Bianca's Turn, Once More!

"Approaching the target... According to the detector, we are only 50 meters away from the Gem of Hopes."

The three people who had fought their way out of the sea of Honkai Beast and Death Soldier stopped near a town.

"... No gems were found, but Project Bunny discovered a girl in a wheelchair in the square."

Bronya's tone was somewhat heavy. Having heard Theresa's explanation before, she had already guessed the truth of the matter.

"Huh? There are survivors in such a dangerous place?"

Kiana looked surprised.

"This won't do, we have to hurry and save them! The square, right!"

Kiana glanced around and immediately spotted a figure sitting in a wheelchair in the square, seemingly lost in thought.

"Hey! We're here... Wendy, right?"

Kiana froze the moment the other person turned their wheelchair around.

"Huh... that voice... could it be... could it be Kiana?"

Wendy was slightly taken aback when she saw Kiana.

"Little Kiana?"

"I'm not a kid!"

Kiana immediately retorted awkwardly upon hearing this address.

Although she's called a senior, Wendy isn't actually that old; she's the same age as Bronya.

"But... Wendy, your leg?"

Kiana never expected that Wendy, who was once considered an S-class seed, would be associated with the words "wheelchair girl".

"... Gem of Hopes."

Mei said softly.

"If I'm not mistaken, Wendy, your legs are like this because Gem of Hopes, right?"

Kiana calls her "senpai" (senior), so Mei follows suit.

"...right."

Wendy nodded after a moment of surprise.

"Three years ago, I participated in the experiment about the Gem of Hopes. The purpose of the experiment was to allow the Valkyrie to control the power of the Herrscher. Therefore, they injected the power of the Gem of Hopes into my body. Unfortunately, even I could not control the power of the Herrscher. But perhaps it was good luck... the Gem of Hopes fused with my shinbone."

"What kind of good luck is this?!"

Kiana retorted, "Senior, aren't you already in a wheelchair?"

"... But it was indeed good luck."

Mei said softly.

"If we're unlucky..."

Although Mei didn't say it explicitly, Kiana understood from her low tone.

Wendy glanced at Mei again in surprise, seemingly wondering why Mei knew so much.

"By the way, are these two... ladies, also my juniors?"

Wendy asked softly.

"Yes, this is Raiden Mei, and this is Bronya."

Kiana enthusiastically introduced Wendy, and Mei and Bronya also greeted Wendy.

"... That's great. By the way, Professor Ragna, oh, you might not know this name—is Professor Kleika still around?"

Wendy asked with concern.

Cleka—the pseudonym Ragna used when teaching, is the name of Ragna's wife Aslaug when she was an adopted daughter in a farmer's family, according to legend.

Although it shares the same cognates as the name Ragna, it is much less common.

"Professor Ragna resigned several years ago."

Kiana shrugged. "Himeko is our homeroom teacher now."

"Isn't Himeko- sensei a good teacher too?"

Wendy smiled.

"So you're going to take me back, right? But I'm sorry, I'm in a wheelchair now, so I might have difficulty moving around."

"It's alright, Project Bunny can take you with it, senior."

The Project Bunny exited stealth and appeared before Wendy's eyes.

"Speaking of which... Senior Wendy, didn't the Oceania Branch consider retrieving the gem for you?"

"This..." Wendy's face showed a complicated expression, "... it seems that before this, the Gem of Hopes could not maintain a stable form in any medium, but after the experiment, it stabilized in my calf."

"Isn't this just using your body as a vessel? Why don't those guys just become the vessels themselves?"

Kiana, who is outspoken, was indignant about this.

Upon hearing this, Wendy's eyes dimmed.

"... It's alright, it's enough that I can make a contribution to Schicksal."

"Senior, you... ugh... you're so mean!"

Seeing Wendy like this, Kiana felt a little annoyed.

"When we get back to the Hyperion, I'll definitely have Himeko- sensei find someone to remove the gem from your leg, Senpai!"

