Honkai: Fire Moth Herrschers

"Wait a minute!" Mobius frowned, seemingly displeased.

She tapped her finger against her lip, then slowly pointed at Elysia.

"If I remember correctly, there's still someone who hasn't given a present yet, right?"

In an instant, everyone's gazes followed Mobius's slender finger to Elysia, who was clinging to Michael's side.

"Oh my, Mobius! You're so observant… Hmm, should I say you're concerned about me? Or are you concerned about my Michael?"

"I..."

Mobius loosened her constricting tie, her lips trembling as she struggled to speak.

She had been completely outplayed. Again.

"Alright, alright, let me cut the cake already!"

Michael pulled his hand from Elysia's embrace and picked up the knife that had been prepared on the table. Just as he was about to start cutting, he seemed to think of something and put it down.

"Thank you all for taking the time to celebrate my birthday with me. I'll… perform a little something too, shall I?"

Michael extended his finger, pointing at the huge cake in the center of the table.

"Hehe..."

He chuckled casually, then several streaks of bright golden light suddenly flashed in mid-air. As everyone looked at the cake again, cracks slowly appeared on the smooth cream. With another wave of Michael's hand, before anyone could notice that one slice of cake was significantly larger than the others, he simultaneously controlled over a dozen pieces of cake to fly onto everyone's plates.

"Whoa!!!"

Everyone applauded appropriately. But, in a way, Michael displaying this ability wasn't surprising. After all, it was a well-known fact that Michael – the Herrscher of the Void...

Perhaps, if the real Herrscher of the Void saw how his powers were being used, they'd die of anger.

Everyone sat down in unison and silently began eating the cake.

The scene felt somewhat out of place, but the people present didn't notice, not even a child like Griseo thought it was strange.

The reason was that Fire Moth was a military organization, and children raised in this military organization had never witnessed the sight of normal humans eating and chatting happily.

And the "adults" who had seen such sights didn't have the mood for idle chatter.

For a time, the atmosphere became rather heavy, the air pressure seemingly increasing, not only weighing on their shoulders, but also making it a little hard to breathe.

"Pfft..."

But this heavy atmosphere was suddenly swept away by a burst of laughter.

Even after the others, with their various thoughts, had tactfully dispersed, Elysia was still holding her obviously larger slice of cake, giggling foolishly.

"Is it that funny?"

Without the gazes of others, Michael felt a bit bolder. He hesitantly reached out and touched Elysia's back. After sensing her muscles tense up slightly and then relax, showing no sign of resistance, Michael's arm continued its journey, gradually wrapping around her waist.

"Hee hee! Michael, I remember last time... um, that time, you didn't let me eat too many sweets, so why did you give me such a big piece of cake now…? Geez, this is making me so conflicted!"

The smile on Elysia's face didn't fade. She seemed to already anticipate Michael's stammering response and had even prepared to tease him further – "Hmm... let me think, is this a portion for two? Hmm? What do you say? Why don't we share this piece? I'll feed you, the Elysia way. Open wide—ahh—"

But she was soon disappointed.

Michael calmly shook his head, the corners of his mouth lifting uncontrollably. He seemed to have put in a lot of effort to suppress the urge to laugh out loud. "Elysia, look… um… look at Mr. Ato and Ms. Blanka. Weren't they just telling Griseo that eating too much cake would cause cavities, while secretly wanting to give some of their cake to little Griseo?"

"Hmm… you're right…"

Michael's strange behavior made Elysia wary, but also a little confused. She sucked on her finger, frowning as she watched Michael's hand, which had snaked around her back and was resting on her stomach, patiently waiting for him to continue.

Seeing that Elysia hadn't immediately understood what he meant, Michael felt a little awkward. So, to make her completely understand, he continued:

"Um… think about it… back in the orphanage, whenever Mother Celia made butter bread, wasn't she always saying, 'Eating too much of this will make you fat', 'This isn't good for you', but when she gave it to us, she wished she could give everyone two extra slices?"

