"The Herrscher has crossed C31 Street."
"The Herrscher has reached the Waldiv intersection."
"Herrscher's trajectory analyzed. Target appears to be the European Branch base in western Brindy! Calculating optimal interception route."
"Calculation complete. Optimal interception route is the D81 commercial street, a three-kilometer stretch between Sarakin Bridge and Milo Mall. Herrscher's abilities uploaded to personal terminals. Anti-Entropy squad has 83 seconds to formulate a combat plan… Herrscher's speed increasing. Prepare for interception."
"..."
Prometheus received no response, repeating its prompt: "Prepare for interception."
Everyone either looked down or sighed. Michael stood facing the wall, silent. Kevin finally stepped forward, towards the Second Divine Key.
"I'll do it… I have the least personal connection with her."
"No..."
"57 seconds remaining." Prometheus's dispassionate voice cut through the silence.
"Why?! Michael, what are you thinking? Are you going to wait until more people die? Or are you really planning to…"
"No. What I mean is, none of you stand a chance except me." Michael finally turned around.
Now it was Kevin's turn to fall silent. Michael was right. Against the 6th Herrscher's abilities, only someone with spatial manipulation like Michael could… not even defeat her, but simply get close enough to fight her.
"I'm going." His quiet declaration hung in the air. He was gone.
Everyone sat in stunned silence. Prometheus stopped counting down. Time seemed to slow to a crawl.
Until Mobius broke the silence. "You're just going to watch?"
Her words, on the surface, seemed directed at Elysia's inaction. But everyone present knew they applied to themselves, and to Mobius as well. The three alarms had been so sudden. They'd assembled so quickly. Seeing the 6th Herrscher… it had left them all reeling.
"If you think about it, I'm probably the one who should be most at peace with this, right?" Elysia murmured.
At the end of the street, a figure in a white dress appeared. Spattered with blood, but undeniably familiar.
She saw Michael, too. Of course, she did. She stopped, facing him across the distance.
The hem of her dress fluttered in the night breeze, as did her hair.
But Michael knew she wasn't her anymore.
"Michael-onii-chan!" Seele's voice called out. Michael remained impassive.
He was prepared. He'd been preparing for this.
It's nothing. It's nothing, he repeated to himself.
The black fog reached his feet. He wasn't afraid. He stepped into it.
"Never thought I'd actually find a use for this useless power," he scoffed.
His skin turned blue. The black fog, before it could touch his cells, was drawn in, devoured by the Vishnu ICHOR Factor.
Starting from the stone bridge he'd once crossed with Elysia and Seele, he took 237 steps. As he completed the last one, Seele, her gaze fixed on him, finally noticed the change in her surroundings.
Brindy was even more desolate and ruined than before, the air thick with dust – not ordinary dust, but the remnants of accelerated cellular decay caused by the 6th Herrscher's power. Even she couldn't completely obliterate life, only force it to age and die at an accelerated rate, leaving behind a fine dust of dead cells.
"Michael-onii-chan, why did you bring Seele back to the Sea of Quanta?" She giggled.
"You think that'll fool me? 6th Herrscher."
"What are you talking about, Michael-onii-chan…?"
"Enough!" Michael stared coldly at the Herrscher inhabiting Seele's body. "Open your eyes."
The Herrscher obeyed. Her eyes, a stark contrast to Seele's, were blood red. Realizing the facade was useless, she laughed.
"Hahahaha… hehehe… hahahahaha! Michael…onii-chan… why do you want me to open my eyes? To see the difference between me and her? To remind yourself that this girl is no longer the Seele who clung to you, calling you 'onii-chan,' but your enemy, a Herrscher? So you can kill me without guilt, end it all, right?"
"You're right. About everything." Michael's gaze was cold, yet tinged with pity. "But you also can't deny this: you have no chance against me. Especially not after I've dragged you into the Sea of Quanta. You can't escape."
