In Honkai with Tom Cat

As the Herrscher of Thunder made her grand entrance, the entire rooftop instantly became imposing, reminiscent of the opening CGI of a high-budget AAA game.

Li Huan couldn't help but quietly whisper to Kiana, "I gotta say, she looks pretty tough."

But...

"Huh? What are you saying?"

Due to the strong wind, Kiana couldn't hear Li Huan at all and had to shout back.

With no other choice, Li Huan raised his voice, "I said! She looks pretty tough!"

"Yeah! She looks way tougher than before!"

"What do we do? Stick to the usual plan?"

"No choice! That's all we can do!"

And so, the two of them continued shouting their plan, looking like complete fools.

"Are you two ants done with your clown act?" The Herrscher of Thunder, standing nearby, extended her hand toward them. "If you're finished... then die already!"

A purple lightning bolt shot out from her hand, hurtling toward Li Huan and Kiana.

"No choice... you try to block it!"

Without hesitation, Kiana grabbed Li Huan and pushed him directly into the path of the lightning.

"What the hell…?" Li Huan barely got the curse out before the lightning struck him.

*BOOM!!!*

The lightning struck Li Huan, causing an explosion.

"What are you doing? Sacrificing your comrade?" The Herrscher of Thunder lowered her hand, her expression full of contempt as she looked at Kiana. "I didn't expect you to be so heartless."

But Kiana remained calm and confident. "Don't be too happy just yet, Mei-senpai."

"What?" The Herrscher of Thunder's face showed surprise.

As the dust cleared, Li Huan's figure gradually emerged in front of them. His upper body jacket had been blown to shreds by the lightning, with some charred fragments still hanging on... but he wasn't hurt.

Despite being unharmed, he rubbed his arm in pain and turned to shout at Kiana, "Hey! Were you trying to kill me?"

"Relax, you're fine, aren't you?"

"Fine? It still hurts like hell!"

As the two continued arguing, the Herrscher of Thunder raised her hand again, unleashing an even stronger lightning bolt in Li Huan's direction.

"Watch out, here it comes again!"

With Kiana's warning, Li Huan quickly crossed his arms in front of him, taking the hit from the lightning once more.

*BOOM!*

A louder thunderclap echoed as a larger cloud of dust was stirred up.

"Hey, are you okay?" Kiana was a bit worried about the explosion's force this time. But as the dust settled, Li Huan was still standing firmly.

This time, his entire upper body was bare, his hair was spiked up from the electricity, and smoke was rising from his arms, but he remained unscathed.

"How is this even possible…" The Herrscher of Thunder lowered her hand, her expression turning serious. "You took my serious lightning head-on... Human, what exactly are you?"

"Just an ordinary janitor who started today... though I doubt you'll believe me."

Li Huan introduced himself calmly, lowering his hands.

"An ordinary janitor? Where does a janitor come from who can withstand Honkai energy without being corrupted and block my attacks without a scratch?"

The Herrscher of Thunder's expression shifted from arrogance and disdain to one of seriousness.

"Someone like you... You're a threat to the gods. I must eliminate you here and now."

*BANG!*

A gunshot rang out, a bullet grazing the Herrscher of Thunder's cheek.

"Hey, Mei-senpai, don't forget about me!" Kiana, holding dual pistols, stepped beside Li Huan and aimed at her.

The Herrscher of Thunder's face twisted with frustration. "Damn it, you keep showing up in front of me. Fine, let's settle this once and for all."

"Of course! This time, you're not getting away!" Kiana raised her guns, standing by Li Huan's side. "Since you can block her attacks, just like we discussed…"

"I'll wear her down, and you deal the damage, right?"

Maybe taking two lightning bolts without injury made Li Huan a bit overconfident.

Since the opponent couldn't hurt him, maybe he could just charge in and win?

Li Huan pulled out a baseball bat and charged forward.

"Tch! You think just because you blocked my attack, you can hurt me? Don't underestimate me, ant!"

Seeing Li Huan rushing towards her at high speed, the Herrscher of Thunder felt a surge of anger.

