Starting from the Collapse World, I became the behind-the-scenes boss

Mei said in an extremely serious tone.

"Huh? Are you kidding me? At a time like this, where are we supposed to find some Herrscher of the End?"

He couldn't help but purse his lips, making no attempt to hide his suspicion.

"No, it is precisely because of this time that we are able to find our own Herrscher of the End."

Mei shook her head slightly, her expression still serious and earnest: "As for the key to the future, it has already been in our hands for a long time."

As she spoke, Mei looked directly at Durandal.

"I?"

She pointed to herself, her face full of confusion.

But the next second, as if in response to Mei's statement, a crystal-clear, prismatic crystal flew out from Durandal's chest.

"Herrscher Core?"

Sensing the familiar aura within the crystal, Bronya tilted her head, her eyes, which had seen all the truth, still filled with confusion.

Even though she could sense a similar aura to other Herrscher cores from this crystal, it was clearly not any Herrscher core she knew.

"It is the core of the Time Mark!"

Durandal then realized what was going on.

After defeating the Herrscher of Corruption together with Alicia in the Paradise of the Past, the boy from the "future timeline" disappeared and transformed into the Herrscher Core before us.

"mark?"

Upon hearing the keyword, Kiana's heart tightened.

"It's not a mark of our world, but..."

Just as she was about to explain, Mei paused, then shook her head a few seconds later and continued, "In short, if we can make good use of the power of this core, it should be able to lead us to the [Origin] and the [End]."

"???"

Upon hearing this, Kiana's expression turned even more hateful.

The next instant, without giving them a chance to continue exploring, the core suddenly lit up, its dazzling light completely engulfing the female knight's figure.

.........

"here it is…"

Coming to her senses, Durandal looked at the vast space before her, which resembled an endless sea of ​​stars, and a look of confusion appeared on her face.

"Hi~ Hello, humans from later generations."

A familiar voice rang out, its three-point playfulness causing the female knight's expression to change instantly.

"A...Alicia!?"

She immediately turned her head, and the confusion on Durandal's face instantly turned into shock.

Without a doubt, the person appearing in this space at this moment is none other than a certain pink fairy.

"Yes, my name is indeed Alicia. But how did you know? I've never seen you before!"

She looked up and asked, a hint of distress on Alicia's face.

"Alicia, you..."

Upon hearing this, the joy that had just appeared in Durandal's eyes vanished instantly, and her expression turned completely somber.

Even though she was usually slow to catch on to these things, she now realized that the Alicia she knew was not the same person as the pink fairy in Paradise.

"Pfft~"

Seeing the princess knight droop like a wilted eggplant, Alicia couldn't help but laugh out loud. "Alright, I was just kidding. How could I possibly forget you, Golden Dullie?"

"Alicia!"

She said angrily, and the usually serious strongest Valkyrie immediately turned red.

Being tricked into revealing the name "Golden Silly Goose" was a humiliation she could never forget.

"Hmmmm~"

Alicia merely chuckled softly at the humiliated girl, then gently beckoned with her hand, and the blank core belonging to the boy fell into her grasp. "Truly amazing, that guy..."

As she spoke, Alicia carefully examined the blank core in front of her, her blue and pink eyes revealing obvious surprise.

Although she herself was merely a power slumbering within this primordial sea.

But after learning everything from the Blank Core and Durandal's memories, she became no different from Alicia in Paradise.

Ultimately, she exists in her current form entirely because of Durandal—or more precisely, because of the blank core carried by the girl.

This is a true miracle for her and the boy!

Thinking to herself, Alicia's lips curled up, and her gaze towards the knight before her softened even more: "Durandal, what do you think is the [Origin]?"

Chapter 240 Inherited from the Origin

"Boss Kevin, what do you think [Origin] is?"

Glancing at Mistelin, whose pieces had all reached the finish line, Shihen asked in a casual tone while tossing pieces and engaging in a final battle with Kevin.

"【Origin】..."

Upon hearing this, Kevin was taken aback. A flicker of emotion appeared in his usually icy eyes. After a long pause, he replied calmly, "Whatever you think she is, that's what she is."

Having fought alongside Alicia for years, the only thing he realized was that he could never truly understand the girl's thoughts.

The other party is like an irregular prism, always able to break light down into thousands of different colors, making each color shine.

To describe such a girl using a single color is nothing short of arrogance.

The only word that can perfectly describe it is crystal-clear.

And it is precisely because it is as flawless as crystal that everyone can see their own reflection in it, that is... [the true self].

"Kevin, you see it very clearly too."

In an instant, Shihen understood the implication behind Kevin's words, and a faint smile appeared on his lips. "To prove the true self through the [Origin], this should be the most precious treasure she left behind. Following in her footsteps, there may never be another Alicia in this world, but there will definitely be a second [True Self]."

"..."

Upon hearing this, Kevin looked up and gazed into the boy's dark eyes, as if he could glimpse the boy's thoughts and feelings. A faint smile appeared on his face.

