The anomaly from the blockade line was almost immediately relayed to the war conference room.
"What's that...?" Mobius gripped the table, widening her eyes as the face of the person in the unfamiliar school uniform on the screen looked too familiar. She turned her head to look at "Dr. Mei" beside her.
Raiden Mei was also filled with astonishment. She had never imagined encountering someone identical to herself. Yet, with her ample literary knowledge (referring to various novels read in private) and active imagination (referring to speculation), she quickly made a guess.
—This person who looks exactly like me who is so fierce and terrifying, likely harboring ill intentions. Is she planning to eliminate me and take the place of 'Raiden Mei'?
Though the process of inference was somewhat presumptuous, Mei arrived at a conclusion that was somewhat correct in a certain sense.
"Raiden Mei"... No, it should be said that the consciousness of the Herrscher of Thunder was indeed seeking Raiden Mei.
However, she didn't intend to destroy and annihilate Mei's consciousness but rather, like when Siegfried faced the second Collapse, tear and shred apart all of Raiden Mei's "human hearts," leading her onto the path of destroying humanity together.
Of course, she could also grant Raiden Mei some privileges, leaving behind a few humans she favored or found interesting, such as Raiden Ryoma, Kiana, and that girl from Shenzhou.
What was her name again?
The consciousness of the Herrscher relaxedly pondered these questions. She raised her hand, and lightning gathered in the girl's hand, eventually forming a pure black blade composed entirely of Honkai energy.
This move by the Herrscher of Thunder prompted alarms from the staff of the Fire Moths stationed at the blockade line. Some even drew guns concealed in their clothing and fired at the blue-purple-haired girl.
The Herrscher of Thunder maintained a dangerous smile. Countless arcs of electricity burst from her body, deflecting bullets with magnetic force, creating visible distorted arcs in the air, avoiding her position and striking the walls and ground with crackling impacts.
"Humans, you disgust and bore me."
The Herrscher of Thunder frowned, raising her sword with one hand. Lightning fell from the sky, striking all those surrounding her to the ground.
Whether they were Fire Moths personnel or ordinary civilians, humans were treated equally by the Herrscher of Thunder, as in her current mind, they were all insignificant minor characters.
This widespread attack also completely destroyed the electronic devices in the surrounding area. Even the sun seemed to be affected by the lightning, and the last ray of sunlight was reluctantly blocked by the mountains.
In the sky, only the clouds summoned by the Herrscher of Thunder, brimming with hidden lightning power, obscured the moon that should have appeared, making the city even darker.
—Night was approaching.
The Herrscher of Thunder stood on the street, sensing something changing at nightfall. The thin Honkai energy had quickly increased and became active, making the Herrscher feel refreshed.
As those humans who had fallen due to lightning convulsed on the ground, they strangely disappeared upon nightfall. Many monsters emerged from the shadows, and the Herrscher of Thunder instinctively understood what they were—Honkai Beasts and Quantum Shadows.
They quickly engaged in battle, continuing the struggle between the Imaginary Tree and the Sea of Quanta.
The Herrscher of Thunder didn't care about these creatures because she could easily crush them even without using her hands. There was no need to pay attention to these boring and annoying little things.
Amidst the pungent smell of burning, the girl with blue-purple hair picked up a camera still struggling to operate and locked eyes with the person behind the device with her eyes glowing purple-red.
Raiden Mei even felt that the sharp gaze crossed space, accurately landing on her.
The Herrscher of Thunder nodded, making her declaration:
"I've come for you."
At the next moment, the camera stopped completely, and the screen in the war command room dimmed.
Raiden Mei swallowed hard, unconsciously covering her chest. She felt nervous and afraid, yet also somewhat excited in a way she herself had not noticed, her heart pounding under the stimulation of various emotions, making her feel increasingly alert.
Raiden Mei knew that her meager swordsmanship was completely inadequate against supernatural forces. She was certainly not a match for the person who looked exactly like herself.
So, what she needed to do now was to cling tightly to the thigh beside her.
"Dr. Mobius, what should we do next...?"
"Mei, did you notice anything unusual...?"
Mobius straightened up, her green serpent-like eyes narrowing into slits as she scanned her surroundings.
—"Where are the others?"
"...?"
The once lively war conference room was now empty. Raiden Mei could see headphones dangling precariously on the edge of the table and computer screens still lit up, with unsent messages displayed, and even partially typed input boxes visible.
It was as if the people working had abruptly vanished from this world.
Raiden Mei felt a chill run down her spine.
"Be careful, we have 'guests' incoming..."
From the shadows emerged Honkai beasts with pristine white shells, glaring at the two figures in the war conference room.
Meanwhile, Mobius simply extended her hand, green arcs of light shimmering at her fingertips, illuminating her profile.
---
Sirin rubbed her slightly sore arms, gazing at the paintings on the wall.
The painting had started off well, and Sirin felt that her state of mind at the time was quite peculiar, as if she were a person having a lucid dream. She seemed to recall something, but it was very vague and hazy.
The surging emotions even led Sirin to cry in Griseo' arms, saying things she couldn't remember afterward. When she came to her senses, she had drawn a sketch filled with emotion, containing everything she wanted to express, astonishing Griseo and Kosma who were watching nearby.
But the subsequent detailed work became awkward. After all, Sirin had never learned to paint. She could pour her emotions into a sketch, but beyond that, she had no idea how to proceed with the painting.
Sirin became conflicted, occasionally stealing glances at Griseo beside her.
Griseo waited quietly for a few minutes, finally noticing Sirin's dilemma. Without hesitation, she reached out to help: "Sirin, let me help you finish this painting!"
"Okay, okay!" Sirin breathed a sigh of relief. She had seen the other paintings on the walls in the room and knew that the blue-haired girl in front of her was exceptionally skilled at painting. With her help, the painting should progress smoothly.
"Sirin, you handle the colors, and I'll do the painting," Griseo said earnestly. "I need your colors."
"Okay, I understand."
The two worked together, making rapid progress. Griseo seemed to understand what Sirin was thinking, quickly sketching out four distinct figures and completing the background of the painting.
Meanwhile, Sirin moved around, extracting the colors she wanted from the palette based on her own feelings, creating unique colors and allowing the blue-haired girl to paint freely.
Griseo sighed, "Your colors are really beautiful..."
Sirin looked at the golden yellow she had mixed, feeling a bit happy. Little did she know that what the blue-haired girl saw was the color of Sirin herself, and Griseo didn't explain further. She just held the paintbrush and continued to paint on the wall.
"Boom!"
Thunder sounded from a distance, causing Sirin to blink.
"Oh no... your colors..."
Griseo stopped her hand movements, looking worriedly at Sirin.
In her eyes, some strange colors began to climb onto the purple-haired girl, causing her bright and healthy golden yellow to gradually become muddy and even sharp and aggressive.
"What's wrong? Did I mix the colors incorrectly?" Sirin tilted her head, feeling strange.
"Your colors are fine, it's..."
"Watch out!"
Kosma shouted, and Sirin looked in shock as a translucent blue entity broke through the wall, rushing menacingly toward her.
In that instant, Griseo grabbed Sirin's arm, bravely standing in front of her.
"No, don't..."
Sirin's eyes widened.
This scene was quite familiar; the last time, the white-haired person had shielded her in their embrace, and countless "stars" fell from the sky to the ground.
Regret, guilt, unwillingness...
What about this time?
"Get away from me—!!!"
Blinding gold burst forth in the painting room!
At the same time, in a distant space, Kiana held her head in pain.
"Ah, why did I lose focus... Is mom still arguing with herself and Fu Hua...?"