—The Depths of the Sea of Quanta—
The wide platform, formed from condensed quantum cubes, was littered with the remains of slain Honkai beasts.
Beneath the towering cherry blossom tree, tension ran high—the atmosphere had dropped to absolute zero.
On one side stood Kagura, Himeko, and Seele, who had carved their way here by annihilating every quantum Honkai beast guarding the path.
On the other side stood the man beneath the sakura tree—calm, composed, and unmoving.
He was the origin of the Serpent, the core of the World Serpent organization: Kevin Kaslana.
"So you've arrived… the girl who crossed worlds," Kevin said with quiet weight.
"My name is Kevin Kaslana. I hail from the ancient civilization that existed tens of thousands of years ago.
I was once a member of 'MOTH,' the special task force that fought against the Honkai. Now, I bear a new name—World Serpent."
Despite the overwhelming aura of Kagura and Himeko, Kevin remained unshaken.
"You, the one… possess the power to rewrite the world. From the moment you set foot in the Sea of Quanta, I've been watching you.
But you know nothing of our world. And blind action won't help us."
Ignoring Himeko and Seele entirely, Kevin strode forward and extended a hand to Kagura.
"So, join us, girl from another world. Join the World Serpent.
Help me re-enter the real world, help us destroy the Honkai once and for all—and I'll give you anything you desire."
"Oh? That's quite the tempting offer." Kagura narrowed her eyes at him. "But tell me—why should I help you?"
She gave a light chuckle. "I don't care for your grand ambitions or cryptic schemes. I came to your world as a traveler, not a savior. I just want a few souvenirs."
Her expression sharpened. "As far as I'm concerned, getting Miss Himeko and little Seele back to the real world is my top priority.
As for you and your World Serpent… I've heard rumors. That you're a threat to the world."
"A threat… hmm." Kevin gave a dismissive scoff. "Let me guess—Welt Yang told you that, didn't he?
He probably said something like 'The Serpant's a catastrophic threat to the real world.' Typical. So naive. So foolish."
"Are you denying it then, Mr. Kaslana?" Kagura's tone turned colder.
"You talk about saving the world from Honkai, yet you use Honkai. You command Honkai beasts as your soldiers.
You tried to coerce Seele into opening the barrier between this realm and the real world. Tell me—how is anyone supposed to trust you?"
"They're just tools. Means to an end. What could a stranger like you possibly understand?" Kevin waved a hand dismissively, staring at the three women with disdain.
"My only goal is that humanity will be free from honkai. How I do it is irrelevant."
"Honkai beasts, fused warriors, Valkyries, even Herrschers—and even you, If power can be used, I'll use it."
As he spoke, the eternal sakura tree behind him suddenly burst into flames—like the end of days descending from the heavens, a brilliant and terrifying display of fiery transcendence.
"I don't know what kind of world you comes from." Kevin's voice was steady, unwavering.
"But when I saw my own civilization obliterated by Honkai."
Kagura already knew some of this—back in her own world, she'd read about it.
Honkai Impact 3rd may have had a chaotic story, but Kevin's part was always clear.
In the lore, humanity had experienced two great civilizations.
One is the present-day world. The other existed 50,000 years ago—an advanced, flourishing civilization that was eventually destroyed by the Honkai.
Kevin Kaslana was one of the few survivors of that ancient world.
After witnessing its annihilation, after seeing the Honkai win and reduce everything to cinders, he stood alone beneath a burned cherry blossom tree and swore a vow:
"No matter the cost—humanity will overcome Honkai!"
But when a person sacrifices everything—their principles, their humanity—in pursuit of one goal, they don't save the world.
They become a demon, consumed by flames on the path of self-destruction.
Kagura sighed softly and glanced toward the two beside her: Himeko and Seele.
Himeko Murata—a seasoned Valkyrie. Strong, mature, but with a quiet sadness in her eyes.
She once fought alone against the Herrscher of the Void to protect her comrades, burning herself out in flames of defiance.
