The place to stay wasn't hard to find. Takatsuki's apartment was in an apartment complex, and Changkong City wasn't a densely populated city, so there were many vacant rooms for rent on the same floor.
Although the rooms in this apartment complex weren't large, Kiana had lived under bridges while wandering, so it wasn't an issue.
However, to his surprise, after finding a suitable apartment, an unexpected problem arose when renting it.
"Sorry! Takatsuki, please lend me some money!"
Takatsuki stared at Kiana, who had her hands clasped together, and paused: "What's wrong? Did you come to rent a place without money?"
She didn't seem like it before. If Kiana didn't have money, she would definitely show it.
"No… it's just that my card was frozen for some reason."
Kiana pulled out a card and said, somewhat dejectedly.
Although Siegfried had abandoned Kiana and disappeared, he had still left her assets. After all, Kaslanas were big eaters, and if Kiana wandered alone, she might starve to death at any time.
Siegfried and Cecilia's salaries at Schicksal were not low; over several years, it amounted to a considerable fortune.
Frozen…
Takatsuki looked at the black card and thought of something. He remembered mentioning Siegfried online a long time ago, saying that Kiana's father, after disappearing, had indulged in the tender embrace of St. Freya. Someone had also replied, saying that Siegfried had actually been following Kiana all along, secretly protecting her, just not meeting her, which was why Kiana couldn't find Siegfried.
And Kiana's bank card was frozen right after she completed her enrollment.
Takatsuki didn't need to think twice to know that Kiana must have spent a fortune to get herself into Senba Academy.
And Siegfried, knowing Kiana had entered, froze the card to ensure she didn't have enough funds to continue wandering.
Takatsuki had always wondered why Kiana, despite wandering everywhere, would enroll and attend Senba Academy.
Perhaps this was the truth: it wasn't that she didn't want to leave, but that she had no money to leave at the time. By the time she saved up, the Honkai Eruption had already erupted.
Siegfried had truly gone to great lengths to ensure Kiana could experience a school life.
Ultimately, Takatsuki did not refuse Kiana's request for help; otherwise, Kiana would have to endure the elements again for a while.
"Thank you, Takatsuki. I'll treat you to dinner."
"Do you have money…"
Kiana just remembered she was completely broke and chuckled awkwardly twice.
"Here, you can use this for now. Figure out how to earn money yourself; I have something to do."
Takatsuki took out over a dozen ten-thousand-yen banknotes from his person and handed them to Kiana.
"Oh, how can I accept this…"
True friendship is revealed in times of trouble. Although Kiana didn't remember Takatsuki, she felt he was a reliable person, someone who truly stepped up when needed.
"It's fine, just take it for now. If you really want to thank me, just help me with something tomorrow."
"Help? What kind of help?"
Takatsuki didn't answer, waving his hand: "You'll know tomorrow. It's just a small favor. I have to go."
He did have to go. Because a new mission had refreshed today, Takatsuki had told Mei in the morning that he had something to do. After all, with Honkai Beasts, even though he had made many preparations, who knew what unexpected things might happen.
After a hasty farewell to Kiana, Takatsuki went downstairs to a flower shop to buy a bouquet of baby's breath before heading to Mei's house.
He knocked on Mei's door again. Seeing Mei open the door, Takatsuki handed her the bouquet.
"Please go out with me."
"Come in quickly, dinner will be ready soon."
Now, Takatsuki didn't need to force the flowers on her. Mei naturally accepted the bouquet and, after entering the room, placed it in a vase that had already been prepared.
Takatsuki also changed into the prepared slippers at the entrance and walked in.
This had been the situation for a month. Throughout the entire winter break, Takatsuki would come over every day, performing the same routine. As if by unspoken agreement, Mei never directly responded to Takatsuki's confessions, and Takatsuki never demanded a direct answer.
Originally, Takatsuki had almost forgotten that this was a Honkai world, and even hoped it would continue like this.
Until Kiana's arrival, which reminded Takatsuki that the main plot was about to begin.
He didn't remember the exact time of the Third Honkai, but since Kiana had arrived, it meant it wasn't far off. He needed to prepare quickly. Fortunately, after completing tomorrow's mission, he would have enough for a ten-pull, which was also a hundred draws from the item pool, guaranteeing an S-rank item.
After having dinner with Mei and chatting while watching TV for a while, Takatsuki left Mei's house.
Upon returning home, he didn't go to find Kiana but instead began researching his system at home.
He still remembered that his system tasks would update according to his surroundings, and once a day's task was set, it wouldn't change.
But today, he met Kiana, one of the female protagonists of Honkai Impact 3rd, and he was certain that tomorrow's tasks would definitely change.
The system's tasks refreshed at midnight, and with two female protagonists, he might even get double task rewards.
Soon, the tasks refreshed, and Takatsuki rolled his eyes at the new ones.
It would have been better if they hadn't refreshed.
Half of his original expectation was met: the tasks doubled, but the rewards didn't.
The four tasks, "talk to Mei," "give flowers," and "confess and reach the top of Senba Academy," became "talk to Kiana," "talk to Mei," "dine with Kiana," and "dine with Mei."
The fifth was the task he had just completed today, "eliminate Honkai Beasts."
The task reward was still one crystal.
He shouldn't have held any expectations.
The next day, Takatsuki went to complete the "eliminate Honkai Beasts" task early in the morning. With previous experience, dealing with these Honkai Beast cannon fodder was no longer a problem.
Then, at noon, he went to find Mei and had lunch with her. Although there were no tasks for giving flowers or confessing anymore, Takatsuki still maintained this habit.
Unbeknownst to them, this had already become an unspoken understanding between the two.
Moreover, Takatsuki saw a new spot for flowers Mei prepared every day, so it would be a waste if he didn't bring flowers.
In the evening, he went to find Kiana.
"Kiana! Come out, I'm treating you to a meal!"
Kiana opened the door. Even from outside the door, Takatsuki could notice the messy room inside. Unlike Mei's meticulously organized room, Kiana was completely uninhibited.
"Why did you suddenly think of treating me to a meal, young master?"
"Why so many questions? Just tell me if you're coming or not."
"Coming, coming, coming! Wait for me to change."
The two of them found a roadside stall outside and started eating ramen. Takatsuki knew Kiana had a big appetite, so he could only find places with large portions. It wasn't that he didn't want to go to a buffet; it was because he had just learned that Kiana, in less than two days, had already been blacklisted by all the buffet restaurants in the city.
Oh, many of them were because they were chain restaurants.
"Kiana, didn't I say before that I needed your help?"
Hearing Takatsuki's words, Kiana reacted, "Oh, right! I knew you were being too nice; it was for this, wasn't it? Tell me, what do you need my help with?"
Taking out the phone he had prepared, Takatsuki held it and pretended to operate it, opening a gacha interface from a game and placing it on the table.
"Help me pull a gacha. I know you had good luck when you were little."