"Auntie Himeko, it seems I wronged you."
Hearing the door open, Ren felt a sudden sense of relief. This sudden turn of events was something he couldn't handle. No matter how thorough his plans were, he couldn't have foreseen such a disastrous day.
Hearing Himeko's voice, Kiana's downward movement paused, seemingly caught in a dilemma.
Just as Ren thought she was about to give up, Kiana replied, "Teacher Himeko, I don't feel like eating right now. Just leave the food outside, I'll eat it later."
However, Himeko clearly misunderstood something, gently comforting her, "Kiana, I know you're not in the mood right now, and I didn't expect him to leave in that way either. But you can't let yourself get so down, if he was still alive, he wouldn't want you to be like this."
Himeko's words made Ren nod in agreement. Indeed, this wasn't the kind of ending he wanted.
"I understand, Teacher Himeko, but I really have something I need to deal with right now. Could you please come back later?" Helplessly interrupting Himeko's persuasion, Kiana looked at Ren with a dangerous gaze, warning him not to think about escaping again.
But Ren had been a villain for so long, how could he be so easily captured? Even if it meant revealing that he was still alive, he wouldn't give up here. He prepared to speak, trying to attract Himeko's attention.
As long as Himeko was there, no matter how angry Kiana was, she wouldn't do anything outrageous in front of her.
However, as soon as he opened his mouth, before the cry for help could even come out, his mouth was covered by a hand and the back of his head hit the floor with a thud.
"Ugh." Only this short sound escaped.
"Okay, Bronya and the others will be here later..." Himeko, carrying a cake box, heard the thud and instantly realized that someone had fallen.
"Kiana, don't do anything foolish!" Worried that Kiana was self-destructing, she didn't think twice and immediately went to turn the doorknob.
"Sorry, Teacher Himeko."
Before the sound of Kiana's voice faded from her mind, Himeko suddenly felt her vision blur for a moment. When it became clear again, all she saw was a vast expanse of white.
Eh?
She looked out at the desolate snowfield, spotting the iconic buildings of ARC City.
Fortunately, it wasn't Antarctica. She inexplicably felt relieved.
Full of questions, Himeko looked around, confirming her location, and suddenly realized it looked somewhat familiar.
"This looks like the place that jerk Herrscher first sent me when he wanted to get me away from Kiana."
She clearly remembered that she had been freezing in the wilderness for a whole night, and when she got home, her snacks were all gone. Looking at the situation, was she going to be ruthlessly abandoned again, forced to freeze outside?
After dealing with the nuisance, Kiana's anger grew even more intense. That guy was actually trying to run away again.
She directly tore off the scarf that was around Ren's neck and used it to bind his hands and feet. Then, she found a piece of cloth from her own clothes and stuffed it into his mouth, so he couldn't make a sound.
With his limbs bound and his Honkai energy absorbed by Kiana, other than his physical strength, Ren had no way to resist.
And Kiana's motor skills were exceptionally good, so it was extremely unlikely for the physically weaker Ren to escape from her grasp. He was completely at her mercy.
"Very good. Now, let's see what tricks you have left."
"Mmmph, mmmph!" Ren struggled desperately, watching the girl get closer and closer, his eyes wide with panic.
Knock, knock.
The door was knocked again. Ren acutely sensed that Kiana's breathing had become rapid. When she moved her hand from Ren's face, her voice had a hint of coldness to it.
"Who is it?"
"Huh? Kiana, you're home. Have you seen Teacher Himeko? She said you've been in your room all day, and she's worried you might be thinking crazy things, so she asked us to keep you company." It was Bronya's voice.
"No need, I feel fine."
"But your voice doesn't sound like you're okay. I brought the latest game, we can play together." Sensing Kiana's unusual coldness, Bronya sighed. When she was used by Cocolia, she had been like this too.
To this day, Cocolia's actions were still a thorn in Bronya's heart, so she absolutely couldn't let Kiana walk the same path she had.
She turned the doorknob, but it was locked. However, this level of lock couldn't stop Project Bunny.
"Project Bunny, fire..."
Eh?
Where is this?
The energy that was building up in the cannon froze. Bronya stared blankly at the vast snowy field.
After half a second, she realized that Kiana had probably teleported her away.
But why?
Lost in thought, she could only first locate herself. Then, while using Project Bunny to scan her surroundings, she found Himeko squatting on the ground, using a small branch to poke at the snow.
After sending Bronya away, Kiana glanced at the door. Being interrupted twice in a row made her a little impatient, and the ferocity in her eyes intensified. Looking at Ren again, she seemed as though she was about to devour him whole.
"Don't think I'll let you go just because of that. Himeko and Bronya are already gone, there's no one who can save you this time."
Knock, knock.
The moment the knocking sound came, Ren couldn't help himself. His eyes were filled with laughter, as if mocking the little Kiana for thinking she could handle him.
"Sister Kiana, did Bronya come here earlier? Seele suddenly can't sense her presence anymore..."
Eh?
Seele, who hadn't even finished speaking, stared wide-eyed and blankly at Himeko and Bronya, who were just as confused as she was.
"Seele, you were sent here by Kiana too?"
"Too?"
Okay, the three of them finally understood why they had suddenly appeared in the snowfield.
"Speaking of which, if this is the case, could that guy have returned?"
"..."
"Then Mei will probably..."
Seele had also been sent away. The laughter inside Ren was practically overflowing. It seemed that luck was on his side today. By now, Kiana should've accepted her fate after being interrupted so many times.
But what he received wasn't Kiana's angry expression. Instead, a teardrop landed on his cheek, sliding down his face.
She was crying.
"Why? Why? Why?! Why is everyone trying to stop me?" The girl, supporting herself on her arms, looked down at Ren, who was lying on the ground, large tears falling from her eyes.
Frustration, resentment, pain.
Her strength had been depleted by the repeated interruptions, and her hard-earned courage could no longer be maintained.
"Just laugh at me, go ahead. Every time, every time I think you're dead, you're secretly hiding behind me and watching. Every time I cry in pain, you, you jerk, must be laughing at me. Treating me like a fool, constantly playing with me.
Is it that fun? Is it that interesting?
I told you, this time you're not escaping!"
Knock, knock.
The knocking on the door came again, but Kiana didn't care. She forcefully lowered her body.
Click.
The door opened.