Herrscher of Dominance in Honkai, starting with the abduction of Kiana

The explosion shook the entire building. Even Rita, who was underground, could clearly feel the tremors. The destruction caused by Kiana was widespread, and many of the instruments were destroyed. The connection between Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical and the industrial district was severed, cutting off Jackal's signal link.

Though the situation wasn't looking good, Rita saw a glimmer of hope. She discarded some of her spare equipment to lighten her load and conserve energy, pushing herself to escape toward the underground passage.

As she made her way through, she fought off zombies at every turn. The number of wounds on her body kept increasing, but she pressed on.

Just when her stamina was running low, Rita finally reached the second underground level. The exit was only a few dozen meters away. But the zombies blocking her path weren't going to let her go so easily. They quickly surrounded her.

Just as Rita gritted her teeth, preparing to fight to the death, several Void Lances pierced through the zombies. And then, the white-haired girl she had been searching for so long finally appeared before her.

"Herrscher of the Void!" Rita raised her arm, ready to swing her scythe one more time. But all the strength in her body had already been drained. She stumbled and fell to the ground.

After the fierce battle and constant surges of Honkai energy, Kiana wasn't in great shape either. But when she saw Rita Rossweisse—who had relentlessly pursued St. Freya—now exhausted and collapsed, an unexpected feeling of joy and vengeance stirred in her heart.

She didn't understand where this feeling came from. In the past, she would have only blamed herself for her weakness. But now, after accepting her own redemption, Kiana found that she valued herself more. She no longer cared as much about the opinions of others.

After wiping out all the surrounding enemies, Kiana slowly walked toward Rita and pointed her lance at her.

"Heh, I didn't expect the Herrscher of the Void, who used to run away, to have grown so strong. I thought you'd be like a little dog, hiding and fleeing…"

Slap—

The Void Lance struck Rita's beautiful face, leaving a red mark. Only after the strike did Kiana seem to realize what she had just done.

But Rita was even more shocked than Kiana. She never imagined a day would come when she would be slapped. Her eyes were filled with disbelief. She tried to stand, but could only manage to lift her head slightly to look at Kiana.

Kiana, now back to her senses, decided to keep her cold, unwavering attitude. She pointed the tip of her spear at Rita. Her voice was ice-cold.

"Ms. Rita doesn't seem to understand the current situation. Even if you're Schicksal's S-rank Valkyrie, shouldn't you learn to be humble before a Herrscher?"

The girl in front of her was no longer the naive student from St. Freya. She was no longer just a tool Otto had used to resurrect the Herrscher of the Void.

Rita suddenly realized this, a sense of unease flooding her. She wasn't afraid of death, but of the girl's rapid growth. Kiana was no longer the tool Otto had manipulated. She was someone who could truly become a powerful Herrscher.

And if such a Herrscher stood against humanity, the disasters to come would be unimaginable.

"Heh." There was no longer any contempt in Kiana's eyes. Rita slowly lowered her posture. She was no longer the powerful S-rank Valkyrie, but a true maid.

"My apologies, Herrscher of the Void. What do you plan to do with me?"

The sudden change in Rita's attitude left Kiana confused. She couldn't understand what Rita was thinking. But Kiana maintained her tough stance and asked, "You must know about the plan that Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical is carrying out. So what will you do now? Are you going to keep following Otto's orders and hunt me down? Or will you try to stop this disaster from happening?"

"Don't worry," Kiana added coldly, "I won't kill you, no matter what you choose."

Looking into the heterochromatic eyes of the white-haired girl, Rita suddenly realized If Overseer Otto had truly made the wrong choice. She closed her eyes for a moment.

The woman named Raven and the dog mask flashed through her mind. When she opened her eyes again, they were filled with anger.

"Of course," Rita said, her voice dripping with fury. "I'll first send these despicable people to Schicksal's laboratories and let them experience Schicksal's hospitality."

In the distance, the backup forces sent by Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical were getting closer. Although she hadn't received the answer she wanted, Kiana still reached down and helped Rita to her feet.

"Then you better remember what you've said." Kiana could feel her Honkai energy running low. Continuing to use her full power would only lead to more erosion. She gathered the remaining Honkai energy in her hands, slowly forming a circular spatial rift.

"Let's go. Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical's backup is almost here."

Just as Kiana was about to send Rita into the rift, Rita pulled away.

"I'm sorry, please let me take care of one last thing." After returning to the second underground level, the communication signals had been restored. Rita lightly pressed her communicator and spoke in a tired voice. "After all, a maid's job is to clean up."

「The Eos's automated navigation has been activated. Executing 'Clean-up' command. Target is current location.」

Kiana was confused by Rita's words, but her confusion quickly turned to awareness as she noticed a huge shadow rapidly approaching from the distance.

"H- Holy…" Even the innocent girl couldn't help but curse. As the battleship drew closer, she quickly grabbed Rita's arm and pulled her into the spatial rift.

Within seconds of their departure, a large group of mechas stormed in. Jackal, controlling the mechas, surveyed the empty industrial district, grinding her teeth in frustration.

"Search! I want them alive, or I want their corpses! Even if they've been cut into pieces, find them!"

The chaos caused by Rita and Kiana had left the underground laboratory in ruins. And now, with Rita gone, they were about to face Schicksal's devastating attack. The Stigmata Project wasn't complete, and the base World Serpent had fought so hard to build was on the verge of destruction. Jackal's mind raced, wondering how she would explain this to their lord.

"No, there's still a chance," she muttered to herself. "It's already been exposed, so we should just forcefully begin the experiments and turn the entire city into our laboratory."

Suddenly, her eyes widened. "Wait, something is approaching!"

Jackal abruptly adjusted the mecha's camera, capturing the transport ship almost directly overhead. In the next second, her vision went blank.

Several kilometers away, deep underground in the Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical main building, Jackal, now beyond just controlling mechas, scrambled toward the stairs. She didn't even have time to grab her cane. Her foot missed a step, and she tumbled down the stairs.

Then, a blinding flame lit up the entire ARC City. The residents of ARC City, many of whom had never felt an earthquake before, now experienced one for the first time. Moments later, an intense shockwave swept through the city. The glass windows of many high-rise buildings shattered.

If the residents around Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical hadn't already been evacuated due to the earlier Honkai outbreak, the single 'clean-up' operation by the Eos would have killed tens of thousands.

Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical, the main target of the attack, had been completely devastated. Countless awakening agents, the large number of Stigmata zombies that World Serpent had been developing, and the mecha forces worth billions were all buried in the explosion.

Though Rita's Eos had cost billions to build, the cleanup mission was ultimately profitable compared to World Serpent's losses. More importantly, the self-destruct command had destroyed the agents Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical had been preparing for the city-wide experiment.

Rita's spur-of-the-moment decision had proven to be decisive.