Kiana, Become Mine (cont.)

Yuno had walked up to Mei, pointed to Kiana falling from the sky and continued speaking to Mei with a helpless expression.

"Even the Herrscher of the Void, who possesses three cores, had most of her power stripped away by the Constraint Barrier in an instant. If the two of us recklessly step into the barrier, we'll only instantly become a burden that holds our senior back."

"... You're right."

After taking a deep breath, Mei said to Yuno with a wry smile.

"You... are much calmer than me."

"Alright, there's no need to wallow in self-pity. Everyone thinks differently. You're more worried about your senior, so you'll naturally forget about these trivial matters at times like this."

After gently patting Mei's shoulder, Yuno said to Mei with a playful smile.

"Now that the biggest problem has been solved, instead of continuing to waste time here, I think we should seize the time to consolidate our core."

"Although the three-core Herrscher of the Void has been suppressed, no one knows how long the senior's barrier can suppress her."

"But if the two of us can condense the core back into our bodies, then the Herrscher of the Void, who will revert to a single-core Herrscher, will naturally be completely suppressed by you in terms of strength—this is the best way to assist you in battle."

Listening to Yuno's analysis, Mei, who had already begun to solidify her core, realized that her analytical abilities were indeed inferior to Yuno's.

The moment she saw Lin Yu, she didn't think at all that she might be a hindrance in terms of combat; she just wanted to get as close to Lin Yu as possible and see the boy's face clearly.

The thought that she had almost held Lin Yu back made Mei feel...

Sigh, I'm still too inexperienced.

Rather than saying you're too inexperienced, it's more accurate to say that Poison Ivy is acting strangely.

Having listened to Yuno's analysis, the Herrscher of Thunder Mei, with a strange emotion in her heart, slowly spoke to Mei.

[Poison Ivy... she really doesn't care about Lin Yu's safety at all.]

What are you saying? Yuno was just calmly analyzing the situation; that doesn't mean she doesn't care about Lin Yu.

Is that so? Perhaps you are right.

But her feelings for Lin Yu are much more complicated than we imagined... Heh, that's not necessarily a bad thing for you.

If someone as meticulous as her were to join the war between you and that white-haired idiot, the two of you combined wouldn't be able to defeat her.

[She clearly harbors feelings for Lin Yu in that way too, yet she's willing to help you out... Ha, if you succeed, she'll definitely be the one who deserves the most credit.]

I mean, why are you still thinking about these things when the battle situation is so critical?

Is now the time to think about romance?

Oh, well said.

[The problem is, who was it that almost pounced on their unsuccessful lover just now—if Poison Ivy hadn't held you back, you'd be lying face down on the floor under the Constraint Barrier right now.]

This, this, this... this is an accident.

Yes, yes, it was an accident, an accident.

Since this was an accident, let me also mention another accident.

Ah?

Lin Yu walked towards the white-haired idiot. If he could take care of him now, that would be fine. But if the idiot escaped by some other means, then...

Before the Herrscher of Thunder could finish speaking, the two people present simultaneously saw the 'Kiana' with golden eyes. After glaring angrily at Lin Yu, she actually disappeared from everyone's sight.

[Disappeared???]

You—you jinx!

Seeing her best friend, who was so close and about to be saved, actually disappear before her eyes, Mei, who had just relaxed a little, suddenly became tense again.

Oh no, we have no idea where Kiana will fly off to.

And Lin Yu...

Mei, who initially thought Lin Yu didn't know where Kiana would fly to, suddenly remembered something.

Mei was so happy about Mei Lin Yu's return that she almost lost her mind.

Now that she's calmed down a bit, Mei's analytical abilities have returned.

She was able to rank in the top three in her exams at the St. Freya Academy, so she certainly couldn't be a clueless idiot.

After briefly recalling those past events, Mei realized she was worrying unnecessarily.

Even when Lin Yu was still a special agent, he knew how to plan ahead to strengthen Mei's resolve and to get Kiana, who was in danger, to safety.

In Mei's and the others' eyes, even if Lin Yu wasn't the kind of super smart person who could calculate everything perfectly, he was at least a person with brains.

Lin Yu must know that the Herrscher of the Void, carrying the Void Key, could disappear from the enemy's sight at any time.

So...

Seeing Lin Yu turn around and glance at the two of them, revealing a 'don't worry, I've got you covered' expression, Mei felt completely relieved.

The moment Lin Yu made that move, his figure vanished from the spot.

About five seconds later, Theresa and Rita used the Quantum Teleportation System to arrive in this area, and immediately looked at Mei and Yuno with great excitement.

"Mei Yuno, we just saw it with the surveillance system, that figure—it's Lin Yu, right?"

"Yes, Bishop, Miss Rita."

Looking at the incredibly excited Theresa and the unusually calm Rita, Yuno spoke to the two of them.

"Senior Lin Yu has returned."

It's just strange.

Miss Rita and Senior Lin Yu are very close relatives, so why did Miss Rita seem unhappy after Senior Lin Yu returned?

Seeing Yuno's slightly puzzled look, Rita realized she had been a bit out of line and smiled at Yuno, taking the initiative to ask a question.

"What's wrong, Yuno- san?"

"... No, it's nothing."

Maybe I'm overthinking it. Miss Rita and her senior have a great relationship.

She was just not fully accepting of the surprise, which is why she acted so strangely.

Rita, who felt she had probably gotten away with the matter, was filled with joy at Lin Yu's return, but at the same time, a sense of melancholy also arose in her heart.

