Honkai, why do you only throw me into high-level battles?

Things were a bit unexpected.

Lin Wei had anticipated hidden traps and mechanisms beyond the door, like infrared sensors or lasers, ready to surprise unwelcome guests. But there were none. It seemed perfectly ordinary.

The area beyond the door continued World Serpent's signature "burrowing" style—a winding staircase descending into darkness. Unlike the dimly lit passage outside, however, this one was brightly illuminated. A single door separated two completely different worlds.

Well, it makes sense. Lin Wei thought. This isn't a sci-fi movie. There wouldn't be those flashy, impractical "death corridors" that look cool but are ultimately inefficient. Those were just impractical gimmicks.

"What are you looking for?"

Anna noticed Lin Wei lingering at the doorway, his eyes scanning the surroundings as if searching for something. She couldn't help but ask, inwardly surprised. This seemingly reckless guy is actually quite cautious.

"Miss Anna, do me a favor. Cause a little bit of damage here, something like the lock mechanism, so it can't function properly, so it can't seal the passage. That's all."

Anna's earlier action of instinctively clinging to him while crying had made Lin Wei realize their relationship was in a dangerous, delicate state. This sudden realization had made him uneasy, so he subconsciously maintained some distance in his address.

Lin Wei pointed to the edges of the open double doors, resembling intertwined fingers. Worried about Anna's possibly impulsive nature, he added,

"Don't cause too much damage. The situation here is unclear. Caution is key."

High-end traps often didn't require complex mechanisms.

Thinking from the enemy's perspective, if he were setting a trap, what would he do? Since this was an underground passage, simply sealing the door and pumping in toxic gas would be more effective than anything else.

If even toxic gas wasn't enough, then throw in a Emperor-class Honkai beast, like a Benares or a Chiyou…

As long as the escape route was sealed, dealing with the intruders would be a piece of cake.

Therefore, the first priority was to secure their own escape route.

Lin Wei's formal address made Anna slightly unhappy. She looked at him with a hint of grievance in her eyes, but couldn't bring herself to complain. She bit her lip and turned away silently, leaving Lin Wei puzzled.

A few seconds later, the sound of metal striking metal echoed, reverberating through the narrow space. Lin Wei seemed to understand what Anna was doing. This girl is actually quite clever.

A moment later, Anna reappeared, struggling to carry a thick metal pillar, wider than her waist. She huffed and puffed as she walked over, then, after carefully aiming, tossed it with a clang at the doorway. The heavy pillar completely blocked the already narrow passage, preventing the double doors from closing.

Lin Wei took a closer look. It looked familiar—a square metal object, as thick as a person, half a person tall. Isn't that a Titan's finger?

That thing almost punched my head earlier…

Unburdened, Anna nimbly ducked under the partially blocked doorway.

"To disable the mechanism, we just need to block the door ourselves. See? Like this!"

She beamed, proudly showing off her ingenuity to Lin Wei.

"...Thank you for your hard work, Anna."

Schariacs are quite strong, aren't they?

Lin Wei looked at the girl, her face covered in sweat, her chest heaving from exertion. He glanced at the blue pendant shimmering on her slender neck and chuckled helplessly.

What else could he say?

She had gone to such lengths because of his "instruction." If he continued to maintain his distance and didn't respond, it would truly hurt her feelings.

Really, how did things get to this point?

Lin Wei looked at the girl, now blushing and looking down shyly because of his comforting gesture. He felt things were getting increasingly complicated, a headache forming, and even a faint pang of guilt.

After all, Anna had been wholeheartedly devoted to him, incredibly honest. He, on the other hand, had been holding back, still concealing a lot. This didn't seem right.

If it were just a normal partnership, it wouldn't matter. A chance encounter, parting ways after the incident, no further involvement—that had been the initial understanding. They only had the most basic trust and understanding. In such a situation, concealing information was a normal self-preservation strategy.

But at some point, things had subtly changed. Anna had begun to trust him completely, but what about him?

A heart for a heart? Don't be ridiculous!

The more he said at this point, the more mistakes he would make!

Lin Wei sighed silently. Things had reached a point where it was difficult to back down. He could only take it one step at a time.

Really, how did things become like this?

Lin Wei mentally flipped off the heavens again. Are you messing with me?

"Let's go. This way, even if there's danger, we can retreat quickly. And it'll be less of an obstacle for your companions."

Lin Wei's reminder brought Anna back from her inexplicable joy. She nodded seriously, drawing her dual pistols—Water's Edge Type-II, standard equipment for Valkyrie Captains—and said sternly,

"Stay behind me. Be careful. If there's danger, leave immediately."

Lin Wei nodded helplessly. You don't have to do this, really.

"Don't worry, I will."

What is this feeling of inexplicably owing someone a favor?

(ノへ￣,)

Seeing Lin Wei obediently nod, Anna felt satisfied. She carefully shielded him, walking ahead vigilantly, cautiously descending the spiral staircase. She scanned her surroundings for any subtle movements, while also monitoring the life detector readings.

Anna had never imagined that the life detector, originally used to search for survivors in Honkai disasters, would one day be used for enemy detection and警戒. It felt absurd.

After descending a few dozen steps, they were stopped by another metal door. This time, however, it only had a simple mechanical lock, easily opened by hand.

Anna scanned the area, confirming it was safe, and gave Lin Wei a look. He understood and stepped back slightly. Anna took a deep breath, turned the lock, and gently pushed. The heavy door opened.

There were no alarms, no sudden attacks, no chaos. Just silence. Nothing happened.

But this didn't make Anna feel any safer. The earlier fierce battle outside had undoubtedly exposed her presence. Therefore, this abnormal silence felt incredibly eerie and ominous, filled with undisguised malice.

If their escape route hadn't been blocked, she would never have agreed to let Lin Wei accompany her on this risky venture.

Lin Wei also frowned. He couldn't sense any ports nearby for Pandora to infiltrate, not even a single camera.

"What is Anti-Entropy planning here?"

"What is World Serpent up to?"

Each with their own thoughts, they exchanged glances. Anna lunged forward, her blade flashing. Frost spread, freezing and disabling the door's mechanism, preventing it from closing. Then, they continued deeper inside.

...

"How's the evacuation and relocation going? Are the transport vessels in place?"

On the other side of the world, Jackal idly played with her mask, her voice filled with displeasure as she spoke into her communicator. After receiving the information, she hung up, her face darkening as she looked at the setting sun outside the window.

As one of World Serpent's most prideful executives, she hated being inconvenienced by others.

"Beep beep beep." Her communicator rang again.

Jackal glanced at it casually. Coral Island had detected Schicksal's second communication signal. Looking at the coordinates…

"Heh heh heh, impressive, truly impressive. They actually managed to get that far. Heh, although there are no important secrets there, are Serpent's assets something you can casually trespass on? Such audacity!"

Jackal's anger turned into a chilling laughter. She pressed the communicator again.

"Tell your people, there's no need to prepare the transport vessels. They're just a few experimental subjects. I can afford to lose them. Besides, I have a little gift for that impolite little girl~"

Jackal hung up. Outside the window, dusk had fallen. The glass clearly reflected her cold, golden eyes.

"Such a pity. I have no interest in those so-called 'Valkyries.' Otherwise, capturing them as specimens wouldn't be a bad idea, would it?"