"Where is this?" Blade slowly calmed down, but the scene around him was like hell. He was bound to a cross, and several skeletal hands were stabbing steel blades into his body one after another.
"A pain I've never experienced before," Blade said, looking around before closing his eyes. "To think he could make me feel genuine pain. This kid has some skill."
In the real world, Kafka, Silver Wolf, and Firefly came running from a distance. Hanxing's eyes were still blue as he watched Blade warily; Blade had long since fallen under the illusion.
"All right, you can stop now," Kafka said gently, though her voice seemed to carry a trace of magic.
"There's no need to use any mental abilities. If you tell me to stop, I will." A faint smile on his face, Hanxing let the blue light in his eyes slowly fade until they returned to normal.
"Blade, listen to me-" Kafka was about to use Spirit Whisper on Blade, but he waved a hand. "I'm fine now."
"So what was that just now?" Firefly asked curiously. That sudden appearance of a special ability was indeed what deserved their attention most.
"That sword energy is called Dimensional Rift. It seems to be the basic way to use this blade." Hanxing raised the embroidered spring saber in his hand, and a scabbard suddenly appeared, covering the blade. "As for those blue eyes, they seem to be a power I already had."
"An illusion?" Silver Wolf asked. Hanxing patiently explained, "Something like that. This resurrection should be one of its functions: it can instantly heal injuries and even bring me back from the dead."
"So triggering that resurrection restored some of your memories, right?" Kafka asked. Hanxing pondered briefly. "That should be it. Maybe the way to recover my memories is to discover my combat techniques. But it seems that, in my subconscious, this move is much weaker."
"If that's the case," Blade chimed in, "you lost not only your memories but your power too?" Hanxing nodded. "But let's not get greedy. I'll look for my memories first."
"So when are we going to carry out that mission?" Kafka shook her head. "Tomorrow. You've had a tiring day too." Hanxing nodded and turned to leave. Then, as if remembering something, he looked back and said, "Firefly, could you come with me for a moment?"
"What is it?" Though puzzled, Firefly followed him to his room.
"Why do you wear armor when you meet people?" Hanxing asked Firefly after making sure the door was shut. "Oh, that." Firefly lowered her head, recalling something. "Actually, they already know, so it wouldn't matter if they heard."
"It's because of an illness called Entropy Loss Syndrome." Though Firefly's face was hidden beneath her armor's mask, her voice was noticeably more subdued.
"I came from the distant Glamoth Empire. When the Swarm Disaster struck, the entire nation faced a crisis that threatened its survival. In response, the empress established the Glamoth Iron Cavalry. I was one of them."
"Before long, the Swarm Disaster grew worse and worse. The Glamoth Iron Cavalry slowly became overwhelmed, and in the end, the entire army was wiped out. The Glamoth Empire was also destroyed in the disaster. I'm the only known survivor."
"I fell unconscious in a battle, and Kafka picked me up and brought me to the Stellaron Hunters. So Kafka isn't just a comrade to me. She's also like a mother."
"The Glamoth Iron Cavalry were weapons for fighting the swarm. To keep us from falling into enemy hands, the empire installed a 'failsafe' in every cavalry member: Entropy Loss Syndrome. It caused any Glamoth Iron Cavalry member who went out of control to self-destruct."
"This armor, Sam, is both my weapon in battle and my medical pod. It delays the onset of Entropy Loss Syndrome as much as possible."
"When you have Entropy Loss Syndrome, your physical structure undergoes irreversible, chronic disintegration. It's like slowly disappearing from this world. Becoming slower and slower... until the boundary between you and the whole world grows blurry..."
"So, in short, the reason you can't leave your armor is an illness, right?" Hanxing asked after listening attentively. Firefly nodded. "Yes. That's why Kafka has been following the 'script' while also looking for any Glamoth medicine that might remain, to cure my Entropy Loss Syndrome. Unfortunately, the medicine we've found so far only seems to delay its onset."
"An illness? That makes things easier." Hanxing's eyes turned blue, and stars appeared in his pupils. "I haven't tried to see whether this thing works on other people yet, but I have to give it a try..."
"Then what do I need to do?" At the possibility of a cure, Firefly's voice trembled slightly. "Take off your armor and close your eyes. That should do it." Hanxing looked uncertain himself. "After all, I don't even know if this will work."
"Take off my armor?" Firefly hesitated, a rare occurrence for her, but finally made up her mind. A wave of heat swept over him, and Firefly's snow-white skin was exposed.
"Wait, you don't wear clothes inside your armor?" Hanxing hurriedly covered his eyes. He had never seen a scene like this, where he had to avert his gaze. "Then wait a moment," Firefly said, her voice growing distant. When he looked again, she had put on a piece of clothing.
"All right, I'm starting." Star Eyes activated, and blue light formed around Firefly, a deep blue star imprinted within it. Firefly felt a warm sensation. For some reason, she could indeed feel the symptoms of Entropy Loss Syndrome gradually disappearing, and her body felt lighter than ever before.
As she reveled in this feeling of freedom, Hanxing, beside her, was not doing so well...
"Ugh-" Firefly heard Hanxing groan softly and opened her eyes to see two streams of bloody tears running from his eyes. But Hanxing spoke at that moment: "Close your eyes! Otherwise, I can't guarantee the treatment will work!"
Firefly had no choice but to obey and close her eyes again. Soon, the blue light dimmed, and the stars vanished from his eyes. Hanxing fell backward-
A moment later, Hanxing felt the girl's body heat through the fair hands supporting his neck and keeping him from falling. "At least I managed to cure you..." As soon as he finished speaking, Hanxing passed out completely...