Honkai: Fire Moth Herrschers

"Slurp… Boss! Another bowl!" Kevin drained his bowl, letting out a satisfied sigh.

He'd invited his squadmates for dinner, but his recent arrival and outstanding performance in the simulation training room had created a distance between them. In the end, only Hua and Carole had accepted his invitation, and even then, it was probably only because of their shared connection with Mikael and Elysia.

And even though he'd said "dinner," they'd ended up at a noodle stall…

Well, at least two of them were happy.

Hua finished her noodles and broth, wanting to shout for another bowl like Kevin…

But she was too embarrassed…

Even though Kevin and Mei were paying, and a bowl of noodles wasn't expensive… she still felt awkward. One bowl was enough. She could check the cafeteria later for leftover steamed buns…

But what was even more awkward was the silence at the table.

It was as if four strangers had coincidentally met at this noodle stall in New Moth Town, exchanged greetings, and were now eating in silence.

Kevin, noticing the awkwardness, forced himself to speak, raising his voice. "Wow! Look at New Moth Town! It's been what, two days? And they've already rebuilt the entire central district!"

As soon as he finished, a voice shouted from the stall, "Table seven, one more bowl of noodles! Come and get it!"

"Duty calls, duty calls…" Kevin chuckled, rushing to get the noodles…

But the interruption had broken his train of thought.

He slurped down half a bowl, then frowned.

"Boss! Did you forget the salt in this one?"

Kevin marched back to the stall, holding his bowl.

"Huh? Impossible! The salt's over there. Add some yourself."

Kevin added a spoonful of salt and several spoonfuls of chili oil, returned to his seat, and took another sip…

Now it had flavor. It was bitter…

So bitter it made him cough, tears welling in his eyes.

He grabbed a soda, gulping down half the bottle to wash away the bitterness.

He looked at the others:

Mei sat with her arms crossed, muttering to herself, adjusting her glasses, lost in thought.

Carole, usually the most energetic, rested her chin on her hand, listlessly picking at her noodles.

And Hua, always quiet, stared at her empty bowl in silence.

"Uh… can we… talk or something…? This silence is awkward…"

Kevin scratched his head, trying to start a conversation. "Hey! Hua, Carole, I heard Mikael saved you two in Shanghai… Ow! Mei, why did you step on my foot?!"

"…"

"Sigh…" Carole put down her chopsticks, cupping her face in her hands. "Sigh…"

Kevin, wincing as he rubbed his foot, asked, "Why are you sighing?"

"Why else…? Big Brother Mikael was so strong… why… why is he gone?"

"Let's go."

Hua stood up abruptly.

Suddenly the center of attention, she, surprisingly, didn't feel embarrassed. She pointed at the clock on the wall.

"It's getting late. We should head back… training resumes tomorrow…"

The mention of training made Kevin shudder. He was physically strong, but training…

No one actually enjoyed training, did they?

He felt… with his physical abilities, those exercises were pointless. He'd rather spend the time with Mei.

Wait, even if he could skip training, Mei didn't seem to have much time for him these days… even he, her boyfriend, didn't know what she was researching.

They walked through the streets of New Moth Town in silence.

Piles of rubble lined the streets, only a few scattered streetlights illuminating their path.

The noodle stall had been similar, a bare, unfinished building, without even a coat of paint, the tables and chairs simple metal sheets…

A constant reminder of the recent Honkai eruption.

Even though the Honkai beasts had been eliminated, and the city center had been quickly rebuilt, the scars remained.

Just like the rest of the world.

Except for a few areas like Arc City, eastern China and the Japanese archipelago were mostly in ruins. The United Government wasn't even planning to rebuild, the reason simple—there weren't enough people left…

As they walked, the group naturally separated, Carole and Hua lagging behind, Mei and Kevin walking ahead.

"Hey! Hua! I heard from my parents. They're moving to Moth Town. Come visit us sometime!"

"…"

"Hua, why are you so quiet today? By the way, your fath…"

Carole covered her mouth, realizing her mistake.

"Oh… ah!"

Hua suddenly gasped. "I… I haven't been able to contact him…"

"Haven't been able to contact him" could mean many things. It could mean he was… gone. Or it could simply mean communication lines were down, records were disorganized…

But what did Hua mean? Carole wasn't sure.

