Shi Tian was caught off guard when Hysilens asked him about that matter. He was ready to answer questions such as his and Cerydra's plan that arbitrarily left her out.
"...I want to know more about them."
"Alright."
He has his guesses as to why she asked for it.
"Currently, there are six. This number is relative… because there will be more in the future."
Shi Tian stated this fact, to which she nodded slightly.
"The beautiful girl over there, the one that looks like an airhead…" He pointed to Kiana who was talking with Trianne. "...she is my first wife."
He explained things such as his identity as an otherworlder. Shi Tian did not originate from the honkai's Earth, but on another, faraway version. Kiana is the very first person who offered him a lending hand. It was she who gave a new meaning to this new life, the one who guided him just as he had escaped from the grasp of Nihility.
'That's how it is…'
Hysilens' question is to have this answer.
From the moment she saw Shi Tian and Kiana together, she felt that unbreakable bond—the very same feeling she possessed towards Shi Tian. Only, it was Shi Tian who guided her out of it.
He is the equivalent of Kiana in her life.
"My second wife is Seele. You might have seen her. Ocean-blue eyes, dark blue hair."
Hysilens recalled the image of that silhouette. She belonged to the twelve that dealt with the Black Sun.
"In terms of concern, she's fighting head-on with Kiana. She can get a bit too clingy at times, but that's after I pull off some dangerous tricks."
The time at the Vortex of Genesis was brief, but it was the most shocking event in Hysilens' life. The sight of his lifeless eyes were forever etched into her mind—be it an illusion or reality.
She could only imagine what someone would feel if their beloved always delved into dangerous situations.
"Her sister… or rather, Seele's counterpart is Veliona. She is my third wife, a complete opposite of Seele's. She is strong and fierce, decisive when the clock strikes. Although, she is more helpless in my self-sacrificial antics compared to the rest."
Veliona is the complete opposite of Seele, yet her caring is the same as hers. One chooses to do it directly while the other hides it under the facade of reprimands.
'She is similar to Aglaea…'
Hysilens thought, not realizing she also has this attribute herself.
"My fourth wife is Sirin… well, she's the Tuna's counterpart."
"Tuna…"
She looked at the lively and elegant Kiana, unable to understand where the pet name came from.
"Ahem. Her elegance collapses whenever we are at home. She's like a salted tuna, not moving from her bed all day long."
Hysilens could not understand much from it alone, hence she treated it more like how she liked to call him Ghost Fry. The significance between the two is the same.
"Sirin… She's hardheaded. Fierce, yes. She almost claimed my life. Of course, that's a thing of the past. I forgave her."
'A benevolent fry…'
She became dazed as she looked at Shi Tian. She could not help but notice more of his goodness.
At least when it comes to the people he cherishes, he wouldn't care even if he is at a loss. His nature is extremely rare even in other worlds… even in Amphoreus.
"My fifth wife… Sin Mal. You can call her Sin. She's just as pompous as our Imperator."
"...You got it right."
Sin Mal was extremely haughty, carrying the airs of a bonafide 'Young Master' from Shi Tian's mouth. When she introduced herself as one of his wives, her nose almost extended towards the heavens. It just so happened to irk Cerydra, as if they couldn't live under the same sky.
"The Imperator challenged her to a chess game… to which Miss Sin obliged."
Hearing this, Shi Tian became speechless.
'Since when did Sin touch the chess board?'
Despite her cultivator traits, she hasn't focused on cultural arts and focused on raising her cultivation and combat power. Fighting against Cerydra, a seasoned chess grandmaster with a thousand years behind her, is bound to make her suffer another setback.
'I am in for another treat…'
He could not help but let out a laugh.
"Finally, there is my sixth wife, Bronya. She couldn't express herself well, but her intentions bid well. Her clumsy yet caring gestures are charming in some way."
"..."
Hysilens stared directly at his golden pupils. She has a feeling…
He is pertaining to her too.
It all started at the 'naked encounter' during their first large-scale feast. What came next was Hysilens' occasional fiddling of Shi Tian's cheeks, treating him like an adorable mascot wherever they went.
Shi Tian let out a smile as he said:
"I don't blame you."
"..."
She shifted her gaze away from him. The sight made his heart skip a beat. The gap cuteness formed from a stern person acting embarrassed is enough to shake his Dao Heart.
It took a while before he got to what he was about to say.
"Just like how I saved them, they saved me. Life is merely a cycle of saving and being saved. The matter between us, it's like that too. And there's nothing wrong with it."
Letting go of his frivolity, a solemn light flashed in his eyes. Hysilens turned around to meet his gaze.
"I… want to be part of this cycle. Part of your life. I am greedy, but…"
"Mhm."
"..."
Staring at her calm blue eyes resembling a lake, Shi Tian felt a sense of incredulousness. It was very ironic… yet realistic.
They started as a pair of kindred souls ravaged by Nihility. They created meaning to each others' lives. Hysilens met Shi Tian and was saved from her despondency. Shi Tian met Hysilens when he lost his memory—becoming his genuine unfiltered self—and re-discovered there was meaning to a destructive force of nature as Nihility…
That it is capable of bringing people together.
Everything…
The world works just like this. A cycle of life and death, of hatred and longing, and now, the cycle of saving and being saved.
Seeing the two at the distance, Kiana involuntarily recalled the words spoken by her future projection.
'To save the cat…'