I was transported to a broken world, yet my dreams are connected to Star Iron?

　"Hahahaha... How could that be? I, Siegfried, am a former S-class Fate Knight. How could I possibly be S-class if my academic performance is so poor..."

　Siegfried's voice sounded noticeably more guilty.

　"Sigh, those two guys..."

　Ai Yin sighed helplessly, then gently knocked on the door.

　"Joachim, I have brought the man here."

　"Oh?"

　Siegfried immediately looked toward the door, but what he saw almost made him slide off the sofa in fright.

　"Ring, Lingmo?! You're still alive?"

　"What are you talking about? Do you think you've seen a ghost? Welt asked you to retrieve my body back then because I can be resurrected, didn't he?"

　Lingmo smiled slightly, then walked straight to the empty seat reserved for her in the room and sat down.

　"But your resurrection only took a few days back then... More than ten years have passed, I thought..."

　A hint of excitement flickered across Siegfried's face. After all, his life had undergone a dramatic transformation since the Second Honkai Impact. To be able to see a friend he had thought was dead for many years again after more than a decade filled him with a sense of nostalgia.

　"Alright, alright, stop cursing me. I didn't come here to hear you lament about why I'm still alive..."

　As she spoke, Lingmo looked at Walter beside her and asked, "Ain said that a lot of things happened in the world while I was asleep? Could you tell me about them?"

　"Ah."

　Walter nodded. Compared to the last time he saw him, Walter seemed more composed now? It seemed that Walter had been through a lot in the years that Suzumo had been away.

　"After the Second Honkai Impact ended, the relationship between Destiny and Anti-Entropy has been changing, generally trending from easing to tension and then back to easing."

　"The first easing of tensions was thanks to you, Lingmo. After the second Honkai Impact 3rd, Schicksal's high-level combat power was greatly weakened, and you destroyed Otto's Soul Steel Body Network, which had been set up for many years. In addition, during the Honkai Impact 3rd control efforts, a large number of Schicksal's lower-level Valkyries were also helped by the Anti-Entropy mech forces. Overall, neither side seemed to be fighting each other."

　"The second easing of relations was due to the development of the international situation. Many neutral countries were unwilling to get involved in the conflict between the two major powers. In addition, the research directions of Tianming and Nishang have different focuses. Therefore, while we had some friction in some areas, we also maintained cooperation in some specific fields."

　"As for coordinating these collaborations, the task was assigned to Patrick, a former member of the Snow Wolf Squad. She is friends with many of the Valkyries who have retired from the front lines on the Destiny side, including several former members of the Snow Wolf Squad, so this can reduce a lot of meaningless disputes."

　"Former member of the Snow Wolf Squad?"

　Lingmo paused for a moment: "But if I remember correctly, the members of the Snow Wolf Squad shouldn't be that old, and considering that their artificial stigmata are almost all highly adaptable, they shouldn't be at the age of retiring yet... Siegfried is still maintaining his combat effectiveness, isn't he?"

　"Normally, that's true."

　Valte nodded: "However... due to a certain incident, we had a significant conflict with Destiny, and most of the Snow Wolf Squad members chose to retire after this incident in protest... This is also the reason why the relationship between Destiny and Anti-Entropy was tense during that period, as I told you."

　"And that matter..."

　"That thing is, I defected from Schicksal with Kiana."

　Siegfried sighed, his fist clenching unconsciously, and took over the conversation.

　"During that defection... my daughter, Kiana, unfortunately fell from the aircraft, which was already several thousand meters above the ground."

　As Siegfried finished speaking, Suzumo suddenly felt the stigmata representing Cecilia on her body become so hot it was almost burning.

　"hiss……"

　Lingmo gasped, partly feigning surprise and partly from being burned.

　While mentally signaling to Kiana to comfort Cecilia, she quickly asked, "But just before we came in, I overheard you and Welt discussing Kiana's grades... What's going on here?"

　"It was Otto who did it."

　This time, Siegfried spoke much faster, seemingly reluctant to recall that past.

　"After the Second Honkai Impact ended, I returned to Schicksal with resentment towards Otto, but I didn't confront him immediately because Kiana was still in Schicksal at the time, Theresa's memories had been altered by Otto, and my friends in the Snow Wolf Squad were also unaware of what had happened during the Second Honkai Impact..."

　Through Siegfried's slow and deliberate narration, Lingmo finally understood the general course of events.

　The entire Siegfried defection incident was basically the same as in the original work, and even went much more smoothly than in the original work with the help of the Snow Wolf Squad. After that, Kiana crashed her plane, and the depressed Siegfried wandered with K423 until he was comforted by K423 and regained his strength, and gave K423 the name Kiana.

　But... just then, Suzumo heard a part of the story that she hadn't expected.

　"You mean..."

　Lingmo asked with some curiosity, "After you took Kiana away, she lost control again due to the instability of the Herrscher Core. It wasn't until you paid the price of an arm to activate the Judgment of Heavenly Fire that Kiana's consciousness was reawakened."

