Sylvia had no idea why Huohuo's gaze towards her had suddenly changed.
One moment, it was that shy, timid look reserved for strangers.
The next, it held a certain 'expectancy', the kind you'd give a companion.
Still, Sylvia nodded and said, "Right, a giant Heliobus tainted by Nihility, so it's completely lost any sense of self."
After saying that, Sylvia recounted how the giant Heliobus had slammed headlong into Acheron's body.
Naturally, she left out Acheron's name, referring to her only as 'the Self-Annihilator'.
Huohuo didn't react much, but the flame on her tail flickered several times. "Blimey, good thing it was you I ran into back then. Never thought there'd be a giant Heliobus out there with luck that rotten."
"...I don't feel lucky about it at all."
Ignoring Huohuo's mutter, Tail clicked his tongue, feeling a pang of sympathy. That big Heliobus really did have it rough.
Out of all the people in the universe, it had to crash into a Self-Annihilator.
Getting tainted by Nihility is no joke—even a Heliobus can die from it.
And if you thought about it that way, Sylvia subduing that giant Heliobus and maintaining its state...
Well, that practically saved its life.
Meanwhile, Huohuo looked up at Sylvia with curiosity.
"So... the Heliobus inside you, Miss Sylvia, can't talk?"
"Hmm... it really can't, can it? At least, I don't get the sense its mind is working anymore."
Here, Sylvia paused.
The giant Heliobus in the Fullbottle, originally tainted by Nihility, had recently merged with the power she'd snatched from Phantylia.
The Destruction-infused part was overwhelmingly strong, practically crushing the Nihility, which was completely suppressed but never fully erased.
After all, the power of Destruction had no one controlling it either.
Inside the safe confines of the Fullbottle, the two forces had miraculously tangled together.
Who knows what would happen if it were let out.
Sylvia didn't know if a new consciousness had been born within it. But it behaved well enough in the bottle, so she'd left it alone.
"No wonder you can wield a Heliobus's power so easily, Miss Sylvia. That's nice."
Huohuo naturally interpreted Sylvia's situation as the Heliobus losing its consciousness and becoming a tool for Sylvia to command.
Unlike Mr. Tail, whom she had to ask for help every time there was a fight, and who often scared her on top of it.
"Well... you could say that, I suppose."
Sylvia couldn't very well explain the Herrscher Core issue, so she let it stand.
It amounted to roughly the same thing anyway.
"Hey, hey, I can't just let that slide!"
Hearing Huohuo's words, Tail immediately bristled. "If it weren't for me, with a personality like yours, who knows how badly you'd have been bullied by now. Should've just swallowed you whole back then!"
"Hmph... hmph! If you hadn't eaten my tail, I... I wouldn't get bullied!"
Huohuo's voice was soft, making even an argument sound like she was giving in.
It really was the kind of thing that made people want to protect her.
It was hard to imagine a Foxian arguing with her own tail.
Especially when Tail, in a huff, retreated into Huohuo's body, and the two of them kept muttering back and forth.
It looked genuinely amusing.
So much so that when Huohuo finally looked up after their squabble...
She met Sylvia's gaze, brimming with amusement.
Realizing she'd probably just been laughed at by the older girl, Huohuo's little face flushed red.
She raised her hands to cover her cheeks, not daring to look at Sylvia any longer.
"Miss Sylvia... I-I'm sorry. Earlier, Mr. Tail said you smelled of a Heliobus, so I thought you were someone possessed by one..."
Nope, couldn't hold back.
Seeing Huohuo's adorable reaction, Sylvia couldn't help herself. She reached out and patted the girl's head.
The green hair was soft and smooth, and the fur on her ears was incredibly fluffy and downy.
Suddenly being head-patted, Huohuo's whole body shivered a few times, but she soon relaxed.
Even though she didn't look up, the very tip of her tail even swayed gently in time with Sylvia's patting.
She clearly didn't mind it at all.
Sylvia gently stroked the fox ears with her fingers and said with a smile, "What's there to apologize for? It just shows how earnest and responsible you are."
"Phew..."
Huohuo lowered her head, letting Sylvia continue to stroke her hair.
It had truly been a long, long time since she'd felt like this.
The adults of the Ten-Lords Commission were kind to her, but they didn't usually pat her head like a child.
As for Mr. Tail... well, he looked out for her in his own way, but his mouth was never kind.
For a moment.
Feeling the warmth from Sylvia's palm, Huohuo even sniffled a couple of times.
It's so nice. I wish Miss Sylvia really was my big sister.
Huohuo's thoughts wandered off on their own.
If Miss Sylvia had been by my side all along, maybe I wouldn't have been treated like a 'monster' back then.
And then—
Information regarding Huohuo's affection level appeared before Sylvia's eyes:
--+--
[Target: Huohuo]
[Affection: 73 (Expectant & Trusting)]
[Relationship: None]
['Oh no, you've sweet-talked this honest kid right off her feet.']
['The poor girl sees you as one of her own, wants you for a sister.']
--+--
That high?
Sylvia blinked.
This was only their first meeting, right? And the affection was already in the seventies?
Just because she had a Heliobus inside her?
So Huohuo felt they could understand each other, share a common experience?
As she pondered, Sylvia gave the warm little head under her hand another pat.
The education of minors on the Xianzhou—Sylvia couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
It really did need some serious reform and overhaul.
She'd only been on the Xianzhou a few days, and already she'd met Dan Shu, then the children with Heaven-Sent Ailments, and now Huohuo.
What kind of upbringing were Xianzhou children even getting?
Such a lovely kid like Huohuo, bullied into such an introverted personality when she was little.
Thank goodness she at least had Tail to help her stand up for herself sometimes.
"Ah, good girl, good girl~ Are you free today? Let me take you out!"
"Huh? I... I am free. It's my day off today..."
"Then keep me company for some tea first?"
Sylvia relaxed her powers a bit and asked the shopkeeper for two more servings of snacks.
"Mhm, mhm! I'll... I'll do whatever you say, sister."
Right at that moment, suddenly—
The entire Starskiff Haven began to tremble unnaturally. A terrifying, and to Sylvia, all-too-familiar power erupted from beneath their feet!
The bustling market instantly descended into chaos as panic gripped everyone.
This was a Xianzhou delve! How could there possibly be an earthquake?
Something must have happened.
"W-what's going on?!"
Huohuo immediately clutched her command flag, looking around like a startled little animal.
Sylvia reached out to steady her, reassuring her, "Don't panic. With the Cloud Knights and the General here, everything will be fine."
The Stellaron crisis was erupting?
Right now?
Just then, a wave of terrified shouts suddenly rose from the crowd in the distance!
"Mara-struck! A Cloud Knight has succumbed to mara!! Everyone, disperse!"
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.