Honkai Impact: Become Their Hero Chapter 183: Why Stand Against the Stars?

Inside a ran shop in Nagazora City.

At this mont, the atmosphere was thick with tension, like a battlefield of emotions. Many custors turned their heads slightly, sneaking glances at the group of five seated in the deepest corner of the restaurant.

"Kevin, don't you think..."

"Su, don't speak. Quietly slurp your noodles."

"Mm, the atmosphere really is..."

Kevin and Su slurped their noodles while casting subtle glances at the trio across from them. With a drama like this unfolding in front of them, they felt like they could devour three bowls of plain noodles without even needing any condints.

"Ely, here, have this piece of char siu."

"Elias, can you help understand this problem?"

"i-chan, don't study while eating noodles!"

Elysia sat between Elias and i, acting like a wall, firmly blocking i's attempts to ask questions and trying to keep Elias from being roped into becoming her personal tutor.

The pink elf was obviously jealous, while the black-haired straight-laced girl kept asking questions nonstop, and Elias had to deal with both at once.

He was both amused and helpless. Even though Elysia was the one sitting in the middle, he felt like he was the one caught between them.

Still, Elysia's reaction wasn't exactly unreasonable. i was trying to steal her travel companion, after all.

Elysia had rely imagined the scenario—Elias being taken away, leaving her to journey alone. The result? Lonely. Miserable. Dead!

Moreover, Elias was indeed noticeably gentler with i than with most people, which only deepened Elysia's sense of crisis.

According to her observations, Elias treated i with approximately 30% of the gentleness and care he usually reserved for her. That 30% had taken Elysia years of effort to earn—and i had caught up just like that!

Elysia: "i, friend or foe—pick one!"

Elias: "Calm down, Ely. You're overthinking it."

Quickly calming the girl down, Elias could only sigh. The reason he was being so gentle with i was purely because her face looked way too much like Raiden i's!

Since ti-traveling, it had already been over three years since he'd last seen his beloved i. And now, a girl who looked just like her—only in loli form—was sitting right in front of him!

Naturally, Elias found himself subconsciously treating her with a little more care.

Still, i was only after the knowledge in his brain, not his body. For that kind of request, Elias couldn't find any reason to refuse.

After all, she would beco humanity's greatest scientist in the future. Even factoring in all biological evolution that might occur—

i's intellect was still among the very top.

Helping her grow faster was, in itself, a powerful counterasure against the Honkai.

"Ely, I'm not leaving you. Relax. i, you too—stop reading while eating. You're already wearing glasses at your age... I'll teach you more later."

"Okay, it's a deal then."

"Alright, I understand."

With Elysia and i finally settling down, Elias let out a long sigh of relief.

He glanced down at the bowl of noodles in front of him, which had long gone untouched and clumped together. His heart felt tired.

The other custors in the shop had an urge to applaud.

Impressive. At such a young age, he could already control a battlefield of emotions—what kind of monster would he grow into?

Su looked on with admiration. Kevin, on the other hand, had that gloating, punch-worthy smirk on his face...

Which made Elias want to jab his chopsticks straight into the guy's nostrils.

Over the past few days, they'd grown close enough to be considered friends.

But all three of them knew—Elias and Elysia wouldn't be staying in Nagazora much longer. That was why they were making the most of their ti, dragging the pair around the city every day... though i's chosen hangout was always the library.

"After we finish eating, let's find a high place to watch the stars. I heard there might be a teor shower tonight!"

Kevin proposed the idea excitedly. Unlike his future self, who was basically a madman, the Kevin of this era genuinely loved having fun. Truly worthy of being the source of Kaslana blood—an absolute human-shaped husky!

"If there are teors, then it's definitely worth seeing. Ely, I bet you're interested too."

"Of course! I need to start thinking now—what kind of wish should I make later?"

"Astronomical observation, huh? That does sound a bit interesting." i said while wiping the condensation from her glasses with a tissue.

"Eh? i, wouldn't you rather go ho and work on your favorite problems?" Elysia puffed her cheeks in protest.

"I can provide a professional astronomical telescope."

"Welco aboard, i! Let's go stargazing together!"

"Ely..."

Elias silently tugged at the girl's cheek.

But he knew that Elysia didn't actually dislike i.

If i weren't always trying to keep Elias around as her private tutor, with Elysia's aggressively extroverted personality, the two would probably already be besties.

