"Mei, Mei, just tell me who that guy you went to the movies with yesterday was~~~ I promise I won't cause him any trouble!!"
On the streets of Nagazora City, two young girls were enjoying a rare moment of leisure. However, for Raiden Mei, who was being subjected to Kiana's incessant questioning, this break was proving to be quite stressful.
She had merely wanted to watch a movie with someone she liked, behind her best friend's back. But what was with this atmosphere, as if she'd been caught cheating...?
Looking at the still resentful Kiana before her, whose eyes held the indignation of a cuckolded partner, an expression of helplessness crossed Mei's delicate face. Although Kiana claimed she wouldn't bother Ren Amamiya, Mei, familiar with Kiana's personality, easily saw through her scheme.
She undoubtedly wanted to find out about Ren first, then show up with a baseball bat to intimidate him, unilaterally declaring her ownership of Mei.
Mei had encountered more than one Kaslana. She deeply understood how terrifying their innate monstrous strength was—a complete dimensional downgrade for any normal person. However, that only applied to ordinary people.
If Kiana went looking for Ren intending to "teach him a lesson," Mei suspected Kiana would end up running back in tears after Ren dealt with her. She might even use the injury as an excuse to deliberately throw herself into Mei's arms for comfort and to take advantage.
"Kiana, stop messing around. When you can look at this calmly, I'll arrange for you to meet him..." Mei sighed wearily. "Until then, no matter what you say, I won't tell you anything about him. It's better for all three of us this way." Her dear friend was wonderful in every way, except for her overly enthusiastic affection for Mei, which was a constant headache.
"Wh-what does that mean? Mei, are you—are you trying to two-time me?!" Hearing Mei's words, Kiana's pupils trembled violently. As if struck by a powerful blow, she staggered back two steps. A look of shock first appeared on Kiana's delicate face, quickly morphing into one of wavering hesitation.
"I... I... No! I can't accept this!!" After several flickers of uncertainty in her eyes, Kiana finally clutched her head, refusing Mei's "proposal." As Kiana vigorously shook her head in denial, her two thick white pigtails whipped through the air like lashes.
"Ahem, Kiana, don't misunderstand! That's not what I meant!!" Mei's fair face flushed crimson upon hearing Kiana's shocking outburst in public. While denying it, she instinctively scanned her surroundings. "...Why do you always assume that you and I are in a romantic relationship as the premise for everything?"
Only after confirming the street was empty and no passersby had overheard Kiana's deeply misconstrued, astonishing remark did Mei clutch her chest and let out a small sigh of relief. Her gaze towards Kiana became even more helpless. She was merely worried about a conflict between Kiana and Ren.
Yet, in Kiana's words, Mei sounded like a two-timing scumbag, waiting for Kiana, the "wronged party," to accept Ren before allowing them to meet.
"Mei, my dear Mei, don't be fooled by those scummy men out there! He's only after your tender body and your rich girl assets! Only same-sex love is true love... That's right! Only I, Kiana Kaslana, love Raiden Mei the most!!"
Kiana wiped away a tear from the corner of her mouth, opened her arms wide, and lunged towards Mei. Having completely given up on thinking, Kiana now just wanted to bury herself in Mei's embrace and take a deep, comforting sniff of her scent to soothe her wounded heart.
Thud—!!
However, to Kiana's surprise, when faced with her usually foolproof pounce, Mei, as if by instinct, sidestepped with lightning speed, perfectly evading her attack.
Unable to brake in time, Kiana, completely dodged by Mei, fell flat on the ground. Her pretty face even skidded across the pavement for a good four or five centimeters. The pain contorted Kiana's expression, as if she'd donned a mask of agony.
"Ki-Kiana? Are you okay?!" Her Phantom Thief instincts, honed in Mementos, made Mei instinctively dodge the sudden lunge without a second thought. Only after Kiana had slid some distance did Mei belatedly realize what happened and hurriedly ask with concern.
"Mei, you've changed..." Kiana scrambled up from the ground, tearfully clutching her aching, sore nose. "If it were the you before you met that scummy man, you definitely wouldn't have heartlessly dodged like that and let me fall!" she wailed with a wronged expression.
It wasn't a matter of wanting to dodge or not back then, it was a matter of not being able to dodge at all... An awkward yet polite smile appeared on Mei's face. Before awakening as a Persona user, Mei was just an ordinary kendo expert.
If there was distance, she might have been able to avoid Kiana's sudden attacks. But Kiana always got close before unleashing her terrifying explosive power to pounce into Mei's arms; Mei simply couldn't evade Kiana's hugs.
"Ever since you met that scummy man, Mei, you've been completely unwilling to have any physical contact with me! You didn't even offer a hand to help me up when I fell!!" Looking at Kiana standing before her with a resentful expression, complaining, Mei's politely smiling lips twitched.
Knowing Kiana's overly enthusiastic affection, it was perfectly normal for Mei to prevent Kiana from getting overly clingy to a problematic degree; she had started doing so long before she met Ren.
