Having just joined Fire Moth and immediately taken down the Herrscher of the Void, Elias and Elysia shot to fame.
Inside Fire Moth's base, people constantly glanced curiously at the two of them.
And upon seeing that one was dashing and the other breathtakingly beautiful, they couldn't help but sigh in unison—some people were simply born to be protagonists of a story.
Unlike themselves—so average-looking that, even in a novel, they'd only appear as an unnamed background extra.
After returning to his dorm in the base—
"It's only been two days and so many people have already come to deliver gifts. Heh, not bad. Keep them coming—I wouldn't mind a few hundred million more."
Elias looked at the dazzling array of "rewards" in front of him, finding the whole thing both amusing and absurd.
After he defeated the Herrscher of the Void, Fire Moth's higher-ups immediately sent people to make contact with Elias behind the scenes—some bearing gifts, others making grand promises. All of them acted overly friendly, hoping to draw Elias into their respective factions.
Clearly, they were trying to rope him in.
"You sure didn't do much when it came to fighting the Honkai, but you're real experts at internal power plays, aren't you."
Elias glanced at the stack of bank cards, checks, and various letters promising positions of authority.
Suddenly, he frowned. Just moments ago he had been quite satisfied, but now he felt an overwhelming urge to toss it all into a fire and burn it to ash.
He and Elysia were the newest members of Fire Moth—and had incredibly clean slates. Instead of trying to suppress them, the higher-ups preferred to draw them in.
So, like they were competing against one another, they sent wave after wave of benefits. If not money, then power—and some even slipped in veiled threats. Elias found himself yawning through their performances.
Still, one thing was for certain: the people collecting information on him must not have gotten much sleep. Elias and Elysia may have had clean backgrounds, but they were also far too long—so long it defied belief.
After all, the two of them had been traveling the world since the age of ten. Their footprints spanned the globe. While most people's resumes could fit comfortably on a single sheet of A4 paper...
Elias and Elysia's files were as thick as books. Flipping through them felt like reading a 663-chapter travelogue.
"Whatever, free stuff is still free stuff. Smart fish eat the bait and spit out the hook. At the very least, more money means I can buy Ely a few extra dresses."
So Elias thought.
Just then, knock knock knock—a girl's cheerful voice came from outside his door.
"Hi~ Elias! What are you up to?"
A cute pink head peeked through the door.
"I'm sorting through war spoils. What's up, Ely? You getting used to dorm life here at the base?"
"Honestly? Not at all."
Elysia sighed and shook her head. She plopped down on Elias' bed, rolling back and forth across it in protest.
And the reason was simple—the two of them had been assigned to separate dorms.
While that might have been the reasonable thing to do, for Elias and Elysia, who had only ever booked a single room at inns over the years...
Last night felt like sleeping without the warm pillow they'd relied on since childhood. Neither of them managed to get much rest.
"Eh~ can't be helped. Let's just get used to it. Besides, I think it's time we learned how to function independently when we're not around each other."
"Fiiine~~~" Elysia pouted in response.
Though reluctant, both of them understood that they were too dependent on each other.
If one day they were forced to be apart for a long time… they might even suffer withdrawal symptoms!
Elias raised his hand and gently patted Elysia's soft pink hair, comforting her by reminding her that they were only a door apart—and both of them knew each other's door codes.
If they got lonely at night, they could always sneak into each other's rooms.
"So Ely, what did you come here for?"
"Mhm~ Of course it's a date! Let's take a walk around the base. Aren't you curious what Fire Moth's military base is like, Elias?"
"Honestly? Super curious."
Their first day after joining had been spent fighting a Herrscher. The next two were consumed by dealing with high-level officials trying to win them over. It was only now that Elias realized he hadn't even properly explored the high-tech base.
So, without hesitation, he pulled Elysia along to wander around. By the way, he'd already been promoted.
Elias had gone from a rookie to a squad captain. Elysia was his vice-captain. Though their squad currently only consisted of the two of them and other members had yet to be assigned—
From a rank perspective, just three days in, Elias was already on par with someone like Himeko. In this base, very few people could issue him orders anymore.
They wandered from the training hall to the cafeteria, then from the cafeteria to the hangar—where, surprisingly, they ran into someone familiar.
"Isn't that Uncle Ato? It's been years."
In the hangar, they spotted a blue-haired man—Ato, whom they'd met a few times in their childhood in Vostok Town.
When he saw Elias and Elysia, Ato was visibly surprised as well.
"So it really is you two. I didn't expect that after a few years, you'd both join Fire Moth—and even take down a Herrscher together. That said… your habit of always sticking together hasn't changed one bit."
"Obviously! As long as Elias is by my side, Miss Pink Elf is invincible!"
"Careful, Ely—invincibility is a debuff."
"Haha, you two really haven't changed a bit."
Ato smiled warmly as he watched Elias and Elysia so naturally serve up a dose of lovey-dovey sweetness.
He couldn't help but think back to the old days—when Elias had bribed him with candy for intel.
"So? How do you like Fire Moth so far?"
"Eh, not that satisfied. I thought there'd be multi-story humanoid mechs in the hangar, but nope. Kinda disappointing."
"Hahaha! You've read too many comics. What would that even be for? They're useless against Herrschers, and barely useful against Honkai Beasts."
"Come on—that's easy. For romance, of course."
Elias crossed his arms and spoke with full conviction. He was sure that if that Spiral-ranked flame-chaser Vilvi were here, she'd absolutely understand.
