Disclaimer: 'Honkai impact 3rd' is the property of Hoyoverse, Singapore. I do not own any characters in this story except the minor OCs here and there.

Revelations

Aponia in her eighteen years of life had never faced the dilemma she was facing now. And that was because:

"I said it's enough just to bandage my arm."

"But your skin is torn open badly. You at least need the stitches."

"No."

"Aponia, please help me to convince this man."

"Kevin-san, it would be best for you to get your wounds stitched, lest they worsen. Simply bandaging them is not sufficient."

"…"

"Kevin, even she is pleading with you. At least listen to her."

"No." Kevin said and took his shirt intending to leave the room but something caught his arm. Turning his head back he saw both Elysia and the woman looking at him with a pleading expression.

"Please, get your wounds treated Kevin."

"I agree, please let me tend to you properly. I beg you."

Kevin stood there silently for some moments. He didn't trust the woman one bit, she had after all tried to manipulate and control his mind in some form, and he really didn't have the time or patience now to deal with Elysia's antics. However, they were genuinely worried he could see and only wanted to treat his wounds. But he couldn't trust that woman to not try to do something to him again. He was weighing his options when he suddenly heard the woman speak up:

"I know that you are wary of me, and I don't blame you. But I only want to treat you, I swear upon all the children that I am taking care of." she said with resoluteness and sincerity in her voice.

Kevin then released a small breath and said coldly:

"Fine. But don't try to do anything funny."

"You have my promise." the woman said as she started to heat the stitching needle. As she sterilized it, she came near to Kevin and said:

"Tell me if it starts to hurt too much."

"…" he remained silent.

The treatment went on as Aponia treated the wounds one by one. She efficiently sew up the wounds on his right forearm and his shoulders and then bandaged them up extremely gently. After two hours of treatment, they were finally done and she said:

"The wounds were deep, so please do not try to put undue pressure on it and stretch them lest the stitches come undone."

At this Kevin got up and thanked her sincerely and said:

"Thank you, Miss. Now please excuse me."

He then started buttoning up his shirt. Seeing this Elysia said in a concerned voice:

"Wait, you were just stitched up. Where are you planning to go now?"

"I found a lead."

"From Sakura I presume. After your duel with her."

"…"

"You are hurt badly, rest for some days. We can always complete our investigation with a few days of break."

"No."

"Sigh… then let me go instead of you. I will investigate the supposed lead and then we can discuss how to proceed further."

"No. The place that I'm going to is extremely dangerous, you will only get killed there. Return to the hotel room for now. I will send you back to the base when I come back after my investigation." Kevin said while he finished dressing up and started to put on his coat.

"What?" Elysia was stunned to the core. He was about to send her back? But why? What had she done wrong?

"Kevin, what are you even saying?" Elysia asked baffled.

"…"

"Kevin answer me, please? Did I do something wrong? If so, then I will try to correct it."

"…"

"Please don't send me back."

"…"

"Please." Elysia started to sniffle while clinging to him. She knew that he was sending her away only to protect her, to keep her safe. However, that was not what she wanted. She was not going to wait in the backlines not able to do anything but pray that he was safe, she was also a proud member of the Moths and a defender of humanity. Also, she wanted to protect him from himself as she knew that once he was alone, he will do stupidly reckless things. Thinking such things, Elysia resolved to stay by his side even if she had to go against him.

All this while Kevin's thoughts on the matter were different. It all started after the conclusion of his duel with the Sakura girl

Flashback

"Frozen eternal Naraka."

"Caladbolg."

Both the attacks met head on creating a vortex of fire and ice. The vortex simultaneously burned and then froze everything it touched causing huge destruction to surrounding property. Thankfully it was one of the more abandoned portions of the Alley with a few destroyed buildings and small bushes, so the attacks didn't cause any casualties.

After the vortex finally dissipated, the two were standing still for several moments before the silence was broken by the girl.

"Splendid." she said before she kneeled over. Seeing that the fight ended in his victory, Kevin went to the girl and offered his hand. Seeing his kindness made Sakura soften her face a little. She said while taking his hand and standing up:

"As I promised, I will not pursue you any longer. Furthermore, I will call back my men from pursuing you."

"Hmm." Kevin hummed in acknowledgement.

"However," the girl continued "that doesn't mean that the organization is going to leave you alone. You have tapped your finger in the middle of our plans and for that, you have to be eliminated; if not by me then by others."

"Who are they?" Kevin asked knowing full well that he wasn't going to get an answer.

