After learning how to save them, Elias was no longer in a rush. His war against fate was now one he was sure he could win, and that gave him the calm and confidence to face what was coming.
There were five days left until his ti-travel ended.
In those last five days, Elias spent every mont enjoying life with his girls. If an enemy ca—he eliminated them. If an incident happened—he resolved it.
Even the sudden events caused by fate's corrective force had beco little more than flavorful seasoning added to their daily lives. What was once tension now brought excitent and passion to the otherwise peaceful House of the Hearth.
If nothing else, Sin Mal and Dark Seele seed to quite enjoy the action.
Bronya and White Seele, on the other hand, finally began to relax. The frequent incidents had left them nervous, but now Elias had turned those crises into lovely interruptions in their warm routine.
Bronya: "As expected of Papa Elias."
Seele: "Mhm. Our papa really is the best."
But even the best of days must co to an end. In the end, five days was still only five days. Like the holidays back in Elias' previous life—it passed in the blink of an eye.
And so, on the afternoon of the fifth day—
Elias gathered the girls of the House of the Hearth and made an announcent.
He was going to leave.
"A really, really, really far trip?"
"Yeah, that's right."
"You won't be back for a long ti?"
"Mhm. You'll all have to take care of yourselves."
The girls were stunned.
The news of Elias leaving on a long journey ca so suddenly that none of them were prepared for it.
These girls, so used to his presence, didn't know how to react.
Even Bronya blanked out for a mont. But as the big sister of the house, she was the first to regain her composure—and to understand that Elias had his own burdens.
"Alright. Bronya understands. After all, Papa Elias has been staying ho for our sake for so long. This must be work-related, right? You must have a lot piled up, don't you?"
"Well, yes... quite a lot..."
Elias responded with a complicated smile.
He was, after all, a legendary rcenary. It was only natural for him to have a mountain of pending missions. Like a certain blonde traveler—no matter the season, he always had at least five daily tasks.
But truthfully, he had already stopped taking missions months ago. He'd earned more than enough money, so he was basically half-retired. Commissions? Ignored.
Raven had even assud he'd rage-quit the job entirely.
"Then... Papa Elias, how long will you be gone?"
Seele tugged gently at his sleeve, reluctant to let go. She looked like a sad little pet who didn't want her owner to leave. Elias couldn't help but give her a hug.
"Well... around a year?"
"A—a year?!" xN
The words hit like a thunderclap. All the girls gasped in unison.
An entire year without their beloved Papa Elias? Just imagining it made them feel like they couldn't breathe.
It was like giving a scuba diver half a bottle of water and expecting them to survive underwater for a whole day—utterly impossible.
(No way. Papa Elias has to be joking!)
Instantly, with the exception of Rozaliya—the pure airhead of the house—everyone assud Elias was joking.
(It's probably just that work has piled up so much, he's not sure how long it'll take. A whole year? No way. It'll be over in maybe ten days... gulp ...Ten days is already too long.)
Even after convincing themselves it might only be a few days, the girls still found it hard to accept. All they could do was silently pray that Elias would finish his work quickly and co ho soon.
"Papa... what about the bad guys who are after Seele and the rest of us?" Bronya stepped forward, clutching Elias' hand tightly. "I'm worried that if you're not here, sothing might go wrong."
This was her way of trying to keep him from leaving.
Bronya scolded herself inwardly for being underhanded—using Elias' concern for them to try and make him stay. But she couldn't help it. She didn't want him to leave.
Even two days without seeing him was enough to make her feel heartsick.
However...
"It's okay. There won't be any more incidents. The organizations targeting you will disappear soon. I've already spoken with Natasha—she'll look after you all while I'm gone."
"Eh?"
Bronya blinked in shock. Even after all that, she still couldn't make him stay. For once, the usually composed girl was at a loss.
Elias crouched down and kissed her gently on the cheek.