　"Is it precisely because of this that you're afraid of stimulating Kiana's 'Herrscher personality' that you've been hesitant to meet with her?"

　"Yes... that's roughly it."

　Siegfried nodded with a bitter smile: "I guess I really am not a good father... Not only can I not protect my daughter, but I also dare not see her, and I even have to let her wander alone at such a young age..."

　"But, putting aside how you judge that Kiana's loss of control was due to the so-called 'Herrscher personality'..."

　Lingmo frowned slightly.

　"You should know that before Kiana's Herrscher Core went out of control, you and she spent almost three years together. Even if the Herrscher Core went out of control once, it shouldn't have reached the point where you would lose control just by seeing her... All these years, you haven't gone to see her again, even knowing that she has been looking for you?"

　"I'm afraid of upsetting her again, causing the situation that has finally stabilized to spiral out of control..."

　"Your continued avoidance is the biggest shock to her... Never mind, wait a moment, let me sort this out."

　Lingmo returned her consciousness to the system space with a bit of a headache. After all, Cecilia had already turned visibly red-hot. If she were to be released now, Siegfried might get a severe beating.

　“Senior Cecilia, please calm down… If you want to beat up Siegfried, at least let me finish my questions first, and… Kiana may not actually be dead.”

　"...It's okay, Rinmo. I told you, you don't need to worry about my feelings."

　Cecilia took a deep breath and managed a gentle smile.

　"Siegfried made it very clear just now. Whether it's going to save another Kiana, or taking her with her on the run, or even what comes after... in short, it's all Kiana's own decision. Although I am heartbroken, I am also proud of her."

　"What I'm angry about right now is Siegfried. Does he really act like a father, with that dejected look on his face? He left Kiana with Theresa, and Theresa's reason for encouraging her was 'I'll tell her where Siegfried is when she becomes an A-rank Valkyrie'... Forget it, just thinking about it makes me angry."

　"As for Mr. Siegfried, it's actually quite normal for him to have become like this. He has lost too much, which makes him prone to anxiety and insecurity... Don't worry, I will transmit your emotions to him through my powers later."

　After calming the red-faced Cecilia down a bit, Suzuma immediately opened the system screen. After seeing the timeline of the entire event, her expression became increasingly strange.

　Because this development clearly deviated from her expectations.

　"That shouldn't be the case... In the original work, the Queen's personality emerged because the Queen inherited all of Sirin's memories before her death—her anger and those painful past experiences. That's why, even though both were blank slates, Kiana went towards the 'good' side, while she, influenced by her memories, went towards the so-called 'evil' side, but..."

　"Will the Queen personality really emerge in this world's Sirin? Although I didn't have time to tell her that I could preserve her soul before she died, she was clearly in a very good mood when she gave me the Corruption Core."

　"Furthermore, throughout the entire Second Honkai Impact, apart from those people from the Babylonian Laboratory, Sirin not only didn't kill anyone, but even saved many local residents... Even if Kiana really did develop two personalities like in the original work, and one of them inherited all of Sirin's memories, it's impossible for the extreme situation like the Queen's in the original work to occur..."

　After carefully sorting through my thoughts, the mysteries surrounding Kiana actually increased.

　"...As expected, I still have to go to St. Freya in person to check on Kiana's condition. Anti-Entropy doesn't have any other mental perception ability users, so this task can only be done by me. I can also put Sirin into Kiana's body to nurture her for a while. Sirin's recovery speed is still too slow here."

　"Moreover, if I want to take action against Cocolia, I need to take advantage of the 'anti-entropy invasion' incident in the original work. In addition, I need to go to the Central Dogmatic District to find Cecilia a usable body... Looking at it this way, my schedule seems quite full."

　Suzuma, realizing that she herself seemed to be showing signs of overwork, sighed deeply.

　"Oh right, we also need to tell Siegfried and Welt about Sirin and Cecilia, since we'll need their cooperation for the follow-up work... How about we put on a show, and let Cecilia vent her anger, maybe we can wake Siegfried up a bit..."

　Having already made up her mind, Suzumo reopened her eyes and simultaneously shared her plan with the fuming Cecilia.

　Sensing the immediate approval emanating from the Holy Mark, Lingmo's lips curved into a slight smile before she stood up with a cold expression.

　"Mr. Walter, can I do you a favor?"

　"Ok?"

　Walter looked at Suzumo, puzzled.

　"Please, don't try to mediate the fight later, after all..."

　"Although I personally have no problem with Zigfi, Cecilia-senpai seems to be furious."

　"?"

　Before Siegfried and Walter could even process the immense amount of information in that sentence, Rinmo had already strode up to Siegfried. At the same time, a phantom figure embraced Rinmo from behind, merging into her body, and then…

　A fist landed hard on Siegfried's face.

　"Gurgh..."

