Bizarre Honkai, a Wife-Chasing Crematorium

Drip... drop... drip... drop...

Drip... drop... drip... drop...

Crystalline raindrops fell to the ground, playing a melody both strange and familiar. Time had long been blurred by the rain, and unconsciously, the simple, raspy song from the fourth floor of the haunted mansion surfaced in his mind.

Kira… Kira… Kira Star…

Twinkle… twinkle… little star…

-----

"Screee—"

The moment the auditorium doors were pushed open, the people inside startled awake, scrambling to their feet and aiming their nearby weapons at Li Mo.

However, Li Mo remained unmoved. He carried the long-dead Shigure Kira in his arms and walked step by step into the auditorium.

"Friend, did you come from outside? What's it like out there now? We're survivors who fled from different cities. The Schicksal Valkyries told us that as long as we don't go out, we'll be sa—"

A man from the crowd rushed up to Li Mo, asking anxiously. They had been waiting here for too long. Their food was almost gone. If they didn't go out to find more, they would starve to death in the auditorium.

But before the man could finish, he suddenly saw the dead Valkyrie in Li Mo's arms. She wasn't asleep; it was a real corpse.

"Ah!"

The man clamped a hand over his mouth, stifling his scream. Panic was instinctive, but those who had survived the Ghost hordes were not fools. They knew not to make too much noise.

Li Mo showed no reaction. He walked toward the deepest part of the auditorium and laid Shigure Kira on a soft cushion. This action drew some disapproving looks, but no one dared to speak up, solely because of the blood-soaked cursed blade in Li Mo's hand.

The grotesque eye on the blade was menacing. The living people present understood at a glance that it was a Bizarre item. Ghosts, Bizarre items, Bizarre rules—it had all been broadcast on the radio and online. It was no longer a secret.

"My name is Zhou Han. What should I call you, friend?"

Another person stepped out from the crowd. He was younger and didn't ask any unnecessary questions.

In the past, Li Mo would have dodged such a question with a casually made-up name. But now, he didn't react. His face was devoid of joy or sorrow, making him seem more dead than the body on the cushion.

For a time, no one else in the auditorium dared to approach Li Mo to talk. They closed the main doors and returned to their spots. The atmosphere was incredibly oppressive.

"Who do you think he is? He came in without saying a word. Could it be that Schicksal has already..."

"Looks like it. He's not a Schicksal Valkyrie. We've been waiting here for so many days and haven't seen any Valkyries come in. The only one who did was a corpse being carried... The world outside has probably fallen."

"We don't have any more food, and now there's one more person. If no one goes out to find food, we'll all die here."

A dozen people gathered, whispering amongst themselves. After a brief discussion, they arrived at a rather reliable conclusion: It was the end of the world. Every man for himself.

"Those monsters can't be killed! They can't be killed! We... we're... all doomed..."

"Calm down! Don't be so loud! Are you trying to get us all killed?"

After waiting for months with no rescue, only to receive an even more despairing outcome, someone fell to their knees and slammed their fists on the ground. With the comfort of the others, silence returned.

Noise was not permitted in the auditorium. Everyone knew this and abided by it unspokenly. It was inevitable that some would break down; they just had to be stopped in time.

"Friend, are you listening? Why don't you tell us how you got here? We're all in the same boat now. We can't just not communicate, right? Maybe I can find a way for us to survive based on your description!"

"..."

Zhou Han's attempt to strike up a conversation was met with silence. Defeated, he had no choice but to take out a very special phone from his bag. It looked similar to other phones but was considerably larger.

"Friend, this person you brought in... is she someone you know?"

At these words, Li Mo's body trembled slightly.

Seeing a chance, Zhou Han quickly added, "She said she was an S-rank Valkyrie from Schicksal and had a way to protect us. But she told us not to leave the auditorium, and that she would find a way to deal with the Ghosts outside."

"Before she passed, she threw this phone to us. It's a bit strange; it's a different model from ours. I've never seen it on the market."

