Honkai, I Alone Will Save Everything

She carried herself, leaping between skyscrapers, effortlessly evading most of the Honkai Beasts.

Glancing at Raven, who was gradually moving further away, Ming Yu turned his head and looked towards Chiba Academy, not too far off.

In any case, his initial objective was to utilize his abilities to infiltrate Chiba Academy.

With no other ideas at the moment, the only viable option was clearly to find the white-haired girl still within the academy.

With this thought in mind, Ming Yu began to walk.

However, change always came faster than plans.

An unexpected figure intercepted him.

It was a figure clad in cherry blossom colors.

Before Ming Yu could say anything, the cherry-blossom-clad girl spoke:

"Human, I have something to ask of you."

Chapter 8: Yae Sakura

Time rewinded five minutes. On a tall building near Chiba Academy, a special existence appeared.

She stood atop a high platform, looking down at the academy, which was dense with Honkai energy, her expression calm.

What made her special was the ancient miko attire that seemed out of place for this era.

It was an off-the-shoulder miko dress with a black undershirt, a shimenawa tied around her waist. She wore a plaid skirt, white thigh-high socks, and wooden geta sandals.

This miko attire was clearly not of the current era; it resembled styles passed down in a remote village centuries ago.

If one were to delve into ancient texts for research, they might indeed discover a connection between this miko and a place called Yae Village from five hundred years ago.

Furthermore, her long, pink hair was adorned with strikingly long fox ears.

While these fox ears looked quite cute, they also proved that her identity at this moment was far from human.

Indeed, she was a spirit, a spirit from five hundred years ago.

The guardian of Yae Village, the last combat miko of the Yae family, and... an existence who, after being influenced by the Herrscher of Corruption, transformed into a Pseudo-Herrscher – Yae Sakura.

Five hundred years ago, after she went berserk and was defeated by Kallen, she was personally sealed by Kallen in the Far East and had not reappeared since.

However, as a Pseudo-Herrscher, her lifespan was extremely long; a mere five hundred years could not wear her down.

The Herrscher-level Honkai disaster that occurred in Changkong City had also caused the seal on her to loosen.

This miko, who had been dormant for five hundred years, finally saw the light of day again.

Having just awakened, Yae Sakura did not have a clear understanding of the current world, but she was very familiar with the scent of rampant Honkai.

Guided by instinct, she came near Chiba Academy, where she could clearly sense the presence of the entity that caused her seal to loosen.

She believed she should do something.

"I advise you not to meddle."

A voice filled with resentment echoed from behind her.

Following that, a giant, pitch-black evil fox appeared behind the girl.

She was Higokumaru, an will currently attached to Yae Sakura, and the true form of the previous generation's Herrscher of Corruption.

Higokumaru warned:

"What's in that direction is a true Herrscher; it's beyond your current ability to interfere."

"..."

The pink-haired girl didn't reply, merely looking silently in that direction.

"What, is your sense of justice kicking in? Don't forget, five hundred years ago, you were also a demon who killed countless people."

Higokumaru said with extreme mockery:

"Have you already forgotten how many people you killed in Yae Village?"

"I won't deny that fact, but they... those executioners, got what they deserved. I don't regret it even now."

Yae Sakura said faintly.

Her hand rested on the Spirit Blade: Sakura Snow at her waist, and she once again looked seriously in the direction of Chiba Academy.

She had made up her mind:

"...I will go and defeat that Herrscher."

Just as Kallen had saved her five hundred years ago, she too should do something.

"Hey, I don't want to die with you!"

Higokumaru vehemently objected.

Now, it and Yae Sakura were in the same boat, sharing life and death.

"Even if you have a heart full of conviction, what good is it? You are, at best, only a Pseudo-Herrscher, completely different from a true Herrscher..."

The gap in strength between a Pseudo-Herrscher and a true Herrscher was like the difference between heaven and earth.

Higokumaru scoffed disdainfully, "Besides, you're barely managing to maintain your spirit form right now, and you don't even have your own body. What are you going to use to fight a Herrscher?"

Having just broken free from her seal and returned to reality, she, or rather, they, were currently quite weak.

Seeking out a genuine Herrscher now would be like throwing an egg against a rock, a sure path to destruction.

"What you should do now is hide in this city. Wait until that Herrscher leaves, or is eliminated by other humans, and then absorb the Honkai energy remaining in the city to recover your strength."

Higokumaru offered this serious suggestion for survival.

With the genuine Herrscher present, they couldn't do much. Even trying to absorb Honkai energy would be interfered with and rendered impossible.

It was better to avoid the immediate confrontation and yield for now.

After the situation here concluded, they could slowly absorb Honkai energy to recover. At the very least, they needed to reconstruct a complete body first.

