On the hospital bed, Raiden Mei had not actually continued to sleep after communicating with Yuanhai.
Or rather, the current her couldn't sleep peacefully at all.
Knowing the secret within her body, even though Yuanhai had soothed her heart, she couldn't be completely at ease regarding that strange existence.
The first time, that existence occupied her body and attacked Kiana.
The second time, after she actively released that existence to defeat an enemy, that existence later actively attacked Aaron.
This guy didn't look like a good person no matter how you looked at it. And now...
—Kiana, who had previously used unknown means to bring her out of Nagazora City, had now fallen asleep on the chair in this ward due to exhaustion.
Looking at her friend's face full of fatigue, Raiden Mei naturally chose not to wake the friend beside her at such a time but chose to feign sleep on the bed.
Kiana needed time to rest, and she also needed time to sort out her feelings.
Although under Yuanhai's persuasion, Raiden Mei successfully shifted part of her attention to the mastermind, it didn't mean she forgot 'her' own actions.
The Third Honkai Eruption caused after she became a Herrscher sent millions of lives to the underworld in an instant...
If Raiden Mei were a crazy, evil person, she certainly wouldn't count the lives killed by the Third Honkai Eruption on her own head.
But precisely because Raiden Mei was still a girl with a normal moral compass, she kept regretting and feeling remorse for the casualties 'she' had caused.
*The current me cannot die yet.*
*Thinking carefully, Father's imprisonment and my awakening as a Herrscher might be related.*
*And in this situation, I have successfully awakened as a Herrscher. So, the mastermind who promoted my awakening has already achieved their goal.*
*If that mastermind intends to use the Herrscher's power to do bad things, then the mastermind will come knocking sooner or later...*
*Power...*
*In this situation, I must possess stronger power.*
*Something like last time, being forced to yield my body to that guy in front of a strong enemy—I absolutely cannot do that a second time.*
*Admittedly, she does possess extremely powerful strength.*
*But, toward humans... no, accurately speaking, her malice toward Aaron is simply too thick.*
*If I let her out again, she... of course, absolutely cannot beat Aaron.*
*But the problem is, I will cause trouble for Aaron again.*
*With his personality, maybe he won't care about these things, but I can't choose to ignore the trouble I bring to others just because they don't care.*
*When I haven't handed my body over to her, I cannot use the power within the Herrscher Core.*
*But the current me, combining the extracted [Precision Attack], [Extreme Oppression], and the awakened [Magnetic Field Rotation] and [Perfect Realm], can already fight against some enemies.*
*And Mr. Hell... he said he would teach me how to use power.*
*Finally, the state of mind... regarding the state of mind, even if I know I am not mature enough, I can't immediately make myself more mature right now.*
*The [Extreme Oppression] skill requires someone with high fighting spirit to exert its normal effect. This... really isn't a skill suitable for me.*
*Sigh, the abilities extracted this time are nice, but can I really use these skills well?*
Just at this moment, Raiden Mei, who had been unintentionally emitting the power of Magnetic Field Rotation, suddenly felt a force approaching.
And at the same time, she also sensed—her friend Kiana beside her, whose breathing suddenly became rapid.
*Bad, Kiana—is there danger?!*
*And this newly appeared aura... wait, this aura is...*
*Aaron?*
*Why would he be here?!*
Before Raiden Mei could figure out the reason for Aaron's appearance, she heard a voice coming from beside her.
"Kiana? Kiana! Wake up!"
*It is... Aaron and Kiana know each other. I deduced this before.*
*And in this call just now, I could feel Aaron's anxiety and worry... Sure enough, their relationship is extraordinary.*
*It's clearly something I already deduced, but after verifying it, my heart... why does it feel so uncomfortable now?*
*Unable to understand.*
*Completely... unable to understand!*
........................
After being shaken awake by Aaron, Kiana realized she had actually broken out in a cold sweat because of the dream just now.
And the dream just now... *strange, what did I see in the dream again?*
*Damn it!*
*I feel like this dream is very important, but why can't I remember it!*
*In the dream... what exactly happened in the dream to scare me like this?*
Seeing Kiana wake up, Aaron, whose facial expression remained unchanged, very calmly released his hands.
"Just a few hours apart, and you almost scared yourself like this."
"With you giving me a chance to mock you like this, it'd be a bit hard for me not to laugh a few times."
"Screw you! I just... had a bit of a nightmare, that's all!"
At this moment, under Aaron's stiff teasing, Kiana's attention was immediately and successfully diverted by Aaron.
Subsequently, after suddenly standing up, she tried to grab Aaron's collar with both hands.
"Whoa, just laughing a bit, why get physical."
Lightly dodging Kiana's sudden attack, Aaron took a step back and looked at the girl before him who had an unfriendly gaze.
"Why did you leave me behind before and stay in Nagazora City alone?"
Kiana, whose 'attack failed', could only angrily stay in place, bringing up old scores and speaking to Aaron grumpily.
"In that state, do you know how worried I was!"
"Ah, thanks, but the problem is—there were indeed some things over there that I needed to solve."
"Besides, look, isn't my ass completely fine—you look down on me too much."
"Bull."
At this moment, Kiana pointed at Aaron's pant leg grumpily.
"You think changing clothes makes it fine? That pant leg of yours is all blood!"
"How many times did you spray blood again this time?"
"...Is that important? Anyway, I'm fine now, right?"