Black and purple lightning gathered at her fingertips, forming into a whip that she swung fiercely at Li Huan.

As the whip lashed towards him, Li Huan didn't even flinch, only increasing his speed.

"What?" The Herrscher of Thunder was shocked to see that Li Huan's speed had suddenly increased significantly!

The whip missed him completely, hitting the ground with a lonely thud.

Meanwhile, Li Huan had already raised his baseball bat, swinging it towards the Herrscher of Thunder's head.

*ZZZZZZZ—*

But just as the bat was about to make contact, it suddenly stopped, hitting a faint purple-black barrier that blocked the attack.

Seeing this, Li Huan couldn't help but mutter, "Oh, come on, an invincible shield?"

"Did you really think you could touch me, ant?" The Herrscher of Thunder's angry voice accompanied a powerful shockwave from the barrier, blowing Li Huan away.

He rolled several times on the ground before finally coming to a stop.

But during that brief moment, Kiana leaped into the air, firing a barrage of bullets at the Herrscher of Thunder.

Watching the bullets, the Herrscher of Thunder sneered, "It's useless; this kind of attack can't even touch me!"

The same shield appeared again, blocking all the bullets.

Seeing this, Kiana clicked her tongue in frustration. "Tch, she blocked them all? I've never seen her use this move before…"

"You don't seem as tough as that man…" The Herrscher of Thunder casually reached towards the bullets, her fingers extending. "Dying by your own bullets would be quite the humiliation."

She flicked her fingers, sending all the bullets back towards Kiana at an even faster speed.

Kiana had just landed and couldn't dodge the oncoming bullets in time, feeling completely helpless.

In that critical moment...

Just before Kiana was hit, Li Huan jumped in front of her, taking all the bullets without flinching.

Seeing Li Huan, Kiana breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks, you really saved me…"

As the bullets fell to the ground, Li Huan winced in pain. "That hurt like hell…"

The reflected bullets were much stronger than before, making it quite painful for him to block them.

"This is bad… she's way stronger than before." Kiana broke into a cold sweat. "She's gotten this strong in such a short time? Is this what it means to be a Herrscher?"

"Yeah…" Li Huan said, looking at the Herrscher of Thunder with a constipated expression. "This is a bit tricky. It seems like I can't wear her down after all."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"From your previous description, the bullets could deal damage, and there wasn't any mention of a shield, right?"

Li Huan sighed, "Based on your description, I thought that if I could just outlast her in terms of defense and speed, I could wear her down. But now that she has a shield, I can't even break through it."

"Huh? You're not joking?"

"No kidding, I'm just at the average level of strength for a young person. It's already difficult enough for me to fight a zombie, so how can I possibly take on someone like him with his own protective shield?"

Li Huan spread his hands helplessly. "Besides, my physical fitness is also just average. If this drags on, I'll be the first to collapse."

"Hmph, did I miscalculate?" Kiana was a little annoyed. "I didn't expect her to become so strong in such a short period of time…"

"Who could have known? It stands to reason that the consciousness of Mei-senpai, which you're probably hoping for, has been completely consumed by the Honkai, right?"

"Let's not talk about that for now."

Kiana solemnly held her gun in front of Li Huan. "Since the plan failed, you should run quickly and leave this fight to me."

Hearing Kiana's words, Li Huan showed a dissatisfied expression. "Hey, are you trying to play the hero?"

"It was supposed to be my fight alone, but to make it easier, I brought you in... I'm really sorry for causing this outcome."

Kiana apologized earnestly. "As a warrior of the Kaslana family, I can't continue to involve you in such danger."

"So, are you trying to be a hero?"

Li Huan didn't appreciate her words and stood up with a disdainful expression. "Even if you want to take on the current Herrscher of Thunder, it's highly likely you'll have a hard time. Do you still plan to let me escape and leave you behind in this situation?"

"Stop dreaming about being a hero. You said it yourself—once she becomes a complete Herrscher, she'll launch a massive attack on the remaining normal humans in this city. I don't want to run away when that happens."

"Besides..." he put away his baseball bat, "who said we can't beat her?"

