Firefly's Solution

Dewlight Pavilion.

A dead silence enveloped the Oak Family's council hall, so vast it seemed to swallow all sound. The high dome arched far above, pouring down a cold brilliance, imbued with a distant indifference.

In the interplay of light and shadow, the intricate, twisted carvings on the corridor pillars cast ghostly figures. In the air, the dry scent of old wood mixed with a strange, almost sickeningly sweet and rotten spice aroma, pressing down heavily on one's chest.

Aventurine was in a wretched state, sprawled on the cold, smooth marble floor. The biting chill of the floor tiles mercilessly pierced through his thin clothing, seeping along the texture of his skin, all the way to the depths of his bones. This scene reminded him of his days as a slave.

Back then, his name was still Kakavasha.

Back then, he was just like this, like a discarded piece of clothing, carelessly thrown on the ground, without a shred of dignity.

Aventurine's once brilliant, iridescent pupils were now dim, his breathing so faint it was almost imperceptible, his chest rising and falling with only the slightest movement.

The cruel "tuning" not long ago had clearly drained every ounce of his strength, as if his very soul had been extracted.

The sound of steady footsteps approached from a distance, finally stopping in front of him, casting a huge and oppressive shadow that completely enveloped him.

Sunday looked down, the lines of his handsome face cold and hard, devoid of any superfluous emotion.

A perfectly cut, dazzling topaz was carelessly tossed down by him. The gemstone clinked as it rolled to a stop beside Aventurine's pale cheek. Its cold, hard touch made him tremble slightly.

"Aventurine."

Sunday's voice sounded, as calm as a rippleless lake, yet it carried a high-and-mighty, scrutinizing tone, as if commenting on a worthless object.

"That meticulously orchestrated, supposedly seamless magic show of yours was, in the end, nothing but a magnificent futility."

His tone was steady, yet every word was like an ice pick, stabbing into Aventurine's eardrums.

"Having lost the Cornerstone that was your trump card, you are now nothing but a peacock stripped of all its dazzling feathers, pathetic and laughable."

"A dying struggle, and nothing more."

A muscle in Aventurine's cheek twitched uncontrollably. He struggled to pull the corners of his mouth into a smile, an extremely weak yet deeply self-mocking, bitter smile.

"Heh... heheh... It seems that bastard, Ratio..."

"In the end... still chose to stab me in the back. This time, I've been thoroughly defeated."

His voice was hoarse and dry, as if sanded down, the unwillingness within it almost overflowing. The plot's direction here was no different from the original storyline.

Dr. Ratio had accompanied Aventurine to the Oak Family's den and met with the family head, Sunday. What Aventurine hadn't expected was that Dr. Ratio had actually been bought by Sunday. He had been betrayed, his plan exposed.

Now, he was nothing but dry bones in a tomb.

"Your compromise was more decisive than I had anticipated."

Sunday nodded slightly, his deep eyes seeming to have already seen through everything, showing no surprise at this outcome.

"Now, there are some things for which I urgently need an answer."

"An answer... confessed from your own mouth."

He slowly raised his right hand, his slender fingertips swirling with a faint, holy light. The very air seemed to tremble with them.

His tone suddenly became solemn and majestic, carrying a certain ancient and strange rhythm, as if directly communicating with some unseen existence.

"Oh, Soul of Three Aspects, hear my prayer,"

"I ask you to use a searing brand to sear his tongue and palm,"

"So that he cannot weave a web of lies, nor make a false oath."

An invisible yet mountain-heavy force came crashing down, as if the entire space were collapsing inward.

Aventurine suddenly felt a searing pain from the deepest part of his soul, as if being licked by an invisible flame, every thought becoming scorching and twisted.

"You... what did you do to me?!"

He raised his head abruptly, gasping heavily, a flash of horror in his eyes.

"In the realm illuminated by the glory of The Harmony,"

"All sins that breed in darkness, all false pretenses, will have nowhere to hide."

Sunday's voice became like a melodious yet cold chant, each syllable carrying an undeniable power.

"I beseech It to send down Its sacred light that sees through all things,"

"And to act on Its will, to question you—the sinner, Aventurine."

"Next..."

His gaze suddenly became incredibly sharp, like two physical beams of light, about to dissect Aventurine's soul completely.

"You have exactly one hundred and thirteen seconds. Use this time to prove your innocence."

"Or rather, to win my... even the slightest shred of trust."

In the depths of Aventurine's eyes, a violent struggle flashed, like a cornered beast.

"What if... what if I refuse to answer?"

He gritted his teeth, his voice hoarse as he retorted.

"Then, you might as well try and see."

