that look, but she still chose to follow his lead.
"That's understandable. The attack by an Emperor-class Honkai Beast, along with the destruction it caused, would be enough to leave anyone with a severe psychological shadow.
"If Anna had been under excessive mental strain, it would be possible for her to fall asleep now that she had relaxed."
It was not that You Lan Dai Er had noticed Anna's state and was covering for her. She had simply recalled similar cases from the documents she had read.
However, though she went along with Gwen's words, the increasingly straightforward You Lan Dai Er still failed to understand his signal. She hesitated.
"But Gwen, your injuries..."
"Don't worry. I know the condition of my own injuries."
Though troubled that You Lan Dai Er had not understood his hint, Gwen could only smile in response to her concern.
"My injuries will heal after a few days of rest.
"Have the medical team treat the others first..."
Though he could not read minds, Gwen knew Anna well enough to roughly guess what the girl in his arms was thinking, so he declined.
"But you took several attacks just now."
Hearing Gwen's words, You Lan Dai Er frowned.
"You may not feel much now, but if you do not receive treatment in time and delay it, it could very easily turn into a chronic injury that burdens you for the rest of your life."
Other than Gwen himself, You Lan Dai Er knew best how much damage he had suffered during that battle.
Therefore, she did not agree with what Gwen was saying.
On top of Gwen, Anna, who had just been a little excited at the prospect of seemingly escaping disaster, instantly went pale.
Of course Anna understood everything taught in those required courses. She had simply overlooked it because her emotions had collapsed earlier.
Now that You Lan Dai Er had brought it up, Anna immediately realized the severity of the problem.
Thinking of You Lan Dai Er's words, Anna felt a bone-chilling cold rise from her spine and shoot straight to the top of her head—
"Anna, Anna, when did you become such a selfish person?
"Because of your own embarrassment, you were actually going to make Gwen bear such a huge hidden danger..."
Harshly criticizing herself inwardly, Anna immediately threw away her embarrassment and her earlier thought of pretending to sleep. She pushed herself up and said,
"Gwen, Bianca is right. Any injury must be taken seriously. You absolutely cannot delay treatment!"
Looking at the serious expression on Anna's face, which still retained a faint blush, Gwen blinked before smiling.
"Since both of you say so, I suppose I shouldn't keep delaying it...
"But Anna, should you perhaps get up first?
"You should know that my back is injured.
"If you cause a secondary injury, careful, or I'll be supporting you for life..."
"You're still saying weird things at a time like this!"
Hearing Gwen's words, Anna could no longer maintain the serious look on her face. Her little fist lightly thumped his chest.
Even as she spoke, Anna quickly got up and carefully helped Gwen to his feet.
Before long, the medical team Rita had dispatched arrived and immediately placed Gwen onto a stretcher.
"I only have a few minor injuries. There's no need for a stretcher, right..."
Gwen weakly complained as Anna held him down on the stretcher.
"If you're injured, lie down and rest properly. Talk less."
Anna, who had suppressed Gwen with one hand, wrinkled her cute little nose. Though the mixture of dust and tears had turned her face into that of a little tabby cat, she still looked adorably charming.
Seeing their interaction, the medical team members could not help letting out a round of soft laughter.
In the end, Gwen was carried back to camp for treatment. As one of the first groups to return, he was then sent back to headquarters for a comprehensive examination and treatment.
As for You Lan Dai Er, whose injuries were only minor, she still had to remain with Rita and lead the Valkyrie troops in staying for a few more days. They would not withdraw until the Honkai Energy in the city had fallen to a safe level.
Of course, aside from guarding against new enemies that could appear at any time, the Valkyrie troops stationed there also had to assist the follow-up forces with tasks beyond the capabilities of ordinary people.
For example, dismantling and transporting away Ganesha's mountain-like corpse.
However, that would have to wait until the relevant units arrived.
For now, Ganesha's corpse had merely been cordoned off and placed under surveillance.
Though it had been killed, the residual Honkai Energy in an Emperor-class Honkai Beast's corpse was still lethal in quantity to most people. No one would be foolish enough to touch that thing.
Yet that Honkai Energy happened to help Clown Alpha beneath the compacted "foundation" underground—or rather, Otto—
Otto's Soul Steel body was undoubtedly powerful, but when faced with Ganesha's crushing weight, proportional to its size and mass, it had inevitably suffered damage.
The Honkai Energy dissipating from Ganesha's corpse, however, could help Otto restore his Soul Steel body and leave this place.
