Honkai Star Rail: I Became the World Tree — Chapter 103

Chapter 103: Are You With That Bad Woman?

Furina led Ronova into the bustling Equipment Workshop, carefully selecting a complete set of Standard Equipment.

Furina scratched her head, looking a little embarrassed as she handed over the gear. “Lord Ronova, the best gear that can be bought directly with currency at the Equipment Workshop is just this Standard Equipment. Better equipment requires collecting specific materials and then coming back here to have it custom crafted, so please do not look down on it.”

Ronova shook her head as she equipped the items. “I do not look down on it at all. I am already very satisfied with this set. It is getting late, so you should go back and rest. I will head east to hunt monsters by myself.”

Furina immediately puffed out her chest. “I will still go with you! My level is high, so I can help you out.”

Hearing the genuine enthusiasm in the dramatic girl’s voice, Ronova did not refuse again. “Alright, but stay safe. If there is danger, leave quickly. Do not worry about me.”

Hearing Ronova’s words of concern, Furina could not help but think to herself. ‘This legendary figure is not as cold-hearted as the rumors say.’ Aside from the brief moment when Ronova had attacked Neuvillette earlier, Furina felt that the Archon of Death was actually quite easy to get along with.

Ronova nodded toward the exit. “Let us set off. Time is of the essence.”

Just as the two were about to depart, Samuel walked over. “I will go with you. I need to find a place to set down a Teleport Beacon. That way, it will be easier to come back later.”

Furina and Ronova nodded in agreement. Subsequently, the three of them headed all the way toward the eastern reaches of the Elven Forest.

Over an hour later, the trio arrived at the eastern perimeter of the dense woods. Samuel handled through the underbrush and placed a beacon at the exact spot where Sivir’s group of elves had previously hidden. This cave was incredibly well-hidden and would not be easily noticed by passing monsters or travelers.

After setting down the device, Samuel tested the Teleport Beacon’s function and vanished in a flash of light, returning directly to the Holy City.

With Samuel gone, Furina and Ronova began searching for traces of the local Orcs. The two ventured deeper through the forest, heading in the general direction of the Orc Tribe’s main encampment.

As they were walking beneath the thick canopy, a small figure suddenly dropped down from a tree branch right in front of them.

“Yo! Isn’t this Furina? What are you doing out here in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?”

The person who arrived was Silver Wolf. Ronova had initially intended to strike the ambusher, but seeing that the newcomer clearly knew Furina, she held her blade back.

Furina was also quite surprised to see the hacker. “Silver Wolf? Why are you here? By the way, let me introduce you. This is our Teyvat’s Archon of Death, Lord Ronova. She has already joined my Justice Adventure Team!”

Hearing this, Silver Wolf looked at Ronova curiously, scanning the tall woman up and down. Her eyes widened slightly as her gaze stopped dead at the prominent peaks on Ronova’s chest.

‘Another big one! Dammit!’ Silver Wolf grumbled internally. She hated seeing those things the most. However, the gamer did not let her jealousy show on her face.

Silver Wolf casually reached out her hand. “Hello, welcome to the Source Continent, newbie. You guys came out here so late to kill Orcs and level up, right? Come with the invincible Lord Silver Wolf. Let me teach you how to properly lure the Orcs out.”

Ronova’s eyes narrowed slightly at the ‘newbie’ comment, but before she could get angry, Furina quickly intervened. “Lord Ronova, Silver Wolf is very powerful! She levels up incredibly fast and even dares to enter the Orc Tribe’s territory alone. She has always acted solo, so let us follow her and see. She really has a knack for dealing with Orcs at night. These monsters basically huddle in their fortified camp at night and do not come out. If we rush in blindly, we definitely will not make it out alive. There are many powerful monsters inside.”

Ronova nodded calmly upon hearing the tactical assessment. “Alright, let us follow her and see.”

The two quickly caught up with Silver Wolf, who was already chewing a piece of bubblegum and leading the way. The three soon arrived at a thicket not far from the Orc Tribe’s main gates. Outside the thicket was a wide patch of open ground. Originally, there had been many trees here as well, but they had all been chopped down by the Orcs to clear their line of sight.

