Mei's Self-Blame / A Change in How They Address Each Other

"..."

Upon hearing Gwen's words, Raiden Mei did not reply, but her eyes quickly welled up with tears, which instantly turned into large tears that spilled out.

The girl pressed her lips together tightly, making no sound, and silently wiped away the tears on her face with her hand, which was tinged with blood.

Seeing this, Gwen breathed a sigh of relief, gently embraced the girl's waist, and lowered his head to kiss the tear stains on her pretty face.

Feeling the warmth on her cheek, Raiden Mei suddenly regained her senses. An indescribable mix of fear and excitement shattered the girl's already fragile defenses, causing her to burst into tears.

Written request for leave

We had another argument at home tonight, and my mind is a mess, so I can't write anything. I apologize to everyone here.

I'll try my best to get into the right mindset tonight, and aim for fourth or even fifth place tomorrow. Stay tuned!

Word count patch, word count patch, word count patch, word count patch, word count patch, word count patch, word count patch, word count patch

Chapter 190 Mei's Self-Reproach

Faced with the girl whose defenses had crumbled and who was crying loudly, Gwen did not offer any grand pronouncements. Instead, he simply embraced her and silently comforted her trembling heart.

The beliefs that had sustained her through the past six months in the face of open and covert ridicule and gossip shattered in an instant, so it was only natural for the young girl to be emotionally agitated.

Gwen could do at this point was prevent the girl from going to extremes during this vulnerable time, and then try to help her get through this difficult time.

As Gwen's clothes gradually became wet, Mei's crying gradually subsided, turning from loud sobs to soft whimpers, and finally to barely perceptible sobs.

Mei didn't know how much time had passed, but she felt that all the pressure from the past was gradually returning to her senses as she Mei loudly and left.

However, perhaps because she had just vented her emotions, or perhaps because she had let go of something, the girl was not as shy as she had been during the day. She rubbed against Gwen for a moment before slowly getting up.

The girl's pretty face, flushed from crying, no longer showed much shyness; instead, it held a calmness she had never shown before.

"Mei..."

Looking at Mei like this, Gwen a slight stirring in his heart and called out the girl's name.

"Um..."

Gwen, her eyes red, met Mei and nodded slightly, a forced smile even appearing on her pretty face.

"Thank you, Chisey, I feel much better now."

"Um..."

Seeing the girl in front of him was unexpectedly calm, both mentally and emotionally, Gwen secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but couldn't help feeling a little worried.

However, Gwen showed no sign of distress, offering no further comfort, and continued with what he hadn't finished saying earlier—

"Although your father does meet the charge of financial fraud because the name of the funds raised is different from their actual use."

However, considering the anticipated future returns, your father is fully capable of providing the necessary funds.

Therefore, your father was simply using the financial methods that people at his level typically employ.

Considering that his intention was not to seize other people's property, Mei, you don't need to fixate on the so-called charge of financial fraud.

If you really want to count them, every single one of those big shots whose names frequently appear in financial magazines is included.

"Um..."

Listening to Gwen's explanation, Mei's expression didn't change much. She just quietly watched Gwen, who was trying to defend his father, and silently digested the information in Gwen's words.

After Gwen finished speaking, the girl pursed her lips, her voice carrying a hint of heaviness:

"Thank you, Chisey."

However, you don't need to say things like that to comfort me...

Mei paused, sighed softly, and then continued.

"Regardless, my father did indeed commit financial fraud, and that cannot be denied in any way..."

The girl's expression remained relatively calm as she spoke, but beneath this seemingly calm exterior lay a heart wounded in ways she had never imagined.

Despite being born into a wealthy family like the Raiden Family, Raiden Mei, as the only daughter of Raiden Ryoma, has not received much education in political maneuvering, and her values and personality are not much different from those of ordinary people.

Therefore, Raiden Mei doesn't think her father's actions are wrong just because Gwen mentioned that those financial tycoons do this, nor does she feel at ease accepting all of this just because Raiden Ryoma might be doing it for her sake.

On the contrary, this girl, who always appeared quite aloof to the outside world, was now deeply remorseful, thinking, "My father did this for my sake, so I also have an inescapable responsibility."

"Well..."

Meeting Raiden Mei's eyes, which seemed shrouded in dark clouds, Gwen sighed, offering no further explanation, and could only continue speaking.

As for why I said it might be for your sake...

Wait a mininute."

As Gwen spoke, he stood up, returned to the bedroom, and, under Raiden Mei's questioning gaze, presented an unremarkable first-aid kit.

Sitting back down next to the girl, Gwen skillfully retrieved a testing device from the hidden compartment and began taking a blood sample from Raiden Mei for testing.

Completely unaware of what Gwen was doing, but with many questions in her mind, Raiden Mei believed that Gwen wouldn't harm her, so she cooperated with Gwen's actions.

A moment later, the instrument in Gwen's hand glowed a blinding red light, causing Raiden Mei, whose heart was heavy, to tense up. Finally, unable to suppress her doubts, she asked:

"Chisey, what is this...?"

"In short, you can think of it as something that tests the level of Honkai Energy in a person's body."

Having achieved the expected result, Gwen, still showing a hint of surprise, put away the equipment and explained with a smile,

"Although this is just the simplest testing method, it still has some reference value..."

In short, in that real world you've never experienced before, Mei, you might be a rare genius.

"... Honkai Energy?"

