Honkai Star Rail: I Became the World Tree — Chapter 86

Chapter 86: No Friendly Fire

Anviel cast Song of the Forest once again, a gentle cascade of emerald light washing over the exhausted Cloud Knights and fully healing their lingering wounds. Opening her system interface to check her status, she noted with a soft sigh of relief that she had only consumed a little over half of her mana pool.

Stelle and March 7th flanked the little elf, guiding her back toward the waiting starskiff. Stelle wrapped a supportive arm around Anviel’s shoulders.

“Anviel, thank you for your hard work.”

Anviel smiled brightly, shaking her head. “It’s not hard work at all. This is what I should do.”

Seeing that the immediate crisis was resolved, Yukong finished her patrol of the defense line. After confirming there were no remaining oversights or hidden threats, she ushered Anviel, Stelle, and the others onto a starskiff, steering the vessel smoothly back to Central Starskiff Haven.

The group returned to the Sky-Faring Commission. As soon as they crossed the threshold, a high-fidelity projection of Jing Yuan materialized before them, his expression relaxed and welcoming.

“Thank you all for your tremendous help,” Jing Yuan said with a warm smile. “I am hosting a banquet this evening and would like to invite you all to dine together. I wonder what our esteemed guests think?”

Welt adjusted his glasses and nodded. “Stelle, March, and I are fine with it, but you should ask Samuel and Anviel. They might have other matters to attend to later.”

Jing Yuan turned his golden gaze toward the two of them. “Mr. Samuel, Anviel, hello. I am Jing Yuan, the current General of the Luofu. Are you two free this evening? Let’s share a meal. I would like to personally thank Anviel, as she did the Luofu a great favor today.”

Samuel nodded, his tone calm and agreeable. “Since General Jing Yuan has so kindly invited us, I will definitely bring Anviel to attend.”

Jing Yuan’s face lit up with genuine pleasure. “Excellent. I will see you all tonight. I shall be waiting to welcome you. There is still plenty of time until then, so please, feel free to explore the Luofu. All expenses will be covered by the Luofu. I hope you all have a wonderful time.”

Hearing those magic words, March 7th couldn’t help but gasp. “You Luofu people are truly rich! Someone just offered to cover our expenses earlier, and now another one comes along with a blank check.”

Jing Yuan laughed heartily, the sound echoing through the spacious hall. “The Luofu has always maintained a tradition of grand hospitality. I still have military matters to attend to, so please forgive me for taking my leave first. I will see you all tonight.”

As Jing Yuan’s projection faded into motes of light, Yukong looked at Samuel and the girls with an apologetic expression. “Everyone, I also have administrative duties to handle and won’t be able to accompany you on your tour. My apologies.”

Anviel looked up, her voice sensible and sweet. “Sister Yukong, you go ahead and get busy. It’s fine if I just go play with Samuel, Sister Stelle, Sister March, and Uncle Welt.”

Yukong smiled slightly, her foxian ears twitching at the girl’s polite demeanor. “Hmm. Don’t rush to leave after dinner with the General tonight. I’ve prepared some special pastries for you. Come find me to get them later so you can take them back to eat.”

Anviel nodded happily, her eyes shining at the promise of treats.

Leaving the Sky-Faring Commission behind, Samuel, Stelle, and the rest of the group stepped out onto the bustling main street of Central Starskiff Haven. The air was filled with the scent of street food and the hum of hovering vehicles. Anviel held tightly to Samuel’s hand, her large, curious eyes constantly scanning the vibrant alien architecture and the diverse crowds.

As they strolled past a row of vibrant stalls, Anviel’s gaze locked onto a vendor displaying complex, translucent golden figurines on wooden sticks.

Noticing her fixed stare, Stelle leaned down. “What’s wrong? Anviel, which one do you want to eat?”

Anviel pointed a small finger. “That… it looks delicious. What is that, Sister Stelle?”

Stelle blinked, staring at the golden shapes. She honestly had no idea.

Welt stepped forward, his tone taking on its usual educational cadence. “That is a sugar figurine, made from melted maltose. It is essentially a type of traditional candy.”

Anviel wore an expression of sudden realization. “Oh. Sugar figurine. That name is indeed very fitting.”

Stelle turned to the rest of the group. “March, Uncle Yang, Samuel, do you guys want any?”

