Said everything?!
Kiana's eyes immediately narrowed. She leaned close to Seele's ear and whispered anxiously, "Did they even know that I've gained half a pound recently?"
Mei's gaze immediately drifted over. She looked Kiana up and down with a rather surprised expression, then confirmed that what Kiana had said was true.
It seemed Kiana really had...
Seele looked puzzled. "They definitely wouldn't say that..."
"Phew..." Kiana breathed a sigh of relief, then patted her stomach, feeling the soft texture through her clothes. For the first time, she hesitated before the food in front of her.
Just one piece of toast... it should... be fine, right?
After swallowing, Kiana still reached her guilty hand towards the piece of toast.
A fair but not so slender hand suddenly reached out from the side and grabbed Kiana's hand as it reached for the toast. The immense force made Kiana feel for a moment as if she couldn't move.
Kiana looked up blankly and saw Shu, his eyes slightly red, staring intently at the toast in front of her.
A barely perceptible wave of air rippled from Shu's body, well-controlled by him. Only Kiana, who was in contact with him, could feel the strong wind swirling on her skin.
"What..." Kiana immediately sensed that something was wrong. But just as she was about to ask, she saw Shu raise a hand and make a shushing gesture.
Then Shu picked up the tray of toast and turned to walk out of the cafeteria.
Everyone noticed Shu's somewhat unusual reaction. Kiana and Mei exchanged a glance, and a silent communication passed between them.
Kiana got up and chased after him. Mei remained in her seat, her hand gently resting on the hilt of the Xuanyuan Sword, her entire being focused and ready to strike at any moment.
After leaving the cafeteria building, Kiana quickened her pace to catch up with Shu, keeping her voice low. "What's wrong with this tray of toast?"
Shu held up a hand between Kiana and the tray of toast. "It's the residual authority of that Herrscher..."
Kiana's eyes widened. She wanted to look but didn't dare. "Is that Herrscher here?"
"No." Shu shook his head decisively. I've already searched every corner here and found no trace of the Herrscher...
Both of their gazes fell on the tray of toast in Shu's hand. "Except for here."
After a moment of silence, Kiana scratched her head. "But if it's not here, then how did traces of a Herrscher suddenly appear? Can it... from a distance..."
"It should be like that..." Shu's expression was not good. "Its mastery of its authority is very high, and it might also be quite familiar with this place..."
But that didn't make sense either. A problematic breakfast just happened to appear in front of Kiana. Although it could be a coincidence, when thinking about it, one had to first rule out the possibility of a coincidence.
Extremizing every problem and thinking in the worst-case scenario was the mindset Shu should have.
His opponent also had long-range surveillance methods... This wasn't surprising. The Herrscher of Evolution could also achieve remote monitoring through its proliferating eyeballs, not to mention the absolute control of the Herrschers of Remembrance and the Dream within their respective domains.
And this unknown Herrscher clearly possessed a domain-type ability...
So were they still within his opponent's domain?
Shu narrowed his eyes. The next moment, he took a step away from Kiana, and the tray of breakfast in his hand slowly floated up.
Kiana consciously took two steps back, giving Shu more space.
A small, iridescent sphere appeared on the tray. Then, the marble-sized sphere began to expand rapidly like a bubble, instantly growing to envelop Kiana's entire field of vision.
When the thin film passed through her body, Kiana subconsciously raised a hand to block it. It felt like a gentle breeze passing through her, making her feel quite comfortable.
The leaves, the grass, everything in the orphanage felt this wind and trembled slightly.
Only the tray and the toast were crushed into dust by the colored bubble, as if they had encountered some terrifying force.
Kiana looked at Shu and saw that he was already holding that splendid scepter, his originally short hair now grown to his calves.
Except for his clothes not having changed into that formal robe, Shu had completely transformed into his appearance from the dreamscape.
"Shu!" Kiana quickly took two steps forward. Shu turned his head. The pinkish-purple eyes that seemed to contain an entire nebula made Kiana's heart tremble.
"I've deployed a very shallow layer of the [Dreamscape]," Shu said. "I'm not sure if this can block his domain and methods, but at least I can detect his every little move here more promptly."
"But this state should consume a lot of energy, right?" Kiana asked anxiously after coming back to her senses, pulling on Shu's arm. "I know you're not at full power right now, but this consumption is still..."
"So we have to hurry... either we quickly take everyone and leave, or we find that Herrscher and deal with it..." Shu nodded, uncomfortably brushing aside his long hair.
Kiana saw Shu's pointed ears, opened her mouth, then turned and asked again, "Then how many days can you last, Shu? If it really comes down to it, I'll tie everyone up tonight and send them to the train!"
"It doesn't have to be like that..." Shu broke out in a sweat. "This dreamscape can last for three days without a problem. Cocolia will be back the day after tomorrow. As long as we talk to her, we can take everyone away in one day. We still have a day to spare."
In reality, Shu could maintain this barrier for seven days. Three days was a conservative estimate given by Shu to ensure he was in perfect condition. Because if the time exceeded three days, Shu couldn't guarantee that he could perform at 100%.
Because when maintaining the [Dreamscape], Shu had to stay awake.
"Alright..." Kiana sighed, patting her stomach with lingering fear.
Luckily, she had hesitated. If she had just eaten it without a second thought, she would have probably fallen into the trap. Who knew what would have happened if she had eaten that breakfast...
Would she have turned into a puppet like the one that had fought Shu?
In a place that neither Shu nor Kiana noticed, an invisible thread was wrapped around Kiana's fingers. One end of it floated in the air, as if its connection had been severed.
But the other end was tightly wound around Kiana's wrist, just waiting for the next person to pull it.