However, although Kiana was currently dissatisfied with the performance of Schicksal, this so-called 'anti-Honkai organization,' she wasn't desperate enough to give up.
To be blunt, Kiana Kaslana was not the type of young lady to be coddled.
Ever since her father disappeared, she had, at the tender age of twelve, made her way from Europe all the way to Asia.
Although her safe journey across such a long distance had a bit to do with her good luck, it was inseparable from Kiana's own efforts.
How could Kiana, who had always fought alone, give up just because another organization was unreliable?
Nagazora City wasn't the first city she had stopped in.
This place had her friends, her classmates, and millions of innocent people.
The thought that a Honkai Eruption could cause these innocent people to be displaced or even lose their lives made Kiana's mind race even faster.
Then, she immediately thought of a solution.
To put it simply, modern society is different from ancient times; information and communication are highly developed.
On the forum, Kiana was 'assassinated' by the administrator's post deletion and ban—but that didn't mean she couldn't notify the other people of Nagazora City through other channels.
With the prototype of a plan already formed, Kiana took out her phone and started searching for a map of Nagazora City.
And upon opening her phone again, Kiana let out a slow sigh of relief.
"Good, the phone is still working normally."
This operation will inevitably expose me to Schicksal's line of sight... but I can't worry about that now.
Millions of people in Nagazora City could die because of the Honkai. As a warrior of the Kaslana family, how could I shrink back, hide, and choose to live for myself because of something like this?
And if this plan succeeds, then even if Senior Leo and Mei's phones are still off, there's a very high probability they'll know that something big is about to happen in Nagazora City.
Great, it's a happy decision.
Walking on the side of the road, Kiana looked at a few punks who had just gotten off their motorcycles and suddenly surrounded her, letting out a helpless sigh.
"Sigh... I'm really done with this."
"Miss, I see you're alone—"
Before the lead punk could finish his harassing words, Kiana sent him flying with a direct uppercut.
The other few punks didn't even have time to react before Kiana took them down with a few punches and kicks.
"Sorry, this young lady is in a hurry today."
Taking the motorcycle keys from their hands, Kiana rode off on the motorcycle, leaving them behind.
The Honkai could erupt at any moment...
Mei, and Senior Leo, you two better be okay.
....
Nagazora City. Hokushin Ittō-ryū Dojo.
After narrowly avoiding a dangerous blow, a panting Raiden Mei put some distance between herself and Leo.
Only a few minutes had passed since they had started fighting.
And after Mei got serious, the gap between them had indeed narrowed.
In the beginning, Mei even had Leo on the defensive.
However, this situation didn't last long.
Mei, who thought she could suppress her opponent and then snowball that advantage to a complete victory, gradually discovered—Leo was still getting stronger.
Leo's reaction speed hadn't changed much, but the problem was that after fighting for a while, Leo actually started using moves from Hokushin Ittō-ryū.
At first, his moves were very clumsy, but after a while, the techniques Leo used became more and more proficient.
And during the fight, Raiden Mei discovered something else.
Even after Leo got stronger, Raiden Mei could still see a lot of openings on him.
But fighting up to this point, she no longer thought she could actually use these openings to break through the enemy's defense.
These openings were real.
But Leo cleverly used them to lure her into attacking when she shouldn't, and instead used these openings to catch Raiden Mei off guard several times.
At this moment, Mei completely realized that her competitive spirit as a swordswoman had been fully awakened in her heart.
If this continues, I'll just be completely deprived of my last chance of victory by the ever-improving Leo.
If I want to beat Leo, then now...!
This time, betting victory or defeat on the next blow, Mei felt that her body and mind had both reached their peak.
The essence of Hokushin Ittō-ryū is 'unifying mind, spirit, and strength in an instant,' with attacks that are fluid and seamless.
And at this moment, Mei, who had reached her limit, saw Leo's sword-swinging motion clearly, and used that to predict his next move.
One strike.
Mei, who had condensed her body and soul to the extreme, used the bamboo sword in her hand to directly knock the bamboo sword from Leo's hand.
However, just as she was about to cheer, Mei suddenly realized that Leo, who had been disarmed—had no intention of stopping his movements at all.
Eh, wait, isn't Leo doing all this just to get my spirits up????
Looking at the opponent rushing towards her, Mei, who had just gotten into the zone, was immediately thrown out of her hard-won optimal state by excessive panic.
Then, before she could land her next blow, Mei was punched in the stomach by Leo and immediately fell to her knees on the ground from the intense pain.
"W...hy..."
"I never said when the fight was over, did I?"
Looking at Mei, who was clutching her stomach with a hint of lightning flashing in her eyes and an incredibly wronged expression, Leo said very coldly.
"In a fight, an enemy won't stop fighting just because they've lost their weapon."
"Until the enemy has lost the ability to fight, you absolutely cannot let your guard down for even a moment."
"Yes..."
Staggering to her feet, Mei watched as Leo put both their bamboo swords back in the cabinet, then asked him cautiously.
"Um... was that it? We're not continuing?"
"That's enough for today."
At that moment, Leo, having deactivated his Mind Like Still Water state, gave Raiden Mei a deep look.
"You might still have the stamina to continue, but your mental energy is no longer sufficient to sustain a battle that requires such intense concentration."
"Clean this place up, and then I'll take you back on my motorcycle."
"Once you're home, get some proper rest."
..