I'm Not a Flame-Chaser

However, Lin is no pushover. Games aren't won just by reaction speed; his fighting style is also his in-game style.

To put it bluntly, he played dirty.

"Hmm..."

Bella suddenly noticed that Lin's character had squatted down on the ground and was not moving.

This should have been a golden opportunity to attack, but Bella halted her offensive and cautiously advanced.

Lin Wan's character is quite unique. He is a character who needs to charge up his power and has moderate punches and kicks. When he crouches down, he is charging up his power, which enhances the moves he makes. His most powerful moves are his projectile and rising dragon punch.

The ultimate fighting style of a character whose fist and foot techniques are average but whose wave and rising dragon punches are exceptionally powerful is... turtle.

He crouches down there, and if someone dares to jump at him, he'll unleash a rising dragon punch; if not, he'll fire a projectile. It makes the game feel like a shooting game in a fighting game. And the feel of charging up the most important part of this character is no problem for Lin.

Bella's character happens to be one without any dash abilities or the ability to fire projectiles, so she can only be pinned against the board by Lin, listening to Lin's character's mesmerizing projectiles, and watching her health bar slowly whittled down while she is in a defensive stance.

Furthermore, Lin's projectile speed is different each time, making it difficult to time the attack even if you want to jump up and dodge.

Ultimately, Bella was worn down to death.

"That's despicable." Theresa covered her face and shook her head. "To be so despicable just to win..."

"What? As long as I don't cheat, I can win the game." Kiana said dismissively.

Theresa glanced at Kiana, and whether it was just her imagination or not, she felt that Kiana seemed to be really looking forward to Lin winning.

"I lost... Ugh, I can't [beep] with Her Majesty the Queen anymore." Bella looked very disappointed, but what she said was rather offensive.

"... You don't know what that's for, do you?" Lin shook his head. "It's not what you think. I'll tell you later."

We need to be a little careful about Bella's education. Although she's not a child at heart, she's still a Honkai Beast with little common sense, and he doesn't want to see Bella go astray.

... It would be best to bring Rozaliya and Lilia along as well.

Next, Lin fought his way through the rounds, advancing smoothly to the finals amidst the grievances and frustration of the crowd.

However, the opponent in the final was someone completely unexpected.

"I'll be your opponent." A gray-haired girl with goggles on her forehead, wearing a cropped jacket with a white fur collar, an asymmetrical black and white patchwork bra underneath, low-waisted fishnet shorts, fishnet stockings, and sneakers, and a single ponytail spiraling down her back, blowing bubbles, made her entrance.

"... Bronya?"

"Bronya isn't Bronya." Bronya licked her bubblegum into her mouth and said seriously, "Bronya is now Silver Wolf Ultimate Gamer."

So why are there so many people coming out to obstruct him?

"Why are you here too?" Lin asked as he picked up the controller.

"..." Bronya didn't answer. She glanced at the stunned Kiana, then subtly looked at Lin, and picked up the controller without saying a word.

Since Bronya didn't want to talk about it, Lin didn't intend to delve into it. He simply selected his character and entered the battle.

Unlike Bella, Bronya is a true veteran gamer with top-tier gaming intelligence. Even Lin Zhenren might not be able to beat her, and it would be even more difficult for him with one hand missing.

Moreover, Bella chose her favorite character, while Bronya chose the character with the strongest overall performance. She immediately dominated Lin, using all sorts of tricks that could be described as cheating to suppress him.

Lin was no longer as at ease as before; instead, he was huddled in a corner, his health rapidly declining.

"Just admit defeat, Bronya's going to win." The girl, her fingers clicking on the controller, declared mercilessly.

"...That's not necessarily true." Lin suddenly pressed down on his defense and said, "Prometheus, interfere with her."

"Gurgle..."

Bronya's composed face showed a hint of passivity. She narrowed her right eye, her pupil shimmering with a pale red that symbolized Prometheus.

However, nothing changed; Bronya's attacks remained sharp and unaffected.

"... Prometheus?" Lin asked hesitantly.

"Prometheus's energy is depleted and needs recharging. Please choose one of the following two recharging options," Bronya said mechanically. "One, with Prometheus [beep], Two, with Prometheus [beep]."

