Looking at Elysia, Chang Yuan's eyes were filled with helplessness.
Although he had known that following Elysia would eventually make him a target, he never expected it to happen so soon—just one day after joining Fire Moth.
"Hehe~?, Yuan, I believe in your strength."
Patting Chang Yuan's shoulder, Elysia encouraged him with a smile.
While Chang Yuan might seem weak compared to her, he was still far stronger than most people here.
He could easily take on ten opponents at once, so for now, no one could challenge his position as deputy captain.
"Alright, fine. If anyone has a problem with me, they can come and test me. I'll show them whether I deserve this position or not."
Reluctantly, Chang Yuan had no choice but to make this declaration.
Unsurprisingly, the members of the First Squad secretly vowed to challenge Chang Yuan at the first opportunity.
"Let's go check out our dorm. But I remember that boys and girls are separated. Yuan, don't lose sleep just because I'm not there~?."
"..."
Rolling his eyes at Elysia's teasing, Chang Yuan followed her.
What a joke. How could he possibly lose sleep just because Elysia wasn't around?
That was absolutely impossible.
Nighttime...
"..."
Staring at the ceiling in the six-person dormitory that was now occupied only by him, Chang Yuan's eyes were red.
Darn it, he really couldn't sleep.
Was it because he had always shared a room with Elysia before, and now that he was suddenly without his sleeping buddy, he couldn't adjust?
"Sigh, give it a few days. I'll get used to it soon."
Chang Yuan sighed helplessly, then got out of bed to continue practicing his Inch Punch technique.
Now that he had the Honkai resistance of an A-rank Valkyrie, he had to push his physical abilities to the limit. Otherwise, he'd be wasting the anti-Honkai serum.
What he didn't know was that Elysia was also having trouble sleeping. However, her situation was slightly better since she at least had someone in her room—a certain red-haired woman.
"Himeko, I can't sleep. Do you know any bedtime stories?"
Rolling over, Elysia looked at the woman reading a book on the opposite bed.
"No, I only read science books. No stories here."
Himeko shook her head in response.
"Hmph, I was teasing Yuan earlier about whether he'd lose sleep without me, but now it turns out I'm the one who can't sleep."
Elysia felt like crying but had no tears.
She could already imagine how Chang Yuan would tease her if he saw her dark circles the next day.
"Yuan? Elysia, is that person your boyfriend?"
Hearing such an intimate nickname and the underlying meaning in Elysia's words, Himeko's gossip-loving heart was ignited.
"No! Yuan is my family, the most important family to me."
Elysia quickly denied it, though she couldn't explain why she felt a little shy.
Although Himeko had no real romantic experience, she had read enough to see through Elysia's words.
She gave Elysia a knowing look and smiled. "Oh, just family, huh? But it's clear you two are very close."
"Of course! Not only is Yuan the most important person to me, but I'm also the most important person to him. We've been traveling together since we were little.
We've been traveling together for over ten years now. Those were the happiest times of our lives."
As she reminisced, Elysia didn't notice the slight smile on her lips.
But Himeko saw it all.
Tsk, tsk, tsk. This is far from just family. Smiling just from recalling memories together? That's clearly love.
However, Himeko didn't point it out. Since Elysia had already denied it, it wouldn't be appropriate for her, an outsider, to interfere.
"You've been traveling together since you were kids? So you're childhood sweethearts? I'm so jealous. I wish I had someone like that when I was young."
"Hehe~?, it's never too late. Himeko, you're my good friend now too."
"Elysia, I suddenly feel like your 'good friend' title is a bit cheap."
"Is it? Hmm~?, so do you want to be my cheap good friend?"
Elysia didn't seem to mind at all.
Himeko couldn't help but laugh at Elysia's response.
But deep down, she felt a warmth in her heart.
There was something about Elysia that made people want to get close to her.
"Sure, then we're cheap good friends now. Let's get along well, my cheap Elysia."
"You too, my cheap Himeko."
Pfft!
Both of them burst into laughter at their serious yet silly exchange. Fortunately, the six-person dorm only had the two of them.
Since Fire Moth hadn't expanded yet, both captains and regular members were assigned to six-person dormitories.
Although Fire Moth was established by the highest authorities of various continents, the Honkai wasn't yet widely known globally.
As a result, their operations were highly secretive, and they couldn't expand recklessly.
Unknowingly, as Elysia and Himeko chatted, they both began to feel sleepy.
So they stopped chatting and went to sleep.
Meanwhile, Chang Yuan was still training.
The next day, at Fire Moth's training grounds...
"Oh my, Yuan, it seems you really couldn't sleep last night. Hmm~?, you really can't sleep without me, can you?"
Seeing Chang Yuan's slightly dark under-eye circles, Elysia teased him softly.
Since she had fallen asleep after chatting with Himeko the previous night, she didn't have any dark circles or bloodshot eyes.
So now, Elysia could openly tease Chang Yuan.
"..."
Hearing Elysia's teasing, Chang Yuan had no retort. After all, it was the truth.
But at least he had made some progress. He could feel that his strength had improved, albeit slightly.
He estimated that with another month of training, he could reach the threshold of a B-rank Valkyrie. In three months, he might even reach the level of an A-rank Valkyrie.
By then, he would be able to hold his own against all Honkai beasts except Herrschers. He would no longer be a burden to Elysia.
He would finally have the strength to stand by her side.
Of course, this was just the foundation. His goal was either to become strong enough to surpass the Final Herrscher or to find another way to ensure Elysia's survival.