After Huang Hao eliminated the Herrscher, he had remained bedridden in the hospital. Many things had happened outside. Immer had still died, Hua had joined, and after everything that had happened, peace had suddenly arrived.
Only Huang Hao in the mental world sensed that something was wrong, but he did not clearly understand the future either, so he began to enjoy this peace.
Under Angela's care, Huang Hao was soon discharged. Seeing the recent tranquility, he also felt at peace. However, he still planned to make a few small moves that would not disturb anyone while strengthening himself.
And so, five years passed.
One day, Huang Hao went out for a walk and ran into Hua. Hua immediately stood straight, saluted, and shouted, "Good day, Commander!"
Huang Hao waved his hand. "All right, all right. We met several years ago already, so don't be so nervous."
During this period, Huang Hao had used the religious faith he had established earlier to stabilize the public's thoughts. It also gave him powerful means of preserving his life, allowing him to climb toward the upper ranks step by step. By now, he could be considered one of the higher-ups, with more authority than the others. That was why Hua had saluted him.
Looking at Hua, who was fully equipped even during her time off, Huang Hao sighed. "When I saved you back then, you were still a little girl, and I was just an ignorant young man who didn't know his own limits. I never expected that, by some strange twist of fate, we would end up working together."
Hua gave two awkward laughs before saying, "Commander, you've said that so many times over the years. Besides, everyone comes to Moth to the Flame to fight the Honkai. Back then, I was only a small team member, while you were already an Ace Soldier. I wanted to catch up with you."
Hearing Hua praise him, Huang Hao said nothing and merely shook his head.
Hua looked at Huang Hao and brought up that question again. "Commander, it's been a long time since the last time. There's no need to remain so fixated on it."
Huang Hao did not answer. He simply maintained his signature smile and patted Hua on the shoulder. "All right, you should go train too."
With that, he walked away. Watching Huang Hao leave, Hua muttered, "Angela said he was more cheerful back then. Doesn't that mean there are already plenty of answers...?"
From Huang Hao's perspective, he had by then reached the rest area. He was admiring the scenery there when he turned his head and saw another familiar person.
"Oh, Qian Jie. Wasn't your team given time off? What are you waiting here for?" Huang Hao asked Qian Jie, who seemed to be waiting for something.
Qian Jie turned around and saw Huang Hao. He looked as though he had received a pleasant surprise. "You're here. Perfect. Fight me."
Huang Hao said, "Why do you want to fight in private again?"
"You're always wearing that smiling face, yet you don't seem happy at all. We've known each other for so long—don't you understand my personality? Why are you becoming more and more like him?" Qian Jie replied unhappily.
Huang Hao fell silent for a moment. Then he smiled bitterly. "Maybe I still haven't gotten over it after all these years. In any case, you can't beat me. I'll give you permission to have one extra fight with Kevin this month."
Qian Jie still wanted to say something, but seeing Huang Hao barely manage to smile, he held his tongue.
"If there's nothing else, I'll be going. You and Kevin be careful not to get hurt." Huang Hao gave them a reminder before leaving as well.
Over the years, Huang Hao's relationships with the other warriors had also improved greatly. (How many higher-ups would join the battlefield? How afraid of death were they usually? When the others saw Huang Hao, who was the complete opposite of the other higher-ups, they naturally developed quite a bit of goodwill toward him.)
Huang Hao was friends with the main figures as well, or at the very least familiar with them. They had chatted privately more than once, especially Qian Jie, who had already become a friend he could talk to about anything. Although Qian Jie always ignored Huang Hao, they both understood that perfectly well.
After returning from his walk, Huang Hao found Angela quietly reading in the room.
"An'er, don't keep working so hard. You still need to rest," Huang Hao nagged Angela, who had been reading all day.
"It's because Father doesn't know enough that I have to study seriously," Angela replied, taking the opportunity to tease Huang Hao.
Huang Hao scratched his head awkwardly without saying anything and lay down on the bed.
As Huang Hao's status rose, Angela's status rose with it. She now held the same position as Kevin and could be considered one of Moth to the Flame's main combat forces.
The members of Moth to the Flame trained when they needed to train and rested when they needed to rest. The city's residents continued working as usual. Aside from the Australian War before Hua joined the team, nothing major had happened. (What about the dissolution of the Poison Moth? As far as Qian Jie was concerned, with Immer dead, there was no longer much left of the Poison Moth.) For a moment, Huang Hao felt as though the Honkai had ended and the world had become peaceful.
Seeing Huang Hao lying around doing nothing, Angela complained, "Stop dwelling on that strange question of yours. Shouldn't you work hard and exercise too?"
Huang Hao turned over on the bed and said lazily, "Let's forget about it today. I really am tired."
Seeing her father like this, Angela closed her book, came to the bedside, and said to Huang Hao, "After all these years, why are you still fixated on that question? You spend more than half of every day asking about it. I'm tired of hearing it."
Huang Hao said nothing.
Angela sighed quietly. "All right. Nothing much has happened recently, so go train for now."
Thus, Angela dragged Huang Hao into a new training session. By the time they came out, it was already evening.
After undergoing high-intensity training, Huang Hao went out for another walk. Along the way, he met Elysia, and the two of them walked together while chatting idly.
Elysia asked, "What? You still haven't found an answer to that question?"
Huang Hao said, "I know the answer, but I still haven't solved it."
Elysia said, "If you can't figure it out, stop thinking about it for now. The moonlight is so beautiful tonight. You should look at it a few more times." As she spoke, she somehow produced several bottles of drinks, keeping one for herself and tossing one to Huang Hao.
Huang Hao said, "Thanks. You're right."
Huang Hao found a bench and invited Elysia to sit with him and look at the moon.
Huang Hao said, "The Herrschers during the last Honkai were all strange and varied. They provided me with quite a bit of power, and even different kinds of it."
Elysia said, "Even if there are different kinds, this bottle of juice is still mine."
Huang Hao smiled awkwardly, drank the bottle of juice, and continued looking up at the moon.
After talking for a while, Elysia left. Huang Hao kept watching until late at night. Before long, it was already past midnight, so he returned.
Spending time with friends, chatting with Angela, doing some training, and finally pondering that question beneath the moon—that was his everyday life.
"I wonder how long days like these can last. And also..."
"This lemon juice is delicious. What a shame it isn't pure lemon."
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