Welt and Samuel politely shook their heads, but March 7th bounced on her heels. “I want one too! That little bunny one is so cute!”

Hearing this, Stelle puffed out her chest, marched right up to the vendor, and waved her hand with the heroic flair of a big spender. “Boss, give me two of the most expensive sugar figurines you have here! And also, I want that bunny one! Put it on your General’s tab!”

The vendor paused, wiping his hands on his apron, clearly thinking this tall girl with the trash-raccoon energy was playing a joke. “Customer, I am just a commoner. If you ask me to go find the General to pay the bill, I wouldn’t even be able to get past the front gates to find him.”

Stelle froze, her heroic posture deflating. That was a very solid point. Regular people couldn’t exactly casually invoice Jing Yuan.

Welt walked over, suppressing a sigh. “Stelle, let’s just pay for these little things ourselves.”

“Right, right,” Stelle muttered, pulling out her phone to scan the payment code. “Boss, how much is it in total?”

The vendor smiled warmly. “Two luxury sugar figurines and one little bunny sugar figurine, that’s 150,000 credits in total.”

Stelle nodded confidently, entered the payment amount, tapped the screen, and scanned her face for authorization.

[Insufficient balance! Please change your payment method!]

Stelle stared at the glaring red prompt on her screen, her eyes widening in absolute horror. “Oh no! I forgot I don’t have any credits!”

It suddenly dawned on her. Since arriving on the Source Continent, she hadn’t spent a single penny on normal food. Either Pom-Pom cooked for her on the Astral Express, or the system chef Escofier handled her meals. Whenever she bought small snacks or drinks from the General Store, she used the local copper coins dropped by monsters. Her phone account still only held the meager tens of thousands of credits she had scraped together from working odd jobs at the Herta Space Station.

Seeing Stelle staring dumbfounded at her phone like it had betrayed her, March 7th walked over, tilting her head. “What’s wrong, Stelle?”

Stelle silently turned the screen around.

March 7th took one look and giggled. “You don’t have enough money? Oh, right, that makes sense. You’ve never had many credits to begin with. Step aside, let me do it.”

March 7th pulled out her own phone, scanned the code, and authorized the payment with a cheerful chime. The vendor handed the three sugar figurines over, and March passed one of the elaborate luxury versions down to Anviel.

Anviel took it with a beaming smile, her eyes curving into crescents. “Thank you, Sister March.”

March reached out and affectionately ruffled Anviel’s hair. “Eat up, see if it tastes good.”

Anviel held the little sugar figurine with both hands, taking tiny, careful bites, looking absolutely delighted by the sweet maltose.

The group continued their leisurely stroll down the avenue, browsing various small trinkets and souvenirs. After a while, Stelle checked the time on her phone.

“It’s only a little past three in the afternoon. Are we still going to keep shopping? There’s still a long while until the evening banquet.”

March 7th was still practically vibrating with energy. “Let’s keep shopping! There’s a starskiff ahead heading to the Exalting Sanctum. I heard there are a lot of high-end boutique shops there, and I really want to look at some new clothes.”

Samuel glanced down at Anviel. The initial rush of excitement had faded, and the little elf was starting to drag her feet, clearly mentally exhausted from the day’s magical exertion and the sensory overload of the city.

“Anviel, do you want to go back?” Samuel asked quietly.

Anviel nodded, rubbing one eye. “Yeah. Anviel is a little tired and wants to go back to rest.”

Welt adjusted his coat. “I will head back as well. A little after five, Zhongli has invited me to Liyue to listen to an opera. He mentioned that the famous Liyue opera singer Yun Jin will be performing today, and he has already reserved excellent seats for us.”

March 7th tapped her chin thoughtfully. “Then let’s just go back to the Source Continent too. We can go find Hu Tao and Lumine to hang out with.”

Agreeing on the plan, the group retraced their steps, handling away from the bustling crowds until they found a quiet, deserted alleyway. Stelle raised her hand, summoning a teleportation gate. The swirling vortex of energy stabilized, and they all stepped through, leaving the Luofu behind.

Source Continent, eastern Elven Forest, deep inside the Orc Tribe encampment.

Chief Sarulu sat heavily on his massive throne of bone and hide, gathering his subordinate chieftains inside the sprawling central tent. In the brutal hierarchy of the Orc Tribe, the Chief was absolute law, followed by the chieftains, and then the captains. The only exception was the Shaman, a specialized spiritual figure who held a unique, untouchable status across the entire Orc Race.