Sunday's tone was still indifferent, yet it contained an absolute, unchallengeable confidence.

"See if the omnipresent glory of The Harmony will be stingy with its 'blessing' because of your resistance."

As his voice fell, the invisible pressure seemed to grow heavier, squeezing every inch of Aventurine's bones, the searing pain in his soul becoming clearer.

Aventurine fell completely silent. Beneath him was the cold, hard marble floor, but his soul was being tormented in an invisible flame.

He pressed his chapped lips together tightly, his pale face showing no expression, but his mind was frantically weighing every possible consequence.

Time ticked by, every second as long as a century. A moment later, his tense body seemed to relax slightly, as if he had finally given up his futile resistance.

Sunday maintained his condescending posture, his eyes cold, patiently waiting for his submission. In the vast, empty hall, only the faint, almost inaudible breathing of the two men remained, along with the silent, suffocating standoff.

Finally, Sunday broke the dead silence, his voice low, with a hint of barely perceptible urgency.

"Now, tell me…"

"My sister… Robin, where did she go?"

Aventurine's body trembled almost imperceptibly. His eyes showed a momentary trance and emptiness, as if his soul had been forcibly pulled from reality by that strange power, his consciousness drifting in some unknown space.

That power seemed to be gently yet brutally guiding his thoughts, excavating his deeply hidden memories. A few seconds later, he slowly opened his chapped, peeling lips.

"Your sister…"

His voice became exceptionally hollow, flat, with a bizarre sense of compliance that did not belong to him at all.

"Was taken by that… that man from the Astral Express crew…"

"Abducted."

He paused slightly, as if trying to organize more precise, more vicious words. Then, an extremely twisted mockery, like a venomous snake, crept onto his pale cheeks.

"…"

His voice suddenly rose, filled with an indescribable malice and insult.

"She is no longer a virgin. Right now… she is nothing more than a… beside him…"

He deliberately drew out his tone, savoring the impact that was to come.

"Tail-wagging, begging for pity, an incomparably loyal and lowly…"

"Bitch!"

The last word, he spat out with exceptional clarity, each syllable like a poison-laced needle, stabbing fiercely into Sunday's heart.

With extreme, unconcealed insult and nauseating malice. The air seemed to completely solidify, to freeze, at this moment.

The perpetual calm on Sunday's face, like fragile glass, shattered with a roar! His eyes narrowed violently, his pupils contracting, the chill bursting from them as if it could freeze a person's soul to slag.

It was an almost devastating, undisguised killing intent!

BOOM—!!!

A deafening roar, like a thunderclap, instantly shook the entire vast and solemn council hall! The dome itself seemed to tremble!

Sunday abruptly raised his hand, his five fingers joined together, and wrapped in destructive power, he slammed it fiercely into the hard, thick marble long table beside him!

The indestructible tabletop was instantly covered with a web of terrifying cracks. In the next second, with a tooth-grinding cracking sound, it completely exploded!

Countless fragments of stone of all sizes, mixed with powder, wrapped in a terrifying gale, shot out wildly in all directions, emitting a sharp, piercing whistle!

Rage—like a volcano that had been suppressed for several Amber Eras, erupted within him! It overwhelmed all his reason and restraint!

The originally holy and peaceful aura around him instantly became violent, chaotic, and extremely dangerous, even faintly distorting the surrounding light! In the depths of his once sky-clear eyes, at this moment, it seemed to have deviated from harmony and order, leaving only a surging, all-consuming desire for destruction!

The perspective switched, like a drop of ink into clear water, instantly spreading out.

In the deeper level of the dreamscape, within the lavish, palace-like suite of The Reverie Hotel, the air was filled with an indescribable, subtle tension, like a taut string on the verge of snapping.

Stelle leaned lazily against the soft sofa, her fingertips unconsciously tapping the smooth armrest, her posture relaxed, yet a knowing light flickered in the depths of her eyes.

"So, no need to worry. That little girl who broke into Dreamflux Reef belongs to the famous Stellaron Hunters. You've probably heard of Elio's script, right?"

"That slave of destiny won't let her fall into a truly desperate situation so easily. That wouldn't fit the direction of the script…"

Acheron still stood quietly before the giant black hole, the massive tachi already sheathed. She gently caressed the hilt, her posture ramrod straight, her gaze directed towards the bizarre, ever-changing deep dreamscape outside the consciousness space.

"What do you mean…?"

Her voice was slightly ethereal.

Stelle's fingertips ambiguously slid across the firm arm of Daziel beside her, causing his body to stiffen slightly.

