For a money-grubbing, stingy little cat like Pardofelis, over a billion was a sum she had never spent in her entire life. Now that she realized she had accidentally given Rita a gemstone worth that much...
"Over a billion—my billion!"
Pardofelis clutched her chest, rolling on the floor and wailing pitifully. Elias looked at the scene with sympathy, but helping her get it back was out of the question.
After all, both sides were girls he cared about. It would be unfair to interfere. Besides, Pardofelis had given it away herself.
And in the end... it was just a re nine-digit number.
What was there to feel bad about?
Under the generous patronage of the rich beauty Eden, Elias' sense of money had long since collapsed. He understood the difference between the two sums, of course—but to him now, there was no emotional difference between one dollar and one billion dollars.
"Alright, alright. Tonight let's ask Rita to prepare a grand welco feast. My favorite maid's cooking is worth far more than a gemstone worth over a billion."
Elias reached out and gently patted Pardofelis on her cat ears in consolation.
"R-really?"
With teary eyes, Pardofelis looked up at him. A single al more valuable than a billion? Was it cooked with gold or sothing?
"Really, really."
"Hehe, Lord Elias flatters . My cooking isn't that exaggerated. In fact, I doubt anything in this world could reach such an exaggerated price," Rita said with a soft laugh.
"You can't say that. As i would put it, what matters most in cooking is the heart. No matter how valuable the ingredients are, a dish made by a girl who pours her affection into it is worth more to than any amount of wealth."
Elias spoke with complete sincerity. In those golden eyes, not a trace of exaggeration or falsehood could be found.
Which was only natural. After all, everyone present knew...
Elias was the type of person who would eat the god-slaying cuisine made by the dark culinary master—I—for precisely that reason.
Incidentally, I had already been permanently banned from entering the kitchen.
The kitchen was sacred ground. Erudition must not enter!
Unless i, Rita, Sakura, or Fu Hua—the household's official culinary authorities aside from Elias—granted approval, the dark chef's god-slaying cooking techniques would remain sealed.
Vill-V had even installed a chanism in the kitchen that would trigger a piercing alarm throughout Dormitory 12 the mont I stepped inside. Everyone unanimously agreed that this was absolutely necessary.
"F-fine! I won't think about it anymore! Tonight I'm going to eat as much as I can to make so of it back!" Pardofelis declared with determined eyes.
"Oh, co on. It's just a gemstone. Don't take it too hard, Pardo. Once, when I went on a date with your Sister Eden, we used a pile of gemstones to skip stones across a river for fun."
"...Boss Elias, which river was that? Please, I must know!"
The little cat's eyes lit up instantly. The other girls nearby also revealed subtle expressions. The joy of the wealthy was truly luxurious and yet so simple—skipping stones with gemstones, of all things.
The least valuable gem in those two people's hands back then could probably have bought the entire river.
"Ah, that was fifty thousand years ago. Even if you tried to dive in now, who knows whether they're still there? And even if no one picked them up, you probably wouldn't be able to find—...alright, forget I said anything."
Elias swallowed the rest of his sentence as he looked at the luck-maxed little cat before him. Other people might not be able to find them—but if Pardofelis went, that was another story entirely.
"If you want gemstones, just ask Eden later. Our Pardo is so cute. She'll definitely reward you with sothing."
"Wuwu, that would be so embarrassing~"
Her tail swayed behind her. Thinking of the wealthy beauty who contributed the most to her little general store's revenue, Pardofelis' mismatched eyes nearly turned into gemstones themselves.
Within Eden's mory space in the Elysian Realm, there was a dedicated area used to store her treasures.
Pardofelis had once "accidentally" gotten lost and wandered in.
What she saw there nearly blinded her with the radiance of wealth.
If one had to describe Eden's treasury in a single sentence, it could only be called "an ocean of gold, silver, jewels, and art."
That was no exaggeration and no taphor.
It was truly an ocean of wealth—gemstones, gold, silver, and priceless artworks piled high into a sea that an ordinary person could never finish counting in a lifeti.
It was the accumulation of the Golden Fla-Chaser's savings over fifty thousand years.
Enough to purchase every priced object in the world.
Just recalling it made the little cat drool.
"Oh? You know embarrassnt, Pardo? In all the ti I've known you, the only ti I've ever seen you embarrassed was when we got mar—"
"Ahhh! D-don't say it! Boss Elias, that's sothing you absolutely can't say!"
