Honkai Impact 3rd: Catching the Herrscher of Sentience at the Start

Otto, Achoo! Who's thinking about me?

Realizing this, Fu Shi quickly tried to send a telepathic message to Fu Lin, but she received no response. Noticing that Fu Lin was still in Arc City, she wasted no time and flew back in the direction she had come from.

"Fu Lin, hang in there. I'll be there soon."

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

Under a flurry of effort, Fu Shi returned to the skies above Arc City at the fastest speed.

Looking down at the bustling metropolis below, Fu Shi, after sensing Fu Lin's exact location, flew toward a wonton shop with a puzzled expression.

"Kiana didn't go looking for Fu Lin? And she's just eating instead..." Descending from the sky, Fu Shi peered through the glass and saw Fu Lin and Kiana inside. Her eyes widened in disbelief, and she clenched her fists tightly.

As if sensing something, Kiana looked up toward the door. Upon seeing Fu Shi, she revealed a smug smile.

"What's wrong?" Fu Lin noticed Kiana's gaze and looked at her with some confusion. Just as he was about to turn his head toward the door, Kiana's voice drew his attention back.

"Nothing, just feed me quickly—ah~" Kiana propped her chin on her hands, opening her delicate lips as she waited for Fu Lin to feed her.

"Be careful, it's a little hot." Fu Lin scooped up a wonton, gently blew on it, and then fed it to Kiana. For some reason, though, he felt a bit hollow inside, as if something important was slipping away from him.

"Lin, what were you thinking about just now?" Kiana swallowed the wonton and smiled at Fu Lin, her eyes hiding a touch of jealousy.

"Nothing much. Hurry and eat; I'm feeling a bit hungry myself." Fu Lin shook his head, discarding the strange sensation as he looked at the wontons in the bowl.

Seeing that Fu Shi had left, Kiana also picked up a spoon and began eating one wonton after another. After who knows how many bowls, she finally leaned back in her chair, clutching her stomach with satisfaction.

"Why eat so much?" Fu Lin stood up and pulled Kiana to her feet, glancing at her bulging stomach and making a sarcastic remark.

"It's delicious! It's rare for me to have the chance to eat as much as I want, so of course I had to make the most of it."

"By the way, don't I look like a pregnant woman right now?" Kiana rubbed her stomach and flashed her pearly white teeth as she asked Fu Lin.

"Pfft! Cough, cough, cough, cough!!! Don't joke about things like that." Fu Lin couldn't help but choke when he heard Kiana's comment. Cold sweat broke out on his forehead as he felt Kiana might be implying something.

Afterward, Kiana lightly patted her stomach, and the once-bulging belly instantly deflated, as if all the wontons she had eaten were for nothing.

"..." Meanwhile, Fu Shi, who had witnessed the scene of Fu Lin feeding Kiana, felt an inexplicable urge to flee the scene. Yet the tears glistening in her eyes, like the promises Fu Lin had once made, deeply pierced her heart.

"Liar! You're all liars! All those promises to stay with me forever were fake!" After flying aimlessly for an unknown amount of time, Fu Shi looked down at Saint Freya Academy. Wiping the tears from the corners of her eyes, she hovered above Fu Hua.

Seeing Fu Hua training below, Fu Shi couldn't hold back her tears again. How had she been so unlucky as to encounter two liars?

"Hm? Is it raining? I guess that's it for today." Fu Hua looked at the "raindrops" on her hands, raised her head in confusion toward the darkened sky, and then turned to walk into her sparse dormitory.

"Wait, what happened to the old antique's house?" Fu Shi paused her sobbing as she noticed Fu Hua walking into an unfinished house and fell into thought.

Fu Hua, meanwhile, opened a jar of "Spring Eternal" pickles, paired it with a few steamed buns, and sat on her bed staring at her barebones room in contemplation, letting out a sigh.

This matter had to be traced back to a few days earlier. Due to the destructive force of Fu Hua's Dimensional Force: Heaven-Splitting Strike, her entire room had collapsed.

After barely getting through a night, Fu Hua explained the cause of the Saint Freya disaster to Theresa, who gave her an odd look as she recounted the collapse of her dormitory.

Hoping Theresa would approve a renovation, Fu Hua watched as Theresa patted her chest confidently, assuring her, "Don't worry, it'll be fixed in no time."

But halfway through construction, for some unknown reason, Theresa abruptly dismissed the construction team and awkwardly explained to Fu Hua, "The academy is short on funds, Fu Hua. The unfinished dormitory... isn't unlivable, is it?"

"If it really doesn't work, you can stay with Kiana. Mei cooks there, and I go over every day to freeload." Fu Hua, for some reason, declined Theresa's suggestion, saying, "No, it's my fault, so an unfinished room is fine. It's good for cultivating discipline."

Theresa laughed dryly and turned to leave under Fu Hua's watchful gaze, muttering as she walked away, "If Grandpa hadn't suddenly reduced my allowance, leaving me unable to buy the latest Homu manga, I wouldn't have had to dip into academy funds..."

"This is all Grandpa's fault!"

"....."