After the Third Herrscher was defeated, some abnormalities began to appear in the habits of the Honkai beasts.
Over the next few days, Ryan kept repeating this sentence, and some bad premonitions became reality. The changes were so subtle, though, that they were difficult to notice.
There was no expression on his face as he continued with the mundane: cooking, chatting, helping Rin with homework, and telling bedtime stories every day. It seemed that he had forgotten about the collapse and was determined to live an ordinary life with the two sisters.
In the mornings, he would send Rin to school, then take walks in the park, sipping the cherry blossom tea brewed by Sakura herself, leisurely reading the newspaper while watching the diligent girl wipe the floor until it shone.
Sakura was a person who couldn't sit still. She cleaned and tidied the house from morning to night, or knelt in the living room to meditate and practice swordsmanship.
But Ryan's mind never stopped. He kept hypothesizing, rejecting ideas, and hypothesizing again, but there was still no answer.
The Honkai was indeed targeted, but that was on a strategic level. For example, the Herrscher's output kept growing stronger. After the failure of the Seventh Herrscher, the focus shifted to psychological warfare, virus warfare, and espionage. Once they discovered that the Mantis were the core of human resistance, they sent the Herrscher of Constraint to destroy them all.
But the original world line sample had no reference value. The biggest factor of change was himself. If he remembered correctly, the Herrscher of Thunder had emotions at her last moment, and that kind of astonishment wasn't even her own emotion.
Ryan flipped through the newspaper faster, but the reports on the upper-level Honkai beasts in the group were all a little too predictable. How could the Honkai be predicted?
"Move your feet."
Just as he was deep in thought, he heard Sakura's voice. He subconsciously raised his foot and saw Sakura lying on the ground, wiping the floor.
At first, he felt a little embarrassed, but soon he got used to it, revealing his lazy side and watching her arch her back as she worked beneath his feet.
Sakura wore a yukata. The thin fabric clung to her body, and her raised butt looked like a plump peach. The V-shaped neckline of her yukata hung down, emphasizing her curves.
The shape was perfect, and the size was so large that it was impossible to hold in one hand.
After a quick glance, Sakura turned around again, washed the towel in the bucket, and wiped the fine beads of sweat from her forehead.
"Is Rin asleep already?"
"Yeah, you played with her in the park for hours today. You must be exhausted. You worked hard today."
"Since I have nothing to do, I might as well take her out to play. Rin is very cute, and she even made an appointment with me to go to the amusement park next time. Of course, you have to come with us."
"I promised her a long time ago, but I just never got around to it."
"This is my fault. If you weren't afraid of being discovered by the Fire Moth, you could have taken a good rest this time."
Ryan sighed and closed the newspaper but noticed that Sakura didn't seem resentful at all. She quietly made a cup of tea and placed it on the table.
"There's a long way to go, and I know you've been upset lately. It's beyond my expectation that you could be patient enough to accompany Rin." Sakura said calmly. She had seen Ryan's abilities with her own eyes and, of course, knew that the Third Herrscher was linked to him.
"Aren't you curious?"
"Curiosity is the natural enemy of an assassin. Everyone has secrets, but I trust your judgment."
If Sakura was as sharp as a knife in battle, then at this moment, she was as gentle as water.
"Sakura, I like your understanding, but I'm sorry, I have to end this comfortable life." Ryan took a deep breath, and for a moment, he felt an urge to let Sakura stay.
"As long as you feel comfortable, I'm satisfied." Sakura stood up with a smile, pushed her long hair aside, and shook her head gently. "I intercepted the communication of the Fire Chaser Moth. Śeṣa appeared on Parit Island, which is 200 kilometers away. Please wait a moment. I'll prepare for the attack."
She didn't say much, just left this sentence and walked into the inner room, leaving Ryan momentarily stunned. Then he closed the newspaper with a smile.
