Honkai Impact: Grandma Pine Sparrow is still chasing me!

Chapter 370 Until Eternity

At 6:30 a.m., while most students were still dreaming, Raiden Mei began her day.

"Mei, hehe..."

Hearing this somewhat silly rambling, Mei, who was getting up to wash, shook her head helplessly—for some reason, they had moved into the headmaster's house before Himeko Murata's dormitory was repaired.

She originally wanted to sleep in Sora's room, but Kiana kept pestering her... Anyway, it's normal for best friends to sleep together, right? It's just that Kiana's hands aren't very clean.

Now, Kiana is grinning foolishly with messy hair and drool at the corners of her mouth... and she has to get up and cook.

Although St. Freya Academy has a cafeteria, and Principal Theresa has said she'll make breakfast, but...

In her quest to become a Valkyrie destined to be both elegant and domestic, capable of defeating Honkai Beasts and fox spirits, Raiden Mei still enjoys making her own breakfast.

After all, as Bronya said, to win over Sora, you have to win over her stomach first! Although March 7th and the Firefly Silver Wolf have left, Yae-sensei has gone crazy for some reason, and Seele seems to be a bit... Anyway, she still has to protect Sora from the crazy vixen secretary and the girl with budding feelings, so she can't let her guard down!

Regardless, Mei tiptoed out of bed, afraid of waking Kiana. She went into the kitchen, skillfully tied on an apron, and began preparing fried rice. Crack the eggs, stir, fry—her movements were fluid and efficient.

"Theresa, I'm coming in—oh, Mei, it's you! Why are you up so early today? Hmm, you smell wonderful!"

"Oh, Himeko-sensei, you've arrived?"

Mei peeked out and saw that Himeko-sensei had somehow appeared at the kitchen doorway, having come from the entrance hall.

"I didn't expect you to arrive so early, Ms. Himeko. Everyone is still asleep, and we'll have to wait for breakfast..."

"It's okay, I can wait."

Himeko walked into the kitchen with a smile. With nothing else to do, she wandered around Mei, watching Mei cook with great interest.

As the person primarily responsible for the major renovations that Himeko's family was forced to undertake, Mei felt a little uncomfortable being watched by Himeko.

"By the way, Himeko-sensei, what about your place back home..."

"We managed to salvage everything that could be salvaged, but they were mostly small items..."

Himeko waved her hand dismissively, but her attitude made Mei feel a little guilty—she didn't know that the crystals left by Silver Wolf had a considerable surplus after deducting the dormitory's maintenance costs, not to mention that the maintenance costs had already been reported to headquarters for reimbursement...

However, Himeko's gaze remained fixed on the fried rice that Mei was stir-frying.

"Mei, your cooking skills are getting better and better. I'm even a little envious of Sora because he'll be able to eat your cooking every day from now on!"

Upon hearing Himeko's words, Mei's hand paused slightly.

"Himeko-sensei, you flatter me. I just made a simple breakfast. By the way, speaking of Sora..."

Mei looked at Himeko somewhat embarrassed.

"Himeko-sensei, the sword that Sora gave me..."

"I couldn't find it."

Meiyi:?

Mei's spatula was suspended in mid-air.

"Couldn't find it? But I clearly hung it on the wall! Even if it exploded, it wouldn't..."

"Walter and I searched every room and every corner."

Himeko stretched and yawned, seemingly still half asleep.

"Walter is in charge of tidying up Bronya and Seele's rooms, and I'm in charge of tidying up myself and yours. The top shelf of the wardrobe, the storage boxes under the bed, the crystal box by the door, I even found those 'little toys' you hid deep in the wardrobe—but I really didn't expect that Mei wanted to play like that with Sora-kun?"

"what?!"

Mei's face instantly turned bright red, and she lowered her head. She remembered that the despicable Herrscher of Thunder had indeed tricked her when she was full of anxiety, making her spend money to buy some "little toys" for Sora... but in the end, she didn't use them because of her shame.

Himeko smiled mischievously as she looked at the girl who had been transformed into a steampunk princess.

"Alright, alright, I'm not teasing you anymore. Keep an eye on it, don't burn the rice! Anyway, I can confirm that the sword really wasn't found, and Walter said he didn't see it either."

"I see..."

Mei felt a pang of disappointment; that sword held immense significance for her. It was a gift from Qiong… well, perhaps not exactly a gift, but to her, the Dragon's Roar in its sheath carried the memories of the four of them escaping Changkong City together, and it was also the first gift Qiong had ever given her…

The only sound in the kitchen was the sizzling of fried rice in the pan. Mei turned off the gas stove, still unwilling to give up, and planned to go check on it herself in a while.

"Could it be Qiong...?"

