Honkai, the Kaslana's Way of Survival

"Bro, you know what? Sis went shopping with Rita today and was smiling so happily!"

"I know, she told me. What about it?"

"Well, bro, you know what? That little Bronya went shopping with Seele and was smiling so happily... oh, the blue-haired one."

"I know, Seele told me. So what's the matter?"

"Do you think they might be, you know...?"

"I kno... what did you say?!"

"I saw them holding hands while shopping, and they were smiling so happily."

"They... never mind, that's pretty common among Valkyries. As for Bianca... even though Rita is quite a bit older, let her be."

Sighing, Kaino collapsed on the sofa, suddenly noticing something amiss. He looked at the white-haired dumpling in front of him with suspicion.

"How do you know all this?"

Kiana smiled sheepishly, a flattering expression on her face.

"I saw them when Mei and I were shopping... I was smiling pretty happily too at the time."

Miscellaneous Chapters (Expected to be Entirely Free)

Preliminary Notes

This volume will be used for things like absence notices, chapter recommendations, setting collections, or things that would be too filler if put in the main text (like plot hooks I've dug). It will be released in a free format to supplement the main story.

If you haven't read the main text yet, it's recommended to skip this... although it might not have a huge impact on your reading experience, it's not entirely irrelevant, is it?

And, thank you for clicking to read.

Reminiscence of Principle? Part 1 [Newcomer]

"Klein~ Klein, do you have a moment?"

.%,81

"Doctor? I'm sorry, I still need a little more time to organize the meeting materials..."

"Meeting? Ah, that kind of thing doesn't matter. There's something more important right now."

"Klein, tidy up the lab. A newcomer will be here in a little while. I don't really care about this, but let's at least give the newcomer a good impression of the lab."

"Eh, a newcomer? Doctor, did I hear you right? Someone actually wants to come to our lab?"

"..."

"Could it be that he was also recommended by Blanca?"

"No, I put in a lot of effort to snatch him from the higher-ups at Moth Chasing Fire."

"Speaking of which, it's thanks to the Second Herrscher's power causing their concerns, otherwise it probably wouldn't have been so easy."

"Heh, humans are such creatures. On one hand, they crave to glimpse the truth, but on the other hand, they fear the unknown. They only face the fact of their weakness after an even more terrifying existence descends, and are willing to pay some insignificant price."

"But if it weren't for that Elysia suddenly popping up, I might have been able to apply for him more than a month ago."

"..."

"Sounds like someone as powerful and dangerous as the Doctor."

"?"

"Ah, Klein, it seems you've misunderstood something."

"Although he can indeed be called powerful, he's not dangerous at all. He's as docile as a kitten. It's just a pity that those higher-ups can't see this... or maybe they see it but don't dare to believe it?"

"..."

"In short, the lab is about to welcome another researcher. Doctor, do you need to purchase any more experimental equipment?"

"Heh, that's why I said you misunderstood, Klein."

"That newcomer isn't a researcher, but a test subject... a miraculously surviving test subject with a one-in-a-million chance of survival."

"Of course, perhaps he can also serve as a researcher in certain situations. But in any case, he doesn't need equipment."

"...I understand."

"Mhm."

"By the way, Klein, have you seen that box I put on the experiment table? It seems to be gone."

"That small black box? I put it in your study, Doctor."

"..."

"Doctor, does it contain something important?"

"Ah. Of course, it's definitely important."

"That… is the truth."

Recollection of Principles? Part Two [Hero]

"Elysia? Tch, what do you want this time?"

"I don't have any badges for you this time."

"Oh dear, we're all such lively and adorable young ladies, don't be so cold to me, Doctor."

"I came to chat with you this time."

"Chat with me? Forget it, we have nothing to talk about."

"By the way, you're the twelfth person to use chatting as an excuse to enter my lab today, more than the total for an entire year."

"But after a few words, their topics all drift towards someone in the lab."

"So, just get to the point, Elysia."

"That way, I can kick you out."

"Waaah, but I really did come to chat? As some of the few beautiful girls in Moth Chasing Fire, we should interact more."

"..."

"Oh, of course. I also wanted to meet the hero who single-handedly defeated the Third Herrscher and saved ChangKong City."

"I knew it."

"Klein, show her out."

"Oh, don't be so hasty, Doctor Mobius."

"Just be a dear and satisfy this young maiden's curiosity, won't you?"

"Tch."

"Alright, but watch your words, don't provoke him with hero talk."

"Calming someone with the soul of a child isn't easy. Klein isn't good at this sort of thing, and I don't want to do it for the thirteenth time."

"Yay!"

"Thank you, Doctor Mobius. I'll bring you a little snake doll next time."

"..."

"Boring."

"Kaino, come out and satisfy this young maiden's curiosity."

"Alright, she's seen enough, you can go back now."

"...?"

