Her throwing technique was sharper than even Durandal's.
The sickening crack of bones breaking echoed with every blow.
Cecilia's fists pounded relentlessly into Siegfried, the brutal impacts tearing the deck apart.
"Nagami-chan, I'll leave him to you."
With a serene smile, Cecilia dragged Siegfried up by his collar and tossed him in front of the green-haired girl.
Her voice was unusually gentle.
"Y-Yes, Mother-in-law…"
C.C.'s lips parted slightly as she dumbly stared at the lady before her.
That graceful face of her looked blank and bewildered—she had never seen this side of Cecilia before.
"…But when others are around, please just call me C.C."
Glancing briefly at True Kiana, who was beaming from ear to ear, C.C. activated her Alpha Stigma Eyes to scan Siegfried's injuries.
It was obvious: Cecilia hadn't held back at all.
She was giving Siegfried a proper beating—enough to make him earn the chance at True Kiana's forgiveness.
It was a pity there hadn't been a better chance to let Siegfried stumble into icy water himself.
That shock might have at least made Cecilia restrain her strength a little.
Stretching out her slender white hand, C.C. opened her palm toward the mangled man.
White particles of Creation and icy-blue particles of the Herrscher of Reason enveloped him, slowly repairing his battered body.
On the public channel, C.C. called for the Valkyrie medical team, who quickly carried Siegfried's limp body off to the infirmary.
No doubt Mr. Siegfried would become a regular there for the foreseeable future.
"Calling you C.C.?… I understand."
Cecilia didn't question further.
She nodded in acceptance, because her trust and goodwill toward this peculiar "daughter-in-law" had already reached extraordinary levels.
"Ahem, C.C.… that child, is she also an Otto-created Kiana clone?"
Cecilia lowered her voice, glancing cautiously at the white-haired girl standing nearby, watching them.
"She? Oh no, she's not a clone," C.C. replied with a smile, beckoning the heiress Kiana over. "Why not let her explain herself?"
"Um… hello, mother of this world! I'm Kiana from another world."
Though she was speaking to her mother, this Cecilia was still technically from another world.
The heiress scratched her cheek awkwardly, a little unnatural.
"Another world?"
"That's right. Something like a parallel world… though it's not just a parallel world," The heiress said, lifting one finger elegantly.
Her tone and bearing carried the grace of a true noblewoman.
"But as for the exact relationship… perhaps only Nagami could explain. For now, you can think of it as a parallel world."
C.C. frowned, sensing a sudden surge of Herrscher energy from the little Herrscher of Sentience.
Her steps quickened.
What now?
Don't tell me that brat is wrecking the place…
This Hyperion was hers now—a true personal battleship!
Glancing once at C.C.'s retreating back, the heiress Kiana continued explaining her origins to Cecilia.
Meanwhile, C.C. came upon smoking auto-turrets, her eye twitching involuntarily.
Then, out of the corner of her eye, she caught a falling shadow descending from above.
…Otto?
"My dear Miss C.C., I do believe it's time you disciplined your child…"
Otto's body shot through the air like a cannonball, bent double like a shrimp before slamming into the ground.
He lay there motionless, face twisted in agony.
The plan to artificially create more Herrschers had been Nagami's idea, while Otto had supplied his data on Honkai consciousness to calculate scenarios where the Will of Honkai wouldn't intervene.
And thanks to satellite surveillance footage, Otto knew very well about the relationship between the little Herrscher of Sentience and C.C.
"Otto! Time to pay your debts!"
Dressed in black robes traced with golden clouds, wearing a grin like a maniac, the little Herrscher of Sentience blinked into existence beside Otto.
Her small fist crashed into his face.
"Dad, do you want a turn? The sound of Otto's soulium face crunching under fists is just so wonderful!"
Her grin widened, eyes sparkling like she'd found a new toy and couldn't wait to share it with her parent.
The memory of staring down the dark muzzle of a copy of Shamash was still vivid.
Her memories came from Fu Hua, but Nagami had rewritten them with that out-of-spec feather, aligning them with the original game's storyline.
Given Otto's repeated betrayals, there was no way the little Herrscher would pass up the chance to beat him senseless.
