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ArabicHonkai Star Rail: Summoning the Chrysos Heirs — Chapter 21
Chapter 21: Target, Revenant
Just as her consciousness withdrew from the boundless expanse of the Physical Data Space, Cyrene found herself back in the quiet familiarity of her living room. Before her eyes could even adjust to the warm, muted light filtering through the drawn curtains, the phone resting on the coffee table buzzed with a sharp vibration.
The screen flared to life, casting a glaring, artificial glow across the dim space.
Stretching her limbs with a soft, feline grace, Cyrene padded over to pick up the device. A new WeChat friend request waited on the screen. The profile picture was a fluffy orange cat sprawled lazily across a sunlit windowsill, accompanied by the unassuming username, Quietly.
“Quietly?” Cyrene blinked her azure eyes, reading the name aloud with a tilt of her head.
Logically speaking, the social circle the System had fabricated for her in this world was as pristine as a blank sheet of paper. Aside from her network carrier spamming her with data plan upgrades, who would be adding her out of the blue?
Curiosity piqued, her fingertip tapped the notification to reveal the attached message: [I am An Ning from the Special Bureau’s action team.]
An Ning?
Cyrene paused. The image of the fierce, lightning-wielding girl she had parted ways with not long ago flashed through her mind. To think that an elite operative who commanded such violent, crackling thunder would use a screen name like Quietly and a fat orange cat as her avatar in private.
A soft giggle escaped her lips, her eyes curving into delighted crescents at the sheer contrast. Though she didn’t know why the Special Bureau was reaching out so soon, she naturally had no reason to refuse an official contact. She tapped to accept the request.
The chat window hadn’t even fully loaded before a message popped up, sent so fast it was as if the other girl had been hovering over her keyboard.
Quietly: [Hello there, Cyrene.]
Cyrene adjusted her posture, sinking luxuriously into the plush cushions of the sofa. Holding the phone with both hands, she began to type out her perfectly crafted persona.
Pink Fairy: [Hello there, Sister An Ning~ It’s so late, is there something wrong?]
Pink Fairy: [Did an emergency happen over there? Do you need me to come over and assist with the investigation right now?]
Quietly: [No, no, don’t be nervous. It’s just that I was rushing when taking your statement earlier, and there’s a very important matter I forgot to explain to you.]
Quietly: [Do you know why I was able to quickly deduce that you also possess an Ability?]
Cyrene raised a delicate eyebrow.
Pink Fairy: [Sister An Ning, didn’t you say it was because I proactively asked questions about Abilities, plus the fact that I appeared at the scene?]
Quietly: [That was only part of it. In fact, there is another very important reason, which involves an ironclad rule of the Ability world.]
Quietly: [The energy fluctuations emitted by Ability Users have a fatal attraction to those monsters. To them, we are like blazing torches in the dark of night. They will chase and devour us at all costs.]
Quietly: [The stronger the Ability, the stronger the attraction.]
Quietly: [This is the fundamental reason why you were hunted by that monster this morning, and why I could so easily determine your status as a User.]
Cyrene’s thumbs hovered over the glowing keyboard, her tapping coming to a sudden halt.
So that’s how it is.
It seemed the Ability Users in this world operated on a built-in “aggro mechanic.” The moment someone awakened to their power, they automatically became a walking magnet for the anomalous. She had originally assumed this was a unique quirk of her own existence, a side effect of her transmigration. She hadn’t expected it to be a universal burden shared by every awakened individual.
Quietly: [Therefore, before we contact you again, for your own safety, please be sure to stay at home. Refrain from encountering any anomalous events for the time being.]
Quietly: [Also, if you really encounter any danger you cannot handle, remember to call me immediately! No matter where I am, I will rush over at the first opportunity!]
Even through the cold glass of the screen, Cyrene could feel the heavy, earnest weight of the girl’s sense of responsibility. What a good, dedicated officer.
Pink Fairy: [Okay, I understand. Thank you for the reminder, Sister An Ning~ I will stay home and be good.]
After hitting send, she watched the top of the screen flash ‘Other party is typing…’ for a few seconds before it vanished. Assuming the conversation had naturally concluded, Cyrene locked her phone, the screen fading to black.
“What’s wrong?”
A calm, resonant voice drifted through the quiet room. Phainon had, at some unseen moment, also severed his connection to the Physical Data Space. He walked over with slow, measured steps, his divine presence instantly shifting the atmosphere of the mundane apartment. His golden pupils rested on her, sweeping briefly over the darkened phone in her hands.
