Honkai: Fire Moth Herrschers

Fire Moth had established many hidden bases around the world, most of which were disguised as villas.

The Fifth Squad gathered at a luxurious villa in Brindisi City, summarizing the day's mission progress.

"Let's see… Ordan and Raffi, your search results for today are… you cured a 69-year-old comrade's years of spinal problems, and they presented you with a banner that said 'No Martial Ethics'…"

"Ludwig and Marmont, your results are… you helped a five-year-old girl retrieve her red balloon that had flown away…"

"And Vivian and Jane, you… hehe! You got lost in an alley, until a blonde boy with a blue exclamation mark over his head led you back to the main road…"

"As for Beretta and Lucien… you encountered a cat wearing boots, which led you to a man lying in a pool of blood with a knife handle sticking out of his chest. You called an ambulance and sent him to the hospital, only to find out he was playing cosplay? And what was sticking out of his chest wasn't a knife handle, but an alien from a movie… What is all this nonsense…"

"Oh! It's more like you didn't do anything useful, right?"

Elysia habitually brought her index finger to her lips, but immediately woke up – she had made up her mind to correct her bad habit of biting her fingernails for the 81st time…

So, a group of new recruits stood in front of Elysia with their heads drooping, anxiously glancing at this "senior" who was absentmindedly gnawing on her nails, until she was satisfied, put down her finger, and they quickly shrank their heads, ready to receive the "loving education" from their senior.

But unexpectedly, what awaited them was a light laugh.

"I say, you all did a great job!"

Elysia clasped her hands together, her palms becoming a little damp from nervousness. Even her voice was a little shaky – it was the first time she had spoken in front of so many people. Fortunately, the new recruits being lectured didn't notice this.

"Although you didn't make any real progress, I can feel from your reports that you were trying your best to complete the mission!"

"Whether you can find that Vill-V is a matter of ability, but whether you tried your best is a matter of attitude. Besides, if someone who dares to declare war on the Fire Moth was so easy to catch, wouldn't that be too boring?"

The new recruits looked at each other and breathed a sigh of relief. Luckily, they had escaped a scolding.

"Ellie, if Phamas heard you say that, you'd probably be invited for tea! And speaking of which, you yourself have been missing for almost a day and haven't done anything, right?"

Ato stood to the side, watching Elysia's performance from beginning to end, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

"That girl named Vill-V is constantly spreading the intelligence files and videos of Honkai battles that she stole from the Fire Moth. I heard that big-mouth Elvin was promoted to team leader, and in order to delete those things in time, he's grown a small patch of white hair on his forehead these past two days."

"Whatever, whatever…" Elysia replied absentmindedly, her gaze fixed on a point beyond the living room of the villa, immersed in darkness.

"Hey? Ellie… are you waiting for Michael?"

Although Ato was slow on the uptake, Elysia's expression practically had the words "Michael" written all over it. How could he not guess?

A group of new recruits, hearing gossip, all silently perked up their ears.

"Don't worry… hmm? Isn't he back!"

Under the diamond-studded chandelier, the refracted light was like colorful threads, softly draped over that figure.

"I'm back… huh? Why is everyone looking at me?"

Michael scratched his head. Everyone's eyes were focused on him, making him feel a little embarrassed…

"Immer, the report is up to you."

The boy, who was suppressing a smile, excitedly lunged towards the soft sofa, but froze in place upon hearing this.

"Um… I heard that the report can be very simple?" Immer asked hesitantly.

"Learning bad things instead of good!" Ato's head ached as soon as he heard those four words. "Everyone, go rest. You have to continue the search early tomorrow morning."

"Then… Captain Ato, my report…" Immer asked softly.

"I'll allow you to submit two reports tomorrow, alright?"

"Yay! Captain Ato is the best!"

Watching the group of new recruits skip back to their bedrooms, Ato wearily rubbed his temples. "Michael, did you also come up empty-handed? Why are you still standing at the door? Come in and discuss it. This isn't a solution…"

"Who said I didn't get anything?" Michael covered his forehead. "Wasn't this all for giving Ellie a surprise?"

He turned around and pulled a ten-year-old girl out from behind him, as if he were carrying a kitten.

"Ellie… Ellie-nee, long time no see… ehehehe!"

"Pardofelis!"

Pardo only saw a flash of pink light, and Elysia had already rushed in front of her, pinching her cheeks and rubbing them.

