After Aponia 'loaded' that data from Elysia, her state became rather unstable.
"Mama Aponia, you look a bit strange. Did something happen?" A childish voice, laced with confusion, inquired. Griseo happened to arrive just as Aponia was 'processing' the 'experience' contained within the data.
She looked up at Aponia with her innocent, large violet eyes, noticing that Aponia's usual ascetic expression was gone. Or rather... layered on top of the asceticism was something entirely opposite, her eyes clouded with a hazy look.
Griseo's voice snapped her out of that 'unpleasant' sensation. Aponia blushed slightly, meeting the curious gaze, subconsciously clamping her thighs together to hide the rather embarrassing dampness.
Fortunately, as a clergywoman, Aponia possessed considerable self-control. She quickly composed herself, letting the unbecoming flush fade from her face, replaced once more by her customary reserved expression.
"I'm fine, just processing some data."
"Griseo, why have you come here?"
"Oh... while painting... I couldn't find the right color... so I thought I'd come to Mama Aponia's place to look..." Griseo nodded, seemingly understanding, then hesitantly explained her purpose.
This reason wasn't surprising. The little painter, though usually staying within her Realm of Mundane Colors, couldn't always rely solely on imagination for her art. Even Griseo needed to gather inspiration. Interacting with other Flame-Chasers to collect 'pigments' was something they were all used to, and they were generally cooperative.
As her guardian, Aponia was no exception. Especially since her domain, The Deep, was the closest to little Griseo's Realm of Mundane Colors. As the administrator of the Elysian Realm, capable of receiving data from all directions, Aponia's place was also an excellent spot for gathering materials.
"Er... I see... Then Griseo, you can collect them yourself... I'm going to step out for a walk." Uncharacteristically, Aponia's words held a strange note. After saying this, she hurried away.
She couldn't help it. Though she appeared calm on the surface... beneath that restored ascetic facade, the turbulent emotions stirred by contact with that 'data' couldn't be calmed so quickly... Or perhaps, Aponia didn't want to use her usual methods to calm them. As a pinnacle of psychic MANTIS abilities, she could suppress it mentally...
But... faced with this agitation originating from Jiang Qiao and Elysia, Aponia was momentarily unsure how to quell it. Thus, she resorted to the rarest of actions for her: taking a walk around, hoping it would serve as a form of relief. Perhaps interacting with others would help.
As for Griseo... in her current state, it was best to avoid getting too close to the child... Griseo had a tendency to easily absorb others' 'colors,' and she often saw through to a person's essence. If the child discovered her current condition... Aponia didn't know how she'd face her afterwards.
So, leave quickly!
Watching Aponia hurry away, Griseo's large eyes filled with confusion. Usually, Mama Aponia almost never left The Deep. Also... Mama Aponia's colors seemed a bit strange...
Staring at Aponia's retreating back, the little painter, who could directly perceive colors, was puzzled by the discordant streak of pink appearing on the lower part of Aponia's predominantly bright yellow aura.
"Is that Big Sister Elysia's color?" Griseo tilted her head.
Suddenly, she noticed something and looked towards the area where Aponia had just been standing. There were traces of pink here too, mixed with other colors... The little painter crouched down, peering intently at the floor, then used her index finger to pick up some of the viscous, white, liquid-like substance.
She sniffed it. There wasn't much of a strange smell, just a faint fishy odor... but it wasn't unpleasant. In fact, it was somewhat intoxicating, seeming to stir life's most primal urges.
"What is this...?" Staring blankly at this 'trace,' Griseo felt curious. Then... driven by curiosity, she tentatively licked it...
Salty... but also a bit sweet... like nectar... such a strange taste... but...
"I don't dislike it." Sucking her finger clean of the remaining traces, the little painter offered her verdict.
Then, she sat down cross-legged on the spot, lost in thought.
Using this as paint... seems like a good idea...?
As if struck by inspiration, little Griseo's eyes lit up. She happily ran back to her own realm and, recalling Mama Aponia's unusually expressive face from earlier, painted a portrait of her.
Next, she used the 'pigments' she had just collected as accents, bestowing vibrant color upon the painting. This wasn't difficult; just as she could use Kosma as pigment to paint 'Kosma the Hero' in the original storyline, within the Elysian Realm, all data could serve as pigment for the Painter of the Stars to 'color' her creations. Even strange pigments of unknown origin were fine, as their essence was still data.
Looking at the lifelike 'Aponia' on the canvas, Griseo nodded with satisfaction. This pigment works really well... Joyful, pleasant... and a strange yet comfortable feeling... The complex emotions it contained made it a satisfactory pigment for Griseo.
The only problem was... there wasn't much of that pigment... she had already used it all up. Seeing her collected 'premium pigment' completely depleted, a trace of regret flickered across the azure-haired girl's young face.
She thought to herself, "When Mama Aponia comes back... I'll ask her for some more~"
...
Boom!
An arrow coalescing with immense Honkai Energy struck an innocent Chariot-type Honkai Beast, blasting it into particles of Honkai Energy.
Lowering the high-tech Flowing Blossom bow specially designed by Vill-V, the pink-haired girl felt inexplicably irritable. In truth, Elysia had been in this state ever since returning from the Current Era. To soothe this unfamiliar agitation, she could only vent her frustration on the Honkai Beasts spawned by small-scale Honkai outbreaks occurring everywhere.
"So annoying!"
