Honkai: You're telling me this difficulty is from Honkai Impact 3?!

However, just as they both took their first step out the door, a strong sense of danger suddenly washed over Shu, forcing him to stop.

That sense of danger wasn't only felt by Shu; Kiana also stopped, her expression wary, as she looked around for the source.

Several more gunshots echoed from outside, and Kiana's expression grew more anxious.

Shu, on the other hand, was doing a quick analysis.

This sense of danger wasn't unique to him. Kiana also reacted, indicating that one of the Honkai soldiers was inside the bar, watching them.

And those gunshots outside weren't just one or two. Shu had warned Bronya that the white Honkai soldier could dodge bullets, yet she was firing away relentlessly.

Such rapid firing wasn't for suppressing fire; it indicated that Bronya was most likely on the offensive.

"Bronya!" Regardless, he needed a clear answer. "What color is it?!"

"It's a black Honkai soldier!" Mei replied from outside. "It's very fast and can block bullets!"

Shu felt a sense of understanding wash over him. His predictions weren't wrong.

"Bronya says she can handle it! Don't worry about us!" Mei's voice rang out again. Shu could see Kiana relax quite a bit.

Shu thought for a moment, then turned to Kiana and said, "Kiana, could you keep watch? I'm going to take these guns out there, just in case Bronya and Mei run out of ammo."

Kiana shouldered the baseball bat, her eyes scanning a hidden corner. "Don't worry! I can take down that Honkai soldier all by myself!"

"Don't get reckless." Shu gave a final warning, then quickly ran out of the wooden door.

No sooner had Shu left, than he heard Kiana let out a fierce shout behind him, followed by the clashing of metal on metal.

In the alley, the small figure of Bronya was protecting Mei, who was nearly 30 cm taller, with her body, which was a slightly comical sight, but Shu couldn't laugh.

Instead, he felt a little envious.

"Bronya, all of these guns have bullets, so fire away!" Shu tossed the guns to the two of them. Bronya remained vigilant, then suddenly turned and fired two shots above Shu.

Shu ducked, startled. When he looked up, he saw the black dual-wielding Honkai soldier jump a few steps, clutch its arm, then disappear again.

Wow… that's Bronya for you.

Shu was impressed and gave Bronya a thumbs-up, then turned back to assist Kiana.

"Kiana, hold on, I…"

The moment he stepped back inside, Shu saw Tsang Wai… Kiana was beating up a Honkai soldier.

The situation inside was even better than it was outside. Shu had barely been gone for a few moments, yet Kiana already had the white dual-wielding soldier pinned beneath her, wildly smashing it with the baseball bat.

"Trying to ambush me?! Trying to stop me from going to Mei?! Trying to spy on me from the shadows?!"

Kiana's rage made Shu stop in his tracks, and the words he was about to say got stuck in his throat.

"Whew!" Having possibly tired herself out, Kiana stopped swinging the baseball bat, wiping sweat off her forehead. She then turned to Shu, her expression still as innocent as ever. "Huh? What were you saying about holding on?"

"I was saying let the Honkai soldier endure a few more hits, so that I could see what its upper limits are." Shu said slowly.

He was clearly out of his mind to even consider being the leader…

This fighting stuff was still better left to Kiana. His stomach was more suited to eating soft foods…

To be a leader, he needed that "power", at least that much that he had when he had left the shelter.

"Ew~ Shu, you have such a twisted sense of humor." Kiana shuddered, getting up from the Honkai soldier.

Shu took a closer look. The Honkai soldier hadn't "passed away" yet. It was just staring into space with its gray-amber eyes, as if wondering who am I, where am I?

Who is that person even more like a Honkai soldier than I am?

That was the soldier's final thought, as Shu skillfully pried open its fingers and snatched its sword.

"Hello." Shu greeted the soldier, whom he was meeting for the second time, then placed the blade against its neck. "Farewell."

The moment he gently pressed down, the soldier twitched and then fell still.

Shu really hadn't expected it to be so easy. So, Kiana not going back earlier had actually allowed these Honkai soldiers to live for an extra half a day?

As expected of Kiana the Great Sage… truly terrifying!

"What's wrong?" Kiana, whose nose was strangely itchy, asked as she looked at Shu.

"Nothing." Shu looked away. He wasn't going to admit he had been imagining Kiana acting like an overlord and bullying the weak Honkai soldier.

As he watched Shu start to take the other sword from the Honkai soldier, Kiana, having confirmed there was no danger, immediately turned and ran to the doorway. "Mei! I'm here to protect you!"

Not long after, Shu, now holding two swords, heard the sound of a heavy object falling to the ground outside. As he expected, it was the Honkai soldier who had almost killed him.

Covered in bullet wounds, the Honkai soldier had been completely riddled by Bronya.

Looking at the sheer number of bullet holes, then at Bronya dropping an empty magazine…

Except for the one bullet that had been blocked, every other bullet had been lodged into the Honkai soldier's body.

Shu remained silent for a moment. He realized that his position had returned to the very bottom of the group.

No wait, there's also Mei!

Just as Shu was about to celebrate, he began staring blankly at the two swords in his hand.

Mei without a sword was gentle and virtuous, but would Mei still be this harmless with a sword in hand?

Should he even give her a sword? But that wasn't possible, no one was more suitable to wield this sword than Mei!

At this moment, Shu suddenly felt a desperate need to return to the shelter and recover his powers.

Relying solely on his physical abilities wasn't enough… wait?! When did his body even have this?

Shu was startled, and quickly checked himself up and down.

Aside from the improved physical abilities and the recovered wounds, he discovered that his body actually had some of that energy again.

Where was this energy coming from?

"Shu!" Before Shu could think more about it, Kiana and the others waved at him. "What are you spacing out for?! Let's get going!"

"Okay!" Shu responded, clenching his fist.

It wasn't like it was a bad thing. Instead of dwelling on where the power came from, it would be better to think about how he could use it.

And more importantly, the current question—should he even go to that shelter or not?

"Oh, right, Bronya, here's a gift for you."

"? Bronya can't use such a long sword, give it to Big Sister Mei instead."

"Yeah, look how small Bronya is! The sword is almost longer than she is!"

"Kiana… don't say that."

"Uh… this sword is for you as a keepsake."

"Eh?! Shu, what about me?"

"Four swords, one for each of us."

"Yay!"