"Wah... this seems a little bad."
Elysia awkwardly watched as Mei transformed into a streak of lightning and rushed toward her. Under the opponent's extreme high-mobility combat style, she found herself forced into constant defense.
Herrschers were originally terrifying large-scale annihilation-type mages. With a mere gesture, they could easily destroy continents.
Yet now, Mei had condensed and compressed that world-ending power entirely into the domain of fighting a single individual.
Although Elysia was also a Herrscher—and an even higher-level Herrscher of Origin—facing this completely unfamiliar combat style left her at a temporary disadvantage.
After all, she had not fought a proper battle in a very long time. On top of that, the treasured fanbook collection from Teacher Stars had simply been too good to read. Recently, this certain Pink Elf had been feeling a bit drained.
And after dealing with so many opponents earlier, Elysia herself had already expended quite a bit of energy. For a moment, the Herrscher of Origin genuinely faced the risk of overturning.
"This won't do if it continues like this."
"Are you going to surrender, Elysia?"
"Of course not~ But honestly, Mei, you're far stronger than I imagined. Sigh~ I didn't want to resort to such a shameless method... I'm sorry, Mei."
"What?"
Elysia revealed a conflicted expression. Yet that very hesitation carried absolute confidence in her own victory. Mei's guard instantly rose to the highest level.
At the same time, she realized a crucial problem—she did not know what the authority of the Herrscher of Origin actually was.
These pink crystals clearly were not it. Whether it was Stars of the Past earlier or crystal magic, those were undoubtedly only byproducts of Elysia's true authority.
(Not good! I don't know what her authority is, but I have a terrible feeling about this. I need to stop her before she uses it...)
"Unfortunately, it's already too late~ Fate binds this body, brilliance eternal!!"
The Staff of Origin in Elysia's hand released a dazzling pink radiance. Mei felt a certain connection form between them—yet in the very next second... her authority was sealed.
The lightning that had been dancing along her blade completely dissipated. The golden wings of the Herrscher of the Void vanished. Even the red oni horns above Mei's head disappeared.
Everything within her body related to Herrscher authority—
In that instant, all of it was sealed by the authority of Origin!
"So this... is the authority of the Herrscher of Origin?"
Now it was Mei whose expression darkened. She had speculated about what the authority of Origin might be, but she had never imagined that Elysia could interfere with other Herrschers' powers.
"Mei, this is also one manifestation of Origin's authority~ The authority that fulfills wishes upon the world, the authority that connects all Herrscher authorities—these are all expressions of Origin."
"I really didn't want to use it. It's too much of a cheat. But you're simply too strong, Mei~"
Elysia showed a look of apology. If she did not use Origin's authority to cheat, she felt she might truly overturn.
Origin's authority stood in opposition to Finality. Fifty thousand years ago, Elysia had been able to fully release her power and briefly seal the time authority of the Herrscher of Finality for several seconds.
And against Mei, who was merely a "normal dual-Core ascended Herrscher," Elysia could seal her for several hours at least.
"This is bad—if she can't use her authority, isn't that an automatic loss?!"
"T-That ability is way too bugged!"
"So this is the strength of the Previous Era's season champion?"
"No wonder Eden and the others were so wary of her."
"She's beyond scale in every sense!"
The women from the Previous Era faction watching the battle were utterly stunned—especially Kiana, Bronya, and Ana, Herrscher girls who relied heavily on their authorities.
Elysia's Origin authority—comparable to administrator privileges—completely countered them.
Yet just as everyone believed Mei was about to lose—
Clang!!
"W-What?!"
"I already said—losing focus in battle is a grave mistake."
Lightning flashed. Caught off guard, Elysia nearly suffered a fatal strike from the ultra-fast iaido slash. She hastily pulled back again, staring in shock at the girl who had just threatened her.
No—perhaps she should be called a queen.
Mei now wore the B-rank Valkyrie battlesuit—Crimson Impulse. Purple arcs of electricity leapt across her slender body. Though she no longer exuded the overwhelming dominance of the Herrscher of Thundervoid, her momentum had not diminished. It was rising.
