I'm Not a Flame-Chaser - Chapter 617

"..."

But Lin didn't leave immediately. He looked at the girl who was still sitting on the ground, inhaling and exhaling, pondering.

"Regarding what happened in the past two weeks, I was a bit inconsiderate. Perhaps I put too much pressure on you, perhaps my direction was wrong, or perhaps I was too hasty."

A moment later, under Kiana's bewildered gaze, Lin spoke calmly.

"Feel sorry."

This man apologized to Kiana for the first time.

"Finally, and this is advice from someone who's been there: cherish your friends and don't let them go down a completely different path from yours."

Lin is gone.

Blood dripped from his fingertips onto the ground, forming a bloody line that stretched into the depths of the night.

Kiana, however, remained motionless, staring in the direction he had left.

"Both explosions occurred in the central industrial area. Could it have been K-423 who did it? No, she didn't have the extra strength to attack Shencheng Pharmaceuticals again at that time. Besides, she wasn't a blind fool. She couldn't possibly be unaware of the defensive strength of the central industrial area."

After giving instructions to the members of the Blade of Immortality through her earpiece, Rita stood under an unnoticed rooftop, watching the people protesting against Shencheng Pharmaceuticals in the street.

Since all three explosions originated from the industrial zone of Shencheng Pharmaceuticals, even those who didn't believe the rumors before have to think about whether Shencheng Pharmaceuticals is really up to something. Otherwise, why do the Honkai disaster and the medical supplies distributed by Shencheng Pharmaceuticals in the past few months match the rumors?

Moreover, some perceptive people have noticed that the number of patrols in Sky City has increased, and they can be seen almost everywhere. There is a mech unit every certain distance. In addition, it is now impossible to enter or leave Sky City at will, which is clearly a town lockdown.

Some people tried to send messages to the outside world, but they couldn't stir up any trouble. The World Serpent controlled public opinion between the outside world and Sky City. Even if rumors spread in Sky City, they would not let these rumors reach the outside world.

Judging from the message sent back by the Blade of Immortality, the engine of the Eos was most likely destroyed. Since there was no further movement from World Serpent, the experiment should be considered a failure.

Rita couldn't help but recall something she had noticed inadvertently.

When she fought alongside Kiana in the Central Industrial Zone, Kiana occasionally seemed to be talking to someone on a walkie-talkie, but where would she find an assistant in Sky City? Rita could only assume that she was being overly sensitive.

But then, who exactly attacked Shencheng Pharmaceuticals?

Moreover... since the plan has failed and the experiment has failed, why is the World Serpent still sealing off Sky City?

What exactly are they trying to do? To completely annihilate the Valkyrie of Schicksal?

Just as Rita was pondering, Alvitr's voice came through the earpiece. "Vice-Captain, everyone's recovered halfway. Should we break through now?"

Breaking through means that they break through the World Serpent's blockade and leave Sky City, and then contact Schicksal to launch an attack on Sky City. Originally, Rita did not plan to leave because the Stigmata experiment could be carried out at any time, and wanted to stop the experiment first. However, now that the Eos engine has been destroyed, breaking through is indeed a viable option.

But Rita's intuition told her that things were not so simple. Rita's arrival could not be considered entirely expected by World Serpent. So what did World Serpent originally intend to use to replace the Eos engine to trigger the Honkai disaster that covered Sky City?

"No, remain on standby. Do not engage in combat with anyone without my orders."

"Yes."

Rita quickly reached the top of the building and continued to observe the World Serpent's patrol deployment. According to her understanding, placing the Honkai generator, like the Eos engine, on the top of the signal tower in Sky City was the most convenient way to cover the entire city.

In fact, the patrolmen had previously patrolled near the signal tower. Even though they did not show any concern for the signal tower, their patrol pattern still revealed their intentions.

But now, the guards no longer patrol around the signal tower; in fact, they seem to completely ignore it.

This left Rita unable to understand what the World Serpent was trying to do.

"It seems I still need to have a good talk with Miss Kiana and the others."

She got up and jumped onto the roof of the building next to her. Just as she was about to head to Kiana's base, she was jolted.

Line of sight.

Rita suddenly turned around and looked in a certain direction.

There is nothing.

This feeling of being watched...

"Kiana... what's wrong?"

Mei, who was waiting dejectedly in front of Kiana's base, suddenly heard footsteps and looked up in surprise. But she was shocked to see Kiana covered in blood. She rushed forward anxiously and asked, "Are you hurt? Why are you bleeding so much?"

