"Kika's inner world has always been very empty and helpless...
As the young lady of the Mushoku family, she understood better than anyone the family's philosophy of fighting against the Honkai...
'To exist is merely to become a shadow in the darkness, to protect the people, to fight the Honkai at all costs. To burn everything of oneself, and in the end, like something colorless and transparent, leave nothing behind in this world...'
Kika was still a child; she couldn't accept this philosophy of the Mushoku family...
But what she didn't expect was...
The Mushoku family had no other choice...
The Mushoku family's Stigmata was like a death warrant carved into their bloodline, urging them to carry out their destiny.
The Mushoku family's Stigmata is dominant, just like the Kaslana family's. Even if not fully awakened, its characteristics will manifest in every member of the family.
Because the continuation of the Stigmata also represents the continuation of life, and it requires Honkai energy to operate, the Mushoku family can never truly say goodbye to the Honkai. Their daily lives are closely intertwined with it.
But the Mushoku family's Stigmata consumes life force in exchange for power...
So Kika gave up. In our modern terms, she started 'lying flat.'
Between dying at the hands of the Honkai or dying when her lifespan ran out, Kika chose to enjoy life to the fullest until she died..."
"What are you talking about!! What do you mean, 'enjoy life until death'!!" Kika grabbed Ryn by the neck and shook him vigorously.
"This is called seizing the day! Do you understand seizing the day?!"
"Cough, cough, cough... Do you want me to bring up that time you ate forty donuts in one go and almost ate yourself to death... Mmmph, mmmph—"
Before Ryn could finish, Kika's small hand shot up and covered his mouth, stopping him from saying any more.
"Don't you dare mention that! Who knew Theresa could make donuts, and that they would be so delicious!"
Durandal and Rita, standing nearby, shared a knowing smile. Although Ryn didn't say it, from Kika and Ryn's conversation, the two could already picture a very funny scene in their minds.
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"To be of the Mushoku, to leave no trace of oneself. But before disappearing, one must properly enjoy the beauty of the world.
And so, Kika lived with this mindset.
Until that day, while waiting in line to buy donuts, her encounter with Kiana outside the dessert shop changed her perspective...
Kiana, like a passionate little sun, completely disregarded the personal walls Kika had built up and burst directly into her world, illuminating Kika's gloomy heart and becoming her only friend at the time."
"Hey, hey, hey! That white-haired fluffball wasn't that important. I only cared about the free, unlimited desserts she mentioned! What do you mean, 'illuminating my gloomy heart'? I don't remember my past being that twisted!!"
Kika stomped her foot angrily, not agreeing with a single word Ryn said. It was bad enough that he made her sound so pathetic, but why did he have to make Kiana sound so perfect, calling her a sun and all that!
She was clearly a stubborn wild bull that wouldn't listen to reason. When she was at home playing games, that bull had charged in and dragged her to her house.
"Ehehe~ You always have to embellish a story a little~" Ryn stuck out his tongue and winked playfully.
"Then why don't you embellish me!"
"This is your story. If I embellish it, it won't be realistic."
"I'll bite you to death."
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"Kiana's warmth and sunshine healed everyone's heart. Like a light that connects everything, she brought together problem children like Kika, me, and Mei, who all had our own issues, into a tight-knit group.
Perhaps it was a sense of camaraderie among kindred spirits. We, these monsters who didn't fit in with ordinary people, formed a deep bond from the moment we met.
We tolerated each other, understood each other, and grew together...
There's nothing particularly noteworthy about how Kika and I met; in fact, it was rather embarrassing...
It was just that the gluttonous Kika was tricked into coming to my house by Kiana with the promise of a 'super-duper limited deluxe ultimate edition new-style dessert.'
And that 'super-duper limited deluxe ultimate edition new-style dessert' was actually... just me, bored out of my mind, melting all the desserts Kiana had bought together, adding some special ingredients, and then remaking it with my meticulous craftsmanship...
As a result, the frail Kika ended up in the hospital...
And as the one responsible for the incident, I went to the hospital to visit Kika every day. We got to know each other and became friends.
To make it up to Kika, I promised her that I would prepare whatever she wanted to eat.
I even developed a small habit of always carrying some desserts with me."
After speaking, Ryn bumped his head against the head of Kika, who was happily eating a small chocolate cake beside him.
Kika, who was eating the small cake Ryn had given her, paused for a moment, then bumped her head against his as well.
Hearing Ryn's words warmed her heart. Although their first meeting wasn't exactly pleasant, it had at least left a deep impression on her.
She scooped up a spoonful of cake and personally fed it to Ryn.
"So that's when you developed the habit of always carrying desserts... I always thought you prepared them for Kiana and just gave them to me on the side..."
Ryn opened his mouth and accepted Kika's feeding.
"Kiana doesn't really like desserts that much. You little fool, it seems if I hadn't told you this time, you would have never found out!"
"Hmph! I found out a long time ago, I was just waiting for you to tell me!" Kika turned her head away arrogantly, but her body betrayed her thoughts.
She wrapped her arm around Ryn's, her body already swaying happily, her two little feet dangling and swinging cheerfully from the chair.
"Hmph, hmph, since Ryn also shared a little secret, I'll share one too!"
"Oh? Let's hear it. Is it about me?"
"Mhm..."
"Then I'll be looking forward to it!"
Ryn beamed, squinting his eyes and preparing to listen to Kika.
Nearby, Durandal and Rita had already taken out new little notebooks. The previous one was for Kika's story; now that it was about Ryn, they needed a new one.
Everyone's stories were still very long. One book wasn't enough to write about a single person, so how could they write about everyone together!