Honkai Impact 3rd, a simulator of lifelong regret!

In an era now utterly chaotic and rife with unrest, where the only means of stabilizing the situation is to resort to populism, there is no other option but to confront the impending collapse.

It seems that only a victory can elicit cheers from everyone.

[Your communicator also delivered an important message, albeit belatedly: just like the Second Herrscher, the Third Herrscher has also mysteriously disappeared.]

[The Emperor-level and Judgment-level Herrschers were killed in a point-to-point battle, leaving only a gem lying on the ground.]

【ah……】

Too late again.

The hatred that had been painstakingly shifted back has once again failed to find its source; having lost all its fuel, it can only burn dryly in my heart.

It is indeed somewhat ridiculous and meaningless.

[At twenty-eight years old, the facilities for combating Honkai have been fully deployed in several important cities. Now, even Emperor-level Honkai Beasts are unable to cause truly terrifying destruction; at most, they can only destroy a few city blocks or small villages.]

This marks the first time humanity has surpassed ordinary Honkai Beasts, barely managing to take a half-step in this marathon that could be overtaken in the next second.

You sacrificed your own life to ignite this life, as fragile as a candle flickering in the wind, in exchange for the advancement of civilization—a weapon that only existed in the design stage.

[As you receive award after award, the world begins to champion you, hailing you as a pioneer of humanity and a creator of a new generation of industrial revolution.]

[Given the brutality displayed by the Honkai, humanity seems to desperately need a spiritual leader.]

[A being they called a divinely appointed great man.]

[Born in an ordinary small town, you clearly fit their requirements: a life of dramatic ups and downs, a meteoric rise to success—meeting their definition of a genius.]

[Actually, you're just parroting what others have said; I didn't expect to be praised for it.]

Most people only scratch the surface, never delving deeper or gaining a thorough understanding. They fanatically attribute everyone's achievements to one person, then elevate that person to a pedestal, only to dismantle it later.

The more ignorant one is, the more daring one is to speak; the more foolish one is, the more arrogant one becomes.

[—You seem a little ridiculous.]

[The designs the girl once sketched in her spare time, weapons that were merely a glimpse into her imagination and a few casual notes, are now being recreated by you, one by one.]

[This includes the idea that the Herrscher core could be modified into a weapon, which arose after observing it.]

[You've also reorganized and rewritten the data so that even someone like you can understand it. In the future, you can simply apply this information to create the equipment.]

You call this series of weapons the Keys of God, meaning the power of the gods.

This does not mean you have any reverence for gods.

[Just a line you and the girl once thought of when you were bored.]

We seize power from the gods only to pull them down from their throne.

That's fine, that's enough.

[You don't want to be a pioneer, nor do you like grand narratives. Your current actions are merely for revenge, but the road to revenge is long and uncertain. Who knows how long the Honkai will last, or how many more Herrschers will emerge.]

The hatred, repeatedly thwarted and repeatedly transferred only to be seized by others, has begun to extinguish the raging flames.

【enough. 】

[You're just an ordinary, half-finished product. The best you can do is recreate what Velvet left behind. The water in the fountain can never rise above its source, and you can never become a genius greater than her.]

If you're willing to transform yourself into a grotesque, inhuman creature just to witness a cataclysmic destruction that you believe is impossible, to the point where even the memory of her becomes blurred, then that's far too much of a waste.

Time... no matter how firm the will, how clear the memory, or how unforgettable the things, they will all gradually wear down.

[You feel that if this continues, your memory will really become blurred, and the most important people in your life will turn into inhuman, ghostly statues.]

Just like the wind, no matter how gentle or insignificant it may seem, it may appear laughable compared to rocks, steel, or towering mountains. But if it is repeatedly scraped and worn down, even the highest peaks and most unreachable mountain ranges will eventually be flattened and pulverized.

This is essentially a choice; for some, they can allow themselves to be consumed by the rage of revenge, even at the cost of their emotions and the treasures in their memories that they absolutely cannot lose.

[But after your anger has been extinguished time and again, it seems you've gained momentum only to have it wane and eventually exhaust it.]

[Vilvie wouldn't want you to become that kind of madman, would she?]

She should be hoping you find salvation.

[However, on this one point alone, the world's most brilliant genius's backup plan completely overlooked the feelings between you and her.]

After losing his assistant, Möbius didn't consider finding another one; instead, he embarked on his research with even greater fervor.

Perhaps in the future, they will actually be able to create a way for humanity to evolve.

You are not someone who cares about human purity, but you are willing to use the excuse of caring about human purity to cover up your true intentions.