"I'm counting on you to look after everyone while I'm gone, Bronya. Eat properly every day, don't play too many gas, go out and get so exercise... Oh, and the temperature might start to change soon, so rember to..." (500 words omitted)
"B-Bronya understands."
Her mind was spinning, but she did her best to rember every word he said.
Not once did she find him naggy or annoying.
Bronya: (Annoying? That's love! I'd never find Papa Elias annoying. If anything, I want him to say even more!)
After rambling to the point of dry mouth, Elias finally paused and turned to the girl still clinging to his sleeve.
He kissed Seele gently on the cheek as well.
"Don't worry, Seele. This isn't goodbye forever."
"N-No jinxing it! Don't say sothing so unlucky, Papa!"
Seele rarely spoke so forcefully, which made Elias smile warmly.
"Haha, alright. I'm not worried about you misbehaving, but do try to get along with Dark Seele, okay?"
"You two are like Kan Rider... err, Beyond Twin Souls. You're different in personality and abilities, but that's exactly why you complete each other."
"White Seele, take care of Dark Seele."
"Dark Seele, protect White Seele."
White Seele listened quietly, angelic and calm. Even Dark Seele, usually brash and smug, was uncharacteristically obedient.
Then, White Seele took a deep breath, as if gathering all her courage.
She leaned in and planted the gentlest kiss on Elias' right cheek.
It was probably the boldest thing she'd done in her entire life.
"S-Seele...?"
"Now it's my turn."
"Uh... Dark Seele?"
"...Co back soon. We will miss you."
Unlike the soft angel, the devilish twin was far more aggressive.
She cupped Elias' cheeks and boldly leaned in—aiming straight for his lips!
"Wait! Dark Seele, that's too much!"
"No way! You can't just steal the best part!"
"Ya-rooo! Let go of Papa, let do it instead!!"
In the end, the other girls at the House of the Hearth banded together and stopped her.
Flustered and slightly ruffled, Dark Seele settled for a kiss on Elias' left cheek.
At least now it matched White Seele's—perfectly symtrical.
(Dark Seele: "Tch! You awful girls... Whatever, that spot will be mine soday anyway!")
Elias gave her the kind of hug she loved most—tight enough to feel a bit painful. Then he planted a kiss on her cheek as well.
He had kissed White Seele earlier, so to be fair—each personality deserved one.
"Now it's ti for Rozaliya and Liliya! Papa Elias belongs to us Vodka Sisters too!"
"While you're away, we'll keep practicing our new performance! When you get back, we'll show you!"
The Olenyeva twin sisters rushed in. Rozaliya and Liliya kissed Elias on his left and right cheeks respectively, receiving a return kiss from him in kind.
The rest of the House of the Hearth girls followed suit, each saying their goodbyes in their own way. Every one of them dove into Elias' embrace for one final deep breath—recharging their "Elias energy" to the max.
After all, they wouldn't be seeing their beloved Papa for quite so ti.
They had to be ready for a long, long drought.
"Well then, I'm off."
"Uuuhh... bye-bye, Papa Elias..." xN
"...W-Wait! Papa Elias!"
Just as Elias was about to leave, Bronya suddenly bolted forward like a puppet whose strings had snapped. She threw her arms around his waist, trembling.
Her eyes widened, as if she herself didn't understand why she had moved.
His back looked like soone heading sowhere impossibly far away. Just thinking about not seeing him for so long made her body move on its own.
"Bronya..."
"Papa Elias... you're really leaving for work, right? We'll see each other again, won't we? You'll co back, right? I-I'm sorry... Bronya's acting weird right now. I just have this awful feeling..."
She had an urge—to ask him to take her with him.
But she couldn't. She had responsibilities here.
Bronya was the big sister of the house. With Papa gone, she needed to be strong for everyone.
"Sharp as always, Bronya."
"Eh...?"
"It's true. This isn't for work."
Elias smiled faintly, crouched down, and pulled Bronya into a hug. He whispered into her ear—
"Do you rember what I said I wanted to do? I'm going to do that now."
