Sirin found it ridiculous—
this guy shouting "Ittō Shura!" while holding a baseball bat.
But—
the terrifying energy surrounding him…
was visible to the naked eye.
And anything visible like that—
was unquestionably powerful.
"…Damn it."
"Wasn't he hesitating just now?!"
"Why is he suddenly going all out?!"
Not understanding what changed, Sirin immediately gathered her remaining Honkai energy—
and formed a spatial barrier in front of her.
But—
just as she finished forming it—
She got hit from behind.
No—
not sent flying.
She was struck from behind—
and slammed straight into her own barrier.
"Damn it!"
"If I weren't so weakened… how could I be hit like this?!"
Trying to recover—
Sirin suddenly realized:
She couldn't track his movements at all.
And now—
Ji Ran was relentlessly beating her—
punch after punch, every hit landing solidly.
"He's serious…"
"He actually intends to kill me!"
If it were before—
even with just one Herrscher core—
Sirin could easily:
Create countless barriersBlock all attacksCover the entire area with spatial spears
And instantly blow this man apart.
But now—
she couldn't.
Her power was far from recovered.
And the man before her—
was getting even faster.
Even with a Kaslana body—
she could feel it clearly:
His punches could injure her.
He didn't give her any time to gather energy.
After launching her into the air—
he followed up with a brutal aerial combo—
slamming her down like a crashing plane.
"…What the hell?!"
"If you had this power, why didn't you use it earlier?!"
"You didn't use it against 'Siegfried'—but now you're going all out on a girl?!"
"Are you insane?!"
"…No."
After being smashed into the ground—
Sirin suddenly realized something.
"He didn't use it earlier…"
"Because the cost must be huge."
Just like Siegfried's power back then—
a temporary state with severe backlash.
"…Which means—"
"If I stall for time…"
"I win."
She smirked inwardly.
"Fine, human. I'll endure for now—"
SMACK!
Before she could finish—
Ji Ran grabbed her by the collar—
and slapped her hard across the face.
"You—how dare you—!"
"Why wouldn't I?"
"You're trying to kill me. Why should I hold back?"
SMACK! SMACK!
He slapped her several more times—
completely unfazed.
"Thinking about it…"
"We barely know each other."
"No sane person would throw away their life for someone they've known for less than an hour."
"You—!"
"Did I allow you to speak?"
SMACK! SMACK!
"I'm not going to pity you like—'oh she lost everything, she's innocent.'"
"You're the Herrscher of the Void."
"You've killed tens of millions."
"Killing you here would just be justice."
"…How do you even know that—"
SMACK!
"I said—did I allow you to speak?"
"Otto might need you for his plans."
"I don't."
"…Even my dad never hit me like this!"
SMACK!
"What's that got to do with me?"
"Get out of her body."
"Or I'll kill you."
Ji Ran grabbed her throat—
his expression cold.
"I will survive."
"No matter what."
"Even if it means killing an innocent girl."
"…You're insane…"
Sirin felt it.
The killing intent in his eyes—
was real.
Her consciousness began fading due to lack of oxygen.
She wanted to fight back—
but couldn't even gather energy.
The once-mighty Queen of Honkai—
was now being held like a helpless doll—
strangled.
"…So you're not backing down, huh."
"Fine."
"Guess I'll just kill you."
"…Human…"
"…You win."
With a venomous glare—
Sirin retreated back into Kiana's body.
The moment she withdrew—
Ji Ran collapsed onto the ground.
"Ittō Shura…"
had already ended.
Everything after that—
was just him forcing it—
with the last of his strength.
"…Damn."
"If she weren't that easy to bluff…"
"…I'd be dead right now."