"Decisive Strike!"
With her left hand on her hip and a bat slung over her shoulder, the little gray-haired girl looked full of spirit, head held high, brimming with pride.
"Hey, I'm telling you, can't you settle down for once?" Behind her, March 7th sat sideways, sighing helplessly and shaking her head.
Anyone who often deals with troublemakers knew at a glance that the gray-haired girl's stunt was definitely not something allowed.
What kind of sane person would leap off an airship just like that, blending in so recklessly?!
So what if you're strong, doesn't mean you can do whatever you want!
As for March 7th's grumbling, the gray-haired girl simply took it as praise.
To strike the enemy at the most critical moment requires not only strength, but also sharp observation and swift action.
And all of that, she had in spades!
...
The Herrscher of Ice's head was still spinning. She remembered that during her fight against the Herrscher of the Void, she was starting to lose ground.
She had been preparing to retreat, conserving her power, waiting for the right time, place, and conditions.
And then, something unknown fell from the sky… high-altitude projectile?!
"Heave-ho!" Using the Kaslana family's hereditary monstrous strength, Kallen effortlessly pulled the half-buried Herrscher of Ice out from the frozen ground.
"So strong, you actually knocked her out with one swing." Kallen leaned down, peering at Anna's peacefully sleeping face.
Even just from her appearance, it was clear she was in a deep, unnatural slumber.
There was even a strange blush across her forehead.
Blinking, Kallen tilted her head slightly, glancing at Stelle, who was being carefully treated by the gentle Himeko.
"Even though the outcome turned out well, that was far too reckless. You can't just charge ahead blindly next time." Himeko's voice carried gentle reproach.
The way Stelle had just dived down left her utterly stunned.
Luckily, things had developed in a favorable direction. That strange relic they'd picked up from the Herta Space Station still proved useful.
Stelle puffed out her chest proudly, like a triumphant general returning from victory.
"Kiana, are you okay?" Mei looked at Kiana with concern, her voice tight with worry.
The influence of Herrscher transformation wasn't always visible to the naked eye.
Considering the scale of the battle between the Herrscher of the Void and the Herrscher of Ice, the powers involved were immense, it was possible they had left unseen effects on Kiana's body or mind.
"Relax, Mei! I feel like I could take on a hundred Honkai beasts right now!" Kiana laughed, raising her arms to flex the tiniest of biceps.
Tiny, but still kind of cute.
After watching her for a while and confirming nothing seemed wrong, Mei finally let out a sigh of relief.
No one had expected the Herrscher of Ice to transform half of Coral Island into a prison, blocking their path.
Though they broke free soon enough.
Still, that she was defeated in such a short time was something no one had anticipated.
After tidying up, the group carried the still "sleeping" Herrscher of Ice back to the Hyperion.
...
Once they left, Coral Island, now a frozen wasteland, returned to silence.
The cold wave had ended, but the frigid temperatures continued to affect everything.
"Huff… shhh." Rubbing her arms, Raven couldn't help but shiver.
Her steps echoed softly on the ice, harder than steel, as her figure flitted between frozen spires.
This was her first time stepping into Coral Island since the Herrscher of Ice had emerged here.
Even though the Herrscher herself had been taken away, the lingering chill was still enough to make anyone tremble.
An ordinary person would last only minutes before fleeing, or risk cold burns from the extreme frost.
Here it was. She stopped walking.
In front of her was a sculpture of solid ice. Raven exhaled, a white cloud of breath dispersing in the air.
"You owe me for this."
Facing the massive block of ice, Raven scratched her head, then slowly extended the blood-red claws of her weapon.
...
Teresa frowned, looking at the Herrscher of Ice bound by Judah's chains.
"So, what do we do now?"
If this were the complete Herrscher of Ice, she would have taken out the Herrscher core without hesitation.
But Durandal's earlier words had proven that Anna's consciousness was still present.
And she had held the Herrscher of Ice within Coral Island for days, buying precious time for civilians to evacuate and for Schicksal to mount a counterattack.
Perhaps she had done wrong in the past. But now, she had acted as a true Valkyrie, defending the people.
Merits and mistakes don't cancel each other out. But you can't ignore her merits and only remember her sins.
For Anna Shariac, if there was even a chance, she should be saved. Not reduced to a cold Herrscher core on some lab table.
"Let her wake up. I'll speak with her," Kallen said. "Her defense of the people is worthy of a Valkyrie. Since that's the case, we can't give up hope, right, Durandal?"
"Mm. Kallen is right."
Hearing Kallen put it that way, Durandal nodded lightly.
It was what she had been thinking as well.
"Rita, please take care of her for now." Durandal turned to the maid, the one most skilled at looking after others.
"Since it is your command, Lady Durandal, I shall devote myself completely," Rita said with a soft smile, accepting the dangerous task.
