Mei, Kouga, and Kiana continued deeper into the massive battleship. Along the way, several Honkai beasts lunged at them, but none lasted more than a few seconds. Mei's katana carved through them , Kouga's Ryusoul Ken tore down anything in front of him, and Kiana's dual pistols kept the airborne threats at bay.
Automated traps activated throughout the corridor—laser grids, electrified panels, defense drones—but the trio disabled each one with ease until they finally reached the ship's aft section.
Mei narrowed her eyes at the sealed bulkhead ahead."That's the aft of the ship, right?"
Kiana nodded."Hmm… Himeko told us to gather at the aft of the ship and secure a breach."
Mei's expression darkened slightly."Something… doesn't feel right about this."
Kiana, ever confident, waved the concern away. She grabbed Kouga's arm and pulled him closer."Pfft. Mei, you're always worrying about stuff. You don't have to worry about those pesky enemies with me and Kouga around."
She let go of Kouga and stepped toward the console, calling out,"Alright. Let's secure this breach."
But both Kouga and Mei tensed at the same time.
Mei grabbed Kiana's wrist."Wait!"
All three of them instinctively looked up—and their pupils shrank.
A massive horde of Honkai beasts flooded the open shaft above them, wings beating and metal groaning. Countless Archangels dove downward, and among them hovered a battered, smoking Emperor-Class honkai beast: an Imperator.
Mei yanked Kiana back."Kiana! Watch out!"
The swarm shrieked and descended like a tidal wave—
Only to be instantly erased.
A massive red energy slash ripped through the entire horde, vaporizing everything in its path. The light faded, leaving nothing behind but drifting ash.
Kiana and Mei turned toward the source.Kouga stood with the Ryusoul Ken outstretched, finishing the last motion of a powerful sword finisher.
Mei exhaled, finally able to relax.
Kiana pointed to the empty space where the horde had been."Hey, Kouga, does that Emperor-class Honkai beast look like the one you blasted when we were flying toward Selena? What was it called again?"
"Imperator." Kouga replied immediately.
"Yeah, that."
Kouga recalled the moment earlier—carrying Kiana in Tajadol Combo, encountering the Imperator mid-air, and blasting it away with the Tajaspinner. It did resemble the one from before… but he hadn't been paying much attention at the time.
He shrugged."Maybe it is, but who knows?"
The bulkhead doors behind them suddenly hissed open. The trio immediately snapped into a combat stance—only to relax when the figure stepped out.
The last member of their team: Bronya, clad in her Valkyrie Chariot battlesuit.
Mei breathed a relieved sigh and hurried toward her."Bronya… you're here! …thank goodness you're alright."
Kiana, seeing Mei's attention focused elsewhere, puffed her cheeks. Kouga chuckled and pinched Kiana's cheek playfully.
"Mei-senpai, please save me from this bully!" Kiana whined.
Mei turned around just in time to see the two messing around. Kiana wriggled free of Kouga and immediately ran to cling to Mei, giving Kouga a pouty glare. Mei returned a teasing glare toward Kouga, and he laughed quietly.
He walked over to Bronya."Glad to see you're alright, Bronya."He gently patted her head, and Bronya's cheeks turned faintly pink.
Once regrouped, the four opened a channel to Himeko.
Himeko nodded approvingly."Good job, team. Now continue with the mission."
"Yes, Major Himeko / Himeko." the four answered at once—Kiana being the only one who shorten the title.
The team pushed deeper into the interior of the Selena, cutting their way through clusters of Honkai beasts that lunged from every corner of the steel corridors.
As they moved, Kouga glanced at Bronya."Bronya, you must have gained access to the battleship's interior systems, right? How's the combat?"
Bronya responded without hesitation."Combat performance nominal. This defense system is familiar to the Bronya. Hacking will be simple."
Mei looked over at her, curiosity flickering in her eyes."Bronya, when you said you've seen these defense systems before, were you talking about your time with Anti-Entropy?"
Bronya nodded slightly."Affirmative. Designs, features, and even slogans and logos bear the marks of Anti-Entropy."She scratched the side of her head, confusion slipping into her tone."The Bronya does not understand why an unmanned battleship like this would appear here."
The group continued on and eventually hacked their way into an energy platform transport. Leaping from one floating panel to another, they cut down Honkai beasts as they advanced until finally reaching solid ground again.
They entered an enormous chamber filled with rows of Anti-Entropy mecha units. While taking in the scene, Kouga noticed Mei's breathing grow heavier. A faint sheen of sweat clung to her face.
He stepped closer."Mei, are you tired?"
The group paused. Mei quickly shook her head, attempting to brush off his concern."I'm fine, Kouga-kun. Just tired from all the walking and fighting we had to do."
Kouga wasn't convinced. Before she could protest again, he suddenly scooped her up in a bridal carry. Mei gasped, her cheeks bursting into red.
"Kouga, I'm really fine! Please put me down, this is embarrassing."
"Nope." Kouga replied simply, unmoved.
Kiana instantly darted over."Hey, I wanna carry Mei too!"
This immediately spiraled into a ridiculous back-and-forth argument about who should be carrying Mei—while Mei herself practically glowed red with embarrassment.
Bronya finally stepped forward with a calm suggestion."Mei, the Bronya has a recommendation."
All three turned to her. Mei slipped free of Kouga's arms in her distraction and hurried to Bronya."What did you see, Bronya?"
"The Bronya intends to make use of the mech units here."
Kiana blinked."Huh? What do you mean?"
Kouga pieced it together first."Bronya… are you going to take control of these mech units?"
Bronya nodded and immediately began hacking."Password protection disabled.Pilot access granted.Combat systems activated."
But midway through, a faint pink glow traced lines across her hand. Bronya's eyes narrowed.'A trojan? No… it seems like a minor Honkai leak. Minor event categorized. Moving on.'She dismissed it as the glow faded.
Kouga stepped up beside her."Is there anything wrong, Bronya?"
Bronya shook her head, then activated her mech fully. She and the machine raised a synchronized thumbs-up."Anti-Entropy specialist combat mech armed and ready."
Kiana's eyes sparkled."Whoah! This is super cool. I'll pilot this one!" She hopped toward a nearby mech.
Bronya shut that idea down immediately."No, you can't."
Kiana pouted."Hmm? Why? It's my turn to do something cool."
Bronya replied with complete seriousness."Mech piloting requires at least 10,000 hours of training. Candidate pilot must be well-versed in the basic principles of EM theories, fluid dynamics, and aerodynamics."
Kiana stared at her mech."Ah? Really? You must be kidding me. This mech looks simpler than a bike."
Mei quickly caught her by the arm."Stop fooling around, Kiana."
With Bronya, Mei, and Kiana each boarding a mech, they began initializing the systems. Meanwhile, Kouga simply stood by, waiting.
Kiana eventually noticed."Kouga-senpai, why didn't you get on yours?"
Before he could answer, several hostile mechs charged into the room. Kouga stepped forward—and shattered them into scrap metal within seconds. He turned back to the girls.
"Do I really need one?"
Kiana shrugged."Fair point."
And with that, the group moved forward again—fighting off waves of mechs and Honkai beasts as they progressed. Unfortunately, their mechs did not survive long; Kiana "accidentally" pressed the self-destruct button on hers, forcing all four of them to continue on foot.
At last, they reached the entrance to the control center.