Chat Group: Starting by Swapping Bodies with Elysia?

Faced with [Bronya] Welt didn't choose to engage in a direct contest using the Herrscher of Reason's power. To be sure, the Herrscher of Reason's power wasn't exactly known for its outstanding combat abilities.

Compared to other Herrschers who controlled physical laws and had straightforward effects, the time it took to go from understanding to creation, which usually seemed negligible, became a flaw in the Herrscher of Reason's battles with enemies.

In short—the wind-up was too long.

Among the many weapons that Welt had acquired, the power of the Star of Eden was the most straightforward and convenient. After all, it was gravity, one of the four fundamental forces of the universe, and its original form had the glorious feat of sinking an entire continent.

But in Jiang Qiao's eyes, this wasn't just about using a simpler method, but more of a kind of 'cowardice.'

Instead of choosing the power of the Herrscher of Reason to face [Bronya], who was currently also the Herrscher of Reason, he chose to use the symbols of power of another Herrscher.

"Are you afraid you'll lose to me?"

Looking up at the man—who was clearly looking down at her, with Welt—the First Herrscher—occupying the high ground and looking down at the girl who had the name [Bronya], the former's calm words, tinged with a hint of baby formula, brought a stinging pain to the First Herrscher.

His eyes were bloodshot, blood trickling from his mouth, and he was utterly frantic.

I defeated the Herrscher of the Void!

I defeated that man!

I won't lose!

How could I possibly lose!!!

However—

Facing such a First Herrscher, the girl who was looking up at him had a flash of 'pity' in her eyes.

The silver-haired girl gently patted the girl beside her on the arm, and after smiling at her unwillingly, walked out of the shield's range.

She could feel it.

The surrounding space was twisting, and a powerful pressure was being applied to her body. Even if it were an A-rank Valkyrie from Schicksal, facing this degree of gravitational force, they would likely struggle to endure for long.

But [Bronya] walked through this terrifying gravity field with a serene indifference—with each step, layers of tangible light supported her.

"Don't come any closer! I'm here! You just stay there!"

Her jade-like feet encased in boots stepped onto the mirror-like surface, making monotonous yet exceptionally crisp sounds, step by step, as if they were striking the First Herrscher's heart. This calm and unhurried demeanor made him recall his past helplessness and instinctively take a step back.

However, this small step caused a huge psychological blow, making him roar in uncontrollable fury:

"Kneel before me!!!"

The girl didn't flinch.

"All systems nominal."

"Ride on."

[She] whispered, "The time has come."

A blue spear bloomed from [Bronya]s' hand amid a dazzling flow of data light—the First Herrscher seemed to finally remember that he was also a Herrscher of Reason, and when the Star of Eden proved useless, he summoned the airplanes, tanks, and battleships that he was so proud of.

However, those things didn't even have a chance to fire, being obliterated by the barrage of floating cannons.

"You've lost."

The sharp spear tip pointed directly at the panicked First Herrscher, [Bronya] held the spear, her expression indifferent.

"I...lost?"

The latter was incredulous, then collapsed in despair.

"I've lost..."

It was a double meaning.

Was he simply defeated in this contest?

Or had he failed at inheriting the name 'Welt'?

Either way, this man had been completely defeated.

Without paying attention to the figure that had fallen to the ground behind her, kicking up snow and dust, [Bronya], who had gently touched down, faced Seele's questioning gaze behind her and calmly said,

"Don't worry about him."

"His body won't be able to hold out much longer after using that power in such a reckless and excessive way."

Jiang Qiao had overestimated that man—even after falling into a puppet controlled by the Honkai, he was still just a half-baked amateur.

Because of his mental breakdown, the 'First Herrscher' had even lost his ability to get back on his feet.

Coupled with the collapse of his beliefs—or rather, Mr. 'Yang Beyond' never had any beliefs. He had merely been controlled by hatred, resentment, and shame, forcing himself to get to where he was today.

As for attacking the other person like before.

Although the owner of this body had indeed done something like that, Jiang Qiao wasn't as sentimental as Bronya.

…The Herrscher of Reason's core?

—That was just a shadow that had separated from its original world.

It was worthless.

As for this world—

[Bronya]s' gaze moved to Kiana and Raiden Mei, who were still alive. Their gazes towards her were clearly filled with caution and fear.