"Qiong boy simply didn't have time; he never went back. It's even less likely anyone would steal it—why would he steal a sword that looks like a work of art when there are so many crystals scattered on the floor near the room?"

Not always.

Mei bit her lip gently. It was very possible that the firefly stole her sword out of jealousy before she ran away... It seemed very possible! No matter what, she had to find that sword back!

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"Long, long ago, in a castle beyond the northern border of the Houmu Kingdom... well, let's call it Beloborg Castle for now! In the castle lived a girl named Xiao Lei, whose age was unknown to all the Houmu, and whom the Houmu called the Ice and Snow Witch..."

In the special ward of the Destiny Headquarters, Qiong was telling Xing a bedtime story to her, who was lying on the bed next to him.

"This Xiao Lei felt extremely lonely after her mother's death. She couldn't bear the deathly silence of the castle, so she would often ride the snowstorm to the nearby villages to drive away the unfortunate Houmu. The Houmu couldn't stand the biting cold of the snowstorm and her unpredictable ice golem attacks. They were either turned into ice sculptures while trying to escape, or gradually lost hope in the daily cold..."

Xing blinked, and for some reason, she suddenly felt a little heavy-headed... and felt very sleepy?

No, she couldn't sleep! This was a story her brother had told her, and she had to remember it so he would tell her a new one tomorrow!

"The Kingdom of Houmu has fallen into an eternal winter, and what's worse, the temperature continues to drop. In this desperate situation, people cry out for a hero... and so he comes. Through the trickery and deception of the Great Sage Dog and Nana, a friend of Xiao Lei's mother, the summoned hero from another world, Xiao Hui, and his companions defeat Xiao Lei..."

For some reason, Xing felt that Qiong's words sounded a bit...helpless?

"Ahem, after Xiao Lei was defeated, the Houmu Kingdom finally ushered in spring. But Xiao Hui discovered that Xiao Lei was an extremely love-starved child, and that she did those things only because of loneliness. So, his conscience kicked in, and he decided to help Xiao Lei—"

Did he succeed?

For some reason, Xing suddenly felt like asking.

Qiong patted Xing's head and shook his head with a smile.

"Halfway to success? The Ice Witch tried to kidnap the seemingly friendly and gentle Little Gray, forcing him to stay in the castle to keep her company in place of his deceased mother. And Little Gray... he left after defeating the witch; he had done his best. Although sometimes he wondered if things would have been better if he hadn't made that choice, he still left because in his world, there were still people waiting for him at home... In the end, he successfully returned to his family and friends, and the story ended there."

After listening to Qiong's story, Xing felt nothing, but a thought suddenly flashed through her mind.

"Brother, why can't Little Grey stay and keep Little Lei company?"

"what?"

The two fell into a silent silence, and the scene became somewhat awkward.

Qiong was both amused and exasperated. Putting everything else aside, if he chose to stay and accompany Leiera, then there would be no stars left! Don't pity the Ice Witch, pity the unlucky guy who was summoned from another world, okay?

"Little Star, this Gray Hero has his own responsibilities and concerns. In his world, there are many people waiting for him to return, including his sister!"

"Brother, I just said it casually! It just suddenly came to mind!"

Xing suddenly threw down the baseball bat beside her, grabbed Qiong's hand, and took two deep breaths.

Generally speaking, if it were an ordinary person, seeing this would probably land them in the psychiatric ward, but is Xing Neng an ordinary person?

Therefore, Qiong didn't pay too much attention. The key was to coax Xing to sleep. Now that I think about it, I seem to have promised Xier to tell me a bedtime story... Never mind, I'll sing a song instead.

"Alright, alright, time to sleep: I'll sing you a song one last time: My broken wooden box, filled with withered flowers, can't hold light and soil, and fresh wishes..."

Xing's eyelids grew heavy, and her breathing became even and long. Seeing her little sister asleep, Qiong felt relieved and left—they couldn't possibly sleep together, could they?

Qiong Guan closed the door and headed towards dormitory 404. However, he was unaware of the trouble that was about to befall him…

Shadows are capable of absorbing fear to enhance their own existence. Conversely, to utilize shadows, one must consume the deep-seated fear within one's heart—or make contact with the very source of all shadows.

Just like Hoshino's nightmare last night, in which an evil woman stole her brother and Sora's "Mei," causing her considerable fear. And today, she used that fear to exchange for a "treasure" she found in a trash can—however, the conversion rate wasn't 100%...

At midnight, all was silent. For some unknown reason, Xing slowly opened her eyes. If the lights were on, others would be astonished to find that the girl's once beautiful golden eyes were now shrouded in an eerie purple mist. Even a few strands of her hair had turned from gray to black…

[Hmm, it smells like Danheng...]

