Chapter Fifty-Seven: Raiden Mei?!

The last time she came here had been ten years ago. The scenery had not changed much since then, and it had clearly been well preserved.

"Have you been to Mei many times?"

"Just once." Mei walked ahead, seemingly recalling the past. "But it left a deep impression."

"What kind of impression?"

"For many reasons." Since the person asking was Kiana, Mei did not end the topic there. Instead, she spoke of the past. "Most importantly, it was the first time Father had taken me out to have fun. It was my reward for winning the competition."

It had been the first time, and also the only time.

"No wonder it left such a deep impression on you, Mei. You must have been very happy that day, right?"

"Mm. I thought I had earned Father's approval." She nodded, then smiled at Kiana beside her. "My mood... is probably about the same as it is now."

"Eh? Because you're with me? Then I'll accompany you to more places in the future, Mei, and fill your heart with even more happy memories!"

Had Mei truly stopped caring about her father's whereabouts, or did she simply not want Kiana to worry and so refused to talk about that side of things?

That thought flashed through Kiana's mind.

"What about you?" Mei asked. "How do you feel? Now that we're somewhere open, do you feel a little more relaxed?"

"I feel great!" Kiana tugged at Mei's arm coquettishly. "This place is beautiful, and I have you with me. As long as you're by my side, I'll be happy wherever I am!"

"I see."

"Yes, yes, trust me. Everything I said was true."

"You..."

Kiana always spoke with heavy, misleading ambiguities. Mei could not tell whether she did it on purpose or had simply gotten used to talking that way.

"Mirror Lake is beautiful. Once all the Kishin have been dealt with, I'll take you to see the stars, Mei, and show you more scenery that Izumo doesn't have!"

Hehe, when the time came, she absolutely had to take Mei to Penacony for the Grand Gala and give Welt Yang one huge shock!

It would definitely be fun to see his reaction!

"The stars?"

Hearing that, Mei looked up at the sky. Aside from the sun, the most eye-catching thing she saw was Takama-ga-hara.

She had heard that the Kishin had invaded from there.

"Is that Kiana's hometown?"

"...No."

Kiana's smile froze. She also glanced at the sky, but she was looking at neither the sun nor Takama-ga-hara, nor at the countless stars beyond it.

"I can't go back."

"I don't have a home anymore."

Although she had always jokingly claimed that Honkai could do anything, she knew that even if she became the Herrscher of Finality, she would have no way to return to her homeland.

It was already dead.

She could never return to her hometown.

Mei thought Kiana was a traveler. Kiana had never taken the initiative to mention how she had come to Izumo.

Mei's eyes widened slightly. She had never expected that the seemingly optimistic Kiana had such a past.

Unable to go back, with no home.

Did that mean... her hometown had been destroyed?

Just like the Kishin Izumo was currently facing, along with the newly emerged Honkai.

...Honkai?

Had Kiana's hometown been destroyed by Honkai? Was that why Kiana was so wary of Honkai and worried that it would bring a disaster even more terrifying than the Kishin?

"I'm sorry, Kiana. I..."

"Why are you apologizing?" A smile reappeared on Kiana's face, and she said unconcernedly, "I accepted reality a long time ago. I won't give up on life and the future just because I can't go back!"

She felt that she had been lucky enough.

After dying, she had still been able to cross into another world and continue her life. She had even met Raiden Mei before she became Yomi.

Although she might not have landed in the best possible place—with Black General right beside her—she was still fairly satisfied with her current situation.

"Is it because of Honkai?" Mei asked softly, taking Kiana's feelings into consideration.

"...Honkai?"

Kiana fell silent. Her transmigration... Well, that really did seem to be related. After all, her system was a Honkai system.

"It's all in the past."

She did not know how to explain it, so she decided to be vague and let Mei make her own guess.

Chapter Fifty-Seven: Raiden Mei?!

No matter how things developed,

in the end, she and Mei beside her would both enter the Star Sea. There was no doubt about that.

Even if the worst possible outcome came to pass,

it would still be the same.

After transmigrating and becoming Kiana—and the Herrscher of Finality by birth—the difficulty of dying was bound to be tremendous.

And in the future, Mei would become that Yomi, the one who "mourned for the dead." Even the Void could not completely devour her.

The appearance of someone who should not exist would definitely affect Yomi's fate, but she had always been preparing for the worst possible outcome.

Although it would be difficult, she would work hard to guide events in the right direction and make sure Izumo's future did not become even worse than it had been in the story.

