Honkai, I'll Save Everything Alone

Although Cocolia chose to stand with humanity's destruction due to her own experiences, she fundamentally retained her complete autonomy.

Well, actually, if you think about it, most of the Herrschers from this generation retained their self-awareness.

Even Anna's will was almost in a stalemate with the Herrscher's will until the very end.

In any case, since the other party didn't show strong destructive desires, negotiation was possible.

At this period, she... was probably in a newly born state, just like Seele.

The difference was that Fu Hua's fifty thousand years of memories had completely "brainwashed" the Herrscher of Reason, while the girl before him had only accepted a little over ten years of memories, and her self-perception was still unclear.

"...What are you doing here?"

The black-haired girl asked indifferently.

This human who appeared before him had not been infected and corrupted by Honkai energy like other humans, turning into a dead apostle.

"Of course, it's because you're here."

Ming Yu answered frankly.

"Are you here for Raiden Mei?"

The girl narrowed her eyes slightly and questioned.

From Raiden Mei's memories, she knew that there were large organizations called Schicksal and Anti-Entropy in this world.

This human named Ming Yu might be from one of them.

What were they planning to do by coming to find Raiden Mei?

Were they planning to capture her and conduct research?

The previous two Herrschers, the Herrscher of Reason and the Herrscher of Void, seemed to have undergone this process, having been captured and researched by Schicksal. The second Herrscher, in particular, had suffered inhuman torture for a long time.

But she had no intention of repeating the same mistake. She would destroy anything that tried to harm her with the lightning in her hands.

"It's not that there isn't that factor, but... it's more because of you."

"...Me?"

The girl looked up, confused.

"You're not Raiden Mei... right? You two need to be considered separately."

In Bronya's experience that time, she had said that she was not Raiden Mei.

This was indeed true. The one currently controlling this body was the will of the stigmata born from the fully awakened stigmata during this Honkai outbreak.

Well, in essence, it was probably similar to the relationship between Seele and Dark Seele, both being twins in one body.

It's just that Mei clearly didn't have Seele's innate talent for stigmata awakening, otherwise, she wouldn't have had the Gem of Conquest implanted by her father to extend her life.

Therefore, in her past life, there was no consciousness of another self accompanying her.

It wasn't until the outbreak of Honkai orchestrated by Cocolia that the will of the stigmata was fully born.

She took the induction of the Honkai will on behalf of Raiden Mei, who could not bear it all, took control of the Herrscher of Thunder's authority on her behalf, and considered herself the Third Herrscher.

"..."

The girl nodded, then shook her head, and said:

"So, what do you want to say?"

Here comes the main point.

Ming Yu smiled and said:

"...I want to say, maybe we can be friends."

"...Friends?"

The girl murmured.

Raiden Mei had never had real friends in the past.

As the daughter of ME Company, she was never short of people who wanted to be her friend.

But those surrounding her were nothing more than sycophants who wanted to gain benefits by being her friend.

And after the halo of the young lady faded, they instantly disappeared from Raiden Mei's side.

So, that coward had never had a real friend.

This might be a desire deeply hidden in Mei's heart, but it was also the thought of her who had just been born.

"..."

The girl remained silent for a moment.

Her heart was contemplating—whether these were sincere words or false lies.

The ability to control the electromagnetic field could easily destroy anything, but she was powerless against the truthfulness of a few words.

She hoped it was true, but she also feared it was false.

Taking a deep breath, she used her Herrscher authority to create a purple katana and pointed it at Ming Yu:

"……That depends on whether you're qualified, human."

Combat was the simplest way to test.

Whether he was bragging or not could be settled through battle.

If it was just empty talk, it wouldn't be able to withstand the trials of combat—

"I'm happy to oblige."

Ming Yu nodded slightly, his hand resting on the Spirit Blade: Sakura Snow at his waist.

—Actually, he could have chosen to find Kiana, who was still at the academy, and face the Herrscher of Thunder together.

Since she didn't have a name yet, Ming Yu decided to call her "Big Sis Thunder Herrscher" for now.

The reason Ming Yu had rushed ahead of Kiana to come here alone was because he wanted to try and make some changes.

Now that he had decided to join St. Freya Academy and participate in the "main story," he no longer intended to let everything unfold according to the original timeline.

After all, although the original story eventually reached an ending where the Final Herrscher was defeated, the journey along the way was filled with many regrets.

On the Herrscher's side, there was Wendy, who died after Cocolia stole the Gem of Desire, and Anna, who struggled against the Herrscher of Ice's will until her consciousness was extinguished...

And of course, there was Aunt Himeko, who sacrificed herself due to Otto's scheme.