Furina looked at the Goblins densely packed along the Orc Tribe’s wooden walls and asked in confusion, “Silver Wolf, it is up to you. Did you not just say you would teach us how to lure them out of their camp?”

Silver Wolf popped her bubblegum and raised an eyebrow. “I will demonstrate it for you once. Watch and learn carefully.”

After saying that, Silver Wolf jumped directly out of the thicket and strolled into the open space. The walls of the Orc Tribe were lined with blazing torches, illuminating the entire clearing. Silver Wolf walked right to the center of the clearing, put her hands on her hips, and shouted provocatively at the Goblins on the wall.

“Hey, hey, hey! Are you all blind? Everyone, look at me! You absolute idiots!”

With Silver Wolf’s loud shout, the Goblins on the wall all turned their ugly gazes toward her. Seeing she had their attention, Silver Wolf took a deep breath and pointed her small hand right at them.

“You bunch of [Bleep]!”

“If you have the guts, come down here!”

“May your children be born without [Bleep]!”

Silver Wolf’s little mouth kept moving at rapid speed, and the system-censored bleeping sounds never stopped echoing across the clearing. The Goblins on the wall were so enraged by the relentless, highly specific insults that they began to howl and screech wildly. They grabbed their crude weapons, kicked open the heavy wooden gates, and charged out in a massive swarm toward the small girl.

Seeing that she had successfully lured the horde out, Silver Wolf turned around and slapped her own butt mockingly. “Come and hit me, you ugly Orcs! Blehh!”

After making a face, Silver Wolf immediately turned and bolted toward the tree line.

Ronova and Furina were both completely stunned as they watched this absurd scene unfold from the bushes. Silver Wolf’s mouth really had a way with words. If it were them, they probably would never have been able to think of such vile things to say.

Silver Wolf ran up to Ronova and Furina, looking at the two who were still dazed. “Hey, hey, hey, what are you standing there for? Run! What, do you want to fight this entire army right here? What are you thinking? Hurry up and run!”

Ronova and Furina snapped out of their stupor and took off running. The enraged Goblins chased the three of them deep into the forest.

Many strange plants emitting a blue fluorescent glow grew in this part of the woods, bringing a haunting light to the environment. Although the visibility was not as good as during the day, it was not pitch black either.

Silver Wolf, Ronova, and Furina leaped up and hid in the branches of a massive ancient tree. Silver Wolf peered down and quickly counted the Goblins that had chased them away from the camp.

“Only about ninety of them? And there are only three Big Goblins in the mix. That is a bit few. The Big Goblins are mine, the other ordinary Goblins are yours. We are a good distance from the Orc Tribe now, so they will not hear the commotion over here. Let’s do this!”

After saying that, Silver Wolf leaped down from the tree and charged directly toward a towering Big Goblin. Before her boots even hit the ground, her futuristic staff had already fired off two glowing Data Missiles.

Seeing that the battle had already begun, Furina stayed up in the tree to provide long-range Hydro support.

Ronova, on the other hand, grabbed a thick vine with one hand and quickly slid to the forest floor, immediately entering a lethal combat state. Her movements were extremely agile, a pure reflection of her ancient and rich combat experience. Among the Four Archons of Teyvat, her killing intent was by far the strongest.

Holding her Standard sword, Ronova became a blur of motion, slaughtering the Goblins with terrifying precision. Watching Ronova absolutely dominate the battlefield, Furina could not help but marvel from above. ‘Lord Ronova is truly strong. She is really fierce when she fights!’

The battle started quickly and ended just as fast. Ronova’s killing efficiency was monstrous. She was not the least bit flustered when faced with the siege of dozens of screeching Goblins, smoothly dodging their crude attacks while simultaneously striking back with lethal force. She moved through the chaotic battlefield like a true goddess of war, stepping through the enemy ranks as if strolling through an uninhabited garden.

