"Your Majesty, please stop shouting... You'll attract all the passersby... You wouldn't want to be surrounded and pointed at, would you...?"
"Like, 'Grandma, look! There's a talking doll!' or something..."
Reminded by the Dragon Girl, Sirin seemed to recall the humiliation of being pointed at by children on the street, unable to curse back while being stared down by her other self and Little Sirin. She immediately clamped her mouth shut, but her face remained puffed up with anger.
Pfft—
Then... her puffed-out cheek was poked by the curious Little Sirin, causing a strange sound to escape the doll's mouth—
Her Majesty the Queen seemed to have forgotten one thing: curious children weren't just on the streets; there might be one right beside her.
".....Aaaaaah!"
The Doll Girl retreated into herself, finding a corner to curl up in and sulk.
"Eh...? Is Doll Sirin throwing a tantrum?" Little Sirin, who had just poked the doll's cheek, tilted her head in confusion.
"Just ignore Her Majesty... She'll be back to her usual lively self in a bit."
Benares glanced nonchalantly at the Queen squatting in the corner, drawing circles on the floor. Then, she looked up, surveying the house they were in. From her four-dimensional pocket, she pulled out items like a broom, a mop, a bucket, a dustpan... and even paint cans and brushes...
"Let's get to work!"
"Sirin will help too!"
Hearing that Doll Sirin would recover on her own soon, Little Sirin stopped worrying about her and eagerly joined the renovation team.
"Sirin is an artist, you know~" the purple-haired little girl boasted proudly.
Unaware of the true "power" of this seemingly harmless little painter, Benares naively nodded—
"...Then let's have Sirin design the decorations for the new rooms."
The Dragon Girl had just made a decision she would later regret immensely...
"Yay!"
-
"Get off me—! No... you big White Blazing Cat, let go of me right now!"
Imhotep glared at the White Blazing Cat clinging to her, her voice laced with exasperation.
"No way, Imhotep! Your days of doing whatever you want are over! Hand over that last slice of strawberry shortcake!!"
The two white-haired girls were currently locked in a showdown atop Arc City's tallest skyscraper. The object of their struggle was, as their dialogue suggested, something quite simple—a single slice of strawberry shortcake.
At this moment, the strawberry shortcake was held tightly in the grasp of a Stand summoned by Imhotep. The towering, one-and-a-half-person-tall figure, formed from Honkai energy, held the small cake in its hand, extending its arm over the edge of the building's roof. Its face, shrouded by a cloak, made it impossible for Kiana to discern what the Stand was thinking.
The Stand itself seemed to adopt a "watch my every move" posture, silently clutching the cake while observing the two white-haired girls wrestling with each other.
"Eek—!!! You stupid Cat-worm, let go of me!!"
The White Blazing Cat once again grabbed the small pair of wings on Imhotep's head. This time, our Cat-worm seemed to have hit a sensitive spot, causing Imhotep to let out a rather strange sound.
"No! Hand over my cake!"
"Eek—! Then let go of me! Or I'll let go!!!"
Imhotep's exasperated tone gradually took on a strange inflection.
"Let go? What are you going to let go of?"
Now it was Kiana's turn to be utterly confused. Still, she didn't stop her assault, relentlessly pestering the small wings on Imhotep's head.
"...Metatron! Throw the cake away!!!"
Unable to bear Kiana clinging to her hair any longer, Imhotep issued a command to her Stand. The towering figure glanced at the small cake box in its palm, pondered for a moment, then aimed at a small, neon-lit bar in the distance and hurled the cake like a javelin.
"Ah—the cake!!!"
Seeing her precious cake fly away, the White Blazing Cat released Miss Imhotep and teleported in pursuit.
"Hmph... Are you a dog or a cat...? Chasing me across the entire city for four hours over a single slice of cake. We're going to be on the front page of the Arc City newspaper and tonight's Arc City news broadcast..."
Imhotep straightened her disheveled hair from the scuffle and patted down her white dress. After tidying her appearance, she dismissed her Stand and followed in the direction the cake had flown. Unlike the frantic Kiana, Imhotep strolled leisurely toward the destination.
-
"Raven's Bar...?"
Imhotep raised an eyebrow as she looked at the bar's neon sign. A thought seemed to strike her, and she strode inside without hesitation. Just as she'd expected, the White Blazing Cat was curled up in a corner, blissfully nibbling on the small cake it had intercepted mid-air.
-
Miss Raven had been feeling incredibly unlucky lately—
Originally, she had amassed a considerable fortune. By working high-intensity temp jobs—in every sense of the word—365 days a year, the diligent mercenary had already purchased an island and a massive villa that covered its entire surface. Soon, she would have been able to retire from World Serpent with honors, move to her private island with her adopted children, and live out the rest of her days comfortably on her remaining, still substantial, savings.
But... perhaps because she'd tempted fate too brazenly, the Second Herrscher reawakened not long after. The tsunami triggered by the Great Honkai Eruption wiped her island villa from existence.
Of course, if it had just been the villa, Miss Raven's wealth would have allowed her to rebuild it after a few more years of work. Unfortunately... it wasn't just the villa that was erased. The massive tsunami shattered the entire island, sinking it completely into the sea and consigning it to history.
When she first received the news, Miss Raven paced, writhed, and agonized in the World Serpent base. Her torment finally culminated in a furious roar that echoed throughout the entire secret facility—
"No matter the cost, humanity must defeat the Honkai!!!"
In the first few days, everyone in the World Serpent base—from Jackal to the imposing Gray Serpent, and even the Previous Era's Predecessor Su and his patient, Murata Himeko, who were temporarily staying there—steered clear of the mercenary. Having become an incarnation of pure resentment, no one dared to cross her or risk her wrath.
And now...
The very culprit who had obliterated her island villa was sitting right here, in her own little bar, right in front of her. A primal fury surged through Miss Raven's mind.