"So, Schicksal has indeed noticed our movements." Kiana thought to herself, and began to inspect the surrounding traces. Having a suspected target made it easier to reconstruct what had happened at the scene.
"It seems like Rita had a conflict with an underground organization, but why?" Kiana was confused. If they had found her location, they should have come to capture her directly, not engage in conflict with local forces.
Fu Hua quickly provided an answer. "Information, about you."
"Most of the men in black were killed with one blow. Rita didn't hold back at all against those cannon fodder. But the body wearing a mask was different. All of the electronic chips on his body were taken, even his modified prosthetics. The fact that Rita went through all this trouble probably means this intelligence organization knew your whereabouts, and she chose the most convenient way to obtain that information. And do you see these footprints stained with blood?"
Blood was everywhere, but there were still clean areas. The footprints left there were very familiar to Kiana.
"This size should belong to a woman and a child… Mei and Aunt Theresa?" In an instant, Kiana reacted. After spending so long with the members of St. Freya, she knew many of their little details (Bronya was flying, so she wouldn't leave any footprints).
"The footsteps aren't chaotic, so they probably didn't fight with Rita. They must also have gotten information about you. Oh right, you might not know this, but after the awakening of the Herrscher of the Void, the members of St. Freya have already broken away from Schicksal." Noticing the change of thoughts in Kiana's mind, Fu Hua softly advised her: "They should be coming to take you back, Kiana. Everyone is waiting for you…"
"…" Not responding, Kiana felt a little irritated. On one hand, she felt a bit resentful that they had been hiding her identity from her. On the other hand, she still couldn't control the power of the Herrscher of the Void, and if she lost control again, she would inevitably hurt her friends.
More importantly, she had a thought deep down in her heart, that not even Fu Hua knew about—she wanted to leave with Ren, to treat his illness, and let him witness her growth.
But that was just wishful thinking at the moment. She was caught in a vortex because of being a Herrscher. Ren was just an ordinary person and being with her would only bring him harm. Besides, he had his own family and his own life.
She shouldn't, and couldn't interfere with him—her uncle's behavior after finding out she might be a Herrscher had been very obvious. Even if he didn't care...
No, he would definitely care.
Would he really care?
Shaking her head hard, Kiana pushed away the jumbled thoughts in her mind. Regardless, since Aunt Theresa and the others had come to ARC City and might have encountered Rita, she couldn't just sit by and do nothing.
"Class Monitor, can you determine their whereabouts?"
Seeing that Kiana was avoiding this question, Fu Hua felt somewhat helpless. However, she was currently just a wisp of consciousness residing in the Feather of the Past. She was powerless to help with Kiana's resistance to returning. She could only use her experience to help her find clues as much as possible.
"According to the traces of their movements, they should have been here for a while, but they didn't go back the same way. They must have discovered the clues left by the dead… Kiana, take two more steps to your right."
Soon, with Fu Hua's help, she quickly analyzed the approximate location based on the traces that they left behind, and Kiana roughly guessed what had happened.
"To recklessly follow clues like that; don't they know that Rita likes setting traps the most?" Knowing that the others might have fallen for Rita's scheme, Kiana could no longer hold back, and immediately set off toward the direction of the lead.
But just as she climbed onto the rooftop, preparing to move, an explosion rang out, followed by intense flames. Standing on the roof overlooking the city, Kiana's heart skipped a beat. The raging flames always made her unconsciously think of that figure.
…
At the scene of the battle between Rita and Himeko, the concrete ground had essentially been completely destroyed. If this weren't Gray Serpent's base, it would have definitely caused a commotion.
There were collapsed steel beams and crumbling walls everywhere. In a battle between an S-rank and an A-rank, these solid buildings were no better than tofu dregs.
With a crash, Himeko was sent flying by a heavy slash from the scythe, embedding her into a concrete wall.
Although she had forced Himeko back, Rita's condition was not good either. With the intense fighting, the previous wounds had been greatly torn open, and blood was seeping through her combat suit. A long-forgotten feeling of weakness constantly stimulated her nerves, causing a strong sense of frustration.
Of course, Himeko's condition was worse. After all, there was a full rank difference. A and S were practically insurmountable chasms. She was only able to drag things on until now because of her new body.
As one of the Herrscher of Dominance's puppets, and also a puppet imbued with a Herrscher core, she was able to not pay too much attention to her use of Honkai energy during the fight. Moreover, a puppet body didn't suffer a decrease in combat power with injuries like a human body.
Instead, it was more like a health bar, storing the injuries until it could no longer withstand them, then it would completely break down.
"Truly amazing. To manage to hold me back for almost 10 minutes with just A-rank strength. But it ends here. No matter where you're from, as long as I send you to Schicksal's lab, you won't have any secrets anymore." After confirming that Himeko no longer had the ability to move, Rita slowly approached the ruins, supporting herself with her scythe.
All these years, following Durandal, she had been able to complete even the most difficult tasks with ease. She never expected to almost be defeated today by an unknown A-rank opponent. If word got out, what would happen to Schicksal's reputation?
Having been slammed into a wall, Himeko hung her head limply. Her face was covered by her red hair so her expression couldn't be seen. Rita could only remain vigilant. However, perhaps she was overthinking it. Even after she walked to Himeko and placed her scythe against Himeko's neck, there was still no resistance.
"Hmph, Scarlet Serpent? Let me see who you are…" The scythe hooked her mask, tearing it off. Under the mask, it wasn't the appearance of Murata Himeko that she had expected, but that of a completely unfamiliar woman. She inwardly breathed a sigh of relief, but at the same time, she also felt some regret.
Rita had a decent impression of Murata. After she had died fighting the Herrscher of the Void, she had also lamented the fall of another excellent Valkyrie. But that was all there was to it. If this person were truly Himeko, then there would be even more trouble.
It would not only mean that Otto's plan had a flaw, but it would also mean that World Serpent now had the ability to break the Imaginary Space, which would lead to a sharp increase in their threat to Schicksal.
"Acting mysterious." Smiling disdainfully, Rita took out her communicator, preparing to report the situation here to Otto. But she didn't notice Himeko's orange eyes growing brighter.
Boom—
The high heat swept through. Flames soared.