By the time the last body fell, Ronova had reached Level 3. She calmly wiped the dark blood off her Standard sword and looked over at the hacker. “Silver Wolf, shall we continue?”

Silver Wolf raised an eyebrow, a competitive grin forming on her face. “Of course we are continuing! My goal tonight is to reach Level 8! Let’s go. Looking at the two of you, you probably haven’t fully grasped the essence of the invincible Lord Silver Wolf’s way of luring enemies. Leave the job of baiting them to me. You guys just handle the mobs.”

Subsequently, Silver Wolf set out again to curse at more walls. After two more intense rounds of combat, Furina was finally called back by Ronova, who decided it was time to rest.

When Silver Wolf heard about the Teleport Beacon Samuel had placed nearby, her face lit up with pure joy. What a fantastic item! The invincible Lord Silver Wolf would not have to suffer through long, boring treks back to the city anymore.

The next day arrived brightly. It was still early morning, and everyone was gathered in the Cafeteria waiting for the meal to start. Xiangling, Escoffier, and Guoba were busily cooking a massive breakfast for everyone in the kitchen, the sounds of chopping and sizzling filling the air.

Stelle, Furina, March 7th, and the rest of the group were sitting around the long dining table chatting.

Furina leaned in, her eyes sparkling with gossip. “A major event happened on our end last night!”

Lumine looked up from her cup of water, asking in confusion, “Furina, what major event? Tell us about it.”

Furina gestured grandly. “You know about the Four Archons of Celestia I told you about before, right?”

Lumine nodded slowly. “Yeah, I know. What about them? Did they come to cause trouble for you?”

Furina nodded vigorously. “Yeah, exactly! The Archon of Death, Ronova, came to find me. Neuvillette fought her, but he didn’t win. She actually came to find me to join the Justice Adventure Team, so I brought her over here last night. I even went to the east of the Elven Forest with her to fight Orcs and we ran into Silver Wolf. You should have seen it, she is so strong! She wiped out fifty Goblins all by herself! Those Goblins didn’t hit her even once! It was terrifying!”

Hearing that it was the Archon of Death who had arrived, Lumine felt a sudden urge to ask the woman for news of her missing brother. The other party was an Archon of Celestia, so she had to know something about Aether, right?

Stelle heard Furina’s battle report and nodded thoughtfully. “They are indeed quite fierce. Although I can handle that many, I would still get hit a few times. Mainly because there were too many of them, enemies on all sides, I just couldn’t keep track of everything.”

March 7th agreed deeply, shaking her head. “I certainly couldn’t do it. I’m an archer, so my melee skills are just average.”

As they were chatting, the Cafeteria doors were suddenly pushed open, and Silver Wolf and Ronova walked in.

Silver Wolf literally kicked the door open, striking a pose. “Everyone, come and worship! The invincible Lady Silver Wolf is already Level 9! Wahahaha!”

Hearing this, Stelle stared at the small hacker in wide-eyed disbelief. “You are already Level 9? Did you take some kind of illegal EXP drugs?”

Silver Wolf snorted twice, crossing her arms. “Hmph hmph! What do you know? I had great luck last night and lured out quite a few elite monsters. My original goal was just to reach Level 8, but I didn’t expect my trash talk to attract so many elites. Oh dear, I couldn’t help but level up even if I didn’t want to! Honestly, it is a burden being this good.”

Hearing this, Stelle sighed. “Then your luck is indeed good. Elite monsters are very hard to come by right now.”

Furina looked over at her new team member. “Lady Ronova, what level have you reached?”

Hearing this, Ronova summoned her system panel and glanced at it. “Level 6, almost 7. It was also thanks to those elite monsters. At the very end, Silver Wolf lured out three Goblin Warriors. Those elite monsters really give a massive amount of experience.”

Furina gave a thumbs up. “Impressive!”

Nearby, Lumine stared intently at Ronova’s face, feeling a deep, nagging sense of familiarity. But she just could not remember exactly where she had seen those features before. Lumine straightened her clothes, took a deep breath, and walked towards Ronova.

