Who Says They're Not a Herrscher?

Luo Mio looked toward the crimson-and-pale figure.

"Teacher."

That was right. The crimson figure beside Luo Mio was Immortal Chi Yuan—Fu Hua!

"My consciousness..."

After hearing Fu Hua's words, Luo Mio instantly recalled the rampaging Honkai Energy before he lost consciousness, as well as the grain-like golden fragments in Wallenstein's hand!

"Remember now?"

Luo Mio gritted his teeth, his expression grim, before seeming to realize something.

"Why was there no response when I called out to you?" Luo Mio asked, looking at Fu Hua.

Upon hearing his question, Fu Hua closed her eyes. A moment later, she opened them and looked at Luo Mio. "When the Honkai Energy within you went berserk, I used the power of Feather of the Dust to suppress it. Then, something unexpected happened."

"Something unexpected?" Luo Mio asked doubtfully.

"That's right. You may not know what happened, but I saw it clearly within your Consciousness Space."

Fu Hua recalled the sight she had witnessed while controlling Feather of the Dust—a sight all too familiar to her!

Brilliant golden eyes, as though proclaiming the end of the world! Pupils of eternal darkness, symbolizing nothingness! A diamond-shaped golden divine mark above those golden eyes! And a massive golden ring, visible throughout the entire Consciousness Space!

Three characteristics Fu Hua could never forget.

"A force severed the connection between you, me, and the system."

"Not long after that, the Honkai Energy in your body stopped rampaging. I took that opportunity to pull your consciousness back into your body."

"How could that be..."

After hearing Fu Hua's words, Luo Mio murmured in disbelief.

He then raised his head and spoke into the Consciousness Space. "Answer me, System!"

Luo Mio called out to the other existence within him—the one that had granted him this power and brought his teacher into his consciousness.

"I am here. What does the host require?" the system replied.

"The rampaging Honkai Energy in my body—I'm sure you know all about it!" Luo Mio demanded.

"That is correct."

Faced with Luo Mio's interrogation, the system answered without hesitation.

"!" Luo Mio's eyes narrowed. "Tell me—what exactly is inside my body?!"

Remembering those golden fragments and the golden Honkai Energy that had appeared in his hand before he lost consciousness, Luo Mio did not dare to imagine any further.

"I can tell the host."

"But not now."

"What do you mean?"

"It means exactly what it says. The current host does not possess the ability or authority to know."

"..." Luo Mio fell silent.

"Heh, fine." Luo Mio shook his head and chuckled. "It's not like I don't know how pathetic you look, System."

"..." The system was rendered speechless, as though it had been violated.

"Then tell me, System. How do I obtain the information I want?"

"Confirmed. The only way for the host to acquire the corresponding authority and information is to complete missions."

"Complete missions..."

Luo Mio recalled the mission displayed at the bottom of the system interface.

"Complete a battle with either target Kurogane Ikki or Stella."

"Mio."

Fu Hua interrupted Luo Mio's thoughts. "Now that you're awake, it's time to leave your Consciousness Space."

Saikyo Neine's childhood could be described as miserable.

Her parents divorced, and she went with her mother.

Her mother later remarried, but the man she married was an utterly hopeless bastard. He had no job and never looked for one. He did not help with housework, spent every day drinking and having fun, and constantly threw around his status as the head of the household, ordering them about. At the slightest displeasure, he would scream at her and her mother, often reducing her mother to tears.

Being beaten became commonplace as well. Since Saikyo Neine was a Blazer, the man's punches barely hurt her.

Then, one day, for reasons unknown, the man overturned and stomped on the food she liked before turning violent toward her mother.

Driven by furious rage, she rushed forward and slammed her fist hard into the man's face.

In the end, the man collapsed on the floor, his face a bloody mess, while her mother let out a piercing scream.

Something shattered.

A crack called a flaw appeared in Saikyo Neine's heart.

As an adult, Saikyo Neine was saved by two people.

Nangou Torajiro and Shinguji Kuroko.

The former was the master who taught her, while the latter was the only opponent she acknowledged!

And the dearest friend she recognized for life!

Although the appearance of those two had filled the flaw in Saikyo Neine's heart, it was still only a patch. To possess a whole heart without scars, she could only gain a new heart.

That was until eleven years ago, when Saikyo Neine returned to the Far East and found a certain fool—World Clock, ranked third in the world, who had withdrawn from the front lines. The two of them received word to suppress a little brat who had gone berserk for unknown reasons.

