42. Bronya and the Two Seeles
"Dad! Mom! It was so scary! A bunch of bad guys barged into our house and almost kidnapped Seele! Luckily, Raven and Bronya were there!"
The front door flew open, and with a solid, super-powered headbutt, an energetic pink-haired girl launched herself right into Gao qi's arms.
Rozaliya Olenyeva. She didn't have the characteristics of a Honkai beast tail yet, nor was she the MANTIS warrior she would become after a severe injury and reconstruction using World Serpent technology by Cocolia in the future. So, her impact was something Gaoki could easily handle.
"You idiot Rozaliya, that's not what Dad needs to hear—no one was hurt, no one was in danger. Only Sin rushed out on her own saying she'd take care of the enemies and ended up getting hurt. She's silly!"
Another, much calmer blue-haired girl followed slightly more sedately behind, supplementing Rozaliya's account. As the twin sister, she seemed a bit more composed—Liliya Olenyeva.
As the most easygoing and affectionate sisters in the orphanage, they had gotten along well with Gao qi from early on.
Gao qi immediately pulled both girls into a hug, then glanced at Cocolia, whose expression was grave. He was actually well aware of this attempted kidnapping targeting Seele.
He had been carefully watching out for this, diligently gathering external information and strengthening security, yet it still happened—needless to say, it was definitely a scheme by the Will of the Honkai!
"I, the great Sin Mal, also helped, Dad! It's just that bastard was a bit stronger, that's all! Once I grow up a little more, I'll definitely be able to kill him!"
Behind the twin sisters, Sin Mal, with her short pink hair and boyish attire, had her arm wrapped in bandages. Grinding her shark-like teeth, she tried to argue, but was quickly interrupted as Gao qi's large hand ruffled her head vigorously twice.
"Well done, Sin. You were very brave this time, but your own safety is important too. If you want to learn how to fight, I can teach you properly, and everyone will praise you for it."
Though she often seemed a bit 'bad' in the story, in Gao qi's eyes, Sin, at least for now, was just an ordinary child who craved attention and praise but lacked proper guidance—after all, she's a playable character in the alternate Honkai Gakuen universe.
How can a playable character be a real villain? They can even recruit planetary-level Honkai beasts into the main cast!
"W-who asked for your praise? The great Sin Malcan handle things just fine on her own..."
Under Gao qi's gentle strokes, the usually boisterous Sin quieted down, her cheeks slightly flushed. Her mouth said no, but she was clearly quite happy.
Soon, seeing Raven, covered in the smell of blood, walking towards him, and Seele, who was continuously sobbing, Gao qi let out a long sigh of relief. Thankfully, Raven was there.
"Someone tried to kidnap Seele. I took care of them, but there were quite a few, and some got past me. Bronya was with Seele; she dealt with a few... It frightened Seele."
Raven gave a simple explanation of the situation.
Meanwhile, Seele, still sniffling, tugged on Gao qi's clothes and pleaded with him.
"Um... I, Seele, it's my fault. I shouldn't have said that to Sister Bronya, I shouldn't have called Sister Bronya a demon! Dad, please go and help persuade her!"
[From what you've gathered, while you and Cocolia were away, a group of bandits breached the orphanage's defenses, intending to kidnap Seele, who had awakened a natural Stigmata.]
[Clearly, they were unaware of Raven's presence. Raven, who happened to be hanging laundry for the children, encountered them and took down over a dozen people using just a washbasin and wet clothes.]
[However, there were still too many mercenaries. Raven couldn't block them all, and a few broke through to Seele's room—where Bronya, who was chatting with her at the time, dispatched them using only a stocking and a picture book.]
[And upon seeing Bronya in action, an utterly terrified Seele uttered the word 'demon'—causing Bronya to shut down emotionally.]
Seeing Seele's remorseful expression, Gao qi narrowed his eyes. The authority of the Herrscher of Death keenly sensed—another soul.
Hah, waking up quite early, aren't we... the other Seele.
——————————
Outside Bronya's room in the orphanage, Gao qi, holding a large box in his arms, gently knocked on the door.
"Are you there, Bronya? I came to talk to you."
As an educator honed through practice, Gao qi greatly respected the children's privacy. Under his requirements, the orphanage staff never entered the children's rooms without permission.
Gao qi waited silently at the door until a faint response came from inside the room.
"Come in... Father."
Bronya wasn't yet accustomed to this form of address, but she was trying her best to learn. Only after receiving permission did Gao qi enter.
"If you really aren't used to it, you can also call me Zero—want to see what good things I bought you?"
Entering the room, Gao qi saw Bronya huddled in a corner, hugging her knees, withdrawn into herself. Her long gray hair was disheveled, making her appear somewhat despondent.
Gao qi didn't immediately go to comfort her. Instead, he took out the gifts from the box—a game console and a small display screen.
Although Siberia in the Honkai world was now more chaotic than the Middle East, getting a game console from abroad was still relatively easy.
"I... don't need gifts. I only frighten Seele. I won't use my power in front of Seele again."
Not knowing what the metal box in front of her was, Bronya just murmured full of self-reproach.
In the past, she had never taken pride in being the "Ural Silver Wolf," nor had she ever thought this power that could protect her was something bad. But upon seeing Seele's terrified expression, she suddenly began to despise herself.
She suddenly felt like a butcher with blood on her hands.
"I'm no different from those mercenaries. If I had received a mission like that before, I probably wouldn't have hesitated to kidnap Seele either."
Her gray eyes were full of turmoil. Bronya, accustomed to killing, had come to understand through her recent learning of 'common sense' just how terrible the things she had done before were.
"...Sigh."
But soon, a pair of strong arms gently lifted Bronya up and held her against a solid chest. Bronya was startled but allowed herself to be held steadily in Gao qi's embrace.
"Bronya, people can change. You can become better. And power itself has no inherent good or evil—you can use your power to do evil, or you can use it to protect those you want to protect."
Ruffling Bronya's small head, Gao qi took out two colorful hair ties adorned with plastic glitter and re-tied her signature spiral twin-tails.
"Seele was scared, not because she's afraid of you, but because she didn't know if the power you unleashed would hurt her or protect her. What you need to do isn't to stop using your power, but to make Seele believe that this power can protect her. Understand?"
As he spoke, Gao qi pressed the power button on the game console, and Bronya curiously widened her eyes.
"Is that so, Father? As long as Bronya explains it clearly to Seele..."
Clenching her small fists, Bronya, who was naturally intelligent and had just temporarily gotten stuck in a mental rut, quickly grasped some things under Gao qi's guidance.
"Of course. Seele is a bit timid. She needs the help of her big sister, needs the protection of the Ural Silver Wolf. And in the future, she might even protect her big sister, you know—I recommend this game. It supports two players simultaneously."
Winking at Bronya, Gao qi motioned with his chin towards the room's doorway. There, Seele was timidly peeking out from the side.
"I... I'm sorry, Sister Bronya."
Gao qi had encouraged her for a long time, giving her the courage to come apologize to Bronya herself.
[After all, children are children. Although Cocolia loves the children, she truly doesn't know how to educate them. Her laissez-faire approach was essentially gambling on the inherent nature of a bunch of girls. The fact that Sin later turned out the way she did is something Cocolia, as a guardian, cannot escape blame for.]
[But in reality, children are highly malleable. Making Bronya more cheerful, making Seele braver, even making Sin a bit more understanding—it's not terribly difficult for an adult. A bit of deliberate guidance can achieve it.]
[Soon, under your watch, the two little girls apologized to each other and hugged. Seele cried her heart out, and Bronya understood that Seele wasn't afraid of her, promising to only use her power to protect Seele from now on.]
[Then, you taught the two children how to play games on the console. The clever Bronya instantly understood the gameplay and, unsurprisingly, got hooked.]
[Subsequently, her incredibly 'straightforward' behavior in the racing game—lapping Seele three times, showing no mercy, and constantly performing drift tails to taunt—made Seele cry again in frustration. You suddenly felt the road of education was long and arduous.]
[Finally, as it approached bedtime for good children, you ignored Bronya's whining, forcibly turned off the console, and led Seele out of the room.]
[But in the hallway, you suddenly felt the aura of the Seele beside you shift slightly.]
"Dad... thank you for protecting Seele, for helping Seele make up with Sister."
Hearing this form of address, Gao qi smiled slightly.
"I'd rather hear thanks from the other Seele, you know. After all, she wouldn't call Bronya 'Sister.'"
The next moment, Gao qi reached out and caught a small fist brimming with crimson light just before it could connect with his side.
The Seele beside him now had blood-red eyes, her expression no longer the former fragility but filled with a hint of... madness.
"Hello there, Seele. You don't really want to kill me, do you?"
Looking at Seele, whose aura was completely different, Gaoki's smile remained unchanged.
"Of course I won't kill you. You're one of Seele's favorite people, after all. But giving you a lesson, making you forget what happened tonight, is quite easy."
Her expression full of threat, the crimson power in Seele's hand continued to surge. Gao qi could feel the abundant Honkai energy contained within.
"You knew of my existence long ago but didn't say anything... I must be wary of you. If you dare to hurt Seele—"
However, Seele's words were cut short as she froze in place.
The man before her had pulled down his collar. On his sturdy chest, a Death Stigmata identical to hers had manifested.
"Save the threats for later. First, you need to show some respect to your senior."
Note: I'm new to translating so please be kind and tell me any mistakes you all find, I will try to release a chapter a day but don't expect much
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Raw: 崩坏模拟器,你找的人是我么?