Although I concealed it very well, I was still seen through. As for why Sakura was so determined to interrupt the life she loved most?
It's simple. Ryan hadn't done anything in the past few days, but he had made this transaction feel no longer like a transaction.
What I was anxious about was what she wanted, and I finally made a new friend.
Not long after, footsteps were heard again, but this time they were fast and urgent.
Ryan turned his head and saw Sakura dressed in a familiar outfit. She was wearing leather boots and shorts, with a white over-the-knee sock on her right leg. She wore a blue-black jacket and a white T-shirt on her upper body, with a long sword hanging from her waist.
Her long pink hair was naturally spread out, and she wore a pair of blue headphones around her neck. Except for the fact that she no longer had fox ears, she looked pretty much like she did in the Flame-Chasers period.
The outfit was a bit strange but very capable.
Ryan stared at her, and Sakura looked away slightly, explaining: "This is the Forget-Me-Not that Rin painted. I matched it according to the pattern."
"I see. I was wondering if you were wearing a tight combat uniform when I first met you. Oh, you don't need to bring a knife."
"You want me to fight you with fists?" Sakura frowned immediately. All her skills were in swordsmanship, and her boxing skills were only for self-defense.
As soon as she finished speaking, she saw Ryan go to the balcony and return with a metal suitcase. Before she could ask, Ryan explained:
"This is what I retrieved today. It's the latest 'Soul Steel' research prototype. Mobius sent it to me specially. Damn it, she actually charged me five times the wages. This woman is taking advantage of the situation!"
Sakura automatically ignored the chatter and asked in confusion, "How did she send it?"
"Of course, it's delivered by courier. That lazy woman wouldn't make a special trip, right?"
Express delivery... these two people are really carefree.
Sakura wanted to laugh, but she managed to hold it back. It was time for a serious mission. She watched as Ryan opened the suitcase with some anticipation.
Inside were two weapons: a blue katana and a red straight sword, both emitting a metallic luster.
Ryan brushed his hand lightly over them. According to Mobius, these were prototypes made from soul steel, though not fully completed. The development was still in progress.
"The most advanced technology of the Third Research Institute, made from soul steel. It has excellent wear and corrosion resistance. Essentially, it's a self-repairing nanorobot."
"Because it can fully carry Honkai energy, in addition to the strength of the weapon, they've developed some interesting programs to imitate the core of a higher-level Honkai beast and mobilize Honkai energy."
This was a prototype Ryan had suggested. Although it wasn't strong enough and didn't have a Herrscher core, the Soul Steel weapon was still a good platform for many experiments. That's why Mei had turned a blind eye.
Ryan could mobilize energy without weapons, but Sakura couldn't do that before becoming a Mantis, so her experimental data would be valuable.
Sakura didn't understand much. She wasn't well-educated in this area and couldn't figure it out. She just caught the knife Ryan tossed her and pulled it out a few inches. The blade was as thin as a cicada's wing and very light. If you looked closely, you could see a faint cold mist.
"Nice sword. It seems to contain Honkai energy?"
"The built-in program can mobilize Honkai energy. The manual says it was inspired by an ice-type mutated Honkai Emperor. It's just that it hasn't been fully developed yet. Your original body isn't powerful enough, so its strength won't be too great." Ryan tossed over a thin booklet and continued:
"It has instructions on how to use it and things to be careful of. They really developed something incredible."
It was indeed amazing. Ryan even wanted to go deeper into it and see if he could research some kind of Taixu sword energy by replacing the weapon with a human body.
Sakura carefully looked at the booklet full of small print and diagrams and couldn't help but think of the stories she read as a child—about magic, inner strength, and training.
But if you say that this is some sort of martial arts secret book, you're completely wrong. There were no fantasy descriptions at all, just rigorous questions and answers, and 24 usage suggestions listed.
"Is it precious?" Sakura didn't care much about the prototype. What mattered was controlling the Honkai energy.
