"What happened?!"

Kiana rushed downstairs in a hurry. She had originally flopped onto her bed, planning to play on her phone for a bit before sleeping, but then she sensed a massive Honkai energy reaction from downstairs, coupled with rolling thunderclouds above. In an instant, Kiana felt completely energized and scrambled down.

Then, Kiana saw Raiden Mei sitting on the sofa with her eyes closed, lightning flickering around her body yet causing no harm to the surroundings, and Xin Yu standing by the window, calmly watching the scene unfold.

"Don't worry, Kiana. Mei is currently undergoing a metamorphosis. Just now, she completely accepted herself, completely accepted the power of the Stigmata and the Herrscher. She is now evolving into the complete Herrscher of Thunder."

"Ah, she's evolving into the Herrscher of Conquest so much earlier?"

"Conquest?"

Xin Yu was momentarily perplexed. Although he considered directly viewing the future to get an answer, he thought better of it. It didn't seem quite appropriate. After all, for Raiden Mei to grow into her current self, she had to face her own path. Without his help, her experiences might have been quite painful. No one would want others to see them at their most vulnerable.

"That's something that happens in the future. But perhaps things might change now."

Kiana had already learned many things about the future from her future self, including a disagreement she would have with Raiden Mei.

However, with a certain someone around, that scene from the future probably wouldn't happen again.

Aside from the people in this villa who could sense the incredibly strong Honkai energy reaction erupting from Raiden Mei, no one outside noticed a thing. They only thought the weather was changing remarkably quickly today. Just a moment ago, it was a clear night with a bright moon and sparse stars, and now, suddenly, a thunderstorm was about to break.

Theresa and Himeko, being in the know, were somewhat worried, wondering if something had gone wrong with Raiden Mei to cause the sudden thunderstorm. However, their detection instruments showed no massive Honkai energy readings, so they dismissed their concerns, figuring it was probably just a change in weather.

Kiana, at this moment, had lost all desire to go upstairs and continue playing on her phone. She stood beside Xin Yu, watching Raiden Mei, who was still in the midst of her transformation on the sofa.

"Kiana, do you want to talk with that self of yours?"

"The Herrscher of the Void... I do want to talk to her. After all, we are essentially both parts of Sirin."

"It's just that she carries all of past Sirin's hatred and disgust for humanity, while I carry Sirin's love, her yearning and desire for a beautiful life."

"It's basically impossible for us to shake hands and make peace. It will only end up as a battle against each other. And right now, relying on myself, I probably don't have a way to defeat her."

"Or you two could try to reconcile. After all, as I've said, no matter what happened in the past, as long as I'm here, there's always a chance for change."

"...Xin Yu, if you changed the history of the Second Honkai Eruption, preventing the Second Herrscher from appearing, would that mean I wouldn't appear either?" Kiana looked up at Xin Yu beside her.

"If I do nothing, then after history is changed, many people might indeed have different turning points due to the altered history, just like Yae Sakura. In the original history, she would merge with the Previous Era's Herrscher of Corruption and live for 500 years. But because of my existence, Sakura passed away after living for 200 years... So, when the Second Honkai Eruption no longer happens, you indeed might not appear in this world."

"Is that so? That wouldn't be too bad. At least Mom, Dad, and my older sister could have the happy family life they deserve."

"No, I won't let you just disappear."

"I am your anchor in this world. No matter how time changes, no matter how future destiny shifts, as long as I am here, you will exist."

Kiana's initially somewhat sad expression vanished. She couldn't help but smile, looking at the serious Xin Yu, and said, "That's right, I still have you. But when the time comes, should I call myself Sirin, or should I call myself Kiana?"

"I will preserve the temporal memories of key individuals. Even in an altered future, they will still retain memories from the previous worldline. So, you can still be called Kiana Kaslana. You can still be Siegfried Kaslana's daughter, and you can still integrate into that family."

"You're not going to destroy that family; you're going to join that family."

"The way you say it, that makes me sound like such a schemer!"

While Kiana and Xin Yu were chatting idly, Raiden Mei had completed her transformation. She opened her eyes. Although the arcs of electricity around her body had vanished, lightning still flickered in the depths of her eyes.

"Congratulations, Mei. You have completely accepted a part of the Herrscher of Thunder and have also obtained the power of a natural Stigmata. Right now, the gem within your body has completely transformed into a Herrscher Core. You are already the complete Third Herrscher." Xin Yu smiled in congratulation at Raiden Mei, who had risen from the sofa.

Raiden Mei, however, silently walked up to Xin Yu and, reaching out her hands, embraced him.

The young woman pressed herself against the young man's chest, wanting to hear his heartbeat. But unfortunately, the young man's body had long since been devoid of such things as internal organs, so she heard nothing at all.

"Xin Yu, through this reconciliation with myself, I've understood one thing."

"What is it?"

"I really do like you. Even though for you, it might have just been a comfort, just a reassurance for that childhood version of me, but... that was enough to affect my entire life."

"Alright! A harem like this is starting to form!" Kiana, standing to the side, looking like she was enjoying the drama, cheered happily.

"To celebrate, why don't the three of us sleep together tonight!"

Raiden Mei, unable to hear a heartbeat, reluctantly released her hands and stepped back. Upon hearing Kiana's suggestion, she touched her chin and, after a moment of calm analysis, said, "I have no objection. Anyway, as long as Xin Yu doesn't want to, nothing will happen."

"Xin Yu, I want to experience that feeling from before again. I want to hear you sing that song again."

"Me too!"

Looking at Kiana, who had let loose and was fooling around, and Raiden Mei, who had become somewhat more assertive, Xin Yu chuckled helplessly and ultimately could only agree.

That night, the three of them lay on one large bed, sharing a single blanket. Kiana rested her head on Xin Yu's left arm, and Raiden Mei rested her head on Xin Yu's right arm.

Xin Yu softly hummed the song that directly touched people's hearts. The distracting thoughts in Kiana's mind, who had originally wanted to fool around and try to grope for something, instantly vanished. Then, her eyelids grew heavier and heavier, and finally, her body curled up slightly as she hugged Xin Yu and drifted off to sleep.

And Raiden Mei, likewise, snuggled close to Xin Yu and fell into a deep slumber.

Xin Yu gazed at the ceiling above, thinking to himself that this could be considered embracing left and right... But why wasn't there even a hint of excitement in his heart? Was it really because of the lack of hormones? Should he try to create some of these elements to influence his emotions? Otherwise, he always felt that his current self wasn't quite like a person.