I Am Not a Hero

The Phase Transfer Device must have been taken for further adjustments. Lin surviving this time was purely down to luck. If the cut had been anywhere above his waist, he wouldn't need replacement parts; he'd just be picking out a nice spot to be buried.

"I'm going to train," Lin couldn't stand to be here for another second. He forced his numb arms to move, fell off the bed, and then struggled to stand, holding onto the edge.

Elysia quickly moved to the other side to support him. "How are you going to train like this? You're injured, you should be resting."

According to Mobius, although the leg they manufactured was identical to Lin's original, his body would still experience rejection during the initial adaptation period. Especially for someone like Lin, whose bodily senses were exceptionally acute, it might be even more uncomfortable than before he lost his leg.

"Wow, those two have such great chemistry."

"That headless guy, who's supposed to avoid everyone, can't even withstand Elysia's onslaught? That makes sense, even the Doctor can't resist..."

Lin turned his head, his fierce gaze piercing through the helmet's visor, fixing intently on the two girls who had been whispering since the beginning.

"Eek—he, he's looking at us!"

"Don't, don't be scared. We've seen the Honkai Beasts the Doctor brought back."

"But he's killed more Honkai Beasts than we've seen..."

After warning the two with his gaze not to speak carelessly, Lin, while adjusting to his uncoordinated body, withdrew his hand from Elysia's support. His lower left leg was exposed, and his entire demeanor was dazed and unsteady, looking particularly pathetic.

Elysia felt that Lin's condition was not right and reached out again to help him. "Let me help you back..."

"Beep—" The communicator on his waist sounded.

Elysia paused, then realized she had a mission.

Lin glanced at her. Seeing that she hadn't picked up the communicator, he casually said, "Go ahead. I'll contact my teammates to help me."

Thinking that Elysia's personality would likely make her unpersuadable, Lin added reluctantly, "You don't need to worry about me."

Hearing this rare statement, Elysia's smile returned to her face. She nodded. "Lin is surprisingly sensible today."

Seeing her smile, so genuine and devoid of any pretense, he subconsciously asked the question.

"...Elysia, why are you paying so much attention to me?"

Because he was strong? No, even with the rumors about him spreading, there were plenty of warriors in MOTH who were his equal or even stronger. Himiko, Hen, and Elysia herself.

Was it because of the mystery surrounding his helmet? Lin hadn't believed that explanation from the start.

He expected Elysia to brush it off with a laugh as usual, but this time she turned around, exhaled a wisp of white mist, and said softly, "Because you're a kind, cute, and strong child."

"..."

With that, Elysia's figure disappeared through the doorway, leaving Lin utterly bewildered.

Soon, Lin cleared these useless thoughts from his mind. He slowly turned his head, looking again at the two trembling figures beside him.

"Cangxuan, quickly check that book, 'One Hundred Questions About the Silent Helmet'! What should we do at a time like this?" one of the girls trembled particularly violently. She grabbed her twin sister's hand and shouted.

"..."

What was 'One Hundred Questions About the Silent Helmet'?

The girl named Cangxuan took out a book and frantically flipped through it, sweating. "Don't rush, let me see... Got it! When the visor on his helmet is blue, he's in a normal state. Dim lights and low-frequency flickering both indicate a stable mood. It's fine."

"As long as we can communicate normally..."

"You two."

"Ah! Don't possess me with your helmet!"

"..."

Lin stared speechlessly at the two lively individuals who had already started reciting Shenzhou exorcism chants, beginning to question what kind of creature he had been rumored to be in MOTH.

Like an urban legend?

He had no choice but to ask directly, "I just want to ask, did Doctor Mobius have any precautions she wanted to tell me?"

"Precautions? N-no."

"Okay... And who wrote that book?"

"We don't know, but it suddenly became popular a few days ago. It must have been written by someone internal... It wasn't me! Don't look at me like that!"

"..."

Lin had already guessed who was so bored.

