Mei suppressed the rage burning inside her and listened to the words of the utterly malevolent Vill-V. Naturally, she understood that the one and only variable was herself.
The utterly malevolent Vill-V said: "Yes, an existence that isn't a memory body yet can make it feel utterly helpless…"
"If someone could erase this variable… making a friend out of it wouldn't be too much, right?"
Mei said: "So that's why you went to such lengths… to get me into your mind?"
The utterly malevolent Vill-V continued: "This should count as… inspiration from Aponia, I suppose?"
"Though it's only temporary, right now… you're inside my mind."
"And I'll carve out a new domain, imprisoning you in it the same way they imprisoned me… and this time, the duration will be eternal!"
"But there's good news—at least… I don't have any so-called malice for you to bear."
"It's just that… whether this still counts as being alive is debatable, isn't it?"
Mei immediately asked: "What about the other Vill-Vs?"
The utterly malevolent Vill-V said: "I killed them all. After all, they're all me—no loose ends allowed. Fortunately, I'm still good at imitating myself, right?"
Mei pressed on: "So Elysia… Kevin… and Mobius…"
The utterly malevolent Vill-V said: "I can't tell you that. I know fishing for information is one of your usual tricks."
"I already said everything earlier was just a performance, so the lines were carefully chosen."
"Of course I'll make sure you don't find any clues to defeat me. I don't want to be one of those… ridiculous villains who fail because they couldn't keep their mouth shut."
Mei's voice grew low, suppressing her fury as she asked: "Then… what about her?"
"Her?"
Facing Vill-V's confusion, Mei gritted her teeth and said: "…Pardo. Pardofelis! Someone who couldn't possibly interfere with your schemes—she just wanted to live."
The utterly malevolent Vill-V said: "Oh, indeed. I already said it was just an accident."
"After all, everything I did was just to survive. Since my disappearance from the world is the price for the good to live in peace…"
"Then conversely… why can't you accept it?"
"…"
Mei fell silent for a moment before glaring at her: "I understand. Since you've talked so much about your own thoughts… do you know what I'm thinking right now?"
"Right now, I'm facing an individual made entirely of malice, and she's trying to kill me."
Vill-V nodded: "Correct."
Mei continued: "She's steadily advancing her plan—a conspiracy that could endanger reality."
Vill-V sighed: "Ah, to be more precise… it will definitely endanger reality."
Mei said: "But to me right now, none of that matters."
"The only thing on my mind is one thing."
She slowly closed her eyes, trying—under greater focus—to piece together those syllables that had already begun to scatter in her memory.
Those were the words Pardo had said—wanting to be friends with her!
And she… hadn't yet had the chance to give Pardo an answer.
Endless thunder exploded.
She didn't open her eyes. She knew exactly what now surrounded her.
"You… let my friend sacrifice herself for such an absurd reason…"
"…Then, are you prepared to pay the corresponding price?"
The utterly malevolent Vill-V said: "After being weakened so many times, you still have the strength left to wield your authority?"
"Fine, I don't know what kind of price it'll come with… but I'm curious too."
"Herrscher of Thunder, since people love tragic heroes so much, then next—use your doomed struggle to…"
"…sound the prelude to the curtain's fall for this performance."
As the words fell.
The entire theater's floor began to tremble. At that moment, Vill-V started to segment her mind,
intending to cut Mei off from this current domain. If she succeeded, Mei would never have another chance!
Mei instantly thought of a countermeasure: as long as the other couldn't pinpoint her location, she couldn't be segmented away.
She decisively summoned Kukikara, mounted it, and soared through the mindscape.
The voice of the utterly malevolent Vill-V came: "Pretty smart. As long as you don't stay in one place, I can't segment you smoothly. But… why would I have to play by your rules?"
"What?" Mei was startled.
The utterly malevolent Vill-V said: "The situation is this—I can simply do nothing, watch you flee in panic, and when you finally exhaust yourself and have no choice but to stop, I just make one gentle cut. Done, right?"
"And you, even knowing this, still can't linger anywhere for even a moment—otherwise, you'll be killed instantly."
"Interesting, isn't it? How much like most people's lives… so wretched. Knowing only death lies ahead, uncertain when it will arrive, yet… unable to stop."
But soon enough.
Mei thought of a way to counter.
Rather than fleeing, face the segmentation head-on.
Only by witnessing it personally could she devise a response.
