Chapter 117: I like Mei and everyone else
After dinner, the adults who had eaten for free also left one after another.
Kirataka watched the wailing Paramecium go upstairs alone to pack her luggage, then sat on the sofa, thinking about their actions.
This time, Kiana and Fu Hua went to Singapore to carry out an infiltration mission to investigate and find Dr. Machi who cut off the core of the Herrscher of Death.
This is a contest between Schicksal and anti-entropy, led by another clone of the Walt series, and a fierce battle broke out between him and Fu Hua.
Cocolia hopes to artificially destroy the city to give birth to the Herrscher of Death, while Otto deliberately lets Professor Machi steal the Herrscher core in order to observe Kiana's awakening state.
At the same time, Kiana's father Siegfried Kaslana will also appear in that city.
This is also an opportunity for Kirataka.
As long as he can intervene in this incident at the right time, he may be able to gain huge rewards.
In addition to the Herrscher core that he had planned to snatch from Otto, there were other targets worth hunting.
Well, for example, the projections of Fenghuang Down and the Judgment of Shamash.
The Immortal Phoenix usually hides her strength in the academy. Also, due to her declining health, she has never used the power of the Divine Key. For Fenghuang Down, this is a good opportunity.
As for the Judgment of Shamash... it is an even more powerful weapon.
It has a destructive power far greater than that of other Divine Keys and is the strongest among the twelve Divine Keys.
In the past, it would have been difficult for him to touch the flaming sword that could burn everything and successfully obtain its projection, but now with the protection of the [Infinity], he has been able to find a way to touch the weapon.
No matter how powerful the attack is, it is meaningless if you can't get close to the enemy.
Even if he fell into a brief state of recollection due to touching the Divine Key, he could still be safe and sound thanks to the technique.
As long as he can get in touch with it once, he can use [Projection Magic] to create a fake Shamash.
It can be of great use in dealing with various troublesome things that you will face in the future.
For example, the operation to rescue Raiden Ryoma.
This is why he plans to rescue Raiden Ryoma after the incident in Singapore is over - this is his only known chance to get in touch with the mysterious Mr. Siegfried.
It would take Kiana and Fu Hua a few days to get to Singapore, so he didn't need to rush to follow them now. He could still stay in St. Freya Academy for a few days.
Anyway, since he has a fake Cosmic Juggernaut, he still has a way to go directly to Singapore.
However, speaking of Raiden Ryoma...
Kirataka raised his head and glanced at the living room and kitchen.
Seele and Bronya were sitting side by side on another sofa, but Mei didn't seem to be there.
...Is Mei acting a little weird today? It seems like she hasn't said a word to him.
Moreover, she usually wouldn't leave the dormitory at this time.
Although he had the urge to go back in time and figure out the reason, today's actual combat training with Theresa had already consumed a lot of his energy.
'Anyway, I should find Mei first and see what's going on.'
Kirataka stood up. Before he could ask any questions, Bronya glanced at him and said directly:
"Sister Mei just said she wanted to go for a night run and has already set off."
"I haven't asked anything yet."
Kirataka's mouth twitched slightly.
Night running…?
She didn't seem to have this habit before.
"Then I'll go out for a while too."
Kirataka gave some instructions, changed his shoes, and left the dormitory.
"Sister Bronya, what is Brother Kirataka doing outside?"
Seele blinked her blue eyes and asked curiously.
"Bronya doesn't know either... By the way, Seele, Bronya has something to tell you."
Facing her best sister, the silver-haired girl's tone became serious for once.
Seele had just returned from the Quantum Sea and had no idea what happened in reality. She needed some training from her.
What she should do is to tell her about the current situation, especially what Cocolia has done and is doing.
......
The nights at St. Freya Academy were quite lively. After all, it was a place where Valkyries were trained to become combat talents. Even at this time, there were still many girls exercising or taking walks together on the playground.
Although the school provides a training hall and a variety of training facilities, many girls still prefer to breathe fresh air outside.
Kirataka came here and ran across the playground at a relatively normal speed.
As the only male student in the academy at present and for a long time to come, his appearance here naturally attracted the attention of the girls.
As he passed by them, he could still hear the whispers of the girls carried by the wind.
"That boy just now must be Kirataka, right? I remember he was in the same class with Fu Hua..."
"He looks to be in great shape, and his leg muscles look nice too!"
"Go up and ask for his contact information! Our St. Freya Academy is an all-girls school. There is absolutely no way out!"
"No, I heard he's already living with several girls."
"Eh??!! Is there such a thing??"
The conversations among adolescent girls are always full of endless curiosity and imagination.
Under the watchful eyes of many people, Kirataka finally found Mei in the corner of the playground.
She was sitting alone on the edge of the flower bed, drinking water from the thermos she brought with her. Judging from the sweat running down her cheeks and her slightly wet hair, she must have just finished a run.
Perhaps to facilitate exercise, she was dressed quite casually, with only a pair of shorts that did not reach her knees, exposing her slender and shiny thighs to the air.
She had tied up her hair, which used to hang down, into a ponytail with a hair band, making her look more neat and less casual.
It was the first time he saw Mei like this, and he had a strange feeling.
It's like the gentle and lovely Yamato Nadeshiko suddenly transforms into a warrior fighting on the battlefield.
…Although these two aspects can be used to describe Mei.
Kirataka walked lightly to the girl's side and asked cautiously;
"Um... Miss Mei?"
"...snort."
The purple-haired girl turned her head slightly to the other side and responded to him with a cold snort.
