"Ahem! Let's leave the matter of MEI and Mobius for later. More importantly, Hua, I want to ask what you think about Honkai right now. What do you think of it?"
Elysia didn't need to guess to know that, at this very moment, MEI and Mobius in the monitoring room were probably already drafting something like a "Pink Elf Eradication Plan." Breaking out in a cold sweat, she immediately changed the subject.
Faced with her question, "Fu Hua" blinked, then answered without the slightest hesitation.
"Honkai? Hmph! No matter the cost, humanity will eventually defeat Honkai. And this time, we won't lose again. This time, we won't retreat! In this civilization, we will completely resolve Honkai once and for all."
"Fu Hua" clenched one fist, her momentum surging as she declared it at the top of her voice.
"And then... we will restore the glory of the Previous Era!"
"Eh? Ah? Oh, oh!"
Elysia was completely stunned, and so was everyone in the monitoring room. "Fu Hua" was serious—just look at her eyes. That determination was as firm as if she were pledging absolute loyalty.
Elias felt like he had to applaud Senti right now.
Just look at that! Never before had there been a Herrscher so unwaveringly determined to fight for humanity from the moment of birth. Not even he, Elysia, or Welt had been this resolute back then.
It could only be said—truly worthy of the great Herrscher of Sentience!
Elysia quietly gave a thumbs-up toward the monitoring direction, signaling that the "Fu Hua" before her wasn't lying. Every word she had just said came straight from the heart.
As a Flame-Chaser bearing the Signet of [Ego], Elysia wasn't just sincere herself—she was also exceptionally skilled at detecting lies. Elias could personally vouch for that.
Back then, he had honed himself into a deceiver surpassing even Vill-V, yet he still failed to trick Elysia even once into handing over the authority of the Herrscher of Origin.
Which forced him to rely on the authority of the Herrscher of Dominance to forcibly seize Elysia's power of Origin... and to this day, the pink elf deeply regretted that incident.
Thinking back, if she had just handed over that authority directly...
"Alright, cut that out!"
"Fu Hua" suddenly chopped Elysia on the head with her hand.
"Ow! Hua, what was that for?"
"You looked like you were about to sink into some kind of flashback. I don't have time to wait for you to reminisce. Besides, Elysia, you're acting a bit strange today—why are you even asking me what I think about Honkai...?"
"Fu Hua" placed her hands on her hips, scrutinizing the pink elf in front of her before questioning her.
"What, are you trying to speak up for the enemy? Elysia, I know you're a kind Herrscher, but if you start defending Honkai, that's where you're wrong!"
"I—I—I'm not, I didn't!"
"Do you really believe what Dr. MEI and the others concluded back then? That Honkai doesn't actually want to destroy humanity, but instead wants to embrace it? Hmph! In my opinion, that's complete nonsense!"
"Uh... y-yeah! That's right! Complete nonsense!"
Elysia had already realized that this Herrscher of Sentience who believed herself to be Fu Hua truly had the temperament of a child.
And when dealing with children, the most important thing was to go along with them. Constantly contradicting them would only make things worse. So, being emotionally intelligent, she immediately changed her stance.
MEI: "..."
Having received agreement, "Fu Hua" clasped her hands behind her back and puffed out her chest—well, Fu Hua's nonexistent chest—with a hint of pride.
"That's more like it! Honkai is something to be crushed! Elysia, I acknowledge that you're a good Herrscher fighting for humanity, but you must maintain absolute loyalty to humanity—and to Elias!"
"I—I am loyal."
"Absolute loyalty! After all, there's a saying: loyalty that isn't absolute is absolutely disloyal! If I ever find out that you've been bewitched by Honkai one day, then... I'll divorce you on Elias' behalf and take you out!"
"???"
A series of question marks popped up over Elysia's head. She never expected to be threatened like this one day.
And moreover...
(What do you mean you'll divorce me on his behalf? Why does this child sound like she's the main wife?! This is infuriating! N-no, calm down, I have to stay calm!)
Elysia hurriedly took a deep breath, barely suppressing the urge to turn "Fu Hua" into a pincushion with crystal arrows.
Meanwhile, the monitoring room had already erupted into laughter. No one had expected that Elysia would one day be put in her place by "Fu~ Hua." Even Elias found it hard not to laugh.
"Alright~ do you have anything else to do next?"
After lecturing the pink elf, "Fu Hua" felt completely refreshed, her mood noticeably improved.