As for not helping Kiana up just now... Mei hadn't even had time to extend her hand before Kiana had already scrambled up by herself. How could she offer a hand then?
Faced with Kiana looking at her pitifully, like a wronged little wife, Mei felt a headache coming on. She suddenly seemed to understand how boys felt when their girlfriends made things difficult for them... though Kiana wasn't her girlfriend. Even if Kiana pulled this stunt, Mei would only apply the lessons learned from this to her interactions with Ren, striving to never make him feel this troubled.
"Kiana, stop joking around. I have something I want to ask you... It's about that dream you had before." If Kiana was allowed to continue, there was no telling where the topic would veer.
To get answers quickly and find out what secret situation Kiana was in, Mei had to abandon her original plan of a gradual approach and asked Kiana directly.
"You said you dreamed about me and someone else attacking you, right? Do you have any other impressions of that dream, Kiana? I mean, do you remember what the environment in the dream looked like?"
"Impressions... If I still had an impression of that pretty boy, regardless of whether he's the real heart-stealer or not, I'd definitely have to greet him with a couple of punches in the real world first! But I completely don't remember his face, only that he wore a white bird-beak mask."
Faced with Mei's inquiry, Kiana was momentarily stunned, then obediently cooperated, recalling the dreamscape she had witnessed the previous day.
"As for the dream's background environment, I think I do have some impression. It was... Wait a minute, Mei, why are you asking this?" A vast, boundless expanse of white snow suddenly appeared in Kiana's mind; she even had a fleeting illusion of being there.
Kiana was about to tell Mei the answer, but just as she nearly opened her mouth, her belated intelligence made her clamp her lips shut. Instead, she asked Mei curiously.
This concerns Mei. I should change my increasingly lazy way of thinking. From Mei's reaction, she wasn't relieved that Kiana didn't remember the face of the pretty-boy heart-stealer in the dream; rather, she seemed quite concerned about the dream's environmental details. This was undoubtedly very strange.
Even if Mei was concerned about Kiana's dream, her focus should have been on whether Kiana had seen the pretty-boy heart-stealer's true face. After all, dreams are extensions and projections of reality.
Kiana might have unintentionally seen or heard Mei doing something intimate with some man somewhere, thus having such an absurd and tragic dream.
However, Mei wasn't concerned about whether the pretty boy's face was revealed, but rather focused on the insignificant details of the battle environment. This made Kiana sense that something fishy was going on.
Could it be... this is a supernatural event related to the Honkai?!
"If Mei wants to know, that's fine, but you have to agree to one request! You're definitely not willing to tell me that man's real identity... So, go to the amusement park with me! I heard they just opened a new haunted house there, and it's super thrilling!!" Kiana seized the opportunity, hands behind her back, taking a playful step closer to Mei as she made her demand.
If Mei is truly caught up in a supernatural Honkai event, then I, Kiana Kaslana, must make a heroic appearance and save Mei from danger!! However, Kiana had no intention of laying all her cards on the table just yet. If she revealed everything now, how could she make a mysterious and stunning rescue, capturing Mei's heart as a heroic warrior silently fighting the Honkai?!
Besides, it might not even be related to the Honkai. If she guessed wrong and told Mei about the Honkai now, it might inadvertently drag Mei into a dangerous situation. Better to wait until after the haunted house date, hear Mei's answer, and then decide whether to tell her about the Honkai based on the situation...
Since the dream was related to a supernatural event, Mei, Kiana herself, and that pretty-boy heart-stealer who appeared in it should all be involved and might encounter some anomalies.
However, Kiana didn't feel anything wrong with herself; in fact, she felt a sense of lightness welling up from deep within her heart... There shouldn't be any problems in the short term, enough time for a date.
"Wait a minute, Mei, if you're so concerned about that dream, does that mean you had the same dream as me? Were you beaten up like me, or... or did you beat me up together with the pretty-boy heart-stealer?" Kiana, who was about to lead the way to the amusement park, suddenly had a flash of inspiration as she pondered.
Mei was showing such strong interest in her dream. If it really was a supernatural event, could she have been a participant in that dream too?!
Faced with Kiana, who had abruptly turned back, her eyes filled with both expectation and a hint of trepidation, Mei turned her head away, her face slightly flushed, unable to directly answer Kiana's question.
However, silence was the best answer. Kiana had only asked casually, a relaxed smile still on her face. But seeing Mei turn away wordlessly, refusing to meet her gaze, the smile on Kiana's face became increasingly strained.
"Mei... you didn't beat me up in the dream with that pretty boy, right?"
"Regarding the person in the white bird-beak mask you're discussing, the one appearing in dreams, we are also quite interested. If it's convenient, how about you discuss it with us as well?" Just as the scene fell silent due to Mei's reaction, a very gentle and steady male voice slowly sounded from in front of them.
"You might not believe this, but a short while ago, during a nap, I also encountered a similar dream in a hazy state."