Kiana's sobbing hitched. She sniffled, eyes blurred with tears as she looked at Su Yu.
Images surged up against her will.
The Herrscher of the Void standing in the Sea of Quanta, golden eyes looking down on all life—tearing space apart with a flick of her hand, summoning armies of Honkai beasts.
Anti-Entropy's mech legions were toys in front of her.
Even Mei—after cooperating with the Herrscher of Thunder—had been beaten down, choked and humiliated… her Herrscher core ripped out.
And after that…
The Vermilion Knight—turning herself into flames—lighting the way home for an unworthy student.
To Kiana Kaslana, every awakening of the Herrscher persona came with soul-rending agony and an uncontrollable urge to destroy.
The Herrscher of the Void.
Sirin.
Her existence meant disaster. Her awakening meant disaster returning—meant the world becoming unlucky because of Kiana again.
Kiana feared that power.
But even more, she feared the hatred and madness behind it.
That had always been an unbeatable monster.
And yet—minutes ago—that lofty queen had been defeated.
She'd nearly been strangled to death.
Su Yu was just an ordinary guy—no Honkai resistance, no Kaslana absurd strength, no Valkyrie armor.
Someone she used to be able to punch into the air—ten at a time.
And that guy… actually beat the Herrscher who'd nearly destroyed half the world, who'd killed Himeko, who'd turned Kiana into a homeless dog wandering the ruins.
Beat her?
No—more than that.
He'd forced her back down with something so unreasonable, so insane—
A headbutt.
He'd taken her body back by pure, shameless, physical violence.
The moment she truly realized it, the "divine" halo that had haunted her nightmares shattered into pieces.
What remained wasn't a god.
It was a pathetic worm that failed at throwing a tantrum.
"See?" Su Yu said.
He reached out and—without any disgust for the tears and snot—messed up her white hair with a rough rub.
"She's not scary at all."
"Peel off the halo and she's just… a bad-tempered chuuni."
Kiana stared blankly, letting him ruffle her head.
The mountain in her chest—named fear—seemed to crack, chiseled apart by his idiotic teasing.
That tyrannical Herrscher… wasn't as unreachable as she'd believed.
At least—like Su Yu said—in this world, the Herrscher of the Void…
Wasn't much stronger than Kiana herself.
"Heh… foolish…"
A cold voice slithered up from the deepest part of her mind.
Weakened, furious, spiteful—still dripping with poison.
"Kiana. You think this is the end?"
Sirin's voice hissed through her consciousness like an undead snake.
"So what if there's no Honkai energy? This body still carries a monster's blood!"
"As long as I want to, I can still seize your hand and make you kill."
"I can still flip this fragile world upside down!"
"Because—"
"You were always a monster."
"As long as you relax. As long as you dare to sleep… I'll crawl out again."
"And I'll destroy everything you care about."
A few minutes ago—before that headbutt—Kiana might've trembled under those threats.
She might've run.
But now—
She was still shaking.
That was physiological fear, trauma carved into her bones.
Yet this time… somehow…
Maybe it was the throbbing lump on her forehead—too real to ignore.
Maybe it was how cathartic that headbutt had been.
Or maybe it was—
Because the man in front of her was sprawled on the ground, a complete wreck, and still trying to find excuses for her to live.
That voice in her head… didn't feel quite as terrifying anymore.
Compared to some lofty "god" who talked about annihilating humanity—
That thing that'd just been rolling on the floor clutching its head and yelping…
Honestly?
It really did look like a childish chuuni throwing a fit.
Kiana slowly—steadily—clenched her fist.
Her nails bit into her palm, sharp pain blooming.
But that pain made her lucid.
This body belonged to Kiana Kaslana.
Below, the concert hall blazed with a sea of glowsticks—stars made by tens of thousands of hands.
Tens of thousands of expectations.
Tens of thousands of loves.
The purest beauty of this peaceful world.
Eden's singing washed through the starlit ocean—every note like a small flame, lighting every corner… and lighting the ruins inside Kiana.
On the rooftop—
Kiana Kaslana opened her eyes.
There was still shadow in her heterochromia.
But deep inside the blue—
A fire had ignited.
A spark lit by Su Yu's clumsy headbutt.
Woken by Eden's voice.
Encouraged by the memory of Mei's resolve—
A living ember.
"A monster… maybe."
"But Su Yu's that idiot already said it—just now, the way you looked…"
"Really was like some brat having a tantrum."
The voice inside her seemed to choke on its own malice.
"I won't… let you run wild anymore."
Her voice was soft, nasal from crying—nearly blown away by the wind.
But every word carried the weight of a vow carved into the soul.
"Oh?" Sirin sneered, like she'd heard the funniest joke.
"I'm going to live."
Kiana suddenly sat up, ignoring the dizziness, staring into the exploding sky of color.
"I'm going to live—no matter how many times you appear, no matter how you torment me…"
"I will never hand this body to you."
"I will never let you hurt anyone here."
"Especially Su Yu."
She struggled—forcing herself to stand.
Her body was weak. Her knees still bled.
But her spine was straight.
The wind tore through her white hair, and she looked like wild grass refusing to bow under a storm.
Wretched—
and stubborn beyond belief.
Below, golden lights gathered into a tide, painting the whole night bright.
Eden sang her final high note—
"May that ember… rise and become an inferno."
The dome erupted in the loudest cheer of the night.
Streamers rained down like brilliant weather.
And beyond the spotlight—on a rooftop no one knew existed—
Kiana clenched her fist until blood ran between her fingers, dripping near Su Yu's side.
She didn't feel the pain.
"This is… Kiana Kaslana's fight in this world."
1pgg1
....
My Patreon : patreon/RuneA
If you want to read the novel in advance, you can subscribe for early access. I also have many more novels in my collection that you might be interested in
I upload ten novels a day, with 3 to 4 chapters per title depending on the length. If you're following a particular series, please wait your turn a little
If there's a particular novel you're enjoying on Patron, please give it a 'like' so I know to focus on it