Chapter Eighteen: Blood Moon / Chapter Nineteen: True Ancestor Instinct

"What's that?" Theresa tilted her head, a hint of curiosity on her cute face.

"Family restaurant".

"A family restaurant?"

"It's a place where the whole family eats together, and there are people dressed in cute mascot costumes who will specifically cater to little kids like you."

"I'm not a child." Theresa frowned in displeasure, then stared suspiciously at the restaurant. "Were all those mascots we encountered today actually inside?"

"... Could it be that they have awakened their self-awareness?"

"A little disappointed. I thought they would all be cute plush toys, inside and out."

"That would be a bit scary, wouldn't it?" Lin leaned his head against the glass, his dark pupils devoid of light. "What does it matter if there's someone inside the mascot costume? Maybe the person wearing the mascot costume has a heart as lovely as the mascot."

"I wish I could go to a family restaurant with my sister someday... and ideally meet a real, genuine vampire, sitting at a brightly lit table, laughing together, eating together, and then thinking about where to go next... Vampires are truly insatiable creatures." Theresa smiled, but without warmth. "Would you come then?"

"If that's what you want."

Theresa's cold, aloof expression turned to him. "Are you a wish-granting machine?"

Lin closed his eyes and exhaled. "If this is what you want..."

The girl in front of him was someone he was meeting for the first time, but Lin's heart told him not to give up on her. If he gave up on her, then some fragile things he was trying so hard to maintain would also collapse.

The quiet night continued, and perhaps the city would soon see the dawn, but as the Ferris Wheel finished its half-hour rotation, the anomaly in the amusement park was finally discovered.

"Stop! Don't run!"

Lin held Theresa's small hand, and the two ran away amidst the flashlights and annoyed shouts behind them.

Why are we running?

"Because we can't get caught."

The shadow seemed to stretch out as the girl gazed at the back of the person in front of her. His composed demeanor vanished at that moment, just as it seemed to match his frantic, aimless steps, and something fresh and vibrant appeared on him.

Like new life emerging from decaying skin, Theresa didn't know why she thought that way, but she still felt that this person was like a newborn.

She suddenly realized that she seemed to be the same way.

I don't know why I went out with this person, I don't know why I told him all my innermost thoughts, and I don't know why I'm staring at his back now.

A not-so-gentle light peeked over the horizon, dispelling the darkness and illuminating the earth. Everyone was welcoming the arrival of a new day, but they were fleeing from the light that symbolized the new day.

The two held hands tightly, chasing the darkness before dawn.

Chapter Eighteen Blood Moon

Humans are emotional beings.

It is unknown who first said this, but many people who like to say these things are people who understand neither philosophy nor human nature, and who regret their actions afterward, driven by their cerebellum or their lower body.

There's a saying... He didn't know he was wrong, he knew he was going to die.

So when Theresa could easily get away with not paying for the amusement park, asked Lin if he wanted to go to a hotel that looked like it would be packed and expensive on Valentine's Day, Lin, wanting to avoid standing in court later crying and saying that he had "beep" fluid instead of brain matter when he attacked the little girl, hoped that he wouldn't be shot out of his brain. So he refused without hesitation.

"Humans, why?"

"... You'll understand why when you're a little older."

"But I saw people go in, and they were all pairs of males and females. Doesn't that fit our situation?"

"This doesn't apply to my situation at all."

"Some of them even went in while fighting, just like you said."

"There's a ring and safety measures inside; they're going to have a blast fighting there."

Lin actually regretted lying to her before, so he simply told her the truth. Perhaps he didn't need to make up another lie to make up for it.

It was almost completely light. Although Theresa wouldn't turn to ashes at the slightest touch of sunlight or silver like a real vampire, her daily routine was indeed similar to that of a vampire. As the morning light approached, her head began to droop uncontrollably, and her eyes became blurry and sleepy.

She didn't say she was leaving, and Lin didn't intend to let her leave, but everything would happen as promised.

"You should take a nap first." Lin rubbed her little head. Perhaps because she had drunk Lin's blood, she naturally felt a sense of familiarity with his scent. Theresa lay drowsily in his arms and fell asleep, soon emitting soft snores.

Lin's expression remained unchanged. He picked up the sleeping vampire princess and walked towards the street corner not far away. At the same time, a person silently emerged from the shadows into the sunlight.

Lin had never met her before, but he still had a sense of familiarity with her. From Theresa's recounting of the past, he also learned the identity of the person in front of him.

"You've been following us all night," Lin said calmly to the girl who bore a resemblance to Theresa but had a stern expression.

The other party, who had intended to raise the gun in his hand and aim it at the forehead of the unknown man, inexplicably looked into his eyes the instant he raised his wrist.

Clear yet deep, its bottom cannot be seen at a glance.

A strange feeling made her stop questioning the other person. She was silent for a moment, then said softly, "You shouldn't have given her unnecessary hope."

"Perhaps." Lin did not deny it. He looked down at the vampire girl's peaceful sleeping face, and the coldness in his expression melted a little. "But she never had this kind of unnecessary hope."

Hearing Lin's words, a strange sense of familiarity gave rise to an absurd thought without any reason. She asked, slightly confused, "Have we... met somewhere before?"

"...No."

"Then why did you bring Theresa here?"

"There was no reason, we just did it."

The pen pal who kept in touch with him in the Quantum Sea once said something like this, "Interpersonal communication usually starts with boring conversations, such as 'Who are you?' 'Where are you from?' 'What are you going to do?' But after we ask these questions, the things we decide to do still don't change. So why not skip these boring formalities?"

"For example, our meeting didn't require knowing who the other person was, and there was no reason whatsoever. Wouldn't this situation perfectly fit the so-called 'fate'?"