Arriving in front of the tall woman, before Lumine could even speak, Ronova looked down and said directly, “You are here to ask about your brother’s news, right?”

Lumine was stunned and nodded blankly. “Ye… Yes. How did you know?”

Ronova chuckled softly. “Every single day you are either asking this person or that person about your brother. What do you think?”

Lumine gave a sheepish laugh, rubbing the back of her neck. “I am just anxious to find him. So, do you know anything about my brother?”

Ronova nodded, her expression turning serious. “Yes, I know.”

Lumine’s face brightened with absolute joy. “Really? Where is he?”

Ronova looked her in the eye. “After you and your brother were stopped by Asmoday, you were sealed away, and your brother was rescued by the Abyss. Now, he is the Prince of the Abyss Order, its public leader.”

Lumine froze, the words echoing in her mind. “Abyss Order? Why would my brother join the Abyss Order? That is an evil organization! No! I have to go and bring him back!”

Lumine was about to storm off to find her brother in a fit of righteous indignation, but then, her mind caught up with the rest of Ronova’s sentence. She suddenly realized something critical.

“Asmoday? You know the woman who stopped my brother and me from leaving Teyvat?”

Lumine turned back to look at Ronova. This second look was crucial. The fog in her memory cleared, and she finally remembered. This woman looked incredibly similar to the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles who had ruthlessly stopped her and her brother from leaving!

“You’re with her!”

Lumine immediately drew her standard longsword, the blade ringing out as she pointed it directly at Ronova’s chest.

Seeing this sudden escalation, Furina quickly ran over, waving her hands frantically to mediate. “Lumine! Do not use weapons in here! There might be some misunderstanding!”

Lumine’s longsword remained perfectly still, pointed at Ronova.

Ronova did not even flinch. She simply looked at Lumine and spoke in a calm, measured tone. “That is right. Asmoday and I are colleagues. She is the Archon of Space, and I am the Archon of Death. We are both one of the Four Shades of the Heavenly Principles. The reason we stopped you siblings back then was that your brother had committed a grave mistake.”

Ronova paused, letting the weight of history settle in the room. “He drew upon the power of the Abyss, bringing the Abyss into the continent of Teyvat. That was the war of Khaenri’ah. In that catastrophic battle, the Hydro Archon and Electro Archon who went to fight were killed. Irminsul also fell due to the pollution of forbidden knowledge.”

Ronova gestured toward the other side of the room. “Regarding the war of Khaenri’ah, you can ask Morax and Barbatos beside you. They know exactly how tragic that battle was. That is why Asmoday stopped you siblings.”

Lumine slowly shifted her gaze, looking at Zhongli and Venti.

Seeing Lumine look at him with desperate eyes, Zhongli closed his eyes and sighed heavily. “It is indeed so. That battle was devastating, affecting every single nation. Because Barbatos had to go to Khaenri’ah to fight, he could not protect Mondstadt. In that battle, if Dvalin had not come to the rescue, Mondstadt might have completely fallen. Even Dvalin suffered from the severe corrosion of the Abyss in that fight. Later, unable to hold on any longer, it evolved into the recent Dragon Crisis in Mondstadt. As for our Liyue…”

When Zhongli mentioned Liyue, his voice trailed off. He stopped speaking entirely, as it was a dark time he simply did not want to recall.

Venti, seeing his old friend struggle, helped by stepping in. “Liyue had it even worse. Countless terrifying monsters surged out from The Chasm. In that battle, the ancient Millelith of Liyue suffered incredibly heavy casualties. Even the great general under the old man, the Yaksha Bosacius, died fighting in The Chasm.”

Nahida walked over, her small voice adding to the somber atmosphere. “On the land of Sumeru, many Abyss monsters that survived that battle still remain hidden in the dark corners to this day.”

Listening to the heavy accounts of Zhongli, Venti, and Nahida, Lumine finally understood the sheer scale and tragedy of Khaenri’ah. And the one who had triggered this apocalyptic war… was her brother, Aether!

