"See? I told you, Kalpas—you're really popular."
Elias said to the man now surrounded by children. At that moment, the usually irritable Kalpas had a rare, genuine smile on his face—something Elias immediately captured with his phone.
He planned to post it later on Fire Moth's internal forum. It would easily make the top headline for at least a week.
"..."
Kalpas stared blankly at the children of the sanatorium.
Right now, the scene looked as if a lion were surrounded by a flock of lambs—but the lion had retracted its claws and fangs, moving carefully so as not to harm the little ones.
Within the chest of the Mad King, two hearts pounded wildly.
Normally, that only happened when he faced a strong enough enemy—an excitement that fueled his flames, granting him greater power.
But this time, what filled him wasn't battle-lust—it was indescribable joy. He had never imagined that the children of the sanatorium would truly like him. He had never thought himself worthy of something as precious as family.
"You kids… you're really not afraid of me?" Kalpas asked quietly.
His tone remained as cold as ever, but without his mask, the nervousness on his face was plain to see.
"Huh? Why would we be afraid of you, Brother Kal?"
"Sure, you're scary when you're angry…"
"But we all know you're a good person, Brother Kalpas."
"Yeah! We know! When we were sick with the Honkai disease, you were ready to steal the serum for us!"
"And we know you joined Fire Moth so that we could live better lives!"
The children's eyes were filled with trust and gratitude. How could they fear someone who had always fought and sacrificed for them?
Kalpas might appear furious and violent on the outside—but the kids knew well how gentle he truly was inside.
A few of them reached into their bags and pulled out small, ugly wooden dolls. Kalpas froze instantly.
Those were the carvings he'd made back when he was still at the sanatorium. His craftsmanship was poor—decent at best—but when it came to carving faces, they always turned out… hideous.
"Y-You still kept those? I thought you'd thrown them away long ago."
"Of course not! That was the first gift you ever gave us, Brother Kal! We love them!"
The children spoke with such sincerity that it made Kalpas' heart ache.
Those little wooden dolls were rough and crude, nowhere near as good as the ones sold in shops—but the children treasured them because they carried the warmth of the man who had made them.
Even if someone offered a hundred new dolls in exchange, they would never trade them.
"..."
Kalpas' body trembled slightly. He raised a hand to cover his face, unwilling to let anyone see his expression.
But Elias, who had sharp eyes, clearly caught the upward curve of his lips.
Kalpas was smiling.
"Brother Kal, you're our family—our big brother!"
"S-Stop talking. I get it already."
Kalpas turned his head sharply, wiping at his eyes with the back of his hand. The Mad King's heart was overflowing with joy—those words meant more to him than any victory in battle.
He was recognized.
He was accepted.
Kalpas pressed a hand against his chest, as if trying to keep his heart from beating too fast.
Then, awkwardly and hesitantly, he lifted his hand and placed it on one of the children's heads—mimicking the gesture he'd often seen Elias use when patting Elysia and the others.
The motion was so gentle that even Kalpas himself could hardly believe it came from him.
"Brother Kal… you patted my head?!"
"What, got a problem with that?"
"No! I'm just… so surprised—and so happy!"
The child beamed with joy, feeling honored beyond words.
Elias nodded approvingly from the side. That kid had every reason to feel proud—after all, the last ones to experience Kalpas' head-pat technique had been Honkai Beasts… and he'd crushed their heads right after.
A true, literal head-pat kill!
The surrounding children looked on enviously, crowding around Kalpas and clamoring to be patted on the head too.
At that moment, Kalpas felt like he could die without regrets.
"Elias, give me back my mask. Now."
He reached toward Elias immediately. His composure was slipping fast.
Normally, he kept his face hidden behind the mask. Whether he was angry, happy, or sad, he never needed to control his expressions—no one could see them anyway.
But that also meant he had no experience managing his face.
No one would ever have guessed that Kalpas actually had an incredibly expressive face beneath that mask—nothing like the stoic image everyone imagined.
"Nope. I'm keeping it. Consider it my payment—and a keepsake from today. Really, you're getting off easy."
Elias said with a grin, cleaning the Mad King mask before placing it over his own face. Then he turned toward Rin.
