When Kiana entered the space, forget about receiving educational guidance, she couldn't even find a trace of Ye Feng.
The Tuna blinked, feeling a little unaccustomed to it.
By the way—she wasn't addicted! Not addicted! Not addicted!
The Tuna shouted this loudly to herself in her mind.
She just felt that something was abnormal.
It was like when inertia is broken, an external force must have been applied. When something that repeats is suddenly changed, something must have happened somewhere unknown.
The Tuna just wanted to find the "cause" of it all and thus seize the initiative.
"It's great that he's not here to annoy me. This lady can do whatever she wants here! Kukuku."
Kiana planted her hands on her hips, gazing out over the entirety of St. Freya Academy, projecting an air of "all of this is my kingdom."
With no annoying Ye Feng and no rules to restrain her, the Tuna galloped around the campus like a wild horse that had slipped its reins.
She drew a turtle on her great-aunt's face.
She brazenly drank Himeko's treasured, aged wine right in front of her. "Ugh, this tastes awful. I really don't know why Auntie Himeko likes to drink this."
Curiously, she rummaged through Mei's wardrobe, something Kiana had always wanted to do but never dared.
The Tuna held up a pair of panties, hooking her fingers into the triangular fabric and stretching it to the sides.
"So this is the style she wears? Should I switch to the same kind?"
Kiana then went through Bronya's things. "Hahahaha, she really is a little squirt. It still has HOMU drawn on it. So childish."
But since Mei and Bronya weren't there right now, Kiana didn't play for long before leaving the dorm and heading to the classroom.
Just as she was having the time of her life, infatuated voices rose from the crowd.
"It's Sister Fu Hua!"
"Sister is so elegant and handsome again today."
"I want to be doted on by Sister."
Kiana's mood instantly deflated. Annoyed, she muttered, "What's the big deal? How can I see these guys fawning over her even in here?"
"Don't you know? In places where only girls gather, such as all-girls schools or all-female theater troupes, everyone will naturally elect a 'Sister-sama,' tacitly accepting her as the 'male' role. They worship and adore her."
Ye Feng approached from the back door and stood beside Kiana.
"Ye Feng? Where were you before?"
Ye Feng smiled slightly. "What? You didn't see me right away and missed me?"
"Who missed you!" Kiana huffed, her gaze fixed on the classmates who were fawning over Fu Hua.
Ye Feng said, "Fu Hua is calm and speaks little, she is skilled in martial arts, has excellent grades, and has a dashing and heroic bearing. She's the perfect candidate."
Kiana crossed her arms. "I couldn't care less about stuff like that. It's so boring."
"It's actually a very normal thing. Men do the same."
"You've done it too?"
"For example, in an all-male group chat, they'll always pick out the member with the meekest way of speaking and assign them the persona of a cute girl. Whether it's a bratty imp, a cool and aloof older sister, or a soft and cute loli, it makes the chats much more interesting. This is called Yin-Yang harmony, the great Dao of nature."
Kiana shot Ye Feng a sideways glance. "Yin-Yang harmony? Are you trying to say that the things you do to me are also the great Dao of nature?"
"You can draw inferences from one example. The Tuna is truly as sharp as ice and as pure as snow."
"..."
Kiana had no desire to be praised by Ye Feng in that regard.
It was like being praised for having "nice hip rotations" during exercise; it brought no happiness at all.
「Ding Dong」
「Aponia has logged into the world」
Ye Feng's eyes narrowed slightly as he murmured to himself, "Hmm? It's her who logged in."
Kiana's spirits lifted. "Someone came in? Who? Yae Sakura?"
"Not the miko. A very excellent nun. Didn't you just ask where I was? I was just exchanging insights with them."
"Oh."
"It's her first time entering, too. Does Kiana want to come along?"
"You're definitely brewing up some wicked scheme. I'm not going to act in cahoots with you."
Ye Feng burst out laughing, a sound Kiana found somewhat grating.
"What are you laughing at? It's so noisy."
"I'm just asking the Tuna to come with me. But what you do is up to you. You can warn her, or you can use your information advantage to help her, so she doesn't get bent over by me. Why is it that my good Kiana's first thought is to act in cahoots with me?"
"..."
Right, why is that?
The "knights" of the Kaslana family are supposed to always prioritize justice, with salvation and courage as their constant companions.
Kiana's heart trembled. Have I truly fallen so far?
No, that can't be.
"It's alright. Even if the Tuna joins me in developing others, indulging herself, the Tuna is still a good woman. She's my favorite Kiana."
"I'm not a bad woman! Get lost."
"Alright, I'll head off first then. Kiana, you can take your time playing here."
---o---
Although the Elysian Realm was "physically disconnected from the network," it was not an insurmountable chasm for the complete Herrscher of Erosion.
She attempted to erode it through Gray Serpent, who guarded the Elysian Realm at World Serpent's headquarters.
However, she was blocked by a powerful firewall, unable to advance an inch.
Aponia, who had become one with the Realm, immediately sensed the invasion of an external enemy.
Inside the tall, vast cathedral, surrounded by suspended, shattered pillars, sunlight slanted in from outside, illuminating a three-person-tall statue of a goddess who was bowing her head and holding a ruby apple, a symbol of sin. The statue was half in light and half in shadow, just like Aponia's mood.
The nun, who had been kneeling in prayer before the statue, slowly opened her eyes.
"...To think it is her."
Her eyelids were half-lowered, as if she couldn't bear to look upon the world's tragedies. Her expression was dignified, tinged with a compassionate sorrow for all humanity and a sacred maternal aura.
Although the nun possessed the holy temperament of a world-saving madonna, her fiery, voluptuous figure was enough to send one's imagination running wild.
Her waist was slender and snow-white, her skin smooth and delicate. Her enormous contours were faintly visible under the holy light.
Slender branches bear heavy fruit, delicious and fire-quenching.
Especially the fair, beautiful legs, peeking from beneath her flowing skirt—they were full and meaty, long and shapely, flawlessly white like translucent jade.
If one could hoist those legs over their shoulders…
"I failed to save anyone. All of this is my sin."
Aponia gazed into the void, a thread of sorrow always hidden in her distant, indifferent eyes.
At this moment, that sorrow was deepened by a sense of guilt.
She had already recognized the intruder.
"The Herrscher of Erosion… have the threads of fate begun to stir again?"
But her determination to fight the Honkai would not waver.
Her will to protect the Elysian Realm was as firm as a rock.
Aponia would never allow any "ripple of fate" to disturb this place.
However, just as Aponia was about to launch an attack, the familiar world around her vanished abruptly.
The scenery of the holy cathedral receded like a tide, replaced by a sealed, pure white room.
And above her head, a conspicuous line of text appeared—
「Abandon All Ethics, Ye Who Enter Here.」
Aponia's skirt, like the wings of a butterfly, fluttered gently. Her deep blue eyes stared at the words above.
"Where… exactly is this…"