After a moment, a calmed Kiana asked: "Since this Moonlight Throne is so terrifying, then after being hit, I—no! The Herrscher of the Void must have been on the verge of death, right?"
"A hurried shot definitely lacked power," Tesla shrugged. "At that point, your Teacher Jizi needed to step onto the stage."
"But can Aunt Himeko do it? How exactly did she manage?"
Kiana asked again, not quite believing Himeko could defeat the Herrscher of the Void.
Even a Herrscher wounded by the Moonlight Throne was still a walker of the Honkai in the human world, an existence comparable to a god.
Furthermore, the Herrscher of the Void had swallowed the Gem of Conquest from Mei's body, which was equivalent to having a dual core.
With twice the Herrscher power gathered in one body, the power exerted was far greater than one plus one!
This was simply not something an ordinary Valkyrie could deal with!
"Don't ask me, how would I know? Logically, that Crimson Knight thing is at most comparable to a single-core Herrscher. Who knows how she defeated a dual-core Herrscher of the Void?"
As Tesla spoke, a serious question occurred to her, and she hurriedly said:
"Wait, no, speaking of which, this is something that happens in the future. Has the Herrscher of the Void inside you awakened yet?"
"...Uh?"
These words gave Kiana, who had subconsciously avoided thinking about this, a sudden fright.
She felt that if the Herrscher of the Void awakened, given her personality, she certainly wouldn't endure in silence. She would either lure Kiana into a trap or secretly hypnotize her; she likely wouldn't develop in secret.
"It's a possibility, but it's fine. The Herrscher of the Void at this time is slumbering, and not much Honkai Energy is coming out to cause destruction."
Theresa waved her hand, telling them to rest easy.
After everyone finished their discussion, the current question was: who would undertake the challenge?
Logically, it should be Himeko, but this was the current Himeko, not the one from several years later; her subconscious would certainly be different.
No one's mind stays exactly the same. Who knows how many times her thoughts had evolved during that period before she could calmly accept the fact of death and give the chance of life to Kiana.
If Himeko failed the mission and the Honkai erosion intensified, she might not have long to live.
"It's fine, don't look at me with those eyes, it's creepy," Himeko said in a relaxed tone. While everyone else was worried about her, she felt like it was no big deal. "It's just a challenge. Since it's something that might happen in the future, it means I'll do it. If I die, I die."
"You won't die! With me here, I'll never let such a thing happen!"
Just as Himeko finished, Kiana huffed and retorted.
The decision was made: Himeko would be the first to challenge, and Mei would try later as well.
Rita didn't say she would take the challenge; she wanted to observe for a while longer, and Tesla felt the same.
Everyone agreed that if Himeko failed the challenge, Yunduo would be the one to go next.
With a flash of white light, Himeko's figure vanished before everyone's eyes.
"Act IV: Final Lesson officially begins!"
"Challenger: Murata Himeko!"
"Objective: Inject the HSN-B46 Serum into the Herrscher of the Void!"
...Patter, patter.
Echoes hissed in her ears, sounding like rain hitting an umbrella, or like the flapping of a bird's wings.
—She opened her eyes, and the first thing to enter her vision was a ceiling encased in iron plates.
Himeko felt a headache coming on and didn't understand where she was. A bewildered voice squeezed out of her dry throat: "Where... is this?"
Supporting her head, which wasn't fully awake yet, she struggled to sit up.
She was surrounded by cold metal walls, oppressive like a cage.
"Is it a prison?" "Right, I was captured..."
Himeko felt her body was incredibly heavy, as if she had slept for a hundred years. She tried to get out of bed but accidentally stumbled, nearly falling to the floor.
Patter, patter—
She stumbled toward the door, but the noise in her mind grew louder and louder.
Instantly, fatigue flooded her entire body, and Himeko fell just dozens of centimeters away from the exit.
With no other choice, she picked herself up and leaned against the iron door, gasping for breath.
Suddenly, Himeko discovered a vial of reagent in her hand that hadn't been there before.
She knew it was the serum.
Shuhu, the immortal-like Fu Hua appeared out of thin air and explained the serum's function to Himeko.
A precious serum that could turn her back into a normal person—and this was the only one!
"Thank you," Himeko said before stepping out the door. She didn't have much time left. She stuffed the serum into her pocket and ran quickly out of Containment Bay 7.
As soon as she stepped out, she found Tesla tied up like a mochi, unable to move a single inch of her body.
Her mouth was also sealed with an exquisite black handkerchief, which for some reason gave off a sense of comedy.
"Mmph, mmph—"
Once Himeko removed the black cloth from Tesla's mouth, the genius doctor said fuming, "That maid, don't let me see her again!!"
Himeko didn't know how to comfort her, so she remained silent.
The two entered the laboratory's manufacturing plant, where one of Otto's experimental records was kept.
The two clearly understood that mixing Dr. Magi's serum with Schariac Holy Blood could reverse the Honkai process, even causing a Herrscher to lose their power.
"The God-Slaying Gun!"
After listening to all the experimental records, both fell silent simultaneously.
The records were clear: reverse honkai was possible, but it required the God-Slaying Gun!
The Herrscher of the Void could also be saved, but it required an injection with the God-Slaying Gun!
But it required the sole condition—
HSN-B46 Serum!
This was the only one in Himeko's hand!
Without the serum, Himeko would undoubtedly die.
It was an inevitability.
A choice between two options.
Either she lived, or the Herrscher of the Void wreaking havoc outside lived.
Only one of them could live.
The person to make the choice was Himeko.
On the edge of life and death, what do people believe in, and what do they give up?
Tesla didn't know the answer.
This choice was far too cold and cruel.
Tesla couldn't bring herself to speak for a long time; her small mouth was slightly open, but not even a whisper came out.
She wanted to say something, but the words were swallowed back down as soon as they reached her lips.
Just as she was hesitating, Himeko spoke first.
"...Can you make it, the God-Slaying Gun?"
Her tone was firm, simply asking Tesla if she could create the God-Slaying Gun to save Kiana.
There was no hesitation, not even a hint of anything unusual.
It was as if it were a matter of course.
It had nothing to do with herself.
Himeko extended her right hand, her fingers tightly gripping that red serum.
"I think it's time for it to be put to use."
"..."
Alarms blared. Himeko shoved the serum into Tesla's hand and turned her back directly on her.
"I'll go deal with the enemies. Dr. Tesla, I'm leaving this medicine to you."
Outside the space, watching this scene, Kiana's eyes grew warm at some point, and scalding tears slowly flowed out.
-------------------------------
Hope you enjoy this fanfiction if you do and would like to read the next 30 chapters in advance, pls do check out my Patreon.
patreon.com/TLScarlet
Also don't forget to give me a Power Stone if you do like this fiction. Your support really motivates me to continue doing my best in translating, Thanks!!