"But, since you knew her, you should probably have this."

As he finished speaking, the phone in Zhou Han's hand vanished. Even he was stunned.

Li Mo stared at the phone, his clouded eyes unmoving.

Why had Shigure Kira returned to this world? He had taken Pardofelis's memories; she should have already gone back. So why...

Li Mo turned on the phone and was stopped by the password screen.

Just like in the haunted mansion world, Shigure Kira's phone password hadn't changed. To deal with the uncertainties of paranormal incidents, Shigure Kira had also obtained a phone with a near-infinite battery from Schicksal. A full charge could last for several months.

However, when Li Mo turned it on, the battery was almost dead.

He opened the photo album. There were three recent videos.

Li Mo opened the oldest one first.

"Hello! Hello! Did you miss me, Li Mo~~? Your dearest Kira is now a legendary idol singer in that other world! With Overseer Otto's help, I've worked hard on my singing and I'm finally not just a pretty face! I don't know why, but Overseer Otto has been way too nice to me recently. Is this the special treatment the strong get? Haha~ It won't be long now. When you get back, I'll come over to your side and sing for you!"

"That's right, I'm back in my own world now. Before I made this decision, I thought about it for a long time, and I discussed it with MEI."

"Should I wait for you at home in the Main world, or would it be better to return to my own? I love you, that's a fact. Ahem, let me emphasize, I super, super, super, super love you!! I didn't leave because I don't like you anymore! Don't get the wrong idea, I couldn't bear to leave you."

"But after staying in this house for a while, I gradually came to understand some things. I talked to MEI about it, but unfortunately, you had already left for your mission, so you didn't hear it."

"Actually, at first, I planned to stay in this world's home until our child was born, learning to be a good wife. Aren't you touched~~?"

"Day after day, I'd eagerly await your return. Then, for the weary you, I'd cook a lavish meal, serve your favorite drink, give you a shoulder massage, and listen to you tell all the bizarre and thrilling stories of your journey. Sometimes they'd scare me so much I'd tremble, and then you, with that blank expression on your face, would gently pull me into your arms and swear to protect me..."

"That way, I would have fulfilled my duty as a wife. All I had to do was simple: just temporarily give up my duties as a Valkyrie and my dream of being an idol."

"In fact, I did help you save a lot of people, so it's not like I betrayed the name of a Valkyrie."

"But... is that really love?"

"What does love... really mean?"

"In the haunted mansion incident, in that peaceful world, neither of us went on adventures. We lived a beautiful, happy life, without ever touching anything related to the Bizarre..."

"To be honest... I found that I wasn't as happy as I thought I would be. Instead, I felt like a part of my heart was empty. You became incomplete, not whole, and... not as attractive to me as before."

"I'm not saying I don't love you anymore, just that the colors in our lives have faded a lot."

"For countless nights, I repeatedly questioned my own heart—why? I subtly asked many people, and their answers were all different, but none of them hit the mark."

"Things like: 'You don't cherish what you have'; 'You're spiritually fulfilled, so you should calm down for a while'; 'People always desire what they don't have.'"

"While those are true in a way, they weren't the answer I was looking for. I never figured it out, not even on the day you died from your illness..."

"So I thought, while we're apart, I should let myself be free and strive to become a better version of myself. The next time we meet, I'll present my more excellent self to the best, best, best person in the world!!"

"That way, Shigure Kira will be worthy of the ever-growing Li Mo, right?"

"So it's a promise! When you come back, remember to tell me. I'm going to... hold a grand concert for you! No refusals! I've been preparing for a long time, just waiting for you to come back!"

In the video, Shigure Kira held out her pinky finger, her rosy lips fluttering like butterfly wings as she spoke sweet and gentle words. Her "no refusals" was said in a cute, pouty voice, deliberately playful.

This video was recorded when Shigure Kira had returned to her own world. At that time, she had no idea her life would end in such a way.

