"Aaaah—aaah!" A shrill wail erupted from Mei's mouth. Lightning gathered, forming wings of light. The mark of the Gem of Conquest appeared on Mei's hip, revealed to everyone as her school uniform was shredded by the lightning.
"Begone, trash!" A massive ball of lightning condensed above the Temple-class Honkai Beast. The Temple-class Honkai Beast didn't even need to look up, for in the next second, the divine punishment representing the Thunder Queen's wrath descended upon it from above.
The Temple-class Honkai Beast's body began to swell like it was being inflated, and finally... it exploded.
A pillar of light rose from the spot, a sight witnessed by the Hyperion as it rushed over from a distance.
"Strong Honkai Energy reaction detected ahead! Honkai source readings are increasing! Honkai Beasts in Nagazora are gathering toward the source!" At the console, the staff on the Hyperion began reporting the situation one by one.
"Good grief, looks like we've hit the jackpot this time." Himeko, still wearing an evening gown she hadn't had time to change out of with a coat draped over her shoulders, looked at the screen with a heavy expression.
...
"Still not planning to wake up?" Inside the consciousness space, Verna sighed as she looked at Kiana, who sat in a chair with her head bowed, seemingly unconscious.
"Getting yourself into this state... it's was not just foolish." She gently lifted Kiana's chin. As expected, the child had fallen unconscious. Now, if she wanted, she could take control of the body.
"In that case, I'll go out and them a lesson." As Verna spoke, she prepared to stand up, but her wrist was suddenly grabbed.
"Ugh... I-I'm awake." Kiana opened her eyes, her voice somewhat weak.
Seeing that Kiana was awake, Verna didn't need to take over and fight as a proxy anymore, so she sat back down.
"Since you're awake, go back. Be careful—if you tear off the Herrscher of Thunder's wings of light, the consciousness of that Little Girl, Mei will back."
After opening a can of beer for herself, Verna urged the dazed Kiana: "What are you looking at me for? Go."
"Big sister, can I... ask you a question?"
"If it's still about my identity, there's no need to ask. When the time comes..." Verna's voice was cut off. Kiana looked at her and said, "I already know."
Verna paused mid-drink, the can in her hand vanishing. She looked at Kiana and asked, "What... do you know?"
"You're a Herrscher, right?" Kiana spoke with certainty. This wasn't a suspicion, but an answer she had established after careful thought.
"How did you find out?" There was no need for denial; she simply shifted the topic. Since Kiana could see through her identity, she wouldn't evade it. So what if she was a Herrscher? Admitting it frankly was her style.
"What about me? Am I a Herrscher too?" Perhaps because of what Verna said previously—that there are good people among Herrschers—Kiana was mentally prepared and didn't start screaming as Verna had expected.
"In a strict sense... yes."
"So, that's why you asked me that back then, right? Whether I wanted to become a Herrscher..."
Verna looked at Kiana. She knew Kiana wasn't stupid, but she hadn't expected her to find out so quickly.
"You didn't plan on hiding it, did you?" Kiana had intuitively mastered the ability to manifest things in the consciousness space. She took a sip of soda and brought up a line from a previous conversation.
"'Only a Herrscher can deal with a Herrscher'... That's what you said back then. You didn't intend to hide it from me at all."
Seeing she remain silent, Kiana spoke again: "Sister, can I call you that? You know, I don't have any siblings. To me, besides my old man, you're the one who treats me best."
"I have no objection." Verna remained seated as steady as a mountain. She could feel Kiana's last bit of wariness toward her gradually fading.
"The Herrscher of Thunder is still causing trouble outside. At this rate, there will be casualties soon." Verna raised her hand, and a light screen appeared in the consciousness space, showing the battle between the Herrscher of Thunder and the Hyperion.
"Well? Do you want to swap?"
"No... this time, I want to do it personally." Kiana looked at the Herrscher of Thunder on the screen and said, "I want to... try to stop her myself. Sister... you said I'm a Herrscher, so can you open the permissions to me?"
Verna said nothing, merely crossing her arms. Looking at Kiana's stubborn gaze, she finally let out a light chuckle. "I really can't do anything with you... Since this is the first time you're controlling the Authority yourself, your time limit is only three minutes. Understand?"
"Three minutes... is enough." Kiana stood up.
...
Returning to the moment when the Herrscher of Thunder had just executed that Temple-class Honkai Beast. She was holding Kiana in a princess carry. Their soft forms pressed against each other, deforming, but she didn't seem to notice.
"To get hurt just to protect a coward like that—how foolish!" The Herrscher of Thunder didn't show the extreme aggression toward humans she had initially. She lowered her head slightly, looking at the white-haired girl who looked like a sleeping beauty.
"Wake up for me. I won't allow you to die so easily. The only one who can take your life is me." The words sounded like those of a yandere, but her expression was cold and proud. It wasn't a lover's whisper, but a command issued by a queen.
A shadow blanketed the sky. The Herrscher of Thunder temporarily gave up on waking Kiana and looked up at what was once a blue sky. A steel monster had replaced the azure expanse, appearing in her field of vision.
"Annoying insect." The Herrscher of Thunder's expression remained unchanged. To her, the steel monster that mortals found terrifying was no different from a slightly larger bug.
But it was because of this that she felt anger. Lightning gathered, and a thick bolt struck the Hyperion, the shockwaves nearly destroying the surrounding area.
"Who allowed you to stand above me!"
Inside the Hyperion, Himeko saw this and ordered: "Defense fields at full power, now!"
The operators executed their captain's orders methodically. The defense field successfully deployed in the final second before the attack hit.
Lightning exploded. Ignoring these insignificant insects, the Herrscher of Thunder's attention returned to Kiana in her arms.
Even with the defense field deployed, the Hyperion still took damage.
"Activate Nuclear Furnaces No. 5 and 6! Maintain output! Switch ship power to backup energy! In two minutes, lower the ship's altitude to the Herrscher's position!"
"Wait, Captain! Are you planning to use 'that'?" The Adjutant seemed to realize what Himeko wanted to do.
But Himeko was already walking toward the place where that weapon was stored.
"There's no time to think of other ways out!"
The Adjutant wanted to say more, but Himeko had already removed her annoying hair ornament. She bit the tip of her glove and pulled it off, glancing back slightly.
"It's just a dream to talk about capturing her alive. I'm leaving the command of the ship to you!"
Her clothes were cast aside one by one. Soon, Himeko arrived at the place where her battle suit was kept...
When the battle suit returned to her glorious body, amidst the howling thunder, a mortal raised the Sword of Rebellion against Heaven toward the apostle of a god.