"That's right...." Shigure Kira smiled faintly, looking up at the ceiling of the ice cave... at the layers of solid ice that resembled the scales of an ice dragon... The azure ice was as clear as crystal, and you could even see the patterns within it...
"I know what you want to ask, Bishop Theresa..." Shigure Kira said, smiling kindly at Li Xuan and the others. Her gaze was somewhat distant, as if reminiscing...
"The Holy Maiden led us to Siberia... The [Honkai] triggered by the Second Herrscher was so intense that it created many powerful Honkai Beasts. The Second Herrscher, who wields the power of [Space], caused spatial turbulence, and I was accidentally caught in it with a Honkai Beast..."
"I fought in the chaotic space until I was exhausted..." Shigure Kira was very calm, not a trace of sadness on her beautiful face... She just said with some guilt, "I never thought this body would still be used by the Honkai...."
"Indeed, my blade could not meet the Holy Maiden's expectations... I must personally atone for my failure to her..."
"I'm afraid..." Theresa interrupted flatly, "Holy Maiden Cecilia is already dead..." Her small hands, hidden in the wide sleeves of her nun's habit, couldn't help but tighten...
"I understand..." Shigure Kira said softly, her eyes downcast. "At the final moment, I watched helplessly as Her Highness the Holy Maiden and the other knights were engulfed in the flames of the catastrophe..."
"But I never thought that I would be the only one to survive in this form. How ironic..." Shigure Kira said, her voice somewhat sharp.
"...." Theresa fell silent... Her thoughts were in turmoil...
"Major Himeko... is that girl a Valkyrie from the Second Honkai War?" Li Xuan asked curiously, sidling up to Murata Himeko to get some gossip.
"Yes... She's an A-Rank Valkyrie... much stronger than me..." Himeko glanced at Li Xuan and said with a sigh. "But... that was in the past. That 'person' now is..."
"No, you are already dead. You are now just a husk maintained by Honkai energy, preserving your memories... no different from a Honkai Zombie." Theresa cruelly revealed the truth...
Having been eroded by Honkai energy for so long, Shigure Kira's body had long since transformed into that of a Honkai Zombie... There was no possibility of her becoming human again... Most of her internal organs had probably already crystallized.
"Is that so... Even justice, once tainted by evil, must be punished." Shigure Kira shook her head and muttered.
"Yes, that's right... so I'm sorry..." Theresa nodded without hesitation.
"I really wish I could live in a world without [Honkai] in my next life..." Shigure Kira said with a sigh.
"According to Bronya's data... a world without [Honkai] does exist... and a world can have countless parallel worlds..." Bronya suddenly responded.
"Yes, is that so. I hope my next life is in such a world. Thank you..." Shigure Kira smiled sweetly again and nodded slightly to Bronya in thanks. Her gaze turned to Theresa, who had a stern expression but whose eyes still held a hint of apology and reluctance.
"There's no need to apologize, Bishop. This long-forgotten life should have been returned to the gods long ago. It's just a pity that I couldn't accompany Lady Cecilia at the end..." Shigure Kira said with a hint of regret.
"The Cecilia you're talking about is..." Kiana, having recovered some of her energy, came over and chimed in, "My mother's name is also Cecilia..."
"This girl..." Shigure Kira's eyes widened. A somewhat familiar face, snow-white hair, and azure eyes... She turned her head to look at Theresa, seemingly seeking confirmation...
"..." Theresa nodded slightly.
"I see..." Shigure Kira looked at Kiana with relief, a relaxed smile on her face. "So the Holy Maiden's bloodline has been passed down. How gratifying...."
"Come here, let me take a closer look at you, then I will have no more regrets..." Kira said kindly. She took the approaching Kiana's hands and looked at her face, like a grandmother seeing her granddaughter for the first time...
"Uh..." We were just fighting to the death... is this really okay? Besides, I don't even know her... Kiana looked at Theresa with some hesitation.
"...Go on, Kiana..." Theresa nodded, signaling that Kiana had nothing to fear...
"Principal Theresa, is that person a Honkai Zombie?...." Li Xuan leaned in and whispered in Theresa's ear. Because Li Xuan was still slightly out of breath, some of his breath inevitably brushed against Theresa's ear...
"Yes..." Theresa blushed slightly at Li Xuan's unintentional action and gave the oblivious man a huge eye-roll...
"You look just like her, with such a holy face..." Shigure Kira reached out and gently caressed Kiana's face... She saw the shadow of that great lady in Kiana's face once more...
"..." Of course, the silent Kiana's heart was in turmoil... Her face was holy?... Uh, she forgot to wash her face this morning... is that really okay?
"Hmm?!" As Shigure Kira stared into Kiana's azure eyes, she suddenly paused... as if stunned by extreme shock... In that instant, she saw a faint golden glow deep within Kiana's azure eyes...
"Hmm?." *Why did her mental fluctuations suddenly change so drastically?* Bronya looked down at the data transmitted from the silver bracelet on 'Shigure Kira's' hand on her tablet, a little confused...
"Why are they just staring at each other..." Li Xuan, having recovered a bit of his energy, crowded around to watch Kiana and Shigure Kira's conversation... Perhaps because Shigure Kira only had eyes for Kiana, she hadn't noticed there was a boy in the group... Of course, it was also possible she mistook Li Xuan for a girl...
"Wrong, wrong!!" Shigure Kira suddenly roared, her ice-blue eyes once again filled with violent emotions.
"Huh?..." Kiana, completely bewildered, was startled by Shigure Kira's outburst... *What's going on... What's wrong?...*
"You sinful Herrscher!! Let me offer your life to Her Highness the Holy Maiden!!" 'Shigure Kira' shouted as if Kiana was her father's killer.
She barely managed to mobilize the Honkai energy in her body... infusing it into her right hand and the sword 'Heiyuan'... She raised the sword and, without hesitation, stabbed it towards the stunned Kiana's chest...
"**Pfft!~**" The sound of flesh being pierced by a sword was as distinct as a torch in the night in the silent hall...
"You idiot... *cough cough*... don't you know how to dodge?" Li Xuan looked helplessly at the sword piercing his chest and said to Kiana, who he had pushed away and who now lay on the ground with a twisted expression...
'*Damn it... why didn't the shield block the attack...*' Li Xuan looked at the sword in his chest and couldn't help but curse inwardly. '*This is a huge loss...*' Why did he just rush forward without thinking when he saw danger... Was he an idiot?...
Li Xuan gripped the blade of the sword 'Heiyuan' with both hands... took a few steps back, and pulled the sword out of his chest. The wound, which had almost run him through, gushed blood like a fountain... staining even the Xuanyuan Festive Garb red...
*Am I going to die this time too?*... Li Xuan knelt on the ground, weakened by blood loss... He looked down at his blood-soaked hands...
"NO!!!" As if time had resumed its flow... Li Xuan heard someone shout loudly. The voice was so loud... he couldn't even tell who was speaking....
(End of Chapter)