...
Fifty thousand years ago.
In the eyes of the upper echelon, a very pretty little purple-haired girl suddenly appeared in the Fire Moth base.
Whether her hair was purple or pink, most of the bloated officials didn't care.
But some of her actions displeased them.
"Dr. Mobius, could you explain who that person is, the one always hanging around your lab? She's not in our personnel system. Of course, I'm not criticizing your social interactions, but the Fire Moth base has many secrets that cannot be leaked. I hope you understand." A balding middle-aged manager raised the issue, his empty scalp shining.
Mobius glanced at him, then swept her eyes over the rest of the room, memorizing their expressions.
She gave a quiet laugh.
"Secrets? Aren't those secrets the very things we ourselves are researching?" Mobius despised these politicians.
If it weren't for research funding, she wouldn't even bother attending their meetings.
"Dr. Mobius, the Fire Moth's research is extremely important. He only worries that you might be deceived. Please don't take offense," another person with a goatee chuckled.
The topic of Mobius was only a small detour in the meeting. Everyone knew that Dr. Mobius often conducted experiments that made people's scalps tingle.
That girl could very well be one of them. No matter how excessive her research, her talent was indispensable to Fire Moth.
Keeping her happy cost little, and it ensured control over the budget. Letting her run unchecked, who knew what might happen.
"You don't seem happy?" Herta's voice sounded in Mobius's ear after the meeting, though she was nowhere to be seen.
Mobius was already used to this.
"Who wouldn't be annoyed wasting precious time on something so inevitable?" she replied with a slight shake of her head. Then she asked,
"What are you up to?"
"Playing hide-and-seek with that great magician. A little… experiment of my own."
"Heh. Have fun."
Vill-V, another genius of Fire Moth.
Her field was mechanics. In this, Mobius acknowledged Vill-V's mind as equal to her own.
This genius was also vicious, once infiltrating deep into Fire Moth's headquarters and even into Mobius's lab.
At that time, Mobius found her particularly irritating. Always barging in at the most crucial stages of her experiments.
As expected, Fire Moth's security was inadequate. Shaking her head, she set aside those meaningless distractions.
Since receiving fragments of information about the future from Herta, Mobius had thrown herself into the pursuit of infinity. She would achieve true infinity.
...
St. Freya Academy.
Before confirming that things can't be undone, she would wait.
There are many things she doesn't understand, but she understands Otto.
Just as she was deep in thought, the door slowly pushed open.
"Rita." Looking at the visitor, Theresa asked: "How's Anna?"
"She hasn't woken up yet." Rita replied softly, doubt flickering in her eyes.
By her estimation, for injuries of that level, two days should've been enough to regain consciousness. What's more, Anna is a Herrscher, her recovery should be even faster.
But now, it was already nearly the third day.
Anna still slumbered deeply, leaving some of Rita's preparations completely useless.
"... Could it be that she hit her head too hard?" Theresa blinked, listing out possible explanations.
"..." Rita could guarantee that, from the moment she entered until now, that thought had never crossed her mind.
But, it wasn't entirely impossible.
Her gaze lowered slightly, a trace of contemplation surfacing in her eyes.
That strike's brilliance... Shaking her head, Rita began to state her true purpose.
"I plan to arrange for Miss Anna, once she wakes and her emotions stabilize, to be placed by Miss Wendy's side. I wanted to seek Lady Theresa's opinion on this."
"Wendy?" Theresa still remembered Anna being treated in the infirmary.
Hearing Rita's suggestion, she froze for a moment, then her eyes lit up.
"That's right!" Because of her past experiences, Wendy had always harbored hostility toward humans. But, under the warmth of St. Freya's companionship, she had gradually begun to soften her outlook.
Having Wendy, who herself was in a transitional phase, awaken Anna's consciousness, this did seem like a viable approach.
"And also," Rita continued, "about Miss Bella's placement... does Lady Theresa have any suitable arrangements in mind?"
They had already learned the name "Bella" from the Herrscher of the Void's mouth.
To think that the awe-inspiring, domineering dragon turned out to be a girl, well, that was surprising.
"Bella..." Hearing that name, Theresa's face fell instantly.
She clutched both sides of the desk, her mind racing.
The layout of St. Freya Academy spread out clearly in her mind.
If she could, Theresa truly wished to let Bella soar freely in the skies.
But unfortunately, that wasn't possible.
Not to mention Bella's massive size and the occasional dragon's roar, even her casually flapping wings could wreak terrifying destruction upon the ground.
Theresa had no intention of letting people think St. Freya Academy was some gathering place of monstrous terrors.
Kiana could restrain Bella, true.
But they couldn't have Kiana keeping watch over her all the time, could they?
