Reincarnation NPC, but Arknights

Chapter Twenty: Her Helper Was Actually Her

"What is the outside world like?"

While eating chocolate, Ifrit's words were somewhat muffled.

“Wilderness, danger, enemy.” Bai Ye said, taking out his spare weapon, “Origami.” Unlike “Arc Light,” Origami was only a blue-tier weapon, and its rating was among the lowest of all blue-tier weapons.

There's nothing particularly special about it; the reason it's rated as blue quality is simply because of its sturdiness and sharpness.

However, for a weapon, that is enough.

Bai Ye began to maintain the weapons. Although he hadn't used them many times, maintaining weapons was a kind of training process for warriors.

As Bai Ye traced the sword tip down the blade, he felt its cold sharpness, a sensation that brought him immense peace of mind.

Ifrit watched Bai Ye with great interest; to her, this taciturn older brother was full of fascinating qualities.

Ifrit had very little room to move around on Rhodes Island; her condition was still under control, and she could only travel between her dormitory and hospital room each day. The arrival of White Night added a lot of fun to her life.

Bai Ye was sharpening his weapon, while Ifrit sat obediently to the side, licking her chocolate. If Himer entered the room and saw this scene, he would be astonished.

After all, this is Ifrit, a troubled girl who has suffered from experiments, has an extremely bad temper, and is full of rebellious psychology. How could she be so obedient?

Perhaps it was because the "Flame Demon" within her became unusually quiet when she was near Bai Ye? Or perhaps it was because Ifrit saw a resemblance to Saria in Bai Ye.

That was a silent and reserved gentleness.

"Want to hear a story?" Bai Ye is actually quite good at interacting with children.

In my past life at the orphanage, it was always the older children who looked after the younger ones. As the old director grew older, he gradually became less capable. Those of us who were older took on some of the old director's responsibilities.

"You can tell stories?" Ifrit tilted her head, somewhat skeptical.

Seria never told her any stories.

Bai Ye, of course, had no idea what Ifrit was thinking. He was simply maintaining the equipment while recounting stories from his past life. The mountain fortress built by the dwarves, the fire dragon that possessed the dwarven treasure, the diminutive hobbits, the mysterious grey-robed wizard…

Since he couldn't remember everything anyway, he just talked about whatever came to mind.

Yet it was these fragmented stories that captivated Ifrit.

"Does Hermer usually tell you stories?" Bai Ye asked, somewhat puzzled.

Ifrit shook her head: "Hime is too busy and doesn't have time for me."

So what do you usually do?

"Bored, daydreaming, getting angry, causing trouble, sleeping when tired..." Ifrit seemed indifferent.

Bai Ye nodded, then stared at Ifrit for a while. He could see the shadow of the children from the orphanage in his previous life in this girl.

After a moment of silence, Bai Ye slowly said, "When I come back, I will teach you to read. That way, once your condition stabilizes, you can go out and play, and you can also go to school on Rhodes Island."

"Really?!" Ifrit's little face lit up with surprise upon hearing this. "Will Himer agree?"

“Hermer will agree.” Bai Ye nodded. “She’s just a researcher; she doesn’t know anything about taking care of children.”

"But there's nothing we can do about it..."

This pairing is too strange. Himer is not good at being a mother, nor is she suitable. Ifrit is even taller than Himer, but she is not mature in spirit and her mind is still that of a child.

Typical laboratory-grown synthetic individuals are highly dangerous and destructive.

Bai Ye still wanted to guide the girl in a positive direction, lest she burn down her own room in the end...

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The next morning, Bai Ye got up very early.

Everything was ready. Bai Ye turned off all the equipment in the room, then went to the field department and wandered around the offices.

Finally, he bought breakfast at the cafeteria and then headed towards the parking area.

The engineering department had prepared a modified vehicle for him, fully fueled and in brand new condition, ready for him to set off.

"Speaking of which, Dr. Kal'tsit even assigned me an assistant..."

Bai Ye was curious about who the person traveling with him was.

As he walked, Bai Ye removed his Rhodes Island employee badge and replaced it with Northern Cross company identification.

However, when he arrived at the vehicle parking area, he was stunned.

Even the movements of his hands stopped.

It was so sudden...

The helper that Dr. Kal'tsit assigned to him was actually her!

Bai Ye couldn't help but whisper the person's name: "Deepsea Hunter, Skadi..."

The girl was tall and slender, with long, silver hair cascading down like a waterfall, the ends of which were tied up. Her hair and cloak swayed gently in the morning breeze.

What's most striking isn't the girl's long legs or her crimson eyes, but the massive sword on her back that's almost as tall as a person.

Bai Ye squinted and estimated the weight and length of the sword, then subconsciously simulated the scene of fighting against it in his mind.

But he soon shook his head.

This simulation is not possible, because what is more terrifying than the weapon is the person who uses it.

In his previous life, he had heard rumors about "Deepsea Hunter" Skadi, who was said to have a rather long quest chain that even involved subsequent main world quests.

This is a being whose physique and physical strength are terrifying.

It is said that deep-sea hunters can even break the sound barrier in battle, and their strength is astonishingly immense.

I never expected that Dr. Kal'tsit would arrange for her to travel with us!

Bai Ye put the luggage in the car and extended his hand to Skadi: "Bai Ye, Field Operations Department, it's a pleasure to travel with you."

"..."

Skadi looked at the hand that Bai Ye had extended. She paused for a moment before realizing that this was a form of etiquette among land dwellers.

She gently reached out and tenderly shook Bai Ye's hand, saying softly, "Skadi, the bounty hunter."

She was gentle because she was worried that if she used too much force, she would crush Bai Ye's hand.

The girl then released Bai Ye's hand. After touching him, she was somewhat surprised; Bai Ye's physical strength seemed quite good, not as fragile as she had imagined.