"Haha~ alright, alright. I won't tease you anymore. Actually, there's sothing I want to ask you about."
As he spoke, Elias flicked a pure gold coin into the air.
"ow!"
Pardofelis leapt up with astonishing reflexes and caught the coin in her mouth.
"Boss Elias, that's too formal between us! What's our relationship, huh? Paying to ask for information... just ask! I'll tell you everything I know!"
"...Your words and your actions don't match at all."
Watching as she carefully tucked the coin away against her body, Elias' lips twitched. Still, when it ca to this money-loving cat, as long as the paynt was sufficient, she would handle things honestly.
"Do you know where Ely is right now? Is she really not in the Elysian Realm and instead traveling the world?"
Elias narrowed his eyes slightly.
He had already scoured the entire global network using the authority of Corruption. He had even unexpectedly found the duck mom—but he still hadn't located Elysia.
Now he was beginning to doubt his original judgnt. Was his Miss Pink Elf truly traveling the world?
"Eh? Sister Ely? Isn't she at—"
Bang!!!
Just as Pardofelis was about to reveal the truth, the door burst open with a loud crash that drowned out her voice.
Eden, Aponia, Fu Hua, Griseo, and the others rushed in, cold sweat on their brows. Clearly, they had been eavesdropping outside the door.
"Oh! Isn't this Pardo?"
"You finally left the Elysian Realm, huh."
"Sister Pardo, Griseo missed you so much."
"It's wonderful to see you again, Pardo."
The girls quickly ford a circle around Pardofelis, each wearing a gentle smile that sohow carried a faint killing intent. Their gazes locked onto the little cat who had nearly leaked a heavenly secret.
And the clever Pardofelis imdiately realized sothing was very, very wrong.
Cold sweat instantly broke out across her back.
(Sister Eden, you all actually betrayed Sister Ely! No wonder I haven't seen you in the Elysian Realm lately. I didn't expect you to be this kind of people!)
The little cat's pupils quaked in shock.
(Hehe~ Pardo, choose. Friends or enemies.)
Sakura had already placed her hand on her sword hilt. With her unexpected Setsuna-level speed, she could knock this little cat unconscious with the scabbard before Elias even had ti to react.
Vill-V's expression was solemn. As a top-tier con artist, she had already prepared an excuse for after knocking her out—but no matter what, it would inevitably arouse Elias' suspicion.
Therefore, the best thod right now was to win Pardofelis over and have her personally provide false testimony to dispel Elias' doubts.
Incidentally, the reason they could communicate ntally was because Aponia, a psychic-perception-type MANTIS, was present.
(Isn't this a bit too much? Aren't we supposed to be a loving Fire Moth Fla-Chaser family? How can we do sothing this excessive?)
Though cowardly, Pardofelis was also loyal. Otherwise, she would not have followed Elias and the others onto the battlefield of Finality every single ti.
However, in the next second, Eden removed a gemstone-studded bracelet from her wrist and, from an angle Elias could not see, slipped it onto Pardofelis' arm.
The little cat's loyalty was undergoing an unprecedented test.
Yet unexpectedly, there was no compromise in her eyes. Instead, she stared seriously and resolutely at the Golden Diva.
(Sister Eden, how can you do this? Sister Ely is our dear friend and companion! We all know how much she misses Boss Elias. And besides... Sister Ely takes great care of my business. Just recently she used three whole crystal flowers to buy a pink little horn from .)
Pardofelis clenched the bracelet tightly around her wrist. The look of anguish on her face seed to question everyone present—had their precious camaraderie all been eaten by dogs?
(Pardo, I didn't expect you to...)
For a mont, Eden and the others wore complicated expressions. A wave of guilt surged up in their hearts. Sakura released her grip on the sword hilt. Vill-V discarded the excuse she had prepared in her mind.
Just as they were about to confess and apologize—
(If you want to betray Sister Ely, you'll have to pay more~)
Pardofelis' entire deanor changed in an instant.
She put on a flattering smile again, grabbed Eden's hands, and blinked cutely.
This was a profiteering rchant cat!
(...) x7
The seven Fla-Chasers nearly toppled over from sheer exasperation. All of them stared speechlessly at the cat, thinking—just as expected of you, Pardo. Give us back the guilt we just felt!
Eden then reached into her pocket, took out several sparkling gemstones, and tossed them to Pardofelis.
