Many years ago… in a laboratory deep within a 'Schicksal' church, a handsome man with brilliant blond hair stared excitedly at the huge experiment capsule in front of him, his green eyes fixed on the naked girl floating inside.
"Finally, finally, it's a success!" The man in a white lab coat looked at the girl before him as if she were the most precious treasure in the world.
[This is my birth…]
'Theresa… that is my name. Unlike others, I have no parents.'
'I was born in a secret laboratory, a synthetic human created from the cells of an ancient Valkyrie warrior and a Honkai Beast, or rather, an artificial human. Even my birth was a chance success.'
'My grandfather, the head of the Schicksal organization, 'Otto', told me that due to some defects, my body could not grow up. As a result, my appearance would not age, and my lifespan would be longer than that of an ordinary human.'
'Later, I learned… that the Valkyrie cells in my body came from a Valkyrie of the 'Kaslana' family, but I did not know her name. When I asked my grandfather 'Otto', he always responded with silence. Although I had the authority to search the Schicksal core database, I never found the name of that Valkyrie. Even so, I ultimately possessed the bloodline of a clan that fought against the Honkai, and through my own efforts, I became one of the strongest warriors.'
'But I knew that many people in the organization suspected me, feared me. In their eyes, I was a 'monster' more terrifying than a Honkai Beast.'
'I began to wonder. Wasn't the meaning of my birth to protect these humans? But why couldn't I find a reason to protect them?'
'I only found that reason when I met that person.'
'The family with the strongest ability to control Honkai energy—the [Schariac] family, the Holy Maiden of the Schariac clan, 'Cecilia'.'
'Amidst the distant gazes around me, only she did not treat me like a monster, always treating me gently.'
'From the day I was born, my grandfather taught me to protect everyone, but in my heart, I did not agree with the principles my grandfather spoke of.'
'I never truly wanted to protect anyone. It was not until this day that I found the person I truly wanted to protect.'
'When Cecilia smiled and held a spoon, gently feeding me her favorite milk tea… I thought to myself, this is it. To see this smile, I would probably do more things that I knew I shouldn't, right?'
[However, the fate of the heir to the Schariac family was always being manipulated.]
[In order to give birth to the most perfect warrior to fight against the Honkai…][Under the manipulation of the Schicksal organization and at my grandfather's behest, Cecilia was married to the playboy of the Kaslana family—Siegfried.]
[Fortunately… this marriage, which had worried me quite a bit, bore beautiful fruit. Siegfried changed his womanizing ways and wholeheartedly stayed by Cecilia's side….]
Then… my dear friend Cecilia became a mother in a season of falling snow.
"I'm sorry, Cecilia. I just rushed over from Germany and didn't even make it for your child's birth…" I lowered my head in embarrassment at the time, afraid to see the disappointment in Cecilia's eyes. After all, as a good friend, I wasn't by her side at such an important moment…
"No need to apologize~" Cecilia, sitting on the bed, still showed a gentle smile and said, "You went to investigate the whereabouts of the First Herrscher again, right? You've worked hard."
"By the way~ Siegfried and I discussed it, and we want you to be this child's godmother, so the task of naming her is also up to you!~ I'm~ trou~bling~ you~" Cecilia, sitting on the bed, once again showed a gentle smile and said.
"…" I looked at the child with wide azure eyes. Seemingly sensing my gaze, the child also gave me a cheerful smile. Looking at her smile, I knew that this child would grow up to be as beautiful and lovely as her mother, like a goddess.
"Let's call her Kiana (Goddess of the Moonlight)." I raised my head and looked out the window. A crescent moon cast its bright moonlight on this ancient castle deep in the dense coniferous forest of Northern Europe. This child's white long hair, when she grows up, will surely be as beautiful as that bright moonlight. I thought with a sigh at the time.
"Mm~ I'll leave this child in your care for guidance and protection… if one day I'm not here."
[I originally thought she could be happy like this… and I could always see her smile, but….]
[The Second Herrscher appeared…]
'The Second Herrscher possessed the ability of space… She appeared in Siberia. Among the Valkyries sent to fight was 'Cecilia', an S-Rank… but the Second Herrscher's power was too great… even Cecilia could not defeat her, and even with the sacrifice of several Valkyries' lives, they could only barely hold her back.'
'Under duress, the head of Schicksal… my grandfather 'Otto', directly ordered the launch of twelve tactical nuclear missiles guided by Honkai energy to explode, weapons that Schicksal kept as a secret weapon.'
'No one knew if the missiles that were launched and exploded had completely killed the Second Herrscher, but from the corpse and the shattered Second Herrscher's Core left on the battlefield, it seemed to have been effective… That day, I also lost the person I wanted to protect.'
'3 months later, Siegfried, distrusting the organization, escaped from Schicksal and disappeared from my sight with Kiana. I once again lost the person I had promised to protect…'
Having lost my purpose, I merely handled various affairs mechanically like a soulless puppet, until not long ago… I once again met Cecilia's daughter, Kiana Kaslana, sleeping in a hospital bed, and once again had the opportunity to fulfill my unfinished promise.
Staring at the familiar face on the hospital bed, for some reason my body felt a little hot, but I still reached out and gently touched her somewhat cool face, saying silently in my heart, "I will definitely protect you…"
..................….
