Hajime was gasping for air as he went inside of the men's restroom in the mall.
He finally checked all areas that were trapped inside of the dome and saved the citizens he could find.
He had to mercy-kill the unfortunate ones who have already been turned with a heavy heart.
He hated how he had to end their lives and hated it more doing it in front of their loved ones. He could never blame them for hating him despite telling them to look away.
He tried telling them that there was no cure and yet he still didn't mind them verbally lash at him out of grief.
To him, Grief is always a powerful emotion. More powerful than reasoning.
Trying to regain few bits of stamina from that emotionally damaging experience, he decided to reasess himself to see if he was infected in some ways.
He sighed as he saw small corruption veins showing on his arm.
It was not growing but it was still alarming for him because he doesnt have few hours left, let alone for the entire night.
And from the looks of it, the ones that were saving him from being turned were the pistols which had Ellie's crystal embedded on them and his last crystal left on him. The Red Flower crystal. And the siphoning effect of the pistols seems to getting weaker.
Taking a few deep breaths to think, he suspected that crystals are also capable of siphoning any nearby beings that are affected by honkai and regulates them.
To him, it honestly sounds like it is controlling the nature of Honkai, changing their fates by making them less chaotic.
He wanted to know how Ellie have managed to get ahold of these but he doubted that he can last that long to figure that out. And considering that he used all of the crystal that he picked up in his travels, he was this close on knocking death's door.
BOOM!
He looked outside from the bathroom window and saw valkyries and mech guards near the dome, trying to at least make a hole for them to go through. He can also see Mr. Welt leading the charge for the valkyries.
He sighed at his tired state and looked at the ceilling.
"At least, back-up's here." As he sat on the floor and leaned on the wall.
He heard a large single honkai beast patrolling around outside of the bathroom but he couldn't get himself to move due to being exhausted, both mentally and physically.
Trying to keep himself awake, he decided to think about what he could do about the crystals that could potentially save his life.
All he need to do is take the crystals back and let himself healed from the process.
"No. I am not going to let these survivors die just so i could live.
After all, there is a big possibly that they would turn based on the chaotic nature of Honkai. It could easily be an airborne type infection or just plain radiation.
The crystals are probably doing their best to save them. I am not taking that chance. Even if it just probably takes a second to siphon all of infection i had in me.
And besides, i really don't know how this actually works so i am just wasting time and lives." As he shrugged off the absurd suggestion.
Trying to avoid spiralling himself, he decided to see the range of his movements before clearing out the mob of honkai beasts.
He examined his movements as he stretched every part of his body. Although it felt worse than a chore, he can move all of them well.
The one thing that was bothering him is his stupid headache, the numb sensation on his hands and the burning feeling all over his body which was a recent addition. It almost feel like a fever to him. Almost.
"Great... I am burning up from this honkai-filled atmosphere." He walked towards to the sink as he stood up.
It wasn't effective of him to splash himself with water but he needed to cool off.
It was honestly a miracle how was he able to keep standing.
He looked at his reflection as he leaned on the sink.
As if he was looking past an old memory.
Remembering the events after how he failed to stop Himeko from sacrificing herself.
It was late at night on the garden of St. Freya and everyone was fast asleep after Himeko's wake.
All but one.
Hajime has been sitting besides the gravestone all night, drinking a six pack non-stop. The valkyries tried to comfort him but Overseer Theresa told them that he needs time alone. It hurted the valkyries, especially Kiana and Bronya, seeing Hajime so... broken.
"Ugh... I still don't see the appeal of drinking these kinds of stuff." He set aside the empty beer can and opened a new one.
He can feel his brain processing a lot slower than usual but it was alright to him. Or better yet, he just doesn't care.
"'Promise me that you will be a better captain than i ever was, Hajime.''" As he remembered Himeko saying that to him before trapping him in an elevator so that he couldn't stop her from doing something stupid. Like trading her life for Kiana's.
He sighed with deep sorrow in his heart .
"I am not a good captain, Himeko. I lost Mei to the World Serpent. I almost lost Bronya to the Sea of Quanta. Kiana and Fu Hua almost died months after you did." He looked at the dying star in the sky.
"Why didn't you wait for me? I could have come up with another plan to save you and Kiana." As he tried to lie to himself after letting the half-empty beer can spilled all over Himeko's grave.
He tried to stand up so he could clean up the mess he made. But due to the fact that he has been sitting near the flat tombstone for who knows how long, his legs couldn't comply with his wishes and he just fell to the ground.
"Come on. Hajime. You pitiful stupid idiotic captain. Get up and clean up the mess you made. This is so disrespectful even to the dead." As he tried to talk to himself.
He knew that his arms were also too weak but he tried to get up anyways.
"GET UP, YOU FAILURE OF A CAPTAIN!" As he screamed to himself.
He finally got his bearings back and picked up the trash after berating himself with his own guilt.