"No, no." Kiana forced a smile, but the blood-stained corner of her mouth made her smile look disheveled and even a little ferocious. "I just accidentally fell into a butcher's stall and got splattered with pig's blood."

"I see..."

"Okay, let's go inside first. I have some time now, and there are some things... we might be able to talk about."

"Good!"

Mei didn't know what had happened, but she was already very surprised and delighted that Kiana was willing to communicate.

Looking at Mei's beautiful smile, Kiana thought of the man who walked away silently, bleeding.

Where is he now, silently licking his wounds alone?

The "Departure" of the Sky: Thunderstorm, taking leave.

A rainstorm extinguished my dream of perfect attendance... Just kidding, I have a leave slip, I'll make up for today's tomorrow. Please forgive me for taking leave today for safety reasons.

Sigh, that's the downside of living in the countryside; you can't even touch the computer during thunderstorms.

The storyline of the modern civilization has finally begun. I believe you have all noticed that the female lead of the modern civilization is Kiana (not really). Anyway, there will definitely be all sorts of exciting plot developments later on, because I like it too, hehe.

The Journey Begins in the Sky: Chapter Thirty-Six - Will and Rules

"So you've been through so much..."

After listening to Kiana's experiences over the past few months, excluding Lin and Fu Hua, Mei couldn't help but feel a lump in her throat, feeling sorry for Kiana's hardships.

That energetic girl who always called out "Mei, Mei" has had her edges smoothed out by cruel reality, and has become what she is now.

"By the way, you must be hungry. I'll go make you some food. You should go take a shower first." Mei felt that Kiana's return to see her meant that she had changed her mind and was considering going back to the Hyperion, so she smiled and planned to cook a meal for Kiana probably hadn't had anything good to eat in the past few months.

"Good."

Kiana wanted to calm herself down and wash away the taste of blood from her mouth, but then she remembered the man's emotionless words, "It's just a minor injury."

Was suffering that kind of injury just commonplace for him...?

Killing people you don't want to kill is something you do frequently...

He clearly said he would kill her if her body was taken over by the Herrscher's consciousness, but today, Lin let her go crazy and even apologized to her at the end.

The coldness and ruthlessness he displayed for more than half a month seemed to be a facade, all condensed on that mask. When the mask was removed, his true colors were revealed.

Forest...

Kiana didn't want to think about the man's back anymore, but the crimson stains on her hands and mouth just wouldn't go away.

"Although I did not mean to disturb your reunion, please wait a moment, as there may be more important matters to attend to."

A cold wind swept into the room, dispelling the little warmth that remained.

Mei, who had just stepped into the kitchen, was already standing in front of Kiana with her sword drawn, glaring at the uninvited guest— Rita —with hostility.

"You can forget about taking Kiana away." Mei's words were filled with dissatisfaction and wariness towards Rita, which were almost like blades piercing through her. In her opinion, this woman had never had good intentions from the beginning, and her ultimate goal was Kiana.

"Wait a minute, Mei."

However, to everyone's surprise, Kiana stopped Mei, placing her hand on Mei's shoulder and shaking her head.

"Miss Kiana is right. Miss Mei doesn't need to be so hostile towards me. Do you remember I said we're not enemies in this city?" Rita turned and entered the room through the window. She reached out and closed the window, but the warmth in the room was gone forever. "I'm here to discuss with you two the matter of Shencheng Pharmaceuticals and World Serpent."

"Isn't it already over?" Mei asked coldly.

"Although the news from the Blade of Immortality did indeed indicate that Eos's engine was destroyed and the experiment had failed, but... Mei, how did you know this? I don't think I told you, did I?"

At this point, Rita's gaze shifted to Kiana behind Mei. Since Rita hadn't told Mei, the source of the information could only be Kiana, and Kiana's current stern expression seemed to confirm that she was the one who did it.

"You don't need to know."

Mei appeared to be blinded by anger and anxiety, but she was actually quite clear-headed, so she didn't say much and didn't want to give the woman any information.

"...Hehe." Rita didn't continue the topic. She had her own judgment, and the main purpose of her visit was not to question the two of them. She smiled and said with her hands in front of her lower abdomen, "The crisis has been resolved, but it doesn't seem to be as simple as we thought."

"What's the meaning?"

