Honkai: It’s broken, I have become the Herrscher of Corrosion?

In the endless darkness, the woman with fiery red hair opened her eyes.

"Where is this...?"

She looked around; everything in the room seemed strange.

Soon, footsteps were heard outside the room, and a white-haired woman pushed the door open and walked in. Her beauty seemed to brighten the entire dim room.

"Ms. Muryota Himeko, you're awake. I'm glad to see you in such good health."

"May I ask you are……"

Although she was sure that she had never seen the other person before, Ji Zi felt that the person in front of her was somewhat familiar.

"I am Cecilia Shaniat, the former S-rank Valkyrie of Destiny... Ah, Ms. Himeko, this is not the afterlife. Your consciousness is still in the real world..."

Cecilia told Enosia all of her abilities.

"In order to prevent confusion caused by the loss of important memories, she extracted your memories before death from Kiana and other people present, and added them when converting you into a memory. You can recall them carefully..."

Muliangta Himeko recalled her birth, the passing of her mother and father, her joining Skyrim, receiving artificial stigmata at the age of 19, Ragnar's sacrifice, her coming to St. Freya Academy, and finally giving Kiana her last lesson at Skyrim headquarters. These memories left a deep impression on her, and there was nothing missing.

"The power of the Herrscher is so strong that it can keep people who cannot be cured by medicine alive in another form. However..."

"I know what you want to ask. Is there any deviation between your original intention, your understanding of things and people, your ideals, and Wuliangta Jizi?"

"……No."

"Then you are undoubtedly Himeko Muretta herself. Enosia told me that she believes the most powerful aspect of the power of erosion is to preserve a soul that is about to dissipate."

"But it's normal to have such self-doubt. When she saved me in this way, I also fell into self-doubt many times."

Listening to Cecilia's explanation, Ji Zi felt that her brain was gradually moving from chaos to clarity.

“…Cecilia-senpai is a Valkyrie of the same generation as Theresa, so you can just call me by my first name.”

"...Okay, this way, our relationship can become closer. Jizi, I know you still have many questions, and I can answer them with what I know."

A few hours later, Ji Zi showed a look of sudden realization and gratitude:

"So these things happened 17 years ago... So what's happening now, Senior..."

"Aino gave me a complete new life by importing my memories into the Soul Steel body. Since she chose to save you, she will definitely bring you back to life in the future... By the way, the first person to do this was Bishop Otto. He lived from more than 500 years ago to the present by constantly uploading his consciousness into the Soul Steel body."

"It's just that... Ino said that now is not the right time. If you are [resurrected] now, it may not be a good thing for Kiana."

After a moment of silence, Ji Zi let out a sigh:

"Indeed, people are often forced to grow up after losing someone they can rely on. Fortunately, even if I am not by Kiana's side, there are still other people who are willing to care about her..."

"I believe that she will be able to reach the ending she wants with her own will."

"By the way, Senior, you should know that Kiana is actually..."

Cecilia smiled softly:

"Yes, she is K423, a clone of Kiana. She has no direct blood relationship with me."

"However, the bond that maintains the relationship between people has never been limited to blood. From ancient times to the present, there are countless examples of blood relatives fighting against each other, which proves that relationships maintained by blood alone may not be reliable."

"I think that what is more important than the innate blood relationship is the acquired cognition. As long as she wishes, I can certainly be her mother."

"… You are just as the rumors say, beautiful and elegant, yet gentle and kind. Not only do you have great strength, you also have a strong heart."

Cecilia heard this and showed an embarrassed expression:

"They exaggerate too much. I can barely accept her beauty and strength, but elegance... I don't think I have a strong connection with this word..."

A gentle and tolerant mother and a mother who teaches by example chatted for a long time, and they both had deep feelings for each other.

"The moment I accepted the artificial stigmata and joined the stormtroopers, I began to think of countless possible endings for myself."

"Perhaps, I will die gloriously on the battlefield like Captain Ragnar. Perhaps, I will accomplish nothing and die from the side effects of excessive Honkai energy and artificial stigmata. Perhaps, I will watch my students grow up but will not have the time to watch them reach the end, and finally die with regrets."

"But like now, I can survive without fighting, worrying about anything, and even without eating. This is a path I never imagined."

"To be honest, I'm still a little uncomfortable with not feeling the intermittent pain in my body caused by the side effects of artificial stigmata."

At this time, there was some noise outside the door.

"Ah, they're back. I guess I have to excuse myself. Jizi, since what you have the most right now is time, why don't you think about what you want to do in the future?"

When Cecilia returned to reality from the data space, she saw Xilin and Bella who had just returned home.

"Mom, you just came out from there. Why did I remember that you had already gone in there before Bella and I left?"

Cecilia patted Xilin's head as usual:

"Of course, it's because Jizi and I have a lot to talk about, and there are many wonderful stories about my juniors."

"Your junior... well... maybe it's because our bodies and appearances won't change, or maybe it's because of Kiana, but I always feel like Himeko Muliangta... is the same age as you."

"But if we really talk about age, Jizi is younger than you, Xilin..."

"Yes, I know. I have this wrong feeling. The bottom line is that I am already in my thirties, but I often behave like a child..."

Cecilia smiled:

"No matter how much time has passed, Xilin is still my child. There is nothing wrong with her acting like a child in front of me."

Xilin raised her head, and the haze in her heart that had just gathered was swept away. She threw herself into Cecilia's arms and acted like a spoiled child as usual.

When Bella saw this scene, a smile appeared on her lips inadvertently. Then she went into the kitchen very consciously to think about tonight's recipe.