He remembered that this world was supposed to be a large-scale labyrinth component constructed by Welt using the power of the Herrscher of Reason—that meant it should have been fake.

But in this changed present, Jiang Qiao could sense that this world wasn't fake. It was a shadow of a world that had fallen off its original existence, a 'paradoxical product' created after a chaotic merging.

If that wasn't the case, it wouldn't be possible to see Valkyries Kiana and Raiden Mei participating in the battle against the Herrscher of the Void on the Second Honkai Eruption battlefield, a scene that clearly contained a serious timeline error.

It was the prototype world bubble that old Yang had used to construct his labyrinths.

"Those who fall into the Sea of Quanta are worlds that have lost their future and their possibilities."

Like that Cyberangel Bunny from the main story or like Yae Kasumi.

If left unattended, it would probably be destroyed before long.

The girl fell into a brief contemplation, and Seele, being very understanding, didn't disturb her—although she didn't know what Bronya-nee was thinking, she felt it must be something very important.

"Very well."

There were countless world bubbles, and saving them all on her own was a difficult task. At least while she was working on her own plan, she would leave it at that, but since they had encountered it by chance, she would lend a hand while she was at it.

"Seele, come with me."

With these words, Project Bunny sprang into existence, supporting the bewildered girl with short hair.

Then, a gap appeared in space.

They left the world bubble and entered the Sea of Quanta—allowing them to observe the world from the outside.

"Su, give me a hand."

"…"

"You can't possibly…"

The enlightened one, the Genius, seemed to have guessed what Jiang Qiao was about to do. His expression was somewhat complex.

Although he wanted to refuse—but in order to send her out of the Sea of Quanta faster, Su could only sigh and silently choose to help.

—The Millennial Abyss at the bottom of the Thames River shone brightly in his mind. Through the mind-based connection between the fighting styles of the warriors, it linked to the [Bronya] unit.

At the same time, the power of Sumeru Mustard Seed was also being mobilized.

"First Rated Power—Vision Reversal."

Although it was the first time using it, as the Herrscher of Truth, [Bronya] quickly mastered its method of use—and with a soft shout, she activated the move that had once trapped Kevin at the bottom of the Sea of Quanta.

As a space-sealing ability, this move could collapse a world bubble into a point mass and sink it to the lowest energy level in the Sea of Quanta.

But for Jiang Qiao, who was both the 'Herrscher of Truth' and had used the power of the 'Herrscher of the Void,' this move wasn't that simple.

"Use the authority of the imaginary to seal the mass of the entire world—and then…"

[Look for possibilities]

[Utopian construction]

"Holy Sword... Shadow Durandal!"

As the obscure, somewhat childlike English was spoken, the peak creation of Previous Era technology that Durandal had once used to divide the world, 'Durandal,' floated into [Bronya]s' hands.

"Bronya-nee!"

Seele exclaimed in shock—quantum shadows began to appear all around. This wasn't outside [Bronya]s' expectations. After all, this was the Sea of Quanta. As an apostle of the imaginary, using power so ostentatiously, it would be strange if there weren't any reaction.

"Bunny, hold them off for a minute."

Projecting a portion of her power onto Project Bunny, it was able to withstand the quantum shadows.

And the girl accelerated the pouring of her power.

With a 'buzz,' the entire world bubble, supported by the Holy Sword Durandal, transformed into a crystal ball and landed in [Bronya]s' hand.

"Seele, consider this a gift for you."

"Eh... Eeh—!?"

Looking at the silver-haired girl handing her the crystal ball with a smile—Seele was first stunned, then she looked shocked. If she wasn't mistaken… this was a world bubble?!

Bronya-nee was… giving her a world?!!

Although a world bubble wasn't the same as a complete world, this world of 'Yang Beyond' had theoretically already lost all possibilities, just like the Cyberangel Bunny world, only a small portion of a full map remained, but there was no doubt that it could still be called a world.

Giving a world as a gift… Seele's cheeks flushed instantly.

She clumsily accepted the crystal ball and could see the vibrant, snow-covered world through its translucent exterior.

Bronya-nee is actually this romantic…

"Alright, Seele, let's go home."

Looking at the silver-haired girl's extended hand, she hesitated for a moment, due to being too surprised. But in the next moment, Blue Wendy rushed toward [Bronya]—as expected of someone who was nourished by the whole orphanage.

Although she didn't look very big, she was a lot more physically fit than this 'promising' body.