"Ahem! Boss Elias, Sister Ely really has been traveling the world recently. I swear on Brother Kevin's instant noodles!"
"Oh..."
Elias frowned slightly. From his perspective, it had just been a sowhat enthusiastic but otherwise ordinary welco. Although he felt a faint sense of dissonance, he had never been one to doubt those close to him.
So he believed it...
All one could say was that Miss Pink Elf had it rough—poor judge of friends. She would just have to continue serving her sentence in the Elysian Realm.
Afterward, to welco the addition of a new dorm mber—or rather, a new rival in love—the group held their usual lavish dinner party.
The aning was simple. After tonight, they would be enemies again. So better enjoy a good al while they still could.
...
After midnight, in the dead of night.
Once everyone had fallen asleep, two figures quietly opened their doors. Without speaking, they walked straight outside.
"You really found material compatible with ?" one of them asked.
"That's right. I had Gray Serpent excavate several ruins of old Fire Moth warehouses that stored Honkai Beast genes. We finally found a Honkai Beast compatible with your genes—this one. But... don't forget what you promised ."
As she spoke, the woman took out a storage container. Inside, a black curved horn was subrged in green liquid. Even after fifty thousand years, the genes had not lost their activity.
On the other side, the girl stared intently at the black horn, unmistakable desire flashing in her eyes.
"...Of course. I'll use my authority to let you enter the kitchen. I'll also do my utmost to teach you cooking."
"Very good. In that case, I'll also do my utmost to help you complete the ta-Morph surgery. A pleasant cooperation."
As the dark clouds were blown away by the night wind, the bright moonlight finally illuminated the two figures.
They were Rita—and I.
"Co to my temporary laboratory. The equipnt is a bit crude, but don't worry. Even if I'm not quite at Mobius' level, I've perford plenty of ta-Morph surgeries before."
"...Naturally. I believe a Fla-Chaser bearing the Signet of [Erudition] will not let my surgery fail."
Rita steadied her emotions as she spoke.
In fact, she had reached this agreent with I so ti ago.
In exchange for teaching her cooking, I would perform a ta-Morph surgery on her and turn her into a MANTIS. After all, since she could not beco a Herrscher or even a pseudo-Herrscher, this had been the only path Rita could think of to grow stronger.
However, because they had not found Honkai Beast genes compatible with her at the ti, Rita had believed even this road was blocked. She had felt dejected for quite a while, lanting how unfair fate was.
Unexpectedly, after all this ti, I had actually found sothing.
Although Rita now possessed the Spina Astera battlesuit and had already gained significant enhancent, no one disliked becoming even stronger.
Rita had no intention of stopping here.
After making her resolve, she decisively lay down on the operating table. Restraints automatically secured her limbs. I had already put on a mask, scalpel in her right hand and hemostatic forceps in her left.
"Oh, right. Let tell you sothing in advance."
"What?"
"This material... I actually don't know which Honkai Beast it ca from. So after the surgery, what you'll turn into is completely unknown."
"What did you say?!"
Rita's eyes widened. She suddenly felt as if she had gone from being a patient to being a lab rat. Not even knowing what Honkai Beast she would fuse with, she imdiately grew uneasy.
"Ahem. There's no helping it. Although the material was well preserved, it's still fifty thousand years old. The data in the ruins was damaged and incomplete. We no longer know what species this Honkai Beast belonged to."
"W-wait! Isn't that extrely dangerous?!"
Cold sweat ford on Rita's forehead as she looked at the eager I, suddenly realizing she might be dealing with a mad scientist.
"Relax~ You won't die. Even if we don't know what Honkai Beast it was, it was stored in the deepest section of that warehouse as a first-grade specin. At the very least, it was Judgnt-class level. So the strength is guaranteed."
"It's just that the higher the rank of the Honkai Beast genes, the more likely there will be obvious side effects. For example, growing fox ears on your head, a tail on your backside, or perhaps never being able to develop ever again."
"But death is absolutely impossible. So Miss Rita, just look forward to the results. Now then—good night~"
As she spoke, I injected the anesthetic into Rita's body. Rita desperately wanted to curse, but her eyes rolled back and she fell asleep instantly.
I: "Safety asures set. Surgical failure rate: 0.001%. Fusion material: unknown Honkai Beast. Fusion target: S-rank Valkyrie... Well then—let the experint begin."
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