The girl named Sakura laughed a little before saying:

"Please forgive me, but I'm not able to tell much of it. Not because I'm forced but because I'm one of the outer members. The inner workings of the organization along with the Grandmaster's plans, only the inner members are aware of it."

After she finished saying her part, Sakura got up slowly picking up her sword and sheathing it. Then she looked towards Kevin for the last time:

"This goes deeper than you can imagine GODSLAYER. Not all the darkness comes from the Honkai. Human hearts can also be similarly dark."

"I know." Kevin replied knowingly.

"Then I wish you the best of luck for your future doings, Kevin-dono. Be careful when dealing with them."

Saying this she started to leave, and that was when Kevin called her back:

"What is the name of the Organization?"

"COCOON." she replied before she jumped on the top of a partially broken rooftop and disappeared into the night extremely fast despite her injuries. Kevin stood there for some time before he noticed a slip of paper lying on the ground. He picked it up and read it over. It read:

'The completion of the mission along with the target's personal belonging as proof should be given to the person named 'Rivert'. When you approach him, the password is: 'the silk threads of the MUGA moth are the best.' To which he will reply: 'yes, but unfortunately it takes too much money.' After you have confirmed the person ask for the envelope, it will contain the details of your next assignment.

May the Cocoon of blessing be with us all.

-R. A'

Kevin folded the paper and then burned it with the flames of Homura so that it wouldn't be found by anyone. Whether this had been left intentionally by the girl or she let it slip by mistake he couldn't tell. However, he finally had a lead after the earlier screw-up and maybe an inside to the organization.

However, this also meant that the danger level of this mission had increased exponentially. He didn't have any proof but he knew instinctively that the top political powers of many federations are involved here, and a slight misstep can cause a world war which was the last thing anyone wanted to happen now with the war against the Honkai heating up.

This meant that from now on he had to do this alone. He refused to involve any of his comrades in this mess that could very well lead to public prosecution. And that meant sending her back as soon as possible. Kevin had a feeling that things were going to be more bloody in the upcoming days, and he didn't want Elysia to stain her hands in it. She wasn't suitable for this type of situation and her soft nature will only cause problems down the line.

As he thought these, Kevin looked down at the APOLLO holstered in its holsters. It seemed that he will have to use it soon, and not against the Honkai this time.

Current time

Elysia had quietened by now and was still holding him. She then looked at him and with resolve in her eyes sad in a steady tone:

"I'm not going."

"Why?"

"This mission was given to me as much as you. So, it is my responsibility as well to see it through to the end."

"It's stupidity."

"Then what are you planning on doing, Kevin?"

"…"

"I know why you want to send me away. The situation has gotten more complicated than before, right?" Elysia said with a look that seemed as if she had figured the situation out.

"…" Kevin was silent. He expected nothing less from her.

"Answer me, Kevin?" Elysia asked with a serious tone and a neutral face. She showed this side of her only in front of Kevin as she was unable to conceal her emotions in front of him anymore. Even if she tried, he could always see through her very easily, and as such keeping secrets from him was nearly impossible.

She was barely able to conceal the circumstances of her birth from him after all.

At her question Kevin stayed silent for a while before saying:

"If you already know everything as you say, then I have nothing to explain."

"Then why are you trying to do this alone?"

"Because the ones who are in this fight are monsters. And it takes a monster to kill another." Kevin said in an extremely neutral voice.

"W-what does that mean?" Aponia spoke up for the first time, her voice quivering. The way that man said monster felt so… so…. dead that it scared her a little.

"I am a monster." Kevin said without missing a beat, causing Aponia's eyes to widen a little as she saw the hint of pain in his eyes. She understood that the thing which he hated the most in this world was himself. This caused her heart to ache for the unknown circumstances that this boy had to face that caused him to view himself so negatively. She moved to hug him in order to soothe his pained heart but was beaten to punch by someone else. Ellie-san hugged him again tightly and said in a crying voice:

"No, don't say that. Please don't say that."

"It's the truth."

"No. it's not. You are not a monster, and I won't let you believe otherwise." she said as she hugged him more tightly.

Kevin just stood there not able to understand why everyone tried to deny what he was. Only a monster can let people die and not feel anything. Only a monster can stain their hands with the blood of other humans. Only a monster can pull the trigger when it was time. Not a human, never a human.

He had already died in that facility along with his brothers and *** seven years ago. His human soul had already gone with them, now what remained in this body was a demon hungry for vengeance. As he was thinking, he saw the woman holding his hand. She then softly said:

"Nobody in this world is a monster Kevin-san. We are all humans that feel happiness when we are happy and sad when we lose something precious to us."