Sarulu tore a massive chunk of roasted meat from a bone, washing it down with a large gulp of crude alcohol. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and glared at his subordinates. “Have there been any special circumstances recently?”

Below him, several heavily scarred Orc chieftains immediately pounded their chests.

“No, none at all! We Orcs are now the most powerful race on the entire Source Continent! Who would dare to provoke us? They would be courting death!”

“Right! We are invincible! Who dares challenge our borders? Except for those stubborn Elves who still worship that dead piece of wood.”

“Chief, have you heard any news from the Cold Wind Mountains recently? I heard the northern tribes are planning to launch an offensive against the Elves over there.”

The Shaman, an older, withered orc draped in fetishes and bones, struck his staff against the dirt floor. “Do not speak so arrogantly. The human forces are also very powerful. I have received reports that recently, quite a few of our patrol squads have died at the hands of humans. Do you fools know nothing of this?”

The chieftains exchanged confused glances, shaking their heads.

“Shaman, is that true? I haven’t heard a single word of it.”

“I haven’t heard anything either. Are you sure your visions are accurate?”

The Shaman glared at the chieftains, his eyes burning with frustration. “As military leaders, you do not even know when your own subordinates are slaughtered in the woods! You useless brutes, are you even worthy of the positions you hold? Tell me!”

Sarulu frowned, his grip tightening on his drinking horn. He felt a surge of deep dissatisfaction. This Shaman had been assigned to his camp by the greater tribal council and technically stood on equal footing with him. The old fool rarely gave him any face, and now, scolding his trusted aides right in front of him was a direct insult to his authority.

“Alright, Shaman, that is enough,” Sarulu rumbled, his voice dripping with annoyance. “Isn’t it just a few Goblins that died? What impact does that have on our true strength? Is it really necessary to ruin a good meal over such trivial matters? There are plenty of Goblins in the dirt. They reproduce faster than Horned Rabbits.”

The Shaman turned his piercing gaze to Sarulu, his expression deadly serious. “Chief Sarulu, this is a matter of security! Patrols are being attacked frequently, and the attackers are confirmed to be humans. Are you simply going to let this insult stand?”

Sarulu waved his massive hand dismissively. “Humans? Isn’t that normal? There is an organization called the Adventurers Guild among them. I assume their mercenaries are the ones behind it. Humans hold significant power on the Source Continent. It is not worth escalating into a full war and making enemies of them for the sake of a few worthless Goblins.”

He pointed a greasy finger at one of his men. “Grulu. Tomorrow, go to the nearest Goblin breeding pit and recruit another batch to replace the dead ones.”

The chieftain named Grulu nodded eagerly. “I will handle it tomorrow, Chief!”

Sarulu nodded in satisfaction, raising his cup. “Good. Tonight, we drink and eat meat! Come, bottoms up, brothers!”

The Shaman watched them gorge themselves, utterly disgusted by their shortsightedness and lack of ambition. He slammed his skull-adorned wooden staff onto the ground one last time and stormed out of the large tent into the cool night air.

“That arrogant fool Sarulu,” the Shaman hissed to himself. “He is going to lead this tribe to ruin sooner or later.”

He gestured sharply, calling over a heavily armored Pig-headed Orc. “Starting tomorrow, the size of the outer patrol squads will be doubled. Each squad must be led by at least one Goblin Warrior. See to it personally.”

The Pig-headed Orc grunted in acknowledgment and hurried off to deliver the orders. The Shaman looked back at the main tent, listening to the raucous sounds of toasting and drunken laughter. He let out a cold snort and turned away into the shadows.

Meanwhile, back on the Holy City Square.

The newly expanded Herta Legion marched into the plaza with terrifying, synchronized precision. After the Star Adventure Group had successfully upgraded to D-rank, their member limit had skyrocketed to 1,000. Wasting zero time, Herta had immediately demanded 500 new slots from Stelle, swelling her personal legion to a staggering 550 members.

She had organized them flawlessly: 110 puppets assigned to each combat class. The original 50 Herta Puppets had been promoted to squad leaders, with each veteran now commanding a squad of 9 newly joined recruits.

