Chapter 67: Feel the Overwhelming Presence of the Honkai Queen!

Chapter 67: Feel the Overwhelming Presence of the Honkai Queen!

Hokuto had read the script in advance—or rather, he had already experienced it firsthand.

So when he said that the upcoming events would be tragic, he meant it literally.

 『Pink Fairy Miss:』 "Alright, hurry up and start~ I can't wait to see Kiana-chan wake up thanks to her friends calling out to her!"

A pink comment floated across the screen.

Elysia clearly wished for the best outcome, hoping that everyone would be okay.

Unfortunately, she had no idea just how cruel the "Master" of this world truly was.

She could never have imagined that in the upcoming chapters…

There would be loss after loss.

Would she be able to hold back her tears when she saw moments like—

"Immortal Phoenix, I did not lie."

And—

"This is… the last lesson."

…Hokuto honestly had his doubts.

—

With a deep breath, Hokuto clicked into Chapter 9.

The first thing he noticed was the trial Valkyrie available in the squad selection—

It was Vermilion Knight: Eclipse.

A trial character?

Hokuto immediately realized—

This was an altered version of Chapter 9, different from how it had originally played out.

Which meant…

The storytelling was about to get a little confusing for the audience.

Regardless, he clicked start, and the game transitioned into the stage.

—

Unlike the usual combat HUD, this level opened with a visual novel-style text box.

The first words on the screen were an environmental description.

 [—Bzzt. Crackle.]

 [—Flames spread across the darkness.]

 [—Like wildfire upon the plains. Like the dawn of a new day.]

 [—Bathing everything in a sea of fire.]

Compared to previous main story chapters, this intro felt entirely different.

The flowery prose immediately set the tone for what was to come.

Although there were no accompanying images, the audience could feel the tension through the words alone.

And amidst this atmosphere of unease—

Tesla's figure appeared on-screen.

 [Spatial curvature fluctuations are off the charts! I've never seen such a high Honkai energy density! The enemy's numbers keep increasing—what the hell?! This is straight-up cheating, even for a Herrscher!]

Shortly after, Himeko also appeared beside her.

At this moment, Himeko was wearing her Vermilion Knight: Eclipse battlesuit.

The red and black armor plating, the reinforced bindings—

They accentuated her strong, fiery figure, making her seem even more formidable.

It was as if…

This battlesuit had been made just for her.

 [I'll hold off the enemies! Focus on evacuating the wounded!]

 [Can the Hyperion still launch?!]

Tesla glanced at her instruments and responded:

 [Portside armor is falling apart, the engine room took a direct hit, and the shock absorption system is down. Restarting the ship is gonna take time. At our current energy conversion rate—]

 [Himeko: Calm down! Just tell me how long!]

 [Tesla: Three minutes! Hold out for three more minutes, and we can get the hell out of here!]

As the dialogue ended, the game transitioned into combat.

Himeko immediately jumped into action, clearing a path for the Hyperion to escape.

At that moment, the livestream chat flooded with comments.

 『Pink Fairy Miss:』 "??? Eh? Did we miss something?"

Elysia's pink text expressed her confusion over the abrupt scene change.

 『my favorite sister Bronya:』 "Why are Himeko-sensei and Dr. Tesla here? Why are they the ones activating the Hyperion?"

Seele was just as lost as Elysia.

 『Your Great Inventor:』 "I see… they've reordered the events. But this storytelling approach is… questionable."

Otto, being Otto, immediately recognized that this was a flashback sequence explaining how Himeko escaped the lab.

However—

Even if he understood it, he clearly wasn't a fan of how it was presented.

Just moments ago, the Herrscher had awakened—

And now, suddenly, we had skipped ahead to Himeko's escape?

Whoever designed this chapter structure sure was something.

—

Not long after, Chapter 9's first stage was cleared.

The final cutscene froze on an image of a Deadwalker swinging its blade at Himeko.

Then—

The stage completion screen appeared.

Without hesitation, Hokuto clicked into the next mission.

—

As Chapter 9-2 began, the first thing to appear on the screen—

Was Herrscher Kiana's confident, almost smug smile.

In her palm, she held a glowing energy sphere, floating above the battlefield as she looked down upon her prey.

The camera shifted, following her gaze—

Down to Mei, who was kneeling on the ground.

 [Kiana…]

As Mei weakly called out her beloved's name,

More black holes began to manifest behind the Herrscher.

But before disaster could strike—

Golden chains suddenly burst onto the screen!

Immediately after, a new figure appeared beside Mei.

At the same time, the sacred cross of the God Key—Judah's Oath—unfurled before them.

