Chapter 111: Raven: Waaaaah, My Bonus, My Bonus!
Her picturesque brows furrowed, March 7th's expression was suspicious. It was mainly because Stelle and Caelus often said strange things; she was almost used to it by now. Paying a rich woman back with his body... a rich woman... is it Asta? Among the people Caelus knew, the only one he could call a rich woman seemed to be Asta.
Just as March 7th was trying to translate Caelus's words in her head, she noticed that Natasha and Bronya's expressions had become quite heavy, and the way they looked at Caelus was very complicated.
So complicated that March 7th's clear eyes couldn't decipher the meaning they contained. Natasha and Bronya seemed to be lost in deep thought, a hint of struggle flickering in their eyes.
"Caelus! You... how could you do something like that!"
Azure eyes trembling slightly, the older Seele was characteristically blunt. Her personality had always been independent and strong. How could she let her good friend become a kept man, to be humiliated by a rich woman with a steel wool ball, all to pay a price for her?
However, when she thought about the fact that the beneficiaries of Caelus's kindness weren't just herself, or Natasha, or their companions, but all the residents of the Underworld, the older Seele's imposing aura gradually collapsed and weakened. She clenched her fists tightly, a deep sense of powerlessness enveloping her. It felt like a friend was selling his body to support her family.
Wait!
Suddenly remembering the panting sounds of Natasha she had heard from Caelus's room at the Goethe Grand Hotel, the older Seele's eyes glazed over. Her gaze shifted back and forth between Caelus and the complex-looking Natasha. C-could it be?
"Hey, it's nothing... we're all friends, what's there to talk about?"
Caelus waved his hand magnanimously, completely unconcerned. His selfless demeanor instantly brought tears to the eyes of many of the armed Wildfire members.
To be honest, if the tiger he was feeding was a rich woman in the form of Kokomi, the line of people willing to serve themselves up on a platter to the little pink-haired rich girl would stretch from Belobog to Penacony! The patent fee for a tiny region and population like Belobog was less than a mosquito's leg to Asta, but as a good friend, Caelus certainly couldn't let Asta lose out. If the little pink-haired rich girl wanted to play with him to her heart's content, Caelus promised not to resist! Even if it meant becoming a live-in husband!
"Caelus, you brat! Your debt is my debt! I'll pay it back with you!"
Her cool, refined face was solemn and dignified. Stelle raised her hand and clapped Caelus firmly on the shoulder, looking for all the world like she was ready to live or die with him. This debt... from being kept by the little pink-haired rich girl, I want a piece of it!
"I... I..."
Hearing Stelle's words, the hesitation in Bronya's eyes dissipated. She bit her silver teeth, her pretty face gradually turning crimson, as if she had made up her mind. Just as she was about to open her mouth to speak, she suddenly became aware of the current situation and swallowed the words that were on the tip of her tongue. But somehow, Bronya became even more nervous than before. Her heart pounded like a drum, sending blood and a strange feeling throughout her body. Her cheeks were unconsciously burning hot. Her head felt a little dizzy. Bronya averted her gaze from Caelus and happened to see Natasha's unreadable expression.
"Anyway, with this, the food problem in the Underworld is completely solved."
Caelus looked at Svarog, who was scanning the mushrooms.
"Scanning... Cell activity and recombination and division ability are extremely high. This fungus contains 57 types of vitamins, minerals, and proteins from the database, and unknown types... Genes are normal. Overall evaluation: A high-quality large fungus that provides energy for the human body."
"Alright, Svarog, stop scanning the mushrooms. It's all written in the spore packet's instructions."
Caelus interrupted Svarog's meaningless action, his casual, lazy expression becoming a little more serious. "Svarog, let me see!"
"Request lacks necessary subject. Please provide, Authority Caelus," the dull mechanical voice sounded.
"I need all the information related to the Stellaron."
Caelus snapped his fingers with a faint smile. Bronya, who had been looking down, suddenly lifted her head, the faint blush on her face quickly fading.
"Requesting access to database... Encryption level: Maximum. Authority authentication passed. Access granted. Data and audio records related to the Stellaron have been compiled. Call up immediately?"
After Caelus nodded, Svarog, after a brief system processing, raised his right hand. The mechanical palm opened, projecting a virtual light screen.
"Data access approved. Now playing..."
The surveillance prototype Unit 03, Svarog, displayed everything he had recorded over the past hundreds of years related to the Stellaron—all the data and historical images—for everyone to see.
The truth was revealed.
The great catastrophe that swept the planet began with the Stellaron. The first Supreme Guardian, Alisa Rand, activated it, covering the world in a cold wave. Successive Guardians were all aware of this but were powerless to do anything, so they chose to weave lies so that the city and its people could continue to survive in this false, temporary peace.
Dan Heng took note of the information he hadn't known before. The older Seele and Natasha watched intently. They had already heard about the Stellaron from Caelus and Dan Heng; this was just the final nail in the coffin.
"The Antimatter Legion, the Stellaron, the Eternal Freeze, the Supreme Guardian... Mother..."
In a near whisper, Bronya's face turned pale, her expression dim. Everything... everything was just as Caelus had told her. Bronya had found all the evidence, the evidence she needed to make her decision. Her mother had been eroded and bewitched by the Stellaron. Although she had already believed Caelus's words, at this moment of final confirmation, she still nearly stopped breathing.