"About that, the Memokeeper from the Garden of Recollection outside might see it more clearly than you, a lost Emanator. With me here,"

Her tone shifted, carrying an undeniable confidence and a hint of secret pride,

"Even the tide of Nihility can forget about tainting even a fraction of Daziel's consciousness. As for that so-called pollution from the Sins of Desire, heh, it's all the same in my eyes."

Acheron slowly turned her face. The light in her eyes, which seemed to contain an endless void, flowed almost imperceptibly.

"So you're saying… I was worrying for nothing? My stopping Daziel from entering Dreamflux Reef before was, on the contrary… the wrong thing to do?"

Stelle let out a light laugh, like the chiming of silver bells, yet it carried a hint of undisguised teasing.

"Precisely. So, repent properly, you stupid woman."

Hearing this, Daziel's expression changed slightly. He almost subconsciously reached out and hastily covered Stelle's unrestrained mouth, his tone carrying a hint of helplessness and gentle reproach.

"Don't-don't talk nonsense! Acheron is just… her memory is a bit fuzzy, her sense of direction is temporarily weak, and she's temporarily lost most of her five senses! Hasn't she recovered a lot now? You're being too rude!"

Facing this terrifying existence who was top-tier even among the Emanators of Nihility, Daziel actually showed obvious protectiveness, as if afraid Stelle's words would offend her.

Stelle indifferently brushed Daziel's hand away, her tone mixed with a dissatisfaction like a child throwing a tantrum.

"Hah, she's just a woman who once helped you relieve your desires, and only with her mouth… and you're already so biased towards her? What about me?"

"I, this System, have been by your side from beginning to end, witnessed all your intimate moments with every woman, and am even an alternate self who has had the most direct skin-to-skin contact with you. Am I less important than her?"

Acheron raised her hand and somewhat clumsily scratched the back of her smooth neck, revealing a kind of simple-mindedness that was completely at odds with her powerful aura and stunning face.

"Uh, what Daziel said… seems to have a point. The longer I walk the path of Nihility, the more… I do seem to have become much duller. For this matter, I should indeed… apologize to Daziel."

Seeing this, Daziel quickly waved his hands, a hint of embarrassment on his face.

"It's fine, it's fine, no need for that."

Acheron's gaze shifted between Stelle and Daziel for a moment, then she asked:

"So, what are your plans for what to do next?"

A sly and playful arc curved on Stelle's lips, her eyes twinkling with the light of someone watching a good show.

"Isn't it obvious? Naturally, we'll let our partner of justice, our destined savior…"

She glanced pointedly at Daziel, "personally go to the dangerous Dreamflux Reef and stage a thrilling, moving drama of a hero saving the beauty!"

"Although the plot is a bit cliché, for a little girl like Firefly who's experiencing her first love, it's an absolutely foolproof killer move."

"Just imagine the scene: a young girl who has never been in love, her face flushed with a maiden's blush, on the verge of despair, about to be devoured by desire, when a handsome and powerful man, like a god descending from heaven, breaks through all obstacles and comes down from the sky!"

"Tsk tsk, what a cool and explosive scene! I guarantee she'll be devoted to our Daziel for the rest of her life, and marry no one else!"

However, a hint of unconcealable worry crossed Acheron's beautiful brow.

"But doing that… the risk is far too great. After all, the decadent music accumulated by The Harmony's Family over several Amber Eras is gathered there. Its corrosive power is no small matter…"

Stelle's gaze suddenly became meaningful, like a bottomless vortex.

"Of course, it will be fine. On this point, speaking of which, it's also thanks to our Daziel…"

Daziel pointed at his own nose, his face a picture of great confusion and bewilderment.

"Me? Thanks to me?"

The perspective was as if grabbed by a giant, invisible hand and pulled down sharply.

Instantly sinking into the deepest part of the dreamscape, that dim, chaotic, bizarre place of distorted light and shadow—Dreamflux Reef. Here, like the dregs abandoned behind the prosperous dream, it formed a decadent, dilapidated, yet fatally alluring town.

The air was filled with an indescribable scent, a bizarre mixture of rotten mustiness and the cloying sweetness of overindulgence.

Inhaling it made one's head spin, one's will sink. The light was as dim as an eternal dusk, the colors mottled and variegated, as if a drunken painter had knocked over his palette and smeared it wantonly, without any pattern.

A silent clamor echoed in the ears. The whispers of temptation, like venomous snakes, quietly bred in every dark corner, luring lost souls towards a deeper depravity.

Firefly disconnected from the armor of the knight "Sam." The heavy, cold, metallic silver-grey shell receded like a tide, dissipating into the air, revealing the slender, slightly thin figure underneath.

