Accidents Are Just Part of Life / First Edition of the Series Books

"..."

A bleak, icy light flashed from beneath the helmet.

"My, sir, why are you blocking my way?"

Elysia's smile often gave people a sense of innocent warmth, but to Lin, it was nothing more than a disguise concealing ulterior motives. Especially when she was pulling pranks, she was particularly troublesome to him.

Was he not stern enough, or did this woman have some strange quirk? Ever since their first meeting, she had always managed to show up in the most inappropriate places.

When he went to the Research and Development Department, Elysia would be criticizing the weapons for not looking pretty enough.

When he went to the laboratory, Elysia would be gossiping with the lab assistants.

When he went to submit reports, Elysia would be the one receiving them.

Every inexplicable encounter would turn into an opening line of, "Hi~ Did you miss me?"

Even the gym he regarded as his sanctuary had been punched through by the new Head of the Engineering Department she had brought over! When Lin had been sprinting on the treadmill and saw a pink-haired woman's head dangling down from the ceiling, his heart had practically skipped a beat.

Ever since then, Lin had exercised in his own room.

"All right, I'll stop teasing you. Your reactions are just so interesting. Whenever something like a joke comes up, you always look like you want to complain, but have to hold it in for the sake of your image."

Elysia spoke teasingly.

Lin crossed his arms and stared coldly at the girl who made him uncomfortable all over. "Who are you?"

Elysia was stunned for a moment, then looked at him sorrowfully as though she were trying to force out two tears.

"Oh dear, did you get hit on the head during a mission and lose your memory? I'm your best friend, Elysia. Let me awaken your memories with love."

As she spoke, her hands started wandering toward Lin's helmet. Lin's eyelid twitched, and he slapped her hand away.

Lin had no good way to deal with Elysia. Unless she got what she wanted, neither soft nor hard approaches worked on her. She was an expert at deflecting everything, and people like her were exactly the kind Lin had the hardest time handling.

Whenever Lin asked, "What exactly do you want?"

Elysia would smile as sweetly as a blooming lily. "I just want to see what you look like under that helmet. I bet you're adorable."

See? She never said what she really wanted. She would just make up some excuse and use it to get close to him.

"If you're into looks, then I have a friend who's handsome enough to make you drool. As for me... I'm nothing special." Lin thought of Kevin, that cheerful handsome guy. He was known as the prince of Chienyu Academy, so perhaps he and Elysia would get along well.

But on second thought, Kevin liked girls like Mei, the solitary type. Suddenly, Lin was no longer surprised that Elysia might be interested in him.

"But don't lots of novels describe someone who usually hides their appearance, only to stun everyone after shedding their disguise? Think about it carefully—maybe Lin plans to make everyone think you're some tough guy fused with his helmet, then one day suddenly take it off and shock all of Fire MOTH. Hehe, you're pretty sneaky, aren't you~"

Elysia looked around furtively. After making sure no one was nearby, she giggled and poked Lin's helmet. "But I'd be very happy to be the first to witness it~"

Lin felt utterly powerless now. No matter what he said, this woman could always come up with some interpretation for it. In the end, it was better not to speak at all.

"After all, if a gun appears in a story, it's bound to be fired. If a mask appears, it's bound to be taken off... Eh, wait for me! Where are you going?"

Without a word, Lin headed toward the Research and Development Department, with an eye-catching, noisy pink-haired girl following behind him.

After conducting in-depth research into the Second Herrscher's abilities, the Research and Development Department had created several new things that required him to test their performance.

Among the partial introduction sent by the Head of Research and Development, one item caught Lin's attention.

The Phase Transfer Device.

Accidents Were Perfectly Normal

"Compared to the First Herrscher's abilities, which can be more easily explained on a physical level, the Second Herrscher's abilities involve an abstract concept—time. According to Doctor Einstein's recent research into the concepts of time and space, time itself is also an attribute of space, so the Second Herrscher's abilities are partially related to time..."

"However, records and research on the Herrscher Core indicate that the Second Herrscher cannot freely manipulate spatial dimensions either. If she really could, that would be far too terrifying..."

"Still, the Second Herrscher's abilities are not limited to folding the surrounding three-dimensional space. They are a broader form of manipulation on the spatial level..."

The Head of Research and Development chattered on, introducing Fire MOTH's research into the Second Herrscher to the person seated in the chair. Although his wording was not particularly obscure and most of the academic terms were simple enough to understand, paired with his passionate tone and rapid pace, he looked exactly like a mad scientist pitching another unreliable new product.

