I, the final BOSS of the beta test server!

“Maybe others don’t agree with me, but it’s still my own attitude.”

He looked at Hiltina: "At least, I don't hate it."

Last did not try to comfort Hiltina, because he knew very well that the seemingly slender girl in front of him was not weak enough to need comfort.

And the reason why Hiltina told him this was definitely not to gain sympathy.

"Yes."

The chestnut-haired girl spoke again.

"Ever since I witnessed my mother's death, I've lived without expectations."

"I'm well aware that many people don't agree with my mother's ideas, not just Fran and my classmates, but also my father, stepmother, and even my sister..."

"So I gradually learned to survive independently in the world, not connecting with others, and not expecting others to respond to my behavior."

"Therefore, no amount of opposition or questioning from the academy can change my mind."

"If everything continues as it is, I will continue to race towards that unreachable destination of conquering the entire night world—"

"Until we reach the end, or die along the way."

Her voice paused slightly.

"But this attitude continued until you, Rust, appeared, and some changes occurred."

She looked at Luster.

"I developed expectations of you, even if I didn't realize it at first."

"I?"

"Ah."

Hiltina nodded slightly.

"When you first emerged from the Night World, your life force was so weak that it could disappear at any moment. You were no different from a skeleton."

"For half a month, I stayed by your bedside, watching you faint, barely breathing, your face devoid of any color..."

"For the first time, I felt unease, worry, and even a fear of being abandoned... emotions I had never experienced before."

"During that time, I asked myself countless times, what should I do if you can never wake up again..."

She lifted a strand of chestnut hair from her forehead and said, "Fortunately, you finally woke up."

"I've been thinking about a lot of things lately, about you and Fran's last words. I think the fear and anxiety you felt beside your bedside are exactly what I've never been able to truly feel or empathize with before."

"I hope you will be patient. I hope you will persevere for the lofty goal of saving the world. In the past, I held myself and those around me to precisely this standard."

"But now that I think about it, when Fran saw the team members who died in the night world..."

"When Luo Ya's fiancée learned that her lover would never come back..."

"That fear and weakness will only be more intense and more heartbreaking than the emotions I felt when I was by your bedside."

Hiltina paused for a moment.

She used her light brown eyes to quietly gaze at the bustling crowd in the college in the distance who were enjoying various school anniversary activities.

"When I first entered college as a freshman, Fran said that we should completely let down our guard and have a great time at the academy for a few days during the centennial celebration."

"Now, I have buried her life in the night world with my own hands... But I want to see for Fran what the celebration she has been looking forward to for so long will look like."

"Even though these things seemed to me in the past to be no different from wasting my life."

She picked up a ginkgo leaf that had fallen on the bench and held it above her head.

The sunlight shines through the leaves, and the veins of the ginkgo leaves are almost transparent in the light.

"I still believe in my own rightness, and I will continue to move forward unwaveringly towards the distant destination in my heart."

"But I think now I am—"

"Maybe I can try to pay attention to the scenery along the way..."

"Also, someone to watch the scenery with me."

The sun moved west again, and the shadows of the trees shifted.

The two of them bathed in the warm sunshine, and their shadows were stretched very long.

Chapter 79 It’s Your Turn to Open Your Heart to Me

The sun rises in the east, reaches its highest point, and then sets in the west.

As an academy that gathers a large number of extraordinary people, the content of the Star University’s anniversary is naturally different from that of ordinary university anniversaries.

Among the four major courtyards, the Relics Court temporarily opened the first floor of the Mystery Tower and held an exhibition there.

Used to showcase their latest chronicle of the old era in the night world.

Some of the historical fragments in the night world that have been fully revealed have even been adapted into stage plays.

Unfortunately, this doesn't include Deep Blue Harbor, Frozen Water Town, and the Sixth Epoch where the Shore Keepers are located...

As perhaps the old era closest to the current era, the historical echoes set in the Sixth Era have only begun to appear in the night world in recent years. Even the Ruins Institute knows very little about the Sixth Era, with only a few fragmented records.

To this day, the complete history of the Sixth Epoch remains shrouded in mystery, making it difficult for travelers to gain a clear picture.

The Ashes House exhibited a large number of new equipment, but most of them were technological weapons, which were not very attractive to Hiltina, a swordsman.

But it was quite attractive to Last. Looking at the sci-fi anti-material sniper rifle on the stage, he wished he could upgrade his seven-caliber heavy-duty shotgun to a cannon.

It’s a pity that it’s not a heraldic dress and cannot be brought into the night world.

As the only extraordinary weapon that can be used in the Night World, the output of the "Emblem Ritual" is strictly restricted by the Night World.

According to Hiltyna, the current focus of the Ashes Academy's research is to find a way to break free from the constraints of the Night World and produce artificial emblems and ceremonial attire...

However, even though a huge amount of resources have been invested in this, the research and development plan of artificial heraldic costumes is still progressing with difficulty.

Of course, during this process, the Ashes House also accumulated a lot of experience in the repair and modification of heraldic ceremonial uniforms, and even the production of ancillary products such as alchemical enchanted ammunition.

Otherwise, like what happened to Hiltina before, repairing a half-destroyed heraldic dress would not be an easy task.

Of course, in addition to exhibiting new equipment, Ashes Court also organized corresponding activities, such as target shooting challenges with new firearms.

Unfortunately, after Last had collected a round of bonuses, just when he was about to disguise himself and pretend to be another student to collect another round of bonuses, he was dragged away by the unbearable Hiltina.