Even when her body was torn apart, she kept moving forward.
In her final act, she injected the anti-Honkai serum meant to save her life into the Herrscher instead—awakening the real Kiana Kaslana (K-423) buried deep within.
That one act saved her friend.
But Himeko herself was lost—falling alone into the Sea of Quanta.
Seele Vollerei—a girl who grew up in solitude.
Raised in an orphanage run by Cocolia, she found something there she never had before: a home.
And she met someone who would become her closest friend—Bronya Zaychik.
However, happy times never last forever.
The orphanage may have been a warm home, but it was far from a peaceful sanctuary.
The Cocolia Orphanage was committed to researching ways to combat the Honkai, and nearly all of the children adopted into it eventually became test subjects in various human experiments related to Honkai energy.
And those experiments… were often cruel, dangerous, and unpredictable.
During one of these experiments, something went terribly wrong.
Seele's body underwent an uncontrollable quantum transformation—causing her to become trapped in the Sea of Quanta, possibly forever.
Despite her fragile appearance, Seele was kind-hearted and possessed a quiet inner strength.
She was the type who would rather endure pain herself than hurt anyone else.
Timid but tenacious, she would never give up easily.
Even in the dark, cold abyss of the Sea of Quanta, Seele never once forgot her promise to her best friend.
She waited patiently, clinging to the hope that Bronya would one day come for her.
"Kevin… maybe you carry the weight of countless lives.
Maybe your past is tragic enough to move others to tears.
Maybe the justice in your heart is so resolute that nothing could ever make you waver."
Kagura's eyes sharpened.
She raised her right hand as the crimson glow of the Reality Stone shimmered in her palm.
"But do you really think you're the only one this world has scarred? That you alone get to flaunt your tragic backstory like a badge of honor?!"
[Reality Rewrite]
[Pseudo Armament: Spiritblade — Frozen Naraka]
A blade, beautiful as crystallized ice, manifested in Kagura's hand.
This elegant katana hailed from the Honkai universe—it once belonged to Sakura, a comrade of Kevin's and a warrior of "MOTH," the fire-chasing squad from the previous civilization.
Kevin's pupils shrank at the sight of it. "That blade…"
"What's wrong?," Kagura replied coolly. "I'm what you'd call a 'world observer' in some sense.
I've heard many things about your world—about you. I know more about your past than you might think."
She pointed the icy blade at him, her voice unwavering.
"Kevin, you've lost your way on the path you call 'destroying the Honkai.' Your methods, your beliefs—everything you cling to is twisted and broken."
"I refuse to support you. I refuse to help you return to the real world.
Because no matter how righteous you think you are, neither Himeko nor Seele could ever accept a future where their world is destroyed by your hands."
"You speak of justice, but compared to the brave Valkyries who sacrifice themselves to protect others, you—twisted by your own obsession and willing to trample everything in your path—aren't even worth mentioning."
"…..What a shame."
Kevin's eyes darkened, and his expression turned into something monstrous—like a wrathful deity.
"So, there's nothing left to talk about?"
"Fine then. If I can't have your help, I'll just defeat you—turn you into a puppet, and force your power to serve me!"
Sensing his murderous intent, Himeko and Seele immediately drew their weapons and assumed battle stances.
Kagura gripped her spiritblade tightly, the cold aura radiating from it chilling the air.
"I may just be a traveler in this world, a stranger with no stake in it… But I believe in kindness, in justice, in the strength of the human spirit.
No matter what world we're in—those things never change."
"That's why, Kevin Kaslana… I will defeat you here and now.
And I'll make sure the ones who truly fight for a better future—the ones who endured unimaginable pain waiting to reunite with those they love—can return to the world they belong in."
'VMMM—!'
Kevin swung his hand forward, summoning a grotesque, spherical quantum Honkai beast.
"Hmph. Don't think wielding Sakura's blade makes you her equal. Sakura never once managed to defeat me."
Kagura smiled faintly, eyes sharp as frost.
"Is that so? Then let's see if I can."