Mei, I Don't Want to Die... / Kiana: Can't Win, So It's a Scripted Death?

These two are still too inexperienced. If the Extreme Evil Vill-V wanted to make a move, how could they possibly catch up? That was originally a trap designed to target Mei.

Such a big cat, and it just shattered in a flash.

"To be honest, if Xia Ling hadn't told me, I wouldn't have known that there was such a being inside Vill-V."

Elysia, standing to the side, gently touched the corner of her mouth, looking slightly troubled. "Really, I didn't expect Vill-V to keep it a secret for so long..."

"What, Elysia, do you also want to go and have a chat with that Vill-V?"

"Of course, after all, she wasn't exactly 'Extreme Evil' to begin with." Elysia sighed. "But the timing might not be right now... at least, we should wait until you successfully overcome the Finality."

"Hmm... Is Elysia really that confident we can successfully make the leap?"

Xia Ling tilted her head. "The Stigmata Project hasn't even fully started yet."

"Of course! You are my absolute favorite Xia Ling. I have a lot of confidence in you all."

Elysia winked mysteriously, leaned close to Xia Ling's ear, and whispered sweetly, "And I have a secret weapon too!"

"Huh?" Xia Ling was taken aback. "Secret weapon? What is it...?"

"Hmm~ I won't tell you—" Elysia mischievously leaned close to Xia Ling's ear. "You always play the riddle-taker, this time, let Xia Ling experience what it's like to have her curiosity constantly dangling?"

"Hmph, I guarantee Xia Ling will be the last to find out, okay?"

"Hey—don't do that... Ugh!"

Before Xia Ling could finish speaking, she couldn't help but let out a strange, somewhat embarrassing moan.

It turned out that Little E, who had been left to play around for half a day, finally couldn't resist coming over.

Although she didn't quite understand what Elysia was doing, she followed suit and gently bit Xia Ling from the other side.

However, compared to Elysia's joking behavior, Little E's understanding was a bit...

Yes, it's full of childlike innocence.

"Little E! Don't suddenly pounce on me—"

Chapter 86 Mei, I don't want to die...

"That scream was..."

Kiana and Mei exchanged a glance.

"Oh no, something's happened to Pardo!"

At that moment, both of them were simultaneously kicked out of this node.

What lies before them now is the only "battle" on the second level.

[Emergency Operation - The Shadow of "Extreme Evil"]

However, Mei froze before entering the battle node.

"Wait, where's my Pardo?!"

"Pardo has disappeared from the formation interface?"

Kiana's face also darkened instantly.

After all, this situation mostly indicates that...

Seeing Mei's clenched Mei, Kiana sighed and led her into the node.

Upon entering the node, Kiana witnessed the scene she least wanted to see—the once lively Pardo was now slumped helplessly on the ground, her body convulsing in pain from time to time.

She was shrouded in a thin, eerie green mist, just like that Chijie and Aponia.

"Pardo!"

Mei rushed forward immediately, but this action triggered a cutscene, leaving both of them unable to move and in a state of paralysis.

Mei, on the other hand, found that her perspective had suddenly shifted to that of the story, and that Pardo's petite body was now lying in her arms.

"Mei- nee..."

Pardo let out a rapid and low voice. At this moment, nearly half of her body was covered with a hazy, indistinct covering, presenting an almost chaotic state.

"It's alright... Pardo, it's alright..."

Mei's words of comfort caused the girl's body to involuntarily arch upwards, only to curl up again due to the intense pain.

"No, no... Mei, we have to get out of here right now..."

"In that mirror, there is..."

From Mei's perspective, the mirror that was cleverly opened contained only a section of black mist with an ominous appearance, but from Pardo's wide-open eyes in terror, Mei could already see the reflection of the murderer.

"These are memories from when Boss Kevin disappeared. (The rest of the text appears to be gibberish and unrelated to the main story.)"

"The person who killed Boss Kevin... was..."

"I understand, Pardo, there's no need to continue..."

Mei gently comforted Pardo while trying to muster her strength, but since she couldn't move freely, this attempt was futile.

She then winked at Kiana, who was standing to the side, but all she got in return was a sad shake of her head from Kiana. Kiana was unable to move at the moment, let alone take the cat away.

"Then... should we... leave quickly?"

"Yeah, don't worry. Leave any danger to me." Although there were no lines, Mei already knew what she should say in this situation.

"Like before, okay?"

"Okay, okay... Mei, please don't say things like that. People say... it's a promise made in heaven, what was it again...?"

"It's like I'm really going to die... How could that be? I've always been... very lucky..."

The girl's words had become fragmented in her pain, and the haze around her grew increasingly intense, as if she were relentlessly pursuing her advantage.

"Mei... I don't want to die..."

Finally, after leaving behind a soft murmur that was almost a delirium, Pardo's body shattered into countless tiny, crystalline fragments that dissipated into the air, leaving Mei kneeling silently in place.

At the same time, accompanied by the crisp sound of breaking glass, another collectible entered their backpack—with the blessing of four collectibles, they now had more than enough deployment slots, although at this moment they would rather not have these deployment slots.

"Mei!"

