There was no need for Carius reminder—in the very instant the Ice Herrscher appeared, hundreds of kilometers away, Ryan looked up.
At first, his expression shifted. He thought the Herrscher had outplayed his prediction-of-a-prediction, staging an empty-city bluff and going all-in.
That would've been a disaster—millions of lives lost, all on his shoulders. So when Carius transmitted the actual intel, Ryan finally exhaled in relief.
A second Herrscher.
Unexpected, yes. But also… oddly comforting.
Because no matter how cunning his plans, a surprise assault by two Herrschers combined meant they'd have to assemble every fusion warrior just to stand a chance. Which meant strategy was now secondary.
"You really are the king of playing it safe, huh? Still testing me even now?"
Ryan gritted his teeth. It was a blatant test. If he was truly in Britannia, he should go deal with the Ice Herrscher. If he didn't show—then he wasn't there.
So… what now?
Forces from the Mu continent wouldn't arrive in time. Even if Elysia and Kevin came, the two Herrschers would simply vanish. The abandoned and fallen zones were too vast for a game of cat and mouse.
The comms kept buzzing, but Ryan ignored them. Instead, he compiled all clues, raised his perspective, and surveyed the bigger picture.
He and Sakura together couldn't handle two Herrschers, not with that wave of Honkai beasts pouring in. He couldn't defeat them, nor save Britannia.
One plan after another surfaced, only to be ruled out. On the tactical map, multiple Honkai energy clusters were spreading toward various cities—it had clearly been coordinated long in advance.
Finally, Ryan focused on three threads:
The massive Honkai energy in the North Sea likely signaled the Fifth Herrscher.The Wind Herrscher decision to stay behind likely held deeper meaning.Most importantly—and only Ryan knew this—the Herrschers' authority over their spawn was non-overlapping.
In the post-Civilization era, each Herrscher Honkai beasts answered to them alone. Even other Herrschers couldn't control them.
Whether this trait existed in the pre-Civilization era was unclear, but it was enough for Ryan to make a gamble.
"Sakura, take the Punishment Sword squad and retreat immediately. Raven has dispatched helicopters to pick you up. And… don't run too fast."
Carius had indeed sent extraction forces, and even Mu was dispatching reinforcements. Remaining troops were stalling the advance. According to supercomputer forecasts, humans should be able to hold the central stronghold of Lundewum—assuming there was only one Herrscher.
Even Vinal was dumbfounded. Sakura too was stunned by the ever-changing tides—forward, retreat, live, die—all decided on a knife's edge.
After several seconds, Sakura eyes flickered.
"Don't tell me you're…"
"The Fourth Herrscher possesses some form of cloaking authority. As long as she remains on guard, I'll never find her. But once you're gone, she'll have no reason to keep hiding."
If she couldn't detect Ryan, logic dictated that he hadn't arrived—or was still on his way with reinforcements from Mu.
Staying meant dying. Better to unite with the Fifth Herrscher and raze Britannia. Afterwards, they could leave behind scorched ruins and simply vanish.
"But then… no one will be able to support you."
"A thousand soldiers are just spectators. It's up to me to decide the outcome. Trust me—this is my specialty."
Victory or defeat? If trading Britannia for one Herrscher, it might not be a bad bargain.
Sakura didn't argue or waste words. She just gave a firm nod.
"Alright. Be careful."
Ryan smiled. Trusting your comrade, following orders—that was the Sakura he knew.
'There, I've evacuated everyone. You're completely safe now.'
Ryan crouched in the rooftop shadows, his presence fading into utter stillness.
"Let's see where you run when six hours are up."
They really left?
The N1 bombs had wide damage radii, but not quite apocalyptic. When the Honkai beasts surged forward again, they only found humans retreating to the coast—under the cover of aircraft.
The Wind Herrscher noted all of this, processing it rapidly.
Humanity needed time to recover from shock.
A second Herrscher appearing so suddenly?
Totally reasonable for their response systems to seize up.
They'd need to reassess, gather reinforcements, reorient their defense lines—at least five hours.
"If he's not here, then I'll use that window to complete our primary objective."
The Fourth Herrscher finally rose. Her intentions were obvious: destroy the world like rolling a snowball—build momentum, then vanish.
She reached out telepathically to her fellow Herrscher:
"You take the east. I'll handle the west. We regroup at Lundewum. Win or lose—withdraw in six hours."