He began to look forward to what kind of surprise the boy would bring him.

With these thoughts in mind, Kevin threw down his chess piece, picked up his last piece, and began his march toward the finish line.

…………

What is the significance of "Origin"?

Upon hearing this question, Durandal frowned immediately, but no matter how hard she thought about it, she couldn't come up with the answer she wanted.

Even after glimpsing Alicia's life through the Paradise of the Past, she still found it difficult to evaluate this hero.

After thinking it over carefully, the girl's expression turned serious, and she said, "Expel the Honkai, so that everyone in this world can live as a human."

"Oh dear, Durandal, you really know how to cheat. By saying that, you make it impossible for me to say you're wrong, don't you?"

Upon hearing this, the pink fairy's cheeks immediately puffed up.

"I'm sorry, I know this is a bit off-topic. But... this is what I truly think. Whether it's the [Origin] or anything else, as long as it can help defeat the Honkai and save this world from destruction, I will do everything in my power to seize it!"

She lowered her head slightly as she spoke, but Durandal's voice remained unwavering.

In the context of humanity's struggle against the Honkai, her answer undoubtedly falls under a certain category of political correctness.

But for her, this is the meaning of "Origin".

If she can gain the power to defeat the Honkai, then the Origin will have meaning.

But if the Origin cannot do this, then no matter how powerful this authority is...

Whatever is precious and rare, it is worthless to her.

"It's alright, I just like your honesty, Durandal. And I really don't think you're wrong!"

Seeing the Knight Princess's extremely apologetic attitude, Alicia couldn't help but laugh, her delicate body trembling like a flower branch being blown by the wind.

"Ok?"

Upon hearing this, Durandal immediately looked up, her azure eyes brimming with great surprise.

"Regardless of how others view the so-called 'origin,' in my opinion, if one cannot truly do what one wants to do, then even the 'end' is nothing special, right?"

Alicia explained with a smile.

"Yes, I think so too!"

Seeing that her idea was recognized, Youlandailun breathed a long sigh of relief, and the expression on her face relaxed a lot.

"So from now on, you are the new Herrscher of Origin~"

With a light laugh, Alicia moved closer to the knight like a fish, cupping the girl's face in her hands and pressing their foreheads together.

"..."

Sensing the fairy lady's sudden approach, Durandal's eyes widened instantly, and she even instinctively stopped breathing for a moment.

In that instant, Durandal seemed to relive her entire life.

From her entanglements with Walter White in recent years, to being drawn to the path of the Valkyrie by a Valkyrie named Wagner earlier, and waking up in a sanatorium after losing her memory, she chose the new name Bianca.

Finally, there are those early days as Kiana, which have long since vanished from her mind.

Are you ready to save the world?

In a daze, Durandal saw herself as Kiana asking this question, still holding a child's umbrella in her hand, her innocent face displaying the demeanor of a valiant knight charging into battle with a lance.

"Of course, I am..."

Seeing this, Durandal simply smiled slightly, her gentle tone revealing a firmness heavier than mountains, "I've been prepared for a long time."

As she spoke, Durandal summoned her Black Abyss White Flower and gently touched it with the young Kiana. The two smiled at each other, as if they had completed a relay of some kind of belief.

Coming to her senses, Durandal looked at the pink fairy who was now a little further away from her, her face still showing deep surprise.

"This is... the power of the Origin?"

Looking at her body, which seemed unchanged, Durandal couldn't help but ask in confusion.

Although she felt as if something had increased inside her, when she looked closely, she felt that she was almost no different from before.

"Because what [Origin] represents has always been just this kind of belief."

Seeing the Knight's puzzled expression, Alicia's smile brightened. "Like a seed with infinite possibilities, only by watering it with care can it bloom into the most beautiful flower."

"Um...okay."

Meeting the fairy's shifty gaze, Durandal nodded as if she understood, her fingers unconsciously rubbing the plum blossom mark between her brows, before her expression suddenly changed.

Through her enhanced Honkai energy perception after becoming the Herrscher of Origin, she finally understands the truth behind this mark—from beginning to end, Welt White's so-called "control" was just a facade.

After this small veil was pierced, Durandal finally realized that someone had set up a much bigger deception.

"Alicia, you and Bai..."

She asked in a tone that was difficult to say, and Durandal's expression instantly became extremely complicated.

"Alright, now that you've achieved your goal, Durandal, it's time for the fairy lady's magic!"

Meeting the complex gaze of the female knight, Alicia simply smiled softly, and the blank core in her hand emitted an unprecedentedly brilliant light.

.........

"Huh? My sister is missing?"

On the other side, Kiana couldn't help but exclaim in surprise when she saw Durandal suddenly disappear in the light.

"Durandal should now be the Herrscher of Origin."

Mei explained, her tone revealing a hint of regret.

In the timeline mentioned by the "future boy," she should have been the one to become the Origin Herrscher.

Although I don't have any problem with Durandal, if she were to become the Herrscher of Origin, she would be even more qualified to compete with Kiana, right?