The collapse started when Kiana came to the door

Chapter 4 Negotiations Established (k)

Looking at the current history, and even all the parallel worlds, as the only Herrscher who has fully mastered all the power related to [The End] with her own will, it goes without saying that Kiana [Hersher of the End] possesses great will and power.

Under certain conditions, she is even above Honkai itself. Not only can she give birth to Herrschers who still retain human will at will, but if she wants, Kiana can also perform her mission as the Herrscher of the End at any time.

- Clear out all creations of human civilization and reset the surface of the planet back to what it was like 50,000 years ago.

But as Ai said, even Kiana [Hersher of the End], who possesses such power, is not without limitations.

First of all, including Kiana, all the Herrschers of the End can activate and control only the one reincarnation mechanism that corresponds to them.

Therefore, even after traveling through time and space and coming to the original world, Kiana [Hersher of the End] still could not control the authority of the end in this world.

Secondly, although the Honkai energy that Kiana [Hersher of the End] can control has reached a very terrifying level, no matter how much it is, her power is still limited.

Fifty thousand years seems like a long time, and human civilization, which has been fighting against the Honkai, can be considered quite prosperous. Naturally, the authority and power held by the Herrscher of the End, who can transcend both at will, is indeed terrifying. But if all three are measured on the scale of the universe or even the multiverse, the weight of these three is so small that it is difficult to recognize the difference.

Therefore, when looking for Li Shubai, Kiana [Hersher of the End] was unable to conduct a detailed search of every parallel world she had observed, so that even though she had found the captain's breath, she still intersected with the world where the captain was.

Of course, now that she has become the Herrscher of the End, even if she is temporarily unable to control the reincarnation mechanism of this world, Kiana [Herscher of the End] does not think that she will make the same mistake she made before.

As long as she sets foot in the world, Honkai will never be able to cause trouble under her hands. This is not only Kiana [Hersher of the End]'s confidence in herself, but also a proof that the captain's previous efforts have been rewarded.

But there is a big problem in this process——

No matter how confident she is in herself, Kiana [Hersher of the End] has to admit that the reason she is now able to fully master the power of the Herrsher of the End is, in the final analysis, because the captain exiled her from that world and left behind a significant legacy.

Although she has fully mastered the power of the Herrscher of the End, Kiana is very clear that in the world where she originally lived, the Herrscher of the End of their civilization era was not actually her, but the captain who took on the authority of the end on his own.

At the moment when he completed the conversion between his own [Captain] power and [End], the evil thoughts and will from the other side of the imaginary number forced Li Shubai to activate the destiny mechanism that reset the planet back to 50,000 years ago.

He is not like Joyce who has the will of 300,000 people to help him resist the evil thoughts, but the will that comes directly from imaginary numbers. He is also not like an ordinary Herrscher who only comes from a projection of [Cocoon].

Although he was not assimilated by that will and became a true Ruler of the End, under the interference of that will, Li Shubai still uncontrollably activated the destiny mechanism that reset time.

Of course, the civilization of that world was not reset in the end because of Li Shubai's behavior. After he forcibly changed the target of the false cycle of the end from [human civilization] to [himself], his time and that world became two parallel lines that did not intersect each other. At the same time, the [Rahster of the End] of that world became a state in which it had clearly successfully arrived but completely disappeared because time was reset.

Therefore, the [End] that Kiana accepted was actually an ownerless thing, just like the Herrscher of the Origin, Alicia, in the last civilization era. Alicia escaped the direct constraints of the Honkai due to accidental symmetry breaking, while Kiana escaped under the artificial manipulation of Li Shubai.

In other words, if it were the [Cocoon] of this world, the experience of accepting the authority of the end might not have any effect in her original world.

Human will is a great thing, but will alone cannot rewrite any facts.

For something to happen, there must be an objective reason behind it.

For example, the Herrscher of the current civilized era was able to escape the constraints of the [Cocoon]. In addition to the amazing willpower of Kiana and the others, the most fundamental objective factor was that the threads that manipulated fate were wiped out one by one by Alicia at the cost of herself.

Of course, humans are creatures that stand on the shoulders of history. Accepting the help of predecessors does not mean that the efforts of successors can be ignored. But as one of Li Shubai's crew members, after working together for so long, even if she doesn't like to use her brain, Kiana [Hersher of the End] has more or less learned some of Li Shubai's way of thinking, which is to evaluate things from an external and objective perspective.