"Eh? I have a date with Eli—"
"Then you're free! Come on! You're doing missions with me!"
"Eh? No way~ I'm going on my date!"
"Hah! Don't run, you little elf! Today, you're coming with this Immortal whether you like it or not!"
As she spoke, "Fu Hua" summoned a chain, swiftly binding the unprepared Elysia tightly. Then, without a second glance, she flew into the sky and sped off into the distance.
Bound from head to toe, Elysia experienced such an uncomfortable flight for the first time in her life, cold sweat trickling down her back as she realized just how strong this "Fu Hua"—this Herrscher of Sentience—really was.
Perhaps because Honkai regarded her as its hope for a turnaround, it had poured even more power into her. The Senti before them was far stronger than her original counterpart by many times over.
On top of that, ever since her appearance, Mobius, Vill-V, and MEI had been constantly conducting research, significantly advancing the technological level of the Current Era—which in turn increased Honkai's intensity.
However, the Flame-Chasers who had cleared the hell-level Previous Era collectively expressed that this level was nothing to worry about.
As long as it wasn't a situation where Emperor-class Honkai Beasts were as common as dogs and Judgment-class ones roamed everywhere, they could easily handle it~
But now, with Senti occupying Fu Hua's body, from Elias' perspective, in pure combat against humans, she could indeed be considered the strongest Herrscher below Finality.
After all, she possessed the mental prowess of the Herrscher of Sentience, combined with a body that had been strengthened for fifty thousand years under the effects of SWARA. Her Honkai adaptability had reached absurd levels, and once she activated Garuda's Artificial Cascade, she would become virtually unkillable.
The strongest mind paired with a top-tier body.
Even someone like Kevin would have to enter a cascade state to fight her now.
Right now, "Fu Hua" was physically stronger than Elysia, so the bound pink elf was shocked to discover that, without getting serious, she actually couldn't break free.
"I'm being kidnapped! Help! Eli, save me~!"
"Go ahead and shout. We're already this far away. Even if you scream your throat out, no one's coming to save you—hahaha!!"
In truth, Elias could hear her. The terminal in Elysia's pocket was still connected, and their movements could also be tracked and observed through the satellite Echo of the Sky overhead.
It's just that...
Elias: "It's fine, it's fine. Senti may be a tiny bit mischievous, but she's a good kid. Elysia, don't be afraid~"
The girls: "Exactly! Keep it up! Keep crushing this pink elf! This Herrscher of Sentience is amazing!"
Elysia: (Endure... endure it. I'll just treat this as practice for raising a child with Eli in the future! No, wait—that's not right, our child would definitely be super well-behaved!)
After that, "Fu Hua" dragged Elysia along to start clearing out missions. She first headed to Shenzhou and brutally eliminated several newly born high-level Judgment-class Honkai Beasts.
Then she simply wandered wherever she pleased, clearing Honkai Beasts along the way.
Although "Fu Hua" herself didn't realize it—
As a newly born Herrscher of Sentience, she hadn't completely severed her connection with the Cocoon of Finality yet. As a result, the Honkai energy leaking from her body would still give rise to new Honkai Beasts.
However, Elysia quietly took care of this for her. The pink elf silently absorbed the excess Honkai energy, preventing an endless stream of Honkai Beasts from appearing.
"Hua, why did you suddenly decide to do missions?" Elysia asked after shooting a Frost Boar Honkai Beast apart with a single arrow.
"What kind of question is that? Eradicating Honkai is our duty. Why would I need a reason?" "Fu Hua" replied as she split an Assaka in half with a single strike.
"Hehe~ I bear the [Ego] Signet, you know. Even Eli can't fool me, so Hua, what are you really up to? Hurry up and confess."
After finishing off the last Honkai Beast, Elysia sat on a rock, resting her chin on her hands as she spoke.
(...People who can easily see through others' hearts are such a hassle. Ever heard of knowing something without saying it? I don't want to say it. Elysia, can't you just drop it?)
At this moment, "Fu Hua" didn't realize that she had unconsciously used her authority.
If it were anyone else, their consciousness might have been altered, causing them to give up asking further questions.
But the Herrscher of Origin was immune to all authorities except that of Finality—so nothing happened.
Elysia: "Stare~" (^▽^)
"Fu Hua": "Tch! Don't look at me like that... fine, fine, I'll tell you."
Perhaps no one in this world could refuse a request from the pink elf. Under that beautiful gaze, "Fu Hua"'s resolve quickly crumbled.