"Sakura, what did you want to see me for? I was just learning how to make rice balls with Liv. What do you think would be good to put inside them?" Li Xuan, who had been pulled over by Higokumaru, said, scratching his head.
"Li Xuan-kun, I have a question I'd like to ask you…" Yae Sakura said with a smile.
"What is it?" Li Xuan casually sat down next to Yae Sakura and asked curiously.
"The Familiar Egg… as long as you put an item that houses a soul into it, can it be reborn..?" Yae Sakura asked with a serious expression.
"Mm… I think so. Based on Yaoye's situation, that's indeed the case…" Li Xuan answered after thinking for a moment with his hands cupping his chin, "But it's still not very clear what's going on… after all, Yaoye just came out of the Familiar Egg."
"Li Xuan-kun, if I had to leave for a while, would you be sad?"
"Leave?!… Sakura, is something wrong again? I can help you…" Li Xuan suddenly had a bad feeling. He stood up and looked at Yae Sakura, who had been acting a bit strange since a moment ago.
"." Yae Sakura was slightly silent. She wasn't good at lying… "Sigh~" Yae Sakura sighed softly. The next moment, her azure eyes looked at Li Xuan before her, and after a slight hesitation, she spoke.
"Li Xuan-kun… I want to save her…" Yae Sakura said, looking at Li Xuan before her.
"Huh? Didn't I already heal her injuries?" Li Xuan asked, puzzled, as he looked at Theresa Apocalypse lying on the bed.
"Kid… do you really think you can cure her with that strange spray of yours?!" the black fox Higokumaru, lying on the side, spoke up. "A Herrscher's poison isn't that easy to get rid of…"
"A Herrscher's poison… then what do we do?" Li Xuan was also at a loss. He still didn't understand this world very well and only had a superficial knowledge of the existence of Herrschers…
"It can be cured…" Yae Sakura's grip on the white sheets tightened. She raised her head, her azure eyes meeting Li Xuan's as she said, "As long as I give her my Herrscher Core, the Herrscher's poison can be cured."
"So you're saying… you're crazy?!" Before Li Xuan could speak, Higokumaru, who was lying on the side, suddenly shot up and said excitedly, "Without the Herrscher Core, we will disappear!"
"…What's going on?!" Li Xuan asked, puzzled. He had a bad feeling, like he was about to lose something precious.
"Sakura wants to sacrifice herself, using her Herrscher Core to save that little brat… but without the Herrscher Core, both she and I will disappear!" Higokumaru explained the whole situation in one breath.
"No!" Li Xuan stopped her without a second thought. As an ordinary otaku, how could he possibly trade the life of someone close to him for the life of a complete stranger… He wasn't that great.
"…" Yae Sakura was slightly silent, as if she had been persuaded by Li Xuan. But before Li Xuan could breathe a sigh of relief, Yae Sakura reached out and hugged Li Xuan, who was just about to get up. Strands of her pink hair floated in the air, brushing against Li Xuan's face with a ticklish sensation.
"I'm sorry, Li Xuan-kun…" Yae Sakura whispered in Li Xuan's ear, her warm breath making his ears turn red…
"I really want to save her…" Yae Sakura said seriously, her head resting on Li Xuan's shoulder. "This is a debt I've owed for 500 years… This time, I hope I can pay it back… I don't want to be tormented by memories and guilt anymore…"
"And besides, she still has people she wants to protect…"
"Li Xuan-kun, would you be willing to be my lover?" Yae Sakura suddenly lifted her head from Li Xuan's shoulder and said, her azure eyes shining…
"…" Li Xuan's face suddenly turned bright red. For a single guy who had been single for eighteen years, that sentence was like an atomic bomb going off… Could it be that his single life was ending today?!
"Mm…" Li Xuan's voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz… If Yae Sakura hadn't been right next to him, she might not have heard it. Yae Sakura showed a smile as warm as a spring day.
"I'm sorry… Li Xuan-kun, please forgive my willfulness…" Yae Sakura reached out and held the stunned Li Xuan's head, their foreheads touching gently. She said, full of apology.
"Please be sure to wait for me~" Sakura raised her head, her azure eyes reflecting Li Xuan as she said, "After this, I'll have to trouble you to revive me with the Familiar Egg…"
"Sakura…" Li Xuan still wanted to speak and persuade Yae Sakura to stay, but his words were cut off before he could say them. Li Xuan's eyes widened as he looked at the beautiful face so close to him, feeling a soft and moist touch on his lips.
"Then, goodbye for now…" The sunlight shone through the blinds onto Yae Sakura on the white bed. Her long pink hair swayed slightly in the breeze, and the golden sunlight gave her a golden glow.
"…" Yae Sakura lowered her head and gently kissed Theresa's lips. Under the sunlight, Yae Sakura's body began to turn illusory, like sand slipping through the cracks of her fingers.
Yae Sakura's figure completely disappeared…
"Goodbye~" As if the words came from the bottom of his heart, Li Xuan quietly watched as Yae Sakura disappeared before his eyes, along with the unwilling Higokumaru. He could do nothing. This was Sakura's choice…
"Don't worry…" Li Xuan opened his palm. In his hand was a pink cherry blossom that had appeared out of thin air. In the breeze, the sakura-colored petals blew out the window…
A circle formed by three red magatama-shaped patterns slowly appeared on Theresa's back…
(End of this chapter)