The television screen switched.
Approximately fifteen minutes earlier, World Serpent base—
Mei questioned Kevin: "Do you know what Otto is planning to do?"
Kevin said: "I know."
Understanding Mei's concern, he explained: "What he truly intends to do has no impact on World Serpent, nor on your former companions—in fact, it may even be slightly beneficial."
Mei said: "…You know my habit is to confirm things personally."
Kevin said: "That man's plan has already begun. It's too late for you to go now."
"No, Kevin." Mei said domineeringly: "Even if time is short… I will confirm the situation in my own way, and help my companions… in my own way."
A powerful magnetic field instantly enveloped every corner of the World Serpent base.
The ancient walls flickered with eerie fluorescence, and the instruments far beyond their era all came to a halt simultaneously.
Kevin observed this Thunder Herrscher's chosen method with interest: "If this continues, you'll destroy the place."
"Let me take you somewhere instead—there, you can unleash your power to your heart's content."
As his words fell.
A rift opened in front of Mei.
"The Sea of Quanta?" Mei was somewhat stunned that he had actually torn open the Sea of Quanta by hand?
Kevin said: "You deserve to achieve your goal, Herrscher of Thunder."
Time jumped forward—to the present.
Kiana heard Mei's voice and sensed that Mei should be just ahead.
She followed Mei's aura and probed forward.
A pure and tranquil nothingness spread throughout the entire space, like the clear sky of the stratosphere above a storm.
Kiana felt that she had been to a similar place before.
"Here… is…"
Mei replied: "It's the depths of the Herrscher core, the place where our minds can communicate with each other."
"…"
"…"
Hearing Mei's voice again made even Kiana feel it wasn't real: "Am I… dreaming?"
Mei said: "If I said yes, you wouldn't believe it anyway."
"…" Kiana adjusted her emotions: "Why didn't you tell me in advance?"
Mei said: "You're not wearing that jacket. You said you'd wear it forever after."
She was naturally referring to the jacket Kiana had picked up in Arc City and returned to her in Nagazora.
Kiana was momentarily at a loss for words: "Ah, this…"
Mei laughed: "Haha, just kidding. You've changed a lot."
Kiana said: "Have I? I actually feel like we haven't changed at all."
Mei nodded: "…Mm, you're right."
"…"
Kiana fell silent again for a moment before asking: "So… this place is kind of like… where we meet those memories or soul fragments, right?"
Mei said: "Something like that. The only difference is… we're both our real selves here, our true wills. This was originally a space created by the so-called Honkai Will. I stumbled upon its existence earlier and thought of a way to make use of it like this."
Kiana hurriedly said: "Honkai Will? Isn't that super dangerous?"
Mei said: "It's fine, Kiana. It can't affect me."
"…But we don't have much time to talk like this. You should be facing Otto's threat right now—how's the situation?"
Kiana said: "The Principal, Bronya, and the Class Monitor—they all gave everything to create an opportunity for everyone to move forward."
"The seniors from Anti-Entropy, Seele, Rozaliya, Liliya, and the Valkyries who still belong to Schicksal—they've all contributed everything they could in their own ways to the current situation."
"Now, Durandal and I are heading to the final battlefield together, fighting side by side for the same goal."
"This should be… the last battle."
Mei said: "Durandal, huh? As a companion, she's very reliable. You can trust her."
"Since that's the case, let me lend you a hand too…"
"Just like in the Theater of Domination… the lightning of conquest… accept my power."
"No matter how many times you lose your blade, I will reforge it for you."
Kiana said: "Thank you… Mei."
"Alright, go now." Mei had no intention of saying more: "There isn't much time left, is there?"
"Mei, I…"
Kiana hesitated, wavering. She really wanted to talk more with Mei about what happened back then.
Mei said: "It's okay, I understand everything, Kiana~."
"Mm." Kiana nodded: "I have so, so many things I want to say to you, Mei, but let's save them for next time we meet."
"Next time, it'll be face-to-face, right?"
"Mm." Mei nodded.
Kiana said: "Then… I'm going. Wait for my spectacular performance."
Mei encouraged her: "Don't lose, Kiana."
Kiana laughed: "Of course not. With Mei here, it's like having the power of a hundred people."
"Haha."
"Alright then." Mei also said with a smile: "Go ahead and feel it properly—this power of a hundred people."
BOOM!!!
Terrifying thunder instantly struck down from the sky toward the church.
It precisely hit the blade of the sword Kiana had raised.
In an instant.