As he tried to take a few steps, his legs gave. Readying himself for another berate, he closed his eyes to prepare himself from the fall.
And yet nothing came as he felt slender hands stopped him from falling.
He looked at the source and saw Rita with a sorrowful look.
"WHAT DO YOU WANT?" Rita flinched from his harsh tone as he tried to push her away.
"I...am sorry for your loss." Rita hung her head low.
"IS THAT IT? IS THAT THE WORDS OTTO WANTED YOU TO SAY TO ME? AFTER LOSING THE ONLY FAMILY I HAVE LEFT?"
"No. It's what i wanted to say. I know how much Himeko meant everything to you. How her family adopted you and treated you as one of their own."
"RITA. PLEASE STOP. IF YOU ARE HERE TO CARRY OUT OTTO'S ORDERS. THEN GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY SIGHT." Rita was surprised to hear him cursed at her considering he would never allow himself to curse or swear in front of a woman, let alone a dignified lady like Rita but she knew today was a special case. Rita doesn't mind him putting his chivalry aside for the night.
After all, her boss had a hand in it on his loss.
She took a deep breath and hugged Hajime tight, ignoring his harsh resistance.
"I am not here for Master Otto, Hajime. I am here for you." She held his cheek and placed her forehead onto his. "Stop being their handler and captain." She turned his head to the tombstone.
"Let everything out. I will take care of you just for tonight. I will keep everything here a secret. Even from Master Overseer." He glared at the Schicksal's Maid but she kept smiling at him with all of love she could muster.
"I will help you clean up. It is a maid's duty to keep everything classified for their master after all." As she helped him wiped away his tears.
"Why are you doing this, Rita?" Rita gave him a genuine smile.
"Because I..." She shook her head and caressed his cheek. "You helped me grieve for my loss of my mentor Ragna, remember?" As she reminded him the deed he has done for her.
He walked towards to the tombstone and sat on both of his knees.
"I don't know how to do this, Rita." She gave her a loving smile as he hung his head low.
"Sometimes, it is best to point out the source of your guilt and what caused it in the first place. I mourned at the loss of my mentor because she sacrificed herself, retrieving the package from Siberia." He weakly nodded and looked at the tombstone as if it was Himeko's face.
"Why did you do it, Himeko? " As he remembered his cousin's smile.
"DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW PAINFUL IT WAS FOR ME WHEN YOU DID THAT OUT OF NOWHERE?" Hajime regretted that he didn't bring an umbrella because water droplets kept splashing on the newly made tombstone.
Rita, that night, was the only valkyrie who witnessed Captain Hajime M. Stellar, her unrequited love, mourned for the loss of his family after keeping it to himself for so long.
As for the bereaved, his self hatred and guilt never stopped growing in his heart.
He sighed and took deep breaths to slightly regain his stamina.
CRASH!
As he heard something crash through the bathroom wall. He was horrified to see templar-class honkai beast.
It was much smaller than he usually observes from his ship but he knew these things are no joke.
Even for an A-Rank Valkyries.
And Hajime is just a mortal man with no stigmata.
"So this is where you went, captain. Good. I can finish you quick."
Great. A Templar-class honkai beast that has a mind of a Grey Serpent. Just great. He sighed as he knew he isn't safe anymore.
He readied his pistols and started firing, ignoring the laugh from the hybrid.
The templar thrusted it lance to him but Hajime quickly dodged out of the way as the lance ripped the lower parts of his newly bought trench coat.
Realizing that the templar was using its own size and indestructible lance and shield to bury him under the rubble and debris, Hajime decided to take this fight elsewhere so his enemy would lose its advantage.
Hearing how annoyed the former Grey Serpent was, his plan worked.
As he let the beast followed him, Hajime failed to notice that the red crystal flower, the very thing that was saving his life, fell on the floor and hidden among the wreckage.
"Oh~ Raiden Mei is also a herscherr?" As Elysia looked at her SIM who was hugging the disgruntled Mei.
"Mmmhmm~ Now, she is learning the the secrets in the Elysian Realm." The SIM Elysia clapped her hands and leaned it with her cheek.
"I don't suppose that you are open enough to tell me the secrets of the Elysian realm?" Raiden Mei crossed her arms to the Original after seeing how SIM Elysia got hurt getting her affections ignored.
"Nope~ After all, it's not fun nor romantic to tell you outright. Sometimes, it's best for you learn it yourself." Raiden Mei sighed as she knew this was coming.
"That's all right. Story are better experienced than heard, right?" Elysia nodded to the herscherr with a grin.
"I just wished that you have someone else with you to experience everything." Elysia pouted.
"Don't worry. I will keep every details of the Flamechasers to the heart. I owe them that at least.
Besides, their stories need to be shared to the present for humanity's future" Raiden Mei smiled to reassure but Elysia subtly frowned.