"You think sealing my authority means you've won? If that's what you believe, Elysia, then you're far too naive. As long as I haven't let go of the weapon in my hand and my will hasn't yielded, the battle isn't over."
(S-So cool!!) xN
Every woman present was stunned. Though all were female, they could not help but be captivated by Mei's domineering presence at that moment.
That's right—even without so-called Herrscher authority—
Raiden Mei was still the Queen of Thunder!
And...
(Well said, coward! This time I'll help you too!)
Another queenly voice resounded in Mei's heart. It was the persona of the Herrscher of Thunder. At this moment, this other Thunder Queen was just as fired up.
The Herrscher of Origin possessed absolute restraint over any Herrscher except the Herrscher of Finality—unless you were some absurd multi-Core existence like Elias. But as the Thunder Queen, the more she was suppressed, the more excited the Queen felt.
(Authority is important. But if you shrink back and surrender just because it's sealed, you don't deserve to be called "Queen"!)
Herrscher Mei transmitted her power without reservation into Mei. In an instant, the B-rank Valkyrie battlesuit—Crimson Impulse—underwent dramatic changes.
When Mei first entered St. Freya Academy, she was already the Herrscher of Thunder. Even so, she had been assigned this B-rank Valkyrie battlesuit.
Though it had long gathered dust in storage, it now became the only armament she could use after her authority was sealed.
Crimson Impulse was a third-generation Valkyrie battlesuit.
Its design concept was a "close-combat specialized assault battlesuit." By sacrificing mid-to-long-range attack capabilities, it greatly enhanced close-quarters engagement performance.
But that alone was far from enough!
And so...
"Lingering Thunder—possess me!"
"Eh eh eh eh eh?!!"
Elysia's eyes widened. The scene before her had far exceeded her expectations. The power of the Herrscher of Thunder within Mei was released in an incomplete state.
Yet even incomplete Herrscher power was not something a mere B-rank Valkyrie battlesuit could withstand. After all, Crimson Impulse was different from Kiana's White Comet.
It could not evolve into the S-rank battlesuit Knight Moonbeam.
Cracks rapidly spread across the battlesuit's surface, yet its performance surpassed its limits in that very instant.
Rumble—!!
Dark clouds churned in the sky as violet lightning roiled within them.
The shattered battlesuit reflected an ominous purple glow. The edges of Mei's clothing were completely burned away by intense heat.
Yet her gaze grew even more resolute than before.
That domineering posture seemed to proclaim to the entire world—the return of the Thunder Queen!
(Not a bad battlesuit. Let's call it—Queen of Thunder's Oni Battlesuit. But remember, we finish this quickly. With our current strength, three minutes is the limit.)
"Three minutes is enough!"
Mei gave a slight nod. Lightning once again wrapped around her blade, enchanting it. Then she charged toward Elysia at lightning speed.
That unstoppable momentum was worthy of the title Queen.
"Wah—so numb!"
Elysia hurriedly raised the Staff of Origin to block, only to recoil as if electrocuted in the next instant.
She could not quite understand Mei's current state. Even if she could not understand it—she was deeply shaken.
"Wait! What's going on? Mei, your authority should've been sealed by me! How are you still using lightning?!"
"I forgot to tell you. I'm not just a Herrscher—I'm also a Stigmata awakener. And my case is special. My Stigmata consciousness is my Herrscher persona."
"Y-You said what?!"
Elysia froze. A Stigmata awakener who had become a Herrscher? And the Stigmata consciousness had even overpowered Honkai and seized the Herrscher authority? That was far too unbelievable!
Because of this unique situation, even though Mei's authority had been sealed by Elysia, she could still wield the power of her Stigmata.
As for the Herrscher of the Void, that was another matter. But the Stigmata consciousness that had become the Herrscher of Thunder could be described as Prometheus stealing heavenly fire from the gods.
Though she was now the persona of the Herrscher of Thunder, her essence remained a Stigmata consciousness standing in extreme opposition to Honkai itself. Thus, she had once again stolen a portion of lightning authority from the sealing of the Herrscher of Origin.