"I'm really fine... and it's not so easy to get this gem out," Wendy reassured Kiana.

Although it had been several years since they last met, Wendy still remembered this junior who had come to school with Ragna, just like the Wildcats.

Take out the gem...

Mei and Bronya exchanged a glance.

The person who can do this... is my brother?

The two of them were on the same page again.

"We'll talk about these things when we get back to the Hyperion."

The group's communicator rang again, but this time Liu Bai was in charge, and the avatar displayed the word "AI" in large letters.

"AI teacher?" Kiana and Wendy were both surprised.

Back when Wendy was still in school, she had heard rumors that the teacher next door would have AI substitute for her.

"...AI teacher, could you please take a look at Wendy's legs?"

Mei continued speaking from this title.

"Her leg... there should be a way to treat it."

What could Liu Bai tell from Wendy's bandaged legs?

His eyes aren't X-ray machines.

"Bring Wendy back first. We'll discuss the specifics after she's had a medical check-up."

"A physical... checkup...?"

Wendy shuddered involuntarily when she heard the word.

"... Kiana, can I not go back?"

"...ha?"

Wendy's sudden words startled Kiana.

"Senior, what do you mean by this?"

"... I understand, Kiana, you're actually here to capture me, aren't you?"

"Huh? Senior? Why do you say that?" Kiana asked in surprise.

Kiana!

Mei grabbed Kiana by the back of her collar and took two steps back.

At that moment, it seemed as if a powerful whirlwind had swept around us.

... The concentration of Honkai Energy is increasing.

Even without the equipment reporting the numbers, Mei could guess what was going on.

She was all too familiar with this situation.

Back when he was in the process of getting used to the belt, every time he transformed into a Herrscher, it would trigger a certain degree of thunderstorm phenomenon, and he even had the ability to further turn it into a natural disaster.

(So that's how it is... You're already Herrscher, Wendy -senpai?)

"... I was careless."

Liu Bai watched this scene and muttered to himself.

"I originally thought Wendy's mental state would be more stable... or that she had actually become Herrscher, but was just suppressing it with a mental state on the verge of collapse?"

Liu Bai never imagined that his simple request for a physical examination would become the last straw that broke the camel's back.

This is really baffling.

But... Wendy doesn't seem as crazy as I thought?

Liu Bai continued to look at the scene on the communicator.

"...Go back to St. Freya, Kiana."

The whirlwind gathered around Wendy, lifting her into the air.

"W-This is..." Even Kiana, who was usually slow on the uptake, realized something was wrong. "No, let's not talk about that. Wendy -senpai, where are you going?"

"Me? Of course I'm going to kill all those hypocrites."

Wendy's eyes were cold, but her expression seemed to be suppressing something.

"Yes... that bunch of hypocrites... hahahahaha!!! Kill them all! Kill them all!"

... it didn't last long.

Liu Bai retracted his previous statement.

Wendy instantly went berserk.

"I really want to see how those hypocrites will beg for mercy when they face death! Heh heh heh... Hahahaha—!"

Then, Wendy noticed the trio on the ground again.

"Please don't bother me, my dear junior sisters... Oh, and please give my regards to Ms. Himeko and Principal Theresa."

Chapter 217 Bianka's Round, The Return!

"They... ran away?"

Mei was a little confused about the situation.

"This is..."

"He went to seek revenge, maybe he was too slow and didn't kill all the people in the Oceania Branch?"

Liu Bai spoke in a lame-joking manner, but unfortunately, no one present found it funny.

"Listen up, little ones."

Himeko then took over the conversation.

"Although you may still regard her as your senior Wendy's will may very well have been affected or even controlled by the Honkai... I hope you understand."

Himeko didn't finish her sentence, but the meaning behind her words made Kiana's face darken, while Mei and Bronya remained calm.

Bronya glanced at Mei.

To be honest, she felt that Wendy's condition wasn't beyond saving yet, and she actually felt a bit like Mei back then.