Once the suppression was over, those so-called higher-ups threw the little brat at her and made her his guardian.

And so began Saikyo Neine's life with the little brat named Toudo Touka.

At first, Saikyo Neine had been extremely displeased. Why did she have to be his guardian? All she knew how to do was fight.

But as time passed, their relationship grew better and better.

They sparred with each other, played with each other, and joked with each other.

In the life she shared with him, Saikyo Neine gradually realized that, deep down, she had long regarded the little brat as family.

The flaw called "family" vanished from Saikyo Neine's heart with his arrival.

"Neine! Touka's awake!"

Her dear friend's shout roused her from her light sleep.

She then rose and opened the door to the medical room.

Reactions from All Sides and Awakening

In a corner of Tokyo, Far East, there was none of the bustling clamor of the city—only the stillness of a deep mountain forest.

A school stood amid these uninhabited mountains.

"The Baron is dead." A middle-aged man in a suit spoke to Amamiya Shion and the other five.

If an outsider saw this man, they would surely be stunned.

For he was the current Prime Minister, the highest leader of the Far East—Tsukikage Bakuga.

The six were startled upon hearing Tsukikage Bakuga's words.

"I never expected that Baron to actually die." Amamiya Shion still spoke with that smiling expression.

"Since the Baron is dead, does that mean this mission has failed?" asked Tadara Yui, wrapped up from head to toe.

Tsukikage Bakuga shook his head. "Whether this mission succeeded or failed is not important to the missions that follow."

"Besides, the Baron's death likely involved personal motives."

"Then, Uncle, does that mean it is our turn to take the stage in the upcoming Seven Stars Sword Art Festival?" asked the chuunibyou girl, dressed in formal wear with a cape draped over her shoulders, a wide-brimmed hat on her head, cloth covering one eye, and a proud look on her face.

"That's right, Rinna. It's time for you all to take the stage!" Tsukikage Bakuga said, patting the chuunibyou girl's head.

"Our moment has arrived—National Akatsuki Academy's moment."

Tsukikage Bakuga spoke as the academy chairman of Akatsuki Academy.

Edelberg

A mountain located within one of the three Nordic countries by the sea, rising over nine thousand meters above sea level—the highest peak in the world.

Within a crevice between snowstorm-shrouded cliffs more than eight thousand meters up the mountain—

Boundless sword aura pressed down like a mountain upon ignorant intruders.

On a gentle slope within that crevice stood a small stone cottage.

Inside the cottage, a woman happily swayed as she baked pastries.

When she raised her head, she revealed breathtaking beauty.

Her flawless, snow-white hair cascaded behind her, drifting gently as she lightly shook her head.

With light makeup, white casual clothing, and beautiful silver-gray eyes adorning her refined features, she resembled a snow fairy amid this white mountain peak.

"'It' has actually manifested in this world."

Another pleasant female voice sounded within the cottage.

Hearing the voice, the woman removed the gloves she wore for baking and looked toward a golden diamond-shaped crystal inside the room.

The spatial fluctuations flowing around it differed from the unseeable gold Luo Mio had revealed.

"The 'it' you speak of is?" the woman asked in a clear, elegant voice.

The diamond-shaped crystal fell silent for a moment before saying, "I cannot say, or it will notice me. But there are two things I can tell you."

"Two things?"

"'It' symbolizes destruction and rebirth."

"Destruction... and rebirth..."

"Still, it was thanks to your power, Edelweiss, that I escaped 'its' notice."

If anyone else heard the crystal's words and saw the white-haired woman, they would never believe that this woman living like an ordinary young girl was who she was.

That was right. The woman was Edelweiss.

Yet the name by which she was renowned throughout the world was even more familiar.

"Twin Wings."

She was also known to the world as the "World's Strongest Swordsman."

Edelweiss frowned as she looked at the crystal.

"Since you, 'Void,' and 'it' share the same origin, why are you so afraid of 'it'?"

The crystal named Void fell silent after hearing Edelweiss's question.

"Because I am an anomaly..."

"An anomaly?"

"That's right. I was supposed to be born for a mission, but after seeing his memories, I chose to abandon that mission..." Void said in a low voice.

Edelweiss listened to Void's words and smiled gently.

"It feels like your emotions are becoming richer and richer, Void."

"Hmph, shut up!"

"Alright, alright. My pastries are done. Want some?"

"Yes!" Then a black hole appeared, and a purple-haired little girl emerged inside the cottage.