Although this was unmistakable to Möbius, she could clearly see the falseness in this emotion.

Just do your best. You're just an ordinary person, and right now you've only inherited a bit of the girl's wisdom.

The world keeps turning whether you're here or not, but without you and Velvi, it feels like a piece of my heart is missing.

[—You've left that girl all alone for far too long.]

No matter how tolerant you are, she'll definitely hold a grudge against you once you meet her.

[—Vilvie hates being alone the most.]

So, don't make her wait any longer.

[Your early life was almost entirely tied down by that one dreamlike encounter, which nearly turned you into a romantic, believing in a paradise on earth.]

[And her first encounter with Velvi after turning eighteen is also a beautiful scene that only exists in light novels.]

Standing downhill, you unconsciously grab a delicate top hat, following the wind's direction. Looking up, you see a beautiful girl coming uphill.

Do you still remember that day...?

A gentle breeze blows.

Her hair danced in the wind as she stood on the slope.

The petals curled up, and the girl's hair, seemingly imbued with the scent of Kachi, was gently caressed by the breeze carrying the petals, as she danced lightly on her slender shoulders.

[Like the flowing melody of an accordion, delicate and lingering, gentle and melodious, it stirs the hem of a boy's clothes, lifts the bangs on his forehead, and flutters the skirt of a girl, bringing to life a romantic yet abrupt encounter and gaze that only exists in light novels.]

[Like a painting.]

As dawn breaks, golden light bursts forth.

The girl is bathed in the first rays of dawn.

That was the boy and girl's first encounter; a touch of shyness, a touch of unfamiliarity, and a hint of hesitation perfectly shaped the girl's bashfulness and reserve.

[—There is a breathtaking beauty.]

[It makes you want to reminisce, to immerse yourself in the depths of your memories and relive that perfect, light novel-like encounter.]

Just like you sometimes recall your encounter with Alicia in the woods.

At the time, you thought it was entirely because the encounter was so dreamlike, like an adventurer finding a fairy moon spirit.

Looking back now, perhaps the reason you frequently find yourself in memories is because you can no longer create any new future with the girl. Even before you left, you could no longer create a dreamlike future.

On the contrary, being with Vervie has made those beautiful, dreamlike memories of the past rare, even appearing only once in a very long time.

—Because you were building your future with Vervie at the time.

【only……】

It's too late to say anything now.

66. Virvi: The person I hate the most, please save Jiangcheng!

The fairytale-like paradise never stayed with you, and the beautiful and dreamlike encounter, reminiscent of a light novel, has gradually faded in your memories.

Limited by the human body and eroded by decay, even memories cannot be preserved forever. They are constantly worn down, gradually eroding the details until only an empty shell remains, or even that shell is forgotten.

If things continue like this...

You really are about to lose everything...

Working yourself to the bone, with concentrated work hours exceeding fifteen hours a day, would kill even a normal person.

[The backup plans that once belonged to Vilvi were compiled one by one at high speed and described in language that a normal person could understand.]

[Project Stigmata, Project Fireseed, Project Ark, Project Quantum, Project Cradle, Project Starlight, Project Feast...]

Each one is so complex, each one is almost perfectly completed, and each one seems to have such a high probability of success.

Even setting aside the technologies associated with these plans, including urban infrastructure that allows humanity to live in a greenhouse-like environment, sheltered from all natural disasters and harsh conditions, and constructed external defenses against collapse.

The Creation Engine is a geological modification unit used to transform land eroded by collapse.

[They even considered the possibility of moral decay and legal chaos, so they designed a trial machine that could be used for adjudication.]

Although you feel this plan is the only flawed one, simply letting machines make decisions doesn't align with the essence of life unless there are other benefits.

But in the end, you still restored everything, one by one, including all the backup plans, all the facilities, and all the girl's conjectures and ideas.

It's like igniting your life force, recklessly squandering what little life you have left, fully utilizing this talent you have gained by imitating others.

This is actually not good, because long working hours can dull your thinking and damage your brain.

[But perhaps due to the existence of Honkai energy, you never felt your mind become dull in the slightest; in fact, this substance acted like poison, making you smarter, even though your body completely collapsed in less than a few months.]

Who cares?

In this world, no one will hold your hand and stop you anymore.

No matter how depressed or dejected you become, not a single person will care, not a single person will be there to comfort you.

The girl you've always considered family might still not even want to look at you.

Perhaps she has already found her paradise.

[A person who has lost everything cannot survive in this cruel world—if you hadn't made the promise with Velvi, if you had always traveled with Alicia, and had always suffered loneliness and neglect, then even if you have nothing now, perhaps you wouldn't have reached this point.]