Herta stood at the front, her hands resting on her hips as she surveyed the massive, perfectly aligned grid of identical faces. She nodded in deep satisfaction. “Now this… this looks like a proper legion.”

Nearby, Clorinde was just returning to the square with her Gardes after a grueling day of hunting. The Champion Duelist paused, her violet eyes sweeping over the massive mechanical army. She couldn’t help but feel a sharp twinge of envy. Herta commanded a force of 550, while her own Justice Adventure Team didn’t even number a hundred yet.

At this rate, the gap in sheer grinding power between the Justice Adventure Team and the Star Adventure Group was going to become an impossible chasm.

Clorinde checked the time, her expression hardening with resolve. She turned to her exhausted but disciplined troops. “Turn around. We are heading back out to continue hunting.”

The Gardes executed a crisp about-face on the spot and marched toward the eastern gates. Clorinde needed to accelerate their leveling speed. They had to reach level 5 as soon as possible to unlock the D-rank Promotion Dungeon. She absolutely refused to be left behind in the dust. Because they had entered the field late, most of the low-level monsters immediately surrounding the Holy City had already been ruthlessly strip-mined by the Herta Legion, forcing them to march further out.

Just as Clorinde’s unit departed, Stelle, March 7th, and Samuel’s group materialized in the square. Stelle immediately spotted the sea of puppets and sprinted over.

“My goodness! Herta, you really brought 500 puppets over all at once!”

Herta glanced at her, entirely unimpressed. “I have far more than just these few spare bodies stored on the Herta Space Station. If I hadn’t calculated that you people might actually need some roster slots in the near future, I would have claimed the entire 1,000 capacity for myself.”

Stelle blinked, thoroughly confused. “Huh? Why would we need slots in the near future?”

Herta rolled her eyes, her tone dripping with condescension. “Use that brain of yours and figure it out yourself. I don’t have the time or the crayons to explain it to you. Herta Legion, move out!”

As the massive army of puppets pivoted and began their march out of the city, Stelle stood there, waving her arms and shouting after her. “Hey! Herta, make it clear! Don’t leave me hanging on a cliffhanger!”

The only response she received was the rhythmic, fading thud of a thousand mechanical boots.

Herta had already deduced the truth behind the Stellaron Hunters sending the Astral Express Crew to the Luofu. She, Ruan Mei, and Screwllum were all well aware of the underlying variables. It was painfully obvious that the Hunters wanted the Express to forge a deep connection with the Xianzhou Alliance. A Stellaron had erupted on the Luofu, and the Express Crew specialized in sealing them. Arriving exactly when the crisis peaked meant delivering crucial aid in their darkest hour—ensuring the Luofu would owe the Astral Express an astronomical favor.

With Herta’s genius intellect, mapping out that chain of cause and effect took mere seconds. Going to the Luofu was immensely beneficial for their future. The danger along the way was simply the standard operating cost of the Trailblaze.

Stelle finally dropped her arms, her face a mask of deep bewilderment. “She didn’t even explain a single thing. Honestly, dealing with geniuses is exhausting.”

March 7th patted her shoulder. “Let it go, Stelle. Let’s go find Hu Tao and the others. Clara messaged me earlier saying they’re playing games over in the Bookstore.”

Stelle nodded, deciding to stop overheating her brain with politics, and ran off with March to track down their friends.

Over by the General Store, Anviel had already set up a little picnic. She was happily sharing the specialty snacks they had bought on the Luofu, along with the delicate osmanthus cakes Yukong had packed, with Clara, Hook, and a small crowd of local elves. The group of children sat in a circle, eating and laughing without a care in the world.

Meanwhile, deep in the eastern region of the Elven Forest.

Silver Wolf wiped her blade, having just finished off a lone, wandering Goblin. She immediately dove into a thick patch of bushes by the roadside, settling in to do what she did best: camp the spawn points.

Her brief skirmish had taught her that the monsters here actually had some decent coding. These Goblins were surprisingly tough; if she didn’t have her inherent combat reflexes, a level 1 character like her would have been easily overwhelmed.

Crouching low in the tall grass, only her sharp eyes visible, Silver Wolf grinned. “Hehe. Stupid Goblins. I’ll just hold this choke point, launch a sneak attack, and take the initiative! Free EXP.”

Just as she adjusted her grip on her beginner weapon, she felt the rhythmic vibration of a massive group approaching from behind.

