When Kiana heard her say that, her expression darkened. Seeing that the Herrscher prepared to attack yet did not immediately strike, she raised her guard even further.
Prepared to act but holding back—was it kindness?
Was it hesitation?
No. More likely she was injured and had not recovered, lacking confidence in taking her down directly.
"I don't know why you hate Herta so much, but I can tell you this—so long as I'm here, I will never let anyone hurt her!"
They had reached the same conclusion. The situation must be far from optimistic, Kiana judged.
The Herrscher was arrogant.
If her injuries were not severe, she would not be wasting words. She would have opened with lightning as before. Even if she wanted information, she would wait until Kiana was reduced to her last breath before questioning her with lofty disdain.
"What is so good about someone like her?!"
A web of lightning pressed down toward Kiana, but she dodged nimbly, raising a brow in provocation. "Is this all the strength you've got?"
"You're courting death!"
Several spherical bolts of lightning shot toward Kiana, while streaks of lightning fell from the sky to seal off her movement.
"Is that all the imagination you have? Such an ability is wasted on you. You might as well grab a knife and swing it."
"You care that much about defending her?"
The Herrscher's anger deepened, yet she could not fully command the heavens. It was clear she was far from her peak.
Even so, she remained dangerous. Her attacks against Kiana grew increasingly ruthless, no longer trying to leave her alive for interrogation.
"Wretched defective!" The Herrscher's fury carried naked contempt, as if she were looking at a scurrying insect.
Like a god who commanded lightning.
Passing divine judgment upon her enemy.
"Is empty talk all you're capable of?"
"If that's all you can do, I'll send you to hell first—then send her down to join you!"
Seeing that the agile Kiana had nowhere left to evade and was about to be caught in the lightning net, delight flashed through the Herrscher's eyes.
She cared so much about Herta.
Their relationship must be close.
Then she would kill her first!
The storm condensed toward a single point. The Herrscher's triumphant look had yet to fade when a streak of gold entered her vision.
"What?"
Golden light tore through the lightning net and rushed straight at her. The Herrscher had no time to dodge. Kiana's fist slammed into her face with crushing force, sending her flying and rolling across the ground for dozens of meters.
"No wonder you lost so thoroughly. Is this really all you can do?" Kiana shook the hand she had just smashed into her face, narrowing her eyes as the tactical visor collected most of the Herrscher's data. "Or did you put all your skill points into running away? I suppose that's how you survived the bombardment."
"Die!"
Violet lightning shot toward her. Kiana charged forward to meet it head-on. Though this was her first real combat, she quickly adapted to the rhythm of battle.
She fought the injured Herrscher to a standstill.
The Herrscher was severely wounded. Not even a tenth of her strength remained.
She could win.
Kiana swiftly calculated the likely outcome of the battle. A fierce resolve hardened within her—she intended to end it here.
She remembered Herta's words.
If this Herrscher were left unchecked and absorbed enough Honkai energy to complete her transformation.
This world would be destroyed by her hand.
That was something Kiana refused to allow.
Meanwhile, the more the Herrscher fought, the more stifled and enraged she felt. Unable to overpower Kiana, she withdrew from combat, viciously throwing out a final, "Just you wait!" before attempting to flee.
How could Kiana possibly give her that chance?
Without hesitation, she gave chase, clearly unwilling to stop until the Herrscher was captured. Thus began a relentless pursuit.
If she could not win, could she not at least escape?
The Herrscher unleashed a powerful attack to delay Kiana's advance, then vanished without a trace.
"Trying to run? Not happening!"
After tearing through the obstruction, Kiana was not worried about losing track of her target. The Herrscher's data had already been analyzed almost completely.
Just like that.
Kiana pursued her relentlessly. Each time the Herrscher believed she had shaken her off and tried to recover and absorb Honkai energy, Kiana would appear from an unexpected direction.
Gradually, the Herrscher was driven nearly mad.
If she had not been injured—if she were at full strength—how could she possibly be chased around by this wretch?
Was she some kind of hunting hound?
