"System, what the hell are Xiao Yun's shield, wind, sword, and whatever that water thing is? Why can't I feel any of them?"
"An unconscious Stigmata host can naturally sense them, but the problem is that Xiao Yun has already awakened. Those are her abilities, not yours."
"How can I, a Herrscher, not have my own Stigmata? System, you know what I mean."
"Host-exclusive Stigmata: 1,000,000 Honkai Energy."
"...Say, can I cancel the effect of my second title? I want to farm some Honkai Energy."
"Of course. However, I'd like to remind you, Host, that even if you wiped out every Mortal and Honkai Beast in all of Changkong City, you still wouldn't accumulate that much. Also, the reward for conquering the Third Herrscher is 100,000 Honkai Energy, while the kill reward is a Herrscher Core—the Gem of Conquest."
"Cancel the effect of the Herrscher title and lure over all the nearby Honkai Beasts and Mortals." Clearly, he hadn't taken the system's final sentence to heart. What a joke. As a rare growth-type Herrscher, how could he possibly go chasing girls for that 'tiny' amount of Honkai Energy? How was that any different from living off a woman?
"Miss Yae, I have something to deal with. Let's part ways here." To avoid unnecessary trouble, it was better to send Yae Sakura away for now.
"Very well. Lord Wuming, take care." To make sure calling him that wouldn't sound too unfamiliar, she called the young man Wuming. This solved the awkward problem of his name while giving her something to call him. "I hope that the next time I see you, you'll have a name."
"Don't worry."
After bidding farewell to Yae Sakura, the young man sprinted in the opposite direction, leaving a huge white "wave" trailing behind him.
"System, why didn't you tell me there were so many enemies nearby?! If they all spat once, they could drown me!"
"The Host underestimated the enemies. Some Mortals and Honkai Beasts drop things other than Honkai Energy when killed. Consider that a surprise I prepared for you. Don't worry—it's definitely good stuff."
"Good stuff?" The young man stopped at once. Using the power of the Queen of Thunder's Kirin, he manipulated lightning, and spear after spear of thunder revolved around him. "Then what are we waiting for? I'll kill as many as I can!"
It didn't take long for the young man to realize that the system had brought him nothing but weaklings. They were all Ordinary Mortal-level enemies. Even the Honkai Beasts were the weakest kind. The Rush-type and Tank-class Honkai Beasts he had encountered earlier were nowhere to be seen.
That would have been fine, but even the Honkai Energy dropped by these Mortals and Honkai Beasts was in the single digits. Some of them didn't drop anything at all.
"I say, System, are you scamming me?"
"No... This was an accident, my Host. The strongest enemies in Changkong City were lured away just now."
"Yae Sakura?"
"Indeed. And the three people you encountered earlier."
"System, can I pursue Yae Sakura?"
"Of course. The conquest rewards are 1,000,000 Honkai Energy, the Divine Key—Jizou Mitama, and the special instance Stigmata World: Sakura Cycle. There is no kill reward. In addition, conquest uses a favorability system. There is also a perfect conquest after that. Once you reach a certain level, there will be a surprise."
Perfect conquest... Heh. And considering the enormous difference in rewards, along with what little he vaguely knew about Yae Sakura... it was easy to imagine how difficult it would be.
"System, open the text box. I'm taking the quests!" His entire future depended on this system powerhouse guiding him. He had to complete more quests if he wanted to support himself.
Quest One: Rescue Bronya (double-spiral twin-tail loli), Kiana (white-haired dumpling, twin-tail bug), and Raiden Mei (purple-haired wife-type, maxed out); --Quest Reward: Ten Mixed Supplies, +5 favorability with each of the three. --Quest Two: Defeat the Third Herrscher; --Quest Reward: Queen of Thunder's Kirin upgraded from S-rank to SS-rank, ten Mixed Supplies, and +10 favorability with Raiden Mei. --Quest Three: Escape Changkong City (condition: both of the above quests fail); --Quest Reward: Ten Mixed Supplies, 5,000 Honkai Energy (this reward can be obtained directly if both of the above quests succeed). --Quest Four: Before leaving Changkong City, have your own name, become friends with Yae Sakura, and receive a Good Person Card from Yae Sakura; --Quest Reward: +10 favorability with Yae Sakura, three Yae Village Special Rice Balls. --Failure Penalty: There is no penalty for failing Quests One, Two, or Four. If Quest Three fails, the Host dies.
"Where are those three right now? And where is Yae Sakura?" He knew the system definitely had something like a map. At worst, he could spend a little more Honkai Energy.
"This system comes with a map. Host, please look at your left wrist."
Sure enough, something resembling a watch appeared on the young man's left wrist. With a light touch, it projected a... world map.
After repeatedly tapping the "+" symbol in the lower-right corner of the projection's virtual image, the world map finally zoomed in to show Changkong City's terrain and routes.
Three distinct silver, white, and purple dots were clustered together, while an arrow pointed straight down at the young man's location. In the opposite direction was a pink dot. Besides those, there was a red arrow at the edge of Changkong City.
"These three dots are those three girls, the pink dot is Yae Sakura, and the red arrow... Schicksal?"
"That's correct. Please complete the quests as quickly as possible, Host. This system can summon some Honkai Beasts to help delay them, but only for two days at most. Even if I could stall them longer, something unexpected might happen with the Third Herrscher. Please hurry."
"Thanks. Let's go."
The young man killed the enemies that attacked him while searching for food and water. Although the system could provide those things, they required Honkai Energy. He didn't believe his reserves could support his meals, especially when he still had to rescue three people.
In an abandoned shop, he found a shoulder bag and a backpack that were still mostly intact. He hung both on himself and put all the food and water he found inside.
"So heavy..." The young man had covered nearly half of Changkong City, stuffing every bit of food and water he came across into the bags. As a seasoned shut-in, he wasn't exactly in great shape. Fighting monsters and leveling up was all thanks to the power of the Valkyrie armor. Using the power of the Queen of Thunder's Kirin to carry bags was a waste.
"I say, Host, this system has storage space. You didn't need to do this, did you? Storage space doesn't consume Honkai Energy; only expanding it does. There are fifty slots to begin with. Since you put the food and water into two bags, I can count them as only two slots."
"You should've said so sooner!" He took off the bags, putting the food in one and the water in the other.
Bang! As luck would have it, a Tank-class Honkai Beast leaped into the air at that exact moment, intending to crush the young man beneath it.
The young man chose to save his own life. Under normal circumstances, a Tank-class Honkai Beast was far stronger than a giant mosquito and quite clumsy—but that also meant its hide was incredibly thick.
However, that choice led to a minor accident...
Before you continue