Shigure Kira felt that this was no time to be a coward. She should stand up and fight Noldrei to the bitter end, if only to protect these Bubble Universes.
But another voice in her heart was telling her: Run! Your sacrifice is meaningless, you can't beat them! Go back to the Eigenworld, back to the Candy House, and tell them what happened!
'Huh? Wait, did they mention Durandal and Rita?'
The familiar names brought Shigure Kira's racing thoughts to a halt, only to plunge her into a different kind of impasse.
Meanwhile, the discussion between Senti and Noldrei didn't stop. Instead, it moved to another level of consideration.
"But, by doing this, aren't you just letting the Cocoon of Finality expand? Spreading out from our world and seeping into the Sea of Quanta... are you sure the Cocoon of Finality won't absorb the power of the Sea of Quanta and evolve?"
Senti-Mobius felt Noldrei's actions were far too reckless. If some irreversible mistake were to occur, wouldn't the Cocoon of Finality become terrifyingly powerful?
Noldrei, however, seemed unconcerned by such a question. He explained, "Have you forgotten? The Cocoon of Finality, or rather, the Honkai, has already been born in many different worlds. They are clearly not the same individual, yet they operate on the same underlying logic."
Senti-Mobius suddenly realized something. The expression on her face stiffened slightly as she asked, "What do you mean? The Cocoon of Finality... the Honkai has already infiltrated the Sea of Quanta?"
"There's no need to question it. Even the power of the Imaginary Space beyond the solar system serves as further proof of Dr. Einstein's theory. Imaginary Energy and Honkai Energy are classic second-hand energies."
Noldrei was even more certain of this than Einstein.
Suddenly learning that her boss had such a badass background left Senti somewhat speechless. No matter how she thought about it, she couldn't understand how such a powerful Cocoon of Finality had ended up in its current predicament.
Could it be that there really was some legendary, unseen will of heaven helping humanity?
The Herrscher of Sentience fell into contemplation, a contemplation born from doubting her boss's abilities.
"Forget it, I'm not going to think about it anymore. Since we have a way to deal with Sa without having to go out, let's hurry back and take care of her."
Senti-Mobius said this and prepared to connect to the Eigenworld and begin their return journey.
"Wait a minute!"
Shigure Kira finally chose to step forward. Though her legs were still trembling, she mustered her courage and stood up.
"Which world are you from?! Do you know the Schicksal Valkyries? What is your relationship with Valkyrie Rita and the others?"
Being stopped and questioned by this girl was a little unusual.
It had been a long time since Noldrei had experienced his royal procession being interrupted. In the past, right after his coronation, people would occasionally stop him to say hello.
After his face became public knowledge, it happened even less.
"Schicksal?" Hearing the name, Senti subconsciously glanced at Noldrei.
What Schicksal or Anti-Entropy was there now? They had long since been reorganized by Noldrei into a new organization.
"Were you a Schicksal Valkyrie?" Senti-Mobius took a step forward, pressing her.
Shigure Kira took a nervous step back, her eyes warily fixed on Senti. "The Honkai Energy on you... you're not wearing a Valkyrie battlesuit. Such a high concentration of Honkai Energy is definitely not something an ordinary being can withstand. In my memory, only Herrschers or pseudo-humanoid Honkai Beasts have similar abilities."
"What exactly are you? You can't be a Valkyrie! What happened to Durandal and Rita?!"
Senti-Mobius had a brief mental exchange with Noldrei before informing her, "Durandal went off to become a Herrscher, and Rita is taking care of the Herrschers at home."
"Ah... a Herrscher?!"
Shigure Kira froze for a moment, her eyes turning into tiny dots.
She felt like she had misheard something. Was there a problem somewhere?
That Durandal, the Bianka Ataegina, the pride of the Valkyries, had gone off to become a Herrscher?
And what did "Rita is taking care of the Herrschers at home" mean? Don't tell me the Herrschers started a family or something?
"You must be messing with me! Deliberately trying to provoke me! Right?!"
Shigure Kira flew into a rage. She was convinced these two were looking down on her, making up stories to provoke her and play with her.
Noldrei slapped his own forehead. He wondered if he had run into some kind of idiot.
He believed that everything he did was for the good of human civilization, but why was he constantly getting entangled with these morons?
Noldrei couldn't help but ask, "This... lady? May I ask, what would I gain by provoking you? What would I gain by messing with you?"
"To...?! I..." Shigure Kira hadn't expected Noldrei to answer a question with a question. She stammered for a long time, unable to figure out why they would be messing with her.
"To... watch me... make a fool of myself?" she asked Noldrei uncertainly.
"Are you f—king asking me?! Weren't you the one who attacked us?! Apologize to Little Mei right now! Do you have no manners as a person from Earth?"
Noldrei decided to give up on thinking and use the traditional Earthling method to get his point across.
To his surprise, after he said that, Shigure Kira did indeed remember that she had been the one to attack them.
She quickly bowed her head and apologized. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have attacked you! Huh?"
Shigure Kira felt that something wasn't quite right. She looked up again, glaring at Noldrei angrily. "Why should I apologize? Weren't you the one who blew up the tower in their holy city?! You even summoned Honkai Energy and killed the locals of this world!"
'You actually apologized!'
Noldrei and Senti stared at this idiot in shock.
They hadn't expected someone to actually mistake Sa's agent for a local. But Senti could understand, since the agent hadn't shown any non-local characteristics before taking action.
And there was more than one or two of these agents lying in wait in various Bubble Universes.
At this moment, Shigure Kira perhaps realized that she wouldn't be able to escape the clutches of these two villains without showing her true strength.
A layer of a slick, slimy, armor-like creation began to appear on her body, and from it, a multitude of greenish tentacles began to sprout and sway.
This sight utterly disgusted the Herrscher of Sentience. She never thought she'd run into someone in a Bubble Universe who shared Noldrei's aesthetic preferences.
Noldrei immediately grinned. "See? I told you my taste is universally appreciated. You primitives didn't believe me, but now you do, right?"
Then, he turned to Shigure Kira with a serious expression. "I shall interact with you in an equivalent form!"
As Shigure Kira watched with a stunned, wooden expression, Noldrei transformed into an identical outfit. Except Noldrei's transformation was more complete; he didn't even have a human form anymore.
"Why aren't you reacting? Don't you like this?" Noldrei was a little puzzled. Why had this woman suddenly gone silent?
'Like hell I do!'