"Heh, alright, you young folks sure love to dream. Still… I never thought I'd see the day where I'd run into you two inside Fire Moth's base. Sigh… we adults are really useless, huh."
Ato spoke with a hint of guilt and melancholy.
Even though Elias and Elysia had defeated a Herrscher, in his eyes, they were still just kids. And the moment those kids stepped onto the battlefield—
It only proved how incompetent the adults had been.
"It's fine. This was our own choice."
Elias and Elysia shook their heads and replied.
"Maybe so. But who knows how long this disaster called the Honkai will last… I just hope it ends before my daughter grows up."
Ato looked up at the ceiling, praying quietly.
"Wait—daughter? Uncle Ato, since when did you have a daughter? Hurry, show us already!"
"Yeah, I hope she takes after her mother more."
Elias and Elysia's eyes lit up.
Especially Elias—he looked genuinely excited. He hadn't expected to meet Ato again and learn that Griseo had already been born. He couldn't wait to meet the future [Stars], the young Flame-Chaser who proved that 50000 could still be greater than 50000.
"You two really are something else… But yes, Griseo does take after her mother more. She's probably in Dr. Mobius' lab right now. That said, I'd advise you not to go near that place carelessly, because—"
"Because what?"
Before Ato could finish, a cool female voice sounded behind him, making him swallow his words and quickly rephrase.
"Ahem. Because the owner of that lab—Dr. Mobius—is a very busy person. Best not to disturb her lightly."
Seeing the nervous look on Ato's face—like he'd just been stared down by a viper—Elias and Elysia turned to look behind them.
A green-haired woman stood there, exuding an aura that was both beautiful and dangerously serpentine. As if a single slip-up before her could lead to unconsciousness and then…
Waking up strapped to an operating table.
"I don't have time for your glib remarks, Ato. I came to inspect the Second Herrscher's remains. Also, Blanca wanted me to tell you—Griseo's playing alone in her room. You'd better go keep her company."
"Uh, but I still have work I can't leave behind..."
Ignoring his troubled expression, Mobius turned her attention to Elias and Elysia, studying them with mild interest.
"So you're the pair who took down the Herrscher of the Void? Fascinating. Mind sharing how you did it? I'm very interested. Oh, and your names?"
"Hello, Dr. Mobius. I'm Elias, and this is my partner Elysia. Nice to meet you. I hope we can get along."
"You're quite polite for a rookie. But spare me the pleasantries—here's some advice: don't get too involved with me. If you do, the entire base will start avoiding you. Got it?"
Mobius spoke calmly.
Her lab had always been the most dangerous place in the base. You might walk in with your limbs intact—but there was no guarantee you'd walk out.
In fact, the most likely scenario was not walking out at all.
Considering they'd brought her such valuable Herrscher materials, Mobius "kindly" warned them not to get too close to the viper of Fire Moth.
"Hmm, I don't get it."
But Elysia tilted her head and replied.
"What?"
"That's such a waste. I haven't even had the chance to properly get to know you yet. If we don't get involved, Elias and I won't have a chance to understand you at all."
"...You're strange."
Mobius stared at Elysia's sincere expression—and the nodding Elias beside her—then fell silent for a moment before commenting:
"Well, suit yourselves. In that case, how about coming to my lab? I'll give you a free full-body checkup. After all, humans capable of defeating Herrschers… are quite worth studying."
(Ah, the hardest snake of them all.)
Elias barely managed to keep his lips from curling.
What was the hardest thing among the three-hop club? Ask a hundred Captains and a hundred would say Mobius' mouth. Even the divine flatness of the Immortal Phohenix paled in comparison.
When the judgment of Finality descends and turns the Previous Era to ashes—one thing will remain unscathed: Mobius' mouth, endlessly repeating "That's it? That's it?"
"Oh? You're even offering free medical exams, Dr. Mobius? How kind of you. In that case, I won't be shy. Elias, are you coming?"
"Hmm… Elysia, you go ahead. I'll stay and help Uncle Ato with his child. I'll catch up later."
"Ah, alright then."
"Thanks, Elias. Don't worry—my Griseo is very well-behaved. But it's hard to leave a child alone like that."
Ato looked genuinely grateful. He couldn't leave his work just yet, and somehow, seeing this unchanged boy from years ago put him at ease.
Elias gave a soft smile to say it was no trouble.
He was very curious to meet the beloved mascot of the Flame-Chasers.
Sure, Mobius was plenty charming too… but right now, Snake-snake was a bit too tall. Elias preferred the in-game version—the small Mobius.
Adorable, alluring, yet mature and dangerous.
Yes, the current mature Mobius form was rare to see—but now that he'd seen it, Elias was more excited for Griseo.
And besides…
Elias: (A snake chasing infinite evolution… can her ending truly be called infinite? And to someone like me right now, Mobius is definitely a dangerous presence.)
Although she was still relatively normal at this point—not yet the deranged version from later on—her obsession with evolution, with forcing humanity to evolve, was still as strong as ever.
And Elias, to her eyes…
Was undoubtedly the most delicious cake imaginable.
Herrscher of Rebirth's authority. The Holy Blood of Schariac. A potential that could endlessly climb higher. A foundational structure matching Durandal's [Transcendent] aptitude.
And this body—already fused with multiple Stigmata and once personally blessed and modified by the Will of Honkai itself—perfect for becoming a Herrscher of Finality.
Each of these alone would be enough to make the Flame-Chaser known as [Infinity] go mad with excitement.
Elias: (It's still way too early to go head-to-head with Mobius. At the very least, let's raise her affection to three stars before we talk terms.)
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