She then continued: "you say you are a demon, but all I see in your eyes is a boy who is still mourning the loss of his family and bearing a heavy burden that should not be bear by one alone. All for the sake that everyone else does not have to go through the same pain that you go through every day."

As she finished speaking, she took his hand and pressed it to her chest and then said while looking at him softly:

"If you were what you say you are, then you wouldn't have escorted Alan back here through the dangerous alleyways at this hour despite being deeply wounded. So please believe my words when I say this: You are extremely kind Kevin-san."

The moment she said it, something snapped within Kevin. He harshly pulled back his hand from Aponia and separated Elysia from him. He then looked at them with such cold eyes and glared at them coldly that made both of them back away a little. Then he said with an extremely cold voice that made it seem that he was speaking to strangers:

"You know nothing. Don't try to make assumptions."

Saying this he started to walk away. When Elysia tried to catch his hand again, he snatched it towards himself again. He then stopped and without seeing back spoke in a glacial tone:

"Do as you wish. However, remember to not get in my way. And don't even think about stopping me from doing what is necessary."

Saying this he stepped outside the room, walking away. Elysia stood motionless until she could no longer hear his footsteps. After she could hear him no longer, her legs buckled. Feeling strength leaving her body, she started to fall.

"Ellie-san!" Aponia supported her by holding her shoulder. She could then hear her say something.

"..y…..in"

"Ellie-san." Aponia moved closer to Elysia and what she saw shocked her.

Tears, transparent and pure flowed down her cheeks like a stream conveying her sadness and desperation.

"Kevin sob… sob… why?" Elysia asked in a broken voice that made Aponia hold her gently as if she put just a little more force the girl in front of her would shatter. Elysia just sobbed gently on Aponia's shoulder.

She had believed that she and Kevin had grown a lot closer these past days that they had spent together; but with his words now, it seemed as if she was back to square one. She desperately prayed that this confrontation hadn't destroyed their budding relationship. Just the thought of Kevin looking at her with those cold eyes he showed earlier broke her heart more and caused more tears to flow down her eyes.

She had to apologize once he gets back for making him remember his painful past memories. She decided that from now on she will never intrude upon his past, she will choose to believe he will tell her when the time comes.

Aponia seeing her crying felt immense sadness in her chest. This girl had chosen to be her friend without any bias. This was the first time someone close to her age had offered her companionship without shunning her away. So, she was ecstatic inside; because no matter how much mature she looked, Aponia was still a girl of eighteen years of age that yearned for friends and companionship like any other normal girl.

Elysia then gradually wiped away her tears and smiled at her and said:

"I'm sorry you had to see us like that. Believe me, he is not like that usually. It's just he had some of his painful memories dragged up because of our argument. So please don't think badly of him, Aponia."

Aponia was greatly touched. To think that after being rebuked so harshly, she would still be willing to forgive and see the good in others. She then asked the question that was on her mind since she first saw how Ellie-san spoke to him:

"Ellie-san, are you in love with him?"

At this question, Elysia went silent and blushed deeply. Seeing her reaction made Aponia think that she was cute. Then with the most beautiful and sincere smile that she had ever seen in her entire life, Elysia replied to her:

"Yes, I am."

Aponia was stunned silent by this declaration. The sincerity and pureness of this girl in front of her made her hope again despite the ugly truths that she had been forced to see all this while. She was not able to see Ellie-san's fate similarly to Kevin-san's and this gave Aponia the hope that maybe just maybe, there is a way to defy fate that she had seen bind people tightly in its golden chains since childhood.

Seeing her shocked, Elysia giggled which caused Aponia's heart to become light and hopeful. Elysia then said:

"Well then, let's rest for now. Can you show me the guest room, Aponia?"

At this Aponia was shocked and she asked:

"Are you not going to follow him, Ellie-san?"

"No. He needs time alone and I want to give it to him."

"But what if something happens?"

"Nothing will happen, Aponia."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because I believe in him. He will return to me in the morning."

"How-" Aponia stopped mid-sentence as she felt she was trampling Ellie-san's trust in her. But betraying her expectations Ellie-san just smiled warmly and said:

"Because he is a Warrior and my Prince."

Aponia was once again amazed by the level of trust this girl had for Kevin-san. However, she could also see that he was slow on the uptake in these matters. This caused her to become frustrated with him a little unknowingly. Such a dense blockhead. Sighing lightly, she said:

"Then let me show you the guest room, Ellie-san. You can have a bath in our communal bath. We have hot water. Would you like to eat something as well? I will fix something for you."

"Waa~, really! Thank you so so much, Aponia."