 『Your Great Inventor:』 "Theresa, you're finally here?"

A green comment floated across the screen.

And of course, the sender—

Was none other than Otto himself, the one who had thrown Theresa into this situation in the first place.

 『Your Great Inventor:』 "She's going to have a hard time, isn't she? But… I believe in her. I believe in her and her students. They will win this holy battle."

Through Otto's comment, his thoughts were clear—

He cared about Theresa.

But in the battle between emotions and ambition,

He had chosen ambition.

It was only by suppressing his emotions that he could execute plans beyond what ordinary minds could even fathom.

—

 [Mei: Academy Dean…!?]

 [Theresa: Thank goodness… I made it in time. Doctor, I've rendezvoused with Mei. But Kiana, she…]

A holographic projection of Einstein appeared on-screen.

 [Einstein: Detecting abnormally high Honkai energy within Kiana's body. Current readings… 4,458 HW. I really hope my instruments are malfunctioning.]

 [Theresa: What about your mech forces?!]

 [Einstein: The advance unit—67 Titans—has completely vanished from radar. The enemy's numbers remain unchanged, and reinforcements keep pouring in. The situation… is far from optimistic.]

 [Theresa: I understand… but we have no choice. If we can awaken Kiana's consciousness, we still have a chance to win!]

As the dialogue concluded, the game transitioned into combat mode.

When Theresa moved toward the Herrscher—

Kiana's figure vanished.

And in her place—

Honkai Beasts began flooding the battlefield.

Theresa and Mei had only one option.

Fight.

As the battle raged on, a massive dragon finally descended upon the platform.

As Benares descended, the screen suddenly darkened.

The perspective shifted to the Hyperion's command room.

A transmission report popped up on-screen—

 [Communications Officer: Reporting! Theresa and Raiden Mei are engaging the Herrscher, but the battlefield has been divided by Honkai Beasts. The mech units are trapped and unable to provide effective support…! The enemy numbers are overwhelming—at this rate, we'll lose contact with the frontlines!]

 [Einstein: (The situation is even worse than expected… Should I activate "it" here? If I do, we can instantly turn the tide… No. That system is a last-resort trump card. I can't use it yet. I have to wait for the right moment… )]

The brackets indicated that this was Einstein's internal thoughts.

Unlike Tesla, who blurted out whatever was on her mind, Einstein was far more reserved and calculating.

Even though she was panicking internally, even though there was no one else in the room, she still kept her thoughts to herself.

—

 [Just as Einstein was deep in thought, the elevator doors in the bridge opened. A figure slowly stepped out. Upon seeing them, Einstein's brows furrowed.]

 [Einstein: You're awake?]

The identity of the person was completely hidden.

The livestream audience only knew two things—

Einstein tried to stop them. She ultimately gave them something, unwillingly.

Once the conversation ended, the mission completion screen popped up.

—

 『Pink Fairy Miss:』 "Who is this mysterious person? Their identity and dialogue were both hidden? Ahh, I'm so curious~"

A pink comment drifted across the screen.

Hokuto glanced at the sender before replying—

 『Hokuto:』 "Well, I can tell you this much—it's definitely not an enemy. You'll find out in the next mission."

—

As the next mission began, the game immediately transitioned into a dialogue scene.

 [Theresa: Hah… Hah…]

 [Herrscher of the Void: Weak. Insignificant. Overconfident. Clinging to life… only hastens your own demise. Even after all this time, you still don't understand.

 [Little girl, why do you continue to stand in my way?]

Now that she had fully taken over Kiana's body, the Herrscher of the Void had finally revealed her true form.

And as expected—

The moment she spoke, her words were textbook villain dialogue.

Her arrogance, elegance, and overwhelming power were on full display.

But despite facing such a powerful enemy, Theresa refused to back down.

 [Shut up! That body doesn't belong to you!]

However—

The Herrscher merely scoffed.

 [How laughable. This body was created by humanity's greed. A mere vessel—

 [A sacrifice, prepared for my arrival.]

As she spoke with absolute confidence, declaring her supremacy,

The textbox suddenly shifted to Mei's internal thoughts.

 [(We're completely powerless against her spatial abilities… Even approaching her is near impossible… She and Wendy are nothing alike.

 [This… this is what a true Herrscher is…!]

Before Mei could finish processing her realization,

A mocking laughter rang out.

 [Hehehe… But, I suppose even ants have their value. Watching your pathetic little dance—such an amusing sight.

 [Benares, why don't you… guide them properly?]

—

Seeing the Herrscher speak so condescendingly, Hokuto couldn't help but smirk.

Classic blowfish Herrscher.