She had long understood that, while the power of will was important, reckless will alone was not enough to defeat Honkai.

Therefore, when being questioned by Ai, Kiana [Hersher of the End] inevitably fell silent.

If she puts all her heart and soul into it, as long as Li Shubai stands by her side, Kiana [Hersher of the End] can guarantee that there is absolutely nothing in this world that can harm her captain; at the same time, as long as she spends a certain amount of time, she is confident that she can control the [cocoon] of this world step by step.

But if two things happen at the same time, Kiana [Hersher of the End] will lose such confidence.

It’s not because she feels she can’t protect the captain. She loses this confidence for more subjective reasons.

Based on Kiana [Hersher of the End]'s understanding of Li Shubai, if she tries to contact the [Cocoon] of this world, the captain who doesn't want them, the Valkyries, to take any risk beyond their capabilities will definitely try their best to stop them.

It would be fine if they just stopped them, but the most important thing is that the guy might get ahead of them at any time and go face the difficulties alone.

Kiana [Hersher of the End] had no doubt that her captain was capable of doing such a thing. Even if she severely warned him in advance, that guy would definitely pretend to be okay and then turn around and continue to rush to the forefront of danger as he pleased.

In fact, before entering the lunar base, the Valkyries had told Li Shubai more than once that if they encountered difficulties that could not be solved, they must let all members of the Hyperion face it together. At that time, Li Shubai did agree with this, but when the crisis came, he turned around and ordered everyone to leave the Hyperion without hesitation...

When Kiana [Hersher of the End] thought of Li Shubai's last order before leaving their world, she couldn't help but feel her eyes sore.

She took a deep breath to suppress the annoyance in her chest, but she was basically convinced by Ai Yi. However, even if she agreed with Ai Yi's point of view, another new problem arose.

"Since you think I can't protect the captain during the time of resolving the Honkai..." Kiana [Hersher of the End] looked directly at Ai on the other side of the screen, her blue pupils showing scrutiny, "Ai, do you have any good suggestions?"

"Of course. Protecting the captain's safety is not only the responsibility of you Valkyries, but also the responsibility of me as the administrator of the Hyperion." Ai Yi nodded calmly, "I understand that in terms of strength alone, I may be far behind Miss Kiana. If we encounter the same critical situation and need someone to stand by the captain to help him, Miss Kiana is definitely the more suitable person."

Kiana [Herser of the End] looked a little relieved and asked calmly: "...So?"

"So, instead of asking the captain to help him after he is in danger, Ai Yi thinks that a better choice should be to get the captain away from the center of the danger as much as possible." Ai Yi's face was calm, and her tone was gentle and persuasive. "Are you right? Miss Kiana?"

"Keep the captain away from the center of the crisis?" Kiana [Hersher of the End] blinked, with a thoughtful expression on her face, "In other words, do you want to keep the captain away from Honkai as much as possible?"

"That's the idea in principle, but as one of Captain Shubai's Valkyries, Miss Kiana should also understand how difficult it is to get the Captain to stay away from Honkai?" Ai said, "As long as Honkai is still raging and tragedies are still happening, the Captain can't ignore the people in the vortex of tragedy."

"In the eyes of the captain, many people have lost their happy and healthy lives due to the rampage of Honkai." Ai Yi said calmly, as if stating a trivial fact. "It's not just you Valkyries belonging to the Hyperion. As long as the captain recognizes someone, he will find a way to change their lives to the best of his ability."

For example, Kevin lost everything.

For example, the thirteen heroes who deserve everyone's admiration.

"Therefore, if we want to keep the captain away from danger, the tasks we need to accomplish can be divided into these three points."

"First, find a way to temporarily make the Captain lose the idea of ​​facing the Honkai."

"Wait." Kiana [Hersher of the End] interrupted Ai Yi's words, her eyes narrowed slightly, "...You don't want the captain to lose his memory again, do you?"

"This is also an unavoidable choice, Ms. Kiana." Ai Yi's tone was as calm and rational as ever. "Rather than saying that I want the Captain to lose his memory again, it's better to say that this is what the Captain must go through after he completely regains his past time."

"I need a reason." Kiana [Hersher of the End] said seriously.

"In the conversation just now, you should have understood the captain's situation. In order to fully adapt to the memory of more than 100,000 years, even if it is not for Ai Yi's purpose, the captain must concentrate most of the memories he can call upon to integrate those times bit by bit into his own consciousness and turn them into his own things again." Ai Yi glanced at Kiana [Hersher of the End] coldly, "To put it bluntly, if the captain had not been forced to reset his own time, the captain would not have fallen into this dilemma now."

"...I'm sorry." Kiana [Hersher of the End] pursed her lips and her gaze slowed down. "What about the other two points?"

"The other two points are our mission." Ai said, "First, we need to solve the Honkai once and for all as much as possible without relying on the captain's power during the time when the captain is away from Honkai."

"Secondly, while resolving the Honkai, we must also ensure the safety of all the Valkyries on the Hyperion."

"As for the reason... I'm sure Miss Kiana knows it well."

Kiana [Hersher of the End] nodded in understanding.

If after the incident was over, Li Shubai, who had recovered his memory, noticed that Hyperion members had suffered casualties, then after the collapse, he would definitely try to use more dangerous methods to trigger the laws of time and try to reverse the tragedy that had happened.

If it comes to that, then all their efforts will be in vain.

"I understand your suggestion." Kiana [Herrser of the End] said, "But why did you say 'we'? Are you also planning to come to the Hyperion?"

"Of course." Ai nodded.

"Then the captain..."

"During this time, I will find a parallel world that can guarantee the safety of the captain." Ai Yi said, "At the same time, I will randomly transfer a few Valkyries with sufficient combat power from the Hyperion to specifically protect the captain's safety."

"I think you have no objection to this arrangement, Miss Kiana."

"...I have no objection." Kiana [Hersher of the End] nodded, "However, I cannot agree to your proposal right away. In the absence of the captain, I do not have the power to make decisions for other partners on the Hyperion. I will tell everyone Ai's opinion intact, and then give you an accurate answer, okay?"

"As it should be." Ai Yi nodded with a smile, "Then, Miss Administrator will wait for your good news here."

Chapter 4: Li Ta's ecstasy (k)

After hanging up the communication with the Eigenworld, Ai Yi subconsciously picked up the wine glass on the bar, but when she realized that there was not a drop of wine left in the glass, she paused, shook her head helplessly, and put the glass back to its original place.

"How is it?" She turned her head slightly and looked at the ninja lady who had hidden in the shadows and witnessed the entire conversation between her and Kiana [Hersher of the End]. There was a teasing look in her jade-like pupils. "Next, are you still going to tell the captain the news you heard truthfully?"

"..."

With a barely audible sound of footsteps, the Cyber ​​Ninja walked out from the shadows.

She stood in front of Ai Yi in silence for a long time, and finally shook her head expressionlessly, with ripples of confusion in her cyan eyes.

"I don't know." Yae Kasumi said softly, "If I follow the Captain's wishes, I should probably tell him everything I see and hear here, but..."

"But you can't figure out whether doing this is good or bad for the captain, right?" Ai took over Yae Kasumi's words, her tone gentle and soft.

Yae Kasumi nodded silently.

She is the captain's agent. For Yae Kasumi, the captain's will is her will. Therefore, from the perspective of [her recognized responsibilities], no matter what choice and decision Li Shubai makes, Yae Kasumi will execute it without hesitation.

...But on another level, even though Yae Kasumi had long regarded the captain as everything in her life, Li Shubai had never truly believed that this was a responsibility that Yae Kasumi needed to fulfill.

——I need you, will you come with me?

For the captain, the fundamental reason why Yae Kasumi was accepted by him was because he needed Yae Kasumi.

It is not her strength or her will that is needed, but the person of [Yae Kasumi] that is needed.

Therefore, it is not surprising that Yae Kasumi, who had always been trained as a "tool" by destiny in her life, was confused.

Of course, just like the extremely powerful Miss Delta, in order to help the confused Yae Kasumi find her own meaning, the captain did give her a very clear and specific instruction.

People like her would feel uncomfortable in peaceful days if they were not assigned any tasks.

Therefore, ever since being rescued on board by the captain, Yae Kasumi has never stayed on the Hyperion for a long time.

The mission she performed was not dangerous or difficult.

So strictly speaking, even after receiving a call from Ai Yi and coming to Li Shubai's side, Yae Kasumi was still in the state of carrying out her mission.

Of course, since the mission [Searching for pure ether singularities in the quantum ocean] has a clear goal but does not have complete timeliness and quantity indicators, it is no big deal even if there is a slight interruption in the middle of the mission.

However, while the mission was not completed, Yae Kasumi was unable to truly find the meaning of her life during this period of time.