This made him feel quite regretful.

Although the target shooting challenge limits one person to one, Luster is absolutely confident in his makeup skills. He might be noticed if he continued to dress as a boy, but he can definitely dress as a woman...

As long as he did this seven times in a row, he would be able to pay off Hiltina's debt of 1,600 gold cores.

Of course, just as there are activities with normal styles like the Ashes Court and the Ruins Court, there are naturally activities with abnormal styles.

It seems that he felt from the previously seriously injured Last that the night world was not that reliable, and he could not completely pin his hopes of healing the wounded on the recollection of the night world. It was true that a blacksmith must be strong himself.

The school hospital and the Alchemy Department of the Clockwork Institute jointly launched the "Who is the King of Drug Resistance" challenge.

As long as you can take multiple alchemical potions within the specified time and provide regular follow-up feedback thereafter, you can get a series of generous prizes.

The most attractive benefit is that as long as students participate, they can directly receive bonus credits.

In addition, the notice of the challenge event also includes some warm tips, suggesting that "Abundance" sequence extraordinary people with tenacious vitality, or students with healing, recovery, and physical strengthening night blades, should actively sign up.

Of course, the "Who is the King of Drug Resistance" challenge was urgently stopped by the school less than an hour after it was launched, thus preventing a group of innocent college students from being used as guinea pigs for drug testing and feeling complacent.

Of course, given Hiltina's fame within the academy, and her unwillingness to disguise herself, she openly showed her true self...

Participating in the school anniversary so openly, it is natural that one will be subjected to all kinds of strange looks.

The sacrifices in the night world cannot be hidden from everyone.

For the sake of confidentiality, the specific details of the strategy in the previous reverberations of the disaster will not be known to outsiders... However, the names of the sacrifices of the strategy group who were dimmed on the obelisk can be checked by every student.

Not to mention, as a genius second only to Hiltina in the second grade, Fran is already a celebrity in Star University because of her sociable and outgoing personality.

Even she sacrificed herself in the night world, yet she still had the special identity of a former friend.

The rumors that were already surrounding Hiltina naturally intensified... There were even rumors that Hiltina deliberately sent her to carry out the most dangerous mission because she hated Fran's betrayal.

As a result, people inevitably looked at Rast, who appeared next to Hiltina, with prejudice and talked about him.

Just obviously.

Neither Hiltina nor Rast is the type of person who cares about other people's eyes and gossip.

Because Xiltina had never had any expectations of others from the beginning, she had long been accustomed to this kind of gaze.

And Rast adheres to the principle of energy conservation.

Don’t do unnecessary things, and keep necessary things simple.

Just like the story in the previous life.

“Don’t argue with fools.”

"Master, I strongly disagree with your opinion!"

"Yes, you are right."

To change my reputation among the students... can I learn how to "release the true name" of the sniper rifle and unleash a devastating laser cannon?

Obviously not.

……

It was already evening when Last and Hiltina had roughly visited all the school anniversary activities of the four major colleges.

As the sun sets, the glow dyes the entire sky the color of fire.

They walked side by side on the streets of Star University.

At this point in time, most of the school anniversary activities have ended, and the students are gathered in the auditorium, waiting for the evening celebration dance to begin.

The main road of the college, which is bustling during the day, is now quite quiet.

"So this is what Fran and the others think of the academy, and what she's looking forward to for the school anniversary."

In her hand, Hiltina held a cloud-like marshmallow and ate it gracefully.

The shadows of the two people were reflected on the street, stretching infinitely in the sunset.

"Why do you say that?" asked Luster.

"Well, in my eyes, the academy used to be just a huge maintenance base... or a safe zone."

"It's just like the human villages in adventure games. Every time I come back from the Night World, I have to repair my equipment, gather intelligence, and organize consumable items here to prepare for the next trip into the Night World."

"The purpose of the academy's existence is only to enable me to better conquer the night world, that's all."

Hiltina stopped and turned to watch the setting sun slowly taking away the sunlight from the earth.

The originally crimson college buildings turned red and black as the night gradually fell.

"But now I can understand."

"For Fran and the others, this isn't just a supply point in the game, but their real home."

"And the people in the academy aren't just game characters with clearly defined roles like the blacksmith responsible for forging, the pharmacist who replenishes life potions, the village chief who takes on quests... They're real, flesh-and-blood individuals."

"The meaning of travel is not just about reaching the destination, the journey itself is equally important. This is why Fran and I broke up."

"Flan isn't actually afraid of death...but she's unwilling to sacrifice the process itself just to reach the end."

Hiltina paused for a moment, and in her eyes, Rast saw the sunset.

"Yes, this is what Star University and this world look like in their eyes... How do you feel about it?" Last continued to ask.

"It's a little different from what I expected, but I don't hate this kind of world."

"It is precisely because life is so uncertain and so short that we must run hard, laugh loudly, and love boldly while we are still alive," Hiltina said softly. "Leave your mark on this world and embrace all the beauty in it."

"This is what Dean Yin said to me when I first enrolled, and it's also the philosophy that the president has instilled into Fanxing University."

"But, I didn't really understand it until now."

Last smiled and said, "Aren't you afraid that after understanding this, you will become weak and cowardly like those who oppose you..."

"Can't I ever ignore all the rumors and life-threatening situations like before and keep running towards the finish line with unwavering determination?"

"No, it won't." Hiltina shook her head slightly.