Kiana wasn't all that bright to begin with, and if she spent too long with Bella, Theresa feared that the next time she saw Kiana's test scores, she'd need to stock up on more bottles of fast-acting heart medicine.
...
Elsewhere.
After being busy for so long, Kiana and the others finally returned to their warm home.
Unaware that Theresa had just been grumbling about her, Kiana stretched lazily, arms raised high above her head.
"Uu, haah!" Relieved and refreshed, she suddenly leapt onto the sofa, ready to snuggle into her plush toy for a good rub.
"Pfft." Her face smushed straight into the cushions.
Meanwhile, someone else was immersed in their own little world of imagination.
"Eh?" Pulling her fluffy head out of the sofa, the white-haired dumpling giggled foolishly.
Her heart skipped, that, that was the aura of a kindred spirit!
Turning around she looked at Stelle who was also staring at her.
...
After a period of what could barely be called "communication," the two usually unserious ones, Kiana and Stelle finally settled down.
"Honestly, the moment you calm down, you get restless again." March 7th sighed, pressing her forehead helplessly.
As expected, when it came to handling relationships, it really had to be the ever-charming Little March!
"Mei, Mei, are you making dinner?" Camera in hand, March 7th dashed straight into the kitchen.
Mei, wearing an apron, her slender fingers rinsed by spring water, smiled softly. The air around her was filled with warmth and elegance.
"Yes, everyone's exhausted. After completing something so big, of course we need to rest well. We can't skip a celebration." March 7th nodded firmly, agreeing wholeheartedly.
"Just not sure if Bronya can make it in time."
Suddenly, Mei spoke, mentioning Bronya.
"Bronya... I think she went with Uncle Yang to Anti-Entropy to see her sister, right?"
March 7th wracked her brain, recalling that little girl with the same, almost magical hairstyle as the Great Guardian Bronya, perhaps even more impressive.
Come to think of it... was Bronya that cute when she was little too? March 7th was brimming with curiosity.
...
Anti-Entropy.
"Seele!"
"Sister Bronya!"
The two little ones hugged tightly.
Watching the inseparable pair, Tesla was so moved she wiped her tears with Einstein's handkerchief.
"So touching! That damned Cocolia, she should be a Titan's test dummy for close-range bombardment!"
Einstein narrowed her eyes, a look of anger welling up inside.
At last, her handkerchief that had gone missing that morning had been found, only, in the wrong person's hands.
"Miss Seele was very fortunate. Her body is highly adaptable to the Quantum Sea." Schrödinger quietly spoke.
Seele being able to reunite with Bronya wasn't mere coincidence.
If not for her unique constitution, during that early experiment she would have permanently lost consciousness, rather than being quantumized and drifting endlessly in the Quantum Sea, until eventually meeting Godzilla and finding shelter from the storm.
"Still, you really did put in quite some effort." Tesla tossed the handkerchief onto the table, glancing at Welt.
This Welt was the one belonging to this timeline.
The future Welt had not come.
Though that also meant he wouldn't be scolded like in the future.
"It was nothing," Welt smiled.
This was the very meaning of Anti-Entropy's existence.
He had brought Bronya back deliberately after resolving the Coral Island incident and learning she was aboard the Hyperion.
After all, he hadn't forgotten there was still a little girl who kept calling for "Sister Bronya."
...
Leaving time for the two girls to catch up, the group gathered in another room.
Tesla was the first to speak.
"Based on our initial records, the Ice Herrscher's Honkai energy far exceeds the total Honkai energy you can mobilize."
"And according to our investigation, every known Herrscher so far, except the Second, has exceeded the usual threshold of Honkai energy at birth. It's hard not to suspect this is a sign of the Honkai preparing something big."
Welt nodded slightly, then asked: "Then what about the Second Herrscher?"
Normal, they said. But Welt was certain the Herrscher of the Void was anything but normal.
Even with such overwhelming birth energy, the Ice Herrscher had been utterly suppressed before the Herrscher of the Void.
He, the First Herrscher, had been crushed outright. How could he not suspect something was wrong?
Was the First Herrscher supposed to just throw away his pride?
"For now we don't know. But we did detect that the Herrscher of the Void, while using relatively little Honkai energy in battle, was still able to completely suppress the Ice Herrscher."
"Could it be battle technique, or authority?"
"Unlikely. The Herrscher of the Void's authority isn't about suddenly amplifying Honkai energy. That was already confirmed during the Second Eruption."
...
While Anti-Entropy's members continued to discuss the crux of the matter, Seele and Bronya, reunited at last, strolled through the streets.
Sharing with each other the many events of these past days.
One trapped by the sea, the other trapped by herself. Both had so much to say, yet also nothing they could truly put into words.
Most of the time, it was Bronya who spoke, while Seele quietly listened...