---o---
Li Zihan was in a very good mood.
Excellent, even.
Just a moment ago, he had successfully moved Kiana, making the girl who had been avoiding him stop running away, even letting her borrow his warmth for a bit.
Although their relationship hadn't been explicitly defined, as long as he maintained this kind of interaction, it wouldn't be long before she became his and his alone.
At that time, whether it was holding her while gazing at the scenery from the edge of the sky, or listening to her voice after the lights went out, it would be a boundless pleasure.
Besides, as long as he left Siegfried on the moon and pinned the blame on Otto and Welt, getting Kiana and Sirin to reconcile would be no difficult task at all.
Therefore, with a little effort in the future, he might even be able to try bringing them both to bed together.
The mere thought of such a scene was thrilling.
After enjoying the view with the little princess, the man who had used the Authority of the Void to send her back to Ishtar's temple could practically foresee that moment.
The scene was so wonderful that, honestly, Li Zihan was already tempted to finish his mission as quickly as possible, go back, and launch Siegfried away in the name of a hero.
But, speaking of which, the Honkai world was actually full of messes waiting for him to clean up.
The youth mused, standing atop the massive Honkai dragon.
He had to get his story straight with Otto and Welt, hold a wedding with Seele, give an explanation to the wonderfully kind Miss Mei, resolve Herrscher Sirin's emotional baggage, retrieve Cecilia's soul, deal with Yae Sakura's memories, save Private Welt Joyce...
Damn.
In less than a few months, so many problems had piled up, waiting for him to handle.
Li Zihan's heart skipped a beat.
If he didn't deal with them soon, these matters would fester into an unsalvageable mess, making them much harder to resolve.
This wouldn't do. He had to go back sooner.
So, it really was better to just kidnap Gudako and get it over with.
Li Zihan thought as he looked at the girl, whose face was beautiful, but whose captivating charm was definitely not on the same level as a certain male Master.
Use Guda to command Merlin's #1 Fan, use Merlin's #1 Fan to repel Goetia. This was the first step of his plan.
Furthermore, Kingu, the synthetic demonic beast modeled after Enkidu, had also made his appearance.
As long as he took him out, he could get his hands on a Holy Grail.
And who knows, there might even be some extra little gifts dropped.
The youth, vaguely recalling that the System had unlocked a "Drop" function by analyzing his 'Fire-Thief' Authority, broke into a brilliant smile.
But in the eyes of others, that brilliant expression was an entirely different sight.
A youthful god descended from the sky, his gaze filled with undisguised tyranny. Like the setting sun, a heavy pressure made the air thick and viscous like glue, making it difficult to breathe.
The youth, who had unknowingly become an extremely terrifying existence, landed on the ground and began to walk forward slowly.
Perhaps because he hadn't had these powers for long, if he didn't consciously restrain himself, the mixed aura of a God, a Herrscher, and a God-Slayer would leak out...
The oppressive feeling he gave off was far greater than that of a mere god!
Each step he took felt as if it were trampling on the hearts of everyone present.
Their hair stood on end, and cold sweat seeped out uncontrollably.
These symptoms appeared simultaneously on both Fujimaru Ritsuka and Mash.
"Ritsuka, Mash, I'm detecting a divine signature!!"
Almost shouting, Romani, far away in Chaldea, relayed the analysis.
"That's a genuine, main god-level deity!"
"And what's more, a main god with solar divinity!"
A main god with solar divinity?!
This answer left even Kingu, standing nearby, with a look of utter shock.
The brilliant golden sun shines upon the Earth year after year. People have always revered the sun, worshipping it as a deity and creating countless thrilling solar myths.
The sun thus became the most universal symbol in the mythologies of all the world's peoples.
Among beliefs born from nature worship, sun worship was the most crucial element.
Any being possessing solar divinity was never to be trifled with.
And to possess the solar divinity of a main god... that was a level of power that "ferocious" couldn't even begin to describe.
They were beings who stood at the apex of their respective pantheons. A considerable number of them were, in fact, God-Kings, the Supreme Gods themselves!!
"Nice to meet you, Gudako."
The youth greeted the girl he was about to kidnap in a cheerful tone.
"N-Nice to meet you."
Although she didn't sense any malice when he looked at her, the girl, feeling an immense sense of crisis, swallowed hard and returned the greeting.
"Aren't you going to say hello to me? The child of the Beast of Regression—Kingu."
As if to remind them of something, the youth naturally placed a heavy emphasis on the name "Kingu."
The child of the Beast of Regression?
Like a single stone setting off a thousand waves, this title made the faces of Fujimaru Ritsuka beside him and Romani in Chaldea change drastically.
The so-called Beasts were great calamities rejected by Human History, totaling seven great Evils of Humanity.
The Evils of Humanity referred to the various disasters that threatened and sought to destroy human history. They were born from human civilization itself, growing stronger with humanity's development, only to destroy civilization from within, like cancerous cells.
In other words, they were the sludge that had settled at the bottom of Human History.
And if Enkidu was the child of the Beast of Regression...
No, that wasn't right.
The unknown sun god had addressed "Enkidu" as "Kingu"!
Kingu, from the myths! Tiamat's child, the god who led her armies against Marduk!
Cold sweat once again trickled uncontrollably down Miss Ritsuka's back.
The most loyal child of the primordial goddess, who had been exiled by the Sumerian gods, had approached her and Mash under the name "Enkidu"...
No matter how you looked at it, this was all kinds of wrong!
"Mash!"
Without a moment's hesitation, Fujimaru Ritsuka took a step back, moving away from Kingu's side.
And then—
The Demi-Servant named Mash stepped forward, protecting her Master, her eyes warily fixed on the beautiful person now called "Kingu" and the unknown sun god whose method of arrival was, by all accounts, terrifying.
"Unknown sun god, you talk too much."
Watching Fujimaru Ritsuka's wary posture, Kingu's expression turned grim.
A dreadful magical energy began to rise from his body.
Kingu, born from Enkidu, was a synthetic demonic beast capable of contending with gods.
Empowered by the Holy Grail, if he were to unleash his full strength, he could utterly slaughter the Mistress of Heaven—Ishtar!
"But it no longer matters."
Completely unaware of just how terrible his compatibility was with his enemy, the voice of the Remains of Heaven was as cold as ice, seemingly capable of freezing space itself.
"Allow me to kill you all right here."
---o---
Author's Note:
PS: I'm guessing the next volume will have to return to the Honkai plot for a bit.
I didn't notice before, but I've left so many loose ends (gazes at the sky).