At times, the Herrscher could no longer endure it and turned to fight Kiana again. They clashed several more times, each battle ending with her retreating at the brink of defeat.
From the south to the north.
Kiana chased her for nearly half a month.
The Herrscher's condition visibly deteriorated. Her strength declined severely.
Of course, Kiana, who had been in pursuit for nearly half a month, was not in perfect shape either.
Though she had not been injured and had even grown stronger through combat, she had endured constant travel without rest.
If the Herrscher escaped beyond her tracking range, she might lose her trail entirely. And if that happened, finding her again would not be easy.
Then a voice came through her earpiece.
"Stop chasing her."
Herta's voice echoed in her ear. Kiana could picture the expression she must be wearing as she spoke.
"She won't last much longer."
Kiana hesitated, staring at the red dot on the map that continued to move. Thinking that just a little more effort would allow her to catch the Herrscher, she felt unwilling to give up.
"I said, stop."
Kiana could hear the displeasure in Herta's tone. Frowning, she struggled inwardly and gritted her teeth. "If she recovers, dealing with her later will be—"
"Was I not clear enough? The commotion you've caused is too large." Herta's voice grew noticeably colder. "You've already completely exposed yourselves to others. They know you're connected to me and plan to eliminate both you and her at once."
Others? Eliminate them both?
Kiana's expression darkened as she came to a halt, no longer pursuing the red dot on the map.
Those who had confined Herta?
"Understood."
Her voice sounded muffled. Casting one final unwilling glance toward the Herrscher's location, she prepared to find a place to open a portal and return.
Eliminating the Herrscher meant saving humanity.
Kiana did not doubt Herta's information. What she found difficult to understand was why those people would still engage in internal strife.
Just because Herta refused to cooperate with them?
In a concealed location, Kiana activated the wristband and opened a portal. Through it, she returned to the designated starting point.
The surroundings looked no different from before she had left. That discovery eased her heart slightly.
Without hesitation, she hurried down the corridor toward where Herta was likely to be. At last, she found her in a room.
"Herta..."
Herta stood before several massive screens, arms folded, her face devoid of expression.
"See for yourself."
"This is...?"
Kiana's voice carried hesitation and confusion. She could not really understand what the displays on the screen meant.
The red dots appeared to represent enemies.
"A trap they set for you."
Herta's expression was far from pleasant. She turned her head and stared at Kiana without blinking. "To be honest, is this world something you absolutely must save?"
Although she had discovered their intentions in advance, Herta was once again thoroughly disgusted.
Her disappearance had clearly aroused their fear. Most likely, those people now regarded her as an enemy, no different from the Herrscher.
That assumption was not entirely wrong.
After all, just like the Herrscher, she wanted them dead. Whether she would fight the Honkai or not was another matter, but they were certainly doomed.
Herta was not a magnanimous person.
"Me?" Kiana blinked, momentarily stunned. She tried to think back, uncertainty coloring her tone. "Did I ever say I was going to save this world?"
It had always been Herta speaking that way by her side. Kiana did feel sympathy and pity. She had chased the Herrscher relentlessly.
But the one she truly cared about had always been Herta.
"A trap... Are they trying to threaten you through me?" Kiana still sounded unsure.
After all, she had been chasing the Herrscher nonstop these past days and truly had no idea what had happened elsewhere.
Was her pursuit not a good thing?
Had she not bought them time to breathe?
"Heh." Herta let out a cold laugh. Her attitude toward those people shifted subtly as she looked at Kiana. "From here on, leave everything to me. Do you have any objections?"
Kiana hurriedly shook her head. "I'll listen to you."
That was what she had been thinking anyway. If Herta told her to do something, she would simply do it. She did not have many ideas of her own.
Herta was never wrong.
"Good."
Herta operated the screens before her, her eyes icy.
Did they truly think she was made of clay, with no temper at all?
If she had not been considering that acting too soon might affect Kiana's trial—and thus waiting until she was absolutely certain—would she have allowed those traitors to live this long?
"What are you doing?" Kiana asked curiously.
"Targeted elimination of the Federation's upper ranks." Herta's voice was calm, devoid of emotion. "Once they're dealt with, no one will jump out to cause us trouble again."