She scratched her head, then spoke with a hint of embarrassment.
"When I woke up today, I realized I had forgotten a lot of things. My mind felt completely blank... no, that's not quite right. The memories are still in my head. As long as I check them, I can know everything. But... Elysia, you understand."
"Mhm, mhm. Hua has way too many memories."
"Exactly! It's that damned hyperthymesia. My memories are filled with a bunch of completely useless fragments. I don't want to watch a 'movie' that lasts over five thousand years, where ninety-nine percent of it is meaningless."
"Fu Hua" held her head, complaining.
Earlier, when she first tried accessing her memories, she had been overwhelmed by the sheer volume—like 5000TB of data crashing into her all at once. It even gave her the strange feeling that she was being forcibly shaped into someone else by those memories.
In short, the experience of reading those memories had been utterly terrible. It felt like a person who couldn't swim being thrown straight into the middle of an endless ocean.
So for now, "Fu Hua" didn't want to touch her memories at all. After all, each attempt seemed to reshape her—if she did it again, wouldn't she just get completely overwhelmed?
"But if I don't read them, I can't fully understand myself. Right now, I'm like someone lost in a vast desert. Given enough time, if I sort through these memories bit by bit, I'll definitely find a way out and return to my original self."
"But... I don't have that much time."
"Fu Hua"'s tone suddenly shifted. Urgency filled the girl's eyes, as though the world itself was waiting for her—demanding that she be ready immediately.
Elysia looked at her in surprise. This "Fu Hua" seemed unable to tolerate her current incomplete self.
"Hua, why?"
"Isn't that obvious? Because I'm Fu Hua. And Fu Hua has things she must do."
As if venting, "Fu Hua" slammed her clenched fist into the remains of a Honkai Beast. It wasn't even a formal Ki Impact—yet the blow reduced it to a spray of blood.
"Elysia, I have a feeling that a new Herrscher has already appeared. So time won't wait for me. The enemy won't wait for me. My comrades won't wait for me."
"I have to accept myself right now, immediately. I must become Fu Hua again as quickly as possible!"
"And Fu Hua... she is a MANTIS of the Previous Era, the Immortal Phoenix who protects Shenzhou, one of the Fifteen Flame-Chasers. No matter which identity it is... at her core, she is a warrior who fights Honkai."
At this point, Elysia completely understood.
This Herrscher of Sentience was trying to become Fu Hua by doing what Fu Hua would do—fighting Honkai. That was why she had dragged Elysia along to diligently eliminate Honkai Beasts.
Meanwhile, in the monitoring room, the real Fu Hua—currently in a ghost-like state—felt a bit embarrassed by what had been said. After all, she had never considered herself to be anything particularly remarkable.
The others also couldn't help but sigh. This Herrscher of Sentience was truly a good child—her resolve was already this high right after being born.
"I see... Hua, that's really admirable of you. But I don't think there's any need to rush so much."
Elysia's eyes were filled with warmth. Any lingering worry in her heart had completely vanished. She gently patted the girl's shoulder as she spoke.
"After all, we have Eli on our side. He's a professional when it comes to dealing with Honkai, so it's fine if you take your time adjusting."
However, to Elysia's surprise, this remark earned her a look of disdain from the Herrscher of Sentience.
"Hmph! Elysia, that's a failing answer!" "Fu Hua" frowned, clearly displeased.
"Eh?"
"You keep saying 'Elias, Elias' all day. How can we rely on him for everything? He's been fighting for so many years—from the Previous Era to the Current Era. Hasn't he suffered enough?"
"Ugh!"
"Sure, leaving Honkai to Elias would make things easy. But what if one day he collapses from exhaustion? And besides, it's not like we lack power! Since we have power, shouldn't we help lighten his burden? We are the Fifteen Flame-Chasers, not just Elias alone."
"Fu Hua" crossed her arms, looking at the pink elf with a disappointed expression, then shook her head—like she was looking at a completely useless elf.
"Ah, Elysia... you've really been spoiled rotten by Elias. You're useless now. But maybe that's for the best. It probably won't be long before Elias notices and divorces you himself."
"Guh—!"
Elysia clutched her chest as if struck, coughing up an imaginary mouthful of blood before collapsing to her knees in despair.
She wanted to argue, but couldn't find a rebuttal. In the end, the pink elf hugged her knees, losing all color as she shut herself off.
Elysia: (Waaah... I'm sorry, Eli. I'm useless. Please don't divorce me~)