"What?" Kiana was taken aback. "Do you have another plan?"

"Your decision to work with me is the luckiest thing you've done today." Li Huan flashed a smile. "I happen to have an ace up my sleeve that guarantees we won't lose."

"An ace up your sleeve? What is it?"

Li Huan smiled, then shouted towards the rooftop door, "Tom! Get over here!"

At that moment, inside the rooftop gate, Tom, who had been instructed by Li Huan to stay on the sidelines, pointed to himself with a confused look, trying to confirm whether Li Huan had really called him.

Seeing Tom's questioning expression, Li Huan nodded. "Yes, I'm talking to you. Come here."

Hearing Li Huan's command, Tom swallowed exaggeratedly, then glanced nervously at the Herrscher of Thunder.

The Herrscher's earlier actions had nearly scared Tom to death (or so he thought), and he had been on the verge of fleeing. But faced with his master's order, Tom weighed his options and finally ran towards Li Huan.

When Tom reached Li Huan's side, Li Huan smiled.

"Tom, I have an important task for you now."

Looking at Li Huan, Tom felt an ominous premonition looming over him but still chose to listen obediently.

Li Huan took a wooden knife from his storage space, handed it to Tom, and pointed at the Herrscher of Thunder. "Take this and deal with her."

Hearing Li Huan's task, Tom was immediately shocked. He quickly returned the wooden knife to Li Huan, shaking his head furiously.

Kiana, who was nearby, couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Hey, are you out of your mind? How can a cat fight a Herrscher?"

"Don't forget, this cat knocked you out twice just an hour ago."

"Those were sneak attacks, okay? This time, it's a head-on fight—how is it supposed to win?"

Hearing Kiana's words, Tom immediately nodded in agreement.

Li Huan looked at Kiana with an irritated expression. "Don't interrupt, just watch from the sidelines and you'll understand."

Although Kiana wanted to argue, she kept quiet, puzzled by Li Huan's confidence.

After Kiana stopped interrupting, Li Huan continued speaking to Tom. "Listen, Tom, it's fine if you don't want to fight, but let me tell you what will happen if you don't."

"If you don't fight her, then the next thing that'll happen is both me and the white-haired girl beside me will be killed by that woman covered in electrical special effects. You might survive, but without me, you'll be nothing but a stray cat again, wandering the streets."

"You might not even get a meal every day, and with all the monsters out there, you won't be able to sleep soundly at night. Remember the time you were stuck in that sports warehouse?"

Hearing this, Tom suddenly recalled how he had nearly been clawed by a zombie when he opened the door of the sports warehouse, and a look of fear spread across his face.

"But if you take her down, none of that will happen. When we escape, you'll be living the good life, with plenty of food and a warm bed to sleep in."

Li Huan grabbed Tom's shoulders with a serious expression. "Please, Thomas!"

Thomas was Tom's real name; Tom was just a short, affectionate nickname.

When Tom heard Li Huan use his full name, he realized how serious his master was. The situation was truly critical.

The fear on Tom's face disappeared instantly, replaced by a determined expression.

He took the wooden knife, now looking like a warrior ready for battle.

Seeing Tom like this, Li Huan felt relieved and patted him on the shoulder. "Don't worry, look at her. Do you see those lightning attacks hurting me?"

As if to confirm, Li Huan showed his unscathed hands. "She's been attacking for quite a while now, and all she's done is ruin my clothes. What does that tell you? She's just all bark and no bite."

Tom looked at his master's unharmed upper body and started thinking. Maybe the master was right—maybe there wasn't anything to fear.

"And besides, you're holding a wooden knife. It's not raining, and there's no moisture in the air, so even if she tries to shock you, it won't conduct through the knife."

Listening to Li Huan's reasoning, Tom felt it made perfect sense.

With that, Li Huan pointed at the Herrscher of Thunder and gave Tom his final order.

"Go, Tom, give her a couple of good slaps!"

---

Advanced Chapters in Patreon

https://www.patreon.com/SenatusPopulus

Check out my other fics too

I slept with Xiao Wu..!

Genshin Impact: They seem to like me?!

In Honkai with Tom