Although the Herrscher of Wind's thoughts were in chaos, the fragile little bird in her grasp could still be crushed at any moment. Yet at that instant, a far more formidable bird of prey emerged behind her.
"Homu!" (Let him go!)
A white-haired man wearing a mask appeared at the Herrscher of Wind's flank like a phantom. With a Honkai Beast's claw infused with long-brewing, surging thunder, he tore straight through her wind shield.
This man was none other than the former strongest warrior of MOTH—Siegfried—who had once clashed with the Second Herrscher and the Third Herrscher.
And now he had come to fight the Fourth Herrscher.
Half a year ago, through Newton's laboratory, Vill-V had secretly reached a cooperation agreement with Mobius' laboratory to jointly treat Siegfried's Honkai Beast transformation.
Siegfried had the rare honor of receiving treatment from the most luxurious scientific lineup of the Previous Era—Vill-V, Dr. Mei, and Dr. Mobius. The Honkai Beast factors within his body were suppressed and gradually brought under control.
Of course, this was inseparable from Siegfried's own tenacious will. The experiments conducted on him were groundbreaking to an extreme degree. An ordinary soldier would never have survived them.
It was worth mentioning that three unique tattoos had appeared on Siegfried's back. This was not because he had undergone some bizarre gender transformation and been branded with Valkyrie stigmata. Rather, the three top scientists who treated him had added their own copyright marks according to their personal tastes.
First, Magician Vill-V engraved her Spiral Insignia upon him, declaring that Siegfried was a masterpiece produced by Helixcraft.
Unwilling to be outdone, Dr. Mobius added her Infinity Insignia as well, marking him as an experimental subject of Mobius' laboratory.
Then Dr. Mei, while verbally criticizing the other two scientists for being childish, went ahead and carved one of her own anyway.
Thus, Siegfried ended up covered in righteous-looking tattoos.
Originally, he was supposed to remain under observation and treatment in Mobius' laboratory.
However, after learning from Blanca—who had come to visit him—that the Fourth Herrscher had appeared, he immediately ripped out the tubes from his body, tore his way out of Mobius' laboratory with unstoppable force, and even hijacked her private jet on the way out.
As for where that aircraft had crashed, no one knew. It seemed that for the next few days, Dr. Mobius would be unable to sneak out of MOTH.
"Homu!"
Electricity crackled violently across Siegfried's body—crackle crackle—a special ability he had gained after his Honkai Beast transformation. According to Dr. Mobius' hypothesis, the gene of the Herrscher of the Void implanted into him back then had devoured the gene of the Herrscher of Thunder, granting him the Herrscher of Thunder's power.
Although the Fourth Herrscher was still trapped by the thought bomb and unable to retaliate directly, the winds around her acted on her behalf. Countless wind blades slashed at Siegfried—slash slash slash—their residual force even cutting through the steel frameworks of nearby buildings.
Siegfried tried to dodge, but his body did not obey his mind. It felt as though he were operating an old farming machine.
"Homu!" (So my condition still hasn't fully recovered?)
His physical state was terrible. Even his vocal cords had not healed, and he could only emit the roars of a Honkai Beast.
"Homu!" (But this body is already far stronger than it was back then!)
Enveloped in lightning, Siegfried's body was now harder than diamond. The wind blades carved gashes into him, but could go no deeper.
Crimson Honkai energy burst from his wounds like blood. Siegfried paid it no heed. He had long since lost his sense of pain and touch.
He should have been dead to begin with.
Now that he had climbed out of the coffin, he feared nothing.
He charged valiantly toward the Herrscher's body, tearing apart the wind spirits guarding her.
As Siegfried and the Herrscher of Wind clashed in a storm of spiraling gales, a beam of laser light pierced through the vortex binding Kevin, dispersing it and allowing him to break free.
"Captain Kevin! Move!" Minori signaled with her sniper's laser for Kevin to retreat, while keeping her rifle trained on the Herrscher of Wind.
Clearly, she had no intention of leaving. She meant to help that mysterious "Honkai Beast zombie" stall the Herrscher of Wind and buy time for Captain Kevin's escape.
Kevin would never allow her to remain alone.
After breaking free of his restraints, he kicked off the wall and shot forward like an arrow loosed from a bow. At the same time, he opened the air valve of the thrusters on his back. High-pressure gas propelled him further, accelerating him to bullet-like speed.
Amplified Fusion-Core Armor—full power!
His body burned as though submerged in boiling water. Kevin let out a muffled grunt.
In an instant, he reached the Herrscher of Wind. He tore the energy module from the Fusion-Core Armor—a compact nuclear reactor.
"The meaning of freedom does not lie in trampling on others' ideals, but in affirming a person's pursuit of their own self-worth!"
"The meaning of freedom lies in affirming one's past—not in denying one's will and attributing it to something else."
"That which allows humanity to advance—that is humanity's freedom..." (Vill-V: You've turned into a Yeager too, have you? Kevin, are you planning to eradicate every last trace of Honkai from this world?)
Braving the raging wind, Kevin strode forward into the storm's domain, confronting the Herrscher of Wind head-on.
"So... go to hell, Herrscher who has betrayed free will!"
The reactor of the Fusion-Core Armor, teetering on the brink of meltdown, was slammed fiercely against the Herrscher of Wind.
The compact nuclear reactor struck her squarely.
Yet the outcome exceeded Kevin's expectations.
Instead of being crushed and detonated by the wind, the reactor was cushioned and wrapped by a gentle current. Then the rebounding force of the wind blasted both Kevin and the reactor away.
Even while under Siegfried's assault, the Herrscher of Wind's automatic defensive winds still had power to spare.
"Damn it!"
Seeing that the reactor was about to explode near him, Kevin—midair—had no way to evade.
At that moment, Siegfried shoved him aside.
"Homu Homu." (Of all things to learn, you had to learn that from me.)
At the same time, Minori seized the opportunity and fired a shot that scattered the enriched uranium within the reactor, preventing the explosion from reaching its full destructive potential.
Even so, the violent shockwave from the reactor's explosion slammed Kevin into the ground. His entire body endured the massive impact. A few more ribs and perhaps a leg bone were likely broken.
Within the blazing inferno of the explosion, the Herrscher of Wind stood unmoved.
On the contrary, the thunderous blast seemed to snap her fully awake.
The awakened Herrscher of Wind was no longer the same as before.
In an instant, the tide of battle reversed.
Siegfried's razor-sharp claw was easily blocked by the crystalline wings that spread behind her.
Tiny, piercing cyclones shot through Siegfried's limbs, punching holes clean through them and nailing him to the wall—exactly where Kevin had been moments before.