48. Mei: I'm seeing red, folks / 49. Is Himeko really dead? As dead as they come!

"There's someone you know up ahead. It looks like they've entered the theater too. Should we go check on them?"

"I sensed it too; she must have entered through Xia Ling's power."

Kal'tsit thought for a moment and said, "Go help her. Her way of entering is too conspicuous. She might get tricked by the doll."

"I can roughly sense Xia Ling's vital signs now, so her condition should be relatively safe... We still have time."

"Alright, I'll use my water clone to help her out of this predicament... although with her strength, she might be able to handle it herself."

MewMew focused her consciousness on her water clone.

"So... who exactly is this acquaintance you're talking about?"

Himeko asked curiously, "Do I know him?"

"Of course you know him, he's one of the top students you taught."

Kal'tsit thought for a moment, "Hmm... she's also one of the Herrscher."

"Are you complaining that my class is full of Herrscher...?" Himeko sensed a deep malice.

"This should just be a statement of fact."

"So, it's Mei?" Himeko thought for a moment, finally deciding on her choice. "However, given Mei's gentle nature, she might be at a disadvantage against this kind of guy..."

On the other side, the perimeter of the Theater of Domination.

"The scenery is different from last time. Is this the difference between hacking and normal entry...? Judging from this position, I should be on the outskirts of the theater?"

Mei, with her little fox, successfully entered the theater using the key given to her by Xia Ling.

In a way, that key can also be considered a piece, no, half a collectible, because it was a product of the Water Moon Pigeon and had a great effect on preserving Xia Ling's abilities.

"Um?"

Looking at the doll that had emerged from the shadows, Mei couldn't help but let out a cold smile.

"You've come knocking on our door so quickly... It seems my presence has indeed touched a nerve."

"An uninvited guest! An uninvited guest!"

"Get out of here! You're not welcome here!"

The dolls were shouting, but they didn't approach Mei.

"I know that's why I came here—because you don't welcome me."

Mei's expression was quite indifferent. After all, during her time in World Serpent, she was no longer the gentle and lovely Mei she once was.

"You are not qualified to enter the Theater of Domination! How did you even get in!"

"We still have other guests to entertain, so please don't bother us!"

"Really? Then I'm here to get in your way. Are you in such a hurry to get rid of me because you're afraid of me?"

Mei slowly drew her long sword from its sheath.

Chapter 48 Mei: Red Warmth for the Family

"Relentless pestering and relentless pursuit!"

Although they were wooden dolls, Mei could hear the gritted teeth in their words.

"Alright, alright, since you insist on making trouble, we'll have no choice but to teach you a lesson."

Under the control of invisible giant hands, the dolls fell from the sky. Some of the dolls rushed towards Mei, while others landed on the spot.

"Heh, you think you can defeat me with these puppets? You're underestimating the Herrscher too much."

With a thunderous flash of lightning, the blade was instantly drawn. Mei did not use her Herrscher powers, after all, they were just puppets, and there was no need to make a big fuss.

However, with just one strike, the puppets scattered in all directions, as if they were frightened.

Don't want to fight head-on?

Mei instantly sensed the doll's thoughts.

They didn't seem to be fighting, but rather stalling for time... The other party seemed very reluctant to let her go to the center of the theater.

They must have some plan for doing this. Considering the previous news about the Gray Serpent, the Thousand-Man Herrscher is undoubtedly targeting Kiana.

Having understood what the Thousand-Man Herrscher was thinking, Mei immediately lost the will to continue wasting her energy. With a thought, the little fox perched on her shoulder jumped down and instantly transformed into a giant demon fox.

"You cheated! You cheated!"

The dolls panicked when they saw Mei summon a mount.

At this moment, most of the puppets were tied up with Xia Ling, and they really couldn't spare many puppets to stop Mei. If the opponent added the speed of her mount, then Mei might actually be able to arrive before Kiana's consciousness was obliterated by the Herrscher of the Void.

The poor dolls are unaware that the core of their plan was a false proposition from the very beginning.

"There's no other way, you forced us to this..."

The dolls muttered to themselves, and those that had been lying in place started to move.

However, their target is not Mei, but... the theater itself.

"You really like this theater, right? Then we'll give it to you!"

As the puppets moved, the large theater where Mei was located gradually began to detach from the Theater of Domination.

"Just sit here in this theater and wait to drift back to reality from the Imaginary Space!"

"This is called... cutting off one's tail to survive~"

The puppets laughed again, and at the same time, these discarded puppets began to exert their final value.

"You're already using Herrscher power, aren't you? Haha, you're getting impatient, you're getting impatient!"

"Since you've used the powers of Herrscher, then give them to me!"

Following the threads, the power of control begins to activate, and this is the opportunity the puppets have been waiting for.

