A Classic Scene

Elsewhere, far from the shore and the crowds, Shi Hen floated spread-eagled on the sea, pretending to be a corpse.

The Void Herrscher Core he had received as a mission reward had made Shi Hen a Herrscher. In terms of life level, he had already transcended the category of humanity, so there was naturally no need to worry about drowning or stamina.

Above him was the warm sun, below him the gently swaying sea. Caught between the two, there was a peculiar sort of charm to it.

The clamor of human voices gradually faded away, leaving only the song of the waves by his ears. It felt as though he were the only person between heaven and earth.

Shi Hen liked this sense of freedom.

He still clearly remembered how terrified and panicked he had been when he first arrived in this world more than half a year ago.

The moment he arrived, he had stumbled into a medium-sized Honkai outbreak that affected several city blocks. Destructive Honkai Beasts and cruel, bloodthirsty zombies ran rampant everywhere.

Thinking back on it now, his survival had truly been thanks to luck.

When facing Honkai Beasts and zombies, even fully armed soldiers might not survive, much less an unarmed civilian.

Although the white-haired members of the Kaslana family were all very good at using baseball bats to slay Honkai Beasts, in reality... even a lowly Chariot-class Honkai Beast could only be effectively harmed by heavy machine guns.

After surviving that disaster by sheer luck, Shi Hen received his first mission reward—a Natural Stigmata.

Only then did Shi Hen truly gain the ability to survive in this Honkai World.

And now, having obtained the Void Herrscher Core and gained Herrscher-level power, Shi Hen had already taken his first steps into the ranks of this world's top experts.

Next, it would depend on how many more surprises that nameless system could bring him.

Lying there with his eyes closed beneath the sun, Shi Hen was full of anticipation for the future.

Gurgle, gurgle~

An unusual sound mixed into the crashing waves.

Was someone drowning?

Opening his eyes and looking toward the sound, Shi Hen saw someone twenty or thirty meters away flailing nonstop, their head bobbing above and below the surface.

After watching for several seconds, Shi Hen shifted his gaze toward the lifeguard chair on shore.

Though the straight-line distance between them was nearly fifty meters, the sharp-eyed lifeguard girl quickly spotted the drowning person.

Biting off the remaining half of her ice cream in one mouthful, the White-haired Girl leaped down from the chair, sprinted across the sand, and plunged into the sea.

Her arms moved in steady strokes as she cut through the waves like a fish, leaving a beautiful white trail across the water.

Her form was pretty nice.

After admiring the girl's swimming for a while, Shi Hen finally swam toward the drowning person at a relatively normal speed.

Going over to strike up a conversation earlier would have seemed too forced. This was a pretty good opportunity instead.

Since he was closer, Shi Hen arrived at the drowning person's location before the lifeguard girl.

The moment he made contact, the other person dragged him down into the seawater. Several limbs clawed and flailed against him, while two soft masses instantly pressed against his chest.

The drowning person was a voluptuous older woman.

And... looking beneath the water, through the rolling sea, Shi Hen could clearly see a red-and-white beast nearly the size and shape of an octopus, its tentacles wrapped around the drowning woman's ankle.

A stray Honkai Beast?

After being surprised for a full half second, Shi Hen flicked a finger. The underdeveloped Honkai Beast, separated from its companions, instantly turned into powder and dissipated.

Then, Shi Hen formed his palm into a hand blade and lightly struck the neck of the drowning woman, who was still clinging tightly to him. She immediately went quiet.

Grabbing the drowning woman's arm with one hand, Shi Hen paddled toward shore with the other.

He was not one of those Valkyries from Schicksal who saw saving the world as their duty. He did not care why a Honkai Beast had appeared here.

Before he had gone far, the lifeguard girl finally arrived. She gave Shi Hen a surprised look before reaching out to take hold of the drowning woman.

"Thanks for your help. Leave the rest to me."

The girl's voice was crisp and pleasant.

Taking a close look at her, Shi Hen felt that she was even more stunning than she had seemed from afar. Snow-white long hair, delicate and sharply defined features—her looks were good enough that she could wear a crown and play a princess without any issue, even if she was currently dressed in an utterly unaesthetic lifeguard uniform.

Without saying anything, Shi Hen simply let go.

Right now, he was merely an ordinary, warmhearted person. Rescuing drowning victims was better left to the professional lifeguard before him.

Dragging the drowning woman back, the girl's movements were indeed much more professional than Shi Hen's. She kept the woman's head above water the entire time, yet her swimming speed barely slowed.

The distance of several dozen meters quickly shrank, and before long, the girl brought the drowning woman back to shore.

After laying the drowning woman down on the sand, the White-haired Girl placed both hands on her chest and pressed lightly, only to discover in surprise that she had not swallowed much seawater.

She hadn't fainted because water entered her lungs?

The white-haired girl instantly froze, feeling as though she had not learned enough first-aid knowledge.

Oh no, she wouldn't get her pay docked for this, would she?

And what was she supposed to do next...

Looking at the drowning woman's slightly pale lips, the white-haired girl hesitated over whether to give her mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

"Cough, cough..."

Startled by a certain white-haired girl, the drowning woman, who had actually been in fairly decent condition, abruptly woke from her unconsciousness. Her brown eyes stared blankly around her, clearly not having fully processed what had happened.

"I'll help you go rest."

Seeing that she had awakened, the lifeguard girl immediately put the matter of mouth-to-mouth resuscitation out of her mind. She slipped one hand beneath the woman's armpit and supported her toward the temporary first-aid station, while still remembering to glance back at Shi Hen. "Thanks for earlier. Otherwise, things would have gotten bad."