"Hmm... now that you mention it, you're right… but why is that?"

Elysia stared blankly down at Michael's hand, which was sometimes trying to move upwards, sometimes downwards, but hesitated for a long time without making a move. She deliberately played along, asking the question.

Michael, still unaware of the danger, showed an extremely gratified and satisfied smile, and then said in an elder's tone, "You don't understand this yet. That's how parents are… hey, hey, hey! My ears, my ears! Be gentle!"

After a fierce battle, Michael, panting heavily, pressed against the wall with his hands raised high. "I surrender! No abusing prisoners of war!"

"Hmm... no abusing prisoners of war, you say..."

Michael felt a slight coolness and a sense of restraint around his wrists and ankles. He turned his head and saw that pink crystals had bound his limbs to the wall.

"Um… Elysia, isn't this position a little unhealthy?"

"Hmm… but didn't you say I couldn't abuse you?"

Elysia lightly touched her lower lip with her index finger, then held both hands up in front of Michael, fingers curled like claws.

"Wait! That move is—"

"Since I can't abuse you, I'll just make you laugh!"

"Hey! Don't… hahahaha… help me… hahaha… aah cough… hahahahaha…"

Through the wall, Mobius, ear pressed against the door, smacked her lips, shrugged, and cursed, "Boring!"

Then, tugging at her slightly tight shirt collar, she turned and left.

Similarly, Kevin, Eden, Hua, Sakura, Pardofelis... all eavesdropping at the door, also let out sighs of disappointment and dispersed, following Mobius's lead.

Only Kevin, scratching his snow-white hair, stayed where he was, a little bewildered.

Suddenly, the flowing ringtone of his phone rang from his pocket. He immediately covered the pocket like a startled thief. When the ringtone stopped, Kevin took out his phone and saw –

[Mei]: What are they doing?

[Kevin]: I don't know, Michael keeps giggling, and I think he yelled for help?

[Mei]: …

...

"Okay, okay... stop, stop, they're gone..."

Michael hung his head, his stomach twitching occasionally, clearly having laughed so hard he had cramps.

Elysia reluctantly took two steps back. Looking at the string of red marks on Michael's neck, she licked her lips, seemingly unsatisfied.

"Hehe..."

Michael broke free from the crystals and slid down the wall to sit on the floor. Perhaps because of their previous boisterous activity, aside from their increasingly heavy breathing, they were speechless for a while.

"Seele..."

Michael suddenly broke the silence.

"Don't you think it's a little late to explain Seele's situation to me now?"

Elysia's tone was calm, so calm that it made Michael a little confused.

"About Seele, I didn't intentionally hide it from you."

He took the opportunity while catching his breath to choose his words carefully. "Some of the things I hid from you, it was out of… fear, fear that you'd blame me… But some things, like Seele's situation, it's more like… 'I don't know how to explain it'…"

Michael had expected her to be angry, so he was especially careful with his words. Unexpectedly, Elysia knelt in front of him and cupped his face in her hands.

"If you don't know how to explain it, then don't explain it yet!"

"Ah—"

"I won't force you, Michael. I'd never force you. Some people's love for you might constantly push you forward, but I'm different. Of course I want you to bravely move forward, but if you're tired, if you're lost, you can stay by my side. Until whenever you're ready to set off again, it's all the same! Similarly, since you don't know how to explain it to me, I won't pester you. I believe that one day, you'll tell me everything openly, won't you?"

"...Of course!"

Michael pondered for a long time, then suddenly broke into a brilliant smile.

"Speaking of which, Elysia, what did you get me for my birthday?"

Michael looked at her expectantly.

"Hmm? You actually care about that?"

Elysia puffed out her cheeks.

"As for a gift… hmm… let me see… Michael, how about we go back [there]? Just to take a look."

Michael's breath hitched.

"But I still want to say that, if you don't want to face it, we don't have to go."

"No, Elysia."