The Head of Research and Development had sprayed Lin's helmet with saliva, yet Lin sat there without moving. His uniformly colored equipment made him look like a black ice sculpture. With the helmet concealing his face, there was no way to tell whether he had fallen asleep or was silently listening.

Elysia, on the other hand, listened with great interest. She heard every word and occasionally asked a question or two.

"In short, we currently have no way to reproduce the Second Herrscher's ability to construct Imaginary Space. But with the help of the new Head of the Engineering Department, we achieved her spatial transfer through another method. That achievement is this Phase Transfer Device."

The Head of Research and Development raised a wristband-like device in his hand. "It was originally called Imaginary Transfer Master Number One, but we unanimously agreed that the Head of the Engineering Department had terrible naming taste, so we called it the Phase Transfer Device."

Elysia looked as excited as though she had just seen a toy. She turned, wanting to say something to Lin, only to discover that he was still sitting in the chair without reacting. His head hung low, and the glow of his azure visor had dimmed.

Curiously, Elysia leaned close and parted her cherry lips. "Lin? Did you fall asleep?"

"..."

Seeing no response from Lin, action-oriented Elysia immediately reached her wicked hand toward the joint between his neck and helmet. Smirking, she said, "Looks like that mission wore you out. Take off your helmet and sleep."

The Head of Research and Development was just about to stop her. "Wait, he isn't asleep—"

Smack.

A strong gloved hand seized her slender forearm. The azure visor lit up again as Lin slightly raised his head and looked directly at the surprised Elysia. In a deep voice, he said, "What are you doing?"

Elysia tilted her head. "Weren't you asleep?"

Could this man really be a robot? Did he automatically power on whenever someone tried to touch his helmet?

The Head of Research and Development found their interaction rather amusing. "Lin never sleeps in front of other people. He was reading a novel."

"Reading a novel?"

"Don't talk too much." Lin shot the Head of Research and Development a glare, but with the helmet in between, it had almost no intimidation factor.

If Lin had only one form of entertainment, it was reading novels. He used to listen to music too, but he himself had forgotten when he had stopped letting either soothing or passionate melodies fill his ears.

Lin did not dare imagine what Elysia, whose curiosity could be endlessly stirred by a helmet alone, would do if she learned that his hobby was reading novels.

"Put the explanation aside for now. How do I use it?"

Lin took the Phase Transfer Device. After scanning it, the information uploaded by the Head of Research and Development automatically appeared on his visor. He put it on his left hand, then walked over to the prepared testing area.

A half-meter-thick earthen wall stood in the testing area. Apparently, they wanted him to use Phase Shift to pass through it.

Watching Lin adjust the settings on the device, the smile on the Head of Research and Development's face gradually faded. Somewhat hesitantly, he said, "This device hasn't undergone any testing on living organisms. You could be in danger. If other matter gets embedded in your body, there's a very real chance we won't be able to save you. Are you sure you want to try it?"

"If I don't try it, we'll never get data." Lin treated the Head of Research and Development better than most people. At the very least, he was one of the few researchers in Fire MOTH with even a little conscience. Lin took a deep breath and raised the device before his eyes. "And if I don't do the experiment, someone else will... No, never mind. Let's begin."

The Head of Research and Development did not hear the first half of his sentence, but Elysia froze after those nearly inaudible words left his mouth, staring at the person whose expression she could not see.

"Press the switch, and after that, everything will depend on your ability to react in the moment."

Everyone else retreated to a safe distance with their data-recording tools. Lin turned to look at the Head of Research and Development. After the man nodded at him, Lin held his breath and pressed the switch.

"----"

A piercing scraping sound rang in his ears.

The world before him changed into a dark gray space.

In the second before he lost consciousness, Lin could no longer feel the existence of his body. Then, darkness like a tidal wave swallowed him whole.

"So... you called me here in such a hurry just because there was an accident during an experiment?"

After Mobius emerged from the operating room, she wrote down a string of numbers on a notebook used for calculations. Her expression was as calm as water. She did not even glance at the horribly injured Lin lying on the gurney, as if he were merely an ordinary corpse.

"Fire MOTH has countless experimental accidents every year. Losing arms, legs, or even lives is perfectly normal. My research direction is different from yours in the Research and Development Department, so what use is there in coming to me?"

The Head of Research and Development looked especially awful. He had not expected the first living-subject experiment to cause Lin such severe consequences. This could no longer be explained as a mere "mistake." It was no different from shoving Lin into a crematorium.

The Phase Transfer Device essentially allowed its user to travel from real-number space into Imaginary Space, then return to real-number space to achieve teleportation. Its principle was the same as the Second Herrscher's demonstrated ability to return attacks.

