Is there still a chance?
This sudden turn of events plunged everyone from Anti-Entropy into silence.
"Before I killed the First Herrscher, 'God' told me something very interesting."
The boy—who was indeed a Herrscher, but one who served a Will of Honkai completely unrelated to the human civilization of this world—curled his thin lips into a smile.
The smile was as bright and sunny as ever.
"The humans of the Previous Era invented a technology to seal Honkai energy."
"They used a weapon called the Moonlight Throne to dissolve thirty percent of the power of the Fourteenth Herrscher—the Herrscher of the End—and then sealed it on the moon."
"'God' is calling for me to take the power stored on the moon. When I devour that power, I will obtain four more Authorities—Wind, Flame, Thunder, and Death—and enter my complete form."
As if he were chatting with a friend, the Second Herrscher spoke words that made the hearts of everyone present turn to dead ashes.
His words revealed a great deal of information.
For instance, the Previous Era.
For instance, the Herrscher of the End.
And for instance, the power sealed on the moon.
The Second Herrscher, having already devoured the core of the Herrscher of Reason, was already powerful to the point of being nearly invincible.
But—
From his own words, it was clear he was not yet in his final form; he could still become stronger.
When he ascended to the moon, he would possess six Authorities.
Possessing six Authorities—that was his true form as the god who would judge humanity.
A sense of powerlessness, like a crazily spreading vine, crept into the hearts of all who understood.
In their fight against just one of his cores, they had already lost their Sovereign and had the Herrscher of Reason's core stolen from them.
What would happen when he took on his six-core form?
"I imagine your intention isn't just to show off your power to us," Tesla said. After a long silence, she looked up at the Second Herrscher, who was calmly explaining his power and future to them.
Anyone in Anti-Entropy could imagine the depth of grief this woman, who was fated to marry Welt, was feeling right now. But even so, she stood forward as the current person in charge of Anti-Entropy, facing the 'god' who had killed Welt in the time it took for a nuke to be launched and to fall.
"Of course not."
The boy, who had only used a single Herrscher of Reason core from beginning to end, shrugged. A troubled expression, as if he'd run into some annoyance, appeared on his face.
"According to 'God,' I should be heading to the moon now to absorb the power originating from the Herrscher of the End, and then pass judgment on human civilization."
He chuckled lightly. His face was as exquisite and cute as a doll's, but his smile carried an undisguised, crude meaning.
"But cleansing the surface civilization is a really boring affair. It's far less interesting than the feeling of fighting my predecessor."
"So, I was thinking, if I were to give the power 'God' bestowed upon me, as well as the wisdom of the Previous Era preserved on the moon, to humanity, wouldn't this planet be able to produce humans even stronger than my predecessor?"
These unbelievably insane words came from the Second Herrscher's mouth.
Like a ten-thousand-ton boulder crashing into a river, or a hurricane raging across the ocean, his words plunged everyone present into an unprecedented state of shock.
The Second Herrscher, an Apostle of God, had decided to bestow upon humanity the very power given to him by 'God,' along with all the knowledge from the Previous Era's base on the moon.
"D-do you have any idea what you're saying?"
Einstein, stunned by the Second Herrscher's decision, could barely maintain a steady pace in her speech.
"My predecessor was weak, but the feeling of fighting him was quite good. Much more interesting than lighting firecrackers with the Yellowstone volcano or tearing open the atmosphere."
The Herrscher, who practically had 'arrogance' written all over his face, seemed to be in high spirits, his smile carrying an air of complete self-absorption.
"So, I'll hand over the power 'God' gave me to my servants, and then let them accept humanity's challenge."
"As long as you can defeat them, those Authorities will belong to you."
Because blowing up the Yellowstone volcano seemed fun, he decided to go to America to activate it.
Because fighting the First Herrscher would bring him pleasure, he provoked Welt and dueled him.
Because he wanted to fight against powerful humans, he decided to grant the power of the Herrscher of the End to humanity and give them the wisdom of the Previous Era.
…
This guy had never once cared about the mission 'God' had given him!
Watching the Second Herrscher's cheerful tone, Einstein and Tesla realized this in an instant.
All he cared about was whether he was having fun.
"Try to use the power of the Herrscher gems and the wisdom of the Previous Era to challenge me."
And then—
As if giving a special piece of advice, the Second Herrscher pointed to the white-haired man who had inherited Kevin's genes. He then casually tossed the Divine Key known as the Might of An-Utu next to him and said:
"A friendly reminder: this guy's bloodline is strange. If it's fully activated, he might be able to try his hand against me."
A bloodline that could contend with a Herrscher?
What was that?
A torrent of words, containing a massive amount of information relevant to the coming trial, fell upon the ears of the Anti-Entropy members one after another.
For a moment, they didn't even have time to grieve their Sovereign's death.
"That's all I have to say."
The boy, who had planted the disaster-in-waiting named "Welt" within his own body, spoke to the members of Anti-Entropy, who still hadn't fully processed everything.
He had already thrown down the method to strengthen Siegfried to a level where he could harm him, along with the matching Divine Key—the Might of An-Utu.
Next was to have those kids debut as pseudo-Herrschers, and then swap one of them out for Dull Goose.
I did promise little Sirin I'd resurrect her companions, the boy thought idly.
But speaking of which, should I make Bella's body a giant dragon? Otherwise, it just feels like it lacks soul.
Li Zihan's thoughts drifted aimlessly.
Once Dull Goose beat Otto to within an inch of his life, he could take Cecilia's soul. Then, he would have Welt and Siegfried coordinate from the inside and out to defeat the "Second Herrscher," allowing him to return to the future and live carefreely.
But before that, he had to make a trip to the moon.
His mind filled with thoughts of going home and cuddling with his girls, the boy called forth the companion Honkai Beast linked to his divinity.
And then—
A colossal shadow blotted out the sun.
It was as if night had fallen.
The dragon, possessing the Principle of Regression and capable of occupying the entire Earth in just fifty days, tore through the Imaginary Space and descended upon the world.
The Second Herrscher leaped up, landing on the great dragon's back.
He turned his head, giving the members of Anti-Entropy a small smile filled with deep meaning.
"Goodbye, everyone."
"I hope you won't disappoint me too much."