"Crack!"

A silver dragon of lightning swam through the clouds.

The solemn crowd paced forward in an orderly manner.

Trickles of rain, pattering against the tarpaulin, slowly dripped down the brims of black umbrellas, quietly dampening the clothes of those in front and behind.

Carnations, hydrangeas, spider lilies.

The vibrant clusters, caressing the remains of the living, bloomed defiantly beside the path paved with bluestone slabs.

"Sha."

Plastic gently scraped against stone bricks.

Stopping, bowing, nodding — the same process was replicated by every visitor.

The tombstone, piled high with white bouquets, was Destobier's final impression left upon the Flame-Chasers. She wasn't the first Fusion Soldier to be sacrificed, but she was undoubtedly the most popular among the "ordinary people" within their ranks.

A smiling, pretty face, thoughtfully chosen gifts — these were the shared memories every visitor had of Destobier.

Beneath the tombstone.

Within the heavy coffin, Destobier's body did not lie.

Fusion Soldiers were no longer purely human. The way they departed was no different from the demise of a Honkai Beast; at most… they merely persisted a little longer.

Destobier's body, along with dancing particles of light, had vanished in the foreign land she had visited for the first time.

The only thing left behind…

Was a Honkai crystal, less than five centimeters long, that Trace had barely managed to preserve using a vast amount of Honkai energy.

This was…

Destobier's memento.

Dressed in black attire that starkly contrasted with his usual image.

Standing amidst the crowd, Trace was undoubtedly the most tormented.

The most popular girl in the First Squad, the girl who had once smilingly presented Griseo with a birthday gift, had vanished before his very eyes… Even though he had bid farewell to countless comrades, Trace's heart could find no peace.

"Pa."

A strong hand heavily clapped his shoulder.

Turning his head, Trace's first sight was a familiar, young, and resolute face.

"Trace."

"Kevin."

The Captain of the Flame-Chasers' First Squad, the strongest among the Fusion Soldiers, the future leader of the Thirteen Flame-Chasers of the Fire Moth — Kevin, the "Savior."

"Crack."

White frost materialized on Trace's shoulder.

The rainwater around the two of them condensed into lifelike ice flowers.

This was Kevin's ability.

The genes from the Emperor-class Honkai Beast Parvati granted Kevin mastery over ice. As a price for this power, his body temperature was almost constantly fixed at minus 30 degrees Celsius — everything that came into contact with Kevin would be eroded and frozen by the power of ice.

Fusion Soldiers could still endure it.

If it were an ordinary person…

Kevin, who had slain the Seventh Herrscher, had been unable to embrace his lover ever since the moment he became a Fusion Soldier.

"Temple-class."

"Trace, you mentioned a 'pitch-black Temple-class' in your report… I don't want you to relive that painful memory, but to avenge Dessie…"

Crimson and deep azure.

Two streams of light, like flames, flickered simultaneously in Kevin's eyes.

The former came from the Key of God, the [Might of An-Utu], crafted from the core of the Seventh Herrscher; the latter originated from Kevin's own abilities.

No Herrscher.

No, at least until now, no living being had been able to escape the greatsword he wielded.

"I need more detailed information."

"Oh?"

From beside Kevin, Mobius, dressed in a black long dress she hadn't worn in a long time, leaned out.

"A pitch-black Temple-class…"

"Would it be convenient for me to join this discussion as well?"

"After all…"

From the pocket of her oversized coat, Mobius retrieved a beautiful cloth doll — a gift Destobier had given her last festival.

Mobius had very few "friends."

Besides a few people from the lab, only Elysia and Destobier would remember these "trivial matters" and prepare gifts for her.

However, from this time onwards, Mobius would forever receive one less gift during festivals.

"…I never even gave her a gift in return."

On the way back to the Flame-Chasers' base.

Trace diligently tried to recall the situation at that time.

The three of them walked side-by-side, not too quickly, but it wouldn't be long before they returned to their duties.

The cemetery they had just left.

It was the nameless monument the Flame-Chasers prepared for their heroes.

"It killed its own companion?"

"Yes."

Trace recounted his fragmented memories.

"Because of that situation… Dr. Mobius just mentioned it, it should be called 'Overload Hyper-Transformation'?"

"Correct."

The Fusion Soldier project had been in preparation for a very long time.

Mei and Mobius had, in fact, already made certain preparations for potential problems in this experiment. At this time, 'Man-Made Honkai Corruption' had not yet presented a concrete example, so in theory, this form, infinitely close to a Honkai Beast, was termed 'Overload Hyper-Transformation'.

"Overload Hyper-Transformation."

"I could feel that my strength was greatly enhanced in that state."

"But my consciousness became extremely clouded. At that time, my mind was filled only with the urge to tear everything apart."

"Fortunately…"

Trace didn't continue explaining the reason.

The man's right hand tightly gripped the pendant hanging around his neck — at the bottom of the pendant was a beautiful memory shared by three people.

"I see."

Mobius lowered her head, lost in thought.

The Temple-class Trace mentioned was very likely the one that had given her Shesha's eyeball in the ruins of Canghai City.

If that was the case.

The other party's objective… was indeed to help humans create Fusion Soldiers, and "superior" Fusion Soldiers at that — Fusion Soldiers integrated with the genes of a Herrscher's companion Honkai Beast. Perhaps due to the Herrscher's authority, most of them could awaken peculiar abilities, and their overall strength far surpassed that of ordinary Fusion Soldiers.

If one were to ask why…

Previously, Mobius hadn't been able to figure out the reason.

But after hearing about Trace experiencing 'Overload Hyper-Transformation', she began to develop a new interest in this phenomenon:

The Overload Hyper-Transformation, where humans partially transform into Honkai Beasts, might not be the apex for Fusion Soldiers. Above that…

"Trace."

"Would you like to come to my place for a check-up?"

To kill an Emperor-class Honkai Beast in one blow, and still be able to retreat safely after taking a major attack from Trace.

For such an existence, it could have killed both Trace and Dessie at the very beginning. There was no need for such a troublesome maneuver.

Mobius connected many things.

The influence of emotions on Overload Hyper-Transformation, the reason the other party "gifted" the remains of an Emperor-class Honkai Beast… and so on and so forth.

These unknowns.

All made Mobius's body tremble uncontrollably with excitement — whether out of her own curiosity or to avenge Destobier, she was now eager to capture that Temple-class for an "in-depth exchange."

Just as Mobius finished speaking.

A figure in a white combat suit, running from the direction of the base, hurriedly interrupted their conversation.

"Captain!"

The "Captain" here did not refer to Kevin.

As a former squad leader, the newcomer was one of Trace's former squad members.

"Blanca…"

These two simple words made Trace's right hand, clutching the pendant, freeze as if sealed by time.

"Sister Blanca has collapsed!"