Of course, Higokumaru currently had no right to control Yae Sakura's body and could only offer advice in this manner.

—Now that Yae Sakura was no longer consumed by hatred, Higokumaru couldn't directly influence any of her decisions.

"...There is another way."

Yae Sakura's gaze fell upon the street.

She saw a human running towards St. Freya Academy without stopping.

"—That is [Divine Descent]."

A method of requesting a supernatural will to descend into one's own body.

This was a technique she learned when she was a miko, requesting Lord Fox God to descend into her.

In simpler terms, it was "possession."

Of course, this move had never succeeded. After all, she later realized that there was no Lord Fox God in the world.

The "Lord Fox God" that Yae Village had always worshipped was probably just a fox that had been infected by Honkai energy and mutated.

But at this moment, for her who was left with only a spirit form, it could indeed become a way to possess someone else.

With a body to anchor to, she could exert more of her power.

"I don't know why that human is here... but do you intend to possess him? Do you think a normal person would agree to something so sudden?"

Higokumaru tried to stop her again with all her might.

She truly wanted to survive, not to throw her life away here for nothing.

Even if Yae Sakura did possess that human and unleash greater combat power, she would still stand no chance against a true Herrscher!

Unfortunately, she couldn't change Yae Sakura's decision.

"...I have to try."

Yae Sakura had made up her mind.

Under Higokumaru's despairing gaze, the cherry-blossom-haired girl leaped from the sky, flying at great speed towards the human, intercepting him.

"Human, I have something to ask of you."

Chapter 9: Cooperation That Cannot Be Avoided

Looking at the cherry-blossom-haired girl who suddenly appeared before him, Ming Yu's expression turned strange.

He knew who she was, of course. Yae Sakura, who should have lived five hundred years ago, had been tempted by the Herrscher of Corruption after coming into contact with a damaged Black Box, transforming into a Pseudo-Herrscher and slaughtering many ordinary residents of Yae Village.

Of course, if Ming Yu were to comment, it would be those two words: "Good riddance." After all, those so-called ordinary residents had been performing foolish rituals of sacrificing girls to pray for rain.

Countless innocent girls had met a tragic end at the hands of these human-skin monsters. Even Yae Sakura's sister, Yae Rin, had died for the same reason, which was also a major factor in Yae Sakura eventually being chosen and possessed by the Herrscher of Corruption.

It could be said that the calamity of Yae Village was entirely self-inflicted from beginning to end.

Getting sidetracked, but back to the point, why was Yae Sakura appearing before him?

According to the original timeline, she should have appeared later, during the emergence of the Pseudo-Herrscher Yuno, saving Theresa, who had come to defeat her alone, and rescuing her from a near-death experience.

Furthermore, due to Theresa possessing Kallen's bloodline, Yae Sakura ultimately chose to completely hand over her power to her, erasing her existence in reality.

Well... Speaking of which, the fact that Theresa, an S-rank Valkyrie, was instantly killed twice by a Pseudo-Herrscher was indeed quite embarrassing...

Ming Yu noticed that the cherry-blossom-haired girl who had abruptly appeared before him seemed somewhat transparent.

Even though he was looking at her body, he could still faintly glimpse the scenery behind her, like a ghost.

After a moment of thought, Ming Yu said to Yae Sakura, "Before asking for help, shouldn't you at least introduce yourself?"

Regardless, she didn't seem hostile. Since that was the case, it was feasible to obtain her objective through negotiation.

If she truly intended to attack, the spirit blade at her waist would have already been drawn.

"That's true. My name is Yae Sakura. I am a miko, and as you can see, a... ghost."

The cherry-blossom-haired girl gave a simple self-introduction, then raised a finger and pointed towards St. Freya Academy.

"Inside that building, there is a very powerful being. I want to try and defeat her... but in my current solitary state, I cannot unleash my full power."

"A powerful existence... she means the Third Herrscher, right?"

Ming Yu pondered to himself.

In that case, their objectives were aligned.

"So, I need a human body as a vessel to possess. Only then can I unleash more of my strength,"

Yae Sakura stated concisely.

She believed that Ming Yu, who had come here alone, wouldn't be someone ignorant of the Honkai, so she decided to skip the explanation.

"...If I refuse, do you plan to forcibly take over my body?"

Ming Yu asked.

In response to his question, Yae Sakura merely shook her head slightly and said:

"I won't force you."

Although there were few optional targets, she could still faintly sense the presence of other living humans in Changkong City.

For instance, within Chiba Academy, which was very close by, she could detect that there were still living humans inside.

"But since you've come here, I believe you're most likely here for that existence as well. If that's the case, this should be a [cooperation] for both of us."

It was indeed a very tempting offer.