Chen Tiannuo arrived at the lab on the Hyperion. He was planning to build an Archwing and a K-Drive Hoverboard to improve his travel speed.
Right now, his only means of getting around was either hitching a ride on auxiliary ships from the Hyperion, or running on foot.
If a mission required rapid deployment, it could end up wasting a lot of valuable time.
He calmly opened the Foundry's interface. A list of weapons and tools available for crafting appeared.
He tapped on the blueprint for the K-Drive Hoverboard. It showed [Craftable], which made him nod in satisfaction. After all that material gathering, it would've been strange if it wasn't enough.
He also checked the Archwing blueprint. Also [Craftable].
Without hesitation, he began construction on both. Each had a 12-hour crafting time. No rush builds available—he'd just have to wait.
...
Chen Tiannuo made his way to the bridge, looking for Himeko. Her body had been suffering from the Honkai's effects. He hadn't checked on her since returning—he was only just remembering now.
"Chen Tiannuo! Let's go out and have fun later!" Kiana called cheerfully.
"Sure. But—where's Himeko? Is she still recovering?" Chen Tiannuo asked.
"Aunt Himeko's fine, just still resting in the infirmary," Kiana replied.
"Honkai energy corrosion, huh..."
Chen Tiannuo combed through his blueprint memory, looking for anything that could counteract such corrosion.
Tch. Nothing that can reduce energy corruption... Either find her a natural Stigmata, or get her to stop relying on artificial ones.
"It's fine. We'll find a way eventually," Chen Tiannuo reassured.
"Mm!" Kiana nodded emphatically, once again lighting up like a little sun.
"Let's go," Chen Tiannuo said to her. "Let's hit the amusement park."
"Yay! I'll go get Mei and Bronya right now!" With that, Kiana took off like a rocket.
"That girl..." Chen Tiannuo shook his head and smiled.
First, he headed to Theresa's office. Since he was back on campus, he figured he should at least check in.
"Principal, I'm coming in," he said as he pushed the door open.
"Mmhmm." Theresa glanced at him before going back to reading her manga.
Chen Tiannuo sat across from her. "Theresa, how's Himeko doing? I heard she's still recovering?"
"Yeah. The Honkai energy corrosion can only be slowed, not cured—for now. Fighting with an artificial Stigmata comes at a price. We can only hope for a breakthrough in Stigmata tech." Theresa sounded frustrated. That kind of tech progression wasn't something you could rush.
"That's all we can do. Nothing in my blueprints can help with energy-based corrosion either," Chen Tiannuo said, just as exasperated.
"So even you don't have anything for that, huh~?"
"Yeah. In my world, the threats were mostly viruses—not energy corruption."
Suddenly remembering someone, Chen Tiannuo asked, "Oh right—where's Yae Sakura? Haven't seen her in a while."
"She's a practical combat instructor now. Drops by sometimes to chat. She seems pretty relaxed."
"That explains why I haven't seen her." Chen Tiannuo realized. He usually bounced between the training grounds, dorm, and classrooms. For practical classes, he just went straight to the training room—never needed instruction.
"Alright, I'm heading out with Kiana and the others. Want me to bring you back anything?"
"The latest Homu manga!" Theresa said excitedly.
"Got it." Chen Tiannuo left the office and walked toward the school gate to wait.
...
"Mei~ I still wanna play!" Kiana whined, tugging at Mei's hand.
"Alright, alright~ It's already late. Time to head back and rest. No more pouting." Mei said, half-exasperated.
"Kiana, this place really isn't that fun. Where do you get all this energy from?" Chen Tiannuo yawned, rubbing his eyes. Fighting Honkai beasts for days didn't even tire me this much...
"Bronya thinks it was quite enjoyable," Bronya replied calmly. She didn't often visit amusement parks, so it was a new experience.
"Huh? Really? That's nice then..."
'I'll leave the rest to you.'
Chen Tiannuo's vision suddenly blurred. He collapsed—right onto Bronya.
"Chen Tiannuo!" Mei cried out.
"Let's get him to the infirmary!" Bronya said quickly.
"Right..."
The girls hurriedly brought Chen Tiannuo back to the medical wing.
...
"Doctor, what's wrong with him?" Mei asked anxiously.
"How did he pass out?"
"We don't know. He just suddenly collapsed. He was totally fine earlier..." Mei's face was full of worry.
The doctor finished adjusting the equipment and was about to begin an exam when Chen Tiannuo suddenly woke up.
"This is... the infirmary? How'd I get here?" He looked around at the doctor.
"You passed out. Kiana and the others brought you in," the doctor explained. "Lie down. Let's run a quick scan—"
"No need. You won't be able to help with this one." Chen Tiannuo shook his head.
He didn't know why he'd blacked out, but he wasn't about to let them poke around and find out.
Getting off the bed, he walked straight out.
"Tiannuo's out!" Kiana called, but looked confused. "That was fast. He's done already?"
"It's nothing serious. Maybe it's a side effect of overusing the Warframe?" Chen Tiannuo guessed—though he wasn't sure himself.
"But you still spent the whole day with us..."
"It's fine~ I don't have that much free time, so I wanted to spend it with you all while I could," Chen Tiannuo said with a soft smile.
"..." The girls all fell silent.
"What? Why are you all so quiet?" Chen Tiannuo raised an eyebrow. "It's not like I'm dying or anything. I'm just covering for Himeko temporarily. I don't have as much time to play around, so I'm trying to enjoy what little time I do have."
"Dummy Tiannuo," Bronya muttered, deadpan.
Chen Tiannuo chuckled and patted her head. "C'mon, I know you're all worried. But you know how Himeko's condition is.
Right now, I'm handling the mission leadership. That way she can reduce her artificial Stigmata usage, which should slow down the Honkai corruption."
"Then you better take care of yourself too!"
"Relax! I know my own limits."
"...Alright."
"Oh right—don't forget to deliver that Homu manga to Theresa." Chen Tiannuo waved and walked off.
"That guy... his nerves are made of steel.