She had already choked badly enough to pass out. The girl did not dare guarantee that she could have been saved if they had arrived several minutes later, so Shi Hen's timely rescue had been very important.

Of course, if the girl knew that the drowning woman's unconsciousness had been entirely caused by Shi Hen, her mood would probably have been completely different.

"It was nothing. I just did a little thing within my abilities."

Looking at the girl's delicate, beautiful face, Shi Hen pressed his lips together and maintained his humble persona.

"Hey, plenty of people don't have that kind of courage." Waving a hand, the girl looked as though she had seen it all. "Still, I couldn't tell that your swimming was so good."

Not just anyone had the ability to save people in the water.

After looking Shi Hen's lean but powerful body up and down several times, the girl unconsciously licked her lips.

Up close, he seemed even more handsome. His figure was really nice too. She really wanted to...

"It's all right."

Feeling a little creeped out by the girl's stare, Shi Hen could not help taking a few steps aside, using the drowning woman to block her line of sight.

Clearly, he was supposed to be the hunter. Why did he feel more like the prey instead?

A few inexplicable feelings rose in Shi Hen's heart as the realization came belatedly.

While they talked, the group had reached the temporary first-aid station.

Helping the drowning woman into the tent and handing her over to the other medical staff, the white-haired girl casually grabbed an ice cream from a small refrigerator nearby and tossed it to Shi Hen. "Here, this is your reward for doing a good deed.

I don't have much money, so don't mind it."

As an ordinary worker, the extent of her authority at the beach was basically getting free ice cream.

Shaking his head, Shi Hen tore open the ice cream's wrapper. Inside was a bright red rectangular bar.

Taking a small bite, the sweet strawberry flavor bloomed in his mouth alongside the chill. A smile appeared on the youth's face. "It's sweet. I like it."

For an instant, the girl felt as if a seven-colored deer had slammed fiercely into her heart.

"Oh, right. My name is Kiana. Kiana Kaslana. How about I treat you to dinner after I get off work?"

The girl smiled as she issued the invitation, her large white teeth gleaming beneath the sunlight.

As if fate had decreed it, the great hero destined to save the world and the boss destined to destroy it met at this very moment.

The Classic Scenario

The sunset over the sea really was beautiful.

Having lost its dazzling brilliance, the sun had turned crimson, hanging above the sea like a salted egg yolk. Even the clouds at the horizon had been dyed red by its light.

Sitting on a large reef in the Thinker's pose, Shi Hen seriously admired this landscape that had remained unchanged for countless years.

Who first saw the moon by the river? In what year did the river moon first shine upon people?

As long as one's heart was happy, why care whether the sight was commonplace?

Shi Hen quietly contemplated life.

But unfortunately, there were always people who did not want him to have any peace.

"Hey, handsome, are you alone? Want a date tonight?"

With looks that held up and that sunny, fresh temperament, people came over from time to time to try and hit on him. Even the drowning woman he had saved during the day came with her companions to ask for his contact information, clearly eager to sample some younger meat.

All he could say was that people around here were pretty open-minded.

And Shi Hen always had only one answer for such people:

"No."

Heh, women would only slow down the speed at which he drew his sword.

The sun quickly sank into the sea. As the last ray of light vanished beyond the horizon, a somewhat familiar voice sounded behind the youth.

"Hey, handsome, want a date?"

"Yes."

He answered without hesitation, then turned to look at the smiling girl.

Her silver-white hair, falling past her shoulders, had been tied into a ponytail. A slightly faded T-shirt concealed her beginning-to-develop lovely figure, while denim shorts fully revealed the girl's pale, slender legs. Ten pearl-like toes curled uneasily inside her sandals, as though they were shy.

"Sorry to keep you waiting."

With one foot tucked behind her, repeatedly tapping the ground, Kiana showed an apologetic smile.

"The sunset over the sea is beautiful."

Shi Hen smiled as well.

For a Herrscher like Kiana, who could give him a better sword, he was still very patient.

"Hehe~"

Glancing at the sky behind the youth, the girl's already not-too-bright smile became even more foolish.

"Let's go. It's getting dark."

Shi Hen jumped down from the reef.

"Mm." Kiana nodded. Seeing the youth's nimble movement, a hint of confusion appeared on her face. "Your hand... is it okay?"

"Ah, this?" Raising his right hand, which was wrapped in bandages, Shi Hen's expression suddenly became grave. "My right hand seals an incomparably evil power. Once released, it could easily destroy all of Sicily, so..."

The visible pattern of the Stigmata rewarded by the mission was on his right hand. Wearing gloves while playing at the beach would have been far too strange, so Shi Hen could only conceal it this way.

Though most people probably would not recognize a Stigmata, if someone knowledgeable saw it, it could still bring trouble.

He did not want his mood constantly affected by flies and rats.

Hearing Shi Hen's words, Kiana was utterly shocked. "That's amazing!"

"Uh..." Seeing the girl's astonished expression, Shi Hen suddenly felt guilty. After thinking for a moment, he still said, "Actually, I was lying."

"Huh!?"

Kiana blinked in even greater surprise. A stray lock of hair stood straight up.

"I just thought it would be cool."

Shi Hen said "honestly."

"Ah!!?"

Kiana was completely dumbfounded.

Seeing the girl's expression as though she had been thoroughly toyed with, Shi Hen subconsciously looked away.

From now on, he should try not to lie to this white-haired girl anymore.

Shi Hen secretly made up his mind.