"The number of patrols in Sky City has not decreased, the blockade has not been lifted, and the Blade of Immortality still cannot contact Schicksal. I originally thought that the World Serpent was preparing to annihilate the Blade of Immortality, but even if they wiped us all out in Sky City, it would not benefit the World Serpent. And I do not believe that the World Serpent is an organization that does not value profit and efficiency, and that it would not understand this matter."

"Do you think World Serpent has another trick up its sleeve?" Kiana asked, frowning.

"It's just a guess," Rita said vaguely with a smile, without stating her true intentions directly.

"..."

"It's a pity that I lost Gray Serpent's eyes, otherwise I should still be able to use Gray Serpent's intelligence network to gather information about Sky City and analyze what World Serpent is trying to do."

Mei interrupted the other party's veiled questioning and asked directly, "So what do you want to do?"

The maid with short, gray-gold hair smiled and said, "It's very simple. Of course, we're inviting you two to join us in maintaining peace in Sky City."

"Tick-tock".

In the dark alley, a dark red liquid left elongated marks on the ground.

Perhaps the bite wound is more messy than a regular knife or gunshot wound, and therefore more painful. The pain emanating from the torn flesh is rooted in every cell, and the body's remarkable self-healing ability, in addition to the pain, also causes an uncontrollable itching in the area it is covering.

But this was just a common injury for the man, and it didn't affect his mobility much. However, the healing speed was much slower than usual, because the Herrscher part of him was fading away.

His Honkai Energy was at its lowest point, and the rainbow in his right eye flickered erratically. He was not an outstanding Honkai Energy adaptor to begin with, and after his Honkai Energy was depleted, the Flame-Chaser part of him, which he could no longer use, would not provide him with any help. Therefore, he returned to the general level of the Previous Civilization in all aspects.

Lin didn't blame Kiana; he had seen her resilience, her breakdown, and her sorrow.

No matter how much time passes, this world continues to force people forward. Even if it does nothing, its mere existence has already made it the greatest culprit.

Forcing people to kill, forcing people to change, standing in the midst of the tide, and punching the tsunami, will only result in the cruel nature crushing humanity's naivety and ruthlessness.

It won't laugh, it will only trample.

It has no personality; it only operates.

Lin hates this world, and she also hates herself for being unable to change it.

Did he want to kill Kiana? No, but he would still do it anyway.

Does Kiana really want to die? No, but she would still destroy herself for everyone's sake.

Even though Lin considers humanity to be everything, the will of humanity still cannot shake the rules of the world.

But... this is not the end.

A long time ago, a question arose: when a tram is heading in two directions, which side should you choose?

No matter how many times Lin rushed to stop the tram, even if the final result was that he was the first to die under the tram's wheels.

Lin, clutching his neck and shoulder, which were missing a piece of flesh and mangled from being bitten, walked into the Gray Serpent's stronghold. He also noticed the anomalies in Sky City and wanted to analyze the intelligence to see what the World Serpent was planning.

But...

He stopped as soon as he took his first step into the stronghold.

What came into view was everything destroyed as if a hurricane had swept through.

The Journey Begins in the Sky: Chapter Thirty-Seven - Memories Like Smoke

Lin squatted on the ground, looking at the mess. Everything that could be taken away had been taken away, and everything that could be destroyed had been destroyed. What was left for him seemed to have turned into a silent, stern mockery.

World Serpent...

Lin thought of something and got up to investigate Shencheng Pharmaceuticals again, but before he could stand up straight, the dizziness from insufficient blood supply to his brain made his legs go weak, causing him to kneel on the ground with his muscles weak.

"..."

He tried to sit up, but all attempts failed; his body no longer allowed his consciousness to continue controlling it to do things beyond its limits.

A man lay alone on the dirty ground, amidst shards of broken glass. With his last bit of strength, he turned over, facing the sky, watching the shattered chandelier swaying on the ceiling with a creaking sound.

Among the shards scattered on the ground, Lin glimpsed his own mask, face, and helmet.

If Mobius were here, she would definitely look at him with disdain and scold him for always trying to be a hero, as if everything in the world is related to him and he would definitely interfere as long as he sees it.

She might even agree with Kevin and World Serpent's approach, thinking that Kevin has finally seen the light, instead of being that silly boy who always follows May around.

But... she probably only agrees, and won't actually do it.

Lin understands her well. As she said, she is the woman Lin has known the longest. Although they often disagree and she often scolds him harshly, they rarely have any real disagreements.

They went in different directions, but arrived at the same destination.