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ArabicHonkai Impact: My Power Grows When Valkyries Fall For Me — Chapter 37
Chapter 37: The Third Honkai Eruption
Time flowed by in a quiet blur, a month fast-forwarded by some invisible hand.
During this period of fragile peace, Mei’s condition had stabilized remarkably. The shadows that once haunted the corners of her eyes had receded, replaced by smiles that bloomed more and more frequently. The faint, melancholic air that clung to her had all but vanished.
Rumors about her still slithered through the school’s halls, but after Kiana had single-handedly confronted and fought an entire classroom of gossips, the overt bullying had ceased. As for the consequences of Kiana’s reckless brawl, Lucian had quietly pulled a few strings within Schicksal, ensuring the incident was swept under the rug.
A peaceful, almost heartwarming daily life played on a loop, like a silent, sun-drenched film.
——————
St. Freya Academy, noon. On the rooftop.
The trio had gathered there once again, a lunchtime tradition that had become an unspoken routine.
Lucian leaned against the chain-link fence of the rooftop, a can of coffee, cold from the vending machine, held loosely in his hand. His gaze drifted over the distant city skyline, and he couldn’t suppress a quiet sigh.
Life was too comfortable. It gave him the constant, unnerving feeling of a storm gathering just over the horizon.
Kiana, of course, was a whirlwind of energy every single day. That was a given.
The real issue was Mei and Bronya. Lately, both girls had been drawing closer and closer to him, in ways that left him utterly bewildered.
First, there was Mei. After their “three-person date,” something within her seemed to have clicked into place. Where she had once subtly avoided him, she now offered him these soft, inexplicable smiles that sent a strange flutter through his chest. While her actions were never overt, Lucian couldn’t shake the feeling that something fundamental had shifted between them.
Then there was Bronya. She was on a completely different level of perplexing.
Before, she at least maintained a semblance of independence. Now… now she had all but abandoned it. At home, she had stopped using Project Bunny 19C for mobility, opting instead for a simple wheelchair and insisting that he push her everywhere. Soon after, even the wheelchair was deemed unnecessary. She began demanding he carry her to her room, tucking her into bed each night.
It made Lucian seriously wonder if the little homunculus had been possessed by some mischievous spirit.
He hadn’t even begun to consciously ‘romance’ them, had he? So why was the relationship progress bar filling up at such an alarming speed?
The days slipped by, suspended in this atmosphere that was equal parts warm and bizarre.
“Lucian, stop daydreaming! Get over here!”
Kiana’s voice sliced through his jumbled thoughts, pulling him back to the present.
He turned his head. Kiana was beckoning to him with a conspiratorial grin, while Mei sat beside her, a helpless but fond smile gracing her lips.
Lucian ambled over, and Kiana immediately thrust her phone into his face.
“Look, look! This amusement park is having a Homu-themed party this weekend! Let’s all go!”
On the screen, a colorful promotional image showcased the bright yellow, rabbit-like mascot, its face fixed in that iconic, goofy grin.
“Alright.”
Lucian agreed without a second thought, his gaze softening as it rested on Kiana’s beaming face. She was always like this—a radiant, inexhaustible sun.
Beside her, Mei’s eyes shifted between Lucian and Kiana, the faint, knowing smile returning to her lips.
Lucian pulled his gaze away and took a sip of his coffee.
“Feels like… this kind of life is pretty good, too,” he murmured, more to himself than to anyone else.
Hearing his quiet reflection, Kiana shot him a mischievous grin.
“Eh—? Lucian, were you just having a deep moment?” she teased, her tone drawn out. She bounced over to his side, nudging his shoulder with her elbow. “Is it because you think having lunch with two gorgeous beauties like me and Mei is the absolute peak of your life?”
Lucian swayed from the impact, nearly spilling his coffee. He shot her a resigned look. “Yes, yes. It’s an incredible honor.”
“Hehe, you’d better know it!”
He just shook his head, a smile tugging at his own lips. Before he could retort, the shrill ring of the school bell shattered the afternoon tranquility.
“Oh no! Class is about to start!” Kiana yelped in alarm. She grabbed her half-eaten rice ball and stuffed the entire thing into her mouth, her cheeks puffing out like a squirrel’s.
Mei had already risen gracefully to her feet. As she tidied up their lunch boxes, she shot Lucian a quick, playful wink.
“Lucian, we should get going.”
Only then did Lucian glance at the time. He set down his empty coffee can. “Let’s go.”
His shadow stretched long in the afternoon sun, sweeping across the mottled concrete of the rooftop.
But in the next instant, a flat, ugly crack tore through the air.
“…?”
Lucian froze, a flicker of confusion crossing his face before he looked down. A crimson stain was blooming on his chest, expanding with terrifying speed as warm, sticky liquid soaked through the white fabric of his school uniform.
The searing, white-hot pain arrived a second later, a tidal wave of agony that stole his breath. It was accompanied by a sudden, draining weakness, as if his very life force was being siphoned away.