Getting cocky the moment she has the upper hand…

Did she already forget how many times she had tried to pull a "dragon-riding assault"—only to get smacked down?

The hardest working Herrscher of all time really hadn't learned her lesson yet.

—

As the dialogue ended, the game transitioned back to combat mode.

Benares spawned into the battlefield.

The mission objective—

Defeat Benares using Theresa and Mei.

Honestly?

This wasn't a difficult fight at all.

The trial characters were SSS-rank with top-tier weapons, making the battle fairly easy.

Before long, Bronya entered the battlefield as well.

It was only at this moment that Elysia finally realized—

 『Pink Fairy Miss:』 "Oh! So the person talking to Einstein earlier was Bronya!"

—

With the combined efforts of Theresa, Mei, and Bronya, Benares was finally defeated.

The mission cleared, and the game progressed to the next stage.

—

As soon as the next level began, Mei's shocked expression appeared in the dialogue box.

 [The scenery changed… No, we've been teleported!]

A few seconds later, Bronya reappeared.

 [We've lost contact with the Hyperion. I can't determine our current location.]

Just as the two realized something was wrong,

The Herrscher of the Void began her proclamation.

 [It's time for the villains to exit the stage—one by one.

 [First… hmm, let's start with that little girl with the weird hairstyle.

 [Next… that cross-wielding brat.

 [And lastly… my other half.

 [Only you and I shall remain on this stage—to complete our unfinished ceremony.]

As the Herrscher spoke of her "ceremony",

Mei suddenly reacted—

 [...!]

 『Pink Fairy Miss:』 "Oh? What is this unfinished ceremony, I wonder? Hehe~ Is it a tea party that girls love? Could it be… our proud Queen wants to open her heart to Mei~?"

As Elysia's curiosity-filled pink comment floated across the screen,

It was painfully obvious that her imagination was running wild with sweet, romantic scenarios.

Unfortunately—

The "ceremony" that the Herrscher was referring to…

Was anything but sweet.

 [Now then… let's see just how these ants will struggle.]

Hearing this, Theresa immediately gave orders to Mei and Bronya.

She tightened her grip on her cross,

And declared—

 [We won't let you have your way! This battle… we will not lose!]

—

With the scene ending, the game transitioned back to combat mode.

The objective—

Fight against the Herrscher of the Void.

After an intense battle,

Once the Herrscher's health dropped to a certain threshold, the fight concluded.

—

However, in the story, the outcome was different.

Theresa had been caught.

 [Got you, little girl~ ☆]

The Herrscher of the Void appeared on-screen, her grip tight around Theresa's throat.

 [Even though you're tiny… you're quite skilled. I see it in your eyes—the concern, the care… and the overwhelming guilt.]

As she mocked Theresa,

She prepared to finish her off.

But suddenly—

Theresa struggled to whisper—

 […Yeah… I know that all too well… Agh… Ugh… But this… just means I caught you…!]

—

The dialogue box disappeared.

And at that moment—

Golden chains from Judah's Oath snapped around the Herrscher's throat and wrists.

 [Herrscher of the Void: ——!]

 [You're finally… within range…]

Though Theresa's voice was soft and childlike, there was nothing weak about her words.

Even as the Herrscher's grip tightened around her throat, she fought back.

But—

 [These chains again…? How many times do you intend to try this?!]

Just as the Herrscher scoffed in disdain, another voice suddenly rang out—

 [This time, things are different—Eden Star, primary power level, full output—release!]

As the dialogue box continued, words describing the battle appeared on screen—

 [A massive gravitational wave surged forward, embedding the chains that disrupted Honkai energy deep into the Herrscher's body.]

 [Herrscher of the Void: ...!]

As the Herrscher fell silent, Theresa gritted her teeth and declared with difficulty—

 [You can't escape… Judah has you now! Even if I die… I will never let go!]

With Theresa and Bronya working together, the Herrscher of the Void was seemingly at a great disadvantage—

Or so it seemed.

After a long stretch of silence, her tone shifted—playful, amused.

 […Oh? Is that so~?]

As the black screen faded, the scene changed—

Judah's chains, which had bound the Herrscher so tightly, were suddenly torn apart.

 [Did you really think… this outdated toy would actually work?]

 […W-What…?! Ugh… ahh…!!]

The game played Theresa's pained cries—

Although no specific visuals were shown, it was obvious she was suffering.

And of course, as the villain in this scenario, Sirin revelled in her victory.

 [Did you think your little trick had worked? Did you glimpse victory? Did you feel hope?

 [A thrilling performance should always have a dramatic twist—such a magnificent show you've put on for me.