Michael took her hands. "If it was just me, I naturally wouldn't and wouldn't dare to face it, but if you're by my side…"

First, a familiar dizziness and weightlessness, like being tossed around inside a washing machine, and then they were suddenly standing on the muddy, slushy snow.

A light drizzle began to fall, the wind carrying the scattered raindrops against their faces.

In front of them were a few broken walls. The graffiti remaining on the walls was even more blurred in the rain, but it was still easy to see that it had been done by children.

Michael had no memory of it. It must have been done by the children who came later.

The moon in the night sky wasn't obscured by clouds. It was bright and full, shining on the joys and sorrows of the world – this was the orphanage in Vostok-51, the place that was razed to the ground by the silver bullets of the pseudo-Herrscher during the Third Honkai Eruption.

Two streaks of water ran down Michael's face, followed by three, then four...

The raindrops had become heavier without him realizing it, the rain starting to come down harder. Michael slightly raised his head, unable to distinguish whether the streaks on his face were rain or tears. But the raindrops falling against the backdrop of the night sky, just like in his dream, were pitch black.

Pitch black, like the sins one was born with.

But somehow, a large stone in his heart quietly landed.

The black raindrops hit Michael's face, sliding down his thin cheeks, and finally silently mixing with the slush under his feet.

"Sometimes, acceptance takes more courage, Michael."

He was wearing thin clothes, but he didn't feel cold.

After all, there was another person's warmth. They embraced each other, just as they had wished for, in countless days and nights.

"Aww, I thought you'd cry! Mobius told me all about how you cried in her arms!"

Michael let out a bitter laugh:

"Elysia, thank you for the gift… Am I stronger than before?"

"Actually, you don't have to force yourself to be strong. Remember what I said before, if one day you feel tired and don't want to move forward, you don't have to force yourself. Just stay by my side for a while—no matter how long you want to stay. It's not too late to set off again after you've rested!"

"Elysia..."

"But you're like this now… it's really beyond my expectations! Although I was a bit disappointed you didn't burst into tears and hug me, you look so strong… hehe, it's quite nice! I'm very satisfied!"

Elysia's words always warmed his heart while also making him laugh.

"I..."

Michael wanted to say something, but after uttering the word "I," he didn't know how to continue.

The words he wanted to say seemed to be scattered by the gentle yet incessant night wind, carried far away, or washed away by the rain, leaving no trace in his mind.

Of course, it was also possible—some things didn't need "words" to be conveyed.

Yes, they were just too familiar with each other, so familiar that many things didn't need to be said aloud to be understood, so… he didn't know how to say them either.

He had even doubted, at one point, whether there had only ever been familial love between him and Elysia, and nothing more...

"Shh—"

Elysia saw his awkwardness and seemed to see through his thoughts. She suddenly, boldly, covered his lips with her hand and stood on tiptoe, leaning closer—

"Let me use your eyes as a mirror! Don't move! And don't look away!"

But even under the bright moonlight, what could be reflected in pupils in the dark of night?

She pretended to adjust her bangs, letting her soft hair brush against Michael's forehead.

The hand covering his lips was a little cold. Michael could feel the slight tremble, and the cold sweat brought on by her nervousness.

Something seemed to come over him, and Michael suddenly stuck out his tongue and licked the salty sweat…

Their pupils trembled slightly, and then their vision gradually blurred, becoming hazy.

"Silly Michael, this is the real birthday gift!"

She mustered her courage and removed the last barrier between their faces. Their cold lips touched, and then gradually warmed.

The rain had soaked them through, making their embrace even warmer.

The air from their breaths brushed against each other's faces, like falling raindrops.

But this was undoubtedly the true gift – a silent confession.

The full moon wasn't covered by clouds. The clear moonlight mixed with the rain, creating thousands of silver threads in the world, each reflecting the overlapping figures of the young boy and girl.

In this world, a world that was slowly dying, there was no lack of misfortune. But fortunately – at this moment, they could still enjoy such pure, innocent, and budding love.

Yes, from the past to the present, they had always loved each other deeply.