"Elimination?" Surprise spread across Kiana's face. She asked instinctively, "If you eliminate them, won't human civilization fall into chaos and exist in name only?"
"Without a doubt."
Removing the people at the top of the pyramid would inevitably trigger massive turmoil, making an already precarious situation even worse.
One misstep.
And this could very well become humanity's end.
Herta looked at Kiana, waiting for her reaction, for her objections. She knew her actions would not be well liked. Being misunderstood or rejected was normal.
No matter what, many people would die because of her decision. The destruction she caused might even surpass that of the Herrscher.
Someone like Kiana.
She seemed the type with a strong moral bottom line.
It would be normal for her to disagree.
Kiana merely nodded thoughtfully. Her reaction was unexpectedly mild, as though she did not care that much.
"And then? What happens after that?"
Herta arched a brow. "You trust there will even be an after?"
"There isn't?" Kiana tilted her head slightly.
"That's all the reaction you have?"
Kiana broke into a bright smile. "I told you I'd listen to you. No matter what you want to do, I'll support you. I trust you."
The words came effortlessly.
As if she said them often.
"Sooner or later they would have to die. Rather than let those fools continue causing me trouble, I might as well send them off first," Herta said.
It had been the first time she had been betrayed, yet the humiliation of becoming a prisoner had etched the matter deeply into her memory.
Even if everything here was false.
Even if this was merely a trial.
Humiliation was still humiliation.
Besides, if she knew they were enemies who would cause her trouble, why keep them alive?
Other than the ugliness of human nature.
There was nothing about them worth her attention. She had no intention of keeping people around just to irritate herself.
"You're right," Kiana nodded in agreement. "I was holding that Herrscher back to buy them time. If they don't appreciate it, fine—but to be so shortsighted as to turn on me?"
From beginning to end, what they had displayed was a desire for control. Anything beyond their control was deemed dangerous and had to be eliminated.
She could not understand such shortsightedness.
Was this... humanity?
With the apocalypse looming, they were still fighting among themselves.
Herta glanced at her and said, "After dealing with them, I'll have an artificial intelligence take over the remaining cities."
"I knew it!" Kiana nodded repeatedly. She believed Herta must have had a backup plan. If she truly did not care, she would not have called her back just to inform her.
"By the way, what about that Herrscher?"
"Dead."
The two light words startled Kiana so much that her eyes widened. She had just returned, and that Herrscher had evaded her for so long.
"Is that so unbelievable?"
"D-Dead? Really dead?"
"Do you think I would lie?" Herta gave a faint snort. "After you chased her for that long and collected nearly all her data, she held no secrets from me."
"As expected of you!" Kiana let out a breath of relief, then suddenly thought of something else. "What about the artificial Herrschers? Aren't they loyal to the Federation?"
Herta gave her a look. "Do you know where their technology came from?"
"Of course. You developed it!"
How could Kiana forget?
The emergence of artificial Herrschers had greatly alleviated humanity's pressure, giving them the confidence to confront both Herrschers and Honkai Beasts.
She had heard as much back in the shelters.
Almost everyone knew.
And that Herrscher who hated Herta—was she not also driven by resentment over that very technology?
"Genetics is a fascinating and mysterious field. In the realm of life sciences, I may not be as passionate as Ruan Mei, but compared to the fools of this world, the difference is heaven and earth."
"...So?"
"They're still using technology derived from mine. They don't have the capability to iterate it." Herta sneered. "In simple terms, I designed the source code myself. I can tailor weapons that target their genes and nullify their abilities entirely."
Even if one or two anomalies appeared, they would not be able to stir up much trouble.
Kiana finally relaxed.
Earlier, when Herta had said the fate of this world lay in her hands, the pressure had nearly doubled.
But looking at it now, Herta seemed far more suited for that responsibility.
The problem Kiana had chased for so long had been resolved by Herta in a single move.
And as for the Federation.
When Herta spoke of eliminating them, she did so as casually as if discussing the weather, without the slightest hint of pressure.