Guess she still hasn't learned the true purpose of Elysian Realm.
Elysia giggled.
"Looks like you still haven't learned the true purpose of the realm." Mei raised an eyebrow to her. "You will see through the end. I know you will, Mei." Elysia smiled as she leaned close to Mei, earning her a confused looks from the latter.
Remembering what she said earlier, she decided to take out her phone and call for Aillie.
She was confused why she couldn't summon her AI and got afraid that she might have broken her.
Seeing the panicking elf trying her best to reboot her with the best of her knowledge, Mei smiled.
"Her name is Aillie now, isn't it?
Don't worry. She is connected to nearby Schicksal- and Anti-Entrophy-based technologies and terminals. She can also be connected to nearby internet.
But since the World Serpent is hidden from the world and this place has no internet connection, she can't come to you whenever you feel like calling her." Elysia frowned at the realization but she smiled afterwards.
"Maybe Kevin has an idea how. Come on. Let's find him~" Elysia dragged Mei to find Kevin.
As they both went to the hall, they heard that the Grey Serpent was talking to Kevin and the leader was not pleased from what he heard.
"I thought i told you to avoid confronting their forces." Kevin's anger were beginning to show as he was emitting off a cold aura.
"But Sire. We thought it would be best for Project Stigma."
"DID YOU THINK I WOULD LIKE TO PROCEED WITH PROJECT STIGMA?" The grey serpent realized how badly he messed up.
"NOW, FIX THE MESS YOU MADE OR ELSE..."
"Kevin? What is this about Hajime?" Elysia turned to Mei who had a serious look in her eyes. She didn't even realized Mei was already in her Herrscher form. She decided to indulge her curiosity as to why Mei bought up Hajime first.
She did appreciate how cute Mei looked in her herscherr form though. She also tried to resist touching her red pointy horns.
"Sorry. Raiden Mei. The world serpent has caused a Honkai Wave in Soukai City." The angry herscherr were starting to emit red lightning in and looked at Raven who was beside him.
"I assure you, Mei. This was the Grey Serpent's idea. I would never hurt your captain even if i was paid more than enough to do it unless i have to. The kids love him back at Nagazora and i have deep respect for the man."
"Mei? Kevin? What this is about?" Elysia was confused to what was going on.
The orignal Kevin glared at the Grey Serpent and fearing for both of Herscherr and their leader's wrath, the cyborg showed her a holovideo of what was going in Soukai City. Especially near the mall where Ellie and Hajime had their 'date'.
Raiden Mei was this close to destroy every bit of the organization if it weren't for the fact that she was doing her best to comfort Elysia.
Ellie was emotionally devastated at the sight of her best friend surviving the Honkai wave alone.
Her legs gave and landed on her knees.
"Elysia? Are you okay?" Kevin tries to comfort her but she slapped his hand away as she stood up.
Kevin Kaslana was shocked to see Elysia like this.
She wasn't angry at him.
She was upset.
Really, Really Upset.
Both Raven and Mei backed away from the two original Flamechasers as they were starting to feel pink crystals forming under their feet.
"Kevin... Why is Hajime surviving against Honkai alone in Soukai? Please tell me that your organization didn't do any of this." Ellie looked at him with a frown.
Kevin couldn't recognize that tone as this was the first time he heard her use it.
But Kevin knew the Grey Serpents fucked up. And boy, did they fuck up real hard.
Mustering up all of his courage to face possibly the scariest enemy he has faced so far, he took a deep breath and tried to calm her down. But to no avail, Elysia was pissed. And he knew he can't fight her back if she tried to. He neither has the strength nor the heart to do it.
He couldn't even raised his weapon to her as she prepares her Whispers of the Past and aimed straight to his exposed chest area.
"I'd still like us to be friends." Elysia was doing her best on holding on to the string of her bow. "But i really can't keep being friends with you if you keep breaking my heart like this." As Elysia frowned at the silver-haired man.
"The Grey Serpent are always independent members of the organization. I never order them around as i am always busy with different matters."
"But They are your subordinates." She was still aiming at him.
Both Raiden Mei and Raven were still shocked to see how expressive Elysia was.
They have never seen her like this before.
Granted, they are always with the SIM Flamechaser. But this was still news to both of them.
"... Yes. They are." Kevin sighed and hung his head low, accepting his fate.
Looking at him, She sighed and put her weapon down. She eased her thoughts as she walked towards to lounge of Elysian realm, forgetting the sole reason why she wanted to talk with Kevin in the first place.
Kevin tried to comfort her but Elysia gave him a cold silence.
Kevin knew this was still the same Elysia. He just wished that he didn't disappoint her this much.
Kevin gave the Grey Serpent a side glare, prompting the latter to do what he was told.
Unbeknowst to the Grey Serpent, The Honkai wave has already spiralled out of control.
