The atmosphere inside the laboratory was stifling.
Mobius studied the pink-haired assassin in front of her and slowly spoke.
"You move fast, Sakura. Got your sister settled already? As far as I know, assassination organizations aren't the kind you can just walk away from."
Sakura replied calmly, "No need for concern, Doctor. I joined Fire Moth the same way in my previous life."
In other words, she sold out her former organization—again.
Mobius tapped her temple lightly. "Let me guess—you're here for Silas too?" Troublesome. Every capable woman is making their move—Vill-V, now Sakura…
"Me too?" Sakura's brow furrowed.
"Seeing me, haven't you realized? We've all been reborn. So far, it's confirmed for Elysia, Vill-V… and of course, Silas." Mobius shrugged.
Sakura fell silent.
"If possible," Mobius continued, "I'd prefer you keep your rebirth a secret from Silas."
"Why?" Sakura asked.
"So far, only Elysia has come clean with him about her rebirth. But she's Elysia—she's not like us. Let me be blunt: do you really want him to follow the same path as in the last life?"
Mobius sighed inwardly. She wanted to be honest with Silas too… but the time just wasn't right.
She could already imagine how it would go.
Silas: "Doctor, since you've been reborn too, perform the MANTIS surgery on me now."
That's definitely what he'd say.
Same with Sakura—Mobius would bet her lab coat that if Silas ever asked, Sakura wouldn't refuse him anything.
Sakura was quiet for a moment, then slowly shook her head. "Of course I don't want him to walk that path again. But Doctor… how can you be sure—"
"Here." Mobius slid a report across the table. "His daily training data since arriving at HQ. His mind is consumed by the Honkai. Even Elysia's confession couldn't sway him."
Sakura reviewed the documents, her expression darkening.
For a proper MOTH soldier, the training load was just about standard. But for Silas, who didn't even meet the baseline physical condition for a combatant… this was excessive.
Then again, it made sense. After Lilith died, Silas's world became nothing but the fight against the Honkai. Now that he'd been reborn, he was still clinging to the same purpose.
"I understand. I won't tell him," Sakura finally said.
"I understand," Sakura said at last. "I won't tell him."
Her own feelings didn't matter. She only wanted to protect him—even if that meant stepping aside.
If she had to be honest—Elysia was probably better suited to be by his side than she was.
If it's Elysia... maybe she really can save him.
________________________________________
Changkong City
Same noodle shop.
Same Kevin and Su.
Except this time, Kosma was with them.
"Kosma," Kevin said between slurps of noodles, "how'd you know we'd be here?"
"...It was written in Fire Moth's records," Kosma replied. "This is where the Third Eruption occurred."
(Back then, I really admired Kevin. I read and memorized every document related to him. Didn't think I'd actually put that knowledge to use someday…)
"So you walked here by yourself?" Kevin said. "Are you planning to stop the Third Eruption alone?"
"...I want to use this to apply for Fire Moth." Kosma's voice was steady.
(In my previous life, I joined during the Fourth Eruption for a similar reason. I remember Silas also officially joined during the Fourth and became part of Elysia's squad.)
"Hmm… Fair enough. I plan to join Fire Moth after this too, just like before," Kevin said, glancing at Su. "And Su's already decided to join alongside me."
Su gave a small nod.
After all, studying medicine hadn't saved anyone in the end. Joining Fire Moth gave him a real chance to save the ones he truly wanted to save—his mentor, and his dearest friend.
"...Do you think Silas might be reborn too?" Kosma voiced the question weighing on him.
"Given current patterns, it's likely all Fourteen Flame-Chasers have returned," Su said calmly.
Kosma: "..."
(Dystopia shows no signs of past memories. If Silas has been reborn... the situation becomes far more complicated. We absolutely cannot allow him to come into contact with Lilith again. That woman will only obey him unconditionally. Elysia is also out of the question—he walked down that path because of her. And Vil-V... she's even more dangerous. No, it has to be Michaela. She's the only one who can truly bring Silas back to the right path.)
"But on this topic, Su and I have always had one fundamental disagreement," Kevin said as he turned to look at Su.
"What is it?" Kosma asked.
(Disagreement? Between Kevin and Su? And it's related to Silas?)
"I believe Silas should be kept as far away from Elysia as possible. But since there's a high chance she's also been reincarnated, we should focus on finding Lilith first," Kevin said.
Su sighed. "Kevin, Lilith will only ever obey Silas's orders unconditionally. She can't—and won't—change him. Only Elysia might be able to do that."
Kosma: "..."
(So that's their disagreement? It really is about Silas... but I'm sorry, I can only agree with half of what either of you said.)
________________________________________
Sundown Alley
Pardofelis slumped lifelessly over the table, muttering over and over again, "This doesn't make sense… Why haven't we seen Sis Vill-V lately?"
"Hmph, that woman…" Kalpas leaned against the doorframe. "If she's been reborn too, chances are she's already joined Fire Moth to go look for him."
Pardo perked up instantly. "That's definitely possible… Wait—Sis Vill-V likes Brother Silas too?!"
Kalpas sneered coldly. He didn't care about Vill-V's other personas, but that Pure Evil one? Even he thought she was unhinged. Her obsession with Silas was obvious. Did she think her feelings for Silas were subtle? He might be insane, but he wasn't blind.
Aponia, having finished handing out food to the kids, turned her gaze toward the frazzled Pardo and the now significantly calmer Kalpas. She rested her chin on her hand, deep in thought.
A few days ago, Eden had come to see her. They'd come to a mutual agreement: to let things take their natural course. But if possible, they hoped to mend the rift between Silas and Elysia.
Still… why did the thought of others possibly reaching Silas first make her feel slightly anxious?
________________________________________
MOTH HQ – Training Grounds
Silas' eye twitched as he stared at Sakura standing beside Mobius.
Why is Sakura here? This isn't when she's supposed to join MOTH! If this were a story, the plot would be in shambles!
Mobius cleared her throat. "This is Sakura. Elysia arranged her as your new combat instructor." Let the pink-haired menace take the blame.
Sakura nodded. "Hello."
Oh. Elysia's doing. That explains everything.
…Wait a second.
If Elysia went out on a mission, she didn't happen to bring Vill-V back with her too, right?
Just imagining one of Vill-V's personas made his scalp go numb. In his past life, he'd fused with so many Honkai beasts that he'd become almost detached, emotionally numb. So I hadn't thought much about it at the time. But thinking back now?
Holy hell, that was a yandere. A full-blown, knife-wielding yandere.
He forced a smile and extended his hand. "I'll be in your care. Don't hold back—I'll endure any training."
Sakura grasped his hand firmly. "No time like the present. Let's begin."
She understood now why Dr. Mobius didn't want her to tell me that she'd been reborn too.
After all… she couldn't bring herself to refuse Silas either.
"Ah-choo!" Elysia let out an adorably tiny sneeze. "Someone must be thinking about me! Is it Silas~?"
…Strange. Why did it suddenly feel like something was sitting on top of her head?
"Hmph! As if he'd be thinking about you!" Pure Evil Vill-V grumbled under her breath.
This competition was getting crowded. Maybe she should just kidnap Silas and flee MOTH. Yeah. And after that, she'd have to figure out how to keep him locked up by her side. What if Silas made requests? How could she fulfill all of them to keep him happy?
The other personas didn't know exactly what Pure Evil was thinking… But still, they tried to stay as far away from her as possible in Vill-V's shared mental space.
If Pure Evil knew what the others were thinking, she'd scoff: "What's wrong with claiming Silas? If I win, you all benefit too!"
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