Ronova looked back at the trembling Lumine. “Actually, Asmoday would never have killed you siblings. Our intention was simply to stop you, capture you, and then have you help purify the remaining Abyss power on the continent of Teyvat. Presumably, you already know that your unique constitution can purify the power of the Abyss. Your brother can do the same.”

Ronova’s eyes softened just a fraction. “Speaking of which, your brother was merely deceived by others. The Five Sinners of Khaenri’ah tricked your brother into absorbing the Abyss power. At that time, we tacitly allowed it to happen. However, the Five Sinners of Khaenri’ah later divided the Abyss power within your brother among themselves. Those Five Sinners are the true culprits behind the disaster.”

“Because of this,” Ronova concluded, “we decided not to kill you, but only to arrest you and have you purify the Abyss power that Teyvat was tainted with because of that war.”

Lumine slowly lowered her blade. She believed Ronova’s explanation. It made sense because she hadn’t died, but was only sealed away. If the Sustainer had really intended to kill her back then, she would not have survived the encounter at all.

Lumine raised her head, her golden eyes burning with a new resolve. “Where are those Five Sinners now? I am going to settle the score with them!”

Ronova shook her head slowly. “They have fled beyond Teyvat, to a place we cannot currently reach. You have absolutely no chance of winning if you go looking for them as you are now. So, focus on recovering your strength here. Once you are powerful enough, I can even lead the way for you.”

Lumine nodded, accepting the harsh reality. She sheathed her longsword and returned to the dining table, her shoulders slumping as she felt incredibly down.

Seeing her friend so depressed, March 7th quickly rushed over to comfort her. “Lumine, don’t be sad! Haven’t you already found out about your brother’s whereabouts? That is a huge step!”

Stelle followed up, patting Lumine’s back. “Exactly. Although we can’t find those Five Sinners for the time being, we can first focus on bringing your brother back from that whatever-it-is Order. When the time comes, we will all go with you and guarantee we’ll drag him back by his ear!”

Hu Tao bounced over and slapped Lumine’s shoulder enthusiastically. “Exactly, exactly! This Hall Master will also go and help you bury your enemies then!”

Lumine looked around at Stelle, Hu Tao, March, and the others. Her heart warmed, and she felt incredibly moved by their unwavering support.

Soon, Xiangling and Escoffier finished making breakfast, bringing out massive platters of steaming food, and everyone gathered around the table to eat.

Ronova took a delicate bite of a freshly steamed Red Bean Bun, and her eyes immediately lit up. “This Red Bean Bun is delicious!”

Xiangling smiled happily, wiping her hands on her apron. “Eat more if it’s good! There is plenty!”

Ronova nodded, then turned to the dignified man sitting beside her. “Morax, I heard your Liyue has many delicious things. When you have time, take me to Liyue and be my guide. I want to taste all of those local delicacies.”

Zhongli nodded politely, taking a sip of his tea. “I would be honored to—”

Suddenly!

Hu Tao slammed her hands on the table and stood up, her eyes wide as saucers.

“Did I hear that right? It’s Morax, right? Lady Ronova, you didn’t say that wrong, did you?!”

Ronova was a bit puzzled by the eccentric girl’s explosive reaction. “Yes, isn’t he Morax? I didn’t get the person wrong, did I? Why? Is there a problem?”

Zhongli had already sensed something was terribly wrong. He swallowed hard, a drop of cold sweat forming on his brow as he thought to himself that things were very, very bad.

‘It’s over! I forgot to tell Lady Ronova about my secret identity!”Oh no! Now the Hall Master knows!”I’m doomed! I’m doomed! I’m doomed!’

Hu Tao stared at Zhongli, saying “good” several times in a row, her voice rising in pitch each time.

“Good! Good! Good! Consultant! You have kept me in the dark so cruelly!”

Hu Tao marched over, pointing an accusing finger at the sweating former Archon. “What ‘relatively powerful adeptus’?! Well, that is indeed a relatively powerful adeptus! The literal ancestor of all adepti! Definitely a ‘relatively powerful adeptus’!”

“Consultant!!!! You! Your conscience is truly rotten!”