After receiving all the Divine Keys from Vill-V, Elias—if the thousand Cores of the Herrscher of Dominance were counted as one—had now become a Thirteen-Core Herrscher.
At the same time, he had learned from the mistakes of the first cycle. This time, he had already ordered all humans of the Previous Era to evacuate into the bubble world.
Now, as long as Finality didn't suddenly appear in the next second, Elias wouldn't have to risk his life buying time as he once did.
Incidentally, to align history with the development of the Current Era, Elias had the Fire Moth forge two Holy Blades Durandal. One of them had been "accidentally" dropped into the Sea of Quanta.
He was just waiting for that silly goose from the future to find it.
"No matter how much I strengthen civilization, Finality remains Finality. Hmm... maybe in the eyes of the Honkai, even without boosting the Herrscher of Finality's power, she already possesses enough strength to crush humanity and restart civilization," Elias murmured to himself, fiddling with a Divine Key in his hand.
It was undoubtedly true. If not for his existence, the Previous Era would have lasted at most half a day before being wiped out and reset. But now... things were different.
After ten cycles, Elias had already mastered the Herrscher of Finality's behavioral pattern. To be honest, he could fight her blindfolded—or even without fighting at all.
After all, once Finality descended, everyone from the Previous Era would already be safely evacuated into the bubble world. Even if she rebooted civilization, it wouldn't matter.
"Well... not exactly. I still need to fight a bit—at least enough to let Prometheus become the Will of Honkai. Besides, my plan also requires the Herrscher of Finality's assistance."
Elias narrowed his eyes, reviewing "that plan" in his mind for what must've been the ten-thousandth time, searching for flaws. After confirming its feasibility, he smiled once more.
He looked up at the bright moon hanging high in the night sky.
It felt surreal to him—how calm he was. There wasn't a trace of anxiety in him, only the feeling of someone about to meet an old friend.
"Sorry, Finality. But for my plan to work, I'll have to drain you dry this time."
Though technically, one Herrscher still remained before her, Elias couldn't even be bothered to prepare for Corruption. In all ten cycles, she was always the easiest to deal with—Honkai itself practically sent her as a freebie.
He glanced at the last two hourglasses.
The one representing Corruption had less than a day left.
The one representing Finality—less than two.
...
Ten hours later, within the Fire Moth base—
When the Herrscher of Corruption descended, Elias swiftly brought Rin to a completely isolated room and extracted the Gem of Corruption from her before a few seconds had even passed since its birth.
He then skillfully transferred the Herrscher of Corruption's consciousness into the pre-prepared body of Higokumaru.
Then—
"Uwahhh! I surrender! Please let me go! I'll do anything you want, just don't kill me!"
"You're always like this every time..."
Having lost her authority, the Herrscher of Corruption—or rather, Higokumaru—trembled in fear, kneeling before Elias and kowtowing repeatedly, forehead knocking against the floor.
Elias raised his hand and gently patted her head, his gaze full of warmth and fondness—eyes soft as if looking at a beloved child.
It was only natural. After all, this girl had always been the most obedient and least troublesome of all Herrschers.
Compared to the others, the Herrscher of Corruption was by far the easiest to deal with. She required no effort at all.
In fact, Elias could tell from her treatment that the Honkai itself seemed eager to skip straight to the final boss. Corruption's setup was so half-hearted—no massive Honkai Eruption, not even a companion Honkai Beast like most Herrschers had.
She really felt like a bonus gift—like a promotional freebie with no real importance.
"Don't worry, there's no need to be afraid, Corruption. You're so well-behaved and sensible—why would we ever hurt you? Ah~ I just wish the next Herrscher could learn from you a little."
"Oh right, from now on, your new name will be Higokumaru. From this day forward, live well among humans. Believe me—a bright and beautiful future awaits you."
Elias spoke gently, comforting the Herrscher of Corruption.
"Eh?"
At that moment, Corruption was stunned. Honkai had given her no instructions whatsoever—meaning she had been sent simply to die quickly and make way for Finality's grand entrance.