"It's nothing Ellie-san." Aponia said while gently smiling. She then started to lead Ellie-san to the baths while thinking:

'I pray that you can see the feelings of those who cherish you Kevin-san.'

Around the same time

Kevin kicked a pebble in frustration as he made his way to the location where Sakura was supposed to meet the man to whom she was to report the completion of the mission.

After he had calmed down a little, he realized that he had snapped on Elysia unnecessarily. However, it was partially her fault; she was just so intrusive. He just wanted to protect her from the ugly things that he knew were waiting for them in this mission. And she had to bring up those memories by calling him out on his decisions. This was the reason why he tended to avoid her. She acted as if she knew everything that happened to him. She called him 'Kind' all the time, which couldn't be further away from the truth.

…

"Kevin, go. I won't be able to run anymore now. I will distract it while you get to a safe place."

"No. I will distract it. You go to safety ***. You are the most important one here."

"Haha." *** laughed "I knew you would say that, Kevin." Then he hugged and said:

"Always remember Kevin, we all will be with you. Always."

"What do you mea-" Kevin was not able to finish his sentence, as he felt the wind get knocked out of his lungs. As he faded to unconsciousness, *** flung him towards the other side of the door and closed it behind himself.

"**….*" Kevin could only stretch his hands towards the now-closed door in front of him while tears streamed down his cheeks. Then his world went black.

When he woke up again, everything was already over. Those Honkai beasts were dead along with his brother and his friends, his family. Even though he was finally free of the hell that he had known since he first came to his senses, everyone was gone.

Everyone was dead and it was all his fault. He failed everyone. He failed ***.

"Sob… sob…" he started sobbing.

"WAAAAAAAAAAA." he cried loudly mourning his loss, but there was nobody to comfort him. Everything he had ever known was now ashes. He cried until his voice became hoarse and he fainted again of exhaustion.

The next time he woke up, something in him had died. He got up wordlessly and started to search for a makeshift weapon. The only thing in his mind now was to get his revenge on the thing that caused his life to be a living nightmare and which took everything away from him.

KILL THE HONKAI.

KILL THE HONKAI.

…

Kevin shook his head to get his mind out of those depressing memories. It was not the time for that now. He had to find the man and get that envelope if he was to get any further in his mission. He sighed and said to himself:

"Guess, I will apologize to her when I get back."

He then sensed someone hiding in the alley on his left. From his sharpened senses, he deduced that the person was not holding malicious intent towards him, for now.

"I know you are hiding behind the corner. Show yourself." Kevin said in a commanding voice as his right hand inched closer to one of the APOLLO.

"W-w-w-w-wait! Don't pull out that mean-looking gun. I'm not here to hurt you." said a voice clearly terrified.

"Come out." Kevin commanded.

"Yes, yes. I am coming out, so please don't shoot me." said the voice which had a hint of felinity to it. Kevin just stood there while the person slowly walked out into the open with their hands raised up in surrender.

Cat. That was the first impression that he got from the person in front of him. She had light brown hair that was tied up in several braids. Her outfit was quite lavish, and her hair wasn't exempt from this treatment, with a fancy hairband and several adornments along her head. Her bangs were exceptionally long, reaching the bridge of her nose. She had feline blue eyes that reminded Kevin of a stray cat.

She wore a small black top and a short skirt. Attached to her neck was a white cat-eared hood, from which hung four large cat paws. Attached to her skirt were a cat paw emblem and several purple sashes with star-like symbols on them. On one hand, she has a black and purple glove, and on the other, a single-fingered sleeve that reaches her upper arm. She also wore tall black-and-white heeled boots with gold details.

"Who are you?" Kevin asked in his usual voice.

"Hum-hum." the feline girl puffed up her chest "I am the greatest merchant of the Sundown Alley. There is nothing that I cannot get if I get the right price."

"You are a thief." Kevin said bluntly.

"Geh." the feline girl flinched "So rude. I'm not a thief. I just ensure that everybody has equal access to wealth. In this greed-filled Alley, I bring the happiness of wealth to all those unfortunate souls who couldn't have it. In that sense, I'm a hero of the weak."

Kevin just looked at her deadpanned.

"uuu…. Why aren't you saying anything?"

"You were looking to rob the pendant hanging off my waist, weren't you."

At this, the girl suddenly started to move towards him. Kevin instinctively moved his hand towards APOLLO and pulled it out, clicking the safety off in one fluid motion. But what the girl did was totally out of his expectations.

