Frez viewed Terra as an absolute cesspool.
It seemed that across the multiverse, very few places bearing the name ‘Terra’ ever amounted to anything pleasant, and the particular Land of Terra he currently called home was no exception.
It was a brutal, unforgiving continent where a monarch lacked cruelty at their own peril.
Gentleness was a fatal flaw; to be soft meant being devoured until not even bones remained.
After all, one couldn’t expect a society of animal-eared inhabitants to forge highly progressive, utopian systems.
Though, to give credit where it was due, their capacity for stirring up catastrophic trouble was genuinely top-tier.
Between the Catastrophes ravaging the landscape, the incurable spread of Oripathy, the encroaching Seaborn from the abyssal depths, and the Demons lurking in the northern tundras…
the land was truly a world of ‘vibrant life where all things compete’—usually to the death.
Hearing Frez casually list off the apocalyptic horrors of his world actually managed to lift the heavy weight pressing down on Kiana’s chest.
Her own problems suddenly felt a little less isolating.
She reached out, giving his shoulder a firm, encouraging pat.
“I’ll help you out when I can.
Keep hanging in there.”
“Good luck to us both.”
Kiana’s gaze drifted toward a distant billboard, her expression softening.
“Durandal is the real Kiana.
I want to return the name to her.”
Frez leaned against the wall, crossing his arms.
“She won’t care.
She already adores you as a younger sister.
Durandal has always known exactly what she wants out of life, and a name isn’t going to change that.
Keep using it for now.
You can ask her yourself when you finally meet her.
Besides, Siegfried gave you that name for a reason—he hoped you would inherit your sister’s life and her sheer will to keep living.”
“Dad…” Kiana murmured, her hands clenching into fists.
She stood up, a familiar, stubborn fire reigniting in her cerulean eyes.
“The most urgent thing right now is dealing with the Herrscher of the Void.” She hesitated, glancing inward.
“Class Monitor…
is this really going to work?”
She was terrified of being manipulated again.
Trust didn’t come easily anymore, especially considering Fu Hua was the very person who had personally abducted her from St.
Freya and dragged her to Schicksal Headquarters.
“No problem.
She’s on your side now,” Frez assured her.
Within the quiet space of her mind, Fu Hua’s calm, measured voice echoed.
“Kiana, you can trust me completely.
He is correct.
The Taixu Sword Qi can indeed help you better control your Honkai Energy.
It will also fortify your mind, allowing you to suppress the will of the Herrscher of the Void and prevent another awakening.”
Kiana let out a slow breath.
“I understand.
Let’s start right now.”
“Before we begin your training, you need to rest,” Fu Hua instructed gently.
“You are wound far too tight.
A bowstring kept taut will eventually snap.
You need time to recover.”
Kiana shook her head, her posture stiffening.
She didn’t want to rest.
The moment she closed her eyes, the nightmares of her past and the blood on her hands would catch up to her.
Worse, she was terrified that the Herrscher of the Void would seize control the second she slipped into unconsciousness.
Sleep was a luxury she couldn’t afford.
“I don’t want to rest.
I’m going to go sit with Himeko-sensei for a while.”
She made her way down the pristine, sterile corridors to Himeko’s recovery room.
Rita was already there, holding a freshly printed medical report.
“In addition to severe Honkai Energy corrosion, she has sustained multiple bone fractures, micro-fissures, extensive muscle strain, soft tissue contusions, and a completely ruptured Achilles tendon., her brain activity indicates deep mental trauma from an unknown cause.
The physical damage will require at least two months of intensive rehabilitation, but the mental aspect…”
Rita lowered the clipboard, taking a quiet breath.
“She may fall into a prolonged, deep sleep.
Something akin to a vegetative state.
The medical staff cannot predict when, or if, she will wake up.”
Frez stared through the observation glass at Himeko’s motionless form, his mind racing through the timeline.
“If I remember correctly, Himeko gained the acknowledgment of the Gem of Haste at the very end of the battle.
As long as her body survives, she has the potential to become the new Herrscher of Flame.
Is it possible that a fragment of her consciousness merged into the Gem of Haste during the clash?”
Rita considered this, her brow furrowing slightly.
“If her consciousness is fragmented, that is a plausible theory.
However…
we currently have no way of tracking the Gem of Haste.”
“It’s in the Sea of Quanta,” Frez stated matter-of-factly.
“The Herrscher of Domination will eventually target Kiana’s world, and they’ll salvage the Gem.
That won’t happen for about half a year.
Trying to dive into the vast, chaotic depths of the Sea of Quanta to find one specific Gem is like looking for a needle in a cosmic haystack.
We can only wait for the opportunity to deliver itself to us.”
“Then I need to head back immediately,” Kiana declared, turning toward the door.
“Please take good care of Himeko-sensei while I’m gone.
Once I have enough money, I’ll pay whatever the medical fees are.”
She was desperate to return to her own world and prepare for the Herrscher of Domination’s arrival.
But before she could take another step, Rita stepped smoothly into her path.
