Block Town.
"Bronya, my child… you must be born safely and grow up strong and healthy. Hehe~ I've been feeling much better lately. Mommy will do her best to bring you into this world."
Alexandra Pavlovna Zaychik, a beautiful silver-haired pregnant woman, was leisurely strolling along the street. She had heard that walking more was beneficial for the baby.
Her mood was exceptionally good today.
Earlier, she had met a few wonderful children, and strangely enough, ever since encountering them, her health had improved significantly.
The minor ailments that used to trouble her had completely vanished, and she felt full of energy no matter what she did.
She didn't understand why, but Alexandra liked to think that perhaps, because she had shown kindness to those children, God had granted her a blessing in return.
"Bronya, Bronya… Mommy can't wait to meet you~" Alexandra murmured lovingly, repeating the name she had chosen for her unborn child.
With all her heart, she prayed and wished for her child's future—to be born safely, to grow up healthy, to find good friends, to discover a passion, to meet someone she loves, and to live a life of happiness…
One had to admit—this mother's dreams for her child extended far into the future.
However, at that moment—
"Hey, what is that?!"
A passerby suddenly pointed at the sky in terror. Others followed his gaze, and soon, the entire street was consumed by panic.
"A missile! That's a missile!!"
"Oh my God, it's heading right for us!"
"No, no! I don't want to die!"
"Damn it! Why is this happening?!"
Sudden and senseless death had descended upon them.
Lady Alexandra stared blankly at the sky. In the distance, a missile was hurtling directly toward the town. Despair washed over her face.
Not because of her impending death—
But because of her unborn daughter.
Even though she knew it was futile, she instinctively wrapped her arms protectively around her stomach.
No matter how much adrenaline could empower humans in moments of crisis, no mother, no matter how strong, could stop a missile from falling.
The people of the town screamed in hopelessness.
Some collapsed to their knees in surrender.
Some clung desperately to their loved ones.
Some roared in fury at the incoming death.
And Alexandra? All she could do was pray.
(God… please… don't let this happen. I beg you, save my child. No matter what price I must pay, as long as Bronya survives, I am willing to give anything!)
As if the heavens had heard her plea—
As if her boundless motherly love had moved something greater—
A miracle happened.
From the sky, a black void with golden edges suddenly tore open. The missile, flying straight for the town, vanished into it without a trace.
A second later, the strange portal collapsed and disappeared as if it had never existed.
"..."
The town fell into utter silence.
And then, in an instant—
A deafening cheer erupted.
"We're alive! We survived!"
"What just happened?!"
"Praise be to God! Praise be to God!"
"Yes, this must be divine intervention! A miracle!"
The townspeople, unable to comprehend what had transpired, could only attribute it to the work of the divine.
One after another, the survivors fell to their knees in reverence.
The townspeople knelt repeatedly, bowing in reverence toward the fading black-and-gold portal, believing they had just witnessed a divine miracle.
Alexandra, however, remained in a daze.
Everything had happened too fast—the looming crisis of death, and then its sudden disappearance.
Her legs gave out as she collapsed onto the ground, shaken to her core.
And yet, for some inexplicable reason, a boy's face surfaced in her mind.
...
"Elias—!!"
Sirin let out a heart-wrenching scream as she watched the boy plummet from the sky.
The people of Block Town didn't know the truth.
They didn't know that the one who had saved them, whom they now praised as a god, was just a boy. They didn't know that this boy was now on the brink of death.
Elias had overdrawn his power to forcibly open a portal thousands of meters away, intercepting the missile before it could strike the town.
Even at his peak, such an act would have pushed the limits of his Herrscher authority—
Let alone now, when he was already beyond exhaustion.
After catching the Honkai Fissile Bomb—
He no longer had the strength to transport it elsewhere. And so, the missile had detonated directly within his grasp, inside the Imaginary Space he controlled.
Which was no different from it exploding right in his own hands.
The only solace was that it had been the final missile.
Schicksal's arsenal had been depleted; there were no more warheads left to fire. But that last one—
Had still accomplished Otto's goal.
The Valkyries on the battlefield could do nothing but watch as the angel who had saved them was struck down by humanity's own arrows.
Blood rained down like scattered petals.
And the boy himself fell toward the earth below.
"Catch him—Abyss Flower!!"
Cecilia hurled her divine weapon with all her might. In the next instant, verdant vines erupted from the ground, cradling Elias' falling body.
She rushed forward, hands trembling as she channeled every ounce of Honkai energy into the Abyss Flower, desperately trying to heal him.
But it was no use.
"No… this can't be… This is too cruel… No, I won't accept this! It's not too late—it can't be too late! Abyss Flower, take all of my blood, all of my Honkai energy—just save him, I beg you!"
His breathing had weakened to the point of near silence.
His heart had already stopped beating.
The sheer number of injuries that covered his far-too-young body made Cecilia's heart ache as if it were being torn apart.
"No, no… You'll be fine, you have to be fine… Please, open your eyes, Elias! Elias!! We made a promise—we were supposed to always be together, to live happily ever after—so please… don't leave Sirin behind!!"
"Master… How… how could this happen? Humans… Humans… It's all your fault! It's because of you! My master… No… No… his Core…"
Not just Cecilia.
Sirin, Benares—
Everyone rushed forward, surrounding him.
The Valkyries who had once fought against him now looked upon Elias with overwhelming remorse and guilt, praying desperately for him to wake up, willing to offer anything to atone.
And as if responding to their wishes—
Elias slowly opened his eyes.
"Sirin… Benares… Everyone… Are you all okay? You're not hurt, are you?"
"!!!" xN
At that moment, their hearts shattered.
Tears spilled uncontrollably from their eyes.
No one knew what to say.
All they knew—
Was that they wanted nothing more than to hold this boy close, to protect him, to heal him—
To never let him suffer again.
Even though they barely knew Elias, they were certain of one thing—
A boy like him should never have been treated this way. He deserved all the beauty this world had to offer.
Yet, an angel like him had been forced into becoming a Herrscher.
Surely, something had gone horribly wrong in this world for it to have hurt someone like him so terribly.
Guilt consumed the Valkyries' hearts. They loathed themselves for ever having stood against Elias. How could they have been so blind? How could they have done something so shameful, so unforgivable?
"Idiot, idiot! We're fine, everyone is safe because you protected us. But… why? Why did you save us, Elias?! You could have escaped on your own! We weren't worth it—we were never worth this!"
"…As long as everyone is safe, that's all that matters."
Hearing that he had successfully protected the people he cherished, Elias finally let out a breath of relief and smiled.
And when they saw that smile—
Their hearts ached even more.
[Battle Continuation EX activated.]
[Countdown: 5 hours remaining.]
A system notification echoed in Elias' mind. His eyes lit up slightly.
So this was the final amount of time he had left in this world.
Elias: "Good, I still have time. I can still do more."
This life—
Could still burn a little longer.
He could still make this story just a little more perfect.