If they can also acquire the power of the Herrscher of Thunder, then they will have completed the final piece of the puzzle, possessing three Herrscher Authority.

At that time, Xia Ling's Seven Thunders of Retribution will pose a much less threat to them.

"Oh, really?"

To their surprise, Mei didn't show any frustration; instead, she still spoke with an air of confidence.

"Then let's give it a try and see which comes out on top: your [Domination] or my [Conquest]."

Mei has plenty of confidence in the face of the power to dominate.

Xia Ling once told her that the reason why the puppets did not prioritize attacking the Herrscher had undergone metamorphosis was because their control was essentially a confrontation of power.

But the Herrscher after they've ascended to immortality... they can't defeat them.

Therefore, Mei has plenty of confidence; she will not lose to anyone.

If you look in from the outside of the theater at this moment, you will find that the puppets' claim of dividing the theater into sections has not actually been realized.

Long before Mei and the dolls began their power contest, the batch of dolls that had been dispersed to cut up the theater had already met with misfortune.

The area that was originally intended to be divided was now covered with a light layer of mist.

"Sigh... When you came up with this plan, did you never consider what would happen if there was a mole among you?"

Among the already limited number of dolls, several suddenly turned into a cloud of mist, then reformed, until they transformed into the shape of a young girl.

Having already experienced a backstab once before, this time, MewMew's attacks were very concise and swift, almost always resulting in a fatal blow.

The water clone that burst out of the doll immediately unleashed its power on the dolls around it, and in almost an instant, most of the originally lively dolls were wiped out.

"Who are you..."

Before it could finish speaking, a reddish-brown energy ball slammed into the doll, shattering its woody body and severing the threads completely.

"We arrived just in time; the enemy hadn't had a chance to separate the theater yet... Thankfully, we almost lost a valuable asset."

Kal'tsit breathed a sigh of relief.

"Let's go in and save Mei first. I just saw the red lightning... The puppets are masters at exploiting information gaps. What if they lure Mei into using up all her power and then she's naturally repelled from the space? That would be troublesome..."

"Alright, I'll go first then."

Himeko brandished her greatsword with great interest.

"I haven't seen that child in a long time. I wonder if she'll be shocked when she sees me."

"Wait, you should... never mind, I'll go after them first. Kal'tsit, you guys quickly clean up the dolls around here."

As Himeko's "bodyguard," Theresia shook her head helplessly and quickly followed the guy who was getting excited because he hadn't done anything for a long time.

Meanwhile, on Mei's side...

"If that's all there is to it, then your domination ends here."

Mei has fully donned Mei Herrscher's armor, unleashing her strongest form.

"Why, why can't we take it!"

Red lightning crackled around the dolls, but they couldn't control this power.

"It's simple, you're all too weak."

Like a queen on high, Mei stood on Hi-maru, looking down at the doll.

"Your domination, in the end, is nothing more than plunder and extortion."

"But if I defeat you in a contest of strength, not only will you be unable to seize my power, but even the authority you have already taken will become unstable."

"So, are you ready? This time, I'll show you the full power that the authority of [Conquest] represents!"

"Gale, submit to me—"

Mei, Mei in her chuunibyou phase, didn't notice that two figures were staring at her in disbelief not far away.

"Um... Theresia, do you think we should stop her now?"

"Theoretically, that's how it should be. If she uses her power like that, she'll soon be expelled from the Theater of Domination because she'll run out of power."

"But I feel..." Himeko hesitated, "... that going out now might be irresponsible towards the students' mental health..."

"If you don't go out, that's irresponsible towards Kiana's health."

Theresia gave Himeko a shove. "So, for Kiana's sake, use the 'Social Death' on Mei."

As Himeko jumped out, all the energy dust around Theresia rose up and flew towards the doll and Mei simultaneously, interrupting the clash of powers between the two.

"Who interrupted...?" Mei's gaze swept downwards, and then...

She saw Himeko carrying a greatsword, looking embarrassed, and Himeko, the culprit behind her controlling the red energy ball, Theresia had just interrupted her release of power.

Mei froze on the spot for a moment.

"Himeko- Teacher Himeko?!"

"The goods are genuine and of high quality, guaranteed authentic."

Himeko made a gesture of flexing her muscles. "It was Dr. Kal'tsit who saved me back then... and I've been recuperating at her place ever since."

"If you suspect that we are dolls in disguise, Dr. Kal'tsit is right behind us."

"As well as..."

Himeko's expression became somewhat indescribable.

"Mei, it's been a while... Your hobbies have become a bit strange."

Two blushes instantly rose on Mei's face, and for a moment, she felt a little dizzy.

Judging from Himeko's words, it seems that she...

I watched the whole thing.

Chapter 49: Is Himeko really dead? As if dead!