With this idea, Mei put it into action immediately.
Sure enough!
When facing certain segmentations, the utterly malevolent Vill-V clearly didn't want to bear the consequences and instead forced Mei into a new domain.
Mei said: "It's because another you talked too much. Vill-V once told me she divided her mind into only eight domains. The reason… if she continued further, it would be hard to maintain each one at genius level."
"Your mind has a finite total capacity—and it's extremely precious!"
"Let's make a bet: the domains I can reach versus the ones you're willing to sacrifice… which one has the wider range?"
"Before the lightning catches up… will you fall from genius to fool first?"
"Hahahahahaha…"
The utterly malevolent Vill-V sneered: "You don't really think… I can't see through your intentions, do you? Thinking a direct confrontation is your only chance, right?"
Mei said: "The same goes for you. Or… we can just stay locked in stalemate here until the Flame-Chasers outside uncover the truth."
The utterly malevolent Vill-V sighed softly: "Ahh, what a shame…"
"I originally wanted to end this more fairly, but who wouldn't seize the opportunity?"
"Fine. Though it'll get more troublesome, since I can't enjoy your despair… enjoying your suffering doesn't seem bad either?"
"Herrscher of Thunder, have you ever had your limbs broken before?"
"Unfortunately, I'm not quite like the Flame-Chasers you've met."
As the voice fell.
The utterly malevolent Vill-V appeared right in front of Mei.
Even… without any warning.
And in the instant she appeared.
Mei struck with thunderous force in a single slash.
All the anger and fury in her heart poured out at this moment.
Even though the blow was blocked, she kept swinging relentlessly. Countless bolts of lightning hammered the other with every strike of the blade.
The utterly malevolent Vill-V remained smiling, letting Mei attack freely.
"Oh! Not bad at all…"
If one looked closely, they'd see even these thunderbolts couldn't breach her barrier.
She spoke leisurely and calmly: "If you'd ever faced the Herrschers of the Previous Era, you'd understand… just how subjective my earlier praise really was."
Mei also noticed the anomaly…
Her attacks were having no effect at all.
Even if the barrier was strong, it shouldn't be completely impervious.
This couldn't continue!
Mei decisively retreated, putting distance between them.
"Finally giving up…?"
"Alright, I've humored you long enough—like coaxing a child. Letting you think you're clever… my apologies."
Hearing her words, combined with the special power Mei had sensed during the fight.
Mei suddenly realized.
This Vill-V had actually been waiting for that power all along.
The utterly malevolent Vill-V felt the power surging within her and laughed: "This power returned faster than I expected. Looks like dealing with Kalpas wasn't that hard after all."
????!!
Mei's eyes widened.
Kalpas?
She hadn't misheard—the words were indeed "dealing with Kalpas"?
Didn't that mean even that Kalpas had…
The utterly malevolent Vill-V saw her expression and looked satisfied: "Is that so surprising? I already told you—it's an existence that can render any memory body insignificant."
"Moreover, from the moment you stepped in here, my goal was already achieved. Whatever happens afterward… doesn't matter."
"Farewell, dear audience… Try to cry as loudly as you can, okay? After all… being pushed to death by your own foolishness is something worth regretting, isn't it?"
Mei took a deep breath.
Calming herself somewhat: "You seem far too certain that power can defeat me. Since this is a power I've never encountered… where does the idea of it being invincible come from?"
"Never encountered?"
The utterly malevolent Vill-V burst into laughter: "No, no, no—that's the one you brought in. How are you still so slow to realize?"
??
Mei followed her gaze and slowly lowered her head.
"…!"
Her own body had already been eroded by that special power.
Just as people often only feel pain after seeing the wound.
Only now did Mei become aware of that strange sensation.
To her… it had been fleeting.
But the utterly familiar strangeness, with the invasion of dark green mist, was growing clearer by the moment.
This feeling was…
She couldn't help but recall the sensation from not long ago—when she had encountered the Will of Honkai.
She suddenly understood. It was… from that time…
Just before losing consciousness completely, she finally realized the true culprit behind this conspiracy.
"Vill-V, the 'it' you speak of… is another Herrscher?"
At this moment, audiences across the nation were shocked.
"Another Herrscher? Meaning Elysia and the others were all killed by another Herrscher?"
"Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy shit! How is this even a thing? Isn't this scene saying the Herrscher was brought in by Mei?"
