Not everyone is a hero, and not everyone can be saved by a hero.
How many people often regret, if only by just a little.
Yes, if only by just a little.
…
The Fifth Herrscher is… Hina?
How could this be…
Lin's chaotic mind paused for a second upon seeing the girl, stripped of her nun's habit, inside the ice cocoon.
Shouldn't it be Anna? According to the three children, Hina only went back to look for Anna after sending them to a relatively safe location. Even at the fastest speed, she could only reach the periphery when the Honkai broke out, while Anna was located in the center of the city.
In the confusion, Lin occasionally spotted a beret on the ice-covered floor.
That familiar hat was silently frozen in front of a giant ice block as tall as three people, and its owner was nowhere to be seen.
"An… na." Lin instinctively uttered the name.
"Anna…"
And at this moment, Hina in the ice cocoon—no, the Fifth Herrscher—also opened her eyes, revealing icy blue pupils, and murmured a response.
Scarlet ice crystals quietly spilled out from beneath the block of ice.
…
"Where did that person run off to… doesn't he know he should be evacuating now?"
Anna lost sight of the man due to the wind and snow after following him for a few steps.
The world was entirely white, as if she were lost in a vast maze.
"Hoo…" Anna breathed out gently. The white mist she exhaled dispersed into the air. As her stamina was gradually exhausted, heat was stripped away from her body bit by bit. Rubbing her hands, she shivered and felt increasingly cold.
Darn it… if I don't find that person soon, he'll definitely be in danger…
With her physical reserves bottoming out, Anna had to find a place to hide first. She saw a store up ahead that hadn't been closed in time, her eyes lit up, and she mustered the energy to jog inside and quickly lock the door behind her.
Even if it wasn't much warmer indoors, blocking the cold wind outside allowed her body to relax somewhat.
"I still don't know how much time is left. The uncle said we had to leave in twenty-four hours at most…" She walked to the counter, left some money, then poured some hot water from the dispenser. After drinking it, her body warmed up slightly, and her gaze became serious, "Do I have ten minutes left? Five minutes?"
To make Anna realize the seriousness of the situation, Lin had specifically explained the outbreak of a large-scale Honkai—the high-concentration Honkai energy flooding an entire area like a tide, accompanied by disasters such as earthquakes, gales, or even meteors. The current extreme cold was of the same type. Most people died the moment the Honkai erupted.
Therefore, the most dangerous time was the moment a large-scale Honkai erupted.
Lin also had Anna take a Honkai energy adaptability test, which, as expected, showed her adaptability was extremely high. Thus, if she didn't die from the physical damage of the Honkai outbreak, she could still move around in the high-concentration Honkai energy area.
But whether that person would die was uncertain. To be safe, Anna had to take him out.
Lin hadn't expected that telling Anna the truth and her Honkai energy adaptability, originally intended to make her aware of the danger and severity, would instead lead her to be determined to step into danger to save someone.
Picking up a few hand warmers from the store and sticking them on herself, Anna raced against time, pushed the door open, and ran in the direction she remembered.
Where is he… if I don't hurry…
"Gah—"
A bizarre cry chilled Anna's blood.
She watched in horror as a Biting-type Honkai Beast, which she had seen before, flew down from a rooftop. Its ominous appearance made her feel sick, and the Biting-type Honkai Beast's attacking stance terrified her even more.
Anna cautiously retreated, but the white alien monster followed her in a slow, deliberate manner, seemingly waiting for her to make a bigger move or turn to run, upon which its sharp beak would instantly pierce her chest.
Uncle… what should I do…
Anna thought of Lin's depleted state on his sickbed. Her frightened eyes were replaced by determination.
The uncle had done his utmost to protect people like them. If it were him, he would definitely tell her not to be afraid, to handle it calmly and rationally.
That's right, the uncle said I have great talent. I can't close my eyes out of fear, and I can't expose my back to it. Look closely at the Honkai Beast's movements…
When Anna stopped moving, the Honkai Beast floated in the air and rotated, building up power like a gyroscope, ready to lunge at Anna at any moment.
"Gah—"
The red light in the Biting-type Honkai Beast's eye lit up. At that moment, Anna clearly saw this subtle detail and dodged to the side with all her might.
"Slasher—"
She didn't see the Honkai Beast's movement, but after dodging to her right, her left arm felt a sharp pain. A deep wound appeared on her arm, but it was immediately frozen, preventing much blood from flowing out.
The Biting-type Honkai Beast missed its target and crashed into the snow. Anna ignored the pain in her arm, grabbed a wooden stick stuck in the snow, and swung it backhand onto the Honkai Beast's head.
"Snap!"
After a crisp sound, the wooden stick immediately broke, but it didn't leave any mark on the Honkai Beast.
Ordinary weapons are very difficult to damage Honkai Beasts. Their outer skin is a Honkai energy-reinforced fibrous material, which cannot be artificially synthesized. It has multiple functions for cushioning, defense, and flexibility, and also allows Honkai energy to flow within it. Forget a wooden stick, with Anna's current normal human physique, she couldn't pierce it even with a longsword.
Failing to land a strike, Anna immediately dropped the broken stick and ran into a corner ahead.
"Gah!" The Biting-type Honkai Beast flew up, readjusted its posture, and screamed as it pursued Anna.
"Heeyah!"
Just as it flew past a corner, the chestnut-haired girl raised a garbage can lid and slammed it onto its head, then kicked the garbage can before ducking into a house with an open window.
"Clatter." The Honkai Beast roared as it flew out of the garbage can.
Anna hid beneath the windowsill, covering her mouth and nose, wide-eyed, silently listening to the sound of what resembled bird wings flapping past outside the window.
Phew… dodged that one.
Anna put her hand down only after confirming that the Biting-type Honkai Beast had flown far away. She inhaled a breath of cold air, relieved, and her beret fell to her feet.
"Gah."
Anna's hair stood on end.
A Biting-type Honkai Beast, hanging upside down from the ceiling, was staring at her, frozen motionless in terror.
Picking up her beret, she jumped out the window and fled.
"Gah!"
…
Where on earth is that person! Monsters are rampant here now!
Anna felt like she was running the fastest she ever had in her life. The Honkai Beast behind her, which seemed not to have fully mutated, was much slower than the first, but it was still close on her heels.
"Thump."
And at this critical moment, Anna tripped.
As she fell toward the snow, she thought, I'm finished.
"Ahhhhhhhhh!"
"Bang!"
A heavy impact sound. She saw the Honkai Beast fly over her head.
Anna, who had fallen to the ground, immediately got back up and looked behind her.
A jeep skidded on the snowy ground, creating four deep ruts from its forceful turn. After hitting and sending the Honkai Beast flying, it barely managed to stop behind her.
A familiar head popped out the window and shouted, "Anna!"
"Hina?!" Anna looked at the girl in the nun's habit with surprise.