During the long week following his resurrection, Jun An finally achieved his first victory over a MANTIS.
Jun An's pride as a man was finally restored! He was no longer subjected to purely one-sided bullying.
After the battle concluded, Jun An lay comfortably in Himeko's embrace, savoring the softness of the pillow-like cushion.
"Sure enough, replicating Mobius and the Captain's positions is somewhat difficult."
Having finished, Himeko began her post-mortem analysis. "For example, doing it standing up for a long time is quite troublesome. I have to half-squat, which feels like a really awkward posture."
Currently, Himeko's waist height was likely around ninety centimeters to a meter off the ground, while Jun An was only about 1.4 meters tall now. Her long legs and the height difference truly became an obstacle when the two tried to 'play' together in certain ways.
Jun An himself wasn't particularly fond of that position either, simply because he really wasn't tall enough.
Honestly, the fact that he had to stand on tiptoe just to reach the 'roof entrance' felt quite strange. If Himeko stood on her tiptoes even slightly, would he have to jump?
Fortunately, Himeko wasn't particularly interested in SM, so she didn't deliberately tease Jun An, instead being quite cooperative in this regard.
"Right, about subjugating Honkai Beasts, can we find an existing mission for that?" Jun An hadn't forgotten what he told Elysia when they left – subjugating a High Honkai Energy Individual. If you're going to put on an act, commit to it fully.
Himeko stroked the Captain's head like a doting mother. "The frequency of Honkai appearances now is much lower than before the Great Honkai Eruption. While it's not like you can't find any Honkai globally, a High Honkai Energy Individual..."
"...Let's check out the war zones."
"Because World Serpent used to engage in shady dealings, selling MANTIS technology to certain countries, even now with Honkai energy dwindling daily, those individuals still possess the power to potentially overthrow a nation."
To ordinary people, a regular Valkyrie squad created by Schicksal using Artificial Stigmata is comparable to an army. Let alone MANTISes, whose average level, excluding outliers like Kevin, is around Pseudo-S-rank.
Even Himeko, given sufficient intelligence, could single-handedly annihilate a third-rate small nation within two weeks. For countries lacking Honkai energy weapons, other MANTISes are like walking Dongfeng missiles – reusable ones, whose only cost is a meal, far cheaper than an actual missile.
"War zones? Schicksal plans to intervene in wars?" Jun An, while enjoying the comfort with his eyes closed, was somewhat surprised. Were people really starting wars during Earth's reconstruction period? So brazen?
And Schicksal intervening in mortal wars felt somewhat out of line.
Himeko's answer was quite straightforward. "All Honkai energy weapons fall under Schicksal's jurisdiction. Naturally, that includes MANTISes."
Jun An understood this. Before Honkai energy could be utilized by humans like conventional energy, it was a controlled substance. And the controllers were naturally the organization possessing the most Honkai energy – Schicksal.
Himeko continued, "Because the Honkai war just ended a year ago, its impact continues to ripple outwards. Many regions are still chaotic."
"The most significant impact, naturally, is the regional instability caused by the Herrscher of Legion. Many countries went to war one after another due to their interference, and those conflicts haven't stopped yet."
In this world, the Herrscher of Legion's authority allowed each individual Herrscher persona to possess formidable power comparable to a Pseudo-Herrscher – be it fire, ice, reason, or others.
Combined with the new authority granted to them by the Cocoon of Finality, the Dominion Theater, they nearly steamrolled the three major organizations. After all, that was a thousand Pseudo-Herrschers!
Compared to the Herrscher of Binding, who was possessed by Otto right after birth, the Herrscher of Corruption, who only caused minor ripples within the Elysian Realm, and Kevin, who only fought in lunar orbit, this entity was the one that truly plagued the entire world.
Jun An asked, "The war between two countries with MANTISes hasn't stopped? Fighting for this long?"
Although Himeko's speech was slightly muffled, this kind of exchange wasn't new to them. Jun An could roughly decipher what she was saying.
Jun An remembered the Herrscher of Legion incident happened a year and a half ago. Even if both sides had MANTISes, it shouldn't take this long to fight, right?
Duels between powerful individuals usually ended quickly, didn't they? Even dealing with the Herrscher of Legion hadn't taken Jun An more than three months.
"Actually, it's not that both countries have MANTISes. It's just that in the war between two nations, one side hired a MANTIS."
Jun An was quite curious. "Hired?"
Himeko elaborated, "That MANTIS is the leader of a mercenary group. Originally a World Serpent executive, but left Kevin after World Serpent's influence waned, striking out on his own like Raven to become a mercenary."
"But because his price is very high, that country hesitated for a long time before hiring him, which consequently led to the war becoming completely one-sided. Want to go?"
Himeko wasn't particularly invested in the matter. Schicksal had already dispatched personnel to investigate, and results would be available soon enough. The issue would be resolved whether Jun An went or not; it was just a matter of sooner or later.
"Of course, let's go check it out!"
Jun An was eager to try. After all, you start craving what you lack.
After returning to Earth, he had been living the retired life of an ordinary person. The week since returning here had been spent mostly in Ai Cao (sexual activities). Naturally, he was quite eager to enjoy a good fight.
It was also a chance to test his current combat capabilities and plan for future battles.
Jun An continued asking, "How long will it take to get there?"
Himeko turned around, exposing her most vulnerable back to the Captain, and asked enticingly, "Well, Captain, do you want it fast, or slow?"
"Faster." Jun An pinched Himeko. "This matter... after all... involves human lives. Faster... is better."
"Mmm☆~ Three hours then."
Himeko turned back, slightly dissatisfied, then yelled towards the Helios's cockpit, "Ai-chan☆~ Head to the South African war zone~ Where Schicksal's been operating recently~ Mm, maximum speed~"
Ai-chan: "What am I, some kind of cheap trash?"