161. Elysia's Mysterious Gift
Yuna raised her head, looking at Yun Ling before her.
The last chance...
Yun Ling...
Yuna clenched her fists, engaging in a duel with the 'Herrscher personality' deep within her heart.
The past flashed before her eyes: bullying, domestic violence, even betrayal by her mother...
Hidden in a dark corner, she secretly wept, bearing everything alone.
It relentlessly eroded Yuna's will; if she relaxed even for a moment, it would possess her body!
Yuna didn't know how to resist. She could only silently recite Yun Ling's name in her heart, recalling every moment she spent with him.
He had pulled her out of the abyss, placing her in the sunlight.
He was her only light, her only support.
'Don't you want to possess him all to yourself? I can give you more power, powerful enough to kill that woman!'
The Herrscher shifted its focus, enticing her once more.
Yuna's consciousness sank into an illusion. Here, Mei and Kiana weren't there; only she and Yun Ling remained.
This was what she had always dreamed of, the deepest desire hidden within her heart.
"That's not Yun Ling!"
Yuna desperately tried to break free, but the illusion kept conjuring up beautiful scenes of Yuna and Yun Ling together.
"Stay here, okay?" 'Yun Ling' gently embraced her, leading her towards the altar.
Looking into 'Yun Ling's' loving eyes, Yuna was momentarily lost in thought.
If only it were real...
Yuna had ultimately fallen for it. That momentary lapse in concentration plunged her completely into darkness.
As an ordinary person, she had failed... utterly and completely.
Suddenly, a light appeared in her vision.
"You can't give up here! You love him, right? He's waiting for you~?"
A strange voice rang out.
Yuna instantly snapped back to reality and desperately chased after the light.
Countless thorns emerged from the darkness, creeping towards her.
"I won't lose to you!" Yuna leaped, jumping out of the boundless darkness and embracing her new life.
Meanwhile, Yun Ling outside stared blankly as the crystal flower that had appeared on his chest landed on Yuna's head.
It was one of the rewards from the first simulation, 'Elysia's Mysterious Gift'.
Now, its appearance seemed to have a different purpose.
A short while later, the crystal flower slowly returned to Yun Ling's chest, merged into his body, and disappeared.
"Yun Ling!" Yuna, overwhelmed with excitement, pounced on Yun Ling and hugged him.
She had succeeded; she could stay by Yun Ling's side.
"Congratulations, Yuna." Yun Ling didn't refuse, wrapping his arms around her slender waist.
A soft cough rang out. Mei, who had woken up sometime earlier, was giving the two a slightly serious warning.
"Ah... Mei-san, I... I'm sorry, I accidentally hurt you." Yuna quickly separated from Yun Ling, bowing her head towards Mei, looking guilty.
"Although I don't know what happened, it seems you've been bewitched by something... Now, let's think about where to go next."
Seeing the two separate, Mei didn't say anything harsh, but instead forgave Yuna.
What else could she do but forgive? Force Yun Ling to kick Yuna away?
For some reason, when facing Yuna, Mei suddenly felt a sense of relief, a strange feeling as if she had already 'taken revenge' on her.
Mei gently shook her head, somewhat helplessly.
The most important thing right now was to leave this dangerous place; they could plan about what to do later when they were safe.
"Mei, do you feel uncomfortable anywhere?" Yun Ling anxiously stepped forward to check on Mei's body.
"I'm fine, just a little weak... What happened after Yuna restrained me?"
Mei seemed still angry about Yun Ling's flirtatious behavior, appearing somewhat cold.
Yuna blinked. Had she forgotten the beating she'd given her earlier?
"You, like Yuna, suddenly transformed into a different person, and after defeating Yuna, you bit me hard." Yun Ling showed the wound on his shoulder.
Mei's face flushed visibly.
"H-How...how could that be..." Mei had no recollection of it and vehemently denied it.
"I never imagined Mei loved me so much. Even while unconscious, she protected me and wanted to be intimate with me," Yun Ling continued.
"You're lying!"
Mei's ears were already bright red, unlike at home, especially in front of Yuna... Kiana might have seen it too...
"Actually, we can do a bite mark comparison..."
"Okay...okay, stop talking! Now think about where we're going next..." Mei stopped Yun Ling from continuing.
"I haven't decided yet, so I plan to stay here for a day before leaving," Yun Ling replied.
"Stay for a day? Is that necessary?"
Mei looked out the window; several giant Honkai Beasts could be seen rampaging through the city.
"You, Yuna, and Kiana are all out of fighting power right now. I'm afraid I can't take care of all three of you by myself, so I want to wait until you recover before leaving," Yun Ling casually made up an excuse.
Mainly, the simulation wasn't finished yet. To prevent suddenly falling asleep in a few hours, Yun Ling planned to complete the simulation here first, and then see if he could run into Bronya and the people from St. Freya Academy.
Mei nodded, seemingly agreeing with Yun Ling's idea.
"By the way, Yuna, go check if Kiana's body has been completely cleansed of toxins. Make sure there are no hidden dangers," Yun Ling instructed.
"Okay."
Yuno stepped forward, placed her hand on Kiana's body, and then summoned a vine to draw out the remaining toxins from Kiana's body.
"That's good." Yuna retracted the vine.
"The thorns Yuna controlled earlier were poisonous? Then why am I alright?" Mei asked, puzzled.
Before losing consciousness, she had been pierced by thorns, but now not only was she unharmed even the wounds were gone.
"Because you could control lightning back then, the toxins were probably already broken down when they entered your body."
"Controlling lightning...?" Mei looked at her fair hands, seemingly lost in thought.
Her father had inserted a gem into her body to help cure her illness.
The gem was called the "Conquest Gem," and it granted the power to wield lightning.
That was all she knew.
Raiden Ryoma intentionally concealed information about the Honkai from her because he didn't want her to come into contact with it.
Therefore, she didn't know that her state was called "Herrscher Transformation."
...