I am a former Flame Chasers

That night, the van rolled into a desolate little town on the edge of the northern Mu Continent, sparsely populated and long abandoned by its youth who had moved to the big cities. Due to its remote location, even basic vendors like those selling flour avoided the place. Only a cluster of dilapidated houses remained, and there was hardly a soul to be seen.

The shops along the road were all tightly shut. Dry winds kicked up sand, and tattered billboards rustled in the wind, creating an indescribable feeling of desolation.

Ryan looked around and felt that the emptiness here wasn't the result of the third Honkai; this place had always been deserted. But after the collapse, even the last bit of potential here had vanished. The supply vehicles never returned, and the people who remained would soon starve.

"Outside the town, there's nothing but wasteland, and several isolated indigenous tribes live there," Sakura said, poking her head out from between the seats. She was familiar with the Mu Continent and could be considered a sort of guide. "These tribes are isolated, living outside of civilization. Local governments don't want to deal with them."

Indigenous tribes?

Ryan wasn't surprised. The idea of indigenous tribes seemed counterintuitive in such an advanced technological world. There were aspects of backwardness too. Some scholars had studied this, and their conclusions were intriguing.

"These people choose isolation, live ignorantly, and reject everything external. Because their land is so poor, they've confined themselves to their own circle."

"The reason is the collapse. Over the years, there must've been wise people who realized the collapse was tied to civilization's growth, so they chose to disconnect. Too bad they can't drag all of humanity down with them."

It seemed clever, but it was actually foolish. Even if everyone gave up, they still couldn't defeat the Honkai. If someone brought down an Emperor-level Honkai beast, they'd all be slaughtered.

"Stupid," Ryan muttered. "The collapse targets all of humanity. What difference would a few of them 'playing badly' make?" He didn't want to waste time on a small group of idiots, so he turned to Vil-V. "You hid the data in a place like this? You're really a genius."

"I didn't hide anything here." Vil-V blinked innocently.

Ah?

Even Ryan, with all his composure, almost couldn't hold back. "Then why did you bring us here?"

"Actually, it's hidden here... but it's not exactly hidden here..."

"Vil-V, get out of the car!"

"Don't rush. Let me explain." Vil-V cleared her throat, placed her right hand on her chest, and spoke in a more rhythmic voice. "I hacked into a communication satellite and uploaded the data. According to my calculations, the satellite will change orbit and pass over this town every seven days. We can just download the data during that time. It's completely secret and efficient."

Ryan's mouth slowly opened, his expression turning slightly dazed. He glanced at Sakura, and she wore a similar look.

Vil-V grinned at their shock and said smugly, "Hehe, how do you rate this operation?"

"Zero points!" Ryan immediately smacked the magician on the head, grabbed her collar, and swung her back and forth. "It was supposed to be a simple task! Why complicate it? You could've just dug a hole and hidden it. Why go through all these convoluted operations?"

"Dig a hole? That's too simple."

"Do you think this is a performance? I just want to finish quickly and get back to work. Are you wasting my time?"

"Life is a performance! Stop shaking me, I'm getting dizzy!"

Ryan took a deep breath. He really wanted to open up Vil-V's head to see what was inside. This girl was even weirder than Mobius. Mobius, though strange, was serious about her work, but Vil-V was always coming up with wild ideas.

Finally, he let go of her. At this point, even if he hung her up and beat her up, it would be pointless. Maybe she'd just end up asking why he did it.

"When's the next time the satellite passes by?"

"Two nights from now."

"Then why rush here? I could use that time to shake off the pursuers."

"You told me to hurry and get the data." Vil-V spread her hands innocently. "And I just couldn't resist such a beautiful operation!"

Gasp!

Ryan tried to calm himself. There was no point in arguing with a schizophrenic. He needed to focus.

The original plan was definitely useless. The Pure Blood and the Cocoon would catch up soon. They'd have plenty of people secretly watching them. Normally, exposing the Herrscher's power wasn't advisable, but their political enemies wouldn't be so foolish as to ignore them. Theoretically, there shouldn't be any major issues.

Ryan was deep in thought while Sakura quietly observed. She was beginning to realize that Ryan wasn't so terrifying after all. Anyone truly cold-blooded wouldn't let the "magician" off so easily.

As for Vil-V... her limited vocabulary could only be used to describe her as "weird."

"What do you want to do now?"

"What else can we do? If we run off into the wilderness, we'll just have to come back. By then, they'll definitely suspect this place and possibly connect it to a communication satellite." Ryan rubbed his head, clearly annoyed. "Thanks to someone, a simple matter became complicated."

