Chapter 81: Yae Sakura!
"Rovel, you're back!" Kiana's voice was a mixture of surprise and relief. Seeing him standing there unharmed, she let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.
Her gaze then shifted to the small, silver-haired girl beside him, and her posture instinctively tensed. "How... did she come along too?"
Although Rovel had already explained Bronya's situation, a flicker of resentment still lingered in Kiana's heart. After all, this entire Honkai Eruption wasn't entirely disconnected from her.
"We have Bronya to thank," Rovel explained, stepping forward slightly. "Without her, dealing with those long-range Thunder Mechs would have been a nightmare. She cleared a major obstacle for us."
"Detecting... confirmed that Kiana is an idiot," Bronya stated, her face a perfect mask of indifference. "Treating Bronya as an enemy in a situation that is obvious at a glance—the probability of being an idiot is 100%."
"You're the idiot! You idiotic little shrimp! Are you looking for a fight?" Kiana bristled like a cat whose tail had just been stomped on, hissing at the smaller girl.
"Probability of Bronya's victory is confirmed to be 99.999...%"
"Mine is 100%!" Kiana stomped her foot in frustration, her voice rising in a heated argument.
Watching the two of them bicker back and forth, Rovel supposed this was their strange way of improving their relationship... maybe?
He turned his attention away from their squabbling. "Mei..." He gently brushed his palm over Mei's hair, his touch feather-light.
In her slumber, Mei lacked the sharp, dangerous edge of the Queen of Thunder. Gazing at her peaceful, sleeping face, Rovel felt a deep sense of contentment settle in his chest. He had forged his own bonds in this world, ties that he would protect with everything he had.
"Rovel, you've been fighting for so long, you should get some rest," Kiana said, her argument with Bronya momentarily forgotten. "I'll take care of clearing out any Honkai Beasts or Death Soldiers that get close."
"With Bronya here, any enemy will be discovered the moment they approach," Bronya added, delivering a final, crushing blow. "Kiana's utility is 0. There is no difference between her and trash."
"What did you say?!" Kiana's eyes blazed. "You hateful little shrimp, you want to compete? Let's see who kills more Death Soldiers and Honkai Beasts!"
"According to calculations, the probability of Kiana winning is 0%," Bronya replied flatly. "Bronya accepts your challenge."
And just like that, the two of them stormed off, leaving Rovel and Mei in a pocket of sudden silence. Perhaps they were giving the pair some space, or perhaps they genuinely wanted to ensure Rovel could rest undisturbed.
Rovel lay down beside Mei, the faint, sweet fragrance of her hair filling his senses. It wasn't long before the exhaustion of the long battle claimed him, and he fell into a deep sleep.
When he next awoke, it wasn't to the gentle light of dawn, but to the violent shaking of the very ground beneath him. He was jolted awake by a sudden, powerful earthquake.
He blinked, his senses slowly returning, and realized his head was resting on something soft and warm. He was on Mei's lap.
"Mei!" Rovel sat up immediately, his eyes searching hers.
"Mr. Fang Ruobai..." Raiden Mei looked at him, a gentle, reassuring smile gracing her lips.
But there was no time for a tender reunion. The tremors were growing stronger. The two of them scrambled to their feet and hurried out of their makeshift shelter.
Just as they emerged, Kiana and Bronya came rushing toward them from the opposite direction.
"Mei, you're awake!" Kiana cried out, her face lighting up with genuine joy.
"Yes. Thank you all..." Mei nodded softly, her gratitude evident in her voice.
"What happened?" Rovel demanded, his gaze sweeping the trembling landscape. A tremor of this magnitude could only mean one thing: a terrifyingly powerful Honkai Beast had been born.
"It's the idiot Kiana's fault," Bronya stated, decisively shifting the blame.
"What?! It was clearly because that Chariot-class Honkai Beast cracked the ground when it smashed down!" Kiana shot back, defending herself instantly.
"Cracked the ground?" Rovel's brow furrowed in confusion.
"Yes," Bronya confirmed with a nod. "It appears something is about to crawl out from underground, which is what caused such a strong tremor."
Worried about Rovel and Mei's safety, they hadn't lingered to investigate, instead rushing back as soon as the shaking began.
'Could it be... a Honkai Emperor?' Rovel's mind raced, a knot of worry tightening in his stomach.
Given their current strength, if an Emperor-class Honkai Beast appeared, the four of them would likely be overwhelmed. Their only hope would be for Mei to unleash her full Herrscher power, but no one could predict the consequences of that. An Emperor-class was the pinnacle of lower-level Honkai Beasts; Rovel estimated its level would be pushing 100.
He quickly assessed his team. He could now see their levels clearly. Kiana was currently level 65, while Bronya was level 52. As for Mei... she had already reached level 49. It seemed that her transformation into the Herrscher of Thunder had awakened the latent power within her, causing her level to surge upon waking.
"Regardless," Rovel said, his voice firm and decisive, "if we want to get out of here, we have to pass through that area. If it really is a Honkai Emperor, then we run. No arguments."
"Fine." No one objected.
Kiana and Bronya took the lead, and soon the four of them arrived at the site. A massive fissure scarred the earth, and beside it lay the mangled corpse of a Chariot-class Honkai Beast. In the time it had taken them to walk over, the violent tremors seemed to have subsided.
"Such a deep crack," Kiana muttered, leaning over the edge. "I can't see what's down there at all." She narrowed her eyes, but the chasm was shrouded in an impenetrable darkness.
"Bronya can operate a drone to investigate the situation."
Bronya tapped a control on Project Bunny 19C. A small, sleek drone detached from its mechanical arm and whirred to life, descending silently into the depths of the fissure.
The four of them huddled together, their faces illuminated by the faint glow of a screen no bigger than a palm, watching the drone's camera feed.
The drone descended fifty meters, then sixty, the darkness absolute. Finally, its spotlight caught something at the bottom of the fissure.
"Is that... a person?" Mei whispered, her voice laced with surprise and suspicion.
On the screen, a figure was visible. She had long, flowing pink hair, was dressed in a traditional shrine maiden's outfit, and wore a katana tucked at her waist.
'Yae Sakura?' The name flashed through Rovel's mind like a bolt of lightning.
"What? No way," Kiana squeezed forward for a better look, jostling Bronya. "How could someone have run down into a fissure?"
A vein pulsed on Bronya's forehead as her personal space was invaded. "Idiot Kiana, stay away from Bronya. The aura of an idiot is contagious."
With a metallic whir, Project Bunny's arm grabbed Kiana by the collar and unceremoniously tossed her to the side.
"Hateful Bronya!" Kiana scrambled up, rubbing her backside. "What's the big deal? It's only fifty meters! I'll go down and look myself!" She took a determined step toward the edge, ready to jump.
"Kiana, don't be impulsive!" Rovel lunged forward, grabbing her arm to pull her back.
In that exact second, a terrifying torrent of crimson flames erupted from the fissure. The pillar of fire shot into the sky with a deafening roar, so close that Kiana felt the searing heat singe the tips of her hair.
"Ah!! What's going on?!" she shrieked, scrambling back several paces.
Bronya's drone feed flickered and died, the screen turning to static.
The column of fire didn't dissipate. Instead, it twisted and writhed high above them, gradually condensing in the air, taking on the distinct shape of a massive, nine-tailed fox.
'Higokumaru...' Rovel thought, his eyes wide with a dawning, dreadful understanding.
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