She had already resigned herself to that fate. She'd only been alive for a few seconds before her Core, containing her consciousness, had been extracted by Elias.
This poor girl had completely lost hope.
But not only did Elias spare her, he even gave her an adorable new body, embraced her gently, and spoke to her with such warmth that she was left utterly speechless. Why... why is this human treating me so kindly?
Yet she couldn't help but feel a strange sense of familiarity toward him.
After all, in every one of the ten cycles, she had surrendered the instant she appeared—and every time, Elias had treated her kindly in return.
Aside from Elysia and Sheele, Higokumaru was perhaps the Herrscher Elias felt the most affection for in the entire Previous Era.
Thus, he gave the little girl the best treatment possible.
Fried tofu, cupcakes, pearl milk tea, molten chocolate, macarons, instant noodles...
Elias smiled and said, "Pick whatever you like. This is your reward for choosing to abandon the darkness. This new body, too—it's far better than your old data-virus form, which couldn't even enjoy good food."
Looking at the pile of delicious food before her, the newly reborn Herrscher hesitated. She wondered if it might be a trap, but even so, tears began streaming uncontrollably down her cheeks.
After taking a few cautious bites—
Higokumaru thought: (I want a new name! From now on, I'm not the Herrscher of Corruption—I am Higokumaru! Long live humanity, long live the Savior, long live Eli Gate!!)
Though still bound by Honkai's curse, in that moment, Higokumaru decided to switch sides.
"Honkai who? Never heard of it!" she declared proudly.
Watching the Herrscher who was now weeping and devouring her food at the same time, Elias remained calm—he had seen this sight many times before. But the other Flame-Chasers were completely dumbfounded.
They had never seen a Herrscher so easy to deal with!
Rin's expression was particularly complicated. After realizing she had been possessed by a Herrscher, she had assumed she was doomed.
But now, seeing Higokumaru, she thought, Wait... this is a Herrscher? She looks so harmless—and so obedient?
"Eat as much as you want, don't hold back. There's plenty more," Elias said kindly.
"Th-thank you!"
Higokumaru tearfully bowed her head in gratitude. As a poor child abandoned by Honkai itself, she never imagined she would find warmth and comfort among her supposed enemies.
After a brief moment of hesitation, she clutched the hem of Elias' clothes and spoke in a trembling voice.
"Um... you should all run away. The Herrscher of Finality will descend tomorrow. If you don't escape now, it'll be too late!"
"!!"
Even Elias was surprised this time.
Though he already knew the information, the fact that Higokumaru herself said it meant she had truly betrayed the Honkai.
"Thank you, Higokumaru. But it's fine—we're already prepared to face Finality. When she arrives tomorrow, we'll show her what humanity is capable of."
"No! You don't understand! This time... this time the Honkai means business! I can feel it—since I'm the last Herrscher before her, I can sense it clearly! Aside from Finality... something else—something terrifying—is coming with her!"
"Something... else?"
Elias frowned.
This was new. No such information had appeared in any of the previous cycles.
No way... could Honkai really be strengthening Finality just for this last loop?
"I don't know exactly what it is," Higokumaru continued, clutching her head in fear, "but if you escape this planet, you'll be safe! Please, just go—don't stay here!"
As the Herrscher who appeared before Finality's descent, she could faintly sense the arrival of that great terror—the destroyer of countless civilizations—a god beyond defeat.
"It's fine. Don't worry," Elias said, patting her head gently.
"Eh?"
Higokumaru froze. The white-haired youth before her had already regained his calm confidence—and that steady aura, cultivated through eleven cycles of saving the world, brought peace to her trembling body.
"We don't have anything left to fear. The Herrscher of Finality is just an extra challenge for us now. As long as we avoid casualties, we'll just do our best... Besides—"
Elias said this as he inserted the Gem of Corruption into Jizo Mitama.
Then, using the Herrscher of the Void's authority, he synchronized the Gem with the Key of Blankness.