Elysia: (As long as you don't try to steal my Elias, we're totally besties.)

i: (Sorry Elysia, but Elias is just too tempting. Besties share, right?)

Elysia: (Pink Elf Flying Kick!)

All things considered, the real problem lay with Elias himself. He was the reason these two girls—who should've been friends—ended up in this kind of dynamic.

Elias: (Sigh~ This damn charm of mine!)

...

After finishing their ran, the group brought the telescope from i's ho up to the roof of a tall building to enjoy the starlit sky…

Well, truthfully, there wasn't anything particularly spectacular to see.

Kevin and Su didn't have much interest in the stars. Elias, though he dread of boarding the Astral Express soday, knew that was still far off. As for Elysia—she genuinely loved this kind of thing.

The real surprise, however, was i.

Out of everyone present, she was the most focused.

But it wasn't from an angle of appreciation.

The girl's eyes were sharp, scanning every star in the sky as if she were examining one enemy after another.

"i, uh... why are you looking at the stars like that? Do you have a grudge against them or sothing?" Kevin asked tentatively.

i smiled faintly and shook her head. After a mont of silence, she said, "Sorry, it's just my own bias."

"Bias? Toward the stars?"

Everyone was caught off guard.

"Yes. One night in the past, I happened to look up at the night sky, and I suddenly had a strange feeling."

i adjusted her glasses as she spoke.

"In that mont, it felt like I wasn't looking up at the stars... but rather, that the stars were looking down at . Under that vast galaxy, I felt so small. Humanity felt so small. Everything beca utterly insignificant in that instant."

"Right then, I had a thought—I believed that every single star in the sky... was our enemy."

She lifted her head to gaze at the infinite, boundless night sky. i's eyes burned with determination, as if what she said was an undeniable truth.

And upon hearing her words, the three around her widened their eyes in shock, unable to make sense of her logic.

"i, I didn't think you'd be this edgy."

Kevin comnted bluntly.

"E-Edgy..."

Hearing him call her that, i's mouth twitched and a black line slid down her forehead. Of all people, she really didn't want to be labeled that by this dorky husky.

Sigh~

i turned her head slightly, sighing inwardly.

She had shared this thought before—with her father, teachers, and classmates. But everyone's reactions were always the sa: shock, confusion, doubt.

So laughed at her for overestimating herself. So praised her vivid imagination. So even suggested she see a neurologist.

Geniuses are often lonely—especially those who have not yet fully grown, who have yet to prove themselves to the world. For soone like i, an unparalleled genius still in her youth, the loneliness was even more profound.

Ordinary people couldn't relate to her thoughts or understand her ideas. All i could do now was bury her endless stream of inspiration and imagination deep in her heart, waiting until the day her wings had fully matured before revealing them to the world.

And just when she thought she was the only one who could understand herself—

"Well said. Humanity should be wary of the stars."

"Elias?"

i turned in surprise toward the boy who had just affird what she assud were nonsensical ramblings. She saw Elias looking at her with a gaze full of wonder and admiration—and he even applauded.

"Elias, you... you understand...?"

Her heartbeat quickened as she asked.

She stared at the boy before her, unable to suppress the rising sense of anticipation in her chest. i wondered: if it was Elias—soone with knowledge far surpassing her own—could he perhaps give her a different kind of response?

And Elias did not disappoint.

"Of course. Humanity tends to romanticize the stars far too much, deliberately ignoring the dangers they may hold. We've even launched records containing Earth's information into the cosmos, hoping to befriend unknown civilizations."

It was a gesture of idealism, noble and hopeful. But from another perspective, it could also be called a foolish act of self-destruction.

"Reality and imagination are different things. It's like how the moon and the Moon are two separate concepts. The forr symbolizes reunion, purity, love, and beauty—but these are all anings humanity imposed. The actual Moon is just a crater-covered, lifeless, barren satellite."

Elias sighed and looked up at the moon in the night sky.

Elysia and the others fell silent. Elias' tone made it sound like he had actually been to the moon—or rather, the Moon—and seen that desolate planet with his own eyes.

Only i's eyes grew brighter.

And just then, Elias turned toward her and asked:

"Have you ever heard of the Dark Forest Hypothesis?"

"Uh, what's that?"

"It's a hypothesis that imagines the universe as a dark forest. Every civilization is a hunter with a gun, lurking silently like a ghost, watching for others. The mont another is discovered, they shoot to kill—because that's the only way to ensure their own survival."