The Flamescion greatsword blazed with light, and Kiana's power instantly recovered—even stronger than before.
She opened her eyes: "One slash—Incinerate!"
The sword light fell.
The Imaginary rift was instantly cleaved open.
"Durandal, now!"
"Understood!"
The two jumped into the Imaginary Space together.
A bottomless high tower stood in the center of the Theater of Domination. The passage they entered was precisely at the top of the tower, and they now had to descend toward the base from the broken section.
Durandal took the lead: "Kiana, leave this part to me!"
She cleared the path for Kiana.
Otto's voice then rang out: "Bianka, Kiana, you've finally arrived."
"In the name of Apocalypse, I welcome you both to witness this moment of apocalypse together."
Hearing this voice.
The two became even more certain that Otto was deep within the tower.
They continued breaking through downward.
Otto asked again: "Are you truly prepared?"
With his voice, Imaginary constructs began sealing off the path to the tower's base, blocking their advance.
Kiana charged straight forward: "Let me handle this, Durandal."
"Mm, don't hold back!"
Kiana naturally showed no mercy to these monsters. Raising her hand, she unleashed "Flamescion Draw!"
In an instant, all the blocking Imaginary constructs were incinerated.
Durandal once again moved ahead of Kiana, continuing to clear the way so she could recover a little.
Both knew that all battles before facing Otto were mere consumption; they had to maintain peak condition to confront him.
Otto's voice came again: "Domination has been exhausted, and Constraint has been temporarily dispelled; but they bought me time, and a battlefield undisturbed—"
"Allowing me to transcend Herrscher and reach divinity."
"My heroes, I am truly grateful to you."
"Whether in the past or now, I never wished to lie to you, nor to plunge you into despair."
"Of course, I'm not so heartless as to ignore your dignity and turn away to care for you—"
"How to end this Imaginary authority… I'll leave that for you to figure out yourselves."
The two did not respond to Otto with a single word.
After this stretch of time.
Kiana also caught sight of the ground.
"Prepare for landing—we're entering the final phase of battle!"
Durandal reminded her.
Kiana adjusted her direction as well. They had been running along the tower's walls; upon reaching the base, they needed to change course.
BOOM!
The two landed heavily on the ground.
Once the dust settled, they noticed the object floating at the center of the ground.
"That's…"
Durandal recognized it at a glance: "The Seed of Nihility."
"Wait!"
As soon as Otto's voice sounded, the two immediately prepared to attack, only to see Otto walking toward the Seed of Nihility: "As the master here, how could you not allow me to offer a little hospitality?"
Imaginary power rapidly gathered within Otto, forming an outer shell of Imaginary constructs around his body, causing his power to surge upward.
"Annihilation returns to this place, and from here a new star is born…"
"This power belongs neither to mortals nor to Herrschers."
"It is the primal form of Imaginary authority, the embodiment of the truth of the myriad worlds."
"Come, savor carefully the power of this false god."
Durandal and Kiana exchanged a glance.
They charged forward together.
They sensed extreme danger from this man—they had to defeat him as quickly as possible!
Durandal's spear struck first, followed by Kiana's Flamescion greatsword. The two attacked from different directions, flames and withering power intertwining, frantically tearing and devouring the Imaginary force.
Otto spread his arms wide and sent both flying.
"Come on, my heroes."
"I've waited too long for the fall."
Kiana said impatiently: "So noisy—can you please shut up?"
With that, she drew her sword again and charged to attack.
Otto parried effortlessly while saying: "Alright, alright. Sometimes even I find my own acting uncomfortable."
The battle fully erupted.
Durandal unleashed her full power, especially the awakened Kaslana Stigmata, which grew increasingly proficient in this fight. Her coordination with Kiana also improved steadily.
Under the onslaught of the two's flames and withering power.
Otto began to fall into decline.
"Flamescion Draw!"
"Heavenly Wrath, forge the path here!"
The two struck in unison.
Otto was completely repelled and sustained considerable damage.
"Haha… hahahaha…"
Otto let out laughter: "You truly have grown, but… come, this is the true power of authority."
The Seed of Nihility began merging into Otto's body.
His power climbed once more. The Imaginary constructs on his body fused even more tightly with him, gradually covering him in a white armor resembling a six-winged angel.
The space around the girls began to distort violently.
The void church resonated with Otto's power—
It disintegrated in ways incomprehensible to ordinary people, then reassembled into an entirely different form, like a bottomless vortex…
Durandal said: "It seems this is his true mental landscape. Let's go—the final decisive battle should be arriving."
