St. Freya Academy.
"Strange, is St. Freya Academy on break? Why isn't there a single person around?"
Kiana walked across the empty plaza, her eyes constantly scanning her surroundings as her confusion deepened.
Logically speaking, St. Freya was never short of people; even during class hours, one or two people could be seen walking about outside.
Today's St. Freya was truly abnormal.
"Could I be dreaming because I'm still half-asleep?"
Kiana scratched the back of her head, completely unaware of what had happened.
Refusing to believe it, she wandered around a bit more. After confirming there really was no one, she decided to find Raiden Mei and Bronya to figure out the situation.
Kiana hadn't walked far when Theresa's voice suddenly rang out from her back right.
"Excuse me, student. You look a bit unfamiliar. Are you a new transfer student to St. Freya?"
"Huh?" Kiana stopped abruptly and turned to look at Theresa, who was watching her with a puzzled expression. Kiana immediately put her hands on her hips and grumbled, "Auntie Theresa, you must be the one who's half-asleep! I'm Kiana Kaslana. Don't tell me you don't even recognize your own niece!"
"Ki... ana...?" Theresa's expression turned dazed, and an irrepressible look of self-reproach and sorrow surfaced in her eyes.
"Don't scare me like that. Are you sick or something?"
Baffled by her reaction, Kiana walked quickly toward Theresa, reaching out to feel her forehead to see if she had a fever.
Just as her hand reached out, Theresa grabbed it. The staggering strength caused Kiana to cry out in pain, "Ow, ow, ow! You're hurting me!"
"Don't change the subject! Tell me who you really are! What is your purpose for sneaking into St. Freya!"
"Whoa! What is wrong with you today? If I'm not Kiana, then who could I be!"
"Silence! Years ago, when Siegfried was fleeing Schicksal with the eight-year-old Kiana, a stray bullet unfortunately struck Kiana in the head, and she fell from an altitude of ten thousand meters..."
Theresa could not hide the sorrow in her heart, her right hand gripping Kiana's wrist even tighter.
"It hurts... What nonsense are you talking about? Am I not standing right here, perfectly fine?"
Kiana's eyes widened in disbelief. "And what you just said—isn't that exactly what happened to my sister..."
By the end, she couldn't bring herself to continue.
Theresa let out a cold laugh. "You truly won't admit it until you see the coffin. Cecilia only had one daughter; there was never a second. If you are Kiana, then tell me what your sister's name is!"
"Her name is obviously—"
Kiana's voice stalled, her mind going blank.
That's right... what is my sister's name?
When she had asked Lierre for her sister's name back then, Lierre hadn't told her, brushing her off instead.
"Can't answer, can you?"
Theresa wore a look that said 'as I thought,' and then dragged her toward a certain direction. "Come with me. Until we figure out your origins, you'd better spend some time in St. Freya's interrogation room!"
Kiana allowed herself to be dragged along by Theresa, her mind a chaotic mess from the sudden turn of events.
If the one who was unfortunately shot in the head was Kiana, then who was she?
Why did Theresa suddenly not recognize her?
And why didn't Lierre tell her her sister's name?
As a series of questions piled up, a sense of panic rose in Kiana's heart for no reason.
She looked at the empty St. Freya, then down at Theresa, who was pulling her along.
Kiana suddenly sensed something was wrong. Her body erupted with a surge of strength, forcibly breaking free from the restraint, and she stared at Theresa warily.
"No! You aren't Theresa at all! Don't try to fool me!"
The real Theresa would never fail to recognize her, nor would she ever treat her like this!
Having lived together for years, how could she not know Theresa?
The next second, time ground to a halt. Theresa stood motionless like a statue.
Just as Kiana was about to try poking Theresa, a cold, mocking laugh echoed from all directions:
"Hehehe, how much longer are you going to deceive yourself by wallowing in lies fabricated by others? Is it fun being played for a fool? You don't actually think you're Kiana, do you?"
"Who's there! What do you mean by that? Stop playing tricks on me! Show yourself and face me if you have the guts!"
Startled, Kiana hurriedly searched for the source of the voice, but she couldn't find it.
