NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 177: Brainwashing
Himeko, unaware of Kiana's suspicions, agreed to bring her along. She was well-prepared this time; a confrontation with Schicksal shouldn't be a problem.
But she was puzzled. This wasn't like Ren.
Their morning conversation hadn't been initiated by her, but by Ren himself. This was unusual. The aloof Herrscher usually just issued orders, not engage in casual conversation.
And that conversation had been conveniently overheard by Kiana.
It was all a bit too coincidental, but Himeko dismissed it as bad luck.
They entered Ren's room. It was sparsely furnished: a bed, a desk, nothing else.
Himeko walked to the blank wall, pressing her hand against it. The Obsidian Concord mark glowed.
But instead of opening a portal, the light vanished.
"Strange. Why won't the Theater open?"
As Ren's primary combat Puppet, she had access to the Theater of Domination, though he'd restricted certain areas. But she'd never been completely locked out.
"Did something happen to Ren?" A wave of worry washed over her.
He was in Schicksal's custody, facing not only Otto, but also the risk of Honkai corruption.
As a Herrscher, Ren was highly resistant, but not immune. As an agent of destruction, he was still susceptible.
She pressed her hand against the wall again, trying to contact him, but nothing happened.
She didn't notice the thick fog rolling in, obscuring the city under the cover of night.
Within the city, people dreamt of a brighter future, their hope almost… unnatural.
"Want to learn about our super ultra cute Kiana-chan?"
Children carrying gifts roamed the streets, promoting their magical girl. People smiled, accepting the gifts.
Under a street food stall, a black cat with white paws waited for scraps.
With its agility, it could snatch any fallen morsel before a human could react.
Tonight's dinner, and perhaps tomorrow's breakfast.
A piece of meat fell. The cat pounced, snatching it. But a shadow fell over it.
It looked up, seeing a small girl staring at it, expressionless, reaching out a hand.
The cat's fur bristled. Dropping the meat, it extended its claws, ready to flee.
But it couldn't move.
Like a moth caught in a web, its struggles only tightened the invisible threads.
It looked back, the girl's image reflected in its terrified eyes.
Threads covered the girl, more than it had seen before.
It meowed, trying to attract attention, but as people turned to look, it saw the threads connecting everyone, their faces frozen in smiles, silent, like puppets.
The cat shrieked as darkness consumed it.
…
In the Theater of Domination, Ren frowned. He'd lost contact with Taxue.
He'd noticed intermittent connection issues a few days ago, but he'd been focused on Anti-Entropy.
Now, with Kiana back in ARC City, his attention returned to the city.
After the meteor incident, he'd planned to use the city as Obsidian Concord's main base.
And to manipulate public opinion, to create chaos and disrupt Schicksal and Anti-Entropy, he'd fabricated the legend of Magical Girl Kiana.
But things weren't going as planned.
It wasn't just hope he'd instilled; something deeper was at work, subtly influencing people's minds, brainwashing them.
Like religious fervor, the civilians weren't just hopeful; they were… worshipping the Herrscher of Dominance, or rather, worshipping the *Honkai*.
This was a loss of control, reminding him of a certain anime about a wish-granting grail that twisted desires into horrific realities.
As an agent of the Honkai, he was on its side. To counter the three main organizations, he'd chosen a subtle approach, manipulating public opinion.
But the Honkai, like that grail, had bypassed him, taking a more direct, more extreme approach.
…
*"If I remain detached, I'll lose my humanity. If I become too involved, I'll be consumed, lose my resolve as a Herrscher."*
He'd known this from the start. After ARC City, he'd been swayed by emotions. This was the price.