Humans are not black and white creatures. Even if they really wanted to carry out Li Shubai's will, with Yaezaki's relatively stubborn brain, she would not be able to figure out what Li Shubai was really thinking.

- For example, if Li Shubai doesn't want her to live as just his shadow, then what should Yaezaki do if she believes that the meaning of her life is the other person?

Judging from the news that Yae Kasumi had just heard, although both Ai and the silver-haired woman on the screen seemed to be prepared to hide certain facts from the captain, their relationship with and concern for the captain were not fake.

They really wanted to keep the secret from the captain and give him a perfect answer.

"...How confident are you?" Unable to figure out the key, Yae Kasumi could only temporarily give up thinking about the complicated human nature and turned her attention to something else that she was better at. "From what you said just now, it seems that everyone on the Hyperion, including the captain, are preparing to fight against a strange enemy called [Honkai]?"

"Fighting Honkai is our issue, so you'd better not be too concerned about it." Ai shrugged, "But if you just want to ask about the success rate..."

"Then, I can guarantee you in the name of the administrator that everyone on the Hyperion will not be defeated by Honkai." Ai Yi smiled, "You should have heard clearly just now. While resolving the Honkai, we must also ensure that all members of the Hyperion are not killed or injured. After all, including Ai Yi, everyone on the Hyperion does not want to cause trouble to the captain again because of their own affairs."

"So, what do you want me to do?" Yae Kasumi asked, "Do you want me to tell the captain everything I saw today, or... just turn a blind eye?"

"I'm sorry, if that's the case." Ai smiled slightly, "I can't give you an accurate answer."

"why?"

"Because I don't want to mislead you." Ai said, "Although I do have my own selfish motives, whether it's Ms. Kiana or Ms. Yae Kasumi, I hope that you all make decisions based on your own will. In this process, the only thing I do as an administrator is to present the facts in front of you, that's all."

"...What about the captain?" Yae Kasumi was silent for a moment, then asked, "Since you just laid out the facts in front of us, why don't you do the same to the captain."

"So I said, I do have my own selfish motives." Ai Yi blinked cunningly, and raised the corners of her mouth slightly, "To put it in more understandable terms, I am just being hypocritical."

"Is this something to be proud of?" Yae Kasumi was puzzled.

“No.” Ai Yi shook her head. “But it is precisely because of this double standard, this completely different standard for judging the captain and others, that makes me feel even more that maybe I have become a real human being like the captain…”

"It's hard to understand..." Yaexia raised her finger and lifted her collar, "However, I accept your proposal."

"As long as you can ensure the captain's safety and keep the development of the situation under your control, I can ask you to conceal everything I saw today for the time being." Yaexia said, "This should be your real purpose. Although you said you didn't want to mislead me, in fact, you still interfered with my judgment."

"So what do you think, is this kind of interference good or bad?" Ai Yi said.

"I don't know." Yaexia shook her head, "But... this feeling of caring for others doesn't seem bad."

Just as Yae Kasumi finished her words, Ai's communicator suddenly rang.

In mid-air, a virtual screen emitting a faint fluorescent light appeared again.

This time, what appeared on the screen was still the same as before, the scene of the conference room in the Hyperion which was still in the original world.

However, what was different from just now was that most of the front-line members on the Hyperion, including Kiana [Hersher of the End] who had just had a conversation with Ai, appeared on the screen.

"Long time no see, Miss Ai." Guanxing, who was at the front of everyone, simply greeted her and went straight to the point, "It seems that the progress of your mission is smoother than I thought."

"Thank you for your kindness. This is just my job." Ai said, "Ms. Kiana should have conveyed everything I wanted to say to you."

"Well, it is indeed a very tempting proposal." Guanxing nodded. She fanned the pure white feather fan in her hand and said leisurely, "Although your proposal includes that we don't need to rely on the captain's power as much as possible, but combined with the subsequent words... the focus of this proposal should be that we should not let Captain Shubai know that we are trying to approach the end for the time being, right?"

"Indeed." Ai nodded. "Even if the captain temporarily leaves us, the Hyperion he owns will not leave with him. The captain originally opened up some of the Hyperion's management rights to everyone, so all we need to do is use all the power we can to completely solve the problem of Honkai before the captain completely digests his memories."

"Okay, I agree with your proposal." Guan Xing said calmly, "If in this case, we still need the captain's help to solve the so-called 'collapse', then we can just come to the world bubble where I was before and ask the current Sage King to grant everyone a piece of land, and then everyone can go home to farm."