Very few people actually knew about this plan targeting the Herrscher of the Void.

Besides Mei and Yuno, Herrscher of the Void Theresa and Rita, who were always ready to ambush the enemy, were also aware of this.

But besides them, there were two other people who knew about the plan.

The first person was Theresa's good friend Murata Himeko, but Rita didn't think there was anything wrong with her being her senior.

However, the composition of the second person is—not even worth discussing.

The second person was Amber, the former secretary of Bishop of Schicksal Otto Apocalypse.

Although Amber is now also handling Schicksal's affairs as Theresa's secretary, Rita is certain that Amber is secretly maintaining contact with Otto.

Otto has been missing for about a month now, ever since Fu Hua blew his neck out during the Fifth Honkai Outbreak.

The fact that he didn't contact the Schicksal Headquarters to issue orders at first could be interpreted as him having plans elsewhere.

But a month has passed, which shows that Bishop of Schicksal 'Otto accusations were nothing but a fart.

As Rita's resentment grew, her suspicions about Otto also increased as he seemed unwilling to fight the Honkai and failed to contact headquarters when Schicksal needed command the most.

As her suspicions about Otto grew, she certainly didn't want Amber, as Otto's henchman, to have too much intelligence.

Now, even if Rita is dissatisfied, she can't find a reason to stop Amber's actions.

Amber, after all, has been Otto's trusted secretary for so many years. Now, even if Rita suggests being wary of Amber...

—Will Theresa listen?

Moreover, it wasn't just Theresa; for the other Schicksal colleagues who hadn't guessed Otto's true intentions, Otto's current situation couldn't even be described as still wielding considerable influence, but rather as 'just having to leave headquarters for a few days for some business.'

Even without deliberate effort, the old man who had been in charge of Schicksal for five hundred years had gained sufficient influence and prestige through the long passage of time.

Now that Rita's most worried brother has returned, who knows what extreme actions Otto, who seems unwilling to Honkai fight the Honkai, might take against her vengeful adopted brother.

My head hurts so much.

If it were anyone else, it would be one thing, but the one who committed this evil deed was a bishop.

Instead of finding a way to deal with the threat posed by the bishop, A'yu has to fight against both the Honkai and the bishop simultaneously...

—When the critical moment arrives, we'll definitely face even more dangers.

Meanwhile, on a certain small island

On a small island, Belenas, who had just watched Sirin leave, saw a sudden energy fluctuation erupt from the Thousand Worlds Annihilation where Sirin had been staying a minute later.

As the energy fluctuations subsided, the once incredibly confident Sirin collapsed weakly to the ground, gasping for breath.

On a normal day, Belenas might have seen Sirin's furious expression after her defeat.

However, at this moment, Sirin, who had just escaped the battlefield from Changkong City with the help of the Void Key, still had some resentment in her eyes, but the expression on her face was more of relief after surviving the ordeal.

"My Queen!"

After helping the dusty Sirin up from the ground, Belenas asked with great concern.

"Are you... are you alright?"

"... Ha, of course I'm fine."

No way! I flew over and said a few harsh words, and I almost got killed by that guy. I absolutely can't let Bella know about this.

Previously in Changkong City, Sirin felt completely powerless. In the instant she fell, she realized why God had told her it was best not to come to this place.

Those two women were bait from the very beginning!

It was a bait, a life-threatening act, used to lure her to Changkong City Sirin!

In the instant she lost all her power, Sirin barely managed to support herself and, relying on the connection she had maintained with the Void Key, used the last bit of her remaining strength to activate the Void Key's teleportation ability.

Before Lin Yu came to her, she used her last bit of strength to escape from that terrible hell.

Even after escaping the scene, Sirin was still unable to find peace of mind.

Originally, when Lin Yu traveled, he relied entirely on Schicksal to dispatch a professional transport plane pilot to transport him to the corresponding destination.

That's why Sirin believed that even if Schicksal wanted to ambush her, they wouldn't be able to arrive at the scene immediately if they didn't have control of the Quantum Teleportation System.

But, but...

Why is Lin Yu able to use the Quantum Teleportation System that only the World Serpent and Anti-Entropy can use?

Have Schicksal and Anti-Entropy joined forces once again?

This precious teleportation ability, those people from Anti-Entropy just gave it away like that?

Anyone who pays attention to that guy must have something wrong with their head!

But now, no matter how much Sirin curses the traitor who tricked her several times fourteen years ago and is still tricking her now, she has to face a reality.

Once the other party finds his coordinates, Lin Yu will still be able to attack them.

Although she could continue to use the Void Key to retreat, but...

Bella, we can't wait!

If I go back now, Lin Yu will definitely be waiting there for me to take the bait.

But I'm not going back, Bella...

"Your Majesty, I'm alright."

At this moment, Belenas noticed that Sirin's expression was off and gave Sirin a determined look.

"Everything I have is a gift from Her Majesty the Queen. Even if I lose these consciousnesses again, I will continue to protect Her Majesty the Queen."

Unfortunately, the Dragon Lady, who didn't quite understand human nature, was completely unaware that the words she used to comfort Sirin would instead become a catalyst for Sirin's fighting spirit.

Deeply moved by her friend's comfort, Sirin now begins to ponder how to kill Raiden Mei and keep the Conquest of Thunder returning to her body.

However, she hadn't been thinking about it for long...

"What... this is?!"