Dark Seele's question was sharp.
But even the gentle and kind Seele couldn't immediately refute her other self upon hearing it.
Seele was kind, not stupid.
Before she underwent the X-10 Experiment, Schicksal and Anti-Entropy were already at each other's throats.
And now, a year or two later, could Schicksal and Anti-Entropy suddenly shake hands and make peace?
That sort of thing is very difficult.
Right now, in this World Bubble, there were a total of six people who were not native to it.
Leo Ash, a Schicksal Knight.
Ji Lin, Yae Sakura, Cecilia, and Rin, who had once died but had their bodies reformed by the power of the World Bubble.
Finally, there was her, the adopted daughter of an Anti-Entropy executive.
Among the five others, two were members of Schicksal, and the other three had a close relationship with Leo Ash.
If Leo Ash really, because of her identity...
No, I can't suspect Big Brother Leo Ash like that!
[Huh?]
[No, Seele, wait, we've come this far, how can you still think like that???]
[Silly girl, that kind of thinking is dangerous! We haven't even picked up the brush, the ink isn't even poured, but you're already in a rush to throw yourself at him!]
...Hey, other me, why is your mind always filled with thoughts like that?
Hearing Dark Seele's frantic voice in her head, Seele helplessly continued.
If Big Brother Leo Ash wanted to harm us, he wouldn't treat us with this attitude.
[What do you know—this is a delaying tactic! He's using this method to make us lower our guard!]
Well, if I hadn't witnessed his true strength, I might have agreed with you.
But... honestly, does he even need us to lower our guard?
Seele didn't say anything explicitly.
But Dark Seele understood everything.
Initially unaware of Leo Ash's strength, Dark Seele had only intended to test him and see if she could seize his power, only to be taught a lesson.
How Dark Seele had taught Sin Mal a lesson was exactly how Leo Ash had taught Dark Seele a lesson...
Okay, that's not entirely fair.
Compared to how Dark Seele treated Sin Mal, Leo Ash was much gentler with Dark Seele.
And Leo Ash's strength wasn't limited to a single aspect.
From physical strength and Honkai Energy manipulation to even mental attacks, Leo Ash had no weaknesses whatsoever.
Honestly, if she calmed down, Dark Seele would realize that if he truly wanted to do something to the two of them, their resistance would be...
—Probably just a bit of entertainment for Leo Ash.
Noticing Dark Seele had gone silent, Seele continued to gently persuade her other self.
You see, after you provoked Big Brother Leo Ash, he didn't inflict any terrible actual harm on you.
If you were the one who met someone who started provoking you right off the bat...
[Then I would absolutely tear him apart!]
See, that's what I mean.
So I think we shouldn't worry about these things.
He hasn't done anything excessive to us and has even agreed to take us away from this place.
Under these circumstances, you shouldn't keep being upset with him.
[Tch... even if you say that, I still feel like something's not right.]
[Right, the reward!]
[Those women are soul entities whose Soul Brands are on him, they're his companions, so it's natural for Leo Ash to take them with him.]
[But not only do we have no relationship with Leo Ash, we even started off on bad terms. Yet from the moment he promised to take us with him until now, he has never mentioned any 'demands'—do you think that's reasonable?!]
Not very reasonable, I guess.
[See, you think so too, right!]
But, doesn't that just prove that Big Brother Leo Ash, as a hero fighting against the Honkai, must be a good person?
It's normal for good people to do good things. Other me, why are you making such a big deal about it?
Hearing Seele's very natural response, the Dark Seele lurking within her felt even more despair.
It's over. It's only been a few days, and Seele's line of thought is already completely biased towards that man.
Even if I point out his problems, she'll come up with a suitable reason and make excuses for him.
I can't beat him, and she won't even keep her guard up...
Cocolia, your own adoptive mother, was able to sell you out, yet after being betrayed once, you still haven't learned your lesson.
I can't carry her. I really can't.
With these thoughts surfacing in her mind, Dark Seele had already given up on communicating with Seele on this matter.
There's no use talking anymore. I should just think about how to save this silly girl if something goes wrong.
And...
Leo Ash is training in the training room. Seele really has no reason to go find him.
But now, with just a single promise, Leo Ash has completely captivated this girl's soul.
Sigh, she's a lost cause.
I wonder how complicated Big Sister would feel if she knew about this.
...
In a certain World Bubble. St. Freya High School. Training Room.
Inside the training room, Leo Ash, with his eyes tightly closed, was contemplating some things.
Over the past few days, aside from spending some time exploring the surroundings for potential exits to the World Bubble, he had spent the rest of his time studying the Blank Key on him.
After his battle with Kevin, Leo Ash, whose existence was about to disappear, hadn't been able to take off the Blank Key armor in time.
Before he forcibly reconstructed his body, he had thought the Blank Key would be left behind on the ground, just like Seven Thunders of Retribution and Oath of Judah.
But now, the Blank Key had actually been quantized and completely bonded with Leo Ash.
Because it was now bound to him, even if parts of it were damaged, the Blank Key would automatically repair itself using Leo Ash's energy when he wasn't summoning it.
And that was why the Blank Key was now in perfect condition.
Otherwise, after such a long and fierce battle with Kevin, how could the Blank Key, which had been struck by Kevin, still appear on Leo Ash's body completely unscathed.
Leo Ash couldn't figure out the principle behind it.
But he wasn't some research fanatic; he was a combatant.
