"Eh?" Kiana blinked, confused by the irritable Seele, while Bronya looked rather troubled. She wasn't unaware of Veliona's existence; after all, Veliona occasionally surfaced back at the orphanage, with tastes and habits completely opposite to Seele's.
But Bronya hadn't expected Veliona to still be in [Seele] after the swap. This made her feel somewhat awkward. Didn't this mean Veliona had witnessed her embarrassing performance?
Veliona, having unceremoniously taken control, shot the two a disdainful glance. "Hmph, no need for all that trouble! Aren't they just a bunch of wooden dolls? Watch me tear them all apart!"
Letting Jiang Qiao use [Seele]'s body was certainly an option. But given how those two looked down on Seele, Veliona, as Seele's staunch defender, naturally wanted to personally reclaim their honor.
On this point, she wouldn't yield even to Bronya, her 'Sister Bronya'. She would prove that [Seele] wasn't weaker than their bodies—in fact, even without being 'used' by Jiang Qiao, [Seele] was still incredibly strong!
Of course, it might also be because she was in a bad mood, and perhaps wanted to see what it felt like to use Seele's body under these circumstances.
Jiang Qiao didn't object, merely retreating silently to the spectator seat, assuming a support role. This feeling of being indulged gave Veliona a thrill of satisfaction.
Phew, usually being with that timid Seele, always worrying about this and that, feels like wearing a collar. Given my personality, it's somewhat stifling. But now... I'm completely unleashed!
Veliona wore a satisfied expression, reacquainting herself with this body she should have long been used to. After Jiang Qiao entered, [Seele] had been subtly 'changed', especially with Jiang Qiao's deliberate cooperation, making the entire body feel incredibly responsive, like an extension of her own limbs.
However, while they were arguing, the Herrschers of Dominance lost their patience.
"Hey! What do you think this is? A wet market?"
"How dare you look down on us! Outrageous!"
Embodying the myriad negative emotions of humanity, the Herrscher of Legion fully inherited the mentality of losers, especially when faced with being 'ignored' or 'belittled'. Many among them had fallen into darkness precisely because of such treatment, lured by the Herrscher of Dominance, eventually becoming part of it.
"So noisy!" With a flash of red light, the indigo dress covering [Seele] transformed into the black and red Stygian Nymph outfit. This was Veliona's own power—and, of course, Seele's power too.
It was slightly different from before, though. Since Seele was essentially carried out of the Sea of Quanta and hadn't experienced the events that would normally lead to her reaching an understanding with Veliona, the power of this 'Stigmata' had remained dormant.
But with Jiang Qiao's arrival, his complete trust in Veliona as 'Seele' allowed her to bypass the integration phase and directly wield this power.
"Swish—!" Sharp claws tore through puppet after puppet. Veliona wore a somewhat morbid smile, looking utterly terrifying. Satisfying, incredibly satisfying... Hahaha~
Veliona was becoming addicted to this feeling. Her power was completely unleashed—something Seele could never have achieved on her own. They would have needed a significant adjustment period, even if Seele trusted Veliona. Compared to Jiang Qiao, however reluctantly, Veliona had to admit he was better in this regard.
The reason was simple. When with Seele, even if Seele relinquished control, it was still just Veliona acting alone. Seele would merely watch from the sidelines, while Veliona did the 'substitute fighting'. But with Jiang Qiao, even if he didn't take control, even from the 'spectator' seat, he wasn't just watching.
He helped organize her power, enabling Veliona to use it faster, more perfectly. While it might sound simple, for Veliona, it was like having divine assistance.
After all, everyone knew Miss Veliona's style. Her explosive temper and personality flaws led to wide, unrestrained attacks, rarely holding back.
Superficially, it might seem fine. But in reality, Veliona might kill a puppet with one blow but, due to her crude fighting style, might strike three or four more times unnecessarily. This was undoubtedly a sign of 'immaturity' in combat.
Figures like Kevin, Hua, Durandal... even Jiang Qiao himself, at their level, could perfectly control every ounce of power unleashed, maximizing the impact of their techniques. Among them, Jiang Qiao, having inherited Elysia's experience from the Elysian Realm, was particularly outstanding.
With 'Jiang-Seele' acting as an external script, Veliona was like a tiger with wings. Every strike aimed for vitals, every blow perfectly measured, with absolutely no waste.
"Hahaha~ Come play more! I'm going to dismantle every single one of you!" Like a warrior cutting through hordes in a musou game, Veliona transformed into a beautiful berserker, reveling in the sensation of slaughter.
"Damn it, this one... how does she seem completely tireless?!" The endlessly respawning Herrscher of Legion puppets couldn't help but complain. Their signature move was supposed to be overwhelming enemies with sheer numbers—'you can't kill us all'.
After all, people get tired, right? They eventually run out of energy? Especially fighting like Veliona did. Normally, killing a hundred puppets would probably exhaust someone. But Veliona's relentless assault... was starting to break the Herrschers of Legion. Do you not get tired at all? Doesn't your mana bar ever empty?!
"Hmph, if we can't take her down temporarily, let's deal with the other two first!"
And so, Kiana and Bronya suffered. They were also caught in the melee. Kiana fared slightly better; the Kaslana family had incredible stamina, and she had experience with prolonged battles from fighting that old man in the Elysian Realm.
But Bronya... Without the Authority of Reason, she could only rely on Project Bunny and her proud 'Silver Wolf of the Urals' skills. However... the title 'Silver Wolf of the Urals' might mean something in the mercenary world, but against Honkai, especially a horde of Herrscher puppets... Who are you again?
