"From what you've said, my previous methods have indeed worked. Let's keep going then. As you know, a Valkyrie's Stigmata comes in a set of three; I only repaired one of them last time."
As he watched Raiden Mei disappear from sight, Hua Yi quickly brushed aside his stray thoughts and got down to business.
In truth, Hua Yi had approached Murata Himeko tonight specifically for this reason. She wanted to keep her deteriorating physical condition a secret, and since his method involved touching the Stigmata on a Valkyrie's back to achieve a healing effect, it was a bit intimate. It was naturally better to keep things private.
As for the excuse Himeko had used with Meithat exposing such an ability would draw unnecessary and unwanted attentionHua Yi wasn't actually that concerned.
Even a Herrscher like Raiden Mei had been accepted by Theresa, with all related information carefully hidden away. Hua Yi's ability was essentially beneficial to Valkyries.
Even if Otto Apocalypse found out, he wouldn't have a sufficient reason to deploy Schicksal's S-Rank Valkyries. And as long as the S-Ranks didn't move, mere A-Rank Valkyries wouldn't be enough to cause Hua Yi any real trouble.
He had been living at St. Freya Academy for a few days now. During this time, Hua Yi had various active or passive contacts with Theresa, Himeko, Mei, Kiana, Bronya, and Fu Huasix Valkyries in total.
While his relationship with Fu Hua was still at the level of casual acquaintances, he was on excellent terms with the others. The Friendship Points provided by the six of them allowed Hua Yi to pull from the Friendship Supply four or more times every single day.
Not only had Hua Yi saved up the 20,000 Coins needed to finish repairing Himeko's remaining two Artificial Stigmata, but he had also managed to strengthen his own Stigmata. Despite the extra expenses, his strength was increasing even faster than before.
"So, how exactly are you repairing my Artificial Stigmata? You said before it was something as important as life itself. What is it specifically? If the cost is too high... I already feel much better. You don't need to keep sacrificing yourself."
Himeko had indeed felt the changes in her body recently. Her physical form felt lighter, as if a heavy burden had been lifted, and the reduction in pain made her feel like she was living in a dream. However, she wasn't about to let Hua Yi suffer just to prolong her own fantasy.
Hua Yi now realized that the casual remark he'd made back then was a bit reckless.
Still, Coins were certainly not easy to come by. Even in the future, once he obtained enough Stigmata and gained a greater tolerance and control over Honkai Energy, he likely wouldn't be able to repair Artificial Stigmata without pause.
Much like when he absorbed the Honkai Energy from the Nagazora defense force members, Hua Yi had to endure the corresponding pain and rely on his body's natural self-healing to recover slowly.
"The price I pay recovers over time. It's not exactly an easy process, but it's nothing too extreme either. Since I've come to find you, it means I've already made all the necessary preparations. Come on, let's head to your private training room. Change into that custom Battlesuit, and I'll help you fix your Artificial Stigmata."
Himeko stared at Hua Yi for a long time before finally speaking.
"Before that, come with me to the Medical Department. I need to verify your physical condition."
Even though Himeko was showing a lack of trust, the concern bundled with that distrust made Hua Yi's heart warm.
"Fine."
Hua Yi followed her to the Medical Department as requested.
In the dead of night, without any emergency like a large-scale Honkai eruption, most of the medical staff had returned to their dorms to rest. Only a few workers remained on duty.
"Major Himeko, are you here to check your training results again? Effort brings rewards, but the gains from short-term exercise can't be measured even by precision instruments, you know?"
A staff member passing by didn't look surprised to see Himeko at all; it seemed she had visited the Medical Department many times before.
"I know."
Himeko didn't linger to chat. She gave a slight nod in response and walked past. Sensing Hua Yi's inquisitive gaze, Himeko glanced around to ensure no one was listening before whispering an explanation.
"Because of my poor condition, I used to come here secretly a few times hoping to find medication to dull the pain. I always used 'testing body data for training results' as an excuse... Beyond that, I was using the deteriorating test data to estimate how much of my life was left."
Himeko hadn't intended to say that last part, but after a moment's hesitation, she decided to be honest. It wasn't that she thought her lifespan issue was solved; she simply wanted to lay her heart bare for whatever development might come next with Hua Yi.
Because her time was running out, she had to hurry. Himeko didn't want to die without ever having been in love. For that reason, she didn't mind Hua Yi's relationships with the other girls. She even felt she was being a bit greedyafter all, she was older than him, and as a rare male, Hua Yi certainly wasn't lacking for female attention.
Kiana and Mei both clearly had feelings for him; even a fool could see that.
Even the stoic Bronya treated Hua Yi with a certain specialness.
While Himeko's thoughts were racing, Hua Yi recalled the changes in Honkai Energy after he'd used Coins to fix her first Artificial Stigmata.
"Before you give me a check-up, why don't you test your own stats again, Himeko? The repairs I did shouldn't just be reducing your pain."
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