Chapter 599 - 599: Turned Into Gacha?! - 599

Just who is this strange girl, and where did she come from? She hadn't shown a shred of surprise when she saw Kiana; looking at the state of the room, it was clearly her own living space.

Was she on the same side as that person in the power armor from earlier?

Despite the flood of questions in her mind, Fu Hua didn't give anything away. Besides, the girl was clearly helping to stabilize the Honkai energy within Kiana—which was, by all accounts, a good thing.

Still...

Watching the Honkai erosion marks on the silver-haired girl's face, a flicker of genuine concern stirred in Fu Hua's heart.

For reasons she couldn't quite put her finger on, she felt an inexplicable, groundless sense of trust toward this stranger.

If she hadn't known for a fact that her consciousness was untampered with, she would have been much more guarded.

"Whew..."

For Firefly, manipulating Honkai energy was second nature, and drawing it out of someone else into her own body was just as simple. While the marks appearing on her face might have looked like signs of erosion, it was actually just a natural physiological response to a sudden, massive influx of energy.

She was still suffering from Entropy Loss Syndrome; this genetic defect made it difficult for her to retain the energy within her—the moment she generated any, she would inevitably burn through even more.

As the Honkai energy settled, Firefly let out a soft breath.

As a mere feather, Fu Hua couldn't accurately gauge the girl's true condition, but looking at her expression, she seemed fine—perhaps even a bit more flushed and healthy than before.

That brought a sense of relief to Fu Hua.

Firefly had originally planned to prepare some food. Not only might Kiana be hungry when she woke up, but she herself had been pulled away right at mealtime.

However, before she could even stand, a soft groan escaped Kiana's lips. Her eyelids fluttered, and she quickly opened her eyes.

That wasn't right. Given the physical and mental toll Kiana had been under, it was highly unlikely she would wake up this quickly—even with the help of someone absorbing the harmful energy from her body.

You must have pushed yourself, Phoenix.

Firefly thought to herself, feeling a bit helpless.

Come to think of it, appearing in that power armor surely made her seem like some "mysterious individual." Masks have a natural tendency to create an air of secrecy and suspicion.

Given Kiana's identity and current predicament, she certainly had every reason to be wary of danger.

"Where... am I?"

An unfamiliar ceiling. In the corner of her eye, she caught the clean, warm glow of a chandelier.

Ever since she had begun wandering, she had rarely seen a ceiling that felt this lived-in. Where was she?

The last thing she remembered was collapsing after taking down a Honkai beast. Had someone helped her? In such a godforsaken wasteland?

The homely atmosphere kept her from suspecting she'd been captured by Schicksal or some other organization.

As her gaze shifted, she saw she was lying on a neatly made bed. Sitting beside it was a girl wearing a white sailor-style school uniform, her expression serene and her eyes gentle.

Had she saved her?

Kiana felt a rush of relief, but it was immediately followed by a wave of tension and panic.

She was painfully aware of how dangerous her condition was. It wasn't just her; that violent, surging Honkai energy could easily cause those around her to suffer from erosion as well.

This girl looked fine for now, which meant she had some level of resistance, but that didn't mean she would stay that way forever.

'Calm down, Kiana.'

Before Kiana could say a word, Fu Hua's voice echoed in her mind.

If anything, it didn't calm Kiana down at all; instead, it fueled a sense of stifled anger and resentment.

"Um... are you feeling any better?" Seeing Kiana's expression, Firefly asked with a mix of surprise and worry.

"Huh? No... wait?"

To say she felt fine would be a lie—given her condition, it wouldn't have been a surprise if she'd died shortly after. But when Kiana instinctively checked her own body, she realized that the constant, gnawing pain had actually faded significantly.

It wasn't just the numbness of someone getting used to pain; the agony was genuinely, almost completely gone.

Could this girl have helped her? Was she more than just an ordinary person?

'A suit of armor brought you back to this room in the apartment while wearing that power armor, but they left shortly after a communication call. Not long after, this girl arrived and absorbed the Honkai energy from your body.'

Fu Hua offered a concise summary of what had just transpired.

Even though Kiana still harbored resentment toward Fu Hua's past betrayal, the information helped her make sense of the situation.

"Who are you?" Kiana asked, unable to suppress her wariness.

"I... I'm just a student," Firefly said, gesturing to her uniform. "You... don't you recognize me?"

"Recognize you?"

Kiana was completely bewildered. Why should she know who this girl was?

"Because you appeared here, and you had that strange sickness," the silver-haired girl explained. "So, I assumed... you must have known something about me, which is why you found a way to come here."

Strange sickness... could she mean the Honkai erosion?

Both Kiana and Fu Hua realized the implication.

'She just absorbed the Honkai energy from you. The way the erosion manifests on her body is unlike anything I have ever seen before.'

Fu Hua, having witnessed everything, spoke with a mix of analysis and interpretation. Instinctively, she didn't want to think ill of the girl.

'Perhaps she possesses a unique power that can treat Honkai erosion.'

Such a power existed?

Kiana's eyes widened, her lingering resentment momentarily forgotten. But then, her thoughts drifted to Himeko's condition and the serum that was supposed to save her life—the serum that had been injected into her own body.

She fell into a daze.

Fu Hua continued her analysis: 'Perhaps her ability to absorb Honkai energy from others has drawn the attention of those with ulterior motives. She showed no surprise that this was her room, implying this isn't the first time she's done this.'

'She is absorbing the Honkai energy into her own body. The long-term effects on her are still unknown. There is only so much I can observe from here.'

Most of all, Fu Hua wasn't sure if this ability was harmful to the girl herself. Although she seemed fine for now, in Fu Hua's experience with the Honkai, there was no such thing as a free lunch.

Powerful and convenient abilities usually came with a heavy price—much like the flaws inherent in the Flame-Chasers.

Firefly, oblivious to Fu Hua's cautionary thoughts, saw Kiana staring blankly and spoke up once more. "Are you hungry? Would you like something to eat?"

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T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL