Honkai's Thousand Laws, Kidnapping Kiana at the Start

She's dead...

The moment he realized this, even Su Jue, whose heart had already turned dark, couldn't help but feel a sense of regret. It was hard to explain the origin of this feeling. His only goal was the Plague Gem, and he didn't care about Murata Himeko's life or death. Yet, the instant he saw that figure, he felt a sense of loss.

Perhaps this was a pure human emotion, but for the current Su Jue, it was no longer needed—he repeatedly told himself in his heart.

Yes, I no longer need these human emotions.

Large numbers of Imaginary Monsters were already circling Himeko's corpse, but they seemed hesitant to act, likely deterred by the residual heat from the God-Slaying Armor.

They were like vultures waiting for their prey to die of exhaustion, and the moment the Plague Gem calmed down, they would devour Murata Himeko's body. No wonder in the original world, by the time the Herrscher of a Thousand found Murata Himeko, only the gem remained.

But Su Jue had arrived in time; he could probably leave her with an intact body, allowing her to die with dignity.

His power erupted, and Su Jue dealt with all the surrounding monsters with his fists and feet. Only after no new Imaginary Seeds appeared did he drag his exhausted body before Murata Himeko.

The God-Slaying Armor, Crimson Knight: Moonlight Eclipse, covering her body had shattered inch by inch, no longer possessing its former glory, completely reduced to fragments. Dense Honkai cracks like a spiderweb clung to her entire body. Even after her death, the torment from the Honkai had not stopped.

The Godfall Sword: Surtr had already turned into碎石 (broken stones), leaving only the broken hilt lying on the ground. Su Jue squatted down and picked it up. It felt rough and stony in his hand, no longer possessing the glory described as "the high-temperature blade emitted a fiery red glow, its humming sound like a dirge."

"What a pity," he sighed inwardly, and Su Jue's gaze fell back on Himeko. The blazing Plague Gem had also fallen silent along with Crimson Knight. After the armor shattered, it landed on her chest.

Su Jue's expression was calm as he placed his hand on her. The Plague Gem was extremely hot. The moment Su Jue touched the gem, his skin blistered, but he didn't stop. He felt his skin sizzling like roasting meat before finally picking it up.

However, the instant he gripped the gem, a red light shot towards him like lightning. Su Jue didn't even have time to react before his neck was grabbed.

"..."

"Resurrection?" Su Jue calmly uttered these two words, then felt the grip on his neck tightening. In front of him, Himeko, who should have shown no signs of life, extended her hand and grabbed him. Her orange-red eyes, though dim, now seemed to have a flicker of spirit, like a final burst of energy.

The grip on his neck was strong, and Su Jue clearly felt he could no longer breathe. Yet, a smile played on his lips as he stared intently at Murata Himeko, a clear mockery in his gaze.

Slowly, blood supply to his brain became difficult, and his face even turned somewhat purple. Su Jue had no intention of letting go of the Plague Gem, as if to say that even if she took his life, he would still take the gem.

He wasn't actually trying to gamble with Himeko's life. After a second or two, the grip on his neck suddenly loosened. The burst of energy before death was fatal, but he had guessed correctly. Even if Himeko wasn't dead, she wouldn't have the strength to resist.

Her arm fell limply, only her dim eyes fixed on Su Jue with a hint of anger.

"Herrscher..." Her voice was as soft as a mosquito's hum. If the Imaginary Space wasn't quiet enough, Su Jue wouldn't have been able to hear her.

Without any pretense of concealment, the authority of the Herrscher of Domination was fully displayed. Su Jue, like a typical villain in a movie, boasted of his terror to the dying protagonist. "You've been gravely injured and fell into the Imaginary Space for so long yet you're still alive. I must admire your tenacity, but what can you do now? Do you want to stand up again and kill me?"

"Hairpin..."

After mumbling for so long, Su Jue, who was preparing to deliver a dramatic monologue, felt a bit awkward. He had said so much, and yet her attention was on an inconspicuous hairpin.

"Hm? You mean this? I took it from a little girl with white hair—oh, they call her the Herrscher of Void. She's currently being hunted all over the world. I don't know where she died, poor thing. When I saw her, she seemed to be about to commit suicide by gunshot."

Hearing Su Jue's words, Himeko, who was already on her deathbed, seemed to be on the verge of coming back to life, the orange light in her eyes intensifying.

"Kia..." Before she could finish, Su Jue interrupted her.

"Alright, don't worry about her. Even if she didn't commit suicide, after I obtain the Plague Gem and dominate your body, I'll personally deal with her."

"Imagine, when Kiana sees the teacher she respected and felt most guilty about appear before her again, pointing a weapon at her, will she willingly give up resistance and welcome her death?"

He laughed sinisterly and evilly, as if already picturing the scene. In reality, his peripheral vision remained subtly fixed on Himeko's eyes. That orange-red hue grew more intense, indicating that Himeko's mental activity was becoming more vigorous.

Pain, sorrow, anger, the despair of facing death, and worry for those she cared about.

What this meant for the Herrscher of Domination needed no further explanation.

"I forgot to tell you, after Kiana, whom you protected, survived, she completely broke ties with everyone at St. Freya. She's a traitor to Schicksal, and they are heroes who defeated the Herrscher of Void. It's quite ironic that former close friends have become like this."

"And you can only watch powerlessly as she dies such a stifling death, only to become a test subject for Schicksal after death, continuing research on the Herrscher of Void. I think you knowSchicksal's methods better than anyone."

His smile grew wider, and Murata Himeko had no strength left to resist, only able to listen to his declaration in despair.

A deep darkness gradually emerged from the depths of her eyes.

Chapter Thirty-Eight: Puppet · Murata

"...Are you deliberately provoking me?"

Suddenly, when Himeko was just one step away from becoming a puppet, she blurted out this sentence. After saying this, the grayness in Himeko's eyes faded considerably, as if she realized the Herrscher before her was deliberately trying to manipulate her. She forcibly suppressed her emotions.

"..." A look of surprise appeared on Su Jue's face at the opportune moment, but it quickly turned into a sneer. "Whether it's true or not, you can no longer change anything, can you? I am the Herrscher of Domination, born to toy with people's hearts. A few young Herrscher girls can be guided into an endless abyss with a little effort."

"And you, who has always protected them, can do nothing. Even if you suppress your emotions, what of it? After you die, I can still dominate your body. It's just a matter of difference between a living puppet and a dead puppet."

After hearing his words, Himeko fell into a brief silence. Su Jue was right; she had no choice. However, "a living puppet?"

"That's right, haven't you noticed? Deep within your heart, there's another self that has been hidden for a long time, the self that lost everything at the age of 19. She is so bleak, as if shrouded in dark clouds. After you are killed by her, she will become your replacement, slaughtering those Herrscher girls with immense hatred."

"And what if I kill her?"

"It's simple. You'll take her place as my puppet. The outcome is the same, except you'll get to witness yourself killing them. I think that would be more interesting, wouldn't it?"

It was like a devil's whisper in her ear. Despite his youthful face, he harbored such dark thoughts. He would definitely do it, Himeko realized.

But, if she could pretend to be controlled, could she save those children at the critical moment?

Seeing Murata Himeko genuinely start to ponder this question, no one noticed the faint smile on Su Jue's lips.

In fact, Su Jue wasn't that omnipotent. Although he could indeed control Himeko, that broken corpse was basically a broken toy that would shatter with a gentle touch. And with Himeko's firm and extraordinary will, trying to forcibly create a puppet was simply wishful thinking. The end result would be losing both time and money, gaining nothing.

Although his goal in his plan was only the Plague Gem, if he could trick Himeko into willingly becoming a puppet, she would be a top-tier S-rank Valkyrie. Coupled with the Plague Gem, he could even create a low-tier version of the Herrscher of Flames.

Anyway, once she became a puppet, she would be completely under his control, and he wouldn't have to worry about betrayal.

"Right, if you don't believe me, this is the message that white-haired little girl left for me. You can't possibly not recognize her voice, can you?"

He tossed his phone to Himeko. It was just an unexpected bonus chip, so there was no harm in giving it to her.

"Kiana..." Himeko's voice was hoarse. That girl was the one she worried about the most. Without anyone to protect her after she left, had she finally fallen into a scheme?

With great effort, she moved her fingers and quietly pressed the play button, listening to Kiana's farewell to Su Jue.

The message was short, but Himeko replayed it over and over.

"How was it? Didn't I tell you the truth?" Su Jue watched Himeko with mild boredom, already imagining her pained expression as she heard Kiana's voice again after being trapped in the Imaginary Space for so long.

Admiring someone else's pain and despair held no meaning for him. He wasn't some heinous demon; he was just trying to protect himself and survive. As for overthrowing human civilization, that was just going with the flow. The Honkai Will only paid his salary, they didn't manage him. Slacking off at work was a common occurrence for a Herrscher who had given up.

However, when Himeko looked at him again, there was no trace of pain. Instead, her gaze was filled with a profound strangeness. "You haven't listened to this recording yourself, have you?"

"..." What?

Bang—

As Su Jue was still confused by her words, Himeko, with a strength he couldn't fathom, grabbed the phone and smashed it violently onto the ground. After that single smash, Su Jue's second-hand phone, which a girl had used, was reduced to nothing but dust, completely destroyed.

"Alright, I'll agree to become your puppet, on the condition that you grant me a certain degree of freedom," Himeko said to herself after destroying Su Jue's personal property.

"Are you kidding me..."

"Don't you want to know what's in that recording?"

"..."

To be honest, due to Murata Himeko's abnormal behavior, Su Jue felt a flicker of curiosity. What kind of message could make Himeko, who had been defiant until her death, voluntarily choose to become a puppet?

As Su Jue hesitated, a thick dark cloud completely covered Himeko's eyes. This was her actively stirring up the darkness within her heart. And within the Theater of Domination, countless threads danced, gears turned, and a new, blank puppet gradually took shape.

This was something Su Jue had never expected. Since ancient times, only the Herrscher of Domination had the right to choose a host. When did a host gain the power to forcibly become a puppet? Was it just because she was once the holder of the Plague Gem?

However, he was only surprised for a moment. Since someone was willingly offering themselves, what did he, the controller, have to worry about? Was he afraid of having too many subordinates and living too comfortable a life?

"You promised me you would grant me a certain degree of freedom." Himeko's voice gradually became calm. After actively linking her soul to the Theater of Domination, the erosion of her will by Honkai Energy had lessened significantly. And this incomplete body, complemented by the birth of the puppet, had actually halted the momentum of the Honkai.

Su Jue's lips twitched slightly. "No, I didn't..."

Himeko said nothing, just stared at him with her orange eyes, making him doubt himself, wondering if he had really said that.

"Fine, take it. I'll give it to you. Anyway, as long as I want to, I can take over your control at any time." Unable to hold out under her gaze, Su Jue could only stubbornly agree. After all, becoming a puppet meant being completely under his control. The so-called freedom was just that he wouldn't interfere too much in normal times.

And after his reluctant agreement, he didn't notice the slight look of relief in Himeko's eyes.

She was gambling, using Kiana's judgment as her basis, gambling that Su Jue's nature wasn't purely evil. It seemed she had gambled correctly.

"So, what was the content of that recording?" Su Jue asked curiously, now that he was sure he held Himeko's life and death in his hands.

"Ask her yourself."

"...Do you know the price of deceiving a Herrscher?"

"You can control my body, but you can't control my memories. Why don't you just kill me then."

This was bad. He felt like this whole operation had backfired.

Chapter 39: A Test

One day later, Su Jue's room was unusually lively.

It was the weekend, and the weather outside was excellent. Sunlight streamed through the glass windows, dispelling all darkness and making the entire room bright. More importantly, there was a sense of life in the house. Apart from the puppet dolls of [Father] and [Mother] who remained in their puppet forms within the Theater of Domination, [Griseo], [Himeko], and [Tread Snow] were all at home. Together with Su Jue himself, it almost looked like a family of three gathered around the dining table for a meal.

The lunch, naturally, was made by Su Jue. Himeko's cooking skills were a disaster, Griseo only knew how to draw, and as for Tread Snow, it was best to let it stay put.

After establishing a contract with the Herrscher of Domination, Murata Himeko's puppet also came into being within the Theater of Domination. However, despite agreeing to become a puppet, Himeko was extremely resistant to transferring her consciousness into a new puppet body, and had been resisting until now.

Su Jue didn't force her consciousness into the puppet. He could only do his best to repair her injuries, allowing her to move around as a normal person. As for combat, he couldn't count on her. She would be transferred into the puppet body when needed.

Stacking the plates after lunch, Su Jue looked at Himeko, who was leisurely relaxing, and couldn't help but mutter, "Did I just bring back a burden? Not only does she eat a lot, but she can't even move."

Sighing, Su Jue had a sour expression, clearly displeased.

Crack.

The sound of a glass photo frame hitting the ground was crisp. Su Jue's head snapped around. On the table, the white-gloved paw that had just done the mischief hadn't even retracted yet when it met Su Jue's furious gaze.

"Tread Snow! What are you doing!" Seeing the shattered glass all over the floor, Tread Snow, who had quietly pushed it over, nonchalantly licked its little paw, wearing an expression that said, 'I'm just a little kitten, I didn't do anything bad.'

Su Jue, already in a bad mood, was enraged. He slammed the plate in his hand onto the table and lunged for it.

"Meow~" However, Tread Snow's movements were incredibly agile. Using the few old cabinets placed around the house for leverage, it dodged Su Jue and landed steadily on a soft cushion. It haughtily tilted its head, meowing at Su Jue with disdain, its front paws kneading the soft paw pads.

"Damn it, you're a puppet cat, not a real cat! Don't pick up these bad habits." The young man was somewhat frantic, trying to reach out and grab the kitten. But seeing Murata Himeko's smiling expression, he gave up on the idea of snatching the cat from her exaggerated chest muscles.

"This stinky cat even learned to knead." Seemingly annoyed by his own puppet, Su Jue grumbled powerlessly. He picked up a broom from the corner and carefully swept up the broken glass.

Meanwhile, Murata Himeko, leaning back comfortably on the sofa, watched the scene like a good show and couldn't stop laughing. "Hey, Herrscher, didn't you say all your puppets are under your control? It seems that's not the case."

"Hmph!" Su Jue, having lost face, could only snort and stubbornly retort, "This is just a small accident. As long as I use my abilities, there's nothing I can't control."

"Is that so? I don't believe you." A flicker of thought crossed Himeko's eyes. As if piqued, she looked at him provocatively. "Try controlling me, you can do anything to me."

After saying that, she even gave Su Jue a seductive wink, completely acting like she was asking for trouble. In reality, she was doubting the specifics of Su Jue's domination. Although after signing the contract with the Herrscher of Domination, she clearly felt the threads of domination connecting her to the core, completely subjugating her.

However, Tread Snow's disruption gave her a new idea—perhaps Su Jue didn't have complete control over his puppets?

Feeling that his dignity had been offended by a puppet, Su Jue stood up somewhat angrily. With a few large strides, he walked in front of her, staring at her with a fierce gaze. "You're playing with fire. Do you know what that means for a hot-blooded teenage boy?"

Unfortunately, Himeko completely disregarded his attitude and met his gaze with her orange-yellow eyes. "What does it mean? Just tell me."

"Hmph." Accompanied by Su Jue's soft snort, golden light ignited in his eyes. Murata Himeko felt her body stiffen, a strong sense of sluggishness filling her entire being. In the end, it was as if she had been given an overdose of anesthetic; she couldn't feel her body at all. Transparent threads emerged from the Herrscher of a Thousand's core, gradually entangling her current puppet body, replacing all her senses. Within a mere one or two seconds, Himeko lost control of her body.

"The power of Domination is supreme. As long as you are connected by my threads, as long as I wish it, you will have absolutely no possibility of breaking free." As if to prove his ability, Su Jue controlled Himeko's body to stand up from the sofa. "You cannot escape the control of the Herrscher's core."

Threads...

The keyword was immediately imprinted in her mind. Himeko tried to find her connection to Domination and, without realizing it, actually found some clues.

"That stinky cat merely broke free from the threads' control temporarily. When I reconnect, it will pay the price." At this moment, the unsuspecting Su Jue was still madly revealing his secrets, completely unaware that Himeko had already started to have ulterior motives.

"Alright, now you know I wasn't lying. Just listen obediently." Releasing his control over Himeko, Su Jue waved his hand dismissively.

"...Aren't you going to do something to me?" A flash of surprise crossed her eyes. Himeko was somewhat taken aback by Su Jue releasing his control so easily. Of course, Himeko wasn't hoping he would do anything to her; rather, she was surprised that this young man was so unguarded, letting go of someone who knew his secrets so easily.

"Boring. Wasting life on such meaningless trivialities is a choice only you humans make." Picking up the plate he had put down, Su Jue tilted his chin at Himeko. "If you have nothing to do, clean up the glass. This stupid cat doesn't wear shoes. If it gets cut, I'll have to fix it."

"Okay." After a moment of silence, a smile appeared on Himeko's face. As a cunning adult, this small matter gave her a general understanding of Su Jue.

"Even though he's a Herrscher, he seems like just a kid who hasn't grown up yet."

Chapter 40: Old Photographs

Having fought against Honkai for so many years, Himeko knew the terror of Herrschers all too well. Even her own father had died at the hands of a Herrscher. But Murata Himeko was also a good person. She understood that many of the tragedies caused by Honkai couldn't be blamed on individuals. It was like how she had brought Kiana, who possessed the power of the Herrscher of Void, and even Mei, who had awakened as the Herrscher of Thunder, into St. Freya Academy.

Aside from their Herrscher identities brought about by Honkai, they were all just teenagers. At their age, they should have been enjoying a carefree youth and a relaxed school life.

Even Herrschers could be guided through care and education. This was a belief she had always held. After becoming their teacher and spending time with them daily, she became even more convinced of this. They had lost their loved ones, left their friends, and gathered at St. Freya Academy to fight against Honkai.

They were all warriors fighting against Honkai, cherishing their dreams and yearning for a better tomorrow. And she, as their teacher, was willing to be the flame herself, illuminating their path forward.