She slid down and stopped in front of him in a kneeling position and then kowtowed while saying:

"Pleeeease forgive me… sob.. sob… I was just thinking that it was pretty and it would fetch a good price in the market. I reeeallly wasn't thinking to steal it from you. Pleeeasee don't kill meeeeee." the feline girl cried hysterically.

Kevin looked at her not believing her one bit. She was continuously kowtowing while saying one apology after another. Kevin seemingly getting tired of it said:

"Enough."

At this, the feline girl stopped at once and looked at him with hopeful eyes.

"Are you really forgiving me?"

"…"

"Thank you soooo much boss!" exclaimed the feline girl happily and looking at him in a happy catlike fashion.

'She really is a cat.' Kevin thought to himself. He then saw an opportunity to get the envelope without much bloodshed. He was not afraid to spill blood when it was necessary, but killing unnecessary people was just a waste of precious possible future Moths recruits. This was detrimental to their cause and fight against Honkai in the long run. Thinking such, he said:

"If you want to make up, then I've got a job for you."

The mention of a job perked the feline girl's ears. It had been so long since someone had offered a job to her. If she could pull off this job perfectly, she may get generous compensation along with a possible future contact to pull her out of messes in the future.

"Well, I could accept the job. If you know the payment…" at this Kevin moved his hand again.

"Waaaa… I was just joking, please don't pull out the guuun." the girl kowtowed again. However, what she heard was the sound of something metallic hitting the ground. Looking up a little, she saw a metallic box land in front of her. She raised her head a little more to see the man in front of her looking with a neutral expression.

She then took the box and opened it, and what she saw inside made her jaw drop.

Several thousand lei notes. The total money inside the bundle within the box was a few hundred thousand lei, more money than she had seen in her entire life. Seeing this much money made two things clear to her.

One he was extremely rich.

Second, this job was dangerous.

Thinking about the danger of the unknown job send a shiver down her spine, and the way he carried a gun didn't help to calm her either.

Buuuuuut the money was soooo good. She was sure that she would never get another chance to earn this much at once. Seeing the gears turn in her head, Kevin decided to push her a little.

"If you don't want to, I can always find someone else." He then motioned to take back the money. At this, the feline-looking girl quickly snatched the box towards herself and said while giving a nervous smile:

"Now, now don't say like that boss. What is the job? I will do it with 100% perfection. You have my word as the Phantom of the Dusk Street."

"Fine. Follow me." Kevin said motioning her to follow him. As the girl followed her, she asked:

"Boss, can you tell me your name? Pretty please. Wink~ wink~"

Kevin was silent for some time before he replied "Kevin."

"Ooooh. That's a very manly name. And for me-" she then skipped forward and held out her hands to make the pose for her grand entrance,

"I've been called many things: Phantom of the Dusk Street, The Silent Hunter, Thieving Cat and many other names. But for you, Kevin-boss, you can call me Pardofelis."

The destined location was beside a run-down pier at the very edge of the city. The water was pungent with copious amounts of sewage and untreated industrial waste being pumped directly into the river.

Kevin looked around for something remotely resembling a clue to which he would know that he was in right place. That catgirl, Pardofelis was hiding behind one of the buildings and would snoop down to steal the envelope from the man while Kevin would distract him. He hoped for things to be over simply like this, but his experience told him to be prepared for any type of situation. Thus, he had one of his hands that was hidden from view constantly on the trigger of APOLLO, should things go awry.

Kevin was looking around for a while but was not able to find anything worthwhile even remotely suspicious. Just some broken buildings and a poor man trying to catch fish in the river nearby, albeit without success. His vision then moved towards the man. He was trying to catch some fish that he called: Muga repeatedly. He would curse every time the fish would slip from the fishing rod, but what interested the most was the name of the fish. Muga, where had he heard this name earlier?

When you approach him, the password is: 'the silk threads of the MUGA moth are the best.'

His eyes widened a little as he remembered the note that he had read earlier. So if he was correct, then this was the man. He approached the man and stood near him to which the man looked towards him for a little while before continuing his fishing. That was when Kevin decided to test his little assumption.

"What fish are you trying to catch?" Kevin started the conversation. The man remained silent a little while before responding:

"Muga."

"Is that so? I also heard that the silk from the silkworm of the same name is the best."

The moment he said this, there was a subtle shift in the demeanour of the man. The man then replied:

"Yeah, but it costs too much if I've heard correctly."

This was it, he had found the man. The man then slowly showed his ring finger towards him and said:

"Let the light of Cocoon guide us all."

"Let the light of Cocoon guide us all." replied Kevin.