Upon hearing Gwen's words, Raiden Mei, who was feeling down, quickly recalled the topic the two had discussed earlier.

As Raiden Mei pondered the term that had been brought up again, she felt a strange sense of familiarity. She felt as if she had heard the word before, but she had no recollection of it at all.

"Um...

So-called Honkai Energy ...

Gwen nodded. Since he had only briefly introduced the existence of Schicksal and Anti-Entropy, and only mentioned Honkai Energy briefly, Gwen explained the definition and function of Honkai Energy to Raiden Mei before giving the conclusion of the test.

"Based on the results of the test just now, Mei, the amount of Honkai Energy in your body has exceeded the range of ordinary people who have not undergone targeted training."

This means that Mei has extraordinary Honkai Energy resistance, that is, the ability to come into contact with Honkai Energy without being corroded;

At the same time, it also means that Mei, your Honkai Energy adaptability is not low; at least becoming an excellent warrior shouldn't be a problem.

The dreams of her teenage years seemed within reach, but Raiden Mei wasn't exactly happy—

Gwen, standing beside her, didn't have much of a smile on his face. Instead, he carried a heavy feeling that made Raiden Mei, who felt as if a huge boulder was pressing on her heart, have a bad feeling.

Then, under the girl's bewildered gaze, Gwen slowly said:

"However, the test results just now also revealed a problem—"

"As someone who only received family-inherited swordsmanship training, the amount of Honkai Energy in your body is unbelievably high, to the point that I even suspect... there might be an additional Honkai source within your body."

Chapter 191 Changes in Address

Although Gwen knew that Raiden Mei seemed to be a natural Stigmata Awakener, this did not stop Gwen from pretending not to know and steer the conversation toward Conquest Gem.

"I have a... Honkai Source within me?"

Hearing Gwen's words, even Raiden Mei, who was feeling down and doubting herself because of the truth about Raiden Ryoma's imprisonment, couldn't help but be drawn in—

This anomaly... was far too consistent with what she had previously thought.

"Yes, although you possess exceptional talent, without undergoing systematic, long-term, high-intensity training, your body won't have much Honkai Energy reserves—"

Just like a world-class athlete, before undergoing professional training, they might only perform slightly better than their peers in their field, or even worse.

Gwen nodded, continuing his explanation while guiding the conversation.

"And the intensity of Honkai Energy within you has far exceeded what you should be capable of."

Therefore, I have to suspect that there might be other Honkai Energy sources within your body.

What could it be?

Gwen nodded, finding no problem with Mei's words, and then couldn't help but ask.

Although most of her attention was focused on her father's affairs, Raiden Mei couldn't possibly be indifferent to something that involved her own life—

Anyone with any understanding of Honkai Energy can comprehend the danger of additional Honkai sources within the body.

"I have two speculations about this—"

Firstly, it could be an innate Stigmata, a rare and exceptional talent that grants the individual strong resistance to Honkai Energy, along with excellent adaptability and the potential for some special abilities.

However, among the limited number of naturally born Stigmata holders, your high Honkai Energy concentration is absolutely unique.

Secondly, something else that could act as a source of Honkai could be artificially implanted into your body.

For example, Honkai Energy Crystal extracted from Honkai Beast or Honkai zombie using instruments are one of the most common sources of Honkai...

Mei, have you had any surgeries in the past?

"Operation..."

Upon hearing Gwen's question, Mei frowned and subconsciously shook her head.

However, before she could give a negative answer, a sudden thought flashed through her mind, and she remembered some past events. Her pretty face, which had been flushed from crying, turned pale.

She pursed her dry lips, but Mei asked about another possibility—

"Chisey, what are the special abilities of those born with Stigmata?"

A possible possibility was vaguely emerging in Mei's mind, and she subconsciously resisted it, instead asking about the situation of the innate Stigmata.

"The special ability of being born with Stigmata is actually quite rare."

In the records I've seen, most of them simply endow the holder with extraordinary resistance and adaptability.

Among the special abilities mentioned, the most obvious are the superpowers of controlling lightning or fire.

However, its main effect is on enhancing a person's own abilities. For example, in me, it manifests as immense strength surpassing that of others at the same stage.

Seeing the girl's expression, Gwen roughly guessed what she was thinking and didn't expose her, instead explaining along the lines of her question.

"However, according to some scholars, this enhancement may only be the most basic ability of the innate Stigmata."

As for its true power, it seems to remain to be explored.

"Then... Chisey, do you think I could be the naturally born Stigmata Awakener you mentioned?"

Subconsciously resisting the second possible Raiden Mei, Mei looked at Gwen.

"That is indeed possible."

However, I don't have the specific testing equipment here, so I can't be sure.

Gwen nodded in agreement, but faced with the girl's hopeful gaze, he increased the likelihood of another possibility—

"But... even with innate Stigmata, it's difficult for you to possess that level of Honkai Energy."

Although reluctant to shatter the girl's hopes, Gwen knew that taking advantage of her current state of unease to settle things was the best option. Therefore, he didn't give up but continued his relentless pursuit.

"Moreover, according to the information I have obtained—"

Your father, Mr. Raiden Ryoma, took on the task of safeguarding the Conquest Gem held by Anti-Entropy several years ago.

Gwen had made up his mind to lay everything out today, then find an opportunity to shake off Cocolia's surveillance, take Mei away from Changkong City, and simply scatter the script.

"..."