But they had underestimated the difference between transporting a human and transporting an inanimate object. When he returned to real-number space, his flesh had not been fully restored, creating an effect similar to being sliced apart.

And Lin, unconscious on the gurney, had lost everything below his left thigh. The cross-section was incomparably smooth, plainly testifying to their mistake.

"If he was going to begin an experiment no one had ever performed before, he should have been mentally prepared to die. And if you need to attach a leg, go to the Medical Department, not me." Mobius's gaze rested on Lin's severed leg for an instant before she turned away as though she had seen nothing, intending to return to the operating room.

"My dear Mobius, making an identical leg should be very easy for you, right?"

"..."

When it came to people Mobius least wanted to see in the laboratory, Elysia was absolutely near the top of the list. Whenever she appeared, nothing good ever happened, and the whole laboratory's efficiency would drop by eighty percent.

That included Mobius's own efficiency.

Whenever Elysia looked at Mobius with those charming, tear-filled eyes, Mobius's heart would skip a beat.

Elysia stepped closer to Mobius, the shimmering tears in her eyes seeming entirely genuine as she murmured, "Mobius, my dear Mobius, please."

"What does this have to do with you?" Mobius hurriedly backed away, afraid that Elysia might actually hug her. Irritated, she asked, "What is this about?"

"..."

Elysia's expression suddenly changed, turning gloomy and cold. Her eyes stared fixedly at Mobius.

Mobius was caught off guard by the sudden shift. "...What does that mean?"

A threat? Silent treatment?

"Tch, fine. I understand. Leave him there. I'll have Bianca make him a new leg later, all right?" Under Elysia's cold stare, one Mobius had never seen before, she frowned in annoyance.

How had Elysia gotten so close to this person? They were not even on the same squad, were they?

After Mobius agreed, Elysia's smile blossomed once more, and she returned to her usual self. "Wonderful! I can't believe that trick I learned from Lin actually works so well. But I don't think it's very nice to treat friends like that, is it? I shouldn't do it again in the future."

"..."

Mobius stiffly turned her neck and looked toward Lin, who lay there like a dead man.

She learned it from him?

She might as well give him a Honkai Beast's leg.

First Edition of the Series

"He's wearing that helmet again."

"I've never seen him take it off. Isn't there a bet on the intranet about whether there's a Honkai Beast or a robot under that helmet?"

"That? I bet a hundred that he's a robot too..."

The ceiling was not unfamiliar. He had seen it many times during physical examinations.

The quiet discussion beside him was irritating. Perhaps the defining feature of Mobius's laboratory was people passing judgment on others.

After Lin woke up, his entire body was filled with a sense of weakness. Every cell in his body felt out of sync. It was the discordant sensation his flesh sent back to his nerves, telling him that something was wrong with his body.

The most obvious part was his left leg. That sense of discord shot from its base along his spine to the back of his head. Nausea surged into his throat, nearly making him vomit inside his helmet.

What had happened? His memories stopped at the moment before he pressed the switch.

"Hi~ How are you feeling?" A gentle voice so familiar that Lin was nearly developing a stress response rang beside his ear. He abruptly turned his head—

Light spilled over her shoulders. The pale skin at the corner of her lips curled slightly, like an angel lowering her noble head.

Rather than a blooming flower, Lin wanted to describe the smile he saw as a splash falling into a pool of water.

For a moment, Lin thought he saw Kevin smiling at him, that pure feeling of friendship rushing straight toward him.

"Hm? What's wrong? Are you captivated?" Lin's rare dazed expression pleased Elysia greatly. Did this count as him admitting that she was a beautiful girl?

"No. I was checking the records from after I fell unconscious," Lin replied calmly.

"..." Elysia, too, fell unusually silent for a moment. "Lin, sometimes I really do feel defeated."

"Is that so?"

"Yes~ You have no idea how much effort the Head of Research and Development and I went through to get Mobius to make you a new leg, yet you won't even say thank you. Sob... That's so hurtful..."

Lin skimmed through all the records, pausing for several seconds at a few important points. He stopped, then said in a nearly imperceptible voice, "Thank you."

"You see, every time you—what?"

Elysia stopped halfway through her sentence and stared at Lin, who appeared completely unfazed, with an expression as though she had seen a ghost.

What had he just said?

"You..."

"Don't make me say it again."

After spending so much time around Elysia, Lin knew perfectly well what she wanted to say next. To keep things from turning into some melodramatic light-novel scene where one person said thank you and the other asked them to say it again, he decisively spoke up and snapped that classic flag in half.