After chatting about things that helped them understand each other better, the two found a place to sit and admire the scenery before them.

After coming to this world, Kiana had spent every day working hard at odd jobs just to survive. In such a peaceful environment, she naturally relaxed.

"Actually, about Father..."

After quietly watching the lake for a while, Mei was about to talk to Kiana more about her father when she felt a weight on her shoulder. The rest of her words never left her mouth.

Three days ago, after Takemikazuchi died, she had contacted her father. This time, she had not received no response.

But the reply to her concern had been extremely brief. It seemed that the man had replied only to prove that he was still alive.

He had not asked her anything else.

He had not even asked about the Resonating Blade, nor had he given her the contact information for Sirin that she wanted.

This left Raiden Mei utterly disappointed.

Mei carefully turned her head and saw Kiana holding her arm, her head resting on her shoulder with her eyes closed.

"Have you not been getting enough rest lately?"

Mei murmured as she reached out to touch Kiana's face, but her hand rose only to retreat nervously.

What if she woke Kiana?

Besides, secretly touching Kiana's face would be somewhat rude.

For some reason, her mood became much lighter. Even the sight of the tranquil lake now gave her a different feeling.

A deep blue.

It resembled the color of Kiana's eyes.

Both were equally clear.

"If only things could always be like this."

She really enjoyed spending time with Kiana. She thought Kiana probably felt the same way.

The shrine was clearly enormous, yet Kiana still wanted to stay near her, even if all she did was watch her in boredom.

Kiana...

Mei quietly took out her phone with her right hand, found a suitable angle, and took a picture of this scene.

When they returned, she would find a shop and have it developed.

She would place it in the bedroom, somewhere she could see it every day.

Maintaining that position without moving, Mei watched the lake, her thoughts drifting back to her one-sword style.

The Resonating Blade's strength was beyond question.

But she had not abandoned swordsmanship. She was still steadily creating a new sword technique suited to her Stigma.

Time passed quickly as she meditated. The clouds drifted across the sky, and the light gradually dimmed.

"Mm..."

Leaning against each other with her head resting on Mei's shoulder was not a suitable sleeping position. Perhaps she had rested enough, because Kiana finally woke up.

She rubbed her eyes. If not for her extraordinary physical constitution, her shoulders and neck would probably have been aching by now.

"You're awake? We should head back."

"Hm? Ah, I fell asleep just now!"

Only then did Kiana realize what had happened. When she looked up, it was already past five in the afternoon.

"It was too comfortable, and the breeze felt so nice. I really couldn't resist, and accidentally fell asleep." She explained sheepishly.

"I'm glad you like this place."

Mei smiled, not minding that Kiana had fallen asleep on her shoulder.

What did she like?

The scenery? Or...

Kiana forcefully stopped her wild train of thought, stood up from the grass, and brushed off the blades clinging to her clothes.

Then she held out a hand to Mei, who was still sitting on the ground. "Let's go back."

"Mm."

Mei placed her hand in Kiana's. Although there was no need, she still used Kiana's strength to stand.

After taking one last look at the peaceful scenery around the lake, Mei was about to talk to Kiana about dinner when she suddenly frowned.

"What's wrong?"

Seeing Mei frown, Kiana immediately became concerned. "Did I hurt you by leaning on you? Is your shoulder sore? Want me to massage it?"

Mei shook her head and looked toward the mountain on the eastern side of Mirror Lake. "There seem to be Kishin nearby."

Having slain quite a few Kishin, she had become familiar with similar energy fluctuations, though tracking them down still took time and effort.

"What a coincidence?"

Kiana followed Mei's gaze and looked toward the mountain. Pointing at it, she asked, "Over there?"

"It should be in that direction."

"Then let's go take a look."

They had come out in the first place to look for some Kishin. Although she did not know what level the Kishin Mei had sensed was, even a mosquito's leg was still meat.

Without Takemikazuchi triggering the Night of a Hundred Demons, Kiana had lost her source of income. It was genuinely difficult to find these hidden Kishin.

Kiana trusted Mei's judgment completely. And she was right: they had barely taken a few steps when intense flames erupted from halfway up the mountain.

"Someone?"

Kiana and Mei silently quickened their pace. The closer they got, the more Kiana sensed that the Honkai Energy Concentration in the mountain was abnormal.

It was higher than in normal areas.

So...

"A Honkai Beast?"

Kiana sped up again, hoping that what she feared would not become reality.