Compared to her peak state, this power was negligible. But with Mei's full Honkai energy output, she could still maintain peak performance—for three minutes.
And so...
"Elysia—prepare yourself!"
"Mei, Mei, we're just sparring! No need to get so serious, okay?"
No one had expected that even with her authority sealed, Mei could still reverse the situation. The battle had become unbelievably thrilling.
Yet Elysia was someone who had weathered countless storms. She was not only the cheat-level Herrscher of Origin, but also a battle-hardened Flame-Chaser.
Miss Pink Elf adjusted her state and stopped evading. Instead, she confronted the Thunder Queen head-on.
In the end, at the cost of further damage to her Origin divine outfit, Elysia's staff finally pressed against Mei's chest.
"So this counts as my win, right...? Mei, you don't have any more tricks left, do you? There won't be another reversal, right? I'm not popping champagne at halftime here, am I? Maybe we should just call it a draw?"
Elysia spoke with lingering fear. She had truly come within a hair's breadth of overturning. In terms of raw stats, as the Herrscher of Origin she had held absolute superiority.
Yet several times, Mei had nearly seized victory!
"Next time, I won't lose to you."
"Mm... next time, I really might not be able to win."
Even though she had won, Elysia felt a little intimidated. She knew that although the Thunder Queen before her had lost, she had completed a transformation from another perspective.
If they sparred again, she could not afford even the slightest mercy. She would have to seal Mei's authority from the very beginning—or the chance of overturning would be extremely high.
...
Elysia: (As expected of Eli's first love. Mei has so many things I don't have. And she's such a cool girl—even I'm starting to feel my heart race!)
Mei: (Elysia is an unprecedentedly powerful opponent. No wonder she was the heroine beside Elias in the Previous Era. She seems full of openings, yet in truth she's flawless.)
Looking at her tattered battlesuit, the Thunder Queen's flawless figure was exposed to the air. Fortunately, aside from Elias, there were no male creatures within St. Freya Academy, so Mei did not pay it much mind.
However, at that very moment—
Mei suddenly sensed two somewhat heated gazes. Turning her head, she found Kiana and Elysia staring at her.
"Wow~"
"Mei~"
The two of them were staring without blinking. One swallowed audibly. The other was practically drooling.
Mei: "!!!"
Be wary of lesbian paradise dwellers. Be wary of the perverted cat of St. Freya.
Mei quickly asked Bronya to construct a new set of clothing for her and immediately added those two to her highest alert list. Only Elias was allowed to see her body!
...
Several minutes later...
"Ahem! No matter what, I won~ Today is Miss Pink Elf's great victory! Everyone, applaud~"
Elysia cheerfully celebrated herself.
She thought that although she had not appeared for a long time, she was clearly still the strongest character of the current version. Even the Thunder Queen could not stop Miss Pink Elf's advance.
She would once again ascend to the number one throne in this new season of the Current Era! Miss Pink Elf was invincible!
However...
Before Elysia could rejoice for more than a few seconds—
"Who dares claim invincibility? Who dares speak of never losing?"
"Eh?"
"Origin. It has been fifty thousand years."
An indescribably terrifying aura descended. Elysia stiffly turned her head—and in the next second, she completely froze.
A white-haired, golden-eyed goddess had arrived at the scene at some unknown moment. Beside her stood a beauty with long, sea-blue wavy hair.
Simply standing there and releasing their battle intent made the global weather worsen by several degrees.
"F-Finality? And you—are you that Planet-class Honkai Beast from back then? H-How are the two of you here?!"
"Of course—for Elias!" x2
Finality and Jyahnar answered without hesitation.
"..."
Elysia leaned back in shock, inhaling sharply.
At that moment, she truly could not hold it together anymore. What was wrong with this world? Fifty thousand years later, even the Herrscher of Finality and a Planet-class Honkai Beast had become her love rivals?!
Miss Pink Elf pictured her boyfriend—no, her husband—and suddenly felt like crying while also being filled with awe.
(Goodness, dear Eli... is there any girl in this world you can't conquer?!)