After changing into their outfits, Elysia happily opened the door and, using the friction between her slippers and the wooden floor, slid over to Chang Yuan and gave him a big hug.
"Alright, no more acting cute. Didn't we say we were going to see those two?"
Faced with this version of Elysia, Chang Yuan felt a strange sense of unease.
Wait, why was he feeling... attracted to himself?
"Fine, fine. You won't even let me act cute. Boo-hoo~?."
"..."
After putting on their shoes, the two set out.
But they disguised themselves a bit. For example, the pink elf tied her hair into a neat ponytail, put on a white hat, and donned a pair of sunglasses.
As for Chang Yuan, he simply wore a white naval cap with the word "Captain" written boldly on it.
After all, they were sneaking around with the mindset of a captain.
"Don't you think we're drawing more attention like this?"
Looking at Elysia, who was dressed like a celebrity trying to be low-key, Chang Yuan felt anything but inconspicuous.
"Oh, you're right. Well, what can I do? I'm a radiant flower of a girl. Attracting attention is just unavoidable."
Elysia claimed she was innocent. She didn't want to stand out.
"Tsk, let's just hope they don't notice us. We'll watch from a distance."
"But like this, I feel like some kind of stalker."
Following two beautiful girls, Chang Yuan felt his image was ruined.
"Don't overthink it. Hmm, let me see."
Climbing onto a rooftop, Elysia pulled out a tablet.
This tablet was connected to the Fourth Divine Key, allowing them to easily observe the entire world.
"Ugh, they're so mean. How can they treat such a cute girl like Mei like that?"
From the video, Elysia saw Mei's desk covered in insults.
Someone had even smeared glue on her chair.
"Well, when kids misbehave, it's usually the parents' fault. So, let's make the parents pay."
Chang Yuan pulled out his phone and sent a message to Otto.
Since they enjoyed seeing others suffer, let them suffer too.
In the original story, they died and that was that. But this time, Schicksal wouldn't let that happen—or rather, Kallen wouldn't let Otto do that.
So, if they couldn't die in the Honkai disaster, they'd have to face the consequences in other ways.
What couldn't be done in the game could be done in reality.
"Got it, teacher. Also, for small matters like this, you can just contact Schicksal's finance department. It's kinda lame for you to come to me for this."
"Otto, you sound so...annoying. Have you been spending too much time in a certain part of Shenzhou?"
"...Kallen said she wanted authentic Hong Kong-style milk tea, so, you know, I've been there a lot. Picked up some local habits."
"You really spoil Kallen. Alright, I'll remember that for next time. That's all."
After sending the message, Chang Yuan closed his phone and smiled at the bullies tormenting Mei.
He hoped they'd still be smiling tomorrow—or rather, by this afternoon.
Soon, Kiana and Mei appeared together.
As Mei's only remaining friend, Kiana waited for her every day to walk to school.
Since Kiana didn't pay attention to the news, she had no idea about Mei's situation.
"Kiana, why do you still want to hang out with me?"
"Why not? I just like being with you."
"Hey, I was wondering why the new student would still hang out with the criminal's daughter. Guess you didn't know the whole story. Let us fill you in."
"No!"
Hearing this, Mei's eyes filled with fear.
If Kiana found out, would she start to hate her too?
Mei couldn't bear to lose her only friend.
But did the bullies care about Mei's pleas? Of course not.
"Let us tell you, Mei's dad went to jail for corruption. She's the criminal's daughter, a hidden criminal herself."
"...."
"No, Kiana, stop listening."
Seeing Kiana's silence, Mei felt her heart breaking.
After days of relentless attacks, Mei needed someone to lean on.
Otherwise, without anyone to trust or turn to, Mei would truly break.
Kiana didn't say anything. She just looked at Mei's desk.
Then she noticed the graffiti and realized what had been happening.
"...Let's go to the restroom and talk."
At that moment, no one noticed the golden glint in Kiana's eyes.
"...The plot has shifted slightly. The Second Herrscher is appearing earlier than expected."
Ordinary people might not have noticed, but Chang Yuan and Elysia, being anything but ordinary, certainly did.
A small but significant change had occurred.
"Come on, let's tell you more about Raiden Mei's dark side. She's not as kind as she seems."
The bullies, thinking Kiana wanted to join them, followed her to the restroom.
Watching Kiana leave with them, Mei's heart shattered.
She stumbled to the rooftop, looking down at the ground below. Strangely, she felt no fear.
"Father, my heart is still so fragile. I wanted to clear your name, but... I don't think I can keep going."
Due to numerous butterfly effects, Mei hadn't endured bullying for long.
But she had come to see Kiana as her only friend, a bond that felt destined.
Losing that friend, Mei felt an inexplicable pain in her heart.
In her dazed state, she considered ending it all.
"Hey, hey, hey, this isn't part of the script. What's going on?"
Seeing Mei preparing for a leap of faith, Chang Yuan nearly lost his composure.
He had expected some butterfly effects, but this was too much.
He prepared to save Mei at any moment.
After all, without awakening as a Herrscher, she was still just a mortal, untouched by Honkai.
"No need, Yuan. Look over there."
Elysia pointed at a white figure running around and smiled, holding Chang Yuan back.
"What's she doing?"
"Excuse me, have you seen Mei-senpai?"
"Have you seen Mei-senpai?"