Awakened

St. Freya Academy, the principal's office.

"Principal, you had the secretary-general attend the Far East Branch meeting in your place, then ran off to Changkong City to fight someone suspected of being a Herrscher-level threat. That was reckless beyond belief."

"You have some nerve saying that! You used the still-in-development Nexus System and forcibly pushed it to maximum output to block the Herrscher's attack. You reckless bombshell! The only reason you didn't end up in intensive care was sheer luck."

"That was my duty as a captain. As the head of the Far East Branch, the principal can't be this willful. Staying at the branch and coordinating everything is the proper course."

Murata Himeko secretly rubbed her painfully sore lower back and spoke with a completely serious expression to the petite girl sitting in the chair.

"Hmph. Reporting to headquarters and discussing the details in a meeting is indeed important, but compared to that, having an S-rank Valkyrie's combat power on-site is far more critical. If I hadn't arrived in time, it wouldn't have been strange for the Third Herrscher to be taken away by that man calling himself Welt."

Theresa answered with the same seriousness, but inwardly she felt that casually writing reports and holding meetings while letting the people below fight to the death didn't suit her style.

"Let's not discuss that for now. First, you should thank Hua, Major Himeko." Theresa smiled sweetly.

"Hua? What should I thank her for? Did she successfully defeat Ganesha?" Murata Himeko looked somewhat confused.

"You just woke up, so you don't know yet, but while successfully defeating Ganesha, she also brought back a survivor. That survivor was the son of your father's friend, Su Qing'an."

"It really is a miracle, Major Himeko. For a man to survive with Honkai Energy resistance alone is already astonishing. To survive being pursued by an Emperor-class Honkai Beast afterward is truly remarkable. And this person was him, no less. Could this be God's mercy?"

Even after reading the report several times, Theresa couldn't help being amazed by the boy's will to survive. In that situation, even if Theresa put herself in Su Qing'an's place, with her years of battle experience and willpower, she couldn't think of a better method. It would have been incredibly difficult for her to reproduce the same maneuver herself.

Driving through the chaotic streets at aircraft speed, that boy's reckless streak was perhaps unexpectedly similar to Himeko's.

"Where is he!?" The instant she heard the boy's name, it felt as though a heavy object had struck her heart. Murata Himeko lost her composure slightly, bending over and planting both hands on the desk with such force that she startled Theresa.

"Although he's currently out of danger, Hua said the boy seemed to be rather reckless. It's already the third day, but he still hasn't regained consciousness. He should be in Observation Room A019."

Understanding Himeko's feelings, Theresa told her where the boy was. Then she watched the red-haired woman rush out through the door and smiled sincerely.

That's good, Major Himeko.

At least this way, the guilt in your heart won't be able to overwhelm you for the time being.

Observation Room A019.

The girl gazed at the boy's pale face and suddenly smiled happily.

"I'm sorry, Shopkeeper. Even though you're hurt so badly, I'm still so happy—happy that you survived."

Kiana smiled brilliantly, but mist filled her eyes and tears streamed down her cheeks. Her voice already carried a sob.

"But I'm sad too. Why did you come to Senba Academy to find us? If you hadn't come, you wouldn't have encountered that Emperor-class Honkai Beast, and you definitely wouldn't have been injured so badly."

"The teacher died. My classmates died. Yuno died. The stray cat you liked, Su Qing'an, died too. You said I could look after your shop, but I still let a Honkai Beast smash it to pieces. I'm really sorry. I'm so weak. I couldn't even keep the promise I made."

"I thought you had died too. If Mei hadn't stayed with me, and if I still hadn't found my lousy dad, I might not have held on. There was also some little brat on the road who came looking for trouble with a pile of junk. She was so annoying. If not for Mei, I wouldn't have teamed up with her."

The girl covered her eyes, not wanting anyone to see them reddened, and chattered about trivial matters. She didn't know why she suddenly had so much to say, but she simply wanted to speak.

The girl was still very young. Her warm daily life had pierced through and melted her hard shell, only for Honkai to crash down upon it, abruptly forcing her back into battles over life and death that were even more intense than her days as a stray. She still couldn't come to terms with everything she had lost, yet she had forced herself to fight step by step until now.

Kiana Kaslana was both cold-blooded and passionate. She could remain expressionless before countless corpses and tragedies, yet throw herself recklessly into danger to fight terrifying Honkai for a stranger.

She rarely, rarely cried, because she had grown used to it.

Besides, how could someone from the Kaslana family cry?

But she was about to lose control.

The instant she learned that Su Qing'an had survived and then truly saw him lying in the hospital bed, it was as though she had once watched the boy die before her eyes.

An immense, inexplicable sorrow flooded her soul.

Just for a little while. Just for a moment.

The girl thought this, then her tightly wound nerves finally relaxed, and tears poured down like rain.

"Bronya judged that this wasn't the time to argue with idiot Kiana, so she forgave her." Bronya stared intently at Raiden Mei, seemingly hinting at something.

"All right, all right. Bronya is the most obedient. What a good girl." Mei helplessly smiled as she stroked the girl's gray hair.

Although her face remained expressionless, Bronya was clearly delighted to be petted.

"Mei! Don't fall for this little brat's tricks!" Kiana wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, turned around, and glared at Bronya with her reddened eyes.

Kiana felt that Bronya was just like the green-tea girls she had seen online.