"We're not going to engage the humans?"
"No need. Destruction creates more death soldiers. It saturates the land with 'Honkai.' Humans will waste months cleaning it up. While they're preoccupied, we'll strike the other side of the world."
"Total defense is total weakness. Emotions are humanity's greatest flaw."
The Ice Herrscher relished this vulnerability. It made things easier.
The Wind Herrscher even smiled—a kind of emotion beyond joy—as she ascended, speeding toward the frontlines.
If it came to long-range mobility, not even the Sky Herrscher could match her.
Five hours to wipe out Britannia. Then on to Australia. Repeat. Repeat. Eventually, even he would wear down.
Wind currents lifted her. The persistent storm around Latinburg dissipated—her authority recalled to concentrate energy on speed.
And then—
Hmm???
A bolt of lightning fell from the sky.
No warning. No buildup. Just sudden and absolute.
Before she could even react, it struck her hard.
BOOOM!!
The sound of thunder arrived late, echoing like a muffled drum. The violet bolt engulfed her entirely, dissolving her external Honkai field. The residual energy scorched her nerves.
The city center lit up with blinding light. Headless tank wrecks melted into slag. A giant crater carved into the ground.
This was…
The Wind Herrscher collapsed, body crackling with residual current. She slowly, painfully raised her head—
—and saw a silhouette in the gray sky above.
He's here… Why?!
Her mind, slowed by the lightning, reeled in disbelief.
An impossibility had become reality.
Not only was the target here—he had been here the entire time, right under her nose. How? How did he hide? How did he avoid detection?
No answer came. But one sensation was clear:
Killing intent. Bone-chilling killing intent.
"Surprised? Didn't expect that, huh?"
Ryan stared down from above. No explanation. Just a slowly widening grin.
Finally… I've got you.
When the "barrier" faded, he had immediately focused his Honkai energy on detection. The Herrscher might disappear from sight—but not from the electromagnetic field.
Bait. Traps. Patience.
In that, I win. Intelligence?
Sorry, I predicted your prediction of my prediction.
CLANG—
Raikiri.
The sword was drawn. No time to bask in victory. A circular wave of lightning carved across the earth.
In a heartbeat, a 30-story building was sliced down the middle, collapsing sideways. Burst water pipes shot skyward.
A blur of motion shot through the dust. Ryan dove, his gaze locked on another crumbling building blown apart by an air cannon.
Debris scattered. Just before the shockwave could reach him, he let go of his sword and threw a punch.
Thunderstrike Breaker!
Chi Xiao turned into a lightning bullet, an unstoppable blade, piercing through the air cannon and hitting the head of the rising Herrscher.
A miss?
The Wind Herrscher paused. She didn't even care how Ryan had appeared—just exploited her strengths immediately.
No. Ryan was anchoring her to the ground.
Blown back but unrelenting, he returned with a vengeance. While she paused, he burst through flying debris, body arched, lightning-wreathed fist raised.
BOOM!!
A bloom of electricity exploded on the ground. Two blurred figures blasted through the dust, smashing through building after building.
His fist crashed into her teal staff. Ryan stared into the Herrscher face—blackened with scorch marks, but expressionless.
"Human. Your planning is impressive. But you forgot one thing."
"That I can't beat you, right?" Ryan finished for her.
He pulled back his fist—then body-slammed her like a mountain.
WHOOSH—BOOM!
A follow-up slam crushed an apartment complex. With a flick of his finger, Akashic returned from the sky—only to be deflected by a sudden tornado.
Ryan reached out, caught the blade, gave it a sharp flick.
"And you… forgot something too."
He stepped forward. Faster. Stronger. Toward the tornado—like it couldn't shred him to pieces.
The Punishment Sword squad had paid dearly. The defensive line had been broken. Thousands were dying every second.
The appearance of the Ice Herrscher had shaken him.
But now—all of that became one emotion.
Ryan burst through the cyclone. Energy flared off his body. His clothes shredded into rags.
Muscles sparkled with lightning.
Gripping his sword with both hands—he slashed upward at the fleeing Herrscher.
CLANG!!
Wind met thunder. Chi Xiao struck her staff mid-air, smashing her back to the ground.
Her face was still as a mask—yet something within was clearly unraveling.
"This is what you call—"
"The determination to succeed or die trying!!!"