Her power grew stronger by the day, yet her mood worsened proportionally. A sense of familiarity and detachment, two opposing feelings, warred within the current Elysia. She could clearly wield far greater power than before, yet... this power of Origin felt increasingly difficult to control for some reason.
Additionally, the lack of 'Jiang Qiao essence' further exacerbated Miss 55kg's irritability. ...I should have stayed over there longer.
Returning to headquarters via her aircraft, Elysia felt regretful and annoyed. Damn it, doesn't that bad Jiang Qiao miss me at all?! Only sending a message or two when he needs something, making me camp the chat group, waiting half the day for nothing.
Though the other chat members were interesting, they still fell short compared to the one person she was hoping to hear from. Wonder what that bad boy is doing right now... Elysia muttered inwardly, staring at the avatars in the group chat.
"Hey, did you guys hear?"
"That superstar Eden actually retired!" Walking down the base corridor, the chatter among personnel made Elysia pause.
"Hmm? Let me listen in~ What are you talking about? Sounds like something really interesting~ Mind sharing with me~?"
"Oh, it's Elysia, you're back? You haven't heard? The world-famous superstar Eden officially retired yesterday afternoon."
"Seriously? Isn't Eden's career booming?" another staff member asked doubtfully.
"Tsk, why would I lie? I didn't believe it either, but the announcement is right there on the official website!"
Hearing this, Elysia, surprised, opened the device issued to Fire Moth members and immediately saw the top trending news: Eden Retires.
"It's actually true... Does that mean we won't hear Eden's songs anymore..."
"Look at the state of the world now, who knows if there'll even be an 'anymore'."
"I say, just take it one day at a time."
"Pah pah pah, always saying such gloomy things." A girl with short, refreshing yellow hair, resembling a tomboy, retorted irritably, then leaned in conspiratorially.
"Let me share some insider news with you!"
"I heard the reason that superstar Eden retired is because she's joining us, Fire Moth!"
"And supposedly, it's because of a certain someone!"
"Seriously? Elvin!"
"If I'm lying, I'm a puppy!" Elvin, known as the grassroots know-it-all of Fire Moth, retorted indignantly.
"Speaking of a certain someone..." All eyes in the group suddenly focused on Elysia.
Feeling the concentrated gazes upon her, Elysia's scalp tingled. "Why are you all looking at me?"
"Say, Elysia, didn't you perform on stage with that Eden before?"
"Right, right, I remember that too, it was huge... Don't tell me you have some connection with that superstar?"
"Hey, hey, hey, watch your mouth! What do you mean 'connection'!" Elysia couldn't hold back anymore, protesting indignantly.
At the same time, her resentment towards a certain someone deepened. She desperately wanted to tell these people, That wasn't me, Elysia! But... undeniably, the Jiang Qiao on stage had used her body, making it difficult for Miss Elysia to argue.
Miss 55kg grit her teeth inwardly, fuming. ...Bad Jiang Qiao! You had fun playing around with Eden, and after the fun's over, Elysia gets stuck taking all the blame!
However... Eden retired? Joining Fire Moth? Seriously? ...Surely she isn't coming here for me, right? Elysia muttered, bewildered, wondering if she should go ask MEI about the situation.
And then... gasps echoed around her. Turning her head, a familiar face made Elysia's eyes widen.
"Holy crap, it really is Eden!"
"Mom, I saw my idol!"
"Miss Eden, I've been your fan for ten years!"
"Tsk, wasn't she still a kid ten years ago?"
"So what if she was a kid? I'd be a fan even in the womb!"
"She's coming this way!"
Amidst the excited chatter, Eden's eyes lit up upon spotting their group, and she walked gracefully towards Elysia. She smiled and greeted her, "Long time no see, Elysia."
"See, what did I tell you? She really came for Elysia!"
"Of course, Elysia is the belle of our organization! She has good taste!"
Hearing the surrounding comments, veins throbbed on Elysia's forehead. But facing Eden greeting her at close range, she couldn't show her annoyance and could only return the greeting somewhat unnaturally.
"Ah... Yes, long time no see, Eden."
Normally, Elysia would have no barriers with a beautiful girl like Eden. Usually, she'd instantly recruit her as a good sister. But in public, considering everything that had happened—especially remembering Eden 'catching them in the act'—Elysia's brain short-circuited, experiencing a brief moment of 'pig brain overload'.
But then she had a sudden thought—Wait, this isn't right! Wasn't Elysia the victim in all this before?
Although it infuriated Miss Elysia that the bad boy flirted with girls while she worked hard, used her body to dance with Eden on stage, and even made her seem like the 'bad guy,' thinking about it again, wasn't this also an opportunity?
That bad Jiang Qiao flirted with Eden entirely using Elysia's identity, right? That means Eden's good friend is 'Elysia,' which is me!
Recalling all the ways that heartless bad boy had screwed her over before, Miss Elysia instantly remembered her previously aborted 'Elysian Realm Conquest Plan'. Though it had failed for various reasons, now... facing this Eden, it seemed highly feasible!
Thinking this, Elysia instantly felt excited. Hmph, that bad boy doesn't think about me at all, doesn't even come back to see me. Since that's the case, don't blame Elysia for taking the opportunity to step in and turn that bad boy's good friend into my good friend!
This is Eden we're talking about!
Let's do it! While bad Jiang Qiao is away, watch Elysia steal his home base with lightning speed!
Repent! Bad Jiang Qiao!