Little did Lunelle know that while he slept and recovered, See-chan, the simulator spirit, had stealthily completed some special preparations on his body.
These arrangements were like "seeds" ready to sprout at any moment, waiting to take root and grow within him.
It seemed that once they did, they could directly guide Lunelle—the simulator's host—to transform his body into its true form, one perfectly matched with his soul and consciousness.
See-chan had chosen last night to set this up precisely because she had calculated that the moment to make those "special seeds" sprout was about to appear before Lunelle!
But even if Lunelle had known about these underhanded tricks, he wouldn't have had the energy to worry about it right now.
After all, today was the day Cocolia would artificially trigger the Third Honkai Eruption in Nagazora City.
After waking up, Lunelle quickly rolled out of bed and inspected the rented apartment he was staying in for any unusual changes.
Knowing the general flow of the story, he was well aware that the Third Herrscher would be the Herrscher of Thunder.
But whether it was because the Third Herrscher's emergence had been orchestrated by Cocolia—that infamously crafty schemer—or simply to help the main storyline of the game, "Honkai Impact 3rd," progress smoothly, the Herrscher of Thunder had somehow ended up in a weird, half-awakened state.
Still, even incompletely awakened, as one of the most formidable Herrscher authorities tied to conquest, crippling Nagazora's power grid was child's play.
So even without leaving the apartment, as a general rule, if the city's electricity was still working normally, it meant the Herrscher of Thunder hadn't been born yet.
After a careful check, Lunelle found nothing particularly unusual in his rented room—except for the growing pile of instant noodle containers and trash he'd accumulated over the past few days.
Lunelle then hurried to boil and stockpile a large pot of hot water, at least to avoid the awkward situation of having instant noodles but no hot water to cook them.
After all, who knew when the power might suddenly go out?
Though he didn't plan to stay in Nagazora long, holing up in the apartment and surviving on instant noodles for as long as possible was his best bet.
It was just a shame his original phone had been completely destroyed, and the simulator hadn't provided a replacement.
Otherwise, his first thought would have been to charge his phone and power bank to the brim.
"See-chan? Can the simulator calculate the exact time the Honkai will actually break out?"
In the tense waiting period before facing the Honkai, Lunelle quickly summoned See-chan to check how precise the simulator's predictions could be.
[Host, the simulator's calculation module relies on information provided by you and extracts observable big data from this world to make estimations.]
[Normally, the more specific your information, the more accurate the predicted timeframe—though the highest precision is only down to the day.]
[As the predicted moment approaches, the margin of error increases, since the future isn't set in stone. Especially when a unique variable like you, the host, is introduced into the storyline.]
"Oh, is that so?"
Hearing that he, as the host, might even be able to alter the story's events in reality, Lunelle couldn't help but feel a little excited.
After all, given the choice, what time-traveler wouldn't want a power fantasy start—snapping away tragedies with a finger, crushing all opposition with a wave of the hand?
"Ah, but dreaming about that isn't realistic for me. Let's focus on surviving today first."
Still, Lunelle didn't dare take See-chan's promises at face value. Breaking rules or rewriting fate required a strong foundation—and hard fists.
And Lunelle was well aware his own fists were, at best, delicate and soft.
Looking at his snow-white, tender little fists, he could imagine himself throwing a punch that wouldn't hurt anyone. In fact, it might just... have the opposite effect.
Glancing at the cheap, still-working wall clock and figuring it was about time, Lunelle checked with See-chan again about the cooldown for the next simulation.
"See-chan? The cooldown for the next simulation should be over by now, right?"
[The cooldown for the next simulation is complete. Would you like to start the simulation now?]
"Um... let's save this simulation chance for now. But don't tell me Cocolia's quantum mechs are still lurking just outside Nagazora?"
After last night's strange nightmare—the details of which he couldn't recall—Lunelle felt an inexplicable sense of danger.
Especially when See-chan habitually asked if he wanted to start a simulation, that sense of crisis suddenly peaked.
It felt like a warning: if he tried to run another simulation now and failed, the cost this time would be far beyond anything he could imagine.
So, contrary to his usual habit of continuously running simulations to grow stronger, Lunelle resisted the urge to start one right away.
See-chan didn't react much to Lunelle's unusual hesitation.
After all, there was such a thing as an "overt scheme" in this world!
Lunelle still had the freedom to choose only because the real, irresistible force hadn't arrived yet.
And that force was about to make its appearance...
[Based on the information you've provided, the primary objective of Anti-Entropy's Cocolia in stationing troops is to ensure the recovery of the Herrscher of Thunder's vessel, Raiden Mei.]
[Therefore, as long as Raiden Mei remains within Nagazora, Cocolia's mech units are unlikely to withdraw from the area.]
"Tch, that Cocolia... she's really good at camping, isn't she?"
Learning that Cocolia was still lurking around Nagazora's outskirts, Lunelle couldn't help but curse her silently as a sneaky ambusher.
But then he remembered Cocolia's obsession with capturing a Herrscher for research: it was all to rescue her beloved Seele from the Sea of Quanta.
And if someone who looked so much like her precious Seele suddenly appeared before Cocolia now...
Cocolia would probably lose it on the spot!!!
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.