As his words faded, his hand, transformed into a blade, pierced the Herrscher's chest.
"Tsk, tsk!" Blood trickled from her lips, but the Herrscher sneered, taking a step back, pulling herself free.
"This is your 'advantage'? Come on! Didn't you kill the 6th Herrscher in the Sea of Quanta once before? What's wrong? Can't find a way to kill me? Are you hesitating? Or can't you bring yourself to do it?"
Michael sighed, closing his eyes. The Herrscher seized the opportunity. The cells on her hands elongated into sharp claws, slashing towards Michael's heart.
But her claws stopped just short of his skin, held back by an invisible force. Imaginary crystals materialized, binding her limbs.
The 6th Herrscher was at his mercy, utterly defenseless.
But she wasn't afraid. Her expression shifted back to Seele's timid uncertainty.
Michael remained motionless, eyes closed. He knew she was right. The key to this battle wasn't whether he could kill the 6th Herrscher. He knew how. He'd done it before. It would be easy.
The only obstacle was himself.
Just as he couldn't bring himself to strike down Elysia in the Sea of Quanta, he couldn't strike down Seele. Even though he knew the Elysia in the Sea of Quanta wasn't the real Elysia, just as he knew this wasn't Seele. The real Seele had died before the Herrscher descended.
But the reason was different.
Back then, he couldn't accept sacrificing Elysia for the sake of defeating the Honkai. That wasn't a fate she deserved.
But for Seele, becoming a Herrscher…
This was her destined path. The path he'd tried to change, but failed.
And because this was her possible fate, the fate he'd faced countless times in his nightmares, the reality of it, now, wasn't as devastating as he'd imagined.
No, not less devastating. It simply… didn't feel like anything.
Since learning Seele had left the Sea of Quanta, his mind had been blank. No fear. No rage. No helplessness. No sorrow.
He wasn't the same person anymore. He wouldn't question some indifferent, possibly nonexistent deity about the cruelty of fate. He wouldn't agonize over the decision.
So why didn't he strike her down?
Was it the tightness in his chest? Was it because he hadn't heard enough of that "Michael-onii-chan"?
But not acting and being unable to act were different things. A broken machine simply cannot function. But Michael, after a moment of stillness, finally moved, his hand reaching towards the Herrscher.
His hand was covered in frost, the air around him shimmering with icy particles. He would freeze Seele's body, crystallize it, then shatter it with his remaining power.
Nothing would remain. Not her body, not her timid voice, not the faint traces of her existence in this world.
Then, there would be no 6th Herrscher, and no Seele.
Staring into those blood-red eyes, this was his resolve. He'd made her open her eyes to remind himself of the difference, to make the act cleaner, swifter, more merciful.
Crack! Crack!
The sound of something breaking jolted him. His hand had stopped inches from her chest.
Unlike the Herrscher, he wasn't physically restrained. He'd stopped himself.
The blood-red of her eyes was replaced by the clear blue of water.
"Michael-onii-chan!"
"Seele?!"
An illusion! It had to be!
He'd experienced the process of a Herrscher's consciousness overwriting the host's. There was no chance of survival!
He'd confirmed it when he'd pierced her chest. Her core didn't have the annular singularity structure. She was no different from the other Herrschers of this era.
He unleashed his full power.
If he couldn't untangle the knot in his chest, he would grant "Seele" a respectful death.
His core pulsed… No, his core was him.
An unprecedented surge of Honkai energy erupted, spilling outwards, too much to control. His hair lengthened, trailing on the ground, lifted by the turbulent energy. Honkai energy solidified into armor plates, conforming to his body.
Core synchronization 100%. This is for you, Seele.
The world around him shifted, dissolving into an endless expanse of white. Michael froze, his hand still raised.
This is… inside the Herrscher's core… The nexus of Herrscher consciousness.
"Michael-onii-chan…"
"Michael-onii-chan…"
"Michael-onii-chan…"
"Michael-onii-chan… why did you abandon me…?"