As she advanced, she analyzed: "Imaginary authority… if we destroy the structure of the void itself, would the authority collapse along with it?"
Kiana asked: "You mean using the Herrscher of the Void's power… Nagamitsu mentioned something similar earlier."
"Then let's try it."
She directly used the Herrscher of the Void's power, rapidly shuttling the two of them forward.
Otto suddenly spoke: "I, who have been baptized by the Imaginary Tree, am infinite. How you will conquer the infinite… let me watch and see."
The two did not reply, instead using the Herrscher of the Void's power to appear behind Otto and deliver a heavy blow.
Otto turned and blocked it with a laugh: "Heh, is this how you conquer the infinite? You're underestimating the power of a false god far too much."
"Stigmata, Herrscher…"
"You think you can surpass the original with mere shadows of the Imaginary?"
"If you can manage it, I'd be happy to keep you company to the end…"
Before his words finished, he countered with a strike: "Dawn has arrived—rise, great noon!"
Countless swords of condensed Honkai energy scattered like blazing suns, then assaulted the two from every direction.
Kiana immediately used the Herrscher of the Void's power to teleport all the swords to the ground, while Durandal shattered them all with Abyss Flower.
"Girls, do you think me cruel?"
"Let me teach you the truth of cruelty—"
"Anyone who has fallen should be given one final push!"
Durandal stared directly at Otto. She understood this man very well: "Your desire to perform today is really something."
Otto said: "Isn't that line usually saved until the performance is over?"
Kiana said: "Because your performance is about to end!"
"Got him!!"
Kiana used the Herrscher of the Void's power to teleport Durandal behind Otto, while she herself raised the Flamescion greatsword, gathering all her power and delivering a single downward slash.
Under their combined attack.
Otto plummeted from the sky, and the Imaginary construct armor on his body completely fell away.
He struggled to rise from the ground: "It's not… over yet…"
"It's useless…"
"As long as this space is still bathed in the grace of the Imaginary Tree, my authority will keep regenerating… you… can't kill me…"
"A power that cannot be renormalized is absolute infinity…"
"With mere Herrscher of the Void…"
"You can't do it!"
Kiana didn't want to listen to him at all. She charged forward and sent Otto flying.
Durandal also hurled the Abyss Flower in her hand, pinning Otto firmly to the church's crucifix.
Kiana began channeling the Herrscher of the Void's power toward Otto while shouting: "Let your authority be buried with you!"
"Mom…"
"Dad…"
"Teacher Himeko…"
"Theresa…"
"This is what you owe every single one of them."
BOOM!!!
With the eruption of the Herrscher of the Void's authority, the power of the false god completely vanished.
Otto's mental storm rapidly disintegrated as well.
The girls were returned to the place where they had first set out.
Seeing this, audiences across the nation felt an indescribable sensation. Everyone had waited an extremely, extremely long time for Kiana's battle against Otto, expecting it to be an earth-shattering showdown. After killing Otto, they thought they'd feel incredibly satisfied.
But…
What was going on now?
Why didn't it feel that satisfying?
Thus.
Everyone began discussing.
"Damn, I don't know why, but something about this fight just feels off to me!"
"Same here. It feels like… Otto is in complete control somehow."
"Yeah!! I feel the same way—like this was all arranged by him. It pisses me off."
"No… haven't you guys realized yet? During the entire fight, Otto has already told them countless times exactly how to defeat him."
"Why do you think Otto kept emphasizing that he is infinite? Why did he keep shouting that without renormalization his authority would keep regenerating? Why did he keep saying the Herrscher of the Void's power can't do it?"
"Holy shit! It really seems like that. Doesn't this mean Otto deliberately held back? He was letting them defeat him on purpose?"
"Damn it, that dog Otto—this was all part of his plan too? Wasn't it him who had Nagamitsu remind them before the fight?"
"Probably. Otto's hints during this battle were way too obvious. He practically threw the fight. It's ridiculous!"
"It'd be weird if you didn't notice. Otto is clearly that strong, yet he exposed his only weakness before it even started, and kept reminding them during the fight."
"I don't get it. I really don't understand what Otto is trying to do anymore."
"If you don't get it, isn't it simple? Just keep watching. This fight was so watered down anyway—if the rest sucks, I'm going to curse out the director!"
"…"
But the next moment.
Audiences across the nation were once again glued to their television screens.
Because Otto's voice appeared again, mixed with static.
"Well done, Bianka, Kiana."
Durandal was startled: "That voice—"