Kiana was seriously injured in this encounter.
Although she didn't suffer any life-threatening injuries because of her Kaslana bloodline, she was covered with scratches and bruises.
Fortunately, none of them were too severe.
Mei had an emergency medical kit at home. She washed Kiana's muddy wounds with clean water, then disinfected them with iodine and wrapped them in bandages while Kiana howled in pain.
To be honest, Mei had never received proper medical training, so her skills weren't very advanced. However, she tried to use basic methods to treat the wounds, and it seemed to have worked—well, at least on the surface.
Mei looked at Kiana, her finger tapping her chin as she thought about the next steps.
All that was left to do now was... rest.
Mei herself didn't have any major injuries, just some small scratches from crawling through the pipe. They weren't a big deal once she treated them.
"Mei, what should we do once we're down?"
Kiana raised her tightly bound arms, baring her teeth, and looked at Mei.
"...Well, that's a problem," Mei replied, pinching her chin thoughtfully. "We've already alerted the enemy, and I'm afraid the defenses will be even stricter the next time we go there."
Thinking of Bronya and Project Bunny, she looked embarrassed.
"That girl, and that troublesome robot, are going to be difficult to deal with. It won't be easy if we face them head-on."
"Hmph, leave that dwarf to me!"
Kiana was so angry at the mention of Bronya. She believed she was in this state because of her. Kiana looked upset. "If I hadn't been careless and tricked by that dwarf, I could have easily defeated her even with that broken copper and iron!"
"Don't underestimate the enemy, Kiana."
Seeing that Kiana was becoming overconfident again, Mei couldn't help but feel helpless.
She knew Kiana had a tendency to believe she could win with the slightest advantage.
Wasn't this overconfidence deadly?
There was no other way. To curb Kiana's flaw, Mei reminded her impatiently, "Have you forgotten how you got these injuries?"
Kiana's face suddenly darkened.
"...Tsk, I won't fall for that dwarf's tricks next time!"
She muttered.
"It was just an accident this time... yes, just an accident!"
It seemed that Kiana had found a justification and became more confident.
"Sigh... I really can't do anything with you."
Mei had no choice but to rub her forehead, looking exasperated.
"Anyway, you should wait until your injuries are almost healed."
"Otherwise, what's the difference between going after that guy with injuries and giving away your head?"
"Eh... but what if Cocolia shows up during this time... what should we do?"
Though Kiana agreed with Mei, she still had concerns.
"...What can we do? Even if that woman starts causing trouble now, can the two of us stop her?"
Mei asked back, and after getting a negative response, she put her hand on Kiana's shoulder and whispered, "Anyway, we can't stop that woman if we go there now."
"Why not wait until you're fully recovered and then go there, fully prepared?"
"...Is this the only way?" Kiana was still a little upset.
"This is the only way," Mei said seriously.
"Well... okay then."
Looking at Mei's serious expression, Kiana felt a bit frustrated, but soon recovered and said angrily, "When I recover, I'll definitely beat that dwarf and that Cocolia!"
"Just... I hope... during this time, that bastard named Cocolia won't..." Her voice gradually lowered.
Seeing this, Mei held Kiana's hand and smiled slightly.
"Don't worry, Kiana."
"I don't think that woman named Cocolia is ready to cause a Honkai Eruption anytime soon."
"We didn't come away empty-handed this time."
"I think, in this upcoming eruption, as a Herrscher, I'm probably a more important experimental subject. But Cocolia let us escape this time."
Mei looked at Kiana and spoke calmly.
"Kiana, you understand, right?"
"Well..."
Kiana lowered her head, her voice dull.
After hearing part of what Mei said, she realized the truth.
The reason they were able to escape was not because they were faster than the enemy, or that the opponent couldn't catch them.
They escaped because the enemy didn't want to chase them, and had no intention of doing so.
If they can use the entire city as a test site, how could they not catch the test subjects?
So, why didn't they want to chase them?
"Probably one of these two reasons, right?"
Mei recalled their smooth escape and sighed.
"Either way, it shows that our time isn't as tight as we imagined."
She comforted Kiana.
"So, don't worry too much, Kiana."
"But... if, I mean, if we really can't stop this disaster from happening..."
Kiana whispered to herself.
"At that time, I might become a stranger to myself, just like you told me?"
"At that time..."
Kiana, who had been looking down, grabbed Mei's wrist fiercely.
"No... absolutely not."
She repeated, determination showing on her face, with a bandage on her cheek.
"Whether it's this city or Mei, I'll do my best to protect it!"
"I swear in the name of Kaslana!"
The usual confidence in her voice, the determination in her eyes, left no room for doubt.
Although it wasn't the first time, Mei was still stunned.
"Ah, it hurts, it hurts."
Perhaps because of the large range of motion, Kiana's face contorted in pain, and she bared her teeth, crying out.
"Puff," Mei covered her mouth lightly and smiled. "You should heal your wounds first."
She stood up with a smile.
"I'll go to the supermarket to buy some ribs. I heard that eating well helps your body recover faster."
"Well... Great!"
Kiana's face lit up with joy at the mention of food, but she bared her teeth again as the wounds on her body were touched.
Seeing this, Mei shook her head slightly.
She adjusted her clothes and made sure everything was fine before walking toward the door.
However, when she opened the door and saw the figure standing outside, Mei was momentarily stunned.