The damp, dark clouds continued to gather, enveloping Linburg City like thick, viscous mud. Although the residents here were long accustomed to the humidity of the autumn maritime climate, today's sky felt particularly unsettling, like the prelude to a storm, urging everyone lingering outdoors to hurry home and seek shelter.
"You've got to be kidding me! It's going to rain now?"
On a small path along the Danube River, a young man jogging along looked up with a sad-filled face at the sky, where the clouds were so dark they seemed ready to burst. His spirits sank. Before he could even complain, his phone rang in his pocket.
He glanced at the caller ID and hastily answered, "I'm so sorry, the company asked me to work overtime today, so..."
"Don't bother coming. I was actually going to break up with you today anyway."
"Huh?" The sudden news left the man stunned, not even realizing the other person had already hung up. When he finally came to his senses, he exhaustedly lowered his phone.
Looking at the gift he was carrying, he felt like a clown. In a fit of anger, he threw the bag into the roadside bushes and dragged his weary body home.
He didn't notice, however, that the bag he threw didn't land in the bushes, but hovered in mid-air.
After the man left, Kiana, with a few leaves stuck in her hair, slowly stood up from the bushes, placing the gift bag that had nearly hit her by the roadside.
"It seems the people here haven't been affected much. The Honkai Energy in the air is very faint. Did I teleport to the wrong location?"
Linburg City was over a thousand kilometers from the Atlantic. Such a vast distance made precise teleportation difficult, even with the power of the Herrscher of the Void. She had hidden in the bushes because her teleportation had landed her right next to that man.
To avoid attracting his attention, she had to hide temporarily.
Under these circumstances, Kiana couldn't help but doubt her target. However, the moment of wavering was quickly dispelled. She closed her eyes, silently sensing the Honkai Energy in the air. Soon, residual Herrscher energy formed clear trajectories in her mind.
Although she couldn't determine the source of this energy, her instincts told her these traces were indeed left by Ren.
But Herrschers were incarnations of the Honkai; the birth of a Herrscher usually brought unimaginable destruction. It had been true for her, and for the Herrscher of Ice. Yet Linburg City, apart from a slightly oppressive atmosphere, showed no other unusual changes.
The pedestrians on the street, though hurrying, showed no signs of Honkai infection. If her perception wasn't wrong, there were only two possibilities.
One, the Herrscher power Ren had awakened was too weak, unable to even influence the flow of Honkai Energy. Two, Ren had controlled his power so perfectly that even though his awakening momentarily unleashed a Herrscher aura that practically covered the globe, it was still well-contained within a small area.
Clearly, Ren couldn't be such a weak Herrscher. The only possibility was that he had perfectly restrained his own authority.
Kiana remembered the day the Herrscher of the Void's power reawakened within her. Boundless, tyrannical emotions had instantly engulfed her, and she could only watch helplessly as the world fell into ruin, as she personally killed her teacher.
"If only I could have been like you back then..."
Painful memories resurfaced, but Kiana quickly regained her composure. She twitched her nose, trying to capture more information. Unfortunately, apart from knowing Ren was indeed here, there were no other clues.
She bit her lip, her eyes dimming considerably.
Ren's strength was undoubtedly a good thing, but it also meant that if he was determined to hide from her, she would never be able to find him.
"Stop thinking about it. Since he doesn't want to see you, he won't let you find him."
Just as Kiana felt somewhat lost, the Herrscher of the Void's consciousness resurfaced, looking down on her condescendingly, dousing her hopes with cold water.
"This guy is different from a vessel like you. He's a natural-born Herrscher, a pure monster. His connection to the Honkai is far deeper than yours. In a sense, he and I are the same kind."
The Herrscher of the Void was right. Both Kiana and Mei were originally human, only becoming Herrschers after being chosen by the Honkai. But the Herrscher of the Void was born directly from the Honkai, and Ren had directly seized the Authority of Dominance from the Imaginary Tree.
"If you want to find him, you'll have to inherit my authority directly, just like you did to deal with me."
The Herrscher of the Void's words were, of course, malicious. While trying to shatter Kiana's mental defenses, it was also attempting to trick her into surrendering her body.
However, it regretted its words as soon as they were spoken, because it realized Kiana, instead of being discouraged, seemed thoughtful.
"So, as long as I can establish a connection with his Herrscher authority, I can find him." As she spoke, a flame slowly ignited in her hand.
This was the Flamescion ember Ren had left her. In a sense, it was a product transformed after Ren consumed the power of the Herrscher of Flame. When Kiana absorbed it and awakened as the Herrscher of Flamescion, didn't that mean she had inherited Ren's Herrscher authority?
"Thank you."
Thanking it softly, without looking at the Herrscher of the Void's increasingly ugly expression, Kiana switched her power from Void to Flamescion. Sure enough, many golden threads, invisible to ordinary people, appeared in the air.
These threads covered almost the entirety of Linburg City, all leading towards a certain spot in the grassy area.
"Meaning, that's where Ren ultimately appeared."
Finding her target, Kiana felt a surge of excitement, but she quickly calmed down. She noticed that among the pedestrians, there were also women dressed in nun-like attire.
"Valkyries?" As a Valkyrie herself, Kiana recognized them instantly. Recalling Mei's latest information, she quickly confirmed her suspicions.
"As expected, Schicksal is here for Ren."
Schicksal's presence here was definitely for Ren. However, to avoid alerting the enemy, it was best not to use the Herrscher of the Void's teleportation ability. Fortunately, now that she had found her target, she just needed to head towards it.
She pulled up the hood of her clothes, lowered her head, and walked onto the street, blending into the hurrying crowd.
She was startled to see some figures moving within the dark, ominous clouds. Finally, the rain began to fall, a steady drizzle.
The November rain was bone-chilling. The people on the streets, as she expected, quickly fell into disarray. Some were soaked through, others ducked under eaves for shelter.
Amidst the gradually dispersing crowd, the jogging girl seemed out of place. Fortunately, Schicksal hadn't focused their attention on her, continuing their search for Durandal and Ren.
"The aura is getting stronger. He should be nearby."
The torrential downpour not only washed the city but also made the previously hidden energy trails clearer. What once required following severed threads, tangled like headphone wires, was now more apparent.
Reaching a crossroads, Kiana paused.
"No matter what, I have to find him before Schicksal does."
As she pondered her next move, some discordant sounds reached her ears. The rain muffled the city's clamor, but it couldn't hide the malice lurking in the shadows.
She stopped before the road, turning her head towards a side alley. The sounds were coming from there.
The rain drummed against shop signs, masking these subtle noises. If not for Kiana's exceptional hearing, she probably wouldn't have noticed.
But now was clearly not the time to bother with such minor things. Her goal was to find Ren. The Principal and the others were still buying her time; every second was precious...
Kiana stood rooted to the spot. The red light at the intersection ahead blinked steadily until it turned green. People waiting at the light hurriedly crossed, not wanting to be drenched in the cold November rain for an hour.
3, 2, 1.
The light turned red again. The crossroads was now deserted.