The Original Elysia sat on the red velvet couch, ashamed of herself for losing her cute composure to one of her best friends in the Previous Era.
She wanted to leave and save Hajime from his demise but she couldn't do that to Kevin.
Not after what he has lost.
She may have been upset with the leader of the Flamechasers but she was more upset to herself on how she couldn't keep her cute character in front of him.
What if they gave you a reason to stay?
"I have been gone for a long time." She sighed as if Hajime has been right on this one.
The SIM Eden, who was walking by, sensed something was off with the Pink Elf and decided to sit beside her.
"Is something wrong, Dear Ellie?" Elysia couldn't keep up the cheerful composure as if she has done Kevin wrong.
"No... Dear Eden." She held the sim's hand and caressed it with her fingers.
"The first thing i did to Kevin after i came back is almost wanting to shoot an my arrow to his heart." She sighed.
"I knew he will live the hit but..." She looked at her hands, imagining the blood on her pristine fingers.
"The thought of doing so still haunted me."
"Has Kevin done something wrong?" Elysia looked at Eden.
"Not directly but i knew that he is the leader of the World Serpent." She sighed.
"I just can't help but being so upset at him for indirectly involving so many innocents. It isn't his fault. Just like what he said, his subordinates have done things at their own accord." Elysia looked at Eden in the eye. "I have done him wrong, Eden." Eden smiled fondly at the Pink Elf.
"That's okay, My dear Ellie. That's normal." Elysia widened her eyes at Eden.
"It is?" Eden nodded.
"When you were gone, we, or the original Flamechasers who attended your party, hated Kevin for how he treated you in the past. Both 'Aponia and I' despised him for that, not knowing until later that he was still carrying that guilt to this day. Even then, Aponia and I both knew he was still responsible for some parts of it." Elysia sighed.
"That sounds the ice-block, all right. He always intends to carry it on his shoulders by himself. Never communicate with someone and does things by himself. Up until now, i still hate him for that." Eden chuckled.
"And if you are mad at him because you thought he should be responsible for the action of his organization, Then that's good." Elysia widened her eyes at Eden's soft smile.
"Kevin needs to get his head screwed back tight once in a while. And you being upset at him should be enough for him to see how much damage he has inadvertedly caused." Elysia giggled at Eden's mischievous smirk.
"I didn't know you can be this such a lady." Eden swirled her goblet of wine around.
"Well, I have been with 'you' for a long time." Elysia smiled but still let out a melancholic sigh.
"The Flamechasers and I heard your 'conversation' from the hallway. Are you thinking about whether you want to leave or stay with Kevin to assist him?" Elysia nodded.
"I didn't want to leave Kevin nor you guys alone but i really can't help but be worried for Hajime." Eden smirked.
"My~My~ I didn't know you have such fondess to the man." Elysia giggled.
"Well... He has been a sweet gentleman to me after all." Elysia winked at Eden, prompting the golden Diva to chuckle.
"The pristine and flawless Elysia has found herself a knight in a shining armor. It sounds like your fairytale coming true, Dear Ellie." One could imagine a fluttering of hearts and rainbow were floating above these two heads as they kept on chatting.
Ahem... Anyways...
Elysia and Eden giggled for a while and the latter finally saw her dearest Ellie back to her smiling cute personality.
"Has Hajime been treating you well?"
"I will be honest. He has that tiniest bit of edge of personality. But he has been treating me well so far." Eden nodded.
"Do you wish to spend more time with him?" Elysia didn't hesitate to nod which confirms Eden's theory. The diva did find it funny that Elysia didn't seem to notice it but she rather let the pink elf experience it herself.
Eden saw Aponia was passing by as she finally came to terms with Elysia's arrival.
Seeing Eden's smirk, Aponia decided to see what was going on.
"What do you think of her new best friend, Aponia?" Eden smiled and looked behind the Pink Elf.
Elysia followed her line of sight and saw Aponia holding her own hands with a small smile.
"As long as you are safe, i am happy. But i need to ask something about him though."
"Oh? What is that?" Elysia was curious why Aponia looked worried.
"Has he ever done you wrong, Elysia?" Elysia giggled.
"Never. When i arrived at Soukai, He was a darling.
Accompanied me to where i wanted to go. He even didn't mind buying more the ones i want when i told him i don't mind him buying less.
He let me have fun with games, arts and treated me with a meal of my own choice."
"He cooked for you? Was it good?"' Aponia and Eden widened their eyes at Elysia which caused the latter to giggle.
"Yeah. It was great. After that, he even helped on a swing. And we both rode on the ferris wheel and ate some ice cream."
"He sounds too good to be true, Elysia. Are you sure you didn't mistake his altruism for something else?" Aponia, who has dealt with the most cruel men of the Previous Era, was genuinely concerned for Ellie.
"Yeah. i remember him these words he said to me when i wasn't sure about him or when i feel a little lost.