"So? How do I look? Does it suit me?"
"Mhm! You look super cool, Brother-in-law!"
"Haha, you're such a sweet talker, Rin. Just for that, I guess I'll have to marry Sakura someday—if only to make you my adorable little sister for real."
Elias ruffled Rin's hair, partly to tease her and partly to demonstrate the proper way to perform a head-pat. There was an art to it—and Kalpas still had a lot to learn.
"Tch… damn you," Kalpas muttered.
"Kalpas, please calm down. Oh right, don't you still have another mask?" Aponia interjected gently, adding a hint of [Discipline] to keep him in check.
"Huh?!"
"The one Elias gave you before, remember?"
"..."
Kalpas went silent, turning his head away.
Elias blinked in surprise. "Hm? The one I made for you? Didn't you say it got burned by your flames?"
"Is that so? But last time, I clearly saw it stored safely in his locker," Aponia said softly.
"Aponia, shut your mouth!"
"Haha, so that's how it is! You actually kept it all this time, huh? And here you said it got destroyed—turns out our Kalpas is just a big tsundere."
Elias couldn't help but laugh.
"Hmph!"
Kalpas could only grunt in frustration. (It's not like that! Your mask was too fragile, Elias. I almost broke it the first time I wore it on a mission. It's not that I cherish it or anything…)
In the end, Elias decided to construct a new mask for him.
But this time, it wasn't Ultraman or the Mad King—it was a Kamen Rider: Dragon Knight-style mask.
"Why do you always make these weird masks?"
"Just say if you'll wear it or not."
"..."
Kalpas said nothing—but he still put it on in the end. Elias smirked. Classic tsundere behavior.
After that, they decided to spend the day together.
Elias treated everyone—Rin and the children from the sanatorium—to a fun day at a nearby amusement park. They played until evening, then ended with a hearty dinner at a local restaurant.
"Everyone, please don't waste food, okay?" Aponia reminded the children in her characteristically gentle yet somehow intimidating tone.
Even Rin, who was notoriously picky, ended up obediently finishing everything on her plate.
(Rin: Why do I get the feeling this Mama Aponia lady is terrifying in her own way? Something tells me bad things happen to those who disobey her… Gulp, guess I have no choice but to eat it…)
Meanwhile, Elias was trying to get Kalpas to drink.
He'd been curious to see what the short-tempered warrior would be like when drunk—and with just a little teasing, the straightforward Kalpas immediately rose to the bait.
Becoming a MANTIS didn't improve one's alcohol tolerance—that much had already been proven by Eden. The golden songstress might love her wine, but whether before or after her transformation, she always got tipsy easily. Then again… maybe that was only when Elias was around.
After downing an entire case of liquor, even Kalpas was feeling dizzy. He shook his head a little and suddenly began to speak.
"Elias… do you have anyone you hate? Or something that's bothering you? Tell me, and I'll… go kill them for you."
"Uh, why are you suddenly saying stuff like that?"
"Hmph. It's not like I can do anything else besides fight."
Kalpas muttered as he took another swig from the bottle.
He glanced down at his own hands, frustration flickering in his eyes. He wanted to do something—anything—to repay the white-haired boy sitting across from him, but all he knew was how to kill.
Elias patted him on the shoulder reassuringly, then casually picked up a bottle of strong liquor and drank it like it was water.
(Impressive…)
Kalpas couldn't help but stare, his expression behind the mask showing genuine admiration.
"It's fine. You can always learn new things. Once humanity defeats the Honkai and peace finally comes, we'll have all the time in the world to do whatever we want. Sigh~"
"Hm? What's with the sigh?"
"Nothing much. It's just… the next Honkai might be tough. I've been racking my brain over it lately."
Elias tapped his head lightly as he spoke.
"What? The next Herrscher's that strong? Even you think it'll be hard to beat?"
Kalpas' eyes widened in disbelief, and the bottle in his hand shattered from the pressure.
In his mind, the white-haired boy before him was the strongest being alive. The idea that there could be an enemy even he struggled against shook Kalpas to his core—his very faith wavered.