A combatant only needs to know how to use their power and equipment. As for why the armor behaved this way, it was beyond his expertise, and he couldn't be bothered to delve into it.
Having confirmed that the Blank Key was durable enough to experiment with, Leo Ash naturally had new ideas.
During his first formal encounter with Gray Serpent, Leo Ash, who had annihilated Gray Serpent and a squad of Joyce clones in just a few moves, had obtained a skill called Manipulation.
After using this skill, the user could more easily control items around them with mana.
According to the skill description, the effect was something like—if driving a vehicle, it would enhance driving skills; if using a weapon, it would enhance weapon usage skills.
And depending on the intensity of the mana injected by the user, there would be a certain degree of improvement in the item's performance, such as speed, power, penetration, and so on.
Leo Ash had only used this skill once, and on that first use, because he was in a hurry, he injected too much mana into a motorcycle, causing it to explode because it couldn't handle the excess mana.
As for why he hadn't used it for so long since then...
To be fair, only a little over a month had passed since his battle with Yuna.
And after he obtained the Blank Key, he didn't know the limits of this great treasure.
Previously, Leo Ash was already struggling just to use the Blank Key in conjunction with the Divine Keys for combat.
If he hadn't now obtained his own Herrscher Core, received a power-up, and confirmed that the Blank Key was even 'sturdier', he wouldn't dare use a skill that could potentially destroy his equipment on such a powerful suit of armor.
[That's right, just as you imagined, Manipulation is a very dangerous skill.]
[But as everyone knows, great power inevitably comes with risks, and power that comes with risks—is, in a sense, quite strong.]
Oh, here we go again. So what are you trying to say?
[The Manipulation skill, since it can be used on inanimate objects, can naturally be used on living things too!]
Ah, let me guess, next is 'Seele is also a living thing'—
[Wow, you're even more terrifying than this System imagined.]
Is that my fault?
That's the impression you give me!
[All I can say is, it's not just the human comments I see on forums, but even you make this System feel that maybe it's not so extreme after all.]
[Anyway, using the Manipulation skill on your body can provide some enhancement.]
[So...]
So?
[Fight!]
Although the System only said a very common word.
Leo Ash understood everything.
How tragic. I hope next time, what I instantly understand isn't this.
And what the hell are you talking about, if I use this skill on my body and it explodes—
[Don't you humans love to look at lewd pics of 2D anime girls and shout 'My junk's gonna explode!'?]
[Trying it out for real once in a while won't kill you. Besides, you can just fix it with a healing spell.]
No, don't you think memes like 'fight' and 'watch me fix him' shouldn't be used in these contexts?
[You already think this System is all about gutter-level humor, so isn't it normal for me to say these things?]
[Besides, a normal person who just defeated the strongest man in the world would consider taking a good rest before doing anything else.]
[But you, ever since you woke up, you've been doing nothing but tryharding these past few days!]
Nonsense. Kevin is a powerful boss, but he's not the final boss.
Before my existence faded, the situation was already on the verge of chaos.
Kiana is definitely triggered, and under those circumstances, the probability of Pufferfish (Sirin's nickname) causing trouble after getting out of prison is too high.
Everyone is working hard for the future, and I'm just here slacking off in a World Bubble—is that something a human being should do?
[No, it's just a few days of rest. You don't have to feel so guilty.]
[If it were anyone else, they'd be 'let the music play, let the dance continue' by now.]
I am who I am. No matter what you say, I will act according to my own methods.
I know you care about me, but right now...
—I'd rather focus on the task at hand before considering the 'future'.
With that thought, Leo Ash began to draw a large amount of mana through the Glyph and the Void Demon Stone Fragment.
At the same time, he used the surging Dimensional Energy within the [Sphere - The Wavering Scales] and converted it into mana with his Energy Conversion skill, accumulating it within his body.
Constantly drawing upon the energy within him, Leo Ash poured it bit by bit into the Blank Key.
The Blank Key, now enhanced by mana from the Manipulation skill, had its strength significantly boosted.
Hmm, too bad I don't have any other Divine Keys to test... wait a minute.
Why do I keep forgetting that Jizō Mitama is on me.
Raising his hand, he summoned the tachi he had barely used and decisively linked it with the Blank Key, which was enhanced by the Manipulation skill.
The burden was reduced, the linking speed was faster, and his control over its authority had clearly improved.
But this doesn't seem to be the limit.
Let's see where the Blank Key's limit is by continuing to inject mana.
Completely unaware of what was happening inside the training room, Seele arrived outside, carrying the dinner Yae Sakura had prepared for Leo Ash.
However, just before she reached the private training room, Seele suddenly felt an unsettling presence from outside the training area.
"Strange, could there be..."
Summoning her scythe, Seele nervously scanned her surroundings but couldn't detect any abnormalities.
"There are no enemies?"
[Wrong, there's one place you forgot.]
At that moment, Dark Seele, whose senses were sharper as a Stigmata personality, spoke to Seele in a trembling voice.
[Quick, run!]
[There's a terrifying guy here!]
Before Seele could ask anything more, a massive shadow suddenly appeared above the training ground...
No, this feeling of pressure, this is definitely not some 'shadow'!
The moment this energy entity manifested, Seele, who immediately leaped back and away from the training ground, witnessed a scene she would never forget.
As a colossal energy entity appeared, the entire training ground was instantly blown away by it.
And from within the dust and smoke, a young man holding a tachi slowly walked out, revealing a smile filled with apology.
"Sorry, I got a little carried away during training."
"You're not hurt, are you?"
....