Honkai Impact: Grandma Pine Sparrow is still chasing me!

Chapter 420 Eliminating All Possible Threats

"Well……"

Bronya Zaychek slowly opened her eyes.

"Oh? You're awake? Comrade Bu, the surgery was a success..."

The girl with spiral twin tails, who had just regained consciousness, heard a gray-haired man's voice and asked him a question.

"Surgery? Brother Qiong, what kind of surgery?"

"You are now a Valkyrie."

Bronya: (? ? ?)

Still half asleep, she turned over and looked at the gray-haired man who was also lying on the bed, legs crossed and a wicked smile on his face.

"Brother Qiong, Bronya's self-examination shows that Bronya has not undergone any surgery..."

"Bronya, are you alright?"

Her words stopped abruptly.

Seele's soft voice came from behind Qiong. Bronya looked in the direction of the voice and saw her silly little sister on another hospital bed, her big blue eyes looking at her timidly.

Bronya's pupils contracted slightly; Seele was worried and afraid of her.

Scared? Why? That's right! She remembered! Because the Trojan virus had gone out of control and was even attacking its own friends…

Teacher Himeko, Brother Sora, and Seele, were they all injured because of me?

Seeing Bronya's dazed expression, Qiong's mischievous smile faded a bit. He walked to the bedside and gently patted Bronya's head.

"Don't worry, everything's taken care of. By the way, have you gained weight recently? You felt a bit heavy when I carried you out..."

Seeing that Bronya did not react, Qiong paused and her tone became gentle.

"That's not your fault, Bronya."

"Brother Qiong, has Bronya's chip gone out of control?"

Bronya's voice was very soft, and Qiong could feel the slight trembling in her body—even with everyone's company, this girl had never completely let down her guard.

She has only ever completely let down her guard for Seele.

"It's just a virus program."

Qiong sat down on the chair by the bed and beckoned Xier to come over.

"Don't ask. If you do, it's probably something your mother Cocolia did back then. But now that it's been discovered, it's not a big problem."

Bronya's fingertips gripped the sheets tightly. Seele sat up from the other bed, her bare feet touching the floor, and quietly walked to Bronya's bedside. She was pulled along by Qiong and took her cold hand in hers.

“I’m sorry, Bronya…”

Bronya closed her eyes, and fragments flashed back in the depths of her consciousness—the moment she punched Himeko, the moment the cannon was pointed at Sora and Seele behind him, and the despair of being completely unable to control her body.

Now that I think about it, the "Silver Wolf" who had only seen the projection had also remotely controlled the Heavy Bunny. Could there really be some backdoor on the Bunny that she hadn't discovered?

"Bronya hurt you."

No.

Knowing that Bronya would feel guilty about this, Sora gave a firm and decisive answer to Bronya's statement.

"Comrade Bronya, who do you think you are? A mere 'B-rank' little brat, you think you can hurt two A-rank Valkyries and Seele, whom we're protecting? Himeko only suffered scratches and a few burns, Seele was just frightened—as for me, she pinned me to the bed and wouldn't let me leave..."

Even now, when she thinks about how a certain domineering captain "threw" her and Seele into the same hospital room as Bronya, Qiong still finds it a little funny.

Bronya opened her eyes, and fragments of her memory began to piece together: the cratered bridge, the malfunctioning alarms, and then...

Seele charged at her with the scythe that fell without hesitation.

Wait, is Seele red?

A flash of crimson light crossed her memory, and Bronya's breath hitched slightly. She looked at Seele before her—those clear, deep blue eyes were now brimming with worry as she gazed at her, her small hand tightly holding Seele's hand along with Qiong's…

Images of red and blue intertwined and overlapped in her mind—considering that Seele had been acting very differently from the Seele she remembered in the past few days, Bronya guessed a possibility.

Is it possible that what Seele is experiencing isn't "adolescence" as some online sources claim, but rather a medical condition—dissociative identity disorder?

After all, it's a miracle that they survived being in the quantum sea for so long without going insane.

She now feels unimportant and has disappeared, but the Seele in the photo she got from Qiong-gege doesn't really match her impression, so...

"Seele?"

"What's wrong, Bronya?"

Bronya's body stiffened. She instinctively looked at Qiong, but Qiong remained unmoved.

No, we can't be too hasty in asking. If she's not mistaken, that "Seele" is extremely violent and full of murderous aura. If we bring it up now, what if her "driven mad by the Sea of ​​Quanta" personality senses that she wants to treat Seele? Wouldn't everyone be in danger?