“There is no need to be in such a frantic hurry, Miss Kiana,” Rita chided gently.
“Before you do anything else…
how about a proper meal and a hot bath?”
Despite Kiana’s protests, Rita firmly guided the exhausted girl out the door.
Frez didn’t intervene, simply turning and walking the other way.
Schicksal’s specialized medical staff would monitor Himeko around the clock; there was nothing more they could do here.
Besides, Kiana possessed the Umbra: Void Umbrella.
She could freely traverse between the two universes whenever she pleased.
Once she fully mastered her spatial clearance, traveling between worlds would be as simple as opening a door.
Under Rita’s uncompromising care, Kiana was ushered into a dining room and then a luxurious bath.
She finally stripped off the battered, grime-covered White Comet battlesuit she had been living in for weeks.
Freshly scrubbed, she changed into a simple, comfortable set of casual clothes.
Without the armor, she just looked like an ordinary girl next door.
“Thank you for everything.
I really should head back now,” Kiana insisted, toweling off her damp hair.
Rita merely smiled, her crimson eyes gleaming with a hidden warmth.
“While you were eating, Mr.
Frez asked me to arrange a small favor.” She glanced out the window, watching a sleek, compact Schicksal transport ship touch down on the landing pad outside.
“Please wait patiently for just a moment.”
Rita poured a steaming cup of black tea, set it on the table, and gracefully exited the room.
Kiana sat on the edge of the sofa, feeling like she was sitting on pins and needles.
Her anxiety was spiking; she just wanted to go home.
Then, soft footsteps echoed from the hallway.
The door clicked open.
A woman with flowing white hair stepped into the room.
Kiana froze.
The breath hitched in her throat, her cerulean eyes widening to the point of tearing.
The woman offered a gentle, radiant smile.
“When Rita first contacted me about this, I honestly thought it was an April Fool’s joke.
After all, I had just received a frantic report from Theresa complaining that my Kiana had climbed over the academy wall and run off again.
But seeing you now…
I realize you and my daughter are indeed quite different.”
Cecilia Schariac stepped forward.
She didn’t hesitate.
She leaned down and wrapped her arms around the stunned, trembling girl, pulling her into a warm, fiercely protective embrace.
“Although I am not the mother from your world, you must have suffered so terribly to make it all this way, haven’t you?”
The dam broke.
All the fear, the guilt, the exhaustion, and the crushing loneliness Kiana had been carrying shattered in an instant.
Tears spilled down her cheeks in a torrent.
She buried her face into the woman’s shoulder, her fingers desperately clutching the fabric of her dress.
“Mama…”
“I’m right here, Kiana,” Cecilia whispered, stroking the girl’s white hair.
“You can be my daughter, too.
I know the me from your world would feel the exact same way.
No mother could ever reject a girl as brave and beautiful as you.”
Cecilia held her tightly, letting Kiana’s tears soak into her collar.
This child had endured far too much.
She just needed a safe place to finally fall apart.
Out in the hallway, Frez and Rita stood silently on either side of the door, guarding the entrance like two statues.
They listened as the desperate wailing inside slowly subsided into exhausted, quiet sobs.
Only then did they step away, walking down the corridor.
“Mr.
Frez,” Rita began, her tone carrying a note of genuine curiosity.
“What made you think to ask Lady Cecilia to comfort Miss Kiana?”
“Because a mother’s embrace is the one thing she has craved her entire life,” Frez replied, his hands tucked into his pockets.
“For a young lady who only ever knew her father from birth—and barely spent any time with him before being forced to wander alone—a mother was nothing more than a fantasy.
Right now, there are only two people in existence who can make her drop her guard enough to actually release her pent-up trauma: Cecilia and Himeko.
Since the Himeko from her world won’t be waking up anytime soon, I had to borrow the Lady Cecilia of this world.
Looks like it worked perfectly.”
Rita smiled, a rare expression of pure softness crossing her features.
“You really are quite gentle, aren’t you?”
“Ah, the cursed ‘yasashii’ protagonist trait,” Frez muttered dryly.
“I couldn’t have forced her to sleep soundly on my own.
She needed this.”
Faintly, through the walls, he could hear Cecilia humming a soft, rhythmic nursery rhyme.
Knowing Kiana was finally resting, Frez opened the exterior door and stepped out into the cool air.
“I’m going to go track down this world’s Kiana,” Frez said.
“Hopefully, she hasn’t caused too much of a mess.”
The moment the words left his mouth, a translucent holographic interface chimed to life in his vision.
[Kiana: Human!
The Rita in this world mistook me for her Kiana and brought a whole squad to hunt me down!
She even brought a massive green dog!
Get over here and deal with her!]
Frez blinked, his lips twitching into a smirk as he typed back.
[Dump Truck Hater: You’re telling me you can’t beat Rita?]
[Kiana: I ate way too much!
I’m stuffed and I don’t want to move!]
Frez let out a quiet snort, dismissing the screen.
Kiana.
Truly, as expected of you.
[Akarin’s Note:
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