Seele's voice echoed from all directions, not assaulting his ears, but brushing against him like a gentle breeze, caressing his earlobe, lifting his bangs, swirling around his fingertips.
Near yet far, present yet absent, inseparable yet lost.
"Enough!"
But the voices persisted, like the beating of a heart, the flow of blood. They were part of this place. Inescapable.
Michael wanted to leave, to regain control…
Then a question surfaced: Only Herrschers with annular structures… or self-awareness, can project their consciousness into the Herrscher core, communicate at this… 'nexus.' But how can the 6th Herrscher…?
Before he could dwell on it, the ground beneath him gave way. The familiar sensation of falling returned. The white world peeled away like flaking paint, revealing the dark night sky.
"Ugh!"
The downward plunge stopped abruptly. He was thrown sideways, landing hard on the frozen ground. The impact sent a jolt of pain through his back.
Impossible! This level of pain shouldn't…
"Cough… cough…" A faint cough escaped his lips, the cold air stinging his lungs.
He realized, with a sickening lurch, what had happened. He could feel, but not control, this body.
These are… Seele's memories…
His head turned involuntarily. Through a child's blurry vision, he saw a slender figure walking away, her outline indistinct. His face grew colder as snowflakes clung to his skin, his eyelashes. His first memories were of wind and snow, and endless night.
When it finally stopped, half-buried in the snow, he was alone.
This was the first time Seele was abandoned. The words appeared in his mind.
Could it be… Could Seele still be saved?
She wasn't here in her usual form, like Elysia. But he could see her memories, hear her voice. That meant her consciousness wasn't completely gone! A part of her remained, untouched by the Herrscher.
Save her!
Save her!
Save her! Save her!
…
The scene shifted again.
Half-buried in the snow, her face covered in frost, darkness threatened to consume her, but she clung to consciousness.
Until…
A shadow fell across the alleyway. A tall figure heard her faint whimpers and turned. Her gaze slowly rose…
"Maxim! Come quick!" Seele's heart leaped, and Michael felt it.
"What is it?! Did you find him?!" A bespectacled man rushed over, nearly tripping over the girl. He fumbled with his glasses, peering into the alley. Disappointment clouded his features.
"That's not our…"
"But she's just a child! Maxim… please… we can afford to care for one more child… Let's take her with us. If we can't find Michael, she's… a gift from heaven…"
This was the first time she was picked up.
The scenes accelerated, flashing like a slideshow. Before one image registered, another replaced it. But the memories, chaotic and fragmented, poured into Michael's mind.
For someone accustomed to the 1st Herrscher's power, decades of memories were no burden. He'd lived two lifetimes. This wouldn't cause any identity crisis.
He watched silently as Seele's life unfolded before him.
"Seele, wait here. Don't wander off! Daddy will be back soon after I talk to my friend."
This was the second time she was abandoned.
Instead of her adoptive father, a man in a white lab coat appeared.
Experiments… experiments… endless experiments.
Even Michael, as an observer, lost track of time. Seele's subconscious, the repository of her memories, was being fractured. It felt like something was being sucked out of her skull, transferred to another being.
"This is Lezren's…"
He watched as his own body, controlled by Seele, slowly raised its hand. The simple action triggered a violent instability.
Her mind was ripped out, then shoved back in.
Her psyche fractured.
When she opened her eyes, her adoptive mother stood before her, covered in blood.
"Seele… let's… go home…"
This was the second time she was picked up.
Then came the Honkai sickness that took everything away.
"This time… Seele abandoned everyone…" Her voice, familiar and heartbreaking, echoed.
Michael's perspective shifted. He saw himself. He saw Elysia. He saw Mobius…
He saw her, shrouded in shadows, leading Seele into her secret laboratory…
The story abruptly ended. Not a conclusion, but a sudden cessation, leaving the rest imprinted on his mind… forever.