He staggered, his hand flying to his chest as he tried to remain upright, but his vision began to swim and darken at the edges.
“LUCIAN!”
As his consciousness started to blur and fray, he heard a frantic, terrified scream. The last thing he saw clearly was Kiana’s face, contorted in horror.
She scrambled to his side, pressing her hands desperately against the wound, but the bright red blood just kept flowing, slick and hot between her fingers.
“Wake up! Lucian! Don’t you dare fall asleep!”
Tears streamed uncontrollably down her cheeks, dripping onto Lucian’s paling face.
“Mei! Mei, call an ambulance! Hurry!” she shrieked, looking up in panic toward where Mei had been standing. But the sight that met her eyes caused her pupils to shrink to pinpricks.
Mei hadn’t moved.
She stood there silently, the afternoon light outlining her slender silhouette. But an inexplicable, chilling coldness radiated from her, a stark contrast to the warm sun.
Then, Kiana saw it.
Vicious, crackling veins of amethyst lightning began to spread from Mei’s feet, crawling across the concrete with an angry, sizzling sound. The very air grew heavy, thick with a strange, metallic odor like scorched ozone.
“Mei…?” Kiana whispered, her voice trembling.
Mei finally raised her head.
The moment Kiana saw her face, her breath hitched in her throat.
Those gentle, violet eyes, which always held such warmth, were now blazing with a malevolent crimson light.
“You…” Mei spoke, her voice a low, guttural tremor, vibrating with a fury that seemed to shake the very air.
“How dare you…!”
Without any further warning, a bolt of purple lightning, far thicker and more violent than before, erupted from her body. It didn’t strike a target but slammed savagely into the rooftop at her feet, blasting a charred, shallow crater into the solid concrete.
Across Changkong City, the Honkai Energy index skyrocketed. The thick clouds churning in the sky began to roil as if stirred by an invisible, colossal hand. Centered on St. Freya Academy, the clouds swirled and compressed, forming a dark, malignant purple vortex that swallowed nearly half the city within seconds.
The brilliant afternoon sun was completely devoured, plunging the metropolis into an eerie, violet twilight.
Within the city limits, the wildly escalating Honkai radiation spread like a plague. Wherever it passed, matter and life underwent horrifying mutations. Citizens caught in the initial wave either had their consciousness instantly scattered, dropping dead on the spot, or had their bodies twisted and reshaped into mindless Death Soldiers.
On the streets, panic exploded in a catastrophic chain reaction.
Survivors screamed, cried, and trampled one another in a desperate, futile stampede. Cars swerved and crashed into each other in rapid succession. Explosions bloomed one after another, their hungry flames licking up toward the bizarre purple clouds, painting the city in the vibrant, terrible colors of the apocalypse.
——————
On the rooftop, Lucian, lying on the ground with his consciousness fading, slowly pieced the situation together.
He had been shot. Directly through the heart.
The sniper’s goal was obvious: to awaken the Herrscher of Thunder. In their eyes, he was a special existence to Mei, the perfect catalyst. By killing him in front of her, they would trigger an emotional overload that, combined with the unstable Herrscher Core already latent within her, would force her awakening.
What was their endgame? To have the new Herrscher destroy Changkong City?
It didn’t matter. He had no time to worry about the coward who shot from the shadows.
Lucian coughed, a mouthful of blood spattering on the concrete. The complex pattern in his right eye began to flicker with a cool, silver light. The violently surging Honkai Energy in the air, the very energy that was destroying the city, was drawn to him, beginning to heal his body at an impossible rate.
He opened his eyes. Kiana’s tear-streaked face was still hovering over him. She was staring up at the transformed Mei, her shock so deep that she hadn’t even noticed he was awake.
“Kiana… let go of me,” Lucian said, his voice raspy. He gently pushed away her hands, which were still pressed futilely against his chest.
The wound that had been gushing blood only moments ago was now nothing more than a ragged tear in his shirt. The flesh beneath was already sealed and whole. With Kiana’s stunned assistance, Lucian pushed himself to his feet.
“Huh? Your injury…?” she stammered, her eyes wide with disbelief.
“I’ll explain later. First, we need to deal with Mei.”
Lucian’s gaze was fixed on the Herrscher. He reached out, channeling the ambient Honkai Energy once more. It coalesced in his hand, solidifying into the familiar shape of a metal baseball bat, which he promptly tossed to Kiana.
She caught it on pure reflex, her mind struggling to process what was happening. Only then did she realize he had just materialized the weapon from thin air.
“This is…?” Kiana stared at the bat. It was surprisingly heavy, and faint, shimmering patterns of energy pulsed just beneath its surface.
“Something to help Mei ‘snap out of it’,” Lucian said, his tone grim. His eyes never left the figure crackling with purple lightning not far away.
“Find an opening later,” he instructed, his voice low and steady. “And knock her out. One hit.”
“Knock… knock out Mei?” Kiana whispered, her grip tightening on the bat as she stared from her revived friend to the monster that wore her other friend’s face.