Explanation

Yoshikage Kira comforted Vill-V, briefly explaining the events.

Vill-V wasn't unreasonable. She had witnessed your abilities and believed you wouldn't die easily.

But she loved you, so her worry was understandable.

Seeing Yoshikage Kira unharmed, Vill-V released him after a brief embrace.

Then, she looked at Himiko, still unconscious on the experimental table.

"It's okay to let her stay with you for now, right?" Yoshikage Kira asked Vill-V.

"Of course," Vill-V nodded obediently.

Yoshikage Kira patted 'Id' Vill-V's head and said, "I'll explain everything to you all later, but not now."

With that, he walked out of the Spiral Workshop and was taken away by the interrogators.

"Facing the flames of the Herrscher of Flames, how did you survive?"

"I fainted at the beginning and don't know what happened. When I woke up, Kevin had already defeated the Herrscher."

To the series of questions from the Flame Chasers, Yoshikage Kira simply repeated, "I don't know."

After a physical examination, they found nothing unusual. The Flame Chasers didn't trouble him further and let him go.

"Whoa! Boss, I'm so glad you're okay!" Pardo exclaimed excitedly, rushing into his arms as Yoshikage Kira emerged from the interrogation room.

"Mm, I'm back." Yoshikage Kira smiled and greeted everyone who had come to meet him outside the interrogation room.

The seventh newcomer's ball proceeded as scheduled, honoring Squad Five and solidifying Kevin's title as a hero.

However, the members of Squad Five weren't particularly happy, as the Herrscher they had defeated was their captain.

For various reasons, some members of Squad Five chose to leave the team.

No one blamed them for leaving. Facing the pressure of a Herrscher and the threat of death wasn't something everyone could handle.

The banquet continued, but the atmosphere around Yoshikage Kira was somewhat subdued.

"Are these the remaining members of Squad Five?" Yoshikage Kira broke the silence, speaking first.

"Ah, yes, they should all be here," Elysia replied.

Yoshikage Kira, Pardo, Aili, Kevin, Cosmo, Hua, Desdrobia, Carole.

Less than ten people, but Yoshikage Kira was satisfied with this.

"Since we're all allies now, I have something to say to everyone later." With that, Yoshikage Kira fell silent.

The atmosphere then returned to silence. Even Elysia didn't know what to say.

"Assistant, I'm here."

Vill-V suddenly appeared, and Yoshikage Kira nodded at her.

"She's awake now, and I've notified the people you asked me to inform," Vill-V reported to Yoshikage Kira.

"Good job." Yoshikage Kira patted Vill-V's head and then addressed the group, "I can see none of you are in the mood to enjoy the banquet. In that case, follow me."

Yoshikage Kira stood up and walked out. The others looked at each other and followed him.

They walked all the way to the Spiral Workshop. Upon entering, they saw Mobius, Mei, and the captain who should have been dead—Himiko.

Yoshikage Kira walked to the front and clapped his hands to get everyone's attention.

"Now, I will explain the situation."

"First, Elysia is a Herrscher."

"Wha-wha-whaaaaat! Why do I always get dragged into this? Didn't we agree not to tell anyone?"

"Secondly, people who are struck by this arrow have a chance to gain special abilities." Ignoring Elysia's wailing, Yoshikage Kira took out the arrow and showed it to everyone.

"I call these special abilities 'Stands.' The abilities of Stands vary from person to person, and Stands can also absorb Honkai Energy to strengthen themselves."

"If you have any questions, feel free to ask them now, and I'll answer them all at once."

Himiko raised her hand first.

"Um, that thing called a Stand, right? My Stand can set things on fire, but it doesn't seem to be able to absorb Honkai Energy. The Herrscher Core inside me seems to reject the Stand's ability."

Yoshikage Kira nodded thoughtfully, then shook his head. "Currently, only you and I are Stand users. Perhaps absorbing Honkai Energy is my own ability."

"Then, I have the next question. What is the probability of becoming a Stand user?" Mobius, wearing a white lab coat, asked Yoshikage Kira with her arms crossed.

"It's not higher than becoming a Fusion Warrior, and most Stand abilities aren't as strong as Fusion Warriors."

"Is that so? I have no further questions."

"What about the others?" He surveyed the group, who were all processing the information they had just received and the fact that Himiko had survived.

"Um... everyone, I think I might be a Herrscher?" Elysia sheepishly raised her hand.

"If there are no other questions, you can all go home. If you have more questions later, ask me privately."

"Hey, I'm a Herrscher who can destroy the world, pay attention to me," Elysia raised her voice, emphasizing that she was a Herrscher.

"Heh, you, destroy the world? With your magical girl-like crystal arrows," Mobius looked at Elysia and mocked her.

"I'm a Herrscher with humanity, Mobius, aren't you interested?"

"Hmph, boring." Mobius turned to leave, but Elysia stopped her.

"My dear Mobius~ Don't rush off, let's throw a party for our Captain Himiko to celebrate... hmm, Himiko's resurrection?"

"Won't you? Please, Mobius."

"Tch, annoying." Knowing that refusing might lead to prolonged harassment from Elysia, Mobius stopped and returned to her original spot.

"Then I'll prepare the venue, there's still a lot of space under the Spiral Workshop," Vill-V suggested to everyone.

Checking the time, it was just 8 PM, so there was plenty of time. Yoshikage Kira agreed.

"Yay, let's have a party!" Elysia cheered. The young girl was so happy, both for Himiko's resurrection and because everyone accepted her as a Herrscher.

After the revelry, everyone gradually left. They were all intelligent people, and Yoshikage Kira didn't bother with any reminders.

Watching their retreating figures, Himiko's face showed a hint of loneliness.

"What's wrong, not happy?"

"Ah, it's Yoshikage Kira..." Himiko started to speak but stopped.

"We don't need to hide anything from each other, do we? You've already seen my whole body."

"I fainted back then, I didn't see much!" Himiko raised her voice, explaining flusteredly to Yoshikage Kira.

Yoshikage Kira smiled lightly at Himiko. Himiko tidied her hair, took a deep breath, and confided in Yoshikage Kira.

"Only when I'm fooling around with everyone can I temporarily forget, forget that I'm the murderer of tens of millions in Australia."

"I almost killed my teammates too. Fortunately, you discovered my abnormality in time, otherwise..."

Himiko said with a bitter smile. Carrying the lives of tens of millions, no one could understand such pressure.

"Although I can't empathize with you, killing tens of millions wasn't your intention, was it?"

"Kill one, then save one. Kill ten, then save ten. Kill tens of millions, then save tens of millions."

"If you have the power of a Stand, use it. You can do it."

"Staying stagnant here would be a betrayal to those tens of millions."

"I will. I'll use my power to save those who are still alive."

Seeing Himiko regain her spirit, Yoshikage Kira said no more.

"For now, stay with Vill-V. She'll craft a piece of equipment to conceal your identity. Once it's ready, you can go fight."

"Be prepared to act from the shadows, Himiko."

"Yes, I will."

They no longer spoke and went to rest.