Chapter Six: Lin Raises His Gun

"Canghai City is arriving at the station. Passengers for Canghai City, please prepare to disembark..."

Hua unconsciously slowed her steps. The train station announcement echoed overhead as the train slowly pulled in. She looked dazedly at the approaching train.

"What's wrong, Ah Hua?" The white-haired, brown-skinned girl beside her waved her hand in front of Hua's eyes, clearly confused by her distraction.

Hua snapped back to reality, sighed wistfully, and shook her head. "I want to go back and see my father."

The white-haired girl suddenly understood and patted Hua's shoulder with a grin, trying to cheer her up. "So you're homesick? Do all people from Shenzhou have such sentimental attachments? I feel like all the Shenzhou people I know are like you, always missing home. Isn't the holiday coming up soon? You can just go home and see your father then."

Go home? The martial arts dojo was already closed. Would her home have changed drastically? Suddenly, she didn't feel like going back...

Hua was startled by her own thoughts and forcefully shook her head, pushing the extraneous thoughts out of her mind.

"You're right. Forget it, I won't think about it anymore. Let's go get some noodles," she changed the subject, forcing a stiff smile, and said to the only girl she could call her best friend.

After returning, she'd tell her father she made a friend, and he'd surely be happy.

The white-haired girl immediately clutched her stomach and whined, stretching out the end of her words, "Ah? Noodles again? Hua, you eat noodles every time you go out, don't you get tired of it?"

"Huh? Then, then how about we pick something else?"

"Hehe, just kidding! Is it still that noodle shop from last time?"

"Mmm... Huh?"

The two walked past Hua, causing her, who was about to speak, to freeze in place.

The white-haired girl, not receiving a response from Hua, asked, "Hua? What's wrong?"

She followed Hua's gaze and saw a person in a hooded cloak and a girl with streaks of color in her hair walking around the corner, talking about something.

"Someone you know?"

"No," Hua denied. "That person in the hat is a bit strange."

"Strange? How is he strange? Is he handsome?" Speaking of handsome guys, the white-haired girl immediately stood on tiptoe, eager to get a better look at him. They rarely saw handsome men, but if she had to judge, Hua was actually more handsome than most men, it was just a shame she was a girl.

"Handsome? No way, he's wearing a mask and sunglasses under his hood, so you can't tell what he looks like at all."

"Ah? That is pretty strange, dressing like that in broad daylight. Could he be a criminal?"

"Probably not, his aura doesn't seem like it."

Most martial artists have an indescribable "sense" that cannot be put into words. As the person passed by, Hua sensed a subtle, incongruous aura about him. Moreover, his stride, posture, and speed were precise to a certain degree, clearly indicating rigorous training, but his left foot was slightly uncoordinated, as if he had just recovered from a serious illness.

Furthermore, even though the person's gaze was hidden behind sunglasses, Hua could feel that he had specifically observed her, likely noticing her unusual martial arts habits.

"Such a strange person..."

She murmured, looking at the now empty corner.

"Team Member Lin, is your body alright now?"

Hun looked at Lin, whose movements were now indistinguishable from a normal person's, her voice still carrying a hint of worry.

Although there were no external injuries, Lin's initial condition was like that of a vegetative state patient who had been bedridden for over a decade and was now readjusting to their body. The spilled medicine in the lab had made Danzhu and Cangxuan's faces pale as they discussed how to deal with Mobius.

Even so, he still wanted to go on a mission. Despite no missions being assigned to Squad 5, he still applied for an external assignment.

MOTH's missions were either team-based or solo. Most solo missions involved investigating areas with abnormal Honkai energy concentrations. To prevent the elite MOTH from suffering too many casualties and to improve efficiency, direct combat missions for single individuals were rare.

Hun, worried about Lin, who had just gotten out of bed, had also come along.

Lin loosened his overly tight mask and replied coldly, "I'm fine."

His body was still uncoordinated, and he occasionally even moved his left and right limbs at the same time, but it was enough for some minor tasks.

