Kiana revealed a polite yet distant smile.
"Ms. Polka, I appreciate the invitation, but I'm sorry — I already have plans."
A faint flicker passed through Polka's eyes. "Herta?"
Kiana neither confirmed nor denied it.
At least for now, she still needed Herta to keep dropping coins for her.
Polka suddenly let out a soft laugh. "Herta is indeed a fine partner, but when it comes to uncovering the truth, she may not be better than I am."
"And besides…" She paused, her gaze drifting over the Judgment of Shamash in Kiana's hand. "That attack just now must have taken a great deal out of you, didn't it? Are you really certain you can leave here in one piece in your current state?"
Kiana's brows rose.
Oh? Was this her way of taking advantage of weakness and trying to abduct her by force?
Kiana was not surprised by that conclusion.
After all, if Polka had managed to disguise herself as Nous and approach her, then she had almost certainly been lurking here and watching for quite some time.
But if Polka really thought that way, then she had made a grave mistake.
With Polka's past record alone, there was no doubt that she was one of the very few beings capable of standing at the absolute summit of the galaxy.
If it had been the Kiana of yesterday, then in front of Polka, defeat would probably have been the only possible outcome.
But now, she had just completed a massive upgrade.
As for the exhaustion from using Might of An-Utu Unsealed earlier?
She had long since fully recovered with the boost she freeloaded from simulated Nanook.
In an instant, the aura around Kiana changed drastically.
That Destruction authority which had seemed slightly depleted moments before surged violently upward, and countless Void Lances materialized behind her.
"Fine," Kiana said coolly. "If Ms. Polka intends to use force, then I'll accompany you to the end."
[Ding! Your lie has caused Polka Kakamond to begin gradually believing it. The lie has partially come true. Erudition authority increased. Gained 10,000 Chronicle Points!]
[Remaining Chronicle Points: 92,009]
Kiana: ???
Good grief. So this Polka really did judge people by the situation.
Just moments ago she'd been too stingy to drop even a single point. But now that Kiana had seemingly powered up, she was suddenly starting to believe?
What was that supposed to be — snobbery?
To be fair, Kiana's guess wasn't completely wrong. It was only after seeing Kiana's strength that Polka began to waver, just slightly, regarding the information she had spoken of.
Originally, in Polka's mind, Kiana had merely been an exceptionally powerful Emanator of Destruction.
Her battle strength was undoubtedly formidable, but Polka had been confident she could handle her.
After all, in Polka's eyes, the only reason Kiana had managed to unleash that astonishing strike against simulated Nanook was because she had overdrawn her power and relied on that peculiar weapon.
And yet, from the aura Kiana was now releasing, she was clearly in peak condition.
Could it be that she had still been holding back even while facing Nanook?
"Interesting." Not only did Polka fail to retreat, she actually took another step forward.
Then she shrugged off her scholar's robe, and the candy-colored gauze dress beneath began to sway.
Even the face that had previously revealed nothing at all began to show the faintest outline.
"That strike against Nanook… and it barely drained you?"
Kiana only smiled, saying nothing.
At times like this, silence carried more force than explanation.
But just as the tension between them reached its sharpest point, a familiar fluctuation suddenly rippled beside Kiana.
"Kiana! Can you hear me?"
It was Herta's voice, unmistakably urgent.
Immediately afterward, two flashes of light appeared, and the two little birds reemerged at Kiana's side.
Kiana blinked. "You're back?"
She really hadn't expected Herta and Ruan Mei to reconnect to the Simulated Universe.
She had assumed Polka had already sealed them out entirely.
But Herta was in no mood to answer at leisure. She glared sharply at Polka.
"Lord of Silence, you dare hack into my Simulated Universe? What exactly are you trying to pull?"
The purple bird flapped its wings and positioned itself in front of Kiana protectively.
Compared to Herta's open fury, Ruan Mei seemed far calmer.
"Ms. Polka, with your status, doing something like this seems rather inappropriate."
In those few words, both geniuses made their positions crystal clear.
They had absolutely no intention of letting Polka take Kiana away.
But to be honest, neither Herta nor Ruan Mei had much confidence in facing Polka at this moment.
After all, they had only just forced their way back into the Simulated Universe. They were nowhere near full condition.
Polka, on the other hand, was an entirely different matter.
"In your current state, you can't stop me." Polka's tone was calm, but her certainty was absolute.
Herta's little bird form tensed slightly, yet refused to yield even half a step. "Whether we can stop you or not, we'll only know after fighting. If you dare touch my person in my territory, then even if you're the Lord of Silence, I'll make you pay for it."
The protectiveness in those words was impossible to miss, and warmth stirred faintly in Kiana's heart.
Though Herta was usually arrogant, prickly, and sharp-tongued, when it really mattered, she was surprisingly dependable.
Polka looked at the two geniuses in front of her and suddenly chuckled.
"Are you sure you can protect her?"
The moment those words fell, the atmosphere around Polka changed as well.
The pressure she had kept hidden, so faint it was nearly nonexistent, erupted in an instant, and the very space of the Simulated Universe began to tremble.
Herta and Ruan Mei's expressions changed at the same time.
As members of the Genius Society, they understood better than anyone just how terrifying Polka Kakamond truly was.
The title Lord of Silence had not been earned for nothing.
There were more dead geniuses at her hands than one could count on one hand.
And yet, right then, Kiana moved.
She gently pushed Herta aside and stepped forward.
"Kiana?" Herta cried out.
"It's fine." Kiana did not look back, her eyes fixed squarely on Polka. "Since Ms. Polka is so eager to test things out, I'll play with her."
But this time, Kiana did not move to attack immediately.
Instead, she looked at Polka and said, "Ms. Polka, you should possess some kind of authority or method specifically effective against Erudition, shouldn't you?"
The instant Kiana said that, Polka's gaze tightened slightly.
Speculation of that sort was not uncommon in the galaxy.
After all, Polka herself was a genius, yet she had also hunted and slain many other geniuses.
What she couldn't understand was why Kiana would bring it up now.
For some reason, a thread of unease suddenly rose in Polka's heart.
Then Kiana continued.
"Unfortunately for you…"
"With my aunt's help—"
"I specialize in countering Erudition."
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 175)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League (Chapter 119)
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter105)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter100)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter79)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter125)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 70
From Junkman to Wasteland 60
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 40
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 73
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 55
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 66
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 64
The Way the Umamusume Look at 63
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 55
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 45
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 31
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 31
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 31
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