Recollection of Principles? Part Three [Eyes]

The sound of a file slamming heavily on the desk startled another person in the lab, who had been feeling somewhat down, and they looked at the angry Doctor Mobius in confusion.

"Doctor, has something terrible happened? In my past memories, you didn't seem to get angry like this," Kaino paused, then added, "After all, you once said that getting angry causes pimples."

"Did I not tell you, Kaino? Don't blindly trust researchers," Mobius rolled her eyes at Kaino, nonchalantly saying, "Also, don't casually mention topics like pimples in front of women. Although I don't particularly care about these things, your inflexible nature makes me doubt whether you can communicate smoothly with others."

"At least, as far as you and Klein are concerned, Doctor, I can communicate very smoothly," Kaino paused, adding, "I was also able to communicate relatively smoothly with that Miss Elysia who came to your office last time, although she seemed a little angry in the end."

"Oh, that's nothing. Even if I don't care, it's a fact that my figure is superior to hers." Mobius looked at Kaino with a strange expression, the corners of her mouth curving into a faint, dangerous arc, "But don't you think the people you've chosen are all exceptions? From a broad perspective, whether it's me, Klein, or Elysia, we're all quite special when it comes to socializing."

"As for normal people in the broad sense… isn't the reason you're so depressed right now because you had a truly meaningful interaction with them?"

"..."

"Tell me, how does it feel?"

"Terrible," Kaino said softly, "Strictly speaking, I didn't even have a truly meaningful interaction with most of them. During the operation to annihilate the Third Herrscher, they didn't pay much attention to the Third Herrscher, but instead stared at me with fear."

"And after successfully annihilating the Third Herrscher, no one interacted with me except for the team transporting the Third Herrscher's corpse, who asked me to hand over the corpse to them—they stayed far away from me."

"To have the spare energy to pay attention to other people's gazes during battle, it seems your strength is indeed quite good after fusing two cores." Mobius nodded thoughtfully, continuing, "As for those people's gazes, you don't need to care too much about them."

"...But Doctor, you were the one who wanted me to interact more with others."

"Heh, then let me comfort you for now." Taking a sip of the coffee on the table, Mobius continued, "You don't have to be so broad in your definition of other people. Fearing their own powerlessness and dreading death, but then fearing violence when the power that can save them from death arrives… in this current doomsday, such people will soon be removed from the concept of humanity."

"Rest assured, in the very end, the remaining humans will no longer look at you with strange eyes."

Kaino nodded thoughtfully, "I understand."

"~"

"Then, Doctor," Kaino continued, "What was the reason for your previous rage?"

"What else could it be!" Slamming the table heavily again, Mobius's eyes sharpened instantly like snake pupils, "Those lives that still belong to the realm of humanity fear power and the unknown. My application for the Third Herrscher's corpse and core was rejected, and they even cut our lab's funding. Heh, perhaps it has something to do with that Doctor Mei who was rescued?"

"Perhaps because that Doctor Mei is indeed extremely outstanding, they've begun to think that fighting the Honkai is no longer difficult, and we are no longer worth valuing?"

"Heh, naive."

"..."

"Then let me comfort you for now, Doctor." Like an eager student, Kaino mimicked the Doctor's recent words, turning to a somewhat surprised Mobius. "While it's not entirely complete, you don't need to focus too much on the Third Herrscher to some extent."

Extending his right hand, Kaino showed Mobius the lightning flickering above it.

"Perhaps I'm weaker than her, but I can probably do everything the Third Herrscher can."

Eyes widening in disbelief as she stared at the tiny spark of electricity, Mobius's face suddenly lit up with an expression even more excited than obtaining a core. She looked at Kaino like a gambler waiting for the dice cup to open.

"You..."

"I don't know why, but I can see, understand, and replicate the power used by the Third Herrscher, and the Second Herrscher's power as well," Kaino explained. "It's just a pity that I killed the Third Herrscher too quickly, so I didn't fully understand her authority by the time she was taken away."

Prologue? The Beginning

Chapter 1 Kaino Kaslana

Lying in bed, Kaino struggled to open his eyes. After staring blankly for a moment once his vision cleared, he turned to look at the alarm clock on the bedside table.

7:36.

Damn it, why did I wake up so early today?

There were still 24 minutes until the alarm was set to ring, but those remaining 24 minutes clearly wouldn't allow him to get a good sleep.

Kaino struggled to reach out and turn off the alarm clock. After observing the ceiling for a while longer, he slowly got out of bed.

The blankets were too warm, and he had to use all his strength to escape their embrace. If he could, he definitely wouldn't get up at this time. Even if he woke up, he would stay in bed for another hour.

But today was the day he had planned to go out with his sister and dad, so there was no time for him to waste in bed. In fact, even if he wanted to waste time in bed, his sister would definitely be banging on his door soon after the alarm went off, urging him to get up.