Inside the Valkyrie dormitory bathroom.
"Hmm-hmm~ hmm-hmm-hmm~ hmm-hmm~"
In the light-luxury white bathtub, warm water soaked Elysia's soft and delicate body.
Miss Pink Elf hummed her character song "TruE" while diligently washing herself clean.
Today, she had finally climbed up from thousands of meters underground and reunited with Elias, achieving the long-awaited milestone of "We finally meet again."
Although Elysia had already used her omnipotent Honkai energy to cleanse herself completely—there wasn't a trace of dirt left on her body—the psychological instincts of a girl still made her wash with exceptional care.
After all, tonight would be their long-awaited reunion beneath the same blanket. She absolutely could not allow the person she loved to catch even the faintest scent of earth on her skin. A pink elf must always smell sweet and fragrant.
"It's a little embarrassing, but I'll have to let Eli wait a bit longer. I'll just wash for about an hour."
Elysia squeezed the little yellow rubber duck floating in the tub and muttered to herself with a playful lilt.
As for whether someone might steal her man during that hour, the pink elf curled her lips into a smile and tossed that worry straight into the Sea of Quanta.
Steal him? Impossible. Absolutely impossible!
What could anyone possibly accomplish in just one hour?
Could someone really counter-kill her now that she already had the marriage certificate in hand? Keep dreaming—wait until tonight~
Oh. It already was tonight.
But as someone who had already reached the finish line, the probability of being countered was lower than pulling a full constellation in a single ten-pull. Elysia declared there was absolutely no such possibility—after all, she wasn't Pardofelis rolling gacha.
Thus, the pink elf leisurely continued her bath.
"Ah~ Though the bathtub is large and wonderful, it's still a little hard to stretch out completely. Oh right, next time I'll have Eli build a hot spring. Then we can soak together~"
Elysia spoke dreamily, already imagining tonight's delightful activities.
Little did she know that a crisis was quietly unfolding.
Nor did she notice that her pink hair was subtly shifting toward a Mobius-like shade.
...
Inside Elias' bedroom.
"Elias, come with me for a moment."
"Hm? What's wrong, Mei?"
Elias looked at his household chef in confusion while gaming on the bed. He had planned to pass the time until Elysia finished her bath.
Incidentally, Elias had not noticed the green snake lady hiding under his bed. Before bathing, Elysia had specifically knocked Mobius unconscious and used the omnipotent Authority of Origin to conceal her presence.
Granted, Elias was now far stronger than Elysia—but a bedroom was always the place where one was most relaxed and least guarded. And the Authority of Origin was far too will-based and absolute...
"I have something very important to tell you. Just come with me for a while, Elias."
Without waiting for his agreement, Mei had already opened a spatial portal leading to an unknown destination.
As Elias had judged earlier, compared to a certain brainless grasshopper, the thoughtful cook was far more suited to the Herrscher of the Void's authority.
Now she had mastered it perfectly, able to open portals anywhere on Earth.
"Hm? Queen mode... interesting. Sure."
Elias narrowed his eyes in mild surprise.
That unquestionable tone. That domineering and proud gaze. He realized Mei was not in her usual gentle-wife mode—but in the overbearing Raiden Queen mode.
(Elysia will probably bathe for a long time today. Stepping out for a bit shouldn't be a problem.)
Besides, just as he would never refuse any request from Elysia, he would never refuse Raiden Mei either.
After all... both were his wings.
"Alright. Where are we going?"
"You'll know once you follow me."
"Oh? Sounds like a surprise."
"Wait..."
Just as Elias stood to enter the portal, Mei pressed him back onto the bed.
She walked to his wardrobe, searched for a moment, and pulled out a pure white evening suit.
"Pajamas won't do. You need something more magnificent."
"Alright, Mei. You've successfully piqued my curiosity."
Elias raised a brow and accepted the white formalwear.
It was a high-end suit personally tailored for him by the great artist Eden—suitable for any formal occasion, such as balls, banquets, or weddings.
With Mei asking him to change into it, he didn't even need to think to know something special was coming.
He also noticed that Mei had changed into an exquisite purple evening gown. Behind her, the divine halo of the Herrscher of Thunder and the luminous wings of the Herrscher of the Void unfolded.
She looked noble and inviolable—"Queen of Honkai" was the perfect description.
After changing into the white evening suit, Elias stepped through the portal with Mei.
The moment he passed through, he nearly thought he had arrived in another world.
"This... this is?!"
"A venue I prepared carefully. What do you think?"
"It's stunning!"
Elias stared in awe at the scenery before him.
They stood atop an unknown mountain peak. The stars shimmered like diamonds across the night sky. Below them stretched an endless sea of flowers, rippling under the night wind.
Petals rose like rain from the valley below, drifting upward until one landed in Elias' hand.
It was night, and ordinarily moonlight and starlight would not be enough to illuminate the vast landscape. Though for a Chimera MANTIS, night vision posed no difficulty.
But this time, Elias did not rely on that ability.
Because hundreds of beams of breathtaking light descended from the sky, illuminating everything within his sight.
They were neither warm like sunlight nor serene like moonlight.
They could only be described as ethereal and mysterious.
They were nature's magic—a dream woven into reality.
Elias gazed, spellbound, at the auroras dancing across the night sky.
In his heart, he could not help but marvel at how resplendent the scene was.
Hundreds of brilliant auroras shimmered among the stars, swaying like flames that set the night ablaze, like a magnificent gown draped across the heavens themselves.
This was an aurora of even higher caliber than the rare phenomenon known as the "Skirt of the Goddess," or the Aurora Borealis.
