Explanation

Yoshikage Kira comforted Vill-V and briefly described the course of events to her.

Vill-V was not an unreasonable person. She had seen his abilities and believed he would not die so easily.

But she loved him, so it was only natural that she worried about him.

Seeing that Yoshikage Kira was unharmed, Vill-V released him after holding him for a moment.

Then she looked at Himiko, who was still unconscious on the lab table.

"Let her stay with you for now. Is that all right?" Yoshikage Kira asked Vill-V.

"Of course." Vill-V nodded obediently.

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

With that, he left the Spiral Workshop and was taken away by the interrogators.

"How did you survive facing the flames of the Herrscher of Flames?"

"I passed out right at the beginning, so I don't know what happened. By the time I woke up, Kevin had already defeated the Herrscher."

To Flame Chasers' barrage of questions, Yoshikage Kira simply kept repeating, "I don't know."

After examining Yoshikage Kira and finding nothing unusual, Flame Chasers did not make things difficult for him and let him leave.

"Waaah! Boss, it's so great that you're okay!" Seeing Yoshikage Kira emerge from the interrogation room, Pardo threw herself into his arms and said excitedly.

"Yeah, I'm back." Looking at everyone waiting for him outside the interrogation room, Yoshikage Kira smiled and greeted them.

The seventh rookie ball was held as scheduled. Squad Five was commended at the event, and Kevin's title as a hero was firmly established.

But the members of Squad Five were not particularly happy, because the Herrscher they had defeated had been their captain.

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

No one blamed those who left. Not everyone could face the pressure of a Herrscher and the threat of death.

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

"Are these everyone left in Squad Five?" Yoshikage Kira was the first to speak, breaking the silence.

"Ah, yes. Everyone should be here," Elysia replied.

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

There were fewer than ten people, but Yoshikage Kira was satisfied with that.

"Then we're all one of our own now. Later, I have something to tell everyone." After saying that, Yoshikage Kira fell silent.

The atmosphere sank back into silence. Even Elysia did not know what to say.

"Assistant, I'm here."

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

"She's awake. And I notified all the people you asked me to notify," Vill-V reported to Yoshikage Kira.

"Well done." Yoshikage Kira patted Vill-V on the head, then said to everyone, "It looks like no one is in the mood to enjoy the banquet. In that case, follow me."

Yoshikage Kira then stood and headed outside. Everyone looked at one another before following him.

They made their way to the Spiral Workshop. Once inside, they saw Mobius, Mei, and Himiko—the captain who should have been dead.

Yoshikage Kira walked to the front of the group and clapped his hands, drawing everyone's attention.

"Now then, let me explain the situation."

"First, Elysia is a Herrscher."

"E-E-E-E-Eh?! Why do you always pick on me? Didn't we agree not to tell anyone else?"

"Second, a person struck by this arrow has a chance of gaining a special ability." Ignoring Elysia's wails, Yoshikage Kira took out the arrow and showed it to everyone.

"I call this special ability a Stand. Stand abilities vary from person to person, and Stands can also absorb Honkai Energy to strengthen themselves."

"If anyone has questions, ask them now. I'll answer them all at once."

Himiko was the first to raise her hand.

"Um, it's called a Stand, right? My Stand can create fire, but it doesn't seem able to absorb Honkai Energy. The Herrscher Core in my body seems to reject my Stand's ability."

Yoshikage Kira nodded thoughtfully, then shook his head. "At present, the only Stand Users are you and me. Perhaps absorbing Honkai Energy is my own ability."

"Then let me ask the next question. What are the odds of becoming a Stand User, as you put it?" Mobius, standing to the side in a white lab coat with her arms crossed, asked Yoshikage Kira.

"Not higher than becoming a Fusion Warrior. And most Stand abilities are not as strong as Fusion Warriors either."

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

"What about everyone else?" Yoshikage Kira swept his gaze over the group. Everyone was still processing the information they had just received, as well as the fact that Himiko had survived.

"Um... everyone, I seem to be a Herrscher?" Elysia raised her hand sheepishly.

"If there's nothing else, everyone can go back. If you have questions later, ask me privately."

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

"Heh, you? Destroy the world? With those magical-girl-like crystal arrows of yours?" Mobius mocked Elysia.

"I'm a Herrscher with humanity, you know. Aren't you interested, Mobius?"

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

"My dear Mobius~ Don't be in such a hurry to leave. Let's throw a private party for our Captain Himiko, to celebrate... hmm, Himiko's resurrection?"

"Pretty please, Mobius~"

"Tch. Annoying." Knowing that Elysia would likely pester her for a long time if she refused, Mobius stopped and returned to where she had been standing.

"Then I'll prepare the venue. There's plenty of space beneath the Spiral Workshop," Vill-V suggested to everyone.

It was only eight in the evening, so there was still plenty of time. Yoshikage Kira agreed as well.

"Yay, party time, party time!" Elysia cheered. The girl was so happy at that moment—happy for Himiko's resurrection, and even happier that everyone had accepted her as a Herrscher.

After the revelry ended, everyone left one after another. They were all smart people, so Yoshikage Kira did not need to give them any reminders.

Watching everyone's retreating figures, Himiko wore a lonely expression.

"What's wrong? Not happy?"

"Ah, Yoshikage Kira..." Himiko hesitated to speak.

"There's no need for us to hide anything from each other, right? You've already seen my whole body."

"I was unconscious back then! I didn't see much!" Himiko raised her voice and hurriedly explained herself to Yoshikage Kira.

Yoshikage Kira watched Himiko with a soft laugh. Himiko smoothed her hair, took a deep breath, and poured her heart out to him.

"Only when I'm joking around with everyone can I temporarily forget... forget that I'm the culprit who killed tens of millions of people in Australia."

"I almost killed my squadmates too. Fortunately, you noticed that something was wrong with me in time. Otherwise..."

Himiko gave a bitter smile. Carrying the weight of tens of millions of lives was a pressure no one could understand.

"Though I can't truly understand how you feel, killing tens of millions was not your intention, was it?"

"If you kill one person, save one person. If you kill ten people, save ten people. If you kill tens of millions, save tens of millions."

"You have the power of a Stand now. Use it. You can do it."

"Staying trapped here would be letting those tens of millions down."

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

Seeing Himiko pull herself together, Yoshikage Kira said no more.

"For now, stay with Vill-V. Vill-V will make a set of equipment to conceal your identity. Once it's ready, you can fight again."

"Prepare yourself to operate in the shadows, Himiko."

"Mm, I will."

The two fell silent and went to rest separately.