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

"What did Miss Mei think of?"

"...I just feel something is a little strange. I have known Enosia for a few years. Although I may not know her well, from past experiences and my understanding of the World Serpent, Enosia...when she has other options to solve a problem, she will definitely not choose the riskiest method."

"Since Ling was brought to the Paradise of the Past by Enosia, and the Jizo Soul was obtained by her after she defeated the former Herrscher of Corrosion, she knows the relationship between Ling, Jizo Soul, and the Herrscher of Corrosion of the previous civilization better than anyone else."

"Therefore, it is impossible for her not to take any measures to prevent risks before the situation has developed to this point."

"Since she cares so much about the situation in the Paradise of the Past, especially Alicia, it is impossible for her to know nothing about it before the second Herrscher of Corrosion was born in the Paradise of the Past."

"...Indeed, as far as I know, Miss Ino may not be considered a "good person" in the traditional sense, but she has always been doing "good things". For those she really cares about, she will definitely think of measures to protect their personal safety..."

"And in Miss Ino's heart, I guess only Miss Silin can compete with Ai Li for the first place... Of course, I don't think Miss Silin can win."

"After all, Ai Li is irreplaceable to Miss Ino."

"Can you elaborate?"

Eden showed an expression that was difficult to explain, which was very rare.

"This... Miss Mei, she is a person who is conquered by Ai Li's charm just like me."

Mei showed an even more confused expression:

"I don't deny that as the founder of the Yingjie system, Ailishia does have abilities that ordinary people cannot achieve."

"However, according to the data of Destiny and the World Serpent, Enosia met Sirin, who had a deep hatred for Destiny at the time, shortly after her birth. And Enosia came to the Paradise of the Past after the Second Collapse."

"I don't understand what Alicia did to make her and Enosia have a friendship that is comparable to or even surpasses that of Silin."

"As a general rule, it's not surprising that a Herrscher of Corrosion would feel superior when faced with memories."

"And Eden... seems to still be hiding something on this issue. Under the current circumstances, he still needs to hide it from me..."

"Could it be related to the final secret of Alicia kept by those crystal flowers?"

"… With just a few words, you were able to deduce such an answer. Miss Mei's performance is truly amazing."

"...Your guess is correct, but...even at this point, I will not tell you the secret directly."

"...Please forgive me, because keeping that secret is the greatest meaning of our existence here."

“…It’s okay. All my thoughts just now are just [reasonable guesses] and may not be the truth. However, if I continue thinking along this line of thought, I see a [possibility].”

"Perhaps Enosia allowed the second Herrscher to appear in order to find the traitor among the heroes... No, the Herrscher's power can directly read minds. There is no need for her to do such a thankless task that increases risks out of thin air..."

"... Miss Mei..."

"Sorry, Eden, please forget what I just said. My [seemingly reasonable conjecture] actually has many loopholes, and if it doesn't match the facts, it will be of no use in changing the current situation."

"Aili's departure has had a huge impact on everyone, including me. Under the sudden changes, it is inevitable that we will overlook the reasons behind the abnormalities in Paradise. Sometimes, we may be able to discover the root cause of the abnormalities if we open our minds."

Eden pushed the golden crystal flower in his hand towards Mei.

"Eden, this is..."

"Ms. Mei, although I cannot tell you the answer directly, I can help you to the best of my ability in the process of finding the answer."

"Since the purpose of your coming here is to explore the secrets buried here, then I am only bringing forward the time by giving you the [Key] now."

"And... from a safety perspective, if everyone will become the target of the Herrscher and the Betrayer, then giving the Key to Miss Mei is also a way to protect the secret until the end."

"It's just that... other heroes may not think so. If you want to obtain the other three crystal flowers, Miss Mei, you need to work hard on your own... Ah, Phyllis is back."

"Sister Eden, there is no problem with the path from here to Sister Weierwei's workshop, but... the door of the workshop is closed, and I don't know if there is anyone there."

"… Well then, Miss Mei, we'll say goodbye here. I hope we can meet again in the future."

In the paradise, in the space created by Enosia, Alicia held a drink in one hand and reached into the bag that had been torn open on the coffee table beside her with the other hand. After shaking it a little, she took out a piece of intact potato chips.

Just as he put the potato chips to his mouth, he saw Enosia leaning against the head of the bed, her eyes fell on his hands and his mouth opened.

Alicia smiled and waved the potato chips in front of Inoshia. When Inoshia opened her mouth to bite, she suddenly pulled her hand away. Inoshia took a breath of air and leaned back.

In terms of reaction speed, at least in this space she created, no one was faster than her, but... for her, Alicia's happiness was more important than simply eating, drinking and having fun. So she cooperated with Alicia and pulled several times until she took the initiative to stuff the potato chips into her mouth.

"Ying, you should know that the things that Aino conjures up always taste great. Come and try some. There's no need to stare at the screen so nervously. As an actor who has already finished the performance, being anxious... can't change the performance on stage, right?"

Sakura watched Mei and Eden go their separate ways and shook her head.

"But... Mei had some doubts just now..."

Enosia sighed:

"Sakura, it's been a while since we learned about [Alisa's death]. If Mei hasn't noticed anything wrong after such a long time, I would have suspected that Mei is abnormal."

"Anyway, Mei has always had a gap in information compared to other people, which means that even if she guessed something, she wouldn't dare to draw a conclusion. The current situation has further ignited her desire to seek the [secret], isn't that just right?"

"But... judging from Eden's reaction, she probably has guessed the truth based on Mei's guess. Otherwise... she wouldn't have handed the crystal flower to her so decisively."

"Compared to Mei... Kevin's situation is a bit troublesome... If it was the real Kevin out there, he would definitely not make such a decision."