If it was the former, Hua seemed too calm. And if it was the latter, she seemed too distressed.

"Hua…"

Carole was about to speak when Mei and Kevin stopped, Kevin stepping forward, looking warily towards a dark alley on their right.

Footsteps echoed from the alley. Kevin's caution was warranted. Disasters often led to increased crime rates. And it might not even be humans, but stray zombies.

This street had no streetlights. Hua squinted, but she couldn't see clearly into the darkness.

Kevin took a few steps back, and the others followed—except for Hua, who remained rooted to the spot.

When Carole's gasp snapped her out of her daze, she found herself alone at the alley entrance, facing whatever was about to emerge.

Kevin tried to pull her back, but it was too late.

Hua saw four figures, each cloaked in a heavy, hooded cape.

As they emerged from the alley, bathed in the pale moonlight, their figures were outlined in silver.

Three shorter figures, almost childlike, hurried past Hua, their heads bowed.

The last figure, a man about Kevin's height, his hood obscuring his upper face, paused before her.

Hua's heart pounded as a wave of familiarity washed over her.

The figure, sensing her gaze, tilted his head slightly, and Hua saw a face she knew all too well.

Thump!

Thump!

Thump!

Her heart raced, but she didn't move, watching as the figure hesitated for a moment, then turned and walked away.

"Phew… Glad nothing happened."

"Yeah, they looked scary!"

Kevin and Carole's voices seemed to come from a great distance.

Like across an ocean, or across the boundary between two worlds—Hua thought.

She realized the others were looking at her.

"Let's go, Hua. They weren't hostile."

"Oh… okay."

Kevin and Mei continued walking, towards the moon.

Carole skipped along, stepping on Kevin's shadow. Hua's mind raced, replaying that brief glimpse:

Who was that?

Was it really him?

No, it couldn't be.

He was dead.

He couldn't be here.

But was he really dead?

Should she follow them and ask?

Just ask?

No, she couldn't act on her own…

Mei suddenly started talking to Kevin about philosophy.

"Kevin, have you heard of the law of entropy?"

"Uh… yeah, I think we covered it in physics class."

"Hmm…" Mei hummed noncommittally.

"I'm not just talking about entropy in thermodynamics, but a philosophical concept. Entropy represents the degree of disorder in a closed system. The higher the entropy, the greater the disorder. And the law of entropy states that in a closed system, entropy always increases."

"Uh… like my dorm room?"

"Oh! That was surprisingly insightful. But ultimately, the same applies to Earth, to humanity. Even without the Honkai, due to the limitations of the speed of light, humans can't escape the solar system or access resources from other stars. Eventually, we're all doomed—especially as individuals. So, Kevin, can you answer this… what is the meaning of human existence? What are we living for?"

"Uh… Mei, can we talk about something else?"

But Mei ignored his plea, continuing, "There's no inherent meaning to life. Even if you live a 'meaningful' life, you still end up as dust. Even if you make significant contributions—societal contributions, humanity will eventually perish, rendering those contributions meaningless. Even human civilization itself, spanning tens of thousands of years, is just a fleeting moment compared to the universe's 13.8 billion years."

"Uh…"

"But, Kevin… would you stop living just because of these depressing facts?"

"Probably not?"

"Exactly. Because the meaning of human existence is existence itself—civilization itself is a form of negative entropy. What we do, generation after generation, is fight against entropy, trying to bring order to this chaotic world. This desperate struggle, like Sisyphus pushing his boulder… isn't that the very meaning of our existence? And isn't that something only humans can do?"

"Uh… Mei, calm down. What are you trying to say?"

"Oh! Sorry, what I'm trying to say is—since our existence itself is the meaning we seek, then why torment ourselves? Do what you want to do, ask what you want to ask. Since the end is inevitable, let's live our lives as we please. That way, when we reach the end, we'll have fewer regrets, right?"

"Mei… I don't understand…"

"…"

Kevin understood the individual words, but not the entire message. But the underlying sense of helplessness and encouragement resonated with him.

He knew what he had to do. He took Mei's hand, and she didn't resist, even squeezing his hand gently.

But then, Carole screamed:

"Oh no! Hua's gone!"

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End of year of Anti-Entropy part 2 Volume

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