The brief but precious clarity of mind brought by activating the "Complete Combustion" state was, along with the disappearance of the mecha, rapidly dimming like a candle in the wind, gradually fading away.

Her body swayed, and she stumbled a step, quickly reaching out to support herself on a nearby crumbling, mottled wall. The wall was cold and rough to the touch, carrying a thick, damp, musty smell that stung her nose.

As a stellar weapon created to fight against the endless Swarm, Firefly's resistance to various abnormal states was far beyond that of an ordinary human. It was this innate, powerful resistance that allowed her to barely maintain the last shred of her teetering consciousness under the all-pervasive, mind-shattering decadent music of The Harmony, without completely sinking.

The "Complete Combustion" state, although not as monstrous as Daziel's ability to completely isolate all external interference as if in an absolute domain, had still granted her an extremely precious respite, allowing her to hold on until now. This setting also had a basis in the game Honkai: Star Rail.

Firefly's fourth Eidolon—"I Will See, the Fireflies' Fire"—its effect description is:

While in the Complete Combustion state, SAM's Effect RES increases by 50%.

Although this Eidolon was derided by the vast majority of players as the "most useless Eidolon," "a product of the developers' thoughtless design," criticized as worthless, and almost ignored by everyone. But at this moment, deep within the perilous, treacherous Dreamflux Reef, this seemingly useless setting was undoubtedly a timely relief, a great help to Firefly.

This was already enough. She gasped for breath with difficulty, feeling the dizziness and seductive whispers at the edge of her consciousness.

Next, she needed to borrow… needed to borrow Daziel's power.

Once the dead step into Dreamflux Reef, they will forever maintain the state of their moment of death…

Memories flooded back like a tide, washing over the banks of her consciousness. Firefly remembered that it wasn't a real death, but the end of some extreme state. Before the end, was the most thorough entanglement of soul and flesh with Daziel. The pleasure of endless sinking, the soul-tearing agony, like ice and fire, had branded an indelible mark on the core of her existence.

At this moment, she looked down at herself. Her shawl was disheveled, hanging messily on her shoulders, as if a storm had just passed.

Her collar was open, revealing her delicate neck and collarbone. Dots of ambiguous red marks, like plum blossoms blooming on snow, silently told of the recent madness.

Beneath her skin, there seemed to be a residual burning sensation, every inch flushed an unnatural red. Her lips were slightly swollen, and between her teeth, the unique and gentle scent of Daziel seemed to linger.

Even the five senses of her body, the lingering warmth and sense of fullness, were reminding her of how real that ultimate entanglement was.

Boom!

An indescribable heat suddenly rushed to her cheeks. The sense of shame, like the strongest liquor, instantly burned through her reason.

Her fingertips unconsciously curled, wanting to straighten her clothes, to cover up all this mess and shame. But, Elio's script, like a cold command carved into her soul, did not allow her to indulge in any personal emotions.

The script's prompt clearly appeared in her mind: after exiting the "Complete Combustion" state, the key to maintaining a stable consciousness is…

Firefly shut her eyes tightly, her long lashes trembling slightly, forcing herself to calm down. The cold command suppressed the churning tide of emotion.

She slightly parted her dry lips. In her mouth, the aftertaste mixed with Daziel's scent and her own saliva was so clear, with a hint of metallic sweetness, a hint of scorching heat.

This taste was proof of shame, and also… The final echo of the ultimate experience from not long ago.

Following the script's instructions, Firefly's throat moved slightly, without the slightest hesitation. She swallowed that liquid, which carried the strong imprint of another person, mixed with her own, every last drop.

The cool liquid slid down her throat, strangely suppressing the heat and shame in her heart. As if what she had swallowed was not something else, but the mission itself, the heavy reality that must be shouldered.

Her consciousness, indeed, was rapidly becoming clear and stable. Firefly slowly opened her eyes. The bewilderment and shyness in them had faded, leaving only the calmness and tenacity of a mission executor.

Daziel…

The name rolled in the bottom of her heart, bringing a hint of almost imperceptible softness. But now was not the time for reminiscence… She had more important things to do!

She took a step, her pace somewhat unsteady, yet filled with determination. Every step was like treading on cotton, yet also like walking on the tip of a knife.

Deep within the town, the light grew dimmer. The decadent music became more tangible, as if turning into viscous honey, threatening to drown a person in it.

Some wandering shadows noticed this "fresh" soul. Their empty eye sockets turned towards Firefly, issuing a silent invitation.

Firefly clenched her fists, her nails digging deeply into her palms. Daziel's fluid wasn't fresh; it had an expiration. She had to, before the effect ended, complete the plot that had long been planned in Elio's script…

___

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