And Otto's current soulium body wasn't particularly powerful—against a Herrscher's strength, he was utterly defenseless.
"Uh… I'll pass. You go ahead!" C.C. cheerfully waved to the little Herrscher, ignoring Otto's pleading eyes. "But watch your strength—this ship belongs to us now. Don't damage the surroundings."
Honestly, at this stage, Otto was bending over backwards to fulfill C.C.'s every request, treating her with unmatched courtesy.
To outsiders, overhearing their conversation, it would almost sound like Otto had become a hopeless simp.
Even if C.C. demanded the position of Archbishop, Otto would probably just smile, wave his hand, and step down—happily handing over leadership of the world's most powerful organization.
For Otto, everything was for one purpose—reviving Kallen!
Normally, people say "you don't hit someone who's smiling", and Otto's current submissive attitude really made it hard for C.C. to keep striking him.
But what others chose to do… well, that wasn't her responsibility.
"Ah, right!"
As if she had just remembered something, C.C. lifted a slender finger, smiling sweetly at the "little tiger" who still pounding Otto into the ground.
"Don't finish him off completely. Leave him breathing—Cecilia still needs a turn to vent her anger."
Otto's pupils shrank.
Staring at the green-haired girl who said such cruel words in such a soft, gentle voice, his expression turned tragic—like a group chat buddy who shared spicy art to "benefit the masses," only to be instantly reported.
[Cough, cough… My dear old friend, if this helps me focus less on Kiana's family mess and more on preparing to revive our holy maiden, Kallen, then you—]
Before C.C. could even finish, Otto's pitiful look vanished in an instant.
Mention Kallen, and suddenly everything else didn't matter anymore!
Letting Cecilia beat him to a pulp?
Letting the Herrscher of Reason herself hammer his face? Of course Otto understood that C.C. also wanted to vent her fists on him.
After all, he was fully aware of the sins he'd committed.
The Sirin project, K423, the Kaslana princess… given C.C.'s connections, her reaction was perfectly normal.
But who cared?
If this could please Nagami and push forward Kallen's resurrection even a second sooner, then it was worth it.
Otto had plenty of spare sousteel bodies.
He could let Cecilia pummel him until she was satisfied.
Just lower the nerve link, switch pain receptors off, and no matter how long they hit him, he wouldn't feel a thing.
———————————————————————
[Nagami]: Yo~ Long time no see in the group! Did you guys miss me?
[Shiraori]: Long time?
———————————————————————
The white-haired, red-eyed beauty tilted her head in confusion.
Her upper half looked like a striking girl, but her lower half was still the terrifying body of a spider monster.
———————————————————————
[Itsuka Kotori]: …Your brain's really fried, huh? The last chat log was literally two days ago.
———————————————————————
Nagami had been stuck in the Second Eruption's timeline for about a month, but the chat group synced with Kiana's time. For the others, only a few hours had passed.
———————————————————————
[Accelerator]: Tch. You bastard… you're still alive?
———————————————————————
Classic tsundere phrasing. Translated, it really meant "Are you okay?"
———————————————————————
[Nagami]: Accelerator, let me give you some advice. A guy being a tsundere has zero market value—unless you want me to turn you into Suzushina Yuriko.
———————————————————————
That is not impossible, of course.
After all, Nagami now had unlimited access to Ranma spring water.
Naturally, someone whose personality matched his a little too well immediately thought of that.
———————————————————————
[Lumine]: Onii-san, just how far have you analyzed that water?
———————————————————————
When she wanted something, it was "Onii-san." When she didn't, it was just "Nagami."
———————————————————————
[Nagami]: Already fully analyzed. Why, what do you want with it?
[Lumine]: Yesterday I felt a trace of Aether's presence… on a single dandelion.
From the game plot you uploaded, it's exactly as I thought. Hehe… we will meet again, eventually.
———————————————————————
A thin veil of dark, ominous aura coiled around the golden-haired girl as her smile widened brilliantly.
Beside her, her emergency-food-shaped companion flinched so hard her shoulders shook, nearly tumbling from the sky.