“Is it a message from the Special Bureau?” he asked.
“Mm, that’s right.” Cyrene looked up, flashing him a bright, effortless smile. “It’s a WeChat message from Sister An Ning. She shared some very interesting information—apparently, Ability Users naturally attract monsters. So she specifically reached out to remind me to behave myself for a while and avoid actively seeking out anomalies.”
She playfully stuck out her tongue. “And here I thought I was the only special one being hunted.”
Cyrene then relayed the details of her conversation, explaining the mechanics the System had integrated into this world’s logic.
Hearing this, a subtle shift occurred in Phainon’s expression. His brows knit together a fraction of an inch.
“Attracting monsters…” he repeated in a low, rumbling murmur, nodding thoughtfully. “I suppose that explains why the creature suddenly locked onto you. If that is the case, your situation is far more dangerous than anticipated.”
“Don’t worry~” Cyrene waved a hand dismissively, her posture the picture of relaxed confidence. “You don’t need to stress over me. Don’t forget, I have the ‘Anomaly Detector.’ Even though it only scans within a one-kilometer radius, as long as those monsters dare to approach, I’ll spot them well in advance.”
She extended a slender finger, tracing an invisible loop in the air. “A one-kilometer buffer is more than enough time for me to plan out a hundred different ways to run away… ah, I mean, execute a ‘strategic relocation’.”
She let out a soft sigh, her shoulders dropping. “It’s just a bit embarrassing that a radar originally meant for hunting and eliminating monsters has been repurposed by me as a glorified early warning system.”
Watching her confident, slightly lazy demeanor, a trace of helpless amusement flickered deep within Phainon’s golden eyes. He gave a faint nod, then turned his imposing figure toward the window. Outside, the midday sun was spilling relentlessly over the concrete cityscape, bleaching the streets in a harsh, blinding glare.
“Rest first and recover your energy,” Phainon instructed, his tone shifting back to its usual commanding cadence. “I am going to the Hongda Chemical Plant now.”
He strode toward the glass.
“Eh? Wait, it’s two o’clock in the afternoon!” Cyrene scrambled up, darting barefoot across the floor to block his path. “If you march over there right now, won’t you be immediately discovered by the authorities?”
Phainon looked down at her, his expression unyielding. “Although the monster was repelled, it has not been completely eradicated. Since its very existence poses a direct threat to you, it must be uprooted.”
He stepped past her, his gaze fixed on the horizon. “, that creature is currently under strict guard by the Bureau. Regardless of when I choose to strike, I will be discovered by their operatives all the same. Therefore, it is better to act now and resolve the threat early. They have not even determined the beast’s weakness; I have little faith in their ability to keep it contained.”
His voice was perfectly calm, yet it carried the unquestionable, heavy decisiveness of a god of war.
Without waiting for further argument, Phainon walked straight to the floor-to-ceiling window. He reached out and unlatched the glass. A gust of scorching afternoon air instantly poured into the air-conditioned living room, catching the pristine white and gold fabric of his robes and sending them billowing around him.
“If an emergency arises, notify me immediately,” he said, resting one hand on the sun-baked windowsill and glancing back at her one last time.
Then, his figure blurred. With a fluid, kinetic motion, he vaulted out into the open air. The blinding sunlight instantly swallowed him whole.
Cyrene stood alone in the quiet apartment, staring at the empty, open window. She let out a long, exasperated sigh.
Padding forward, she leaned over the sill, narrowing her eyes against the glare as she poked her head out to look down. The street below was a canvas of washed-out concrete, dotted only by a few scattered pedestrians hurrying along under the shade of their umbrellas. There was no sign of Phainon anywhere.
“Geez…” Cyrene puffed out her cheeks. She grabbed the handle and yanked the window shut, sealing out the oppressive heat and the blinding light.
“Why does he always have to jump out the window? We’re on the third floor, for crying out loud…” She muttered to herself, turning around and throwing her body back onto the soft sofa, sinking into the cushions like a boneless, lazy cat. “And it’s over twenty degrees outside in the middle of the day. Wouldn’t it be better to just walk out the front door and enjoy the hallway air conditioning instead of trying to look so cool?”
She hugged a throw pillow to her chest, closing her eyes. “Next time, I absolutely have to break him of this bad habit. Otherwise, if we ever end up on the fifth or sixth floor, it’s going to be a disaster if he just casually flips out the window.”