What made Bronya suffer even more was that after the Herrscher of Legion stole her Authority, the energy they used to wield it was drawn entirely from her. In a sense, all the bullets, rockets, hammers, shovels, grenades, and even the unpredictable toilet plungers flying around were funded by Bronya.
If someone checked the damage charts, Bronya's 'contribution' to the enemy's damage output would undoubtedly be near the top.
"No good... we can't kill them all... Uh... Seele, maybe let him use Bronya's body..." Feeling her Honkai Energy depleted and getting beaten badly, Bronya finally couldn't take it anymore and requested this from 'Seele'.
They definitely couldn't escape, but these guys were endless, impossible to kill completely. The only hope was for a Herrscher immune to the 'theft' to break the deadlock. If they delayed further, once her Honkai Energy was completely gone, handing an empty [Bronya] body to Jiang Qiao would be too embarrassing.
Blocking a puppet with her forearm, dodging a bullet that grazed past her raised hackles, Kiana dealt with the Herrschers of Dominance while speaking seriously, "Yeah... uh... Seele, you should give him back to us... That way we can... huff, die! Finish off these puppets!"
She admitted, this Seele was indeed strong; she wasn't sure she could take her down herself. But setting aside how long it would take Veliona to finish off the puppets this way... could she really keep fighting indefinitely?
"...Tch." Veliona stopped her assault, glancing unwillingly at the scattered limbs, then at the utterly battered Kiana and Bronya. She clicked her tongue and muttered reluctantly, "You handle them. These wooden dolls that just won't die."
"Kill every last one of them!"
"Hmph! All talk!"
"The will of thousands, the resentment of thousands... we... can never be truly killed!"
"Swish—!" A crescent arc slashed through the air, bisecting the noisy puppets. The blade energy radiating along the ground cleared the Herrscher of Legion surrounding Kiana and Bronya.
Pale feet touched the ground lightly. The red hues faded, replaced by the original ocean-like indigo. The girl chuckled softly, "Leave it to me."
Kiana and Bronya's faces lit up upon hearing this. Their fatigue seemed to vanish as they rushed towards 'Seele'. This reassuring sense of security undoubtedly spoke volumes. Jiang Qiao definitely had a way to deal with these puppets—in that case, they just needed to hand their bodies over to him.
In a way, this might also be a competition for the superiority of the 'Herrscher of Reason' versus the Herrscher of the Void. Of course, it might also involve certain feelings towards the current 'Seele'.
But [Seele] merely curved her lips slightly, the scythe held in both hands lightly cutting through the air. The girl's voice murmured, "Against enemies with such tenacious life force, this is probably more suitable, right?"
"Voom voom voom~" A subtle sound vibrated in the air. The Herrschers of Dominance, initially unconcerned, looked startled.
"The Theater of Domination... is being torn open?!" They couldn't believe it. As part of the Current Era Herrscher of Dominance's Authority, the Theater of Domination's spatial integrity was unquestionable. Outsiders couldn't leave without their permission, unless they found a 'doggy door'.
But this 'mad dog' from moments ago had just torn a hole in the Theater's spatial wall with one swing of her scythe.
"Don't even think about escaping!" Though shocked, the puppets instinctively assumed Kiana and the others were trying to flee and immediately began repairing the hole in the Theater.
Hearing this, [Seele] looked puzzled, then laughed. "You seem to have misunderstood something."
"But it doesn't matter..."
"Sumeru, activate!" she whispered. The Sumeru dimension, connected through the hole, instantly bloomed with astonishing light. A gateway linking the Imaginary Space and the Sea of Quanta.
A hidden power gathered from within, surging into the Theater of Domination.
"The power of the Sea..."
"And..." Holding a sphere radiating azure light in one hand, the girl smiled, while her other clenched fist pulsed with a deep purple glow.
"...The Gem of Serenity?!" Bronya stopped in her tracks, instantly recognizing the gem. In fact, after the London incident, she had considered trying to use this Herrscher Core. After all, for someone reliant on Herrscher powers, an extra core meant access to different Authorities.
But unfortunately, Welt and Einstein immediately shut down that idea. True, Herrschers could host multiple cores. But only natural-born Herrschers.
Acquired Herrschers actively incorporating multiple cores would fare no better than Kiana. The cores would cause backlash; the more cores, the faster the death. Although Bronya's body wouldn't suffer backlash thanks to Jiang Qiao's previous use, she lacked the ability to wield multiple cores.
"Wasn't it kept at the Salt Lake Base..." While Bronya murmured, the puppets snapped back to reality. They looked at [Seele] holding two distinct powers, surprised, then mocking:
"What do you think you're doing?"
"The Herrscher of Death's core, and the power of the Sea... Don't you know that Imaginary and Quantum are mortal enemies?" Though surprised to see the Gem of Serenity, seeing the power of the Sea made the Legion puppets find the situation rather amusing. Is this idiot trying to absorb both powers?
The next moment...
"You guessed right~" Both powers flowed directly into her body. The girl, lightly brushing her front, lowered her eyes and chuckled softly: "But... there's no prize."
"Huh? You idiot! You actually did it!"
"This is hilarious!"
Seeing this, the Herrscher of Legion puppets laughed unscrupulously. Both the Gem of Serenity and the power of the Sea were undoubtedly 'Herrscher-level'. Individually, either could create a Herrscher and cause them significant trouble.
But using both together... Given the nature of Imaginary and Quantum, the only outcome awaiting this fool was being torn apart by the conflicting powers!
This idiot is doomed!