Even for Kiana, with the system's help, projecting the sky-screen and constantly anchoring the future, it wasn't something that could shift the past in a short time.
Perhaps, judging by today's progress, this would be a long-term effort.
It might take a very long time before it could be fully anchored.
So talking about all this now…
Yeah, it's a bit too early.
No point in saying more.
Might as well leave it as something to look forward to.
And then!
Act like nothing ever happened.
Since the sky-screen projection was a video released by the future Miss Yuzu, Kiana could righteously say, 'Even if I am the Herrscher of Finality, what does it have to do with me if Miss Yuzu knows something?'
"I don't know anything either."
"I'm just as curious about what an Aeon actually is!"
"You ask me, but who am I supposed to ask?"
But in the end…
It wasn't just Mobius and Elysia who wanted answers.
The higher-ups in Shenzhou were equally eager to know.
Even other countries, other organizations—so many people reached out to Shenzhou, wanting to know if they had any inside information.
Well, now what?
Even the Herrscher of Finality doesn't know!
Then all we can do is wait for the future…
See if that sky-screen uploader, when she starts rambling again, might let slip something more, give us a little extra information.
Actually…
It wasn't just the Aeons or the Paths that had people concerned. The Antimatter Legion, and that so-called Vega Clan, were also frequently brought up in discussions.
So…
For about a week after that, whether online or offline, in expert interviews or all sorts of news reports, related topics were everywhere.
[Mobius and the Artificial Herrscher Project]
[What Exactly Are the Several Divine Key Projects? What Is the Fusion Warrior Plan?]
[…]
[Showing You a Different Side of Mobius]
[…]
You could see it!
The buzz just wouldn't die down.
Mobius became a trending topic online.
Including Kiana and Elysia—their earlier popularity hadn't even faded, and now it surged again.
Everyone had their own focus.
Like in the scientific community—what they cared about were undoubtedly Mobius's future scientific achievements.
If that future Vtuber mentioned them, they definitely weren't simple.
So many people, whether Mobius knew them or not, tried every connection to see if she had any ideas herself. If she did, or if she'd already started working on something, maybe they could collaborate.
As for sociology and other humanities, they were still fascinated by the so-called Star League and curious about what future social structures might look like.
Nations and organizations, naturally, were more concerned with the most critical topics.
Namely!
The Third Honkai Eruption revealed by the sky-screen.
While many still refused to believe it, they had already started taking action.
Meetings, meetings, and more meetings!
Then coordinating and planning.
If they didn't know where the Third Honkai Eruption would occur, that would be one thing.
But since they did know, they'd naturally try everything to minimize casualties and preserve as many lives as possible.
In the past, with the First or Second Honkai Eruptions, the scale wasn't as massive.
Sacrifices were just sacrifices.
Keeping information hidden was more important.
But now, the existence of the Honkai itself was becoming harder to conceal.
It was semi-public.
And major eruptions weren't something that would end after just one or two.
According to that sky-screen video, there were a damn thirteen or fourteen of them in total.
This was some seriously bad luck.
One or two, three or four… fine, whatever.
But thirteen or fourteen?
What civilization could withstand that?!
If every time, they went all out, not caring about sacrifices or costs, just trying to push through—well, good luck with that.
If every major Honkai eruption was a battle for human civilization's survival, then without a doubt—when the cannons roar, gold pours out.
It all came down to resources.
Population, funds, reserves, even food—everything!
Thankfully…
Not every Herrscher had to be a fight to the death.
After all, the screen had mentioned it too.
The Authority of Origin is the power of making wishes come true.
With her around, maybe they really could try hard to awaken the girls who had turned into Herrschers. That way, they could turn enemies into allies.
And even in future eruptions, they'd have more combat strength to rely on.
Although…
When Fire Moth asked Elysia about it, she awkwardly said she didn't know how to awaken a Herrscher either. But she was willing to give it a try.
She was indeed starting to grasp her power.
But she wasn't very skilled at using it yet.
Especially since her power was so heavily influenced by her will, it felt like trying to see flowers through fog—beautiful but elusive.
But that's fine!
They could prepare for both outcomes.
No matter what, if a Herrscher appeared, given the current situation, Elysia was their only option.
Aside from her, there were no other truly high-level combatants capable of facing a Herrscher.
If they really had to consider how to defeat the upcoming Third Herrscher, the only way was to throw the military at it, try to limit its movements while minimizing casualties, and then overwhelm it with sheer firepower.
But as mentioned before, they wanted to reduce casualties.
Looking at it now…
Reduce? Yeah, right.
Sometimes you just can't reduce them no matter how hard you try.
However…
This time, there was one advantage.
Elysia was stronger than she was at this point in the original timeline.
And she could openly use her powers now.
Taking down the Third Herrscher should be a sure thing.
She also genuinely wanted to try and see if she could awaken the Third Herrscher's consciousness.
At the same time…
This was exactly what Kiana wanted to know.
She wondered, after these two or three videos, had the future changed at all?
Was it really moving in the direction she hoped?
And would it reflect back on the present?
'I remember, in the original, the first Herrscher to show signs of independent thought was the Sixth, right? And then the Seventh Herrscher, Himeko, seemed to briefly suppress the Herrscher personality using her own consciousness.'
Kiana's fair, slender legs were curled up on the sofa as she leaned back slightly, quietly reading a book.
She didn't open her mouth.
She was just silently communicating with the system in her mind.
No one could tell anything was off.
[Yes, host.]
The system replied calmly in her mind.
[The nodes you've influenced have changed the future, even if just a little. It's added one more possibility.]
It continued.
[Just as was said at the beginning, at the very least, you've given them a chance to change. Whether they succeed or not depends on them.]
'Yeah…'
Kiana didn't feel particularly burdened by it.
'If it works, great. If it doesn't, there's nothing we can do.'
'But if we can save just a few more girls, we can reduce the losses for this civilization. That's good enough for me.'
She cared deeply about this civilization.
Not just because this world was where she was born.
She also considered the future—if she really were to leave this world someday, to go play in the world of Star Rail or elsewhere, then this world would be her foundation.
Not taking good care of it just felt wrong~
To exaggerate a bit, it's her turf, so she can pamper it however she wants. Since it's hers, it's only right to be a little more invested.
It's no big deal, really.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
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