Warm water washed over her body.
The coldness was replaced by warmth.
Fu Hua stared at her reflection in the wall tiles for a moment before turning off the water.
The daily ration of hot water was fixed.
Otto stood in the bathroom with Fu Hua, watching the Celestial dry her body.
But seeing her just carelessly pat herself down before starting to get dressed made Otto, the Bishop of Schicksal who had always lived a refined life, truly want to help his old friend dry herself properly.
However, he did not act.
Fu Hua could not perceive his existence. Even if he stood in the same bathroom with her, she wouldn't notice him.
Otto raised his hand and snapped his fingers softly.
A set of bishop's robes appeared on his slender body.
He hadn't been wearing anything a moment ago; after all, wearing clothes in a bathroom would be incredibly foolish.
Fu Hua walked out of the bathroom and into the small cabin, the room where she had been staying these past few days.
It wasn't large, but it had all the necessities and was reasonably clean.
However, after her shower, Fu Hua simply sat on the edge of the bed. Without drying her long, wet hair, she just sat there, staring blankly out the window.
Otto, with practiced ease, climbed onto the bed and gently hugged her from behind.
Like a sloth.
Fu Hua's eyelashes trembled. She felt that warmth again.
And as this warmth rose, the face of Big Brother Otto would inexplicably surface in her mind.
She thought she was going crazy, because she always felt as if Big Brother Otto were right beside her.
But she truly hoped she was going crazy.
She truly wished that the disaster in Sapphire a few days ago had just been a figment of her imagination.
Fu Hua looked around the cabin with a calm expression. Since the day the disaster struck, she had been brought here. She didn't know how many days had passed. She hadn't seen anyone; three meals a day were delivered automatically by a machine.
Sometimes she wondered: Has humanity been wiped out?
She remembered the monsters in Sapphire. Were they monsters from outer space?
Had these superior species suddenly attacked Earth, slaughtering the people on the surface, perhaps even treating them as food?
Could humanity possibly fight back against them?
However, a blood-red figure emerged in Fu Hua's mind. That figure wasn't as massive as the white monsters (Honkai Beasts), but the sense of danger it exuded far surpassed them.
Was Big Brother Otto's disappearance related to that figure?
Because it was only after that figure appeared that Big Brother Otto had vanished.
Fu Hua's hands clenched into tight fists, her knuckles turning white.
"Yo."
A somewhat familiar voice sounded. The door to the room opened, and the mature woman who had rescued her in Sapphire and brought her here walked in.
Her military uniform was gone. This woman with fiery red hair was now wearing a dress similar to a cheongsam. The crimson fabric hugged her magnificent figure, and her soft, supple waist looked as if one could encircle it with a single grasp. Her entire being overflowed with the charm of a mature woman.
Her long red hair was casually draped over her back, and her thin lips were adorned with red lipstick.
"You're looking well."
Looking at Fu Hua sitting on the bed, HIMEKO offered a smile.
Fu Hua quickly stood up and said, "Hello."
"No need for formalities." HIMEKO smiled; polite children were always likable. "Are you alright?"
Fu Hua nodded. She opened her mouth, countless questions wanting to spill out, but she didn't know where to begin.
After a moment of silence, she asked, "Excuse me... how are things outside?"
"Outside? Oh, you mean Sapphire. But we're not in Sapphire anymore. This is our base."
HIMEKO crossed her arms, leaning against the doorframe, a posture that particularly accentuated the pride of her chest.
Otto sat on the bed, watching the HIMEKO who looked so much like Himeko. This was Fu Hua's captain in the Previous Era, the person who had guided her into MOTH.
This is also a woman I want to obtain.
Ahem, after all, the Judgment of Shamash made from her Herrscher of Flame core is just too good.
But he wondered if Fu Hua had copied HIMEKO's habit of crossing her arms. But Hua, you're not even aware of your own weight!
"I know you have a lot of questions, and I'll answer them. But you'd best prepare yourself. What you experienced was not a dream, but a reality that couldn't possibly be worse. I don't have time to listen to anyone crying their eyes out here."
HIMEKO said, her tone casual but carrying an unquestionable authority.
Fu Hua nodded.
During her days in this room, she had already mentally prepared herself.
Seeing Fu Hua nod, HIMEKO continued.
"Sapphire is gone. Only a small number of survivors were rescued. I'm the one who saved you, so you are my responsibility."
"If you want to leave, I need to confirm that you are mentally stable and can accept reality before I can let you go."
"But you don't need to worry. After you leave here, you'll be sent to Australia. It's safe there, and we'll cover your travel expenses."
Sapphire is gone...
Fu Hua's eyes widened slightly. She thought back to her six months at school, she thought of all her friends. They were all gone.
She remembered the horrific way Carol had died in front of her.
Yes, they were all gone.
Fu Hua opened her mouth and uttered another place name, wanting to know if it was safe.
"Is that your hometown?" HIMEKO reacted to the new location Fu Hua mentioned. "But I'm afraid to say, this Great Honkai Eruption affected the entire East Asian region. The place you mentioned..."
"There were no survivors."
No survivors.
Those three words struck Fu Hua's heart like a sledgehammer.
My family... my friends... everyone I knew... they're all gone?
All Otto could do was come up behind her and hold her gently.
"I know this is hard for you to accept, but I'm sorry." HIMEKO had been observing Fu Hua's expression the whole time. "I think I'll let you have some quiet time. I'll come back tonight."
HIMEKO was worried that saying too much would cause the young woman's mind to shatter.
"What... exactly happened?"
Fu Hua found it difficult to breathe. All she had wanted was to go home for the holidays, but why, why were her home and her friends suddenly gone?
"You were in Sapphire. You should have seen everything that day," HIMEKO said, her gaze fixed on Fu Hua.
"However, what you saw was only the surface. You don't know what truly happened."
"But if I were you, I'd get a good night's sleep, put this all behind me, and think carefully about what I want to do with my future."
The existence of the Honkai had not yet been revealed to all of humanity.
But HIMEKO felt that the Honkai disasters were becoming more and more severe. It wouldn't be long before the truth could no longer be hidden.
"..."
Fu Hua was silent.
"However, if you have the resolve to carry the truth and move forward, tell me when I come back tonight. I will tell you everything."
"You are now facing a choice that could change your entire life. I've been in your shoes before. I hope you'll consider it carefully."
"So, think it over, okay?"
Fu Hua closed her eyes.
The faces of her family and friends appeared in her mind, then the face of Big Brother Otto, and the terrifying figure that had appeared before him.
The silence was long, so long that HIMEKO was about to turn and leave. But just then, Fu Hua spoke.
"When I was in Sapphire, I saw a monster that looked like a human. Not one of those zombie-like things, but something far more terrifying. She just looked at me, and in that moment, I thought I was already dead."
As Fu Hua spoke, HIMEKO stopped in her tracks, listening quietly.
"But someone stood in front of me. A moment later, he just... disappeared."
"Without a single trace."
"Do you know what that was?"
HIMEKO's brows furrowed. At first, she thought Fu Hua was talking about a Deadwalker, but as she continued, she felt something was off.
It sounded like the girl was talking about... a Herrscher?
But the Third Herrscher, who caused this Third Eruption, was already defeated in another city.
Could it be that the Third Herrscher passed through this city?
It was certainly possible.
"That was a Herrscher," HIMEKO said.
Otto, who had been listening from the side, clicked his tongue softly. How did she guess that?
Without explaining the word "Herrscher," HIMEKO looked at Fu Hua, and Fu Hua knew what she was waiting for.
She was waiting for her to make a choice.
This time, Fu Hua was not silent.
"I... want to know everything."
---o---