The air was still — the kind of silence that follows after a storm, where even the wind seems to hesitate.
Fragments of pink light drifted through the ruined palace, their glow reflecting faintly on the broken glass.
Somewhere beyond the veil of cherry petals and fading dusk, the boundary between worlds had begun to blur again.
They had seen many things since arriving in this strange realm — remnants of civilizations long vanished, names spoken only in the whispers of data and memory.
Yet none of it felt as ethereal, as alive, as what appeared before them now.
She appeared like a single cherry blossom petal landing gently upon one's shoulder.
She was already there — no way to resist, no way to deny.
But even if you raised your head, you could never trace where she had come from.
"W-wait… isn't that Miss Yae Sakura?" Paimon blinked in confusion.
Wasn't Miss Yae Sakura tricked by Yae Miko into taking over her duties as shrine priestess at Narukami Shrine?
Or could it be… Yae Sakura is also one of the fusion warriors from the Previous Era?
With the Traveler's help, Paimon had finally pieced together the chaotic relationship between the world of Honkai Impact 3rd and the bizarre intertwining of its eras.
"My name is Sakura. I don't carry the family name 'Yae.' You must have mistaken me for someone else, dear visitor."
Sakura's smile carried a quiet melancholy as she shook her head.
The pair of soft, pink fox ears atop her head twitched ever so slightly.
They weren't a Herrscher's imitation — and judging by human genetics, it was biologically impossible for someone to grow such animal-like ears naturally.
But with advanced mutation surgery? Well, anything was possible.
Sakura's gaze lingered briefly on Lumine before finally settling on the center of everyone's attention.
Her delicate fingers rested on the hilt at her waist — the transcendent blade, Spirit-Slayer: Frozen Abyss.
Her homeland had fallen.
She walked alone across a thousand miles.
A secret deal had turned her into one of the Flame-chaser, and she had once been a member of the covert task force known as Cocoon.
As for her stance toward the Herrschers…
"To ease your hostility and help our conversation proceed more smoothly, perhaps I should start with some good news, Sakura," Nagami said, his tone calm as he looked at the familiar pink-haired girl before him.
At this moment, he wasn't interested in her fox ears at all — rather, he was fascinated by her body from a scientific standpoint.
How did her physique merge with the mutagenic factors to produce those ears?
"Your younger sister, Rin… I've freed her from the influence of the Honkai Will. She now lives peacefully in this world."
Nagami's words carried no hint of arrogance, it was simply the quickest way to earn Sakura's trust.
"W-What did you just say!?"
Her graceful face froze, her blue eyes widening sharply.
In an instant too fast for the eye to follow, Sakura closed the distance and grabbed Nagami by the shoulders, her face inches from his.
"Rin… she's alive!?"
She had always been gentle, no matter how dire the situation, she would protect what she cherished most.
That was the reason she had fought to the death to protect her sister.
When facing the Herrscher of Corruption, Sakura had used her life to awaken Rin's consciousness, staying with her until the very end.
That was her pride as an older sister.
Unfortunately, she couldn't stop the launch of the final nuke. In a way, it was humanity's own sin to bear.
A self-made fate.
"That's right," Nagami replied softly. "She's alive — right now, she's by her big sister's side."
With a crisp snap of his fingers, a projection of Teyvat appeared in the air.
Sakura's eyes widened when she saw a figure identical to herself within that world — and then her gaze was drawn to the small girl floating nearby, laughing and chatting with the other "Sakura."
"That's…!"
"Her current name is Higokumaru. She hasn't fully regained her memories from the Previous Era, but she's more or less the same person."
Higokumaru once a Herrscher corrupted by the Honkai Will — had always longed for her sister.
Even then, she clung to Yae Sakura with an almost obsessive affection because of their identical appearance.
After Nagami eradicated the Honkai Will, Rin's pure consciousness returned, becoming Higokumaru.
Though she lacked her old memories at first, her affection toward Yae Sakura was almost instinctive — and as time went on.
She only grew more attached, likely due to fragments of her old memories resurfacing.
She had never told Yae Sakura or Nagami the truth.
After all, she had finally found a peaceful place to belong — wasn't living quietly as a mascot enough?
These subtle changes might fool the emotionally burdened Yae Sakura, but never someone like C.C., who carried a Stigmata and could see through the true nature of the Elysian Realm.
At first, even Nagami had agreed — let the little one start a new life.
But now that Sakura's soul had been restored, she could once again walk the mortal world.
"I'll bring her to the Elysian Realm later," Nagami said. "Or… if you wish to leave here, I can help you accelerate your soul's restoration. Of course, it won't be free."
Nagami smiled faintly, his eyes sweeping shamelessly over Sakura's graceful figure.
An experiment subject.
A cute little lab rat.
Sakura's expression remained as calm as an unbroken sea.
She met Nagami's gaze without a hint of emotion.
Then, with quiet sincerity, she bowed deeply — her tone filled with genuine gratitude.
"I cannot possibly repay such a great kindness. If you ever require my aid, I will go through fire and water without hesitation."
Her sudden shift in attitude didn't surprise the fusion warriors present.
They all understood what Rin meant to Sakura.
For her sister's sake, she would even turn against humanity itself.
"What a remarkable soul," Eden mused, swirling a golden goblet in her hand. Her voice was like that of a siren from Greek legend — soft, alluring, and dangerous.
"A Herrscher who stands on humanity's side… such a thing was unheard of in the Previous Era."
"Indeed," Nagami nodded lightly. "But in this era, every Herrscher so far stands with humanity."
His words were casual, almost offhand — yet they struck the fusion warriors like thunder.
They froze, eyes wide, uncertain if they had heard correctly.
If Nagami were the only exception, they might have understood.
But all the Herrschers? Traitors to the Honkai Will? That was impossible.
Every gaze turned toward the white-haired man standing silently in the distance.
Kevin maintained his usual stoic expression but gave a small, firm nod.
To be honest, even he had nearly lost composure when he first reached out to the Herrschers of this new world through quantum entanglement across the Sea of Quanta.
"And not only that," Nagami continued, "Kevin has decided to become this era's Herrscher of Ice. I can assure you his mind will remain free from the Honkai Will's corruption."
The atmosphere turned deathly silent — you could hear a pin drop.
Nagami, however, didn't seem to mind in the slightest.
"Of the Thirteen Flame-Chasers, eight have already manifested," he said calmly. "The remaining five…"
Kevin himself was present, meaning his memory construct would no longer appear.
Nagami's eyes glowed — six violet stars forming within his pupils, as though peering through the endless void to the depths of the Elysian Realm.
"They're still in the process of merging their fragmented souls," he murmured. "In that case, as a guest… I'll refrain from disturbing their rest."