The man then pulled out an envelope from within his rags and thrust it toward the man in front of him. Kevin took it and said while presenting his Moth insignia:

"This is the Insignia of the Godslayer, the assignment is done." saying this he started to walk away when the man called out from behind.

"Wait."

Kevin stopped in his tracks. He mentally berated himself thinking that it was going to be as simple as just exchanging an envelope and an Insignia.

"I've never seen you before. Are you new?"

"Yes. I was just inducted into Miss Sakura's unit." At this, the man started laughing and said:

"Is that so? Well then, good luck to you."

Sensing that there was nothing more to say, Kevin left the area. What he failed to notice was the feral smile that the man had on his face.

The man seeing that his target had left the area, took something out of his robes. That something turned out to be a walkie-talkie. He then tuned it to the pre-decided channel and said into the mouthpiece:

"The rat has taken the bait. Cougar group, get ready for action."

"You made it look so easy Kevin-boss."

"…"

"Kevin-boss, what's wrong?"

"…"

Pardofelis and Kevin were standing in one of the more deserted parts of the Alley, very similar to the place where he and Elysia were ambushed earlier. After he had gotten the envelope from the man, he had come to find Pardofelis who was hiding on the rooftop. She was initially amazed at how he was able to get the envelope without much effort but was a little disappointed when she realized that she would not be getting the remaining payment. Kevin-boss however betraying her expression again, took out another metal box and tossed it towards her.

So here they were now, with Kevin-boss standing still and silent. Then after some time he suddenly said:

"Of course, it's a trap."

"Eh? What's a trap, Kevin-boss?"

"Get ready." that was the only thing he said when there were multiple sounds from the surroundings and out came several people with a variety of weapons. Leading them was the same man from whom Kevin-boss had taken the envelope earlier. As the man got into the front of the crowd, he said:

"You know, I never said that you were one of the newbies of the combat unit. Furthermore, grunt recruits never know the name of their leader."

"…" Kevin-boss was silent at this allegation.

"And the cherry on the top of the cake was a person with a matching description of the GODSLAYER approaching me and asking about the secret code."

Godslayer? Secret-code? Pardofelis was confused. It seemed that Kevin-boss was involved in a very deep mess than she had originally thought and that had come to bite both of them now. She was now lamenting that she took on this job. She was going to die here and nobody will ever find her.

Pardofelis may have lived alone all her life for fifteen years but that didn't mean she didn't have any goals. She dreamed to open a cat-themed jewellery store where all the most beautiful and shining ornaments that one could imagine would be present. She would be sitting in her comfortable leather chair while the people would be praising her for her beautiful jewellery showcase and would be willing to spend a large sum of leis just to get them. She will then use that money to build a large castle with many treasure hiding spots and cat playhouses where she can bury her most precious treasures and play with her friends.

Alas, it seemed all those dreams were going to come to an abrupt end just because of a bad decision. It was like her curiosity killed her, as they say: curiosity killed the cat. Thinking such things, small tears of hopelessness started to appear in the corner of her eyes, when she heard a familiar voice:

"Pardofelis."

She looked up to see cold sky-blue eyes looking at them. However, she suddenly felt safe for some reason. It was as if as long as he was there, nothing would happen to her. Thus, she instinctively decided to put her trust in the man who put her in this predicament in the first place.

"K-K-K-Kevi...n-boss?"

"Can you escape from here unharmed?" he asked in his normal tone. To this Pardofelis just shook her head sideways meekly.

"Then no matter what, stick to my back."

She nodded profusely and hid behind his back. Seeing it from behind, it was so wide as if it can shield her from everything. And for the first time in her life, since she had gained reason from childhood she decided to believe in another person. She then in a very small voice said:

"Please help me Kevin-boss."

"…"

Kevin just took out Homura in one hand and one of the APOLLO in the other. His shoulders and his right hand were acting stiff because of the wounds he received earlier, but he didn't care. A person had asked for his help and he would keep his oath no matter what.

The leader seeing that the Godslayer was not intending to give up started to laugh like a maniac.

"hehehehehe. HAHAHAHAHA. This is going to be soooooo much fun!" as he clenched the rags and tore them to reveal what he was wearing inside. It could only be described as a black ops uniform of some kind. He then drew a rapier from his waist and pointed it toward Kevin.

"Allow me to properly introduce myself. I'm Coscoe: The Elegant. Don't worry, I will make your death an elegant art."

Kevin in his response just gripped Homura tighter and said:

"Ignite."

Flames started to form around the blade and converted the normal-seeming tachi into a mythical type weapon. Seeing this sudden transformation both the man named Coscoe and Pardofelis were surprised.

"Nyaaaaaa. What is that, Kevin-boss?"