 [Your will to survive, your hopes for the future, the things you desperately wish to protect—

 [All of it… means absolutely nothing before me!]

—

A long string of ellipses floated across the livestream chat.

The sender?

None other than Kevin Kaslana.

 『Your Great Inventor:』 "Something wrong?"

Otto's green comment followed shortly after, curious about Kevin's reaction.

Originally, Hokuto had planned to ask himself—but since Otto had already stepped in, he decided to observe instead.

 『No Matter the Cost, Humanity Will Prevail Against Honkai:』 "…Is this Herrscher… the most talkative one in history?"

It was clear—

Kevin had never expected a modern-era Herrscher to be this chatty.

In the Previous Era, Herrschers barely spoke a few sentences before they were eliminated.

This…

This was most definitely because of "Origin."

 『Your Great Inventor:』 "Hahaha, I imagine it must be unpleasant for you. But I have to say, these dramatic monologues are quite effective for setting the mood~"

A flashy green comment floated across the screen.

Unlike Kevin, Otto wasn't bothered by Sirin's long-winded speeches.

In fact—

He almost seemed to enjoy them.

Which naturally led to suspicion—

Had Otto intentionally influenced Sirin's speech patterns while raising her?

Because her style of speaking…

Was far too similar to his own.

The only difference was—

Otto embodied politeness to the extreme, while the Herrscher of the Void embodied arrogance to the extreme.

 [Your existence… is utterly meaningless!]

 [Hahahahaha—HAHAHAHAHA!]

—

As the Queen's laughter echoed,

The scene shifted back to the Hyperion's command center.

On-screen, a communications officer delivered an urgent warning—

 [Detected an intense Honkai energy reaction! The wavelength… is an exact match to the Gem of Serenity!]

The moment the words "Gem of Serenity" appeared, Einstein's expression darkened.

Within seconds, she had already deduced the truth—

Otto had implanted the gem within Kiana as a catalyst for the Herrscher's awakening.

And with Einstein's explanation, the stage ended.

—

As the next mission began,

The player character switched—

From Theresa, Mei, and Bronya…

To a lone, playable Herrscher of the Void.

 『No Matter the Cost, Humanity Will Prevail Against Honkai:』 "This game… actually lets you play as a Herrscher?"

 『System Notification:』 [Due to your livestream content, "No Matter the Cost, Humanity Will Prevail Against Honkai" is feeling surprised. You have received 840 crystals!]

Kevin was genuinely astonished.

The sheer boldness of the game's design—

Allowing players to control a Herrscher…

What kind of mad genius came up with this idea?

—

 [You want to reclaim this body? You want to save this girl?]

 [Is that it? Is she your precious companion? Your cherished family?]

 [Have you created beautiful, irreplaceable memories together? Sworn unbreakable promises?]

As Kevin was processing the sheer audacity of playing as a Herrscher,

The Herrscher of the Void began her proclamation.

 [If so—then allow me to use her body, her hands, to kill each and every one of you!]

 [Let those she loves the most suffer the cruelest fates—let them be torn apart in agony.

 [Let her happy past crumble into nothing—let hope turn to despair.

 [I want your twisted faces, your shattered bodies… to be the last thing she ever sees.]

 [Family, friends, happiness, dreams, future, hope—

 [She never should have had them. She never deserved them. She never will.]

This was pure destruction.

There was nothing human left in her words.

She had abandoned all individual will, becoming the ultimate weapon under the Honkai's command.

Aside from the Final Herrscher,

She was the most diligent "apostle" of the Honkai God.

But ironically—

In another timeline,

A single Herrscher's sacrifice had already begun shifting this era's fate.

—

 『Pink Fairy Miss:』 "Geez~ Girls should focus on dressing up nicely and enjoying sweets that don't affect their figure, you know?"

A pink comment floated across the screen.

Elysia—for once—had actually objected to something.

Clearly, she wasn't impressed with the Herrscher's psychotic ranting.

Unfortunately—

The Queen in this story…

Wasn't going to hear her "senior's" advice.

—

 [Now then… I'll start with you.]

As the Herrscher spoke,

Mei's body tensed.

The screen suddenly blacked out.

When it lit up again—

The Herrscher had already appeared before Mei, gently caressing her cheek.

 [Mei… Mei.]

Her voice was soft,

As if whispering sweet nothings to a lover.

A victorious smirk graced her lips,

While Mei's expression remained innocent, confused.

It was a scene of unparalleled beauty.

If this were a school romance,

The next moment would surely be a heartwarming love confession.

However…

This was a miHoYo story.

—End of Chapter 67—