Star, or rather, Leera? Her fingertips unconsciously curled, crumpling the sheets beneath her. She brought the baseball bat from the sky to her lips; if it weren't for the unhygienic conditions and the saliva stains, she might have already licked it…

The girl's burning eyes were fixed on the baseball bat—this was the second time she had found her knight recently, and the interval between them was so short…

It's infuriating just thinking about it! What a great opportunity it was last time! If it weren't for that damned woman's contingency plan, she and Danheng would be living a blissful life together right now! And that manipulative woman managed to steal him away from her again!

I thought I had missed the first great opportunity in many years, but Xing contacted me again right away?

The gods don't make the same mistake twice. The moment she sensed the star, Leiera knew that another opportunity had come.

【Hahaha……】

Then, she got her foot in the bag. Now she smiled, she was overjoyed, and she was genuinely grateful to her "star sister created by Lithost and Nahera." If it weren't for her good compatibility, allowing her to briefly control her while she slept, she wouldn't even be able to touch this baseball bat!

Now, she is finally going to take action to reclaim her knight from those people.

The goddess's joy quickly turned into regret—regret that they were too far away and that her fear was only so-so. Otherwise, she could have controlled Xing's body a little longer, completed the positioning, and drawn the goddess's magic circle, allowing the goddess of Luo Xing to descend across time and space and give her beloved knight an unexpected and wonderful surprise...

When the time comes, how should I greet the knight who has turned back from his wrong path?

Unfortunately, not now.

The sensations from her fingertips were becoming blurry, her vision flickering like a screen with a poor signal, and she was experiencing floaters. The sliver of light within the star was rapidly dwindling, like a drop in the ocean. Leiera could clearly feel her control over the star vanishing like the receding tide.

[Tsk... That's still too much of a stretch.]

She clicked her tongue in slight reluctance. It was too fast. If it had been a little longer, she would have wanted to see him and kiss him—even though he was a star, it would be almost the same, as long as he wasn't some random random woman.

[Danheng, please bear with me a little longer, wait for me, wait for me, I'll be right there to see you...]

Lera murmured to herself—she really liked the name Danheng: after all, Heng meant eternity to her. And eternity is something that cannot be lost, and it also carried her wishes…

In a sense, she is also a "persistent" deity.

The purple mist began to fade away from the edges of her golden eyes, and her jet-black hair quietly returned to gray—but before her consciousness left her, Leiera did one last thing.

She lowered her head and kissed the bat deeply—it was just a small kiss, but it was like a stamp, leaving an imprint on the end of the bat's grip. The black kiss mark flashed by, quickly disappearing into the incredibly hard bat.

This kiss was imperceptible to the naked eye, and even Xing and his master Qiong, once they were awake, would find it extremely difficult to notice—currently, it was a mark, a mark that only she could perceive, which would only take effect under the guidance of the gods.

As for its function... on one hand, it serves as a beacon, and on the other hand, when she descends again, Sora will no longer be able to escape her love by breaking the "rules".

Next time, I promise I won't let you get away! My dearest Danheng...

Leiera, holding her baseball bat, spoke with a hint of cat-and-mouse shrewdness and an air of certainty.

[By then... what you owe me... what I owe you... I'll pay it all back!]

After doing all this, Xing's body trembled slightly. She remained in a hunched, head-down position, her breathing becoming steady and long. The baseball bat slipped from her loose fingers and gently fell onto the bed.

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"Well……"

Xing felt very tired, as if she hadn't slept last night, but had secretly run five hundred laps around the headquarters of Destiny—but logically she shouldn't be tired even if she did that, right?

Xing sat up, rubbed her slightly throbbing forehead, and subconsciously glanced around the room... Hmm, everything here is as usual.

Is Qiong still asleep? Should I call him to have breakfast together later? Subconsciously, Xing's gaze fell on the baseball bat beside her.

"Um……"

For some reason, Xing's heart skipped a beat. A very subtle sense of unease lingered in her mind, indescribable... She reached out and picked up the baseball bat, feeling its familiar weight and texture.

But... something seems different?

Xing examined the baseball bat closely; it seemed... a little cooler than usual?

Or was it just her imagination?

"Did you overdo it with your run yesterday and haven't recovered yet?"

Xing muttered to herself, attributing it all to the amount of exercise she'd done yesterday that surpassed that of a B-rank Valkyrie—she couldn't think of any other explanation. And more than that, she was concerned about how she would spend today with her brother…

We can't exactly go back to the training grounds of the Undying Blade, can we?

However, unseen by her, the invisible mark on the bat, like a dormant seed, quietly awaits the next nourishment of fear, or... the touch of another specific being? Then, it will quietly sprout, guiding the way to a deity hundreds of millions of kilometers away. And then, together with the bat's owner...

Until eternity.

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I ate too many mooncakes, so my update is late... Hehe.