"…"
Kirataka touched his head.
When did he offend Mei?
He was clearly fine when he came back last night, how come he became different after just one night?
He thought about it and could only think of one possibility.
'...Is it because of Seele?'
'Last time in Manila, she seemed to be sulking for a similar reason...'
So he sat down next to Mei with confidence.
Although the girl didn't turn her face away, she didn't reject the approach either.
"Are you angry?"
He asked with a chuckle.
"No."
The purple-haired girl replied in a muffled voice.
As we all know, the words of an unhappy girl must be understood in reverse.
If she says no, then yes.
"…Is it because of Seele?"
"No"
It is indeed true...
Kirataka pondered.
'Based on the personalities of these two girls, they shouldn't be quarreling, right?'
'And judging from how we got along from day to night, it seemed like we were doing fine...'
On this side, Mei has also reconciled with herself after the exercise.
'Seele seems like a very innocent child. Maybe the "like" she means is different from what I understand...?'
'It's not good to be upset without clarifying these things...'
'However, the atmosphere now seems a little awkward...'
After a long while, Mei asked:
"Kirataka, I have a question for you."
"Well, go ahead."
He nodded.
After getting Kirataka's response, the girl mustered up the courage to ask seriously:
"…What kind of existence am I to you?"
"Someone I want to protect."
Kirataka answered directly without thinking.
"...Protect?"
Mei asked, not knowing what was going on.
Now, they have long since left the dangerous Nagazora City and are now in the relatively safe St. Freya Academy.
In such an environment, there are actually no other dangerous factors except the battle against Honkai.
"It may sound a bit arrogant to say this, but I want to protect you... and you all."
Kirataka said simply.
"Us...?"
"Kiana, Bronya, Seele, Higokumaru, Teacher Himeko, Theresa, Fu Hua, and of course, there are others, or rather... all of this."
Kirataka looked up at the sky.
The sky full of stars dotted the night sky, with a unique beauty.
The reason why he is arrogant is that if we really compare hard power, there are still many people around him who are stronger than him.
For example, Theresa, Fu Hua, and Mei, who revealed the stigmata personality in her body and released the full power of the Herrscher.
But he is still growing rapidly. Relying on the ability to go back in time and other abilities, he can grow faster than others.
Therefore, he had the opportunity to change many things, even until the final end.
——The original idea of just wanting to stay by the side of the three great Heroes and watch them go through their original endings step by step has long since changed.
Since he can do it, he should change, whether for himself or for others and try to lead the story to a better ending.
Now he has rescued Seele from the Quantum Sea in advance, and there are many other things he plans to do in the future.
Until the final moment... a different ending.
If possible, of course, he would save everything and make everyone happy.
Listening to Kirataka's tone, Mei realized that he was not joking.
She thought for a moment and asked in a low voice:
"…Are you worried about the future Herrscher?"
In the past, she knew very little about Honkai, but after enrolling in St. Freya Academy, she learned a lot.
For example, she is not the first Herrscher born from a large-scale Honkai disaster, and she will definitely not be the last.
In the future, Herrschers will continue to appear one after another, wreaking havoc on this world and attempting to destroy everything that humans have built.
The biggest threat she could think of right now was the existence of the Herrscher.
"That's true, but it's not limited to that."
Kirataka nodded.
The information about the Herrscher is open to the insiders of Schicksal, but only a very few people know about the most powerful and terrifying one - [Herrscher of the End].
Most of the Valkyries who study and serve Schicksal here know that Schicksal has excavated many ruins and obtained many technologies from previous civilizations.
But if you ask why the previous civilization was destroyed, almost no one knows the correct answer. At most, they can only give an ambiguous "correct answer" such as it was destroyed by Honkai.
Just like how Schicksal and Anti-Entropy blocked the information about Honkai from ordinary people, the news about [End] that could easily destroy the world was only known by a very small number of high-ranking officials.
So, people like Mei and the others don't know yet that the threat of world destruction is imminent.
In addition to the direct enemy, Honkai, there are also other "enemies".
For example, a certain Bishop of Schicksal who once killed the First Herrscher who fought for voluntary humanity in order to achieve his own goals, caused the Great Eruption of Siberia and the death of Cecilia more than ten years ago and plans to create the "Queen's Arrival" in the future to cause massive casualties around the world...
The war between him and Otto has already begun, in a timeline unknown to the Bishop of Schicksal.
But... let's take it one step at a time.
Thinking of this, Kirataka chuckled and said:
"I like Mei and everyone."
"Huh…?"
While Mei was still wondering what Kirataka meant by that, he had already stood up, stretched out his hand towards her, and said:
"Okay, let's go back."
Although it's not that he doesn't want to do some romantic things with the beautiful girls, but various threats are imminent, so he has to wait until all the threats are settled before he do anything.
——He doesn't want to be a playboy who dies before enjoying himself for a short period of time.
The girl nodded and stood up with his help.
He stood beside Mei, watching the purple-haired girl cross her hands and raise them above her head, squinting her eyes slightly, puffing out her chest and stretching.
Such actions may not be very "young lady"-like, but she is no longer a young lady now, so naturally she does not need to put on airs like she did when she was in Chiba Academy.
After letting out a sigh of relief, the girl's entire perfect body relaxed lightly.
Kirataka looked at the glistening beads of sweat on the girl's neck and cheeks, looked at her hands raising to stretch her delicate body, and looked at her perfect curves that were just right.
he could hear the girl's soft moans as she stretched her body. The beauty of a young girl seemed to be fully reflected in her.
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