"What you wanted...? You an, to save soone?"
"Yeah. These past few days have been wonderful. Because I finally found a way to save them. A way to change their fate. And now... I can't wait to go rescue the most important person in the world to ."
"..."
Bronya stared blankly at him.
One thought echoed in her mind—
I'm so jealous.
The way Elias said those words, the way his eyes softened—she knew.
Whoever he was going to save, it wasn't just anyone.
That person was special.
So jealous... I wish I were the one he was talking about... But who is it? A man? A woman? Old? Young? A family mber? A friend? Or... a lover?
In the end, Bronya let go of Elias.
Because she was Papa's good girl—and a good girl doesn't stand in the way of soone doing what they must.
Besides, she had received a promise.
"You'll co back, right, Papa Elias?"
"Of course. That much, you can count on."
"Then... Bronya understands."
"...Bronya, Ich liebe dich."
...
After saying goodbye to his beloved girls, Elias stepped onto the battlefield against fate.
He glanced at the ti remaining—only six hours until the ti-travel ended.
Worried he might not make it in ti, Elias picked up his pace. Thankfully, his destination wasn't far. Within minutes, he arrived at the sa location Seele had once accidentally wandered into.
Cocolia's X-10 Experintal Facility.
"Well, it's the grand finale. Let's make it flashy."
A sly grin spread across Elias' lips as his white scythe spun in his hands like a silver crescent moon. Seeing his stance, the guards imdiately panicked and sounded the alarm.
"Alert! Alert! Intruder detected!"
"Identify yourself! State your purpose!"
"Drop your weapon and surrender imdiately!"
"Wait! Is that—?! Soone go alert Madam Cocolia!"
While not the brightest, Cocolia was still a high-ranking executive of Anti-Entropy and had countless Titan chs stationed around her at all tis.
These chanical beasts were designed to crush even Valkyries. But today, they were ripped apart like scrap tal by Elias' raw power.
He wasn't holding back.
He was here to deliver a ssage—and he wanted it loud and clear.
A fifty-ter radius of black mist—the power of the Herrscher of Death—blanketed the battlefield. Any of her human subordinates who entered it fell dead instantly.
The Titans, being non-organic, charged ahead, only to be instantly fried by arcs of violet lightning—the authority of the Herrscher of Thunder lting their insides in re seconds.
"Too weak. Even if I wanted to show off, this level of resistance makes it hard."
With just two incomplete Herrscher powers, Elias had already completely overwheld Cocolia's entire base. He strolled through the front gates casually, smiling up at the nearest security cara.
Then he raised a fist the size of a cannonball.
BOOM—!
The reinforced composite tal door flew off its hinges from a single punch.
Watching the footage, Cocolia swallowed hard.
Elias' power was dozens of tis greater than she'd ever expected.
Only now did she realize how woefully incomplete her intel had been—and that Elias might still be hiding more.
"No, that's not important right now. The real question is: why is he here? Is he... here to kill ?! Dammit, what did I even do to piss him off?!"
As she cursed and scrambled toward her ergency escape tunnel...
The screen flickered.
Elias vanished from the cara feed.
And appeared directly in front of her.
His arrival was so sudden, Cocolia genuinely wondered if he'd just stepped out of the monitor.
"M-Mr. Elias! I haven't co near your ho since last ti! What brings you here?!"
"Relax, Vixen. I'm not here to take your life—not today. I actually need a favor."
"...A favor? Of course, anything I can do, I'll cooperate fully."
"Good. That X-10 Experint of yours? I approve it now. Prepare everything. The test subject... will be ."
There was a flicker of madness in Elias' golden eyes.
This—was how he would defy fate's correction.
He would take the place of Bronya and Seele.
Just like during the Second Eruption.
He had beco the Herrscher of the Void, so Sirin could be saved.
He had taken on all the Honkai Fissile Bombs, so Cecilia could survive.
Elias didn't just change others' destinies.
He could take their destinies—and shoulder them himself!
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