'It is normal to want things, Elysia. And considering that you look more of a lost lamb in a jungle, i am not going to leave you behind. What kind of a best friend would I be if I let you suffer alone in the city.'" She looked at Eden with a smile and stated another.
"'It is okay to be selfish once in a while, Elysia. It is how it is.'" Elysia smiled fondly at the memory.
"He let me have fun with everything with him because i was just being human to him."
"Did he know?" Elysia shook her head at Aponia's question.
"Never told him about it but he kept insisting he will be there to carry my emotional burdens in any way he can. And he did." Ellie smiled softly as she took out a photo from her phone.
Both Eden and Aponia looked at the flustered man on the picture. They both giggled at the sight as it was apparent that he even can't handle Elysia's mischief.
They are both heartwarmed at how Elysia labeled the picture.
HAJIME & ELYSIA FIRST DAY TOGETHER
HOPE MORE NEW MEMORIES TO COME
"After that, i knew what kind of a man he is.'" Aponia was relieved to hear that Elysia was in safe hands and smiled.
Realizing that, she decided to let Elysia do what she wanted to do.
She never stopped Elysia before for the people she cares about and she is not going to start now.
Aponia held her hands close to her chest much like what Elysia did to her while Eden gave the pink elf a loving side hug.
"We will be fine, My dear Ellie. Kevin needs to reflect on things while you are gone. And if you are worried at him for getting lonely, he has us and Mei to keep him company."
"Hajime is right. It's okay for you to be this selfish, Ellie. You deserved it this much." Elysia giggled at how both Aponia and Eden showed this much love to her.
"And if he is okay at you being like this, Then he is a good man to be with." Elysia gave them both a tighter hug.
"Then go. We will tell Vill-V everything why you left." Both SIM Flamechasers smiled at the Elf.
"We will be fine. Just come back once in a while for a chat." For the first time in Elysia's life, she couldn't argue with the two Flamechasers and left the Elysian Realm.
"Hmmmm~ Where did the other 'me' go?" SIM Elysia walked towards to the two women.
"Ah. Elysia already left, my dear." SIM Elysia pouted at the fact that her original didn't get to say goodbye.
"Don't worry. She will come back for all of us once in a while. Just as always." SIM Elysia smiled at the two.
"Oh? That's good then~ I hope i get to hear more stories from her outside of Elysian realm~" The SIM Elysia hid her hands behind her back.
"Ellie? What kind of a man does intrigue you the most?" SIM Elysia tapped at her lips at Aponia's sudden question.
Seeing how the original Elysia got overly fond of a man she just recently met, She was curious and asked the SIM.
After all, Both SIM and Original think alike.
"Hmmm~ A man that intrigues me the most..." The SIM thought about it long and hard.
"I'd say the man who resembles like me." Both Flamechasers were curious at her answer.
"But there is only one of you, Elysia." SIM Elysia giggled.
"Well... Not anymore apparently. Besides, wouldn't that be interesting to see?" Both women smiled as they both agreed to this statement.
Kevin was glaring at the panicking Grey Serpent as the latter was finding ways to communicate his operatives at Soukai.
So far, there was none.
"We had a deal, Kevin." Raiden Mei, in her herscherr form, crossed her arms at the Leader of the World Serpent with a glare.
"...We did, Mei." Kevin looked at the Herrscher of Thunder with no hostility.
To her, she understood that he would never authorized such absurdity to her former co-worker as he knew the feeling of infighting between friends.
He has lost his best friend because of it and he would never wished it upon another.
Mei sighed as she tried to let her anger go and looked at the Hajime fighting a templar class honkai beast.
"You better save him, Kevin. Or else." Kevin nodded at Mei's threat. He knew the dragon is capable of destroying every bit of World Serpent.
"I will not stop you, Mei." Every single of Grey Serpents that were present in the room was shocked to hear him answer that so casually.
"But Sire... What about the World Serpent?" Jackal received a cold glare from her leader.
"Then you shouldn't have agreed for them to do it in the first place." She flinched and resumed her work.
"We really can't stop the wave, Sire." Raven was enjoying the panicking state of some of the Grey Serpent while Jackal was pissed that she got dragged into this mess.
Mei, however, was still emitting red lighting from her body.
"'Then you don't mind a cute and capable girl like me stopping the wave herself?" All of the present in the room turned their heads and saw Ellie smiling cutely with her hands behind her back.
Kevin, getting more annoyed than usual, cleared his throat which caused most of them to continue working.
Kevin sighed and walked towards to Ellie with a regretful look.
"I am..." Elysia stopped him from talking further.
"Let me say something first." Kevin nodded as he watched her take a few deep breaths.
"I am sorry for blaming you for what they did. What i did to you was unfair and i am really sorry for that. So please forgive me." Kevin was shocked to see Elysia this humble. He would have forgiven her anyways even if she didn't ask him to.
