Today was a funeral, not just for Phamas—but for all Fire Moth members who had perished in the 3rd Eruption.
Mikael was among them. In fact, as a "human" who had made significant contributions, his tombstone stood in the row directly behind Phamas's.
Yes, the fact that Mikael was the 1st Herrscher was no longer a secret among the higher-ups, but they hadn't announced it publicly. Their attitude towards the matter was... cautious.
Perhaps they feared the consequences of revealing that a Herrscher could possess human emotions, could act like an ordinary person when not using their powers.
It might cause panic.
It might also lead to confusion—if Mikael, a Herrscher, could fight the Honkai, should all Herrschers be treated as enemies? If a Herrscher could regain their humanity, could their comrades, turned into zombies by Honkai corruption, also be saved?
So, they remained silent.
Dark clouds cast a pall over the cemetery.
The crowd before the tombstones was sparse, at least two-thirds of the spaces empty. The soldiers, at their captains' urging, filled the gaps, stepping over the spaces where their fallen comrades should have stood.
Elysia, Squad 5's sole remaining squad leader, stood beside Himeko. Today, she seemed to have toned down her usual vibrancy, silent and subdued. Anyone seeing her would have wondered:
But considering what she'd lost, it wasn't surprising—indeed, even the most optimistic person couldn't maintain a smile after losing someone so close...
Elysia found it ironic... everyone assumed their relationship was... what it was, but she had been the one avoiding her true feelings... at least, she had a second chance...
But Elysia's sadness wasn't entirely feigned. She mourned not just for Mikael, but for Phamas, and for all the soldiers who had died.
"Captain, there's another victory celebration tonight, isn't there?"
If Elysia hadn't reminded her, Himeko would have forgotten.
Every "victory celebration" was both her moment of glory and her greatest torment. She had to mask her inner turmoil, becoming a beacon of hope for others... she was tired of it.
But it had to be done. Who else could rally these demoralized troops, reminding them of their victory?
"Elysia, I won't be able to keep an eye on you tonight. Stay in my room, don't..."
"One minute of silence!"
As if deliberately interrupting her, Vashak, standing before Phamas's tombstone, his voice raspy and amplified by a microphone, gave the order.
Elysia and Himeko, standing in the front row, quickly bowed their heads.
Himeko glanced at Elysia, silently urging her to be careful.
She wasn't sure about Lucien, the new Chief Strategist. If he was only interested in the Herrscher's powers, that wouldn't be so bad, but she couldn't be sure he wouldn't target her, Elysia, and Sakura.
Fortunately, they were currently hailed as heroes for ending the 3rd Eruption. Any sane person wouldn't dare touch them.
But there were always those with... unconventional ideas.
Himeko's quarters were spacious. She would have Elysia and Sakura stay with her. There was safety in numbers.
"We now invite Fire Moth's new Chief Strategist, General Lucien von Liechtenstein, to deliver the eulogy!"
"Soldiers, just a week ago, humanity faced the largest Honkai eruption in history. We lost at least two hundred settlements with populations exceeding one hundred thousand, including two cities with over twenty million inhabitants..."
"To combat this eruption, Fire Moth paid an unprecedented price: Squads 1 and 2 suffered over fifty percent casualties, Squad 5 suffered eighty percent casualties, including a squad leader, and Squad 3, deployed in Nagazora City, was completely wiped out... not a single survivor..."
Elysia didn't want to listen.
It was just empty rhetoric. It would have been better to observe another minute of silence.
Fortunately, Lucien's speech wasn't long, a simple call to overcome their grief and continue fighting.
"Ready... aim... fire!"
Led by Kevin, the honor guard fired twelve shots into the air.
Elysia glanced at the familiar white-haired young man. She'd heard he'd broken her record in the simulation training room, his scores second only to Mikael's.
Normally, she would have teased him mercilessly, to see what this seemingly ordinary guy from Ruruye had that she didn't...
No... control yourself, Elysia! You're supposed to be a grieving girlfriend. Wipe that smirk off your face!
The soldiers placed small urns into the niches beneath the tombstones—not all of them contained ashes. Many soldiers' remains were commingled, unidentifiable. Most of these were symbolic memorials.
But Elysia knew what was inside Mikael's urn.
Fire Moth, naturally, wouldn't let go of such a valuable research specimen. When Himeko had brought her the urn, asking her to place something of Mikael's inside, she'd searched for a long time, finally finding, with Immer's help, Mikael's favorite striped boxers—the ones he'd worn on his head in that infamous picture Immer had taken...
No! She couldn't think about that! She would start laughing!
The ceremony finally ended. A light rain began to fall. Himeko held a large black umbrella, sheltering Elysia and Sakura as they stood before Mikael's tombstone.
Elysia gently touched the black-and-white photo on the tombstone, then turned away, covering her mouth, her shoulders shaking.
Himeko patted her shoulder, saying nothing.
Only Sakura felt something was amiss... although it looked like crying... based on her experience, those muscle movements were more like... laughter?
Impossible! Elysia wouldn't laugh, would she? Unless she'd truly lost her mind?
Elysia finally stopped "crying," glancing around. Mei, Kevin, Hua, and Carole, the four new Fire Moth recruits, stood together, watching from a distance. Hua held a bouquet of flowers, seemingly hesitant to approach.
Further away, the petite Mobius stood silently in the rain.
Suddenly, Immer ran towards them, speaking to Mobius, who then quickly left.
Before Elysia could process this, Immer stood before her, gasping for air. "Captain Ato... sent me to inform you... Lucien, as Chief Strategist... has ordered Dr. Mobius and her research team... to begin analysis of the Herrscher cores!"