They were impossible to guard against, and incredibly annoying.

But Kiana's angry expression vanished in an instant. A hand gently pressed against her head and stroked her bright white hair.

Then a hoarse voice reached the girl's ears.

"You're already making so much noise right after waking up. Ah, seeing that you're still so energetic, Kiana, I'm relieved."

She turned around. The boy was smiling at her.

Su Qing'an had awakened.

"Shopkeeper! You're awake! Wait—when did you wake up?" Kiana hurriedly wiped the tears from her face, suddenly at a loss. "I wasn't crying." She was so flustered that she even blurted out an obviously futile denial.

"Hahahaha—cough, cough. I know Kiana has always been strong." After coughing a few times, Su Qing'an looked at the girl's reddened eyes and spoke seriously.

Kiana Kaslana was an optimistic and strong person. He understood that better than anyone. But no one said that strong people weren't allowed to cry. Expecting that of this child was unreasonable.

"Exactly. I—I'm very strong." For an instant, she had wanted to hug the boy, but remembering his injuries, Kiana restrained the impulse.

"Satou... isn't here?" After a moment of silence, the boy asked.

"Yuno..." Kiana fell silent, then finally answered, "There are only four survivors left in Changkong City."

"Yeah. Not everyone has Honkai Energy resistance. I understood that long ago."

Was Satou Yunona really that important to him?

Not necessarily. She was only a friend.

Su Qing'an had very few friends, but she was still only a friend.

Why had he risked his life like that, escaping death after encountering an Emperor-class Honkai Beast yet refusing to regret it? There was a reason.

Because it was his promise. He hated people who failed to keep their promises, even when that person was himself.

That inclination had begun in his former world, when his parents broke their promise and abandoned him. After absorbing the soul of his counterpart in this world, it had grown even stronger.

It was as though a piece of his soul had been damaged. The reclusive Su Qing'an who hated broken promises and the worn-out Su Qing'an who likewise hated broken promises had merged, creating his current self.

Su Qing'an had realized this, but he didn't reject the change. To him, it was proof that the Su Qing'an of this world had existed.

It was as if the two of them had survived together.

As a result, self-loathing and the grief of losing his friends had forced him into the State of Still Water.

But this was merely quenching his thirst with poison. The so-called heart as still as water merely brought the body and mental state into unity, allowing a person to display their maximum strength.

In essence, his emotions hadn't vanished. They had only been suppressed.

It was like how he had been afraid and terrified while Ganesha pursued him, yet could still calmly control his body. In the end, what dispelled the fear was the courage that had ignited in his heart.

The State of Still Water could not suppress human nature.

"I'm just a little unwilling to accept it. In the end, I didn't even make it to Senba Academy. Instead, I was chased around miserably by a Honkai Beast. If someone hadn't saved me, I probably wouldn't even have a body left to find."

The boy muttered to himself as he stared at the white ceiling. His status panel appeared at will.

[Name: Su Qing'an]

[Gender: Male]

[Strength: 18.3(11.8)]

[Agility: 19.4(12.7)]

[Physique: 20.6(9.7)]

[Soul Essence: 39.24]

[Honkai Energy Resistance: 30(Low/Limit)]

[Technique: Taixuan Style]

[Evaluation: Your combat ability far exceeds that of an ordinary human. Your Honkai Energy resistance has reached the limit of an ordinary human male. Aside from the uniqueness of your Soul Essence, you already possess enough Honkai Energy resistance to survive normally in areas with a high concentration of Honkai Energy.]

[Message: Your soul possesses a special quality. After undergoing the trials of death twice, it has automatically sublimated to four times that of an ordinary person. Make use of this sole bargaining chip and live on in the post-Honkai apocalypse.]

Aside from a slight increase in Soul Essence, none of his attributes had changed at all. Looking at the numbers in parentheses, Su Qing'an understood that compared to his physical condition that day, he was already much better now.

I'm so weak. As he sighed, the boy became lost. Did he still need to become stronger?

He had already escaped Changkong City, and the malicious god had made no further move. He had reached the safe haven of St. Freya Academy. Did he still need to become stronger?

Even that girl who had saved him that day had needed a violent burst of Honkai Energy mixed into her astonishing martial arts to punch Ganesha away.

In his view, even martial arts at the girl's level wouldn't be enough to defeat an Emperor-class Honkai Beast without Honkai Energy assistance.

As for using Honkai Energy, both his Sword Heart and Honkai Energy resistance had already reached their limits.

Su Qing'an no longer dared cultivate the Sword Heart Technique. The Mind Lake had already solidified for the most part, with only a small amount of water flowing quietly.

The Mind Lake froze into the state of being Dustless.

Now that he was in a safe place, if he hid in Shenzhou and had a little luck, he wouldn't need to fight Honkai Beasts again for a short time.

There was no reason for him to risk becoming a Zombie just to break through into the state of being Dustless.

"Kiana, let me rest for a while. I think I'm a little tired."

The troubled boy closed his eyes and murmured to the silent girl.

"Mm... Then rest well, Su Qing'an. Don't think too much."

Perhaps understanding that he needed time to digest his complicated emotions, Kiana hesitated before nodding and answering.

After everyone left, the ward, which had been somewhat lively, fell silent once more.

What should I do?

His emotions churned. Deliberately withdrawing from the State of Still Water, Su Qing'an cast himself into the emotion-filled Mind Lake and slowly sank.