I Am Honkai

Jacob was a newly appointed assistant at St. Stephen's Cathedral, assigned by the church to work at the rescue center.

He was slightly overweight and looked very kind in his white robe.

"Oh, look at this full moon, tonight is really a good night for moon-gazing." Jacob sat in the duty room, looking at the starry sky through the window and sighing.

"Hmm?" Suddenly, Jacob caught a glimpse of something white out of the corner of his eye.

Jacob straightened up and looked carefully. About 120 cm tall, a doll-like delicate white-haired girl was standing outside the duty room, staring at him through the glass.

Jacob thought to himself, must be a child lost by some careless parent.

He opened the duty room door, walked up to the girl, and squatted down.

He asked, "Little girl, it's so late, why are you here alone? Where are your parents?"

As he spoke, he took out some candy from his pocket and handed it to her.

Seeing the duty room door open and a slightly chubby white man come out, Selene thought, it's time to show my acting skills.

She shook her head blankly, "Boohoo, I... I don't know... boohoo..."

...

As expected, under Selene's superb acting, Jacob began to comfort her.

Selene also told Jacob the fabricated background story.

The story was simple.

Her mother died from hemorrhaging during childbirth. She had no father and had been living with her grandmother. Because her pupils were different from ordinary people, the people in her small town always shunned her, believing she would bring bad luck.

Then, a week ago, her grandmother died of illness. After dealing with the funeral, the townspeople sent her here and then left.

"Poor child, may the Lord's light dispel your sorrow." Jacob said sympathetically.

He turned and led her inside, saying,

"Child, what's your name?"

The white-haired girl said weakly, "Selene."

Jacob took out some bread and water and handed them to her. "Here, have something to eat. You must be hungry."

"Thank you."

Selene hesitated for a moment, thanked him, and then began eating under Jacob's watchful eye.

Seeing Selene's timid demeanor, Jacob thought of her circumstances. Her parents must have had her out of wedlock, leaving her without parental love from birth, relying on an old grandmother. "Poor child..."

"Selene, wait here for a while, I'll be right back." Jacob said and then left.

As Jacob's figure disappeared, the expression on Selene's face gradually faded. She thought silently.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to deceive you."

...

"Oh, you've finished eating, you must have been starving."

"Come on, child, let's get you registered." Jacob came back in and said with a smile.

Selene lowered her head and followed him out.

...

A week later, in Vienna, Austria, at the St. Stephen Rescue Center, in the dormitory building.

Selene put the travel brochure she had finished reading back on the shelf, rubbed her forehead, and murmured slightly tiredly, "Academy City? Looks like I can set my next goal."

"My abilities, if assessed by Academy City, should be considered an Esper, right?"

[Yes, by Academy City's standards, Selene is undoubtedly an Esper.]

After thinking for a while, Selene stood up from the chair.

She looked around. It was a brand-new single dormitory, about 20 square meters, with clean, dust-free furniture and no decorations.

Selene was very satisfied with this new dormitory. For someone alone like her, having a small room was all she needed for now.

Jacob had told her that this dormitory building was newly built last year. She was able to stay in this dormitory thanks to Jacob.

Now she could confirm that the timeline was still before the start of the plot. Since the ranking of Academy City's Level 5 Espers hadn't been published yet, if a Level 5 Esper appeared, the travel brochure would definitely mention it.

After all, Level 5 Espers were the signature of Academy City. Now she had plenty of time to prepare.

Suddenly, Nina's voice came from outside the door, "Selene, are you there? Sister Savannah wants to see you."

"Okay, I'm coming."

Nina was also an orphan at the rescue center and a friend Selene had recently made. Nina had short hair that reached her ears, tied in a ponytail, blue eyes, and a petite figure, shorter than Selene. She had a soft and gentle demeanor.

Selene opened the door and looked at the petite Nina, "Let's go."

...

From the first time she saw Selene and registered her information, Sister Savannah noticed her uniqueness.

After a week of getting to know her, she stood out among the children, unique like a crane among chickens.

She was always polite and courteous, never causing conflicts with others during the week.

She had a strong learning ability, a photographic memory, and clear and logical thinking.

Most importantly, her pupils were extremely unique, and her appearance was too delicate, like an angel fallen to the mortal world. Coupled with her noble temperament, she seemed extraordinary.

"She might be the most special girl I've ever met in my life." Sister Savannah thought, sitting in her office.

Knock knock! There was a knock on the door.

"Come in."

"Sister Savannah, I'm here. Is there something you need?" Selene asked, slightly bowing.

Seeing the white-haired girl's textbook-like manners, Sister Savannah joked, "Today is the elective music class. We have violin, cello, piano, flute, oboe... What instrument do you want to choose, little Selene?"

Selene thought for a while. "Piano."

...

Thus, Selene's day was spent learning the piano.

At night, lying in bed, Selene began to contemplate her abilities.

The outward characteristic of "super strength" was obvious in daily life. As the name implied, she naturally had great strength, and she could feel the enhancement every day.

Honkai Energy Manipulation was hard to grasp. She couldn't predict its effects on objects or people through direct release, so she left it aside for now.

Spatial Manipulation allowed her to open a circle of black portals. This ability was quite suitable for stealing things or spying on something.

Thinking, Selene sat up and stretched out her right hand, activating her ability. She reached her right hand into the black circle on her bed, and it extended out from the black circle on the table a few meters away, grabbing a cookie and feeding it to her mouth. Chewing, she thought this ability didn't require any calculations. As long as it was within her range, she could get anything she wanted with just a thought.

This was similar to an Esper, a person born with Personal Reality, also known as a natural ability user. In the world of "A Certain Magical Index," such individuals were extremely rare, with only about 50 in the world.

Unlike artificially created Espers, natural ability users could freely use their abilities without calculations, as if it were their instinct. Generally, natural ability users couldn't control their abilities when they were young, or even at birth, so they would be discovered by Academy City and recruited.

"Great Sage, what's the maximum control range of my Spatial Manipulation?"

[About 50 meters.]

"How can it be improved?"

[Spatial Manipulation is based on the strength of imaginary energy, so everything depends on the intensity of Honkai energy. The Herrscher core is the key. In the previous world, the Second Herrscher core briefly existed within Selene. Although it was stripped away, its essence has merged with the Honkai crystal in this body. It can be nurtured by absorbing imaginary energy to gain enhancement.]

"What is my current Honkai energy intensity?"

[About 80 HW. To become a Herrscher, the minimum Honkai energy intensity must be over 2000 HW.]

"Looks like I still have a long way to go. Well, there's no time to lose. Let's start training."

Selene's entire body gradually sank into the black circle.

When she opened her eyes again, she found herself in a silent purple-red space, filled with particle-like imaginary energy. This space didn't belong to the known four-dimensional space-time, but a "folded dimension" parallel to ours, boundless and different from our "classic dimension." The imaginary space could only be accessed by opening a portal with a large amount of Honkai energy.

Selene sat cross-legged, activating her intrinsic potential. The surrounding purple-red particles trembled and then swarmed towards her like moths to a flame.

In almost a single breath, Selene's body trembled violently, and then a layer of purple-red light rose from her feet. In an instant, her entire body was enveloped in purple-red light, glowing.

With each breath, the light fluctuated, looking extremely strange.

Even though it was a simple process, Selene felt extremely comfortable. The increase in power from the imaginary particles was intoxicating.

...

Morning.

Selene reappeared in her dormitory bed.

The comfort of her body made her moan softly.

Feeling her own power, she couldn't help but feel a sense of expansion.

Getting up and stretching, feeling refreshed, she looked out the window at the rising sun, her mood lifted.

"Today is another hopeful day."