To be honest, snatching the data and destroying the satellite wasn't even in the same league of difficulty.

"But staying here is risky."

Ryan glanced at Vil-V, who was whistling happily, then turned back to Sakura. "There's nothing we can do. Not to mention the time we've already wasted—if we don't have the data, you're dead."

Sakura fell silent. If she couldn't overthrow her employer, she'd be silenced. Once they had time, the first person they'd go after was Rin.

"How about I lure them away for two days?"

"Are you not afraid of the risks?"

"I don't want charity. And if I die, Rin can still live."

Her serious answer made Ryan look at her sideways, but he didn't dislike her attitude.

"Don't worry. Everything is still under my control. I told you I don't want you to die, and you won't." Ryan patted Vil-V's shoulder and asked her to drive the car into an abandoned garage.

The three of them got out. A few old men, who were barely hanging on to life, watched them. Ryan was handsome, and both Vil-V and Sakura were stunningly beautiful. The men couldn't help but feel greedy.

Ryan waved his hand lazily, and with a subtle mental influence, the men froze for a moment before stumbling away, heading home to pack their things and flee.

The novelty of the scenery had worn off quickly, making everything feel dull after a few days. Ryan climbed onto the roof, tossed a tattered umbrella aside, and began surveying the area.

It was too empty around them, which wasn't a good thing. It made it easy for someone to observe from a distance. But to the south, the wasteland was blocked by mountains. Their rocky peaks were bare, with a deep rift valley cutting through the center. No signs of civilization were visible, and the energy from the collapse was palpable.

"The wasteland is devastated, but the Fire Moth doesn't care?"

"Probably not worth protecting. We don't have enough manpower in the Fire Moth right now," Sakura said as she walked up. A flicker of disdain appeared in her eyes. "Besides, that place is filled with natives who don't speak a human language. They're barbaric and dangerous. Why bother with something so thankless?"

"Have you been there?"

"Well, the Cocoon sent a team to infiltrate and investigate the area. They said something had fallen from the sky, but all they found were dead natives."

Something fell from the sky? That sounded familiar.

Ryan frowned instinctively. In ancient civilizations, anything that fell from the sky was never ordinary. Before he could think further, he saw some blurry shadows moving across the canyon.

"The Honkai Beast doesn't seem interested in this small town. Maybe it thinks this place is already hell, and killing these people is a mercy?"

Sakura fell silent. She was an anti-human special attack specialist and had dealt with Honkai beasts many times. But as a killer, she had plenty of patience.

She just watched Ryan, deep in thought, while Vil-V hummed a little tune as she rummaged through the old houses, looking for scrap metal. She found the combination of these two people amusing.

'How did these two completely different individuals end up together? And Vil-V... doesn't she feel any pressure from this man?'

"And him too… he trusts me so much? He lets me make the plans. Isn't he afraid I'll set a trap to kill him?"

Sakura had been confused by many things these past couple of days. Just then, she saw Ryan suddenly slap the table with a loud crash, causing it to collapse.

"I've come up with a new plan."

"Wait, are you sure you want to tell me?"

"Don't employ someone you doubt, and don't doubt someone you employ. I've made the interests clear, and I trust you're smart enough to understand," Ryan said, not bothering with pleasantries. "I'll have Vil-V stay hidden in this town, and you and I will head to the desert to divert the pursuers. The Honkai energy there is stronger than usual, which will interfere with the 'Eye.'"

"That sounds like an ideal place for a fight. We can also use the Honkai beasts as cover. Once the data is downloaded and exposed, someone will come to deal with the pursuers."

Sakura nodded and then pointed downstairs, where Vil-V was still fiddling with something. "There's just one problem now. Is she... reliable?"

This is so embarrassing. You dragged me into this.

Ryan didn't want to watch, so he could only mutter irritably, "Don't worry. Vil-V is very reliable in critical moments, especially when it comes to hiding and escaping."

"I agree. You'll survive the Cocoon's pursuit."

Ryan glanced at the girl and realized she'd probably get along well with Hua. She was methodical in her work, but her serious and cold demeanor seemed forced, unlike Hua's natural stiffness.

"Don't be nervous. It should be safe tonight. Rest up. We'll be busy tomorrow."

He didn't care about Sakura's surprised expression or Vil-V tinkering with machines. He just glanced at the Grand Canyon in the distance, his curiosity piqued.

What could be over there?