"You are their leader but i know that you would never do something like this. This was their choice alone, not yours." Kevin gave her a soft smile.
"I would still hold myself responsible for their actions. It's all right." He glared at the audience who were watching their conversation which alerted them to continue.
"That's good." Elysia took a deep breath and gave him a cute smile. "I will leave the World Serpent, Kevin."
"Will you come back after this?" Elysia shook her head to him.
"I will come back for Mei and Flamechasers. But other than that? No."
"This place isn't my home. I honestly feel out place here." As she looked around. Upon hearing that, Kevin took a deep breath as if he felt a huge hole in his heart.
"... Is it because of Project Stigma? Will it take me to stop the project for you to come back?" Hearing Kevin said that, She knew that he would do it without any hesitation. She gave him a smile.
"And make you break your promise to DR. MEI?" She saw him hesitated.
"I don't want you to stop Project Stigma. I really do want you to succeed. After all, i am interested to see how it will end." She looked at Hajime on the screen.
"It's just...I made a promise to a friend," Raven sighed but she smiled at the No. 2 Flamechaser along side with Mei.
"I am sorry to disappoint you, Ellie." Elysia shook her head with a smile.
"I am not disappointed Kevin. I am just... tired." Kevin frowned but nodded.
"Just... Come back once in a while for a chat. I really do miss you." Kevin hugged the pink elf which the latter giggled to see how expressive Kevin was.
It was a small improvement to her but still an improvement.
"Could you send me back to Soukai?" Kevin nodded and Mei wanted to come along.
"I will also come along with you and help explain the mess they made to the Hyperion." Raven and Mei chuckled as they both saw him emitting a very cold ice to the room, almost freezing most of the Grey Serpents.
Elysia was still confused and curious on who or what is the Hyperion but she decided to set it aside for more important things. Like saving Hajime's Life.
Hajime... Please hold on a little bit longer. I will be there.
Kevin, Raven, Mei and Elysia failed to notice that the honkai corruption on him were starting to get worse.
Hajime was getting real annoyed on how the Templar was still standing after its shield is getting relentlessly assaulted from the lighting bullets.
"You are one stubborn captain. Just Die already." It thrusted its lance to him but Hajime rolled out of the way.
"I am not letting my valkyries lose another captain.
They have been through hell losing Himeko. I am not letting them go through that again.
Not when i am alive and standing.
That is the promise i made to my cousin and a promise i made to myself as the captain of the Hyperion." He kept firing the shield. To his surprise and relief, he saw that the shield has a small crack.
That's it! I just need to keep firing at that specific spot then i can kill this damn monstrosity.
Before he tried to aim at that specific spot, he heard a sinister laugh from the Grey Serpent/Templar hybrid.
"What is so funny?" He glared at the 8 feet tall monster.
"Captain Himeko Murata is someone that even the Sire truly respects. You will never live up to the former captain's name." He gripped his pistols tight as he heard him disrespected Himeko's decision. He knew Himeko placed her absolute faith on him for being the better captain than her.
"You will never be a true Murata." Another truly thing he hates about the Serpents is how accurate their information are and how they use it for their own gains.
Insulting his cousin's family's decision to adopt him was the last straw. Especially how they did their best to make Hajime feel loved and welcomed.
He didn't mind anyone insulting him as he never had that much self-esteem to begin with.
Anyone insulting the valkyries would always make him feel really upset as he wanted the valkyries to live normal lives after fighting back honkai.
The monstrous hybrid insulting Himeko's family was something he could not stand.
Hearing the templar's words broke Hajime's calm composure.
And something else as well.
"WARNING...
WARNING...
HONKAI CORRUPTION OVERDOSE DETECTED
INITIATE HONKAI ENERGY CONVERSION.
INITIATE CONVERSION CATEGORY 1, 2, 3 & 6
CATEGORY 1 - INITIATE SELF-REPAIR
CATEGORY 2 - INITIATE STAMINA REGENERATION
CATEGORY 3 - INITIATE BERSERKER'S STRENGTH
CATEGORY 6 - INCREASE EFFICIENCY OF WEAPON USAGE
WARNING...
WARNING...
MULTIPLE CATEGORIES INVOLVED.
INITIATE CATEGORY 7
CATEGORY 7 - INITIATE PROJECT LB
Seeing how the Grey Serpent broke the captain, it thrusted its lance to him with pure satisfaction.
It sinisterly laughed at the thought of how easy it was to break the captain and how easier it is to kill him.
To its surprise, Hajime evaded the attack and let its lance deeply ingrained to the wall, making the beast stuck in position.
Not satisfied at the surprised look the templar beast made, Hajime climbed on top of the lance and ran towards to the head.
Before the Templar got the chance to say anything, Hajime shot its head with multiple ammos of LIghtning Bows of Odysseus.
He doesn't know why but it felt like all of his guilt and rage were fueling his actions and possibly strengthening his weapon.
