"Simply put," Nagami said patiently, "I'll modify each of your memory cores into special conduits. These will draw out a special energy slumbering within them, allowing a kind of fusion that generates new strength."
"...Special energy, huh?" Mei-bi-us murmured, lightly tapping her chin with a slender finger.
Her delicate, almost innocent face made her look harmless—but the weight in those serpent-green eyes deepened.
"Then tell me, Herrscher-kun," she continued, fixing her gaze on Nagami's calm, ink-black pupils. "How do you guarantee this process won't interfere with our will or consciousness?"
Nagami's eyes were still and unfathomable, dark as an ocean with no light.
That gaze—so devoid of warmth stirred an almost instinctive unease in Mobius.
She'd seen it once before.
During an experiment she conducted with Dr. Mei, the scientist had revealed that same indescribable, godlike expression—as if peering straight into the fabric of the microscopic universe itself.
Under Mei's crushing presence, Mobius and every assistant present had frozen in silent awe, barely daring to breathe.
Thankfully, Mei had returned to normal soon after. If memory served, the "Elysian Realm" project had begun not long after that very experiment.
"I can explain it in detail," Nagami replied with a mild smile, sweeping his gaze across the gathered fusion warriors before resting on the elegant emerald figure floating midair. "But honestly... that would be a waste of time. It's like—"
He paused, lips curling into a faint smirk.
"—Dr. Mobius, did you ever try explaining the core principle of the super-transformation surgery to the other warriors?"
The moment his fingers snapped, a sharp crack echoed deep in Mobius's mind.
Her consciousness shuddered violently, as if a storm of quantum equations and spacetime theories had erupted within her brain.
"If you can fully understand that," Nagami said, tone still polite, "then you can serve as my assistant—and personally oversee the entire memory-core modification process."
That—was merely one percent of the quantum and soul-structure data stored in Nagami's mind.
He'd shared only the portion he could freely control. If he unleashed more, the poor snake might actually go brain-dead on the spot.
Truth be told, Nagami did admire her potential.
With the right... training, she could become a useful assistant—definitely not a tool, of course. Ahem.
For a few seconds, Mobius just stared blankly at him, mouth slightly open, eyes unfocused and dazed.
She looked adorably lost.
"...I see," she whispered at last, her voice hollow.
Then she slumped weakly onto her hoverboard, utterly drained.
"Hey! You bastard Herrscher—are you mocking us? Or saying we're too stupid to understand you!?" The sharp voice came from Kalpas, his fiery temper flaring once more.
Nagami's serene smile didn't waver even as the white-haired berserker stomped forward.
He didn't seem to notice—or didn't care—that his calm grin only made Kalpas want to punch it off his face.
Elysia sighed, palm to her forehead.
Seriously—why did he have to take the bait? Did he want to get humiliated?
Sure, Kalpas looked and acted like a brute, but as one of the Thirteen Flame-Chasers, his intelligence was hardly below average.
None of them were fools.
Elysia's lips curved in weary amusement.
She knew exactly what Kalpas was planning.
"If Kalpas wishes to spar," Nagami said gently, "I'll gladly accept the challenge."
"Hah! Then show me, Herrscher—show me that 'power capable of matching the Herrscher of Finality!'"
Kalpas's tone burned with doubt, yet also a flicker of excitement.
He had seen the true Herrscher of Finality's overwhelming might before—an existence beyond resistance.
Nagami's earlier display was impressive, sure—but not impossible.
Among the fusion warriors, there were a few who could achieve that level of strength, albeit not with his effortless grace.
Kalpas himself had once been just a man.
Even as a normal human, his power was already enough to rival fusion warriors.
He had fought endlessly, seeking death's edge to awaken his mutation factor—but rarely found opponents that could truly push him to that brink.
He'd shattered over a hundred Divine Keys in his rampage, ultimately getting expelled from the fusion project.
It was only after a secret deal with Dr. Mobius—who used her own methods—that he became what he was now.
And his instincts screamed at him now:
Nagami could definitely give him that fight.
"Oh, by the way," Nagami added with a courteous smile, turning toward the others.
"If this is a friendly spar, why not make it a group exercise? You can all join in."
His gaze lingered on the towering, motionless figure of Kevin—white-clad and unshakable like a mountain.
"That includes you, Kevin."
He needed to demonstrate his capabilities—to earn the respect and cooperation of these legendary heroes of the Previous Era.
They wouldn't be convinced by words alone.
Before Kevin could respond, two melodic voices chimed in unison—one pure and elegant, the other teasing and sultry:
"Sure~ why not?"
Their owners exchanged glances.
Mobius shot Elysia a small glare and turned away with a pout, cheeks faintly flushed.
She still hadn't forgiven her for teasing her earlier.
Elysia just giggled.
Even in her irritable state, Mobius couldn't deny it: the brief outburst Nagami had unleashed earlier hadn't even fazed him.
If any of them faced him alone... it wouldn't even count as a fight.
Only by standing together could the fusion warriors begin to test the true scope of Nagami's power.
"Alright then, Nagami~" Elysia said playfully, summoning a soft pink glow in her hand.
A radiant longbow materialized, matching her uniform perfectly—graceful, romantic, and deadly.
Its name: Fleeting Blossom of the Past.
"Don't forget to go easy on a cute and beautiful girl, okay~?"
Power surged from her body, the surge of Honkai energy so dense it made the air vibrate.
"Fine by me."
Kevin's deep voice cut through the growing tension as his footsteps froze the ground beneath him, frost spreading outward like veins of glacial steel.
He stepped forward, unflinching.
"Show us, then—whether you truly possess power that rivals the Herrscher of Finality."