"ahhhhhhh. Such Elegance. I'm really going to enjoy killing you, mon ami."

Kevin just looked over at the crowd coldly. If Sakura was right then all of them were here to kill him. Then that means he didn't have to hold back. Everyone present here except for Pardofelis were monsters, and he would grant no mercy to a monster.

He did say he was going to do anything necessary for the mission. He was a little thankful that Elysia was not here now, to see the dark side of him. She didn't belong here in this mud and he will make sure of that.

The battle started with the grunts holding melee weapons charging at Kevin at once. Kevin just shot APOLLO without any reservations at their heads killing them instantly. Bodies dropped like flies before they even reached them; but still, they were trying like possessed to reach him. Seeing this type of reckless abandon scared Pardofelis to no end.

"Nyaaaa. W-w-w-what are they doing?"

"…" Kevin was too focused shooting the oncoming people to even notice. He just shot another one who was trying to sneak up from behind him and hurt Pardofelis. Seeing his men being slaughtered by bullets of APOLLO, the man named Coscoe instead of being furious laughed with glee.

"HAHAHA. That's it. Show me more. Show me more of the dark demon that lies behind that hero's face of yours."

"…"

"Oh, no answer. No worries. I have more surprises in store for you." Coscoe said before unsheathing his weapon. It looked like a mixture of a rapier and a staff with patterns of gold on the blade part of the weapon.

"Do you know mon ami, this weapon is also special like you? Let me show you."

The man then said a command which was very familiar to Kevin:

"All Honkai limiters release."

The weapon started to churn with a very familiar energy. This shocked Kevin to some extent. An organization which had the same technology as the Moths to harness and use Honkai energy to make weapons posed more threats if left unchecked. And the shape of the weapon was also very strange. It seemed like it was able to change its form according to the user's will. Such technology was unheard of in the Moths even at the current date.

Assuming his silence as being shocked, Coscoe said:

"How's it? Isn't it elegant? Don't worry, I will let you experience every bit of the sacred key of grace: Nigüülsel."

With that, the rapier now fully converted into a staff started to vibrate and produce strange vibrations. Listening to it put everyone except Kevin in a sort of trance. The goons started to sway as if they were extremely intoxicated, and then they all started to give a battle cry out of nowhere and started to charge at him.

Kevin dodged the bullets fired from one of the assault rifles holding goon and shot him in the head killing him. He then slashed another goon holding a type of modern-looking crossbow with Homura, decapitating him in two. Another tried to attack him from the side only to get cut in half by the swing of his Tachi.

…

The fight was getting bloodier by the second, with seemingly an infinite amount of people coming out of nowhere attacking him from all sides. He kept cutting and cutting, but to no end. His stitches had come undone at some point in time and started to bleed again. His arm had started to become slow sometime back, but he pushed on nonetheless. Someone was shouting something from his side and laughing…. Or crying?... He didn't know nor did he care. He had to just keep killing all those who threatened him and the girl he was trying to protect.

He just kept slicing one after another with Homura. Some got cut in half in one slice, some just got charred by the flames of Homura that spew wildly in every direction. After what felt like an eternity, the number of people started to dwindle. Kevin knew that he was coming to a close to this fight; if he could call this slaughter as one.

He suddenly stopped as he realized the one who he was about to slash and kill.

"Grr." the person snarled in a feline voice. Standing in front of him was the girl he was trying to protect. But she looked nothing like her usual self. She looked more feral if he was to put it.

"Nyaa." Pardofelis tried to claw him with her hands to which he dodged it. She then jumped and tried to land a dropkick on him. He just side-stepped and caused her to miss him and land a little bit farther. Kevin was just dodging her attacks at this point as even a single misstep from him can cause harm to the girl in front of him. As he was figuring out why was she behaving like this, a familiar voice sounded from his right:

"Didn't you know to never leave your sides open?"

Kevin reacted instantly, blocking an attack from the strange rapier cum staff weapon from the Coscoe. But due to fatigue building up in his body coupled with the fact he was distracted in trying to find a way to return Pardofelis to normal, he failed to notice another combat knife coming from his right side.

SLASH.

Red flew in the air as he was stabbed brutally in his right side. Kevin saw from the corner of his eyes something big stabbing him but was unable to feel anything as usual. The goon who stabbed the knife then twisted the knife, making his wound bigger, so he would bleed more before pulling it back roughly so as to cause more damage.

As he was distracted by this, Coscoe stabbed him from his left side with his weapon as well. Getting stabbed from both sides proved too much for his already fatigued and battered body. His vision started to blur and he started to feel lightheaded due to the blood loss. It was when Kevin knew that he had to end this now.

