Honkai Impact: Become Their Hero

"Wow~ I just pulled something insane! But… isn't this difficulty a bit too high?"

Elias stared at the storybook in his hands. Despite his words, his eyes gleamed with excitement.

He never expected to land such a jackpot!

The Second Honkai Eruption—this was the very foundation of the current era's events. It was the root of everything connected to Kiana, Mei, and even Bronya's past.

But after his initial excitement, Elias quickly sobered up, his expression turning grim. Because if he had to compare the Second Honkai Eruption to a dungeon, then it would absolutely be Ultimate Hell Mode.

Just look at the sheer power level of the players involved: Six-Core Herrscher Sirin, Theresa, Cecilia, Siegfried, Welt Yang, Otto, and even Immortal Fu Hua. And that's just the direct combatants—let's not even get into those who influenced events from the shadows.

Simply put, this was a gathering of supreme powerhouses!

Elias could already feel the impending doom. Compared to them, he was nothing more than a little mob character. He clenched his fist tightly.

"I need more power!"

[Host, please do not worry. Given that this event's difficulty far exceeds your current abilities, your number of Buff-enhancing attributes has been doubled for this mission.]

"Oh, good! That's a relief—alright, let's see what I got."

Elias exhaled in relief. But the moment he opened his system-provided attributes, his entire body froze.

[Honkai Energy Adaptability EX: Your adaptability to Honkai energy surpasses 99.99999% of all living beings, surpassing even S-rank Valkyries.]

[Honkai's Favorite Son EX: You are much more likely to be chosen by Honkai to become a Herrscher.]

[Pain Resistance B: Your pain sensitivity is only 1/10th of a normal human.]

[Extreme Pain Resistance A: Your pain sensitivity is only 1/50th of a normal human.]

[Battle Continuation EX: Even if your body is utterly broken and both feet have stepped into death's door, you can still fight for an extended period.]

[Unyielding Will A: Your will cannot be broken. Not even the gods can force you to submit.]

Elias stared at the six attributes in stunned silence for a long while.

His expression grew increasingly complicated before he finally spoke.

"System… are you messing with me?"

[Why would I do that, Host?]

"Because this looks highly suspicious! It feels like my death has already been predetermined!!"

[Your past deaths will not affect your present self. Additionally, historical correction forces will have minimal influence on you.]

"Alright, then! A mortal body, burning once is enough! Let's go! I'm ready!"

Elias' attitude made a complete 180-degree turn. Now he looked like a warrior who had paid his final dues and was ready for glorious martyrdom.

Even the emotionless system was momentarily speechless.

Giving up was never an option.

He didn't know if there was a chance to redraw his Buffs, but even if there was, Elias wouldn't trade this opportunity for anything.

Because this was the Second Honkai Eruption.

The infamous, tragic Second Honkai Eruption.

Sirin's suffering and death, Cecilia's sacrifice, Cheng Lixue's demise, Siegfried's severe injuries, Fu Hua's near-fatal wounds, and Welt Yang's countless struggles between life and death!

Now that he had a chance to change things, how could Elias even think of backing down?

But most importantly…

("Heh heh heh! Otto is supposed to appear here, right? Finally, I have the chance to hear that guy's soulium face crack under my fists. That'll be the sweetest melody of all!")

If nothing else, Elias was determined—just one punch to Otto, or even just splattering some blood on him, and he would consider this entire trip worth it.

[Your time-traveling experience will not affect the present timeline. No matter how long you stay in the past, you will return at the exact same moment you left.]

"Alright then, let's do this!"

With his final worry dispelled, Elias took a deep breath, gave the storybook one last glance, and opened it.

...

December 11, 1999

Siberia, Schicksal's Babylon Laboratory.

"It hurts! It hurts so much! Mom, ahhhh!!"

"This one's adaptability isn't bad. We finally have a usable test subject. Next up, the last one. Huh? A boy? Looks like this one will be another failure."

Even before opening his eyes, Elias could hear a girl's anguished screams, a man's cold indifference, and the soft sobbing of children.

When he finally opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was the dark blue walls—like a prison. The air was frigid, and his body shivered instinctively.

"Kid, it's your turn."

"…"

Elias blankly looked around—then at himself.

Inside this "cell" with him were four girls—memories of them surfaced in his mind. Avrora, Agata, Galina, and… Sirin.

Among them, Sirin was destined to become the Herrscher of the Void, while the others were all doomed to perish in human experimentation. Though Sirin would later "revive" them as pseudo-Herrscher constructs, they would never truly be themselves again.

Elias clenched his fists. If he could save even one of them, then he would save them all!

This time, the system had assigned him the identity of their childhood friend—one of many children deceived by Schicksal and brought to Babylon Laboratory as test subjects for Honkai experiments.

"Huh? Why am I smaller? I don't remember eating any red-and-white mushrooms…"

Elias noticed something odd—his body had shrunk to the form of a 13- to 14-year-old boy.

He immediately suspected the system's interference but regretted not having a mirror to admire his "shota" appearance.

"Brat, what the hell are you standing there for? Think playing mute will get you out of this? Get your ass over here, or I'll make you regret it."

"…I have one condition."

"What did you just say?"

"You can experiment on me—but leave them alone."

Elias crouched down and gently cradled Sirin in his arms.

He had arrived too late.

These bastards had already injected them with Honkai energy. The traces were still visible on Sirin's trembling arms.

The others bore similar wounds.

Elias clenched his fists, seething with rage. He wanted nothing more than to bash their heads in.

Just look at what these monsters had done. They had turned these innocent young girls into test subjects. If this were his previous world, these bastards would be public enemies! The entire anime fanbase would hunt them down and obliterate them!

"It's okay. It's all okay now. Leave everything to me, Sirin."

"Elias… what are you going to do?"

The violet-haired girl tensed up and looked at him with uncertainty. Something about him felt familiar—yet also strangely distant.

Elias simply smiled and patted her head.

"I'm going to save all of you. As long as I'm here, this tragedy will never happen again."