After dinner, they returned to the shrine.
Kiana still hadn't forgotten about the Stigmata. Once everything was put away and Mei seemed to have nothing else to occupy her hands, Kiana couldn't hold back any longer.
"Mei, Mei—Stigmata!"
She was practically bouncing with excitement. She couldn't wait to give Raiden Mei the Stigmata.
Even though the world's current Honkai Energy concentration was still low—insignificant compared to the void or the invasion of Takamagahara—it was still better to implant the Stigmata sooner than later, for peace of mind.
"Stigmata?" Mei asked hesitantly.
"Mhm!" Kiana nodded eagerly, projecting the image of the Thunder Soul Engraving into the air. "This one—'Thunder Soul Engraving.' It's perfect for you!"
Kiana thought for a moment, then muttered to herself, "I wonder if, after offering enough sacrifices, I could get myself a 'Wings of Oath' someday…"
"Wings of Oath?" Mei tilted her head slightly.
"It's the Kaslana family's hereditary Stigmata," Kiana explained. "Do you remember what I said before? Anyway… because of me, this world is about to face a catastrophe called 'Honkai.'"
"If the Honkai Energy concentration gets too high, and humans don't have Honkai resistance, they'll get infected and eventually turn into Honkai creatures."
"Those with strong resistance to Honkai Energy will develop Stigmata—and conversely, Stigmata can give humans the adaptability to use Honkai Energy for themselves."
Her explanation was clear and coherent—no trace of corruption or madness. Could it be that Kiana wasn't infected by the cursed blade after all? That this Stigmata was… real?
…There was only one way to find out.
"What exactly is 'Honkai'?" Mei asked quietly.
"It's hard to explain its essence…" Kiana replied after a pause. "It can trigger all kinds of disasters—earthquakes, tsunamis, plagues, even wars. When the concentration rises too high, it directly corrodes people who lack resistance, creating terrifying beings known as 'Herrschers.' I haven't seen Almighty Thunder's power yet, but I'd guess a Herrscher's strength is probably on par with it."
Kiana spoke uncertainly.
She didn't really know how Honkai manifested in this world—or how strong a Herrscher could become here. In the Houkai Gakuen world, as long as Honkai Energy stayed high, there seemed to be no upper limit to their power… unlike Honkai Impact 3rd, which only had fourteen.
"Why…" Mei began softly.
"Take off your clothes, Mei," Kiana interrupted suddenly.
She didn't know how to tell Mei that she herself was the Herrscher of Finality, and that this power grew stronger alongside her own.
She didn't want to remember.
She didn't want to explain.
Though she was still filled with doubt and worry, Mei didn't ask further. Instead, she quietly turned around and slipped her upper garment off her shoulders.
Facing away from Kiana, her voice was soft and shy. "Go ahead, Kiana."
The moment Kiana saw Mei's flawless back, her face flushed red, and she quickly averted her gaze.
"Okay," she whispered, kneeling behind Mei and gently brushing her hair over one shoulder.
She didn't dare touch her.
Using her right index finger, Kiana lightly pressed a spot between Mei's shoulder blades. "Here should be fine. The Stigmata will stay like a tattoo—it won't disappear."
"That's fine," Mei replied quietly.
Her cheeks were slightly pink. Though Kiana was also a girl, the closeness between them felt strangely intimate, and her heart wouldn't calm.
Kiana took a deep breath, steadying her excitement, her shyness, and her racing pulse. Then, she placed the Thunder Soul Engraving upon Mei's back.
The compatibility was undeniable. As soon as the Stigmata touched Mei's skin, it merged seamlessly with her, the markings glowing faintly as they etched themselves into her flesh.
[Thunder Soul Engraving applied successfully]
[A Honkai Brand has been imprinted upon a key character of this world. Honkai Energy Concentration (Izumo) permanently increased by 5%.]
[First time converting a world's key character to the Honkai Faction—Reward granted: "Heart of Thunder."]
[Heart of Thunder (Emblem)] — Initial Effect: Increases the wielder's lightning-attribute attack by 28.2%. Effect strengthens with Honkai Energy intensity, up to a 60% boost.
Although Kiana had already seen the Houkai Final Handcannon appear once before, the sudden materialization of an emblem still shocked her.
It yanked her out of her daydreams—hard.
Weapons and emblems had already shown up. Did that mean that in the future, there would be outfits and familiars too?
Kiana's jaw dropped.
No way—was this really the version with damage values in the trillions? She had been joking!
This kind of Honkai… seemed a little different from what she had imagined…
"…Maybe even the Aeons can't compare to this," she muttered weakly.
Well, when it rains, it pours.
Kiana immediately implanted the Heart of Thunder into Mei as well. With that, Mei's combat strength skyrocketed instantly.
If Mei had a little more time to train… Kiana wondered if she could even solo Almighty Thunder someday.
Mei, on the other hand, wasn't expecting much—she only went along with Kiana's strange enthusiasm.
But as the Thunder Soul Engraving fused into her body, and its power began to flow through her, Raiden Mei froze in shock and disbelief.
Kiana hadn't been lying.
This power… was real.
With the Stigmata as its core, she could feel a new kind of energy—one that she could actually control.
Before she could even speak, Kiana was already muttering to herself, lost in thought again.
"Is something wrong, Kiana?" Mei asked cautiously.
"Nope!"
Kiana snapped back to focus, helping Mei pull her half-removed top back up before standing and smiling. "Why don't you try out the power of the Stigmata?"
Still dazed, Mei simply nodded. "Alright." She didn't think too much about it—her mind was still reeling from the strange sensations running through her body.
The two returned to the training grounds from that morning.
Under the night sky, Raiden Mei picked up a katana and told Kiana to stand back a little.
She swung the blade a few times experimentally—and immediately noticed a drastic improvement in both speed and strength.
Her technique had sharpened.
And not just slightly.
She had hit a wall before—a plateau she couldn't break through. But now, she could see flaws in her old movements that she had never noticed before.
"Then next…"
She sheathed her blade, lowering into her Hokushin Ittō-ryū stance. Focusing her breathing and posture, faint sparks of electricity began to dance across her skin. When her state peaked, the sword in her hands seemed to transform into lightning itself. The crackling roar of electricity and the blue arcs of light illuminated the dark training field for a fleeting instant.
The moment she struck, she vanished from sight—reappearing over ten meters away. It wasn't her limit… just the limit of the training ground.
"Amazing!" Kiana gasped.
Was that a sword wave—or lightning itself?
All she saw was a flash of light, and then the ground split open with a ten-meter-long gash, as Mei appeared at its end, her blade humming softly.
Cool. So damn cool.
Raiden Mei turned, gazing at the mark she had left on the ground. Even she looked surprised.
She had already estimated the attack's strength, but it had far exceeded her expectations—the destructive power was unbelievable.
If she faced that octopus Kami again now, she was certain.
With one strike—she could obliterate it completely.