The weapon that materialized in the girl's hand was no longer the "gentle" implement she used against Kevin and the others.
Just standing there, holding two strangely shaped light blades in each hand, she was clearly telling Lin that if he didn't move, she would not be polite.
So, what was Lin answer?
"Clang."
Lin deployed the folding blade in his hand, forming a single-handed long sword.
"You should save your energy. Why don't you move aside? I won't do anything to you after taking the core." The girl pouted slightly and muttered, "It won't make a difference to save you for last anyway."
"…"
Lin said nothing.
He understood that from now on, the girl would not speak any truth to him, and his words would not sway the girl's determination.
From the first day they met, they knew they were incredibly similar and shared a mutual understanding.
Lin once told Kevin that he couldn't be like him, someone who fought only for the people around him. He couldn't ignore humanity as a whole and choose individuals.
No matter how special those individuals were, or how important they were to him, Lin couldn't do it.
That was why he continued to witness humanity's victories again and again, and the departure and change of those around him again and again.
No matter how much he feigned change, he couldn't alter his true core.
However, Himeko Herrscher transformation made it impossible for Lin to circumvent the silent cry of despair deep within his heart.
Choose humanity, or choose the people around him.
Lin had one more option.
"I will use the Core of the Herrscher of Reason. My consciousness has previously entered a Herrscher Core, and the form of my consciousness has changed, allowing me to use the Herrscher's Authority. I will use the Previous Civilization's technology information within the Core to replicate a weapon and destroy the Starlight's vessels before my complete transformation into a Herrscher consciousness."
"Then I will immediately commit suicide to prevent my true Herrscher transformation."
Lin spoke calmly. His words made the girl's fingers tremble slightly.
"What are you saying? Only I can use the Herrscher Core."
"I wasn't talking to you."
That was right. Lin wasn't addressing the girl with those words.
He was speaking to Me, who was standing behind the screen.
The girl also realized the meaning of Lin statement. She dropped her smile.
The Fire Moth uniform she wore gradually vanished, replaced by the magnificent, dress-like gown and crown-like decoration she wore when Lin first met her.
The sense of familiarity Lin felt when he first met the girl actually came from the appearance of the Herrscher of Reason of the Previous Civilization, whom he encountered during the simulation accident.
Now that he thought about it, the girl and the Previous Civilization's Herrscher of Reason shared a degree of similarity in appearance and attire, which was the cause of his déjà vu.
As the girl shed her final disguise, the Honkai energy within her began to reveal itself.
Lin could not defeat her.
The girl's body was actually Soulium, which possessed compatibility, malleability, and hardness. Lin weapon alone couldn't possibly harm her. Even Kevin couldn't wound her at the Shenzhou Branch; she merely feigned death.
Furthermore, there were factors like Previous Civilization technology and Lin current physical condition.
But Lin had seen enough of the disparity between humans and Herrschers.
It was the same every time. And now... it was no different.
Two figures charged from different directions, and then collided with a crash!
...
Kevin was not sitting in his seat. Instead, he was pacing within the cabin.
If he sat down, the low temperature around him would spread uncontrollably. He could only try to control the leakage of cold air by walking to maintain concentration.
This was not an "ability."
Unlike a Herrscher's Authority, which entirely originated from the Herrscher Core, the ice and snow control Kevin gained from Parvati was an ability, but the lowering of his body and surrounding temperature to minus thirty degrees Celsius was "damage."
After he woke up, the rest of the care staff informed him about the issues with his body. Upon learning about the irreversible damage to his body, Kevin asked about Lin condition.
Kevin began his Project Soldier Surgery Soon after Lin surgery ended, without even a chance to see Lin.
After learning Lin status from them, Kevin remained silent for a long time, eventually boarding the transport plane to Australia without a word.
He was going to kill Lin former Captain, just as he had killed Lin wife.
That man had already paid too much. He had sacrificed everything personal for the sake of "humanity."
It would be too cruel to ask him to personally kill those who once meant something to him.
Kevin stopped by the window. In a blink, the glass was coated with a blurry layer of ice fog. He reached out to wipe it, but only condensed a thicker layer of ice.
His hand hovered in mid-air, then fell powerlessly.
But soon, the ice fog melted.
A voice came through the intercom: "Kevin, you have reached fifty kilometers from the Seventh Herrscher's vicinity."
"Ah."
Kevin coldly pressed his hand against the glass, wet from the melted water.
"I know."
He retracted his hand. The water instantly turned back into ice.
This time, the high temperature could no longer melt it.
...
Lin barely dodged the girl's attacks. Every step he took required immense strength, as if he were using his entire body's might, making his movements look quite clumsy.
This was a sign of his inability to effectively control his strength.
After losing three senses, his unfamiliar body made it difficult for Lin to control it precisely. He could only rely on his calculations to mobilize his entire system.
Any other person would find it impossible to control their body in such an unimaginable way, solely through collected information.
The girl also seemed somewhat anxious. Although she was currently suppressing Lin, whose easily broken weapons and overly clumsy movements were things she could easily resolve, yet...
"Slap."
The helmeted man took a step back, sideways kicking the girl's wrist. Although the girl's Soulium body prevented the loss of strength that occurs when a human's joint is struck, the clever direction of the strike made her attack miss.
Such precise movement...
Lin was rapidly adapting to his body.
Perhaps he hadn't realized it himself, but after losing three senses, his remaining senses and mind had become sharper. This was a compensatory mechanism of the human body, allowing him to quickly find a new rhythm.
And there was one more thing.
"Clang!"
The light blade sliced across Lin wrist, but he didn't even flinch, instinctively grabbing the sword hilt with his free hand.
No pain.