The so-called "Skirt of the Goddess" was a Nordic term for a specific kind of aurora. Ordinary auroras did not qualify. It had to be a sky-filling display that remained suspended in stillness for hours on end.
Even dedicated aurora chasers might never witness such a sight in their entire lives—that resplendent spectacle like a goddess' long dress hanging high across the night sky.
And the aurora before Elias now was broader and more beautiful than even that legendary "Skirt of the Goddess."
"Hm? Wait. Why would there be auroras here?"
Elias suddenly realized the inconsistency. Auroras typically appeared only near the North or South Poles. This region, though covered in flowers, had no snow—it clearly was not one of Earth's poles.
"I created them using the authority of the Herrscher of Thunder."
Seeing the astonishment on Elias' face, Mei could not help but feel delighted as well.
"Auroras are a form of atmospheric ionization. When solar wind interacts with Earth's magnetic field, it creates them. They appear at the poles because the magnetic field is special there."
"But by using the Herrscher of Thunder's authority to control electromagnetic force, I can artificially generate auroras anywhere."
As she spoke, Mei demonstrated on the spot, activating her authority and adding yet another ethereal ribbon of light to the night sky.
"That's amazing! As expected of Mei! You're incredible!"
At this moment, Elias looked like a child. His gorgeous heterochromatic eyes sparkled brightly.
"..."
The next second, the girl suddenly opened her arms and embraced the white-haired boy beneath the romantic auroras.
But this embrace was nothing like Elysia's gentle, birdlike posture.
It was domineering and forceful—an unmistakably possessive embrace of the Raiden Queen.
"Mei?" Elias froze for a moment.
"Elias, I can't hold it in anymore."
"Eh?"
"I was the one who came first. And yet I was beaten to it."
The more Elias made her heart race, the harder it became for Mei to accept her defeat today.
As she spoke, her arms tightened around him. Regret and unwillingness colored her voice, as though the most precious treasure in the world had been snatched away by someone else.
Mei knew this was not Elias' fault. She understood the story between him and Elysia. Given what those two had experienced, it would have been stranger if they had not fallen in love.
But...
Unwillingness was still unwillingness.
The moment Elysia appeared today and produced the marriage certificate, Raiden Mei had experienced true regret.
She regretted not being more proactive.
She regretted not being more decisive in the past.
If she had been stronger and more resolute back then, would this person have been taken from her?
And she was not the only one who harbored such thoughts.
Within her, the personality of Herrscher Mei felt the same.
That shared regret caused their emotions to resonate as never before. And together they realized...
Only before Elias should they cast aside restraint and shyness, reveal everything they were, and conquer him with all their strength.
Thus, the Raiden Queen awakened.
There would be no more regret.
"Elias, tonight I'm going to claim you completely."
"...That's honestly surprising. I never knew you had such a domineering side. Did Herrscher Mei log in or something? But even she isn't this aggressive."
Elias stared at the Raiden Queen before him in astonishment.
Though his strength surpassed hers by a galaxy, at this moment his presence was utterly suppressed by Mei's aura.
He could not help but sigh inwardly. No wonder, in the original storyline, when Kiana became the Herrscher of Finality she still ended up on the receiving end—Mei was just far too, far too dominant!
"This is actually Raiden Mei's [Ego] and [Origin]. Does it disappoint you? The gentle version of me you call your cook was a protective persona born from the bullying I experienced at school. The real me... is this strong and domineering."
Otherwise, during the days at Senba Academy, if she had truly been a gentle girl, she would never have been called the Raiden Queen. That queenly temperament had always been her true nature.
As for the virtuous-wife gentleness—it had emerged unconsciously after Raiden Ryoma was arrested. In the despair of being bullied, when she met Elias, Raiden Mei changed.
Of course, that gentleness was not false. It was growth. It was an important part of who she was now.
But at her core, this girl was still a commanding queen.
That was Raiden Mei's [Ego].
Elias felt momentarily dazed. Suddenly he thought that perhaps the reason the Herrscher of Thunder's Core had once been called the Gem of Conquest was precisely because of Mei's queenly personality.
"Disappointed? Of course not. What I'm feeling right now is an overwhelming heartbeat. My Mei is even more charming than I imagined. I'm falling in love with you more and more."
Elias wrapped his arms around her in return, savoring the domineering allure radiating from her. For a fleeting moment, he even entertained the thought that being on the receiving end like Kiana might not be so bad.
The next second, he snapped back to his senses.
Terrifying. Truly terrifying!
The charm of this Raiden Queen genuinely made one want to kneel in submission.
Hearing his response, Mei's tense heart finally settled.
Though she knew Elias was someone who would accept every side of the one he loved, she had still felt uneasy about her aggressive nature. After all, queens were not traditionally considered cute.
But Elias believed that a girl's charm should not be limited to cuteness. Didn't he already have plenty of adorable girls around him? On the contrary, Mei in Queen Mode made his heart pound uncontrollably.
"I see. That's wonderful."
Mei's lips curved upward.
From this moment on, she decided she would attack in Queen Mode.
As for gentleness...
It could serve as support.
The next instant, the authority of the Herrscher of the Void activated again, teleporting the automatic piano from the dormitory directly to this mountaintop.
Then, a rearranged version of the "Wedding March," transformed into something almost like a battle anthem, began to play.
Elias froze.
Before he could react, Mei raised her hand and pressed him against a large tree.
And then she asked a question that caused his brain to short-circuit.
Mei: "Will you marry me, Elias?"
Elias: "???"