"After the Svitok 51 incident, I temporarily left the [Stargate]. Following that, I joined the reorganized Fire Moth as a soldier and gradually distanced myself from the [Stargate]."
Ato told Lin and Elysia essentially everything he knew. This secret history of the Fire Moth was indeed something neither Lin nor Elysia had expected.
"The Fire Moth is still secretly researching the lunar remains, but there hasn't been much progress. There have been new movements recently, which is why I said this intelligence might be made public internally."
So that's how it is.
Lin roughly guessed the intention behind this. Since it was previously a secret study, they couldn't invest too many resources, resulting in zero progress. Now, by making it public—regardless of the impact—they could increase investment and dispatch top talents like Mei, Mobius, and Einstein to conduct the research.
"Now, it's time to talk about the current mission."
Having finished the "backstory," it was time to return to the main topic.
"The cause was when I was dispatched to investigate this time; the vicinity of the [Stargate] was intruded upon by unidentified individuals, and some facilities were damaged."
Unidentified individuals... so that was the reason for deploying the Poison Pupa.
"What is the extent of the damage?"
"Not great, but the opponent was intentionally aiming for the Stargate, and their movements were extremely rapid. Afterward, no matter what method was used, we couldn't find out who it was."
"..."
"Anyway, it looks like you'll need to stay here for quite a long time."
At this moment, they did not yet realize just how long that "quite a long" period of time could be.
...
"Do you have something to say?"
While Elysia was lost in thought, she was startled by a cool voice. She looked up to see Lin helmet already pressed close to her face.
"Eh?" Elysia gave a smile similar to her usual one. "It's nothing~"
"Is that so? You were silent when you heard Ato speaking. I thought you might have some connection to that incident." Lin spoke casually, seemingly without intent. "That part separated from the remains—where do you think it would be?"
"It could be anywhere." Elysia thought for a moment. "Ato said it was a baby; perhaps it has already grown up by now."
"Separated from the remains." Lin pinched the lower edge of his helmet, thinking. "The First Herrscher, then...?"
"Why are you so certain it's a Herrscher, Lin?"
"...If all existing Honkai energy comes from the remains on the moon, then the part split off from the remains' body should be the highest known crystallization of Honkai—a Herrscher." Lin stated his reasoning. "But if it were a Herrscher, the fact that it has vanished without a trace after all these years isn't normal."
"What if... they were a Herrscher like Chiaki?"
"..."
After saying this, Elysia felt a pang of regret.
Why did she take the initiative to uncover Lin scars?
Was she too impatient...?
"Yeah, maybe." Lin showed no outward sign of abnormality. After a simple reply, he fell silent.
Elysia changed the subject: "Lin, are you very angry that the Fire Moth leaked the Honkai energy?"
To say he wasn't angry would be impossible.
If humanity itself caused the great error, then the meaning of their constant fighting would change.
He didn't want the sacrifices of those people to become the toilet paper used by certain individuals to wipe their own messes.
But...
"Ato is right. Since it has already happened, the only thing to do is fight."
"Blindly blaming the past won't lead to progress."
...
"Heh, it's you."
In his seat on the transport plane, Kalpas let out a cold laugh as he looked at Sakura, who sat not far away, coldly wiping her blade.
"..."
Sakura naturally remembered this masked man. In that sanitarium, he was the man who wouldn't die even after she pierced his heart.
Dangerous, and... terrifying.
"To think I'd be assigned to the same team as you. This team... called Chrysalis Squad, right? It's specifically for killing people, isn't it?"
"...You can interpret it that way if you wish."
Sakura didn't want to beautify her actions, but Lin had told her that the person she became was decided by herself.
"Where's Lin? Why isn't he here?"
"Because he is not participating in our mission."
"Ha? It's strange that a guy like him isn't in the Chrysalis Squad." Kalpas tapped his fingers impatiently on the table. "I thought he would be the captain of the Poison Pupa; that would have been interesting."
"..."
Sakura hand wiping the blade stopped. She turned to stare at Kalpas mask for a moment, then slowly sheathed her sword.
"Hmm? What? Are you annoyed? Just like that woman?"
The woman Kalpas spoke of was Aponia.
"No. I have no right to say anything more about Lin affairs to others."
"Hahaha, I can see the annoyance in your eyes." Kalpas provoked Sakura in a mocking tone. "After all, you're on the same side. To you, what he does probably doesn't matter, right?"
"And you? Do you have a problem with Lin?"
"I. Most. Certainly. Do." Kalpas raised his voice loudly. "A very big problem."
"Because of the sanitarium?"
"Could there be any other reason?"
Kalpas suddenly realized Sakura was looking at him with a look of pity—a genuine compassion that he found unbearable.
"What is... the meaning of this?"
"No, do as you please." Sakura turned her head away. "Lin won't care how you view him, and I... naturally have no opinion either."
...
"Blood pressure, organ stability, EEG, adrenaline..."
Mobius checked her own diagnostic reports one by one with meticulous care, far more detailed than a standard physical. Standing in the vast experimental field, she finished reading the stack of data—half as tall as a person—and set it aside.
Next, she placed a camera a short distance away and, after turning it on, began recording.
"This is Fusion Warrior No. CM-003, Mobius. Currently recorded at —. The content of this experiment is the further functional enhancement of the Fusion Warrior and the exploration of the expression level of Honkai Beast genes. It is named the [Active Remains/Human-Made Collapse] experiment. By injecting drugs into the Fusion Warrior that increase the dominant proportion of Honkai Beast genes, the effect of form alteration is achieved. This state is called [Active Remains]."
Mobius took out a green solvent from the side, shook it to observe the sediment, and after confirming there were no issues, smiled at the camera. "The subject for this experiment is myself. Humanity is about to welcome a new revolution, and I shall be the first."
After saying this, she unhesitatingly injected the entire tube of solvent into her body.
Then, she closed her eyes to feel the changes within.
Suddenly—