"... Aren't these two options the same?"

"Yes," the gray-haired girl answered matter-of-factly.

"You can do whatever you want after that." Lin's health bar was down to a sliver, and even his tone was slightly urgent. "Let me win first."

"Good."

The cold voice startled Lin for a moment, and then Bronya's character stood still, allowing Lin to instantly kill her with a single combo.

"Then, the winner of this match is—Lin!"

The Herrscher of Reason made a grand announcement, then raised Lin's hand and pulled him in front of the shy Kiana.

Theresa glared at Lin, but after seeing Kiana's performance, she understood a little bit and could only snort and stand aside without saying a word.

There was widespread lamentation on the sidelines; why did this pretty boy succeed again?

"Congratulations! What does our female lead want to say to him? Did you accept his request to date her?"

Kiana wasn't sure whether she should play dumb or be serious. She scratched her hair and glanced shyly at Lin out of the corner of her eye. "I... I didn't have a choice either..."

"So it seems the only two successful people from this matchmaking event have already appeared!" The Herrscher of Reason nodded with a grin. "Hmm... not bad, it feels great to be the host."

The real host stood there dumbfounded, watching her from below the stage.

The silver-haired girl thought for a moment, then looked up at the man and said, "Lin, my participation in the matchmaking event was a misunderstanding..."

"I already said I know," Lin stopped her, his calm face expressionless. "I just find your reaction quite interesting."

The girl's face flushed instantly. She chased after the man who had turned to leave, shouting in embarrassment and anger, "What's so interesting...?"

This matchmaking event ended in a strange way, and Lin and Kiana's relationship was revealed. The girl's heartstrings were plucked by the wicked humor, and if nothing unexpected happens, there might be some ambiguous scenes to be shown today.

But... if an accident doesn't happen uninvited, how can it be called an accident?

That evening, there was a knock on Lin's door. When he opened it, standing there was...

Bronya.

Elysian Realm of "Flying Flowers": Chapter Seven, Forest, Social Death

"What's the matter?"

Lin placed a cup of coffee with milk in front of Bronya. She lowered her head, her gray bangs obscuring her face, and stared at the coffee on the table.

"Prometheus needs to see you. I'll temporarily print a body for her in a bit." Bronya picked up her coffee, took a sip with her rosy lips, and said, "Also, I want to ask you a question."

Lin sat down opposite her, and upon hearing her words, immediately said alertly, "Prometheus is unnecessary."

The matchmaking event was just a delaying tactic; how could he really let Bronya release Prometheus?

Bronya blinked, put down her cup, and said, "Bronya wants to ask you, what should we do about Seele?"

"..."

"No need to lie, Bronya has already seen your affair with Seele through Prometheus's memories." Bronya stared intently at Lin. "Now that you've settled down with Kiana, shouldn't you break up with Seele as well? Bronya thinks Lin is a decent person, so he should be able to give Bronya a satisfactory answer on this matter."

If possible, Lin also hoped to give an answer that would satisfy everyone, but clearly, that answer had already been ruined on the night of the party.

"... I can't do it."

"Why?"

Bronya's tone was icy as she stared at Lin. Ever since Prometheus entered her body, her memories had gradually overlapped with Prometheus's. She had seen everything Lin had done in the past, and she believed that Lin was not that kind of person, even though he was indeed surrounded by many women.

The only point of contention between her and Prometheus was Seele. Sometimes when she woke up, she would feel as if she were Prometheus, but only when she thought of Seele would she realize that she was Bronya.

Lin looked at Bronya's indifferent expression, sighed, and after thinking for a while, said, "I will tell you everything, but I hope you won't get agitated after hearing it."

The gray-haired girl's gaze remained fixed on Lin's eyes. She didn't expect to see sincerity, but Lin's open and honest gaze made her close her eyes, exhale, and nod.

Then Lin recounted the events in detail. The gray-haired girl clenched her fists and relaxed them helplessly as she listened. After listening to the whole story, she stroked her chin and began to consider it.

This is indeed a difficult problem that Lin has no way to solve. It is not something that he can decide on his own. Seele took action even though she knew about Lin and Kiana's relationship.

However... Seele's thoughts are actually quite understandable.