Wait!
That's... my own voice?!
This discovery made Kiana feel even more uneasy.
What did it mean, living in a lie? When was she played for a fool? If she wasn't Kiana, then what was she?!
"Hmph, what do I mean? I mean you aren't the child of Siegfried and—"
Before Kiana could hear the second half of the woman's sentence, the world before her eyes became incredibly blurred.
"Kiana, why isn't she awake yet? Did she stay up late playing games again? Bronya?"
"It was Idiot Kiana who begged Bronya to carry her. Bronya got up early, but Idiot Kiana is still oversleeping, so it's definitely Idiot Kiana's fault!"
Hearing the voices of Raiden Mei and Bronya discussing her, Kiana snapped awake. She sat up abruptly, scanning the familiar bedroom in a state of lingering fear.
Raiden Mei and Bronya were also startled by Kiana's reaction.
"Did you have a nightmare last night?" Raiden Mei asked with concern.
"...For the sake of Kiana having a healthy routine in the future, Bronya will not take you to play games late at night anymore!" Bronya also offered her own special brand of concern.
"Worry about yourself first."
Kiana couldn't help but roll her eyes at Bronya. Seeing how much the two cared for her, her heart felt warm.
Her distressed mood also lightened significantly.
Kiana raised her right hand, looking at her fair wrist, a trace of anxiety flashing in her eyes.
The dream just now had been too real; she couldn't completely ignore it.
"Has Mom gone out yet?" Kiana asked nervously.
There were some things she wanted to ask clearly.
"Cecilia is currently in the living room with Himeko and Principal Theresa," Bronya replied, looking at her seriously.
Both she and Raiden Mei could see that Kiana had something on her mind, but neither pointed it out directly.
"I understand."
Kiana nodded. She got out of bed and dressed. Without even stopping to wash up, she went straight to the living room.
Living room.
"I've seen Wendy's performance lately. She doesn't seem to truly blame you, so stop your internal struggles," Cecilia persuaded.
Since the official meeting between Wendy and Theresa, Wendy had never shown any hatred toward Theresa and remained respectful.
According to her, the ones at fault were never the victims like them, but those villains whose hearts were so black they could no longer be called human.
Wendy had forgiven Theresa, but Theresa had not forgiven herself.
The more sensible and mature Wendy acted, the heavier the guilt in Theresa's heart became.
"I know that meaningless internal struggle is useless. Don't worry too much about me; I know what I need to do from now on," Theresa responded.
There is no regret medicine in this world, and time cannot flow backward.
Rather than struggling internally, it was better to do something practical for Wendy to make up for the debts of these past years and ensure that something similar never happened again.
Kiana walked out of her room, followed by Raiden Mei and Bronya.
Cecilia and Theresa dropped the subject.
Murata Himeko, holding a bottle of beer, waved enthusiastically at the three. "You're the only ones left. Kiana, when are you going to fix that little habit of oversleeping? You always make Mei and Bronya go wake you up; don't you feel embarrassed?"
"I don't oversleep!" Kiana reflexively retorted. "I just set my alarm late. It hasn't gone off yet, so I wasn't oversleeping!"
"I can't even be bothered to talk about those alarms you set. You truly don't leave yourself a single bit of spare time. Don't you find it exhausting, sprinting into the classroom right as the bell rings every time?"
Theresa sighed, rubbing her forehead in helplessness.
Kiana truly didn't give her a moment of peace.
Being lectured by Theresa, no matter how thick-skinned Kiana was, she felt a bit embarrassed now.
She looked at the helplessly sighing Theresa and felt a profound sense of affinity.
This is the real Theresa. The one in the dream was far too strange!
The observant Cecilia noticed that Kiana was not quite her usual self today. After making a mental note of it, she invited the three to sit down and eat.
After a pleasant breakfast, Cecilia kept Kiana behind on the pretext of wanting to talk to her alone.
"Himeko and I will head out first."
"Thanks for the hospitality today, Mei. Your skills have improved again; you're almost catching up to your Master."
Although Theresa and Murata Himeko found it strange, they didn't ask questions.