"Perhaps... without you using Mimic Judas to weaken that Ganesha earlier, they could have dealt with it anyway?"
Void Archives had very much wanted to loudly mock Otto, who was currently smashed into the ground, but after considering it, it chose to change the subject and slip in a subtle jab.
As Void Archives had said, when Ganesha struck this place for the last time, Otto had used Void Archives to fire Mimic Judas, weakening Ganesha's Honkai Energy and assisting Gwen and You Lan Dai Er in finishing it off.
But Mimic Judas had also weakened Otto's own Honkai Energy, lowering the strength of his Soul Steel body and making it somewhat troublesome for Otto to leave.
Ganesha: Ready for the Taking
In a hotel in a small coastal city in southern Europe, a rookie mercenary who had just completed a mission was relaxing comfortably in a bathtub when the news from the phone made the contented smile on her face instantly freeze—
"What?
"You want me to steal Ganesha's body tissue tonight?
"Right under Schariac's nose?
"If you want me dead, Jackal, just say so!"
Her damp, soft gray short hair bristled slightly with its owner's agitation, while her dark red eyes brimmed with displeasure.
As a Honkai Energy adapter carefully cultivated by World Serpent, Natasha Sciola—who appeared to be merely a rising star in the mercenary world—already possessed the strength to kill the current number one on Charon's List head-on.
However, Natasha had little interest in fighting for glory. She only wanted to make money and live her life. Stealing something under the nose of Schariac, the uncrowned king of this world, was a little too thrilling for her.
At least, for Natasha, who had yet to become the World Serpent executive Raven, stealing the heavily guarded body tissue of an Emperor-class Honkai Beast was an unnecessary risk—
"I don't want to be hunted down by Schariac's Valkyries!"
"What, are you afraid?"
Hearing Natasha's irritated words, the woman codenamed Jackal on the other end of the communication, wearing a jackal mask, curved her lips beneath it. She casually provoked Raven.
"With your current strength, a mere A-rank Valkyrie is nothing.
"And with the equipment provided by the Serpent, killing those inexperienced little girls would not be much harder than the mission you completed today."
"..."
Listening to the words coming through the communication, Natasha admitted that she had been provoked.
However, Raven, who had been raised by Gray Serpent, was not some greenhouse flower like Anna, who could only say "bad guy" when she got upset.
A mocking curve appeared on Natasha's lips as she sneered,
"But why should I kill girls even younger than me?
"Because they protect this world before the Serpent rises to the surface?
"Or because they're too young and pretty?"
Natasha was not very familiar with Jackal, but she was certain that this person wearing a dog-headed mask was definitely not young. So, following the principle of throwing out a jab whether it landed or not, she brought it up.
"Hmph!
"Ignorant!"
Yet in response to Natasha's casual mockery, Jackal, who had been smiling moments ago, immediately stiffened her expression. As though she had not been the one teasing Natasha just now, she said coldly,
"The Valkyries stationed there are overly confident in the deterrent effect of the Emperor-class Honkai Beast's corpse itself. They have not stationed anyone to guard it, merely put up a cordon and surveillance cameras.
"Even if you swagger in and take a sample, as long as you move quickly enough, you can bring it back.
"Ganesha appeared in the current civilization not long ago. The Serpent needs to update its database. Decide for yourself."
After saying that, the ill-tempered Jackal hung up, leaving Natasha with a string of busy tones.
"This person..."
Looking strangely at the disconnected call, Natasha recalled a phrase she often used when arguing with people online—
"Heh, you're getting worked up?"
Though she had occasionally heard Gray Serpent mention that Jackal's personality was not particularly good, Natasha truly had not expected this person to get worked up so easily.
Still, because of that, Natasha's foul mood improved considerably. She opened the mission information that had just arrived and began reading it.
A moment later, looking at the location of the Emperor-class Honkai Beast's corpse on the map, quite far from the camp, Natasha pursed her lips.
"They really are careless, just leaving an Emperor-class corpse sitting there like that..."
As she spoke, Natasha rose amid a splash of water.
Within the hazy steam of the bathroom, her blurred yet alluring curves were wrapped in World Serpent's specially made combat suit, like a fragile bird donning black feathers and claws.
"Then let me teach you a lesson in protecting your belongings properly..."
Pulling down the hood over her head and covering one eye, Natasha was no longer the fragile girl leisurely soaking in a bath. She was now the rising star of the mercenary world—
Raven!
That night, an unregistered private plane cut through the darkness and approached the city that had just endured a Honkai disaster.
Before you continue