*Of course it's important!*
*Have you realized at all that you are gradually placing your own safety in an increasingly unimportant position!*
Kiana really wanted to shout this sentence, but...
Glancing at Mei who still had her eyes closed, Kiana suppressed the urge, momentarily turned her head aside in annoyance, let out a 'hmph', and didn't continue on this topic.
*Mei is still resting; it's best not to wake her for now.*
*As for this guy Aaron... hmph, there will be plenty of chances to settle the score later anyway.*
*I will find a chance sooner or later to talk everything out properly!*
*However, that strike just now, although I didn't use full power when acting subconsciously, but...*
*Aaron being able to dodge immediately shows his reaction speed is stronger than before.*
*Damn it, was the 'seventy percent is theirs' that the System said before a joke?*
*I thought... I had caught up to his footsteps a little.*
"Wait, who is this little girl?"
Looking at Bronya who was placed on the floor by Aaron, Kiana's gaze toward Aaron suddenly became icy cold.
Aaron claimed he had things to do in Nagazora City; Kiana knew very well this was no lie.
And judging by his style of 'taking risks at critical moments but not rushing in mindlessly,' the thing he stayed in Nagazora City to do must have been very important—otherwise, he would have slipped away with her long ago; why split into two groups to run?
But, right now...
"You stayed in Nagazora City just to be a kidnapper for once?"
"You clearly know the answer—if you look at me with that 'looking at trash who kidnaps little girls' look again, I'm gonna get angry, hey!"
"But isn't that the fact?"
Walking slowly to Bronya's side, Kiana said with slight heartache.
"This child, no matter how you look at it..."
Then she froze.
The girl's legs used exoskeleton mecha.
Kiana, who now knew information and intelligence about 'Honkai', 'Schicksal', etc., instantly had a sharp look in her eyes.
Schicksal possessed intelligence and technology surpassing the ordinary human world, and the exoskeleton on this girl's legs looked like technology created beyond the ordinary human world no matter how you looked at it.
So, this guy is a member of Schicksal?
"Big, Big Sister."
At this moment, under Kiana's gaze, Bronya, who had just woken up, suddenly tried hard to put on a pitiful appearance and said to Kiana.
"Don't blame Master..."
"Master?????????"
"Bronya is willing..."
"Willing????"
"Hey! What's with that look?"
Aaron, being glared at by Kiana, immediately looked angrily at the troublemaking Bronya.
"And you—brat, you don't think I'll still peacefully help you after you cause trouble, do you?"
"Bronya doesn't know what Master is saying. But Bronya believes Master will not violate the contract between us."
*Damn, this damn brat is checkmating me in reverse.*
"Bronya believes that since Master chose to bring me by Master's side, he definitely won't violate the contract between us. So Big Sister... please don't blame Master, okay?"
"I say, little sister..."
At this moment, Kiana put away her angry look and looked at the girl beside her who made one feel she was delicate and touching.
Then, she crouched down and leaned close to Bronya's face.
But at this moment, Bronya suddenly shrank back violently.
*St... strange, just for a split second, Bronya felt a terrifying pressure emitting from this idiot white-haired girl?????????*
*This isn't real. Bronya's emotional circuits are broken; how could I feel fear toward her???*
*And this look...*
"You didn't take me for a fool and try to dupe me, did you? Actually trying to provoke the trust between him and me with just a few sentences? You... that's very bad."
*Oh oh oh oh, Kiana, looks like I misjudged you.*
*You've grown; you're much more reliable than before.*
Subsequently, Aaron heard Kiana speak a sentence in an incomparably disdainful tone that made him freeze on the spot.
"It's not like I've known this pervert for only a day. Do you think I don't know he likes big ones?"
"When this guy just met me, he stared at my chest every day."
"With a little flat board like you, he probably wouldn't look twice even if you offered yourself up. Under these circumstances, how could he possibly bring you along for that kind of reason?"
"Wh-what did you say!"
Although Bronya usually didn't care about her figure at all... no, for Bronya, who was once a child soldier assassin, she actually felt this figure suitable for combat was quite nice.
She always felt that Mother Cocolia being that strong while carrying two lumps of excess flesh on her chest was the true demeanor of a powerhouse.
But now, under Kiana's provocative words, Bronya felt her supposedly broken emotional circuits become incomparably sharp in this instant.
*Angry!*
*Bronya is really angry!*
"You idiot, actually daring to say that...!"
"And your chest isn't that big either! Bronya has seen ones much bigger than yours!"
"Seeing doesn't mean owning—I've seen plenty of things, are those things all mine?"
Facing Bronya's provocation, Kiana hummed lightly and said with a grin.
"If you don't have it, you don't have it. Little sister, you getting flustered like this only makes me think you're embarrassing."
"Hmph, you idiot. Bronya feels—that Big Sister lying over there has a chest that is truly big. Something like yours... at best slightly better than Bronya's, just slightly better than a flat board."
"You!"
"If Master is a pervert, then he would definitely make a move on that sister. Hehehe, when that time comes..."
"Hey, Aaron!"
At this moment, Kiana looked at the completely bewildered Aaron with an unfriendly gaze.
"Mei is my friend! If you—"
"Ki! A! Na!"
At this moment, Mei couldn't continue feigning sleep.
"What is all this you're talking about! You two arguing, don't drag me into it!"
............................