"This mission is to investigate abnormal Honkai energy concentrations in Canghai City. There have been frequent appearances of Mortals in Canghai City these past few months, with many civilian sightings. Our mission is to search for Mortals at the location of the most recent sighting."

Lin briefly recounted the mission.

The outbreak of Honkai was not instantaneous but a gradual accumulation. Just as some illnesses have external symptoms, Honkai outbreaks also have precursors, manifesting in various ways.

However, the frustrating part was that even if precursors appeared, it didn't necessarily mean a large-scale Honkai outbreak would occur. Most were just minor Honkai energy erosions, not something that could be treated as a disaster warning requiring significant manpower and resources.

"Mortals... Team Member Lin, do Mortals hide? Why do we need to search for them?" Hun was very confused.

Did those mindless monsters also hide from crowds?

Some high-level Mortals might possess basic intelligence, but they couldn't possibly hide to avoid danger like humans and then wander out when no one was around.

Lin glanced at her, "...Time."

"Time?"

"The time of erosion."

"The time of erosion... You don't mean—" Hun covered her mouth, understanding Lin's meaning.

Humans would transform into Mortals over time in environments with excessively high Honkai energy, the duration depending on their Honkai resistance and the duration of exposure. During the first and second Honkai catastrophes, humans at the epicenter were basically instantly eroded into Mortals and Honkai Beasts; those with poor adaptability didn't even have a chance to transform.

It was impossible for Honkai energy to reach such concentrations in a busy downtown area with people coming and going. Therefore, if a person was eroded into a Mortal, they would retain some level of consciousness for a period of time, making it possible for them to hide in a secluded place out of fear of their own condition.

Hun mumbled, "Then, if that person hasn't been completely eroded yet, is there still hope..."

Lin frowned, looking at Hun, who was completely unaware of what she was saying.

Wasn't she the daughter of a researcher? How could she not know that Honkai energy erosion was currently irreversible?

Lin only said one sentence: "There's only one Inhibitor."

And the Inhibitor was not an antidote.

Hun didn't realize the implication of Lin's words at that moment, but she soon understood.

She understood how fragile her fantasy was in the face of reality.

By the time Lin and Hun found the old, not-so-large apartment, it was already night.

The moment they saw the main subject, neither of them spoke. The scene inside the room was beyond their expectations.

The room was old and cramped, but clean, with no signs of human damage. The quantity and type of furniture and belongings indicated that one adult and one child lived there.

Lin silently picked up a photograph from the desk. It showed a young mother and son, seemingly a photo from the son's elementary school graduation. The picture was yellowed with age. He flipped it over and saw the date it was taken: three years ago.

In the bottom right corner of the photo were a few words: "I love you, and I hope to give you your father's love as well."

The smiles of the adult and child, even through the photograph, radiated warmth.

Soul stared blankly at the people in the picture.

Lin put down the photo, his expression unchanged, like an unfeeling iron man.

He drew the standard-issue pistol he had never used before, checked the magazine, then released the safety and cocked it.

"Click."

The crisp sound jolted Soul, snapping her out of her daze.

She swallowed, glancing at Lin, and then at...

The woman.

The one tied to the bed, emitting inhuman growls from her throat, her skin deathly pale... the woman from the photograph.

And in the corner of the room, a not-so-large boy trembled uncontrollably, tears streaming down his face. He clutched himself, staring with tear-filled eyes at the woman who had once given him warm embraces.

Lin expressionlessly raised the gun, aiming it at the woman whose mouth had split open from ear to ear.

Chapter 7: Stagnant Life

Lin's finger rested on the trigger, but he hesitated to pull it. In front of the dark muzzle was a thrashing Mortal, not a special individual. A single shot would be enough to kill it and bring it to eternal peace.

He felt no sympathy for monsters formed by Honkai erosion. In his eyes, humans were humans, and Mortals were Mortals. Apart from their appearance, they had nothing in common.

The moment they became Mortals, humans were already killed by the Honkai. No matter how much the monster wearing a human skin roared, it couldn't stop his bullet from firing.