Ryn walked to Theresa's side and stood with her, looking resolutely at Kiana and Mei.
"Even if this is all just a dream... it's a real enough dream! If you think none of this matters, then you shouldn't have created this world in the first place!
The hearts that are still beating at this moment, the lingering affection for one another... and the true feelings formed by going through all of this together...
If these are also fake, then what is real, even in the real world!
Kiana... have you forgotten why you chose to stay in this world, forgotten the purpose for which you created her?"
"Heh... I'm such an idiot... I really can't win an argument against you..."
Kiana gave Theresa and Ryn a grateful look. She wanted to smile her thanks, but she had been crying in sorrow for so long that she had forgotten how.
Kiana raised the hand that was holding Mei's, her stiff, sorrowful face showing some genuine emotion.
"Mei... it doesn't matter what happens to the world... it doesn't matter if it's real or fake... as long as we can stay by each other's side.
This is what I've always wanted to say to you, but never dared to..."
"!!?"
Mei blinked rapidly, looking at Kiana in some surprise.
"Kiana... you..."
"I know you've always been bound by your past self... but I just want to be by your side at this moment. Forgetting our Herrscher identities... forgetting our sins... just the two of us, sleeping peacefully until the very last second of the world..."
"Kiana... I... I... but... everything I've done... what meaning does it have now!" Mei looked at Kiana in disbelief.
"Theresa and Ryn are right. Even if everything is fake, as long as these feelings are real, that's enough... We just realized it too late... Mei, come back... come back to my side."
Kiana's words suddenly stopped. She clutched her head in pain, and the light in her eyes dimmed even further.
"Kiana!!" Mei called out Kiana's name anxiously.
Kiana forced back the Will of the Honkai's control over her and regained her body.
"Heh... so persistent... The Honkai is already calling to me. It seems I must say goodbye again. Thank you all... for letting me remember my past self before I turn back into a Herrscher.
Goodbye, Theresa, Bronya, Seele... and Penglaiji Ryn and Ryn...
Let's go, Mei. Let's return to that place where no one can disturb us..."
"Wait... don't go!" Ryn tried to stop Kiana and Mei from leaving.
But Kiana just gave a bleak smile and shook her head.
"It's enough..."
*Rumble—*
A massive white tower erupted from the ground where Academy City stood, carrying Kiana and Mei beyond the Earth's atmosphere...
It was a construct built from Kiana and Mei's own power, to separate themselves from this world...
It was also... the tombstone they had erected for this world.
When the Honkai erupts again, the Herrscher of Finality will descend once more and destroy everything... This was the unchangeable ending Mei spoke of...
Mei had been acting like a madwoman, trying to kill everyone, for two reasons. One, because this world brought them nothing but a painful, endless cycle...
Two, because as long as living beings exist, the Honkai will exist. And as long as the Honkai exists, Kiana will eventually revert to that merciless killing machine, the Herrscher of Finality...
——————————————
"So it has come to this..."
"The countdown to destruction has begun. The laws of nature are explained in the most rational way, and the fall of civilization will be the final conclusion."
"Perhaps such an outcome is the best release for this dead and desolate world, but I just can't accept such an answer..."
"There's no other way... The pursuit of survival is the only commonality of life, and it's the same even for us..."
「Stigmata Space connection initiated...」
"Who made us the selfish creatures known as humans, after all."
Aboard the Hyperion, Yiselian, who was monitoring the Honkai and the death spot while muttering to herself, covered her small mouth in surprise.
Did someone just answer her monologue inside her own head?
...…
A short while later, Yiselian put down her notepad and looked at her reflection on the monitor.
In the real world, the real Yiselian had used the ancient weapon—Femirins—to connect to Penglaiji Ryn's Stigmata Space and enter this world...
Because a version of Yiselian already existed in this world, the real Yiselian's existence resonated with the Stigmata Yiselian. Their memories and existences merged, creating a new Yiselian.
At the same time, another troublemaker had barged in... Sin.
——————————————
A short while later, Ryn, leading Penglaiji Ryn and the others, caught up with the Hyperion.
Since Mei and Kiana had both left Earth, they no longer had to worry about a Herrscher attack. All they could do was quietly wait for the death spot in the sky to erupt and destroy everything...
"How did a few more show up... I don't think Janna is the type to eat random things..."
Ryn stood in front of Yiselian, looking at this sneaky, flustered version of her.
"Ryn, what are you talking about? Please move aside... I have something to discuss with Penglaiji Ryn."
Yiselian's guilty eyes darted around. Having received the memories of her other self, Yiselian was completely baffled by Ryn's existence...
Why is there a male Ryn! Does Penglaiji Ryn's subconscious get this wild!
And he throws around black holes like they're free! Welt nearly exhausted himself just to make a black hole a few thousand meters wide!! Have some respect for the First Herrscher, will you!
"I have a feeling you're thinking something rude..."
"Ha... not at all... hahaha."
"Alright, Yiselian, stop pretending. I can tell at a glance that your form of existence has changed..."
"You can even tell that? I thought since my behavior and habits are all the same... I wouldn't be found out."
"You're overthinking it... If it were the original Yiselian, she would've been dragged off by someone to help by now. When would she have time to run around like this..."
"Hehe... I knocked Emisha out..."
Yiselian scratched her head sheepishly. Because the situation was urgent, she had knocked out Emisha, who had come to her for help, with a wrench and then ran all the way here to find Penglaiji Ryn.
"How's the situation in reality?"
"Not good... I'll tell you when I'm in front of Penglaiji Ryn, so I don't have to repeat myself."