The one who got the beauty was me, Jiang Qiao thought to himself.

"Achoo—!"

Inside the Elysian Realm, Bronya, who was training in the basics with Hua, sneezed unexpectedly and scratched her head in confusion.

Do even consciousness spaces make you sneeze?

…Hmm, maybe Seele is thinking about Bronya?

A thought flashed through her mind. The possibility made her expression become much more serious and focused, and she withdrew her wandering attention.

Focusing all her attention on mastering the Taixu sword qi taught by Hua.

Although the increase in combat power from practicing Taixu sword qi was useless for Bronya, it could refine the wielder's control and use of Honkai energy.

Refining her spirit could also hone her mind. The main reason why the original Bronya had managed to master the power of the Herrscher of Reason, apart from her constant training and determination, was because of the Taixu sword qi that Fu Hua had taught her.

Otherwise, aside from the Schariac family who had a natural ability to manipulate Honkai energy, a regular Schicksal Valkyrie wouldn't be able to learn how to flexibly and freely utilize such power.

Even though there was very little Honkai energy in the Elysian Realm, the Elysian Realm, as a large simulation facility, was more than enough for a novice like Bronya to practice.

Although Bronya felt a little impatient with this monotonous and boring training method—she still wanted to be faster, for example, finding a shortcut to bring Seele back from the Sea of Quanta—but she was relatively satisfied with her current life.

The Elysian Realm, which stored the memories of the thirteen Flame-Chasers, also contained many games from the Previous Era, such as Fox Only, Yingshi Twice, and Open Door Cat, etc., because some of the Flame-Chasers liked them.

Even though they weren't a complete collection of the Previous Era, those treasures of a civilization's crystallization fully satisfied Bronya, who was a hardcore gamer.

She had already planned to bring Seele back later and secretly come here to play games whenever she was bored.

Cough cough—Bronya wasn't addicted to games. She felt that since taking Sakura's advice and seeking out Hua, she had obviously made huge strides in mastering the powers of the Herrscher of Reason.

As expected, I'm a genius! (Proud face)

Just you wait, Seele. After Bronya's training is complete, she will come and save you!!!

…

Passing Dr. SPACY's test, successfully becoming his student and joining Fire Moth, an organization he had always wanted to join, was indeed something to celebrate.

Everything was indeed as he had expected—Fire Moth truly concealed the truth about the incurable disease known as 'Honkai Disease', which was plaguing the world.

However, the truth behind it was too shocking and made it difficult for him to calm down after learning it for the first time... Remembering the pink-haired girl he had met during the day, Su couldn't help but sigh.

Half of his mental exhaustion today, no… 90% of it was from her.

Fortunately, the woman called Elysia hadn't kept staring at him—Dr. SPACY had proposed to go on a tour of the 'Fire Moth Fifth Base,' and as a new recruit in Fire Moth, he didn't have the right… no, it seemed to be because of some issues on the Fifth Science Division's side, Dr. SPACY had suggested that Su maintain his previous life for the time being and slowly learn about Fire Moth before joining after things had settled down—Su agreed.

Tiredly making his way home, he could see the message Kevin had sent on his phone's messaging app—

Kevin: The shower in my place broke. Mind if I use yours?

Su smiled, not minding.

As they were good friends, they lived close to each other. Both of their apartments were a bit old, as they were both fairly frugal. The advantage was that it was cheap, and the drawback was… the outdated infrastructure. It wasn't uncommon in Europe for such a thing, so at times like these, using each other's things had become an extremely normal thing.

As they were best friends—even before, Kevin had said that if having MEI at the concert made Su feel awkward, they could just ditch MEI and go together.

Their close relationship meant that they each had their own keys to each other's homes—that was how Kevin could put a coat on him and bring him breakfast while he was asleep.

Click.

The door wasn't closed, and he could hear the sound of running water. Kevin must have been showering.

Su didn't think much of it until—

"Aaaah—!!!"

The deafening high-pitched scream made him dazed. He subconsciously ignored the reason why the voice was so high and delicate, like a young girl's, and rushed to the bathroom, yanking open the shower curtain.

What greeted his eyes was a white-haired girl standing under the shower, completely naked, the water droplets that were running down her white skin visible to the naked eye.

Her waist was as slender as a water snake. She had a figure that was a perfect score for a young girl, a delicate face, pink lips, and blue eyes that had a bit of water in them…