"Thank you for the praise, Himeko. But compared to Master, I still have a long way to go."
"Bronya believes Sister Mei will one day surpass Lierre... Kiana, we'll wait for you outside."
Raiden Mei and Bronya knew Kiana had something on her mind and didn't linger.
Soon, only Kiana and Cecilia were left in the room.
"Now that it's just the two of us, you can tell Mom whatever is on your mind."
Cecilia pulled Kiana into her embrace, her touch gentle as she smoothed her daughter's slightly messy long hair.
Kiana's nose felt a bit stingy. She buried her head longingly in Cecilia's embrace, hesitated for a long time, and then said in a muffled voice, "Mom, am I truly your daughter?"
Cecilia's eyes widened slightly, but the next second, a gentle smile naturally appeared on her face. Her tone was incredibly certain as she said, "Of course Kiana is my daughter! No one can deny that fact!"
"...Mm!"
The doubt in Kiana's heart receded. Greatly reassured, she excitedly hugged Cecilia's slender waist tightly.
Cecilia stroked Kiana's head, seeking to soothe the girl's startled heart.
After lingering for a while, Kiana left Cecilia's embrace and asked the last question buried in her heart: "Mom, can you tell me my sister's name?"
"Of course. I hope you aren't too surprised when you hear it," Cecilia nodded. "You and your sister share the same name. You are both called Kiana Kaslana!"
Because the situation was truly unique, and Lierre was someone who had traveled across time.
Whether it was her biological daughter or the later Kiana, they were both her and Siegfried's daughters.
And changing either of their names would be a cruel thing for both. In the end, Lierre had made the final call, deciding that no one's name needed to be changed.
According to her: "There are so many people with the same name in the world, why can't I give my twin daughters the same name! If anyone says it's not allowed, believe it or not, I'll sue you for discrimination!"
Special circumstances required special treatment.
Cecilia and Siegfried had no better solution, so they went along with Lierre's method.
"Really?" Kiana's mouth fell open in shock.
"Lierre will find a way to help you remember everything. When that time comes, you will naturally understand the truth behind all of this," Cecilia said seriously.
This was what Lierre had told her at the beginning.
The Queen hiding inside Kiana's body furrowed her brows upon hearing this.
Could it be that Cecilia and Lierre had colluded long ago? Otherwise, why didn't she know about such a thing?
She didn't believe it; this was absolutely a trick of Lierre's!
...
...
On this day, the intelligence bureau of the Far East Branch brought Theresa an important piece of information.
The legendary Nine Realms of Shenzhou had been narrowed down to an approximate location.
Since the moment civilization was born, the Honkai has always accompanied it.
Only by relying on those warriors who bore stigmata did humanity possess hope.
Legend has it that in ancient Shenzhou, there was a hero named Ji Xuanyuan who, holding a golden sword, resisted the Honkai's erosion alone.
In the end, she sacrificed herself to Seal the demonic beast that threatened humanity within the Nine Realms! Since then, both the stigmata and the golden sword had vanished into legend.
"The stigmata and the golden sword are very likely within the legendary Nine Realms. They will be helpful to us in our future fight against the Honkai, so we need to go to Shenzhou."
Theresa put down the intelligence report, her small face full of a serious expression.
Most of Schicksal's development to date had relied on archaeology, and their Far East Branch could not do without this tradition. The intelligent AI, Ai-chan, on the Hyperion was a good thing she had obtained through archaeology.
"How many people are we taking this time?" Murata Himeko asked. "The demonic beast in the records is only sealed. The stigmata and the golden sword in the Nine Realms might be the Core items maintaining the Seal."
Theresa had naturally considered this point, and then stood up, saying, "This time, Cecilia will stay to guard the Far East Branch. To be safe, we will take Wendy and Mr. Joyce with us."
At this moment, she couldn't help but marvel at the current strength of the Far East Branch!
"This is also a good training opportunity. Let Kiana and the others participate in this mission. This time, you will personally lead them to head the vanguard."
With Wendy and Joyce present, safety was not an issue for now.
But to ensure that nothing went wrong with this operation, she also sent a message to Lierre.