"Soul steel can never be mass-produced, and the requirements for users are very strict. If your Honkai energy isn't adaptable enough, using it is the same as committing suicide." Ryan also took out a straight sword, shaped like an ancient Shenzhou style, square and wide.
He didn't study the program that came with the weapon. For Ryan, as long as the weapon was durable and had good energy conductivity, it was good enough.
"Han Ying."
"Um?"
"I'll name it Han Ying." Sakura held the long sword in her arms. She seemed to like it very much. She bowed slightly and said, "Thank you for your gift."
"That's good. When you become stronger, you can continuously optimize your weapon. Anyway, this knife wasn't hammered out by a blacksmith. All magical weapons and sharp blades are the result of advances in materials science."
Ryan's words sounded less romantic and more rigorous. Sakura also looked yearningly at the sword. If she could become a Mantis, then this sword could also be strengthened.
Ryan didn't hide her little thoughts. In fact, he agreed with this fundamental breakthrough.
The weapon was a good one; it just depended on who held it. But at least it greatly improved the overall combat capability of humanity. If a Scepter of God made of soul steel was created, and some interesting functions were added, perhaps even the Ruler of Thunder wouldn't be able to stop it.
"What's your sword called?"
This question caught Ryan off guard. He didn't like naming weapons since his previous weapons were consumables and would be damaged after a short time.
But this, being the world's first soul steel weapon, deserved a name.
He looked carefully at the straight sword. It was heavy, shaped somewhat like a Han sword, and filled with a sense of majesty.
It was probably the work of Vil-V. The craftsmanship was quite fine, and the hilt was filled with meaningless reliefs, looking like lightning with bared fangs and claws. The pure red scabbard made of liquid metal seemed like it would make Mei vomit blood over this waste of resources.
"Let's just name it 'Chi Xiao.'"
"What a great name. It sounds impressive."
"It's the people who are powerful, not the swords." Ryan laughed and waved his hand. "Let's go before the Fire Moth makes a move."
"Okay, I'll go drive first." Sakura nodded gently, her steps quick and steady, without any hesitation.
She just walked straight through the living room she had tidied herself, passed by the kitchen that had been busy these days, crossed the corridor, and walked past her sister's bedroom door without even looking at it.
Are you afraid to stop and never want to leave?
Ryan smiled and shook his head. This coldness was exactly the kind of gentleness that was unique to Sakura. In fact, he could let Sakura stay, just like he treated Hua and Kevin.
He never acted on his own initiative and interfered with other people's choices, because some good intentions could lead to tragedy in the future.
Ryan followed, but stopped when he passed the bedroom. He saw the half-open door and the deep blue eyes peering through the crack.
Rin was standing at the door. Even though she was less than five meters away from Sakura, she didn't run out to cry and hug her sister's waist. She just silently watched the two of them leave.
She is really sensible. She knows that what Sakura does is not easy. If she worries, it would put her in danger. So she suppresses her emotions and holds back her reluctance. For a ten-year-old child, you couldn't ask for more.
Ryan was insightful. He stared at the eyes behind the door, tapped his chest lightly, and then walked out as if he hadn't noticed anything.
Click.
The door closed, and the footsteps faded away. Rin slowly sat down against the wall, hugging her knees. This time, however, she didn't shed tears as she had before. The secret signal Ryan had given her remained in her mind.
This simple posture in the story was imprinted on her mind in just a few days.
Don't worry, Mr. Rabbit will take care of everything.
"I believe in Mr. Rabbit, and I will do my job well."
Rin slowly got up, her expression as cold and determined as Sakura's. She climbed onto the bed, covered herself with the quilt, listened to the sound of the car starting outside the window, and smiled faintly.
It was a quiet night, and she slept soundly.
TN: Han Ying = I tried to translate/make it into another language and if it comes from English it is Cold Cherry but I decided to make it Han Ying to make it better (because Hoyo comes from China)