Elias rolled his eyes, opening another bottle. "Who said I can't beat her? It's just the Ninth Herrscher. I could win even if I let her use both hands. It's just… saving everyone this time might be difficult. I haven't figured out a foolproof plan yet. It's annoying."
"Saving everyone again, huh… You're still so greedy, Elias. Is that even necessary?" Kalpas asked, clenching his fists.
"Honestly? No, it's not."
Elias smiled faintly and shook his head.
Kalpas almost thought he'd misheard.
But Elias meant it.
In truth, he didn't need to save anyone. No matter how many people died, it wouldn't matter much. This was only the first round of his game, after all.
His goal in this cycle was merely to gather information—to identify who the Herrschers were, when the Honkai Eruptions would occur, and what circumstances would lead to disaster. Then, when the second round began, he could use that knowledge to achieve a perfect victory.
Even if tens of thousands, millions, or hundreds of millions died—it wouldn't matter. Everything would reset when the loop began anew, returning to a time before tragedy struck.
So there was no real reason for Elias to worry. He could easily let the Herrscher of Earth descend, destroy the Mu Continent, and watch from afar.
He didn't even need to fight personally. He could just send Elysia, Sakura, Hua, Kevin, Kalpas, and the others to handle it while he sat in the command room and watched the battle unfold.
After all, he could always redo it.
In the end, he would save everyone.
There was no reason to go all out in the first run.
And yet…
"Even if it's not necessary, I hate tragedies that happen right in front of me while I stand by, powerless. So I'll change things. I'll save them. I won't let anyone die. I believe I can do it."
"…Elias, let me give you a piece of advice. You should give up on trying to save everyone. If you keep pushing yourself like that, then one day—when you can't save someone—you'll feel a pain right here…" Kalpas pointed to his chest.
Back when the Fifth Herrscher had destroyed his village and killed everyone he knew, he had learned that pain firsthand.
It was worse than death—a torment that tore the soul apart. If even someone like him had suffered that much, how much worse would it be for Elias?
But the white-haired boy only smiled softly.
"I'm not giving up. Come on, Kalpas, have a little faith in me. I'm your savior, remember? And I've already done it twice before. This'll just be one more miracle. You'll see—I can do it again."
"…You've always been like this."
Kalpas took a deep breath and sighed. Behind the mask, his eyes were filled with indescribable admiration as he looked at Elias.
This boy could save everyone—achieving feats Kalpas could never even dream of. It was as if there were no tragedy in this world that Elias couldn't rewrite.
Kalpas deeply envied him.
And precisely because he knew Elias' strength, Kalpas always obeyed his commands unconditionally on missions. Otherwise, not even Dr. Mei could make this hot-headed man follow orders.
"Since you insist on chasing that so-called perfection, do as you like. Just tell me what to do. Whether it's Honkai Beasts or Herrschers, just point me at them and I'll tear them apart!"
"Haha~! Deal!"
Elias laughed and clinked glasses with him.
But just then—
"Hehehe~ Brother-in-law, you're sooo handsome~ I really, really like you~ Let's get married when I grow up, okay?"
A certain pink-haired girl suddenly threw herself at him.
Rin wrapped her arms around Elias' neck, giggling as she rubbed her flushed face against him. Her cheeks were unnaturally red.
"Hm? Rin, what's gotten into you?!"
"Hehehe~ I feel sooo happy~ Huh? Why are there two of you now, Brother-in-law? Yay~ That means I can share—one for me, one for my sister!"
"…Looks like she snuck a drink."
Elias glanced at the bottle beside him—the rim still had faint traces of lipstick. He sighed, realizing this mischievous girl was nothing like her calm, composed sister.
Curiosity had led Rin to take a sip of his liquor, and within moments, she was completely drunk. Her reason evaporated in an instant.
The girl no longer remembered her promise to let her sister have him—her drunken mind was fully in chaos.
Before Elias could react, she leaned forward and—
Her soft pink lips landed squarely on his.
Elias: (Oh crap… Sakura, I've betrayed you.)
Kalpas burst out laughing. "Hahaha! Now this is getting interesting! Elias, you don't want Sakura to find out about this, right? Then you'd better keep quiet about what happened today!"
Elias: "What the hell, Kalpas—where did you even learn to blackmail people like this?!"