Honkai Impact 3rd: Don't Die For Me/ Book 3 Paradise

Chapter 30 Eques

The moonlight howled against the light snowfall, silent but bright. It was strange to witness, like an afternoon drizzle on a clear day. But its peculiarity didn't even distract the Miko that soundlessly drifted between rooftops. She was ethereal in this plane of existence but so were Sasha and Agon. She couldn't make out their presence with her senses alone. Even the boost her sacred sword provided wasn't enough for her to tell which direction they were headed in.

"Mist," Sakura murmured as she activated an ability hidden with her sword. The snow surrounding her turned a corrupt shade of black and the moonlight dimmed. Intangible ghostly apparitions of spirits chased after Sasha'a pursuers.

They didn't notice anything at first, but silence beyond muffled snow soon consumed their surroundings. Like a sputtering hearth flame finally dying, the world became infinitely silent. They called out but not a sound could be heard. Sakura observed their stalled movements. There were four people, one was a Valkyrie and the rest were ordinary people. In any case, they were of little threat, it was strange why Sasha and Agon didn't just knock them out.

"Release."

Without another word, sound, or indication of her intent, Sakura somersaulted through the air. It was dead silent when she landed. She was like a ghost. Only the Valkyrie felt an inkling of her presence but it was too late. Sakura drew her sword and the pummel connected squarely with the Valkyrie's jaw. Brains rattled and knees weak the Valkyrie fell to the ground with a dull thud.

"Explain," Sakura commanded calmly. The other three, a man, and two women, jumped back in fear. They were dressed much like butlers, the only difference was the Casino tag pinned to their tuxes. A horse running at breakneck speeds. Whatever significance it had was unimportant.

"Spare us! We're only chasing a swindler!" One of the women squeaked. Mist escaped from Sakura's sword as she pondered whether she could read the minds of the living. Back in Koleston, she had tried to infiltrate the minds of the Petals at Frederick's request but she was only able to obtain slivers of information. Much of which was already known, the rest indicated that a cunning follower of Risa's had taken charge of the Black Rose. Sakura couldn't discover her identity or her appearance.

"I'll only knock you out," Sakura reassured them before mist lashed out and engulfed their minds. Her stigmata at the base of her back glowed and she clasped her hands together for communion. She stood atop the still ocean of the mind again. The three poor souls had sunken beneath the surface that reflected an abyssal sky.

It was a technique she thought of on her own. It was much too troublesome to commune directly. If she were to inherit all the memories of her victims her mind would explode. Inside she pooled them into one collective pool and threw questions into the calm ocean.

"Why were you chasing the pair?"

The water shifted and a split screen of three memories played. The sound of their voices was foggy and muddled but the intention of the memory was easy enough to make out. The man was the dealer and he was responsible for managing a table. A card game placed with bets. Whatever rules they followed didn't matter. What was important was that he dealt with Sasha's table. The women looked rather the same. They were twins and they handed Sasha and Agon the coins. Sasha didn't look all too happy at the winnings but if it were the case why didn't she just leave the money behind?

Sakura thought for a moment and decided to ask something else. A few lights slowly cracked through the abyssal ceiling, she couldn't maintain this form for long. It was, however, an improvement as her previous tries couldn't last longer than minutes. Almost ten minutes had passed.

'The weaker the mind the longer the duration,' She surmised. 'No I'm feeling quite weak, it's taking a toll on me. Then it's the opponent's strength compared to mine. Maybe the amount of people matters as well.'