And so, as she journeyed onward, shattering Honkai Beasts, Bianka suddenly discovered she had a phone in her pocket.
It took her over half a month of walking to even realize it was there. She never would have guessed that a set of clothes she'd grabbed at random from home would have a phone in the pocket.
Even more unbelievably, the phone had somehow survived her battle with Gu Chu.
At the time, Bianka had been ecstatic, clutching the phone and scrolling through [Spark] for a solid few hours. Then she checked the battery, and her world came crashing down.
It was only half-full! How was an internet-addicted girl supposed to survive this?!
The "literally-can-only-survive-with-an-internet-connection" Bianka wracked her brain, scrolling for a solution. After wasting another one percent of the battery, she decisively shut the phone off.
From that day on, she made a rule: only one look at her phone per day.
But a life that had become numb and meaningless was suddenly filled with a tiny sliver of anticipation, and the days immediately became agonizing.
She wandered listlessly for two days, her mind elsewhere. Finally, exhausted, she found a culvert to rest in. That was when Stan appeared.
Bianka's biological radar hadn't detected Stan at all. So when he showed up, it was Bianka who practically jumped out of her skin.
She watched Stan warily from behind cover for several long seconds before slowly emerging.
Her first thought was to leave quickly, lest she harm this cat that, for some reason, didn't register on her radar. But after a few steps, Bianka noticed Stan was following her.
The girl and the cat stared each other down under the bridge. When Bianka shuffled to the left, Stan took two steps to his left. When Bianka hopped to the right, Stan leisurely followed.
Bianka fell silent for a moment, then spun around and sprinted nearly a hundred meters. When she looked back, she saw Stan trotting after her with elegant little steps.
That graceful gait instantly reminded Bianka of Rita.
Bianka stood there, thinking, while Stan couldn't even be bothered to pretend anymore. He walked right up to her and curled up on top of her shoes.
The message was clear: this cat had latched onto her.
Bianka hesitated for a few minutes but ultimately couldn't bring herself to abandon the cat that had appeared out of nowhere.
There aren't any settlements nearby. If I leave him here all alone, he probably won't last long... If I take him with me, at least I can look after him.
With that thought, Bianka found a backpack and took the cat she named "Stan" with her.
---||---
But from the perspective of another... well, another cat, the story was quite different.
That day, a rather strange high-level Honkai Beast had appeared in its territory. Its aura was that of the legendary and terrifying Emperor-class Honkai Beast!
Any ordinary Honkai Beast would have already turned tail and fled, but it was different. It was a Honkai Beast with ambition, a Honkai Beast of refined taste.
It was going to find itself a boss!
And so, it mustered its courage and approached the ice-cold, high-level Honkai Beast...
?
What in the world?! It was a human?!
But this thing definitely smelled like a Honkai Beast boss! What to do? Should it submit and show its belly, or should it attack this creature and fulfill its duty as a Honkai Beast?
As it wrestled with its dilemma, it saw the Honkai Beast-in-human-form suddenly leap away, taking a defensive stance.
In that instant—the other party might not have realized it—it felt an overwhelming pressure wash over it...
A tangible, physical pressure!
Oh my Honkai God! Was this the unique pressure of an Emperor-class Honkai Beast? It was terrifying!
Faced with the choice between fighting and submitting, Stan chose to be a coward.
---||---
In any case, with Stan around, Bianka felt her days were a bit more bearable. She'd tease the cat, travel, and another day would pass in a haze.
Just getting through the day—this was Bianka's ideal life now. No need to overthink anything. Just travel, pet the cat, eat, and maybe shatter a few Honkai Beasts from the bounties on [Spark] to protect people. Bianka felt that things couldn't be better.
Except...
She was a little lonely.
With so little battery left, Bianka didn't dare look at any extra information when she turned on her phone, terrified that she'd look up and see the 9% turn to 8%.
Her journey took her from skyscrapers to plateaus, and over those plateaus into this barren wasteland.
Here, digging didn't get you water, only useless, stinking black oil. Bianka tried digging in many different places, but every time her shovel hit the ground, that stuff would bubble up, much to her frustration.
Even if she had become a monster, she still needed to eat and drink. In fact, she got hungry very easily. Bianka had to frequently enter abandoned building clusters to scavenge for supplies, taking everything edible and potable she could find.
And so, she had walked all the way here.
Right now, she was heading for a Chariot-class Honkai Beast. This beast had reportedly attacked several convoys transporting supplies across the desert. In response, the largest local shelter had posted a high price, seeking a capable individual to eliminate it.
Bianka remembered the rewards listed by the person who posted the bounty—all the alcohol you could drink, a large supply of energy, and lots and lots of contribution points...
Yes, the same kind they used inside the Fire MOTHs.
There was also a chance to be recommended to the Fire MOTHs.
But Bianka didn't care about any of that. She wasn't going to claim the reward anyway. All she had to do was quietly take care of the Honkai Beast. It would be best if no one even noticed her...
Bianka, who thought her actions were seamless and unnoticed, had no idea that photos of her were already going viral on [Spark].
She could sense if people were nearby, but she couldn't detect things like surveillance cameras.
Besides, there were also things called drones that would secretly film her from corners she couldn't see.
The popularity of the "[Girl and Cat]" duo on [Spark] had skyrocketed to unimaginable heights. Not only had they dominated the top ten on the [Spark] trending list for the past month, but their fame was also starting to rival that of "[Judgment of Shamash and Hundred Flowers]," competing for the number two spot.
After all, compared to the well-known [Judgment of Shamash and Hundred Flowers] duo, [Girl and Cat] had an air of mystery, which naturally generated more buzz.
But at this moment, the "Girl" in question knew none of this. She stood on the sand, clenching her fists at a giant white shadow in the distance.
That Honkai Beast—it looked like it was chasing someone.