"!!!" x4

Elysia, i, Kevin, and Su all felt their hair stand on end. A chill swept through their bodies.

When they looked back up at the starry sky, it no longer held the sa wonder as before.

"Good grief, that theory is just... brutally cold."

"The universe... is like a primal jungle?"

Kevin and Su felt their hands and feet go cold.

"No—Elias, i, I know what you're saying makes sense, but... I believe this universe must still hold sothing beautiful. It's so vast—there has to be room for every possibility. And if that's true... then surely there are aliens out there who could coexist with us peacefully!"

Elysia clenched her small fists and spoke with conviction. Perhaps the stars were more cruel than people imagined—but she still chose to believe in kindness and beauty.

"Because this sky... is just that beautiful."

In that mont, Elysia showed a flawless smile, and Elias felt as though his heart had been stolen in an instant.

"Ely, you're right."

Elias gently reached out and patted Elysia's head, eyes full of affection and warmth. This was what he loved most about her—Elysia was a girl who believed more than anyone in the beauty of human nature.

On the other side, i watched the two of them with a complicated expression.

She was starting to understand why Elias had always turned her down.

Because of this girl nad Elysia—

She was just that wonderful.

But at this mont, i's heart was anything but calm.

(Elias... understood …)

Elias' words just now had pierced straight into her soul. For the first ti in her life, i had found resonance in another person.

If, before, she had only wanted Elias to stay so she could learn more from him—

Now, it was different. i truly believed that Elias was soone who could stand by her side and challenge the stars!

"Hehe~"

The two looked at each other and exchanged a smile. When they looked up at the stars again, their eyes were filled with determination.

(To soar through the sky and claim the stars—that's humanity's innate desire. Once our civilization reaches a higher stage, even the stars won't be beyond reach. I need to learn so much more... Yes, I still need to find a way to convince Elias to stay in Nagazora!) i's lips curled upward.

(The stars? Hmph. When I reach Finality and grasp the Imaginary Tree, I'll be able to wipe them out with a wave of my hand!) Elias' gaze hardened with fighting spirit.

Seeing the fire in both of their eyes—

Kevin and Su looked on in confusion.

After hearing Elias' Dark Forest Hypothesis, they'd broken out in a cold sweat. Only Elysia's warm and hopeful words had brought them back to a stable emotional state.

Yet even now, when they looked back up at the starry sky, they couldn't help but feel a lingering fear.

The stars were vast, and humanity was but a speck of dust in comparison. How could one hope to oppose them?

"Why... Why would you guys dare to make enemies of the stars? Isn't that just crazy? The stars... they're so big." Kevin swallowed nervously and asked Elias and i.

The next second, the two exchanged a glance—and answered in unison:

Elias: "Because under this vast sky, I've never once felt small."

i: "Because under this vast sky, I've never once felt small."

Kevin: "!!!"

Their voices carried an unyielding will. Just hearing them made Kevin feel like sothing inside him had ignited.

He stared blankly at Elias and i, silently awed by their confidence and pride.

In that instant, he could almost see them standing together in the future, side by side, challenging the stars themselves.

Kevin let out a long sigh, his shoulders slumping.

Now he understood why Elias had advised him not to set i as his goal.

Because the girl before him possessed aspirations and ideals far beyond what he had ever imagined.

How could soone like him—just an ordinary person—ever be worthy of a girl who dared to challenge the stars?

If anyone was, it had to be the boy who had spoken those sa words.

i's heart was racing with joy. For the first ti, she felt the catharsis of expressing feelings she had suppressed for so long.

She looked at Elias with burning eyes, a powerful desire blooming in her chest—a desire to make him hers.

"Elias! You really should stay in Nagazora. Don't worry about lodging—my house is pretty big."

"i—!"

Elysia instantly transford into a fiercely protective hen, shielding Elias as if she'd pounce on i at any second.

Even soone as open-hearted as the pink elf had soone she absolutely refused to share.

"Ahaha, hey now—look, a teor! A teor!"

Elias let out an awkward laugh and hugged Elysia from behind to keep her from charging forward.

At the sa ti, he cast i an apologetic glance. Though her invitation made him genuinely happy, unfortunately, there were still things he needed to do.

Because—before they could challenge the stars,

Humanity had to survive the crisis known as the Honkai first.

And Honkai... was drawing ever closer.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

40 Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon:

Patreon/DaoOfHeaven