The video ended abruptly, with no follow-up.

Li Mo stood there stunned for a long time before slowly opening the second one.

The second video lacked the lighthearted atmosphere of the first. The camera was no longer steady, shaking with Shigure Kira's hand.

"Take all of this. There's no time to explain how to use them. Only use them when you have no other choice."

In the video, Dr. MEI took out one Bizarre item after another, all sealed by Elysia's power, and handed them to Shigure Kira.

"What about you?"

"I'll wait here. He'll definitely come home first when he returns to the Main world."

"But isn't it safer to come with me? If we all stick together, we can survive for a while even in this Bizarre-infested world. If Li Mo comes back and sees your body..."

"He will make up his mind."

"Make up his mind? What do you mean?"

"Literally what I said. Now, go. I won't die that easily, at least not at the hands of some nameless Ghosts. I'm waiting for a certain Bizarre. It has 'everything' I want."

In the frame, Dr. MEI wore a rare, confident smile, as if the Ghosts spreading across the world were a trivial matter she could easily solve. But that was impossible, so the meaning behind that smile was something else.

It was most likely related to the promise Dr. MEI had made with him—that she would tell him the truth after he completed two more missions.

Shigure Kira nodded hesitantly and walked to the door with all the Bizarre items. "I understand. I'll try to keep as many people alive as possible. And... you, don't die. If you die, Li Mo will be heartbroken. I don't want him to be sad. I want to see him happy."

"Mm, I'll do my best."

The second video ended there. The two only had a brief exchange, and there was nothing more.

Dr. MEI had Shigure Kira take away all the Bizarre items they had collected over the years. In the auditorium of St. Freya High School, these items were unleashed, clashing violently with the Ghost horde. The result was mutual destruction.

None of the living who used the Bizarre items survived. The Ghost horde fell temporarily dormant, waiting for time to pass and for the Corruption to sprout and bloom from within them once more.

Li Mo silently stared at the third video. From the interface, it was only two seconds long.

A two-second video... what could it possibly contain?

Li Mo didn't know. He only felt the Corruption inside him rapidly increasing. He couldn't feel anything else. His consciousness couldn't even recall the behavioral habits he once had as Li Mo. Other than knowing he was a living person, his logic and actions were becoming more and more like an Bizarre's.

No joy, no sorrow, no concept of time.

The last video was opened. In those two seconds, there was only one scene.

The moment the doors were about to close, Shigure Kira turned her head, threw the phone from her hand into the auditorium, and smiled with grim determination. Her dry, pale lips moved slightly, as if she had said something.

The phone hit the ground, and the video ended.

Three meaningless videos, like the meaningless deaths of the living in this world.

"..."

The atmosphere in the auditorium was cold. Gradually, night fell, and no one spoke.

Only Li Mo stood in place, woodenly staring at the phone's lock screen—a photo of the two of them, their cheeks pressed together.

The first day the food ran out—

"Here, this is what I hid secretly. Eat it quickly while everyone's asleep."

"Th-thank you..."

The second day the food ran out—

"I can't take it anymore! I'm going out to find food! If I die, I die!"

"Count me in!"

Seven people went out. One came back. But they had enough food for seven more days—

The first day the food ran out again—

"Should we go out? You came back alive last time, you have experience. Want to go again?"

"No! I already went! The ones who eat the most and do the least should go find food!"

"I'll go. If this goes on, everyone will die. We'll take turns. Even if we get killed by a Ghost in the end, it can't be helped. The radio is silent. There probably aren't many people left in the other cities. We're lucky we've survived this long."

The crowd started arguing again. The young man who had bravely asked questions before volunteered. Seeing this, the atmosphere relaxed considerably.

After Zhou Han left the auditorium, the people inside all cast strange glances at Li Mo.

Because Li Mo had been standing there for nine days and nine nights, staring at the long-darkened phone, as if he were dead, completely motionless.

He hadn't eaten or had any metabolic functions. He hadn't even blinked.