Perhaps he could do something to change that future filled with sacrifice.

If possible, he hoped to save more people.

Of course, those things were still in the future, some time away from the present. For now, he would focus on the Big Sis Thunder Herrscher who was right in front of him.

—This Herrscher persona of Raiden Mei's did not have as good an ending as the other Herrscher persona, Dark Seele.

She, who carried the vast majority of the Herrscher's power, would, according to the original timeline, sacrifice herself one day, allowing Mei to become the complete Herrscher of Thunder again.

But! In Ming Yu's opinion, there was still a great deal of regret in that.

After all, if one were to be precise, Kiana had saved Big Sis Thunder Herrscher on the rooftop in the original timeline, not Mei, who had fallen into a deep sleep at this time.

Big Sis Thunder Herrscher had given up her mission to destroy humanity because of Kiana, but later on, Kiana barely cared about this Herrscher persona, even developing some aversion towards her.

Perhaps, her fear of the Herrscher of the Void persona within her body also led her to harbor some hostility towards this Thunder Herrscher persona.

So, why couldn't... they find a world line where Big Sis Thunder Herrscher also survived, coexisting like Dark Seele and Seele?

If you're going to do something, you might as well do something big.

To avoid future misfortunes, start now.

Near Changkong City, an aerial battleship was rapidly heading towards the area.

"How much longer until we reach Changkong City?"

A mature woman with red hair asked the adjutant beside her.

"Report, it will take approximately fifteen more minutes to reach Changkong City."

The adjutant, wearing glasses, replied truthfully.

"Fifteen minutes... Hmm, I should probably go and prepare myself."

Himeko nodded, handed over the command of the battleship to her adjutant, and left the command center.

Outside the command center door, a petite, white-haired girl was already waiting.

Although she looked like just a young child, the enormous cross standing behind her clearly indicated her extraordinary identity.

"I've been waiting for you for a long time, Himeko."

"...I didn't expect Theresa to be participating in this mission too."

Himeko touched her hair with a helpless expression.

After being picked up by her adjutant and brought onto the Hyperion, she discovered that the leader of the Far East Branch was also on board.

"Of course. This mission is to capture the Third Herrscher alive. Relying solely on your Squad 5 might be a bit too much, Himeko?"

Theresa said seriously:

"If we want to capture a Herrscher alive, my Judah is undoubtedly the most reliable support."

As a Key of Binding, the cross, which possessed the authority to restrain Honkai energy, was indeed an indispensable force in a capture operation.

"Also, call me Principal when we're outside!"

"Yes, yes, yes... I haven't seen a real Herrscher either. Or rather, on this ship right now, only you, who experienced the Second Honkai Outbreak, have truly seen one, right?"

Himeko teased.

The last large-scale Honkai outbreak had occurred more than a decade ago.

"...It's not just me. There's one other person."

Theresa shook her head.

"Oh? Who else..."

Before Aunt Himeko could finish speaking, another woman's figure appeared at the end of the corridor.

As she walked closer, she said:

"Headmaster, we will soon arrive at Changkong City. Please prepare for battle as soon as possible."

The newcomer was Fu Hua. She had already changed into her Valkyrie armor, ready to deploy and fight at any moment.

Although nominally just an A-rank Valkyrie, Aunt Himeko, having sparred with her a few times, knew that the other woman was far from as simple as she appeared.

At the very least, her strength far surpassed her own, despite both being A-rank Valkyries.

Aunt Himeko: "Is this pretty much all of St. Freya's elites deployed? Do we really need to make such a big fuss?"

"...The Herrscher incident warrants this level of full commitment."

Fu Hua adjusted her glasses and continued, "Actually, after headquarters learned of the Third Herrscher's appearance, the Overseer has also arranged for an S-rank Valkyrie to be dispatched here."

Chapter 12: Sparring Partner

"This is... Hokushin Ittō-ryū."

As Ming Yu began sparring with his Herrscher of Thunder sister, Yae Sakura suddenly spoke in his mind.

Hokushin Ittō-ryū, an ancient martial art from the Far East, was a sword technique created by the famous Far Eastern swordsman, Beichen Mei. Even she, a miko living in the secluded Yae Village, had heard of it.

This battlefield sword art, with every move and stance, aimed to strip the opponent of their combat ability, ending the fight quickly and without injury.

While it might not be very effective against giant Honkai Beasts, it offered a significant advantage when facing human-sized opponents like Ming Yu.

"Is she a descendant of the Hokushin lineage? With such a practiced stance... I think she's probably reached the level of Menkyo Kaiden."

Yae Sakura commented.