　Although the vast difference in strength between Siegfried and Suzuma would have allowed him to easily block Suzuma's movements, the shock he had just heard left him momentarily speechless, and he was knocked backward by a punch.

　Then, "Lingmo," now replaced by Cecilia, seized the opportunity when Siegfried lost his balance. Her petite frame spun, using the momentum, and she delivered a precise kick to Siegfried's balancing point, sending him and the sofa tumbling over. The incredibly fluid movements and precise timing showcased the composure of a veteran S-class Valkyrie, leaving Lingmo, who had switched to spectator mode, in awe within the system, wishing she could study every frame.

　"For not protecting your daughter! For not seeing Kiana! For abandoning her to wander the streets! For..."

　"hiss……"

　Seeing Siegfried's miserable state, Walter gasped in shock. He immediately put his hand, which had been about to intervene, back on his lap and used his power to add a soundproof barrier to the room.

　After all, Siegfried still has to work here, so we have to give him some face.

　But is this how married couples usually get along? It's a little scary...

　The thought that even the usually gentle Cecilia could be so terrifying when she got angry, and that the red-haired woman he liked was known for her bad temper, made Walter break out in a cold sweat for his future.

　I hope... I won't do anything to upset her in the future...

　Chapter 65 On the surface, I am Suzumo, but in reality, I am Suzumo Zipda!

　The one-sided beating of Siegfried lasted for a full five minutes. Although Suzuma's body was not in good physical condition, it could not be simply regarded as a teenage girl under the enhancement of the Herrscher core... In short, when Cecilia's personality correction punch ended, Siegfried was bruised and swollen - he still dared not control the Honkai energy repair at all.

　After all... if he hadn't been beaten to the point of being out of his mind, he seemed to have heard Lingmo say something just now...

　Is Cecilia beating him up now?

　"Cough cough..."

　After beating up Siegfried, Cecilia clapped her hands gently and sat back in her previous seat in a very ladylike manner, handing control of her body back to Suzuma. She showed no trace of her previous rage.

　"Although it seems a bit late to say this now, I'm sorry, Mr. Siegfried, I personally don't have that much of a problem with you, but Cecilia-senpai just couldn't hold back anymore, so..."

　"No, it's okay!"

　Siegfried, who had just straightened the sofa, quickly shook his head and said, "I'm thick-skinned, so being beaten up is nothing to me. Besides... I didn't deserve this beating."

　“Over the past few years, Walter and Ryoma have comforted me more than once, telling me that my choice was a last resort and that from a rational point of view, there wasn’t much of a problem… But I know very well that I am not a good father, and I have indeed let Kiana down. Many things cannot be completely absolved of my mistakes with just the excuse of ‘having no other choice’…”

　"As long as you understand."

　Lingmo nodded, a mischievous smile on her face. "But I know that's not what you really want to ask right now, is it?"

　"Cough cough..."

　Siegfried coughed awkwardly, "No, that's right, you just said Cecilia, she..."

　“Yes, she is still alive, and not just her, Celine is also alive.”

　As she spoke, Lingmo looked at Welt, whose mouth was practically agape, and said, "Mr. Welt, you should remember what I told you before I let you leave during the Second Honkai Impact, right?"

　"I have a trump card that I can only use in the most desperate situations..."

　Walter (in shock, Jpg): "Could it be...?"

　"Yes, it's what you think."

　Lingmo reached out and took off the glove on her left hand. At this moment, a red pattern that was somewhat familiar to both of them appeared on the back of the girl's fair hand.

　"Come on, take a look at this?"

　"This, this is the Sariat Stigmata? No, that's not right. I've seen Cecilia's Stigmata before. Although the Sariat family's Stigmata are very similar to this, some details are different..."

　Siegfried, who was extremely familiar with the stigmata on Cecilia's body, stared intently at the patterns on Suzumo's hand without blinking.

　"This is definitely not the Stigmata of Shaniat, is it?"

　Lingmo tilted her head and gave a sly smile: "If I may, I would prefer you to call it... Cecilia's Mark."

　"After all, Cecilia's own consciousness is preserved within the Stigmata."

　"Snapped--"

　Siegfried accidentally crushed the armrest.

　“My trump card is that I can temporarily store other people’s consciousness in my body. At the end of the Second Honkai Impact, Sirin gave me a core. With this core, I can store my consciousness in the core and extend its ‘shelf life’, just like you, Mr. Welt.”

　"And this Stigmata is the external manifestation of this ability. With the Stigmata as a communication medium, I can even have Senior Cecilia briefly attach herself to my body to help me fight."

　"However, I can only use that trump card once, and since Cecilia can't use her powers even when controlling my body, compared to Cecilia's original strength, my frail body is nothing but a scream of pain..."

　"It doesn't matter……"

　Siegfried seemed still reeling from the immense shock: "Cecilia is alive... It's good that she's alive..."

　"Cecilia left you some messages, didn't she?"