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Chapter 242 – Grilled Pufferfish
🕑 Added 2025-08-11 15:00:18 +0000 UTC[TL NOTE – To avoid confusion, I’ll use [HIMEKO] to refer to the Himeko from the other timeline, and lowercase [Himeko] for the one from Nagami’s world.]
Between two different multiverses, there exists a phenomenon where counterparts share a mental connection.
Just like the bond between the heiress and true Kiana, or between Nagami and the Doctor.
If it were within the same multiverse or between parallel worlds born of that single universe, this phenomenon would not occur at all.
“You… y-you… who are you?”
For a moment, HIMEKO just stood there, lips cracked from the heat, licking them instinctively.
Even her voice trembled faintly.
For a veteran Valkyrie like her, it was almost impossible to display such an emotional fluctuation on the battlefield.
But… the situation before her was far too unbelievable!
“I mean, seriously—have you forgotten even yourself?”
The corners of the other Himeko’s mouth lifted in a faint smile, her eyes gleaming with amusement.
“I’m a major in the military, the captain of the floating battleship Hyperion—exclusive to Valkyrie Squad Five and, finally… a Valkyrie instructor at Schicksal’s Far East Branch, St. Freya Academy.”
HIMEKO stared, dumbfounded, her turbulent emotions almost enough to throw a Hadouken.
“And aside from that, there’s one slightly more… special title.”
Her tone shifted from warm to serious as she turned toward the distant Herrscher of the Void emerging from the flames.
Raising her greatsword, she pointed it straight at her.
“The Herrscher of Flames—Murata Himeko!”
The moment the words fell, the balanced hilt of the Heavenly Fire greatsword split open, molten gold flames that could scorch the sky condensing into a magnificent, broad blade.
Heavenly Fire – Salvation of the Scorched Earth form!
“Huh!?”
It was the sound of a worldview shattering.
HIMEKO felt as though she’d been rammed by an Emