บท 182: Chapter 182: [Butterfly] Spreads its Wings Quietly

[In fact, if you must say, the direct damage caused by the "Sixth Great Eruption" was not "particularly large". Because of your hard work and efforts, the "Sixth Herrscher" was confined to the city where it appeared. Except for the fact that it silenced half of the city when it first appeared, and silenced the remaining half when you were on your way to the battlefield... it did not cause too many casualties among ordinary people. Well, at least compared to the impact caused by the "Third Herrscher" and the "Fourth Herrscher", this is the case.]

[You also participated in this battle. At the same time, this was the only Honkai Eruption where you failed to save anyone... because all the survivors, including the garrison forces in the city, fell silent before you arrived.]

[When you arrived, you only saw a silent and deserted city... No wailing sounds, no fleeing figures, not even corpses, and no rampaging Honkai beasts, only... deathly silence.]

[There is no need to say much about the subsequent battles... the only word that can describe it is "tragic".]

[Your so-called "rescue" was of no use at all. The attacks of the "Herrscher" are basically fatal. Once someone is attacked, you can only watch them age and die in a few seconds, just like a flower that can only bloom for a moment and quickly withers away.]

[There was no time to treat them, and there was no chance to treat them. All attacks would kill them... Therefore, they could only fight hard and pave the way to victory with their corpses... Even if the bodies of those who sacrificed, in the end, could not be recovered and could only be turned into a piece of text or a number on the terminal, you must still defeat them.]

[Finally, you succeeded, but at what cost?]

[The price was that almost all the troops involved in the battle were wiped out, and only a few survived... If you hadn't reacted quickly and used the "box" to protect yourself in time, I'm afraid there would only be a few survivors.]

[Except for two people, the teams led by Kevin and Elysia were completely wiped out.]

[Except for Sakura and Irine who are with you, and some people who are close to you, all members of the team you led were destroyed.]

[The three proud armies of the "Fire Moths" suffered a devastating blow, but... no matter what, at least you have contained the "Great Eruption" this time. From the beginning to the end of the operation, everything was confined to one city and did not cause more impact, so... everything is worth it.]

[In order to fight against Honkai, all sacrifices are acceptable, all costs are payable, and as long as the impact can be reduced, anything is fine.]

[It only cost the lives of a few team members and a city to defeat the Herrscher. This is really a good deal~ After all, the most important combat power has not been damaged, so everything else doesn't matter. This is definitely a victory worth celebrating!]

[But... is it really so?]

[You know, as a Herrscher's dying resistance, is it really... just to kill all the troops that came to attack it?]

[As time goes by, Mobius and Vill-V, who have been promoting the "ore disease therapy", discovered a problem. That is... some people have abnormal phenomena after receiving the "ore disease therapy"... their cells are combined with nanometals.]

[To give a more vivid example, in the past, "ore disease therapy" would gradually form crystals on the surface of the patient after the injection of nanometals. These crystals were both the result of external instrumentation and the result of the body's slow "discharge", which is equivalent to the body discharging excess or "unnecessary" things. These crystals were "extra growths", and the removal surgery was to remove these "extra" things.]

[But now, this is completely different for these patients... The nanometals have combined with their cells, not only staying in their blood but also in their organs. When the nanometals condense into crystals, their organs and flesh and blood will also be transformed... Performing a removal surgery at this time is equivalent to removing the corresponding flesh and blood or organs from the patient.]

[What's even more bizarre is that even if the nanometal has crystallized along with the organs, the patient will not die. Apart from feeling strong discomfort and pain, there will not be much change... even if the organ that has formed the crystal is the heart.]

[It's as if these nanometals came alive, and after forming crystals, they replaced the original organs and continued to work. It can be said to be completely abnormal.]

[It can be said that if the word "disease" in "ore disease therapy" was just a joke before... now "ore disease therapy" is probably really a "disease".]

[At the same time, there is another problem, that is, the reaction of nanometal to Honkai energy has become a little too sensitive... But this is neither good nor bad news, because this effect also affects Honkai beasts.]

[To put it simply, if nanometals are not guided in time during the "ore disease therapy" and the crystals are not guided to a safe location, it is very likely to damage human organs. Even if a person is deeply corroded by the Honkai, blindly injecting nanometals may directly turn the person into a block of metal.]

[But this effect is the same for Honkai beasts. If this nanometal hits a Honkai beast that is made entirely of Honkai energy... then the nanometal will quickly form crystals at the hit site, thereby hindering the Honkai beast's movements.]

[It can be said that this effect makes "Ore Disease Therapy" no longer so safe, but it also provides "Fire Moth" with a new direction for weapon design. You know, the crystals composed of this nanometal are all "Originium". If a Honkai beast is transformed into a large "Originium", the energy and profit it contains... are simply unimaginable.]

[Hiss... Eh? Wait... Why are they looking for dangerous Honkai beasts? Obviously, the infected people... No, no, this is a taboo topic, we can't touch it.]

[Although everyone openly rejected and banned this overly dangerous and evil method, it is unknown how many people still hold this idea behind the scenes.]

[As for you, you are not in the mood to care about these things at the moment. You are still out saving people at this time... Yin got the news from Li, saying that many people infected with Honkai appeared in "Twilight Street", and most of them were children... The nun in charge of taking care of them there learned that there was an organization outside that was responsible for treating this "disease", so she ran out to ask for help. After a while, Li got to know the news, and then contacted Yin, and then told you.]

[You have always been willing to rescue children. As the future of mankind, they are the ones you want to save. Therefore, after quickly submitting your application and getting it approved, you immediately set off and led the team to "Twilight Street"... It's a pity that this time only your "student" Irine followed you, and Sakura no longer followed you.]

[It's mainly because Sakura's combat power and extremely fast battlefield mobility have been recognized by the "Fire Moth", so they plan to formally incorporate her into the combat team to allow her to perform better and provide greater help in the fight against the Honkai... Besides, you are always at the forefront of the battlefield anyway, so aren't you still fighting side by side? Everything is the same.]

[And your rescue mission in "Twilight Street" this time also brought you extra rewards... because you found that there was something wrong with the nun named Aponia, and in her sanatorium, a masked porter named Kalpas is also weird.]

[When Aponia first saw you, she was briefly stunned and bewildered, and then she looked at you with a hint of joy and... regret?]

[And Kalpas was even more exaggerated. The moment you arrived, he was like a beast that smelled blood. He quickly came in front of you, blocked your way, and stared at you with a very strange look... full of hostility and anger, but also with a little hesitation.]

[You can see him clench his fists, then unclench them, then clench them again, then unclench them again, and repeat this several times.]

[Just when you thought you were going to fight him, Aponia's voice quietly floated over and gently entered your ears... Kalpas then snorted coldly, turned his head away, walked to the side, and stayed by the wall as if he was sulking, without saying a word.]

[However, you can still vaguely sense that he is focusing on you, and at the same time, he exudes some hostility from time to time, as if he really wants to attack you, but is hesitant for some reason.]

[Aponia also stepped forward at this time and explained to you that Kalpas had no ill intentions. Although he looked irritable, he was actually a very gentle person and was very popular with children.]

[You are a little surprised, but it doesn't seem that surprising.]

[Of course, the more important thing right now is to treat the children in the sanatorium... Although there are some problems with the "ore disease treatment", there is no other way. This is currently the most effective way to solve the Honkai erosion in the human body. And as long as you deal with it quickly enough and have sufficient equipment, there will be no problem.]

[The only problem is that after the crystal removal surgery, the subsequent recovery of these children will be very problematic. After all, this place called "Twilight Street" is... well... not very safe, and the supplies are not sufficient.]

[Following up, you negotiated with the Fire Moth and got permission to bring the children back.]

[Does it seem that "Fire Moth" is easy to talk to? No, no, no, actually it's because of Kalpas's bad temper. He had an argument with a member of your team over a trivial matter, and then... unexpectedly, but not really unexpectedly, Kalpas beat that person down, even breaking a few ribs, and even breaking the person who came to mediate. In the end, if Aponia hadn't spoken up, Kalpas, who was in high spirits, would have beaten a few more people.]

[The strange fighting ability displayed by Kalpas attracted the attention of "Fire Moth", and it also became curious about Aponia who could dissuade Kalpas, so "Fire Moth" ordered you to take the two of them back... As for the children, it will be a side job.]

[On the way back, Li sent you another message, saying that he had found a "kitten" with some talent for finding things and that it might be able to help with the search and rescue. See if you need it.]

[You naturally choose to agree to this.]

[So, while bringing Aponia and Kalpas back to the "Fire Moth", you also met the "kitten" named Pardofelis.]

[Hmm... How should I put it... Although Pardofelis is indeed very talented in finding things, it is not impossible to apply it to search and rescue, but... she is too timid and not suitable for going to the battlefield.]

[But it doesn't seem good to waste it, so after a brief negotiation with Pardofelis, you and "Fire Moth" gave her a simple training, and arranged for her to do some logistical work. At the same time, you reserved a position for her in the ordinary rescue team and planned to throw her into the rescue team after she got familiar with the working environment.]

[But judging from the subsequent situation... um... it seems that Pardofelis would rather stay in the logistics unit...]

[It seems like everything is fine. Although there are problems with "Ore Disease Therapy", you are also researching other treatment methods. As long as you find a new treatment method that can replace the "Ore Disease Therapy" and can be widely promoted, it will be fine.]

[At that time, you can abandon the potentially harmful "ore disease therapy" and use the nature of nanometals that are increasingly sensitive to Honkai energy to deal a heavy blow to Honkai... You know, Honkai beasts hit by nanometals can be condensed into "Originium"! This is an important source of energy!]

[At that time, each time the Honkai breaks out, it will no longer be a disaster, but a special source of energy for the world... Honkai breaks out? It doesn't matter. With one "Originium Nuclear Bomb", the Honkai outbreak site will instantly become an "Originium" mining site.]

["Fire Moth" has even started to create a special category of weapons called "Originium Weapons", which is intended to do just that.]

[Hmm? What? Do you mean the destroyed city? The people who died in the Honkai?]

[I don't know~ "Fire Moth" doesn't know anything~ It's all Honkai's fault, right?]

[After all, the Honkai is an unpredictable natural disaster. What can the "Fire Moth" do, right?]

[But unfortunately, the beautiful vision of "Fire Moth" was hit and tested during its first attempt.]

[Because at that time, a special Honkai beast was born from the "Originium".]

[Like a butterfly emerging from its cocoon, its figure slowly emerges from the Originium, its gorgeous wings slowly open, bringing with them bits of Originium dust.]

[The "Originium" that originally wrapped it also crackled and broke into pieces bit by bit, like a chain breaking.]

[And when it appears, you have a feeling... it seems to "lock" you]

[You have a vague feeling that it... wants to give you... "liberation"]

(TL: Honestly, I'm kinda lost with this story)