Right now, He is happy that his anger were increasing the strength of his shots.
And he has a lot to spare.
He landed on the floor after being shaken off by the Templar.
"THAT... HURTS..." As the templar beast removed its lance with so much rage, causing so many debris falling to him.
Still incredibly pissed, Hajime aimed at the falling wreckage with cold and calculating look and fired at them.
The templar was suprised to see this side of the captain and more surprised how easy and quick for him to turn giant falling debris into ashes.
Wanting to try its luck again, It slashed the walls of the malls, causing multiple debris to fall onto him.
It waited the smoke to clear out just so the hybrid could easily stab the captain with ease.
As soon the Templar saw the silhoutte, it charges towards to him with its lance forward.
The Honkai Beast with a mind of a Grey Serpent was relieved that it has finally killed its target.
As the smoke beginning to clear out, it was horrified to see that Hajime was still alive and had the lance held between his left arm and chest.
It couldn't even pull the lance back as the body heat Hajime was giving off was burning its arm-weapon.
"WHAT THE HELL? WHY IS YOUR SKIN BURNING ME? HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE?!"
Not giving it a chance to fight back , Hajime ripped off its lance like it was nothing, causing it to scream in pain as it was part of its appendages.
He then stabbed the giant monstrosity with its own lance to the weak spot that Hajime created earlier.
The Grey serpent don't know what happened as it screamed again from being impaled by its own weapon.
It had a upper hand earlier, why did it lose to the captain?
It looked at the captain, who was giving a cold look to the dying beast.
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU?" Hajime didn't give it an answer as he fired a bullet straight to its head.
Unbeknownst to him, the Honkai wave ended.
He looked around to see that there weren't anymore honkai beast on sight.
"I guess that they can't make or attract that much honkai beasts. It would honestly makes sense if that is the case. If you don't know how to control that many honkai beast, then control its population increase." As he headed towards to the exit just in case if there's more beast for him to kill.
He limped towards the mall's entrace as he lost most of his strength fighting the damn beast.
As he leaned on the glassdoor, He saw that the dome was finally disappearing, revealing a starry night sky.
He can also see that the Hyperion Battleship finally arrived.
"Took you girls long enough." As he muttered with a weak smile.
He smiled as he can hear the valkyries spreading out to search for the civilians in the park.
He knew it will take time for the girls but he doesn't mind.
As long as they find the civilians safe and sound, he was a happy captain.
He reached out for Ellie's crystal to show it how grateful he was for saving his life.
He was horrified that he couldn't feel his lower end of his trench coat, let alone the crystal.
He finally remembered that the templar ripped off its trench coat back at the restroom.
When he realized that, he checked his arms to see if he was fully infected.
To his horror, he was.
And since he has directly touched the honkai beast multiple times, that made the infection worse.
It was honestly a miracle and a blessing that he ended the wave before turning.
His relief was short lived as he was beginning to feel the effects on his body.
And it was really really painful.
It felt like he was on fire.
Unlike before, it felt like he was being burned alive from the corruption.
Thinking that he could reach for Elysia's crystal, He turned around and limped towards to the restroom on a faster pace.
As he tried to ignore the burning sensation all over his body and exhaustion, he thought about all of the girls back at the Hyperion.
Kiana...
Bronya...
Fu Hua...
Rita...
Bianka...
Seele...
Theresa...
Liliya...
Rozaliya...
Mei...
He thought about his promise to Himeko with all of his might.
"Was i a good captain, Himeko?" He hung his head low as if he couldn't bear to look her in the eye while rapidly approaching for the red crystal flower in the restroom.
He remembered his conversation with Ellie as he entered.
"Then i will come back for you with or without them." He sighed.
"You really don't have to do that anymore, Ellie."
As he kneeled to start removing the rubbles, he was starting to feel dizzy and weak.
He couldn't hold on anymore as the burning sensation got worse.
"Mei-chan, Bratnya and i wanted to celebrate our first day with you captain, so we got you this cake."
"Promise me that you will be a better captain than i ever was, Hajime."
"Rozaliya, Liliya and I are grateful for letting us join the team. Bronya says a lot of good things about you. Hope that you will treat us the same."
"Master Durandal and I are thankful for giving us another chance to work with you despite the events occurred in Kolosten."
"Looks like you are a reliable captain after all. Hope that you don't mind helping the world's number 1 cutie, now and then, Hajime."
He remembered his girls' words to him so he could focus on something else other than the excruciating pain.
"I will see you soon, Hajime."
"I'm sorry for breaking all of your hearts." As he collapsed on the floor with an image of a crying Elysia as his dying thoughts.
Elysia was first to enter as the dome finally faded.
She hoped that the Red Crystal flower that she made for him is still on him.
She can still sense where it was.
She just hopes that he is still alive by the time she heads there.