"Big Sister Bronya!" Seele timely held Bronya's slightly cold hand.
"You've lived in lies long enough, Bronya. Now is your chance to break free from the cage," the older Seele also said, comforting and encouraging her.
"Seele..."
However, after a moment of confusion and hesitation, feeling the warmth from the hand in hers, the light gradually returned to Bronya's eyes. Now was not the time for lamenting. She was the heir to the Supreme Guardian; she should shoulder the responsibility for this city!
"Caelus, thank you."
A gentle breeze lifted her gray hair. Natasha looked at Caelus with her rose-red eyes, her voice sincere. "You... are our heroes."
"Hehe~ It was nothing," March 7th said, scratching her head shyly as Natasha's solemn and sincere gaze swept over her.
"..." Dan Heng glanced at her coolly.
"You are the ones who have given the people of the Underworld a future, hope, and life. What do you plan to do next? Wildfire will fully support you."
"Right!"
"We don't want to rot!"
"We want to return to the sun and the blue sky!"
"Hero! Lead us to charge back!!"
The armed Wildfire members behind Natasha shouted, all their eyes on Caelus. They had been waiting for this opportunity for too long.
Listening to the heartfelt cries of the Wildfire members, Natasha first smiled, then shook her head. "Although Svarog has lifted the seal on the furnace core, we still need to act carefully. If the Supreme Guardian discovers the changes underground, there's no telling what she might do."
Natasha looked at Bronya, the heir to the Supreme Guardian. That gaze made Bronya fall silent for a moment, then the girl nodded in silence. "Mm."
Natasha and Bronya both looked at Caelus. "Caelus, what do you think?"
When his eyes met Bronya's, Caelus could barely contain the joy in his eyes. After all, on Silverwing's side right now...
The gray-haired young man nodded cheerfully. "Let Wildfire build up its strength and wait for the opportune moment—!?"
"Caelus, what's wrong?" Seeing Caelus's expression change mid-sentence, Stelle leaned over, confused, and gently bumped the side of his head with her own.
"It's nothing," Caelus said, his eyes narrowing slightly.
A little while earlier.
Honkai World, Nagazora City, a certain base.
Miss Raven picked up a piece of food from the table and chewed on it forcefully, as if trying to relieve her inner frustration. But after just a few bites, her stomach, already full of grievances, couldn't take any more.
Raven glared angrily at the white, scar-carved mask on the projection screen. "No, this mission you gave me is just cursed!"
"The intel on the Ural Silver Wolf was way off, wasn't it?"
"That girl is super problematic, you know?"
Even back in her own little nest, Miss Raven still felt a little creeped out. She was, after all, a specially trained, battle-hardened operative. Whether it was combat skills or reconnaissance and counter-reconnaissance, her skills were at the top of the world. The fact that the girl could detect her targeting with the high-dimensional observation sniper of the Seventh Thundering Retribution, considering the sniping distance and the Ural Silver Wolf's legendary status in the assassin world, was perhaps excusable.
But she had just made her threat, was full of momentum and ready to strike with style, and then... as a high-ranking executive of World Serpent, she was insta-killed!
Without any warning, without any preamble, she was insta-killed! No, it didn't even take a second.
Miss Raven was starting to have an existential crisis. Even those monsters from the Previous Era in the Elysian Realm had to at least use an ultimate to insta-kill her, right? But she didn't even see how the Ural Silver Wolf had attacked. A post-mortem check of her physical condition also ruled out external means such as genetic toxins.
The main reason she had made it back alive was thanks to the Ural Silver Wolf's mercy. What's more, the other party hadn't even taken her Divine Key! Thinking of this, Raven felt a strange sense of gratitude toward her opponent... She's so kind! Raven suspected she was developing Stockholm syndrome, but that wasn't important right now.
Raven stared at Gray Serpent with sharp eyes, clearly demanding an explanation.
"Logically, for failing the mission and nearly losing the Seventh Thundering Retribution, you should be punished. But... there was indeed a lapse in intelligence for this mission, and it has drawn out a hidden variable."
Gray Serpent's gloomy, hoarse voice sounded. He had been observing Bronya for a long time, not just because she was Cocolia's daughter, but mainly at the request of another World Serpent executive, Vill-V. And yet, he hadn't noticed anything unusual about her! The silver-haired girl's familiarity with World Serpent made Gray Serpent wary and vigilant.
"You will not be held responsible for the financial losses of this mission, but your bonus is gone."
Having raised her himself, how could Gray Serpent not know what Raven was thinking? He dropped the line coolly and ended the communication.
"Ugh! Dammit!"
Seeing the screen go dark, Raven first breathed a sigh of relief, thankful she didn't have to pay for the losses. But then she slumped onto the table, not caring that her supple chest was being squished out of shape, and thrashed around, rolling back and forth.
"Waaaaah! My bonus! My bonus!"
The money for her private island villa had flown away! And, without money, how was she supposed to raise her kids? Did she have to go back to taking mercenary jobs to supplement her household income?
Just as Miss Raven was looking miserable and on the verge of tears, suddenly, in an instant, her surroundings changed. The familiar room of her base disappeared. Raven stared blankly at the dim lights before her, and in the distance, a world of ice and snow.
"!!!"
"What's going on!?"
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