Fortunately for him, thinking that he had been beaten had caused his enemies to become more careless and slip up on their own. In that split moment he got, he holstered APOLLO and dashed towards the still mind-controlled Pardofelis. He said to her as he pulled his hand back in a fist:

"Forgive me." and then with great strength, punched her. The extreme amount of force in his punch caused Pardofelis to black out instantly. His additional strength also meant that she flew far away from the place to a nearby building. Kevin could see dust rise from the building to which she was punched, and knew that she was safe now as he had controlled his strength when he had punched her. Seeing this bizarre tactic by Kevin, Coscoe started to laugh:

"HAHAHAHA. The great hero had finally lost his mind. To think he would punch the very same person he was trying to protect. HAHAHAHA."

However, his laughs were stopped suddenly as he felt the temperature rise suddenly. He started to feel hot, very hot and then his arm started to sting. When he looked down at his arm he saw the material of his weapon melting and embedding into his body.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAA." He screamed in pain as he tried to throw away the weapon only to find that it was embedded into his body. Unable to stop the molten material from completely dissolving his hand, Coscoe could only scream in pain. As the weapon completely melted, the remaining people were released from their mind-controlled state, confirming Kevin's hunch that it was the weapon's doing. The people who were released started to show all sorts of emotions and reactions on seeing a demonic figure standing in the middle of a huge blaze with shining sky-blue eyes.

"W-w-w-what is-"

"aaaaaaaa. Monster."

"Please don't kill me. Please don't kill me. Please don't kill me."

They all started to run away only to meet a wall of flames blocking their escape routes. Seeing as they were going to burn to death, they started to beg for their lives, with some saying the usual family things; none of it mattered to Kevin though. Every single one present here was a monster, and their only fate was to burn down into nothingness. He thus readied one of his attacks to take care of them all.

Coscoe seemingly had lost his mind from the extreme pain of his hand being dissolved by molten metal. He then looked at Kevin and said while laughing and crying at the same time:

"This is your truth. You are nothing but a monster. A monster that kills without remorse. No matter where you go, you will never find peace. You will never defeat our truth. May the light of cocoon guide us all."

"…" Kevin just looked at him with his cold sky-blue eyes. He then finally unleashed his attack.

"Clarent crimson revenge."

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAA." the night air filled with the wails of the remaining cougar corps members who were burning to death by the crimson flames of Homura. The flame seemed to get a darker shade of crimson as more people burned to death until only Coscoe remained. As his face was melting, he looked at Kevin and with an expression of primal fear etched on his face said:

"De…mon." then he completely burned away as well, leaving nothing behind. The flames continued to burn even the remaining ashes and only dwindled down when nothing was left.

Kevin just stood there for a while taking all in of what he had done. Even though they were enemies, he had still slaughtered hundreds away. The smell of blood was overpowering everything. He then looked at his reflection in a piece of broken glass to see himself covered from head to toe in blood like a literal demon. It seemed that Coscoe's final words were true.

It was not the time to mope on such things, Kevin decided. He had to make it to Pardofelis to check on her if she was okay. As he was walking toward her, he saw an envelope on the ground. He picked it up for some unknowable reason and put it in his coat pocket. He then started to make it to her with slow steps as he could sense his consciousness fading away with each step. After what felt like millennia, he finally found her in one of the dented parts of the building. It seemed that the heaps of mattresses had cushioned her impact to a large degree; still, he put his hand to check on her neck to check on her pulse.

'Everything okay.' he thought as he confirmed that her pulse and breathing were normal. She had just fainted from the impact and would wake up a couple of hours later, he deduced. Thus, he picked her up and started to make his way to the Twilight Nursing home.

As he made his way through the now thoroughly scorched place where he fought Coscoe and his men, the man's final words were continuously repeating in his mind:

"You are a monster, never to find peace."

To be continued…

Hello everyone, welcome back to 'A Warriors Destiny'.

This chapter took way longer than I expected it to. Coming up with original plots is harder than it sounds, especially when you want it to fit into the cannon in some way or the other.

Anyway, with this chapter, we are in the mid of the COCOON Arc; which I plan to make three more chapters. In the next chapter, we may be able to meet our singer mommy again and I may be able to finally debut Vill-V officially in this fic. I hope you are excited to see how the rest of the arc unfolds and its conclusion which is going to have a lot of impact on the upcoming arcs and especially on the Divine-key constructions.

As always if you like the story please leave a follow, favourite, and/or review.

Thank you for reading, until next time.