She also knew that the crystal flower would at least provide him some protection from Honkai.
She sensed that the crystal are in the mall they both entered earlier.
"That's weird. Wouldn't there be at least a single Honkai beast roaming around?" Ellie looked around to see everything was a mess.
"Why do i sense so many of my crystals here?" As she roamed around the building.
She saw curious why she saw multiple stores barricaded by a crystal.
"Hajime! Are you in there?!" The pink elf looked towards the window.
"Miss? Are you our rescue?" Elysia smiled cutely at the panicking civilians.
"Of Course. Your Miss Pink has come to rescue you from this prison." She readied her bow and fired at the crystal wall and let so many prisoners out of the store.
"Can you tell me who imprisoned you darlings? So I can ask him why he did this harsh thing to you cuties?" The males blushed at Ellie's weird manner of speaking but the red haired female stepped up.
"No. You got it all wrong, Miss. This crystal wall he created was to shield us from the monsters." Ellie was relieved to hear that she didn't need to fight anyone today.
"Oh. That's great~ Can you tell me his name and where did he go so i can thank him on your behalf?"
"His name was Hajime, i think?" Elysia widened her eyes in horror.
"Last i saw him was fighting these monsters on his own." She gripped her weapon tight.
"It was honestly awesome how he did that and save all of us from turning."
"I gotta ask him where he got the pink crystal from." Elysia looked at the floor and saw that her pink crystals that she left behind were reaching for their limit. One of the civilians tried to pick up but it turned into ash.
"It's very safe for you to head outside now. There are no more monsters." All of the civilians were relieved to hear Ellie said that with a smile.
But her aching heart says otherwise.
She looked around to see more barricaded store and checked inside if Hajime was there after freeing the civilians to their safety.
No signs of Hajime
No signs of Hajime
No signs of Hajime
She located all of stores that had pink crystal wall and Hajime wasn't there.
She waved cutely at the escaping civilians and yet her worried look was apparent on her eyes.
She decided to locate the last crystal she could sense in the mall.
And she could hope that Hajime was in there and she hopes that He has that red crystal flower on him, saving his life.
When she arrived and saw the men's restroom, Elysia giggled.
"Really? Ha~Ji~Me?" The man never failed to make her giggle as this should have been obivious to her from the start.
She walked inside with a cute smile.
"Ha~Ji~..." She saw what was inside of the restroom.
Multiple debris were scattered on the floor. Destroyed sink and facilities were also part of the wreckage.
She even saw a large gaping hole on the wall.
What she saw last horrified her to the core.
She saw the red-haired man collapsed on the floor, facing down and a hand reaching out for something in the rubble.
"HAJIME!" She ran towards to the man who was near at the wreckage.
"Are you still okay, Hajime?" She didn't know why Hajime was burning up but she was horrified to see that so many honkai corruption veins on his skin.
As she looked around to see what he was doing inside of the restroom, she saw a shining red crystal flower amongst the wreckage.
She looked around even more to see that he had a pair of pistols hidden underneath his trenchcoat.
To confirm her thoughts, she decided to see if he had a stigmata on him.
She sighed with deep sorrow as she couldn't see any signs of stigmata on his back.
"Hajime... You fought honkai without a stigmata?" She caressed his cheek.
"You silly... Without a stigmata, you could easily get turned." She sighed.
"You really do know how to break a woman's heart, Hajime." Ellie leaned her head to his, ignoring the fever sensation on him. "But you did great saving these people." Elysia smiled to the man but her tears betrayed her intentions.
As she tried to wipe away her tears, she saw weird thing happening on him.
The Honkai corruption veins that were on his neck were slowly shrinking and decreasing.
"His infection is decreasing? How is this possible?" She checked to see if this was the same case on his arms.
She was right as Hajime's starting to get better.
"Come on, Hajime. I will carry you to Kevin. Maybe his team of scientists could help me find out what is going on with you." As she placed his arm on her shoulder and carried him outside of the men's restroom.
As she helped exited the restroom, she saw a cute white girl with peach hair, mounted on a black and blue mechanical horse at the center of the mall.
"I can see how bad his infection is from here. Please hand him over. I will take care of the rest." As she unmounted from ride with a reassuring smile.
Worried about Hajime's safety and the time she got left to save him, she placed him leaning on the wall.
She smiled while readying her weapon as she didn't have time for this.
And she certainly doesn't have the time for a cute knightly girl that could possibly mercy-kill Hajime when Elysia knows he still has a chance to live.
"As much i wanted us to have a nice girl time together, I am afraid that i have to decline your invitation. This capable and cute girl has a handsome and charming man to save, you know?"
"That is why you should hand him over to me." Elysia giggled cutely at the smiling peach girl knight.
"Guess we have to dance for his affection, won't we?" The girl readied her lance as she mounted on her steed while Elysia aimed her weapon to her dance partner with a smile.