This might hurt Kiana's feelings, but Seele feels guilty. However, she still doesn't intend to give Lin to Kiana because Kiana doesn't hold the same importance in Seele's heart as Lin does.

Therefore, there is a solution.

Bronya looked up. "You, do it with Bronya."

"... I was just hallucinating."

"I did not have auditory hallucinations."

"You've been too influenced by Prometheus."

"If it were me, Seele would probably give up on you." Bronya shook her head. "And it doesn't even have to be real; it's just acting."

I see.

Lin understood Bronya's idea; it was indeed worth a try.

"Then, how should we act it out?"

The temperature in the closed room rose slightly, and even the girl with no social skills had a slight blush on her face. Her thighs rubbed together unconsciously, and her eyes darted around a little.

"How are the mouth and the back...?"

"... Isn't this just acting?" Lin asked, puzzled.

"There are some things that can't be acted out." Bronya said, head down. "As long as it's not the front, it'll be fine, right?"

... If we don't delve into it, maybe, probably, there's no problem.

But Mr. Lin felt something was wrong. Why did things turn out this way?

The two slowly undressed. Bronya untied the headband that bound her hair, and her beautiful gray hair cascaded down. After taking off her coat, her snow-white skin, typical of Siberians, shone brightly under the light. She was only wearing a thin white undershirt and a short skirt.

The adorable, doll-like girl obediently squatted in front of him, and Lin finally realized something was wrong, saying, "Wait... um—"

The extraordinary sensation made him look down at Bronya in an instant, and she looked up, her indifferent eyes flashing red.

Prometheus? No, Bronya?

"Bang!" Just as Lin's mind went blank, the window was suddenly kicked open, and a figure rushed into the room. "I see it! This must be [beep]!"

Lin, his teeth chattering, hunched over and barely managed to lift his head to look at the person observing him intently. "Bella... Bella..."

"Lin said he'd teach me what [beep] is, and then during the match I heard Bronya say she wanted to [beep] with you, and you said you could do whatever you wanted with her afterwards, so I came to learn." Bella blinked innocently, watching the crimson scene. "But, Bella doesn't have Lin's thing, does she?"

"You... you get out of here..."

Prometheus wasn't joking when he said he could drink 500ml per hour. Where did he learn that from... Oh no!

Lin heard familiar footsteps approaching outside the door, and then there was a knock on his door.

"Brother Lin, are you there?"

Lin's hands and feet were ice cold, and the back of his head was even colder. In desperation, he tried to push Bronya's head away, but his fingertips were so numb that he had no strength. Bronya, on the other hand, seemed not to hear Seele's voice outside the door and was focused on her work.

To make matters worse, he heard the sound of a key turning in the latch.

When did Seele get a key to his room?

Under Lin's desperate gaze, the door was pushed open, and Seele stood in the doorway with a smile on her face. Then, her smile froze on her face as if glue had been poured on it.

"Ugh... gulp... gulp... huff."

The gray-haired girl let out a long breath, licked her lips, turned her head, and saw Seele standing blankly at the door.

She glanced at him for a second, then turned back to Lin and said, "Let's continue, next is..."

"Lin, why only talk to Bronya [beep]? Can you teach me next?"

"Brother Lin, Sister Bronya, you..."

In an instant, Lin's brain exploded. He saw Seele, whose pupils had turned crimson, approaching step by step from outside the door. The words spoken by the two people beside her made his thoughts chaotic.

"Stop right there!"

Lin pinned Bronya and Bella to the bed, stopping them. However, his voice was too loud, and soon, hurried footsteps echoed in the corridor.

"What's wrong, Lin..."

Outside the wide-open door, the silver-haired girl Kiana covered her mouth in utter shock as she stared into the room. Beside her, the Herrscher of Reason's expression shifted from curiosity to stiffness. Theresa, overwhelmed by the information, was emitting smoke as her brain shut down. Inside the room, Seele stood by the bed with her head down, her bangs obscuring her face.

The dark-haired man, wearing only a pair of shorts, was lying on the bed, with a bewildered Bella and an expressionless Bronya beneath him.

In 2017, 50,000 years after Lin's birth, he died of social death.

Elysian Realm of "Flying Flowers": Chapter Eight - Cold Rain Falls Only When No One Is Around