[The first option is… No one can lay a hand on her! Not even Mei! So she's angry! She won't come out!]
"...I don't think that will work. Escaping now is not an option."
Theresa's first option was clearly not going to work. Not to mention Mei should already know Kiana is awake, Kiana is hungry now and must go out.
"Indeed, it's just the last step. Escaping here would mean all efforts go to waste."
Himeko and Theresa reached a consensus and looked at the second option.
[The second option is… Waaah! I'm so numb from the electricity! She wants an explanation! And for Mei to comfort her!]
"It feels… very fitting for the current situation. After all, as the one who was knocked out, one would indeed want an explanation."
As for some of the words, Theresa automatically ignored them. She had already started to adapt to the options given by Ai-chan.
"It's just… I don't feel like Mei is the type to comfort people."
Himeko's precise jab hit home. The current Mei showed no signs of being able to comfort anyone; she seemed more capable of putting people to rest.
[The third option is… She originally wanted to scold Mei loudly, but considering the power difference, she'll just scold her weakly!]
"Simply put, it's escape, inquiry, and anger. These are also the choices of most people, all very normal options."
Although the wording was a little playful, they were all very normal options.
"Refer to these three options, but the final choice is still yours, Kiana."
Theresa naturally gave Kiana the autonomy to choose, as Kiana's actions had already shown her to be trustworthy.
In less than a day, she had gotten Mei to tie her up and bring her home.
They could only provide options for Kiana to act on freely now.
Later, they would have to find a way to upgrade Ai-chan. First… have her play dozens of galgames.
"I understand… Is it already the final moment…?"
Kiana didn't feel like she had done much; she could only say that the current Mei was probably too lacking in companionship.
She composed herself. After all, being electrocuted like this by Mei, even she felt a bit angry.
Then Kiana opened the door and saw Mei sitting quietly there, her gaze fixed outside. Only after hearing the sound did she slowly turn around.
The Mei who had originally seemed incredibly aloof now looked like a lonely girl, a confused girl who didn't know what to do.
Even now, seeing Kiana, she still looked the same.
Just like the first time she saw Mei. All this time, she had seen Mei as a queen, so much so that she had almost forgotten this side of Mei.
Perhaps… loving someone truly means your emotions change with theirs. When she is sad, your heart aches too.
Kiana, who had initially been a little angry, saw Mei like this and her anger instantly vanished.
Mei must be in a lot of pain too.
Escape, inquiry, and anger were no longer needed.
"...I'm sorry."
Mei spoke first without Kiana even saying anything, which was very rare.
After all, in the past, she would absolutely not say anything if Kiana didn't speak.
"Why… Mei, why don't you want to leave Chang Kong City?"
Kiana felt that she no longer needed to care about Mei attacking her. To her, that was no longer important.
She was no longer confused.
"Hmm?"
Mei was very surprised that Kiana didn't ask about the attack, but for her, it was better this way.
"I… I can no longer return to normal society…"
From the moment she saw that photo, she understood that she could not return to the normal world.
That's why she emphasized again not to die… and perhaps also had the thought of not letting her leave.
"I… I'll help you find food…"
Don't leave her, this was what Mei was expressing.
She didn't want Kiana to leave. In her actions, she even slightly blocked Kiana's path to leave.
[Kiana… Mei's Honkai energy concentration is extremely unstable right now. I must warn you, be very careful with your answer.]
Theresa's voice came through the earpiece, reminding her that at this moment, Mei was incredibly fragile.
"Are you happy with me, Mei?"
After speaking, Kiana continued without waiting for Mei to say anything.
"In these ruined buildings, all you see are ruins and monsters. To eat, you have to search everywhere. Bathing is very inconvenient, and there's no electricity. No one would like it here, would they?"
Except for the cherry blossom scenery next door, which was quite nice, but who knows when a big fox would pop out of it.
"..."
Mei fell silent. Humans indeed had no way to survive in such an environment.
Sure enough… she isn't welcome in this world. This kind of world is still…
[Kiana! Mei… I'll send someone to pick you up right away!]
Theresa couldn't care less about scolding Kiana; she could only send someone first, waiting for Kiana to trigger quantization before bringing her back.
"But I'm very happy… because I'm with Mei!"
"Eh?"
Mei was completely stunned.
[Wait, Headmaster, it's stable now~! I'm happy because you're here… Ah, if Kiana said that to me, I might accept it~! Speaking of which, isn't the age difference a bit big, and what should I call you, Headmaster?]
Himeko seemed to have no taboos.
[...]
Theresa was speechless because of Himeko.
"I don't like it here. There's nothing here—no manga, no music, no internet—but… Mei is here."
Kiana took a step forward, while Mei even retreated in slight panic.
"I… I…"
Even the once-domineering Thunder Queen was now completely at a loss.
"So… are you happy with me, Mei?"
Kiana said it very seriously; it wasn't because of the mission, but because she truly felt that way.
"…Happy."
Unlike her previous indifferent tone, Mei's voice was now a little weak, almost inaudible if one wasn't paying attention.
But… she was truly happy.
Bitter chocolate would taste slightly sweet because of Kiana's presence, and the frightening classroom would no longer be scary because of Kiana's presence.
They could watch the stars together, watch the Sakura Tree together; she was truly… very happy!
"Then… after we get out, wouldn't it be good to be with me? There's no need to be afraid, because… I'll handle everything."
Kiana extended her hand and spoke slowly.
"I…"
Just as Mei was about to take Kiana's hand, she pulled it back.
"Precisely because of this! I can't possibly leave! I'll ruin everything!"
She was the Herrscher who destroyed the world.
"This place… it was all destroyed because of me."