At least, it's better than most ordinary land dwellers.

Bai Ye nodded, then gestured for the girl to get into the car.

After setting up the map on the terminal, he started the Originium Engine and prepared to set off.

Skadi sat in the passenger seat, clutching her sword, in an awkward posture, seemingly resting with her eyes closed.

At least, she was satisfied with this companion; he wasn't someone she found repulsive.

Chapter Twenty-One: Traveling with Orcas

Long ago, a wizard named Gilderoy Lockhart wrote a novel called "Walking with Vampires," which is said to have later become a required textbook in a certain school.

Now, Bai Ye is traveling with Miss Orca.

After several days of travel, the two had left the city far behind and ventured deep into the wilderness. They might not see another soul before reaching the next mobile city of Letania.

Miss Skadi is a taciturn companion who may not utter more than one long sentence a day. However, the two of them are becoming more and more in sync, able to understand each other without words.

After downing his warmed chocolate drink in one gulp, White Night added some fuel to the campfire and then prepared to return to his car to sleep. He and Skadi usually took turns keeping watch; Skadi would keep watch for the first half of the night, while he would take over for the second.

Once they decided on this order on their first night, the two of them simply didn't change it.

However, Bai Ye's movements stopped a moment later. He put away the cup, climbed onto the roof of the car under Skadi's somewhat puzzled gaze, closed his eyes and listened for a while, then jumped off the car and took out his weapon.

"what happened?"

Skadi watched Bai Ye's series of actions with some confusion, but she also took down the greatsword stuck in the ground.

"Don't be too nervous, it's just a group of Originium bugs passing by."

Bai Ye merely made a warning gesture, but did not show any signs of being on high alert.

“Originium bugs?” Skadi relaxed slightly, not taking it seriously. She had dealt with many of these infected creatures in the past as a bounty hunter. Although there were many of them, they were not particularly difficult to deal with.

A single sweep of the sword can take away a large number of enemies.

However, five minutes later, Skadi's body involuntarily tensed up again. Her expression turned serious as she prepared to raise the greatsword in her hand.

"Shh, don't be nervous, it's okay." Bai Ye reached out and placed his hand on the sword that Miss Orca was vaguely poised to strike, but inwardly he was amazed by the power gathering on the greatsword.

As expected of a deep-sea hunter, this is such terrifying and pure power.

Deepsea Hunters have a limitation in their Originium Arts adaptability, meaning they cannot use magic. However, their powerful physiques are their best weapon.

This thing is much better than a staff.

"Hmm, are you really alright?" Skadi, afraid that she had accidentally hurt Byakuya, quickly withdrew her power.

"Let's just watch for now. As long as we don't disturb them, it'll be fine."

What exactly makes Skadi so wary?

It was an enormous Originium Bug, its body resembling a small mountain. When it led its horde to migrate across the land, it would cause a deafening roar, and the earth would begin to tremble.

Skadi stared at the enormous creature before her.

Her body was trembling slightly, not from fear, but from trying to suppress her impulse.

She always harbored deep hostility towards such a behemoth.

Bai Ye admired this miraculous creation. Greatness is a burden, for its body must be strong and resilient enough to bear its own weight.

The giant Originium Bug ignored Bai Ye and Skadi standing to the side. It led its swarm of Originium Bugs past the two of them calmly and finally disappeared into the distance.

"Phew—" Skadi breathed a sigh of relief.

She put down the greatsword in her hand and gently shook her head: "So there are giant creatures on land too."

"Thank goodness, there are no tentacles..."

"It should be easy to chop it up."

Bai Ye had already sheathed his sword. He had encountered such giant Originium worms in his previous life. Although they were dangerous creatures, they were generally safe if left alone.

“These are Originium worms migrating…” Bai Ye felt the breeze blowing past his ears and said after a while, “We need to speed up, this is a sign that a natural disaster is about to occur.”

“You know a lot,” Skadi praised.

Bai Ye, however, disagreed: "It's just the most basic wilderness survival knowledge..."

"That's not right. As a bounty hunter, you should know these things too."

Skadi tilted her head, indicating that she didn't know what Bai Ye was talking about.

"..." Bai Ye was speechless. He finally understood that this guy was simply overwhelming her with his personal strength. Many common sense things were not really important to her.

As expected, Dr. Kal'tsit really did find herself a henchman...

With a sigh, Bai Ye said helplessly, "They should teach you something: avoiding meaningless battles and attrition is the act of a wise person."

Skadi didn't speak, even though she agreed with White Night's statement, but no one had ever taught her these things.

She was well-known among bounty hunters, and everyone was afraid of her. They would deliberately avoid her if they encountered her, and no one would approach her.

On Rhodes Island, she usually only undertakes solo missions. She is used to being alone.

"It's alright, it's not too late to learn now." Bai Ye relit the campfire that he had just extinguished.

Skadi looked at the young man sitting beside her and blinked: "Aren't you afraid of me?"

"Of course I'm not afraid, you're not a monster." Bai Ye looked at her with amusement. "You're too wary, you're even deliberately choosing self-exile."

“You didn’t speak to me before.” Skadi’s crimson eyes flickered.

"Cough cough..." Bai Ye choked. Was this a little moody thing? "It's not that I'm scared, it's just that I don't want to bother you—after all, you don't talk much anyway."

Skadi suddenly realized, "I just don't know what to say."

Bai Ye smiled. This girl is actually quite simple-minded... At first, he thought the girl was aloof and difficult to communicate with, but he didn't expect her to be just a little naive.

Skadi looked at Bai Ye and then said, "Now, talk to me more."

Far from the deep sea, where evil tentacles and monsters cannot approach, she also doesn't need to worry about Bai Ye being dragged into the calamity that constantly pursues her.