"Don't say that, Himeko. Since Principal Theresa has been here, it means she hasn't given up the fight. Don't worry, Seele, Principal Theresa is very strong.
Ryn and the others did a major cleanup of the Honkai Creatures before, so now they should be spawning randomly in various places. Yet, there isn't a single Honkai Creature near the base now.
Combined with this broken spear... perhaps Principal Theresa is protecting us from somewhere we can't see..."
Not far from the base, in a place unknown to anyone.
Theresa was pulling Judah's Lance from the head of a Honkai Creature several times her size.
"Phew... that takes care of all the Honkai Creatures in the surrounding area. Life should be much easier for Bronya and the others from now on..."
Theresa shouldered the Oath of Judah and, guided by it, walked towards the next location with a Honkai energy reaction.
Thirteen lances of Judah, but now only twelve remained. One had been used by Ryn to stab Mei, only to be shattered by her.
I forgot to ask Ryn to fix it. Oh well, I'll mention it the next time I see him...
——————————————
As night fell, everyone had loaded their luggage and supplies onto the train and the Hyperion.
A Herrscher could attack at any moment. The base was abandoned in favor of relocating to a new, safe location.
But where could they go...?
There were no safe places left in this world.
Some people boarded the train, while others were unwilling. Because even if they left, it was just a matter of dying sooner or later.
Rather than living in constant fear, a race against Honkai Creatures, they might as well stay in the base and enjoy their last moments of safety. After running for five years, many were tired...
The Gray Moth Squad began to board the Hyperion. They would clear the way ahead, and the Hyperion's power would pull the train along at high speed.
But perhaps it was waiting for everyone to gather, perhaps it was waiting for the moment they were filled with the hope that boarding the train meant survival... the Herrscher of Thunder came again...
BOOM—
The weather changed in an instant. Thunder roared, and a torrential downpour began...
The fierce wind made it impossible for people to open their eyes, and the heavy rain weighed down their bodies, slowing their movements...
Rampant Honkai energy continuously gathered, and one by one, Honkai Creatures materialized out of thin air outside the base.
A huge vortex formed in the sky as the wind blew away the pervading dust. Amidst the lightning, the giant silhouette of a dragon swam within.
"Is that... a dragon? How can something like that actually exist...?"
"Dammit, it's a Neonate..."
Bronya was the first to react. She shouted urgently, giving orders to everyone.
"Everyone, abandon the base and board the ship immediately! We have to evacuate now!"
"Gray Moth Squad, move out immediately! Kill the Honkai Creatures and clear a path!!"
One look at the sky was all it took for everyone to understand the situation. The lightning there was gathering, ready to strike the base at any moment.
Ryn, taking Penglaiji Ryn with him, immediately headed for the front line to help the Gray Moth Squad clear the way.
Everyone else scrambled towards the train. A third of the people who hadn't planned to leave were now pushing and shoving the most fiercely. The original group became annoyed—you were the ones who didn't want to go, and now you're the ones fighting to get on...
What was once an orderly boarding process was thrown into chaos. There were even people fighting...
Emisha roared, demanding that the wounded be allowed to board first... but aside from Yiselian, whom she had dragged over to help, and a few members of the Medical Department, no one paid her any mind... some even deliberately knocked over the stretcher Emisha was carrying... to prevent her from getting on...
Bronya and Seele shouted, trying to maintain order, but their words fell on deaf ears... In this moment between life and death, the ugliness of human nature was laid bare...
The thunderstorm was about to strike, yet many people had not boarded the train...
But Himeko gave the order to close the hatch and start the train. Many wounded and children were still left behind...
Ryn shot towards the sky, preparing to unleash a black hole to swallow the thunderstorm and block Mei's attack.
But...
Himeko grabbed Seele and Bronya and threw them directly into the cabin.
"Hyperion! Main cannon, prepare to fire! Annihilate all the Honkai scum blocking our path!!"
"Himeko! What are you doing? There are still combat personnel up ahead!"
Bronya screamed at Himeko and charged forward, trying to stop her from firing.
But other Gray Moth members rushed up and restrained Bronya. They trusted Himeko's orders unconditionally at all times, so they wouldn't let Bronya interfere.
Himeko didn't even glance back at Bronya. It was cruel, but sacrificing the few was for the survival of the many.
"Fire!"
"Himeko, I'll f***ing kill you."
Ryn immediately turned and rushed back to the front line, because Penglaiji Ryn was up there with the combat personnel and the Gray Moth Squad, clearing the path for the train.
Ryn's "The World" wasn't a true time stop, just a time-slowing effect...
Even if the Hyperion's main cannon laser was slowed, it was still light...
BOOM————
Everything happened too fast... From Himeko ordering the hatch closed, to Ryn preparing to swallow the thunderstorm, to the Hyperion's main cannon firing... it all happened in less than half a minute...
The light of the Hyperion's main cannon tore through the quiet, peaceful night sky, shredding every obstacle in its path.
"Hah... hah..."
Ryn, panting, threw the few people he had saved to the side. This was a true race against death. Ryn felt his adrenaline spike, his heart pounding violently in his chest...
Ryn wasn't afraid of dying, but he was afraid of seeing someone important die in front of him.
Penglaiji Ryn sat on the ground, her legs weak. She had seen the cannon's light rushing towards her, and in that moment, confusion, fear, and the question 'why' filled her mind.
But the others Ryn had saved, though their legs were also a bit weak, seemed to have already grown accustomed to it.
It was as if being treated as cannon fodder and obliterated was the most normal thing in the world for them...
"Are you scared?" A survivor walked over to Penglaiji Ryn and patted her on the shoulder.
"Yeah... Aren't you?"
"I am... but this is all we can do... isn't it? Sacrifice ourselves so that others may live."
The surviving girl sat down next to Penglaiji Ryn, quietly watching the train move in the distance.
They could no longer board it. If Ryn hadn't come back to save them, they would have died anyway.
It was just a change from being blasted by the main cannon to being devoured by countless Honkai Beasts.