Honkai Impact: I, The Herrscher of Ice, Am Loved By Players

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The identity of the assailant was now clear—the mightiest Valkyrie known publicly within Schicksal could subdue Theresa effortlessly.

"Ugh... Let go of me!" Theresa desperately struggled, but it was futile. Durandal's strength was simply too overwhelming. Without Judah at hand and caught off guard, she had no recourse against such power.

From the other side of the smoke, near the entrance to the Central Cathedral, a figure slowly emerged—it was Fu Hua.

Gone were her usual red-rimmed glasses and student uniform; now she donned robust Valkyrie combat armor known as Shadow Knight: Moonlit Wheels. Similar to Ana's Lunaris the Moon Knight, it too belonged to the Godslayer Armor series.

Fu Hua's face no longer held its customary warmth and gentleness but instead bore only coldness and seriousness.

"To avoid hindering our mission, I kindly request you withdraw for now, Principal."

Though her expression lacked respect, her tone remained courteous and polite.

With that, Fu Hua shifted her gaze toward Kiana, still bewildered.

"Kiana, your mother is not here."

"Huh? This voice is..."

Infused with traces of Fenghuang Down's power, Fu Hua's words brought clarity to the disoriented Kiana. Gradually, she turned her head towards Fu Hua.

"Class Monitor?!" Kiana exclaimed, surprised. She also noticed something unusual about Fu Hua's attire.

"Where am I?"

Kiana's mind remained muddled; she struggled to distinguish reality from illusion.

"My mom—where is she?!"

Seeing Kiana's anxiety, Fu Hua sighed. Though reluctant to shatter the girl's dreams, it was time for her to wake up.

"This digital space has never contained any virtual environments or AI."

"Babylon Labs and Cecilia have never existed."

With calm yet brutal honesty, Fu Hua tore apart the young girl's beautiful fantasy.

Naturally, Kiana couldn't accept this truth, feeling betrayed and enraged.

"What are you talking about?! No, you're lying!" Shaking uncontrollably, Kiana pressed her hands against her forehead.

"Mama was always by my side..."

"Together, we defeated the Second Herrscher..."

"I protected my mom..."

"Give her back to me!"

Overwhelmed by emotion, Kiana suddenly lunged at Fu Hua as if blaming her for everything. She struck Fu Hua's shoulder with clenched fists.

Fu Hua didn't dodge; she simply watched Kiana calmly. To her, Kiana's blows felt like nothing more than light taps.

"All of this is merely your fantasy."

"From the moment you entered this digital space, you've been standing still all along. It was the Herrscher's deception that trapped you within your own dream."

Indeed, ever since Kiana returned to Saint Freya Academy, Fu Hua had closely monitored her. However, even after spending so much time together, Fu Hua couldn't bring herself to equate Kiana with the Second Herrscher.

"Everything you saw and experienced—it's all false."

In the distance, amidst the smoke, Bianka quietly listened to Fu Hua's words. Even farther away, Rita observed from afar, both women inadvertently shaking their heads in unison.

"No wonder no one likes Commander Fu," Rita remarked sarcastically.

"She's too blunt, leaving no room for gentleness," Bianka chimed in. As she spoke, a slender figure with chestnut hair unconsciously surfaced in her mind. If it were someone else, perhaps they could have handled this better. It seemed odd why Lord Bishop hadn't assigned this task to them instead, given they were already present here.

Bianka shook her head, clearing those thoughts from her mind.

The Lord Bishop's orders were not to be questioned; he undoubtedly had his reasons.

Meanwhile, Fu Hua continued revealing the brutal truth to Kiana.

"The Cecilia you're searching for, the mother you've fought tooth and nail to protect, is merely an illusion conjured by Sirin using your desires."

Fu Hua still held back somewhat, refraining from disclosing the full extent of the truth—Cecilia was actually killed directly by Kiana herself. (Fu Hua did not know the true events of the Second Honkai Eruption, having disembarked early.)

"No... It can't be..." Slowly, Kiana collapsed onto the ground, covering her face with her hands. "This isn't real..."

Desperately seeking a way to refute Fu Hua's words, she tragically realized that everything Fu Hua said was true. Yet, Kiana refused to believe it.

"Mama has to be here somewhere..."

"I will find Mama!"

"Wait!" A sudden realization struck Kiana. "There's also that magical incantation!

"Ich... liebe... dich..."

As Kiana repeated the phrase over and over, another consciousness within her awakened. Abruptly, her eyes snapped open, their color shifting from blue to amber.

"That's right... As long as I recite this incantation..."

"Any wish can come true!"

As Kiana murmured these words, Herrscher wings formed from concentrated Honkai Energy appeared behind her back. Simultaneously, the Honkai Energy reaction within her body surged rapidly.

"Detecting intense Honkai Energy signal..." The Shadow Knight armor on Fu Hua sounded an alert. Durandal and Rita, positioned at a distance, received the same warning, instantly heightening their vigilance.

"..."

Fu Hua gazed at Kiana before her, her expression gradually firming. In that fleeting moment, she seemed to envision a deep blue sword plunged into bloodstained earth.

"No, this time, the world will not change according to your whims."

With Fu Hua's declaration, her Shadow Knight began transforming, assuming its battle-ready Lunar Eclipse form. The originally black armor now gained an additional layer of menacing crimson.

"Kiana, it's time to wake up from your dream!"

In the blink of an eye, Fu Hua launched a fierce attack against Kiana. At that moment, Kiana was still transitioning—what is commonly referred to as the transformation phase.

Fu Hua didn't give Sirin a chance to fully awaken, swiftly overpowering Kiana with lightning speed, forcing her out of half-Herrscher form and rendering her unconscious.

After accomplishing this, Fu Hua took a deep breath and lowered her hands into a relaxed stance.

"Clap, clap, clap, clap—"

At that moment, from not too far behind Fu Hua came a crisp sound—the applause of clapping hands.

Fu Hua, Durandal, Rita, and even the fallen Theresa turned towards the source of the noise. They saw a familiar figure leisurely approaching—it was undoubtedly Ana!