That's right, there's no reason why Lin believes he should do it, and he will do it, so he made up his mind to stay with this girl until the end.

The same thing happened with Delta, and with the previous World Bubble; he probably simply couldn't stand idly by as his so-called destiny unfolded before his eyes.

"Theresa and I are leaving this city." The white-haired girl reached out her hand to Lin. "Thank you for everything you've done for Theresa, but perhaps this incident is more complicated than you think."

"Tell me if you have any difficulties. I'm very good at overcoming difficulties, just like I'm good at squatting down to wipe my butt."

The white-haired girl gave a strange look, but fortunately, she had enough composure. She shook her head seriously. "I can't involve you, and Theresa wouldn't want anything to happen to you either. You don't need to get involved anymore."

"..."

The white-haired girl's eyes were resolute, leaving Lin no room for maneuver. All he could do was gently place Theresa into her arms.

Lin had already sensed that the distortion of this World Bubble had subsided significantly, and perhaps he had stopped the distortion, just last night, on this girl named Theresa.

So it was time for him to leave.

It was only one night, but what did it mean to Theresa and to Lin?

"Goodbye, we'll leave once Theresa wakes up."

The white-haired girl, holding Theresa, gradually disappeared into the sunlight, while Lin was greeted by a light so intense that not even the slightest shadow could be tolerated.

He seemed to have melted into a puddle of water, losing his form.

"... You seem to be having a lot of fun, playing all night."

As soon as they returned to the Schicksal branch, Himeko, who was sitting in a chair eating sunflower seeds, suddenly turned over and approached Lin with a smile. Pointing at his chest with a forced smile, she said, "I looked for you all night and couldn't find you. I thought you really ran away! You went out to play all night, didn't you?"

"...yes."

"Yeah, you really have the guts to say it! You're a suspect! You're just strolling around so leisurely, and in that particular place no less! Aren't you afraid you'll run into the serial killer and not even have time to run away?!"

Lin sighed; he didn't know what to say.

"Hmph, have you eaten yet? If not, come and have some with me. I ran out and bought some breakfast. You know, the breakfast stalls in Canghai City are the most famous..."

"Why not just have breakfast at the Schicksal branch?"

"They don't serve beer for breakfast."

"..."

In short, this trip to the World Bubble has come to a successful end. There were not many twists and turns in the middle, and the speed at which it ended should be the fastest in history, even completed with just one date.

Once the distortion of the World Bubble has completely disappeared, then leave.

Thinking this, Lin endured Himeko's relentless verbal barrage, slowly closed his eyes, and rested for a moment.

When he opened his eyes again, it was already midnight.

He looked up.

A bright red and enormous full moon looked down at him with a mournful gaze.

Chapter Nineteen: True Ancestor Instinct

What happened...?

Lin's head was spinning, and the veins on his temples were bulging and throbbing, as if he had been hit hard on the forehead with a blunt object. A feeling of nausea made him want to vomit lingered in his heart.

Above the sky, the crimson moon, like a giant eye, coldly and mercilessly surveyed everything on earth.

Breathing was obstructed, a sense of oppression enveloped the entire city, and the strange phenomena in the sky completely affected everyone's mental state.

Blood Moon...

His previously muddled mind cleared instantly, and Lin rolled over and got up to check his surroundings.

It was unusually quiet. Himeko, who should have been eating and drinking nearby, was nowhere to be found, and there was no extra sound from the entire Schicksal branch.

It was as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over Lin's head. His emotions cooled down quickly, and his indifferent gaze swept over the uncleaned ground not far away, where there were still sunflower seed shells that Himeko had cracked. He compared the number of seeds with the ones from the morning and found that there were more.

Lin quickly stood up, his expression grim. Just one day later, the previously lessened sense of distortion filled the World Bubble once again.

Something must have happened to Theresa.

Lin's heart skipped a beat, and a very oppressive feeling arose within him.

It feels like I'm about to lose something, a feeling of being unable to catch up...

After leaving the Schicksal branch and arriving in the city, Lin realized that things had completely spiraled out of his control.

Canghai City was almost entirely dark, with no lights, not even streetlights. The residential areas, which should have been brightly lit all night, were quietly silent in the darkness.

Only the thick, suffocating crimson light cast by the Blood Moon remained "sticky" on the buildings and the ground.

Where are they?

Why is there no one on the street?

Lin's body trembled uncontrollably; it was a signal from his body's instincts, a dangerous signal from his brain's nerves.

He took a step forward.

He stepped back.

"..."

A chilling coldness spread across the back of his neck.

He felt that there was someone back to back against his back.

As Lin took a step, his opponent took the exact same step.

This is a description and a metaphor, but Lin couldn't find a more fitting way to put it. At this moment, he even felt that if he turned around, he might meet the eyes of a pale face.

Should we turn back...?

Lin turned around without hesitation—

"Gah, gah, gah..."

An ominous bird made a turn and flew overhead.

There was no one behind him.

It was just an illusion born from extreme sensitivity. Lin Mo turned his head back to the present. He looked at the city in front of him, which resembled a monster that was devouring people, its blood-red maw wide open, waiting for more innocent people and blood to enter it.

The current anomaly is inextricably linked to Theresa, and Lin must find her immediately.

Without hesitation, Lin took a step forward and headed towards Canghai City, which had been turned into a ghost town.

"Ordinary Honkai Beast and gene aggregations can only result in failures of this level... So-called resurrection is not about materializing shadows, nor is it about creating a thousand identical, familiar monsters..."

"What's missing... what else is needed..."

"I remember now, back then, in that place called Yae Village ..."