In the next instant, a terrifying, indescribable power erupted from him—so overwhelming that Higokumaru stood frozen, utterly stunned. For a brief moment, she even thought the person before her was the Herrscher of Finality herself.
Elias smiled. "We might not lose this time."
Reason, Void, Thunder, Wind, Ice, Death, Fire, Sentience, Earth, Dominance, Binding, Corruption—twelve Herrscher powers gathered within one pure-white being.
The overwhelming surge of Honkai energy—beyond any instrument's capacity to measure—darkened the sky itself, as though the end of the world had already come.
At that moment, the pure-white youth bearing the Signets of [Deliverance] and [Eternity] wielded the combined might of every Herrscher to have ever appeared. In both the Previous and Current Eras, he stood unrivaled.
Elias looked into the distance and smiled faintly. "Finality, my old friend... I hope you last a little longer this time."
...
The next day, on the surface of the moon—
The Flame-Chasers had assembled on the battlefield. Elias crushed the last hourglass in his hand. This would be the final battle, and every ounce of strength he had was ready.
As they looked at the white-haired youth standing at the front, holding Sagittarius Astra and the Dea Anchora, Kevin and the others felt their blood boil.
This was the battlefield they had dreamed of—not because they longed to fight the Herrscher of Finality, but because they could fight alongside Elias.
In the soundless void of space, their hearts thundered like war drums.
Then—
[Warning! Warning! Ultra-high-intensity Honkai energy detected! Data beyond upper limit! Unable to analyze! Unable to analyze!]
A shrill alarm echoed through their tactical headsets as the moon itself trembled under the eruption of unimaginable Honkai energy.
From a golden rift in the void—
A god descended.
Her height exceeded a thousand meters. Her golden eyes, filled with divine authority, gazed down upon the world itself with cold indifference.
Exactly as Elias remembered—the Herrscher of Finality wore a blue-and-white divine gown, a golden halo hovering above her head, long white hair like snow, and wings of Honkai energy spanning ten thousand meters.
Divine beyond measure. Beautiful beyond comprehension.
Merciless beyond reason. Terrifying beyond belief.
"The time of Finality has come. All shall return to the cycle."
The Goddess of Honkai proclaimed the end of the world.
Before that immense pressure, ordinary people could not even think of resistance—most couldn't even summon the courage to meet her gaze.
Yet the Flame-Chasers' fighting spirit burned brighter than ever—all of them trembled with excitement as they gripped their weapons.
Just as Elias prepared to greet his "old friend" with either Taixuan Eminence or the Moonlight Throne—
"Elias, wait! Something's wrong!"
"What is it, Mei?"
"I'm detecting a second Honkai energy signature! And it's identical to the Herrscher of Finality's—its energy level can't be measured! Could it be... two Finalities? No! Wait—it's... a Honkai Beast!"
Mei's urgent voice came through the tactical headset.
At the same moment, everyone sensed something was amiss.
(Wait... where's Earth?)
Normally, even from the moon's surface, the Earth could be seen clearly. Yet now—it was gone. Nowhere in sight.
And then—
The ground beneath them began to shake.
This wasn't from anyone's trembling legs. Something enormous was moving—something that could make the entire moon quiver.
The next second, a pair of colossal, sun-like eyes opened within the void.
ROOOOOOOAAAAAAR—!!!
It appeared.
A creature so vast it filled their entire field of vision. Its body glowed with ominous violet Honkai light, illuminating the dark expanse of space.
It was the entity that had blotted out the Earth and made the moon tremble—
A supermassive Honkai Beast.
"Target confirmed!" Mei shouted. "Diameter exceeds 5,000 kilometers—larger than the moon itself! Honkai energy concentration identical to the Herrscher of Finality—unmeasurable levels! This... this is... the Herrscher of Finality's companion Honkai Beast?!"
"So it seems..." Elias said, his expression unreadable as he stared at the creature before him—a monstrosity whose roar alone could shake the heavens.
A Honkai Beast larger than the moon itself.
Elias smirked faintly. "Honkai... you've really outdone yourself this time. A Planet-class Honkai Beast, huh? Quite the surprise."