Bronya's gaze lingered on Seele's face for a moment before casually looking away. She relaxed her tense shoulders and even tried to force a smile by supporting her lips with her hand.

"It's nothing, Seele. Bronya is fine too. I'll ask the headmaster for a full check-up when we get back... Thank you and Brother Qiong."

"Yes, everything is fine now."

Qiong picked up the conversation and stretched.

"So Bronya, to celebrate the mission's completion and to make up for our frightened hearts, shouldn't you do something? Like, those treasured weapons in your game account..."

"Brother Qiong, taking advantage of someone in distress is immoral!"

Bronya interrupted him expressionlessly, but felt a sense of relief in her heart—yes, how could one not feel at ease with a partner like him?

Yes, he saved and protected Seele for me, so he fulfilled his duty as an older sister...

Wait a minute, then I'm useless, aren't I?

Bronya looked at Sora's lazy smile and Seele's dependent eyes, and a subtle sense of loss gently brushed against her heart.

No wonder I lost Xier to Brother Qiong; it's because I failed in my responsibilities as an older sister...

"Bronya, are you still feeling unwell?"

Bronya shook her head, banishing the self-blame and jealousy from her mind—no, not jealousy, why was she jealous of Qiong-gege's closeness with Seele? Anyway, she shook off all the emotions in her mind.

"Bronya is alright. Brother Qiong, Seele, I'm sorry to have worried you."

Bronya threw back the covers, trying to get up from the bed, but the two men held her down.

What are you doing here?

"Himeko-sensei specifically instructed that you are not allowed to come out before returning to St. Freya, Bronya-neechan."

Bronya: ...

She sat back down on the edge of the bed, but didn't lie down. Xi'er sat down next to her, leaning naturally on her shoulder. Qiong also pulled her chair closer and started playing a game by herself, forming a quiet little triangle among the three of them.

The ward fell silent, save for the faint clicking and sound effects from Qiong's end. Bronya leaned against the headboard, feeling Seele's warm breath on her shoulder, her mind in turmoil—not only was she in trouble, but that red Seele was like a thorn in her heart. If Seele had truly been forced into a completely different, insane personality by the Sea of ​​Quanta… no, she dared not think any further.

She wanted to do something to distract herself; she didn't want to play games right now. After scanning around, she spotted a slightly old Houmu comic book.

"The latest episode of 'Houmu's Great Adventure'?"

Bronya's eyes brightened slightly, but quickly returned to their usual calm. She reached for the comic book, but immediately thought of the Houmu image at the end of the letter, and then of the bespectacled man.

Bronya's breath hitched for a moment—oh right, how could she have forgotten about him?!

An absurd guess took shape in her mind.

"Brother Qiong, could you please call Himeko-sensei? Bronya has something very important to report."

"Now?"

"Now! This is related to Bronya's loss of control during this mission, and it also concerns the safety of St. Freya Academy! Please, hurry!"

Bronya's tone was extremely serious, but Qiong was completely baffled: "We've come this far, and now it's time for a break between battles! We should at least have a few months (it should have been over a year) of rest during this break! What threat could there be?"

"Okay, I'll go call her. Xi'er, you stay with her."

After Qiong left the ward, Seele held Bronya's hand with concern.

"Sister Bronya, what's wrong?"

Bronya didn't answer directly, but gently patted Seele's hand.

"Seele, you'll find out soon enough."

A few minutes later, Himeko and Sora pushed open the door and entered. Himeko looked to be in good health, with only a few small, scabbed wounds on her body. She was full of energy and didn't seem to have suffered any serious injuries.

Bronya, I heard you have something important to say?

Bronya held up the book "The Great Adventure of Houmu" and pointed her finger at the Houmu icon.

"Himeko-sensei, Bronya wants to report someone!"

"Ugh?"

The air in the ward seemed to freeze for a moment, and Qiong suddenly felt that something was wrong...

"Report? Report whom?"

"Our history teacher, 'Agent Destiny' Walter Yang! Bronya is absolutely certain he's the leader of Anti-Entropy! A spy infiltrating St. Freya Academy!"

Sora, Seele, and Himeko: ...

A deathly silence.

Qiong covered his head, suddenly questioning Lao Yang's ability to keep secrets.

Didn't I tell you to keep it a secret, and not even to tell Mei? What happened? Kiana found out, and Bronya found out too?

Sora's expression became somewhat complicated. He looked at Bronya, then at Himeko.