"Mobius… what have you… done…"
"Michael-onii-chan, don't blame Mobius-obasan." Seele looked up at him from his arms.
Yes, his arms.
He was back in the desolate street, back in the Sea of Quanta.
"Are you… really Seele?" Michael asked, looking at the remnants of Imaginary crystals on her hand.
Seele trembled, then whispered, "Michael… you… onii-chan… traitor… Seele…"
Her eyes flickered between blue and red, two warring consciousnesses battling for control. Her fragmented words, like shards of glass, pierced his skin.
A sharp pain in his chest. The Herrscher's claws, piercing his heart. Then, a shift in consciousness. She sobbed, trying to retract her claws.
Pain… Michael finally felt it. The tightness in his chest erupted, a burning sensation spreading through his wound.
Grief didn't always manifest as immediate agony. Sometimes it festered, waiting for a spark. And when it exploded, it didn't always look like sadness.
Michael was lost. He didn't know what to do.
Moments ago, he'd been certain he needed to kill the 6th Herrscher. Now, that certainty was replaced by a surge of hope.
There was still hope! Wasn't this why he'd kept trying? Seele's consciousness still existed here! She could still come back, couldn't she?
If he succeeded… Seele could become a Herrscher who fought for humanity. Like him.
Seele's original consciousness seemed to sense his hope. She momentarily suppressed the Herrscher, retracting her claws, healing his wound with her power.
"Seele, is that you?"
"Seele, what did Mobius do to you?"
"Seele! I need… I have to… How can I help you?!"
Seele's brow furrowed in pain. Her voice was calm, her words enigmatic. "Michael-onii-chan… thank you… When you saw Seele's past, Seele saw your heart too…"
"When… you left Seele… Seele really thought… you abandoned her again…"
"But Seele understands now… Michael-onii-chan's thoughts… Seele understands everything…"
"I'm sorry, Michael-onii-chan. Seele still can't…"
"Don't say that!" Michael cupped her face. "Don't say that! Tell me what to do!"
How… How could he kill the Herrscher's consciousness? He didn't even know. How could Seele?
"Mobius… yes, Mobius! And Aponia! She's a mental-type MANTIS. She'll know what to do!"
In his desperation, Michael made a decision he would regret. The world shifted again. The gray light of early dawn illuminated them.
"Michael-onii-chan!" Seele's eyes squeezed shut in pain.
"It's too late. Don't blame Mobius-obasan and Aponia-kaasan. Everything they did… was for this moment…"
"Seele, what are you saying?!"
"Michael-onii-chan… you idiot… Thank you… Stop! What are you doing…? You… believed in me… one last time…" Seele smiled at him with her one blue eye.
Then she slit her wrist, her head falling weakly against his shoulder.
Michael stared in disbelief, Seele's body cradled in his arms. He knelt, the false hope still lingering on his face.
"Seele… killed many people… but… with Seele's power… with Seele's blood… the others… who aren't dead yet… they have a chance…" Her blood-stained hand touched his cheek.
"Michael-onii-chan… forget Seele…" Despite her words, the last flicker of awareness in her blue eye drew her closer to him.
Until the blue was consumed by red.
Michael remained frozen, his mind blank.
"Bast-" The 6th Herrscher fully possessed her body. But it was too late.
Her body withered, stiffened, and crumbled to dust. Seele had used the last of her power – the power of life – to save the others.
On the distant rooftop, Eden and the others stopped coughing. The decay on their bodies reversed. The same thing was happening to the other survivors touched by the fog.
And the price?
Michael knelt in a pool of blood, staining the street crimson under the moonlight. He clutched the white dress he'd given Seele, and the strange necklace Aponia had asked him to create for her before sending her into the Sea of Quanta.
That was all that remained.
Without the Herrscher's power, the black fog lost its deadly touch. Searchlights cut through the darkness. People appeared, surrounding Michael.
"Michael, you..."
"I killed her."
He didn't cry. His voice was flat, devoid of emotion.
"I killed her."