Kiana had regained her mobility, rushed over and gently patted Mei's back, offering her a silent comfort—she understood how Mei felt at that moment.

She understood the pain of losing someone important all too well, and that's why she knew Mei needed silent companionship and plenty of time. But unfortunately, after the story ended, she wouldn't have much time to adjust her mood.

Fortunately, without realizing it, Mei has grown stronger than she remembered.

So... it's you...

Mei picked up the gold coin left behind by Pardo that had fallen to the ground and slowly stood up.

She looked at the black mist and said coldly.

The figure reflected in that mist was none other than Vill-V.

To be precise, it was the "Extreme Evil" Vill-V.

"Oh dear, now that you've seen everything, what's the point of me making excuses?"

"As for why it was Pardo..." The other party had even guessed Mei's question, "Unfortunately, it was an accident."

"After all, you're my only target right now... If it weren't for this guy, watching you die step by step from your own curiosity would be quite an experience."

Although that's what she said, there wasn't a trace of regret in her tone. On the contrary, getting involved personally like this only piqued her interest more.

"This guy..."

Upon hearing the Extreme Evil explanation, Kiana finally realized why the memories she and Mei had just seen were all of them being in dangerous situations. This made her break out in a cold sweat.

Standing on the opposite side of this group of people who are almost supernaturally intelligent is certainly not a pleasant feeling.

"Since that's the case..." The long sword crackling with purple lightning was suddenly drawn. Mei didn't want to waste any more words with her. She just wanted to vent her anger.

"My friend was killed for such a ridiculous reason..."

"Then you should be prepared to bear the consequences, right?"

"You seem very angry..."

But the "Extreme Evil" Vill-V didn't seem to have any intention of fighting. Instead, she began to leisurely explain to the two how she had been divided up and how she had been locked in that eternally dark prison.

However, for Mei at this moment, this was still a kind of "plot time". So, even though she really wanted to punch her in the face, Mei forcibly stopped herself from doing so and began to think about the situation she might face next.

Then, unsurprisingly, the "Extreme Evil" Vill-V said what she had already guessed.

"Now you have the privilege of seeing firsthand how thought is divided."

"So, prepare to be imprisoned in this isolated cage, just like I was once... no, I should say... a tomb?"

Chapter 87 Kiana: If you can't beat them, just kill them off through plot?

As the words fell, the location where Mei and Kiana were suddenly transformed into an isolated, floating platform.

"It seems like we... can move around freely now?"

Kiana was overjoyed at the sudden restoration of her powers, but at this moment, the Extreme Evil Vill-V had disappeared without a trace. It seemed that she had no intention of dying here with them.

But...

"Given the current situation, we should quickly move to other platforms and buy time for the other side by expanding the mental space they need to cut into, right?"

Kiana's expression was somewhat strange.

"That's right, then find that Extreme Evil place when the opportunity arises, and then give her a good beating."

Mei completed the second half of Kiana's plan.

"That plot is really unintelligent, after all..."

Kiana took Mei's hand, and the two of them vanished instantly, reappearing on another floating platform not far away.

"I am someone who possesses the Herrscher Authority of the Void!"

Since she is neither a conductor nor her ego, the efficiency of the Extreme Evil thought segmentation is not fast. Even with Mei's mobility in the original work, it could take quite a while.

Now, with Kiana's help, they can jump around freely in their mental space.

Before the division even begins, Kiana can take Mei to the next coordinate, and the Honkai Beast and obstacles that the Extreme Evil forces set up to hinder Mei will become mere decorations.

At this rate, unless Kiana's Honkai Energy is exhausted, the two of them will have no chance of being trapped in Vill-V's mind... In a way, this can be considered a countermeasure card.

The challenges of Mei's era, see how Kiana easily solves them. jpg

However, their goals didn't stop there.

They still wanted to avenge the cat, so how could they be satisfied with just going around in circles with the Extreme Evil?

"Mei, have you found her location?"

"Not yet, Vill-V's thinking is too broad... The other side seems quite happy to see us stall for time."

"Are you happy to see us stall for time?"

"That's right..." Mei pondered, "For Erosion, as long as I'm trapped here, the only variable will disappear. But for us, every minute here is a waste of the opportunity to save the others."

"If things continue to develop like this, we'll definitely be the first to lose our composure, and I'm sure it will be the same in the story."

"What should we do? It seems they're deliberately concealing their whereabouts..."

"Perhaps we could try it out ourselves and see what it feels like to be split apart... but that would be a bit risky."

"It's alright," Kiana said without hesitation. "Go ahead and try it. If anything goes wrong... I'll take responsibility and get you out of here."

"I believe you can find a way to win, just as I believe my authority can cover for us."

"Okay." Mei nodded heavily, then stopped walking first.

However, neither of them noticed that this challenge also had a time limit.

Just as they were filled with determination and ready to confront Vill-V, the two of them suddenly found themselves once again in the same immobile state as before.

Furthermore, it forcibly triggered subsequent plot developments.

"Wait... why is there a plot-driven death scene?"

Although she couldn't speak, Kiana and Mei's bewildered expressions clearly showed what she wanted to say.