"It's been five years since we last met, right? You were still a little squirt back then… and you tricked me out of my candy!"

"Hehehe!" Pardo just giggled.

Elysia rubbed her thin cheeks with a touch of heartache, took out a candied apple, peeled off the wrapper, and stuffed it into her mouth.

"You guessed I'd go to Twilight Street, didn't you? This brand of candied apple is only Pardo's favorite."

Because the candy was both sour and astringent, it had been discontinued two or three years ago. If she hadn't prepared in advance, there was no way to get this brand of candied apple.

Elysia smiled sweetly. "Don't say that. Even if you didn't go, I would have gone to see little Pardo!"

Ato stood to the side with his arms crossed, sighing, and then covered his face and left. "Sigh… no! I have to video call Blanka, wuwuwu! I'm so lonely, so lonely!"

As for the so-called serious matters? There had always been controversy within the Fire Moth about whether to disclose the truth about the Honkai to the public. Ato himself was more inclined to tell the public the truth. Not only could it avoid a lot of trouble, but it could also greatly reduce casualties…

Besides, wasn't Michael saying he had gained something? Then he could handle it…

"Grumble~"

"Grumble~"

Pardo and Michael clutched their stomachs at the same time.

"Oh dear! You must be hungry, right? I'll go get you something to eat!"

"N-no… no need! Ellie-nee! I brought food with me… hehe!"

Pardo pulled out a plastic bag from behind her back, which contained the can of food that the black cat had thrown down. She looked at the half-eaten fish in the can with a satisfied smile on her face.

Michael was stunned for a moment. When he reacted, he slapped Pardo on the head.

"Why are you still carrying this? Never mind, Ellie, go find her some new clothes and let her take a hot bath. I'll take care of the food, and I also have something to talk to her about."

After confirming their intentions, although a little reluctant, Elysia still pinched Pardo's nose before quietly leaving.

Only the two of them were left in the living room.

"Sit."

Pardo stared at the clean sofa, not daring to sit down. Michael had to press her shoulders and force her to sit on the sofa.

He also took the plastic bag from Pardo's hand and threw it into the trash can.

"Hey! Big Brother Michael, you!"

Michael motioned for her to calm down.

"Let's just say it's a trade, that half-eaten fish is the goods I wanted from you. Now it's my turn to pay up, right?"

Michael bent his index finger and tapped on the coffee table. A small black hole suddenly opened in mid-air, and about ten cans of food fell out of it, neatly stacked together.

Pardo's eyes lit up. "Wow! Beef and potatoes, pork omelet, four-joy meatballs, braised pig's feet… and this is… canned biscuits?"

Michael looked at the compressed biscuits, and in a daze, he seemed to smell a gas that was mainly ammonia. So he hesitated and said, "Let's skip this one. Eating too many compressed biscuits isn't good for the stomach, you… uh?"

Feeling the resistance coming from his hand, Michael looked down and saw Pardo blinking her eyes, tightly clutching the biscuit can, refusing to let go.

"Um… Big Brother Michael, how about changing them all to biscuit cans? My stomach is strong, I'm not afraid! Hehe, it's mainly because biscuits are filling!"

Michael lowered his head and didn't speak. After a long time, he gave a regretful smile and said in a voice only he could hear, "I'm sorry, Pardo. I should have taken you away back then."

"Huh? Big Brother Michael, what did you say?"

"It's nothing."

Five years ago, when he and Ellie met Pardo in Twilight Street, how could he not have wanted to take her away? It was only because he was afraid that taking Pardo away would cause the subsequent plot to change beyond recognition that he had given up.

Because of this, Ellie had been unhappy for a long time.

"By the way, Big Brother Michael, what are you and Ellie-nee doing now? Hey, the moth symbol on this can, I feel like I've seen it somewhere!"

"You guys wouldn't be… smuggling, would you?" Pardo rested her chin in her hand, and after thinking for a long time, she came to this shocking conclusion.

"What are you thinking!" Michael raised his hand and gave her a flick on the forehead.

"We're now… heh! You just need to know that we're rich! But… um, Pardo, you should also know about equivalent exchange, right?"

"I know, I know! Let's just say, how could half a salted fish be exchanged for so many cans? Big Brother Michael, just tell me what you want me to do!"

"Well… Pardo, I need your help to fix things… I need you to help me find someone in Twilight Street."