North America didn't have much in the way of promising seedlings. It was too far from the main storyline, and as the base of operations for Anti-Entropy, an organization that played with mechs, this place was mostly used to stash various sidelined characters who weren't convenient to have on stage.
Like a certain future Siegfried. And like Welt Yang, who was currently recuperating here.
Shiraha pulled his thoughts back to the present. He leaned against the window. The UC campus was lively at night though, really, college campuses always seemed lively at night. Clusters of students drifted by in the distance in twos and threes.
"Did Shiraha ever go to university before?"
Elysia wasn't at the window. She was sprawled on the bed in some bizarre, abstract posture, but judging by her expression, at least she was comfortable.
"I did. But I don't remember it very well."
Shiraha's memories of university and high school alike were faint. Even the nights he'd skipped evening study sessions to hit the internet café hadn't left much of an impression.
Elysia let out a small gasp. "You actually went to university!"
Shiraha: ?
Is that really so surprising?
A note of genuine surprise crept into Elysia's voice. "I always thought everyone in the MANTIS was like Sakura, shouldering the family burden from a very young age."
Well then. Seems I underestimated the wider world. Which means the number of people with less education than me just shrank by quite a bit.
Shiraha hopped down from the windowsill and drew the curtains. "Let's sleep, nee-chan. If nothing unexpected happens, tomorrow I'll be doing ability tests."
He sat on the edge of the bed and pulled off his shoes and socks. "I just hope the two doctors won't be too disappointed."
After all, he knew the truth himself. His burst power really wasn't that high.
"They won't be. They're good people."
Elysia offered her reassurance softly.
Shiraha turned around and, in a somewhat childish gesture, pressed his index and middle fingers together. Biu!
Elysia's cheek dimpled inward slightly.
"From easily blowing apart skulls to barely flipping a book page. When people have expectations of you, that's a pretty big drop."
Let me think... What excuse would fit the Honkai context best for this situation?
He was still mulling it over when a pair of soft, slender arms reached from behind and effortlessly scooped him into an embrace.
"Time for bed. Little kids who sleep early grow up tall, you know."
Elysia adjusted herself into a more comfortable position. She planned to hug him as much as possible before he grew up.
Holding a child felt amazing!
Shiraha went still for a moment, his voice complicated. "Nee-chan, you..." He gave up.
He'd stopped trying to analyze the logic behind Elysia's behavior long ago. Shiraha always found a way to convince himself.
Compared to going out searching for Kevin and Su, who couldn't be found anyway, and Fu Hua, who was wandering the world, location unknown... maybe teasing a kid really does give Nee-chan the most psychological satisfaction.
Elysia, misreading his thoughts, spoke up softly, rather pleased with her own cleverness. "I don't know either, you know. Maybe I really am just a ghost, a fierce spirit. Who can say?"
She still thought Shiraha was brooding over the nature of her existence.
"After all, don't they always say the dead can't meddle in the affairs of the living? But Shiraha's different."
Maybe.
Who knows.
Elysia knew a great many things. But precisely because she knew so much, she understood just how many unknown realms still lay beyond her grasp.
Shiraha shifted his body, nestling into Elysia's arms. "It's fine, Nee-chan. After all, I was Manticore. And as everyone knows, the Manticores are famous for producing illiterates."
"Illiterates don't worry about these things."
Elysia's current state wasn't scientific in the slightest. It wasn't even Honkai-logical. It felt more like some risqué ability straight out of an ecchi manga.
Shiraha had no idea when he'd finally fallen asleep. He only vaguely remembered that Elysia hadn't grabbed the other set of bedding tonight. She'd felt very cold. Leaning against her had been a little uncomfortable.
When his biological clock woke him the next morning, the room was still dim. Shiraha mumbled some syllables even he couldn't make out, then groggily pulled back the curtains. Outside, the long night was just yielding to dawn, a pale sliver of light lined the horizon.
He pushed open the window, stretched out his hand, and tirelessly went biu biu biu!
Psychokinesis needed practice, no question. After all, in the logic of a typical web novel, a transmigrator like him should have spiritual power far beyond the norm. Plus... it really was fun.
Elysia covered her ears and buried herself back under the covers.
UC Campus — 10:00 AM
"Psychokinesis, at its core, is spiritual energy. Through the fusion of imaginary energy and the physical body, it manifests as a distortion of reality."
Tesla stood with her hands on her hips, speaking with absolute conviction.
Truth be told, whether it was psychokinesis or anything in the mental domain, in the eyes of a veteran chuunibyou like Tesla, it all fell under the grand skill tree of reality distortion.
"Don't hold back, Shiraha-kun! Give it everything you've got and fire at the machine!"
Tesla pointed at a nearby simulation robot. Its internal algorithm was simple, just a basic program to record the force output before being destroyed.
Einstein stood to the side. Even Welt, who had no classes today, was there, watching with anticipation.
Bang!
Shiraha spoke softly. The heavy robot in the distance swiftly logged the data, but it didn't so much as wobble. Tesla didn't even glance at the tablet. She continued reassuring him. "It's fine, Shiraha-kun. No need to hold back."
Bang!
Another shot! Heavier than before. Beside them, Mei's eyes went wide, but without any visual effects in reality, she found it utterly unimpressive, she didn't even understand what had just happened.
Tesla saw the robot still hadn't been shoved backward or sustained any damage. She thought the kid was still too shy to go all out.
"Shiraha—"
Einstein looked up, her voice calm. "Shiraha-kun, could you ask your Elysia-nee to help as well?"
The tablet was updating the robot's recorded data in real time. The numbers were somewhat underwhelming. But if you set aside his previous performance, what he'd just shown was already promising enough to build a future on.
Shiraha nodded obediently. Right in front of the others, he spoke with total earnestness. "Please! Elysia-nee!"
Elysia gently leaned forward, resting her cheek on Shiraha's shoulder, and placed her hand over his.
She didn't actually need to be this elaborate about it, but she loved striking a pose!
Her breath was warm. "Shiraha... does showing off in front of others really help you that much?"
There were people here. Answering wasn't exactly convenient. Shiraha just gave a small nod, the motion subtle, like someone sharing a whispered secret.
Elysia didn't press further. The playfulness in her starry eyes slowly receded. "Then your Elysia-nee will personally lay the foundation for your bright future."
Our minds are one!
Bang!
The exact same syllable as before. But this time, the machine answered. The robot Tesla had dug out of storage, the one once used to measure Welt's ability thresholds, burst into a sky full of shrapnel in an instant.
Welt's gaze turned grave. The Authority he'd held ready to contain the scene slowly dissipated. Elysia blinked. The Herrscher of Reason can use other people's Authorities?
She scratched her hair. The Previous Era had no records of that. The Void Archives hadn't been weaponized back when she was around, she honestly didn't know... Oh, wait. That must have been a mimicked Star of Eden.
Tesla stood stunned for a long beat. Then—
"SO COOL! Shiraha-kun!"
Anti-Entropy has a worthy successor!
Welt looked toward Einstein. Even she had lost her composure for a moment. She still couldn't understand... This wasn't scientific! It wasn't even Honkai-logical!
"Mophead! Stunned speechless, huh?"
Whether Einstein was speechless or not was unclear. But one thing was certain, little Mei, who'd been drowsy and half-asleep on the sidelines just moments before, still hadn't managed to close her mouth.
Um... Dr. Tesla? That thing you said before about helping me get my own fierce ghost friend... is there still a chance that could actually happen?