"How much more do you want to knife Mei? She just earned the Flame-Chasers' recognition, and now you're saying the Herrscher she brought killed them all?"
"Fuck, seriously fuck. If I were Mei I'd be in so much pain I'd shut down, regret it till I died."
"Damn Honkai, truly inhuman—appearing in the Elysian Realm like this."
"It's over. Mei will carry this guilt for life. She investigated the truth only to find out she was the root cause of everything."
"Damn director, who the hell can accept this plot? Mei would seriously suffer to death. Be a decent person, please!"
"I can't even imagine how devastated Mei will be when she learns the truth."
"This Elysian Realm plot is seriously painful to watch. I thought it was revisiting the past, but it's just knifing people who already died and are only memory bodies all over again."
"Online group to kill the director—today the director MUST die!!!!"
"…"
The viewers were all furious at this revelation.
This was simply not a plot any human could come up with.
Meanwhile on the TV.
Mei's body was constantly eroded by green data.
The next moment.
Within this green data, she saw Vill-V's memories—saw her reach a cooperative agreement with another Herrscher, saw her persuade Kevin to willingly give up his life…
And when all these images vanished.
Mei suddenly awoke. She found herself in a strange place.
Standing before her was another Vill-V—or rather… the original Vill-V, her true Ego.
"Hi, you finally made it…"
Hearing this voice, Mei recognized it: "This voice… it really is you. The original Vill-V—her Ego. A swindler!"
Vill-V said: "Is it a bit too ordinary… making you disappointed? You don't seem surprised at all."
Mei said to her: "Since you're the Ego existing in the deepest part, then all that mind segmentation…"
Vill-V replied: "That was all true… It's just that even before gaining that ability, I could already easily become someone else. Not much different from now."
Mei pressed: "The evil one said all the mind domains are gone. Is that another one of her lies… or yours?"
Vill-V answered: "How should I put it—she did destroy all the domains, including the one called Ego. But who says the Ego has to stay in the Ego domain? That place was empty from the start—call it one of my little habits."
"For example, a spider does have eight legs, but they still grow from the body, right?"
"Unfortunately… without legs, the body can't move an inch. So I can only meet you this way."
"Sorry… If I apologize seriously, will you accept it?"
Mei asked: "Right now… can I trust you?"
Vill-V said: "Though I probably don't have the right to say this… I hope you can trust me."
Mei said: "It really was you who saved me from the evil one."
However…
What Mei cared about now wasn't this: "So it really is the Herrscher of Corruption?"
Vill-V nodded: "Mm. How it came to the Elysian Realm… I assume you've already figured it out?"
"Mm…" Mei answered softly.
Vill-V said: "Don't blame yourself. Even without you, it would have found its way here eventually—if through that method, the situation would only have been far more tragic than now."
"From another angle—if you hadn't immediately thrown yourself into the Realm after that encounter… reality would probably already be in complete chaos, right?"
Mei kept her head lowered, still silent.
Vill-V sighed: "…Sigh, you're the type who cares a lot about making mistakes, just like me. Compared to you, the fact that it grew to this extent… maybe I'm the one who should bear the main responsibility."
"At first… it was the expert who discovered it, and thus became the first victim."
"I… had to awaken at that time too."
Mei was shocked: "You really slept for fifty thousand years?"
Vill-V replied: "Probably even longer. Even when I was alive, I was often in that state. Of course, there were backdoors built in—when more than half the mind domains vanished, no matter how unwilling, I'd have to open my eyes."
"After all, only one possibility leads to that: I'm probably really about to die."
"Even if waking up couldn't reverse the situation… at least… I wanted to say a proper goodbye to everyone left."
Mei asked: "Destroying the evil one to interrupt the corrosion process… that was your decision too?"
Vill-V shook her head: "No, I wasn't fully awake then. The one who made the decision was the Conductor. She never made a single mistake… except this time…"
Mei pressed: "You didn't anticipate she'd choose to sacrifice the evil one?"
Vill-V answered: "More like… everything I'm attempting now is improvising on that unexpected move. But without that accident… Vill-V would have had to exit the stage right then."
"Or maybe… this is exactly the ending the Conductor wanted. After all, no one understands me better than myself."
"And all these accidents led to our meeting. I'm constantly under corrosion; the only way to meet you was inside this mind. And the evil one just happened to bring you in."