Is it possible that Himeko also found out from Theresa?

“Bronya, do you know what you’re saying? Accusing a teacher from St. Freya of being the leader of the Anti-Entropy Alliance is no joke.”

“Bronya is not joking.”

Bronya looked up and stared directly at Himeko.

"Professor Welt's understanding of Honkai energy weapons far surpasses that of the average history teacher. He has mentioned mecha design concepts in class many times, explaining them in far too much detail! And he spends less time preparing for the lesson than he does reading a physics textbook!"

"Uncle Yang is erudite and talented, that makes perfect sense, doesn't it?"

"In addition, Professor Welt had previously used power similar to that of the First Herrscher, and even admitted to Bronya that he was the leader of Anti-Entropy."

Qiong: ...

If it can't be guaranteed, make a phone call to let them know.

After Bronya finished speaking, the ward was completely silent, and Himeko's expression was even more astonished than Sora's.

"Bronya, this is outrageous! Qiong, Seele, what do you think?"

"I think Uncle Yang is a good person who can be absolutely trusted!"

"Yes, yes, Uncle Yang is very good to us..."

"This is exactly what a spy is doing in disguise!"

Bronya interrupted Seele, her tone resolute.

“Bronya understands how you feel. But if we allow the leader of Anti-Entropy, a terrifying Herrscher, to lurk within the academy, the next time it might not just be a simple matter of Bronya losing control!”

Himeko remained silent for a long time. Her gaze swept over Bronya's face, and finally she closed her eyes and let out a long sigh.

“Bronya, to be honest, I don’t believe it at all… Welt almost lost half his life for the school before, are you really going to accuse Professor Welt of being an Anti-Entropy spy?”

"He is the leader of the Anti-Entropy Alliance and a spy."

“Alright, I’ll talk to Theresa. But until there’s solid evidence, this is just between the four of us. Sora, I know you and Professor Welt are close, but you can’t…”

"understand."

Qiong nodded immediately—who said we had to tell Lao Yang directly? We still have Xiao Xing, don't we?

"As for you, Bronya."

Himeko walked up to her, squatted down, and looked her straight in the eye.

"Accusing a highly respected teacher of being a traitor involves immense pressure, and you might even be taken away for questioning by Valkyries from headquarters, but you're still a student... Do you understand?"

Bronya gave Himeko a military salute.

"Himeko (Major), Bronya has already hurt everyone once, and this time we will not allow anyone to be threatened again. Whatever the outcome, Bronya will take responsibility!"

Himeko patted her on the shoulder and stood up.

"I understand. You should get some rest."

Silence returned to the room. Bronya leaned back against the headboard, Seele nestled against her worriedly, her small hand clutching the hem of her dress tightly. Qiong sat in a chair, fiddling with her phone, her fingers flying across the screen, her face revealing little emotion.

"Sister Bronya, do you really think Uncle Yang is a bad person? He and Brother Qiong rescued Seele from there together..."

Bronya didn't answer immediately; she patted Seele's head.

“Seele, some things can't be judged by appearances alone. Bronya is afraid you'll get hurt, and this is for everyone's safety.”

Still uneasy, Seele nodded as if she understood but not quite.

On the other side, Qiong had already pulled up his contacts. He glanced at the two people on the bed and quietly stood up.

"I'm a little hungry. I'm going to find something to eat. Do you want me to bring some with me?"

……

The huge corridor was empty. Qiong walked quickly to the fire escape at the end of the corridor. After confirming that no one was up or down, he leaned against the wall and dialed a number.

"Hey? Brother? I heard you're on a mission, right?"

"small star!"

Qiong lowered his voice and spoke very quickly.

"Is Uncle Yang with you? Give him your phone!"

There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone.

"Uh... Uncle Yang isn't here with me. He got a phone call this morning and then left, saying he was going to North America... What's wrong, brother?"

Qiong's brows furrowed.

Back to North America? Oh right, the Moon Throne's early departure was because Anti-Entropy was attacked...

"Okay, Xiaoxing, listen to me, I only asked you what you had for lunch today, I didn't ask you anything else, understand?"

"What...what happened?"

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Putting aside the entropy, these days, even the two siblings in Teyvat have new clothes (Zhenyu's big hand has reached into Teyvat from New Ellie?). When will our little raccoon... and that peacock of Yao Guang, it gives me a Vita vibe.

Next, let me see if I can pull out the shameless Herrscher of the Void first...