Silver Wolf peeked over the leaves and her expression instantly soured. Marching down the dirt road in a grand, obnoxious formation was Herta, leading her endless clone army.

“Why is this annoying woman here too?” Silver Wolf muttered, her eye twitching. “Just seeing her smug face makes my blood pressure spike!”

She watched Herta commanding the legion from the center of the formation, and a wicked, mischievous grin spread across her face. “Hehe! Annoying woman! I’m going to give you a harsh lesson in positioning!”

Silver Wolf fully embraced the bush camper lifestyle, holding her breath and waiting for the perfect frame to strike.

Before long, Herta’s central command unit walked right past her hiding spot.

Silver Wolf leaped out of the foliage like a coiled spring, her digital weapon glowing with energy. “Annoying woman! Eat my Data Missile!”

Her initial system skill, Data Missile, carried the exact same attack multiplier as every other starting class skill. The projectile of compressed code shot through the air and slammed directly into Herta’s back.

Landing gracefully, Silver Wolf pointed and laughed. “Wahahaha! Get ganked! How does that feel, huh?!”

The digital explosion cleared. Herta stood there, completely unfazed. A large, gray `[0 DMG]` floated lazily into the air above her head.

Silver Wolf’s laughter died in her throat. Her jaw dropped. “What’s going on? Why is there zero damage?! Is my game bugged?!”

Herta had initially flinched, assuming a high-level Goblin had managed to flank her, but the moment she turned around and saw the petite hacker, her momentary alarm dissolved into absolute disdain.

“I was wondering who had the sheer audacity to ambush me. I thought it was a Goblin raid, but I didn’t expect it to be you, little girl.” Herta crossed her arms. “What? Was the last lesson I taught you not enough? Do you want to lose those 108 new burner accounts you just created?”

Silver Wolf grabbed her own head, her gamer pride shattering. “What is going on?! Why didn’t my skill do any damage? That’s mathematically impossible!”

Herta smirked, her voice dripping with pity. “Don’t you know that friendly fire is disabled in this safe zone? And you call yourself a pro gamer? I think you’ve wasted your entire life playing trash. Warrior Squad Leaders Number One and Number Two, capture her and hang her from a tree.”

Silver Wolf froze. The realization hit her like a physical blow. Oh no. Friendly fire is off! I forgot to check the server rules!

She spun around, desperate to activate her movement skills and flee.

Unfortunately, her level 1 stats were far too slow. Warrior Squad Leaders No. 1 and No. 2 blurred into motion, crossing the distance instantly. Before Silver Wolf could take three steps, two cold Standard Longswords were crossed tightly against her neck.

Silver Wolf immediately raised her hands, behaving herself.

The two puppet squad leaders efficiently procured a sturdy vine from the underbrush, tied Silver Wolf up like a struggling caterpillar, and hoisted her upside down from the thick branch of a nearby ancient oak tree.

Swinging back and forth in mid-air, Silver Wolf thrashed against the vines. “Annoying woman! Let me down right now! If you have the guts, let’s 1v1 in the arena!”

Herta strolled over, looking up at the dangling hacker, and casually reached up to flick her forehead.

“Why would I bother dueling when I can just gank you with superior numbers? Besides, a level 1 weakling with a beginner weapon like you probably couldn’t even break my base defense stats anyway. Alright, I don’t have the time to chat with NPCs. I have to take my legion to power-level. Goodbye, little girl.”

Without a backward glance, Herta resumed her march, the massive army of puppets following her deeper into the forest.

Herta ground monsters for hours, completely ignoring the trapped hacker. It wasn’t until the sun began to set and the legion returned along the same path that she finally ordered her puppets to cut Silver Wolf down.

The second Silver Wolf’s feet touched the ground, she lunged forward, literally trying to bite Herta’s arm.

Squad Leaders No. 1 and No. 2 instantly intercepted, restraining the furious girl by her arms and dragging her all the way back to the Holy City Square.

By the time they arrived, Samuel, Stelle, March 7th, and the others had already departed for the Luofu banquet.

Silver Wolf stomped into the Star Adventurer Group Station, threw herself onto a couch, and buried her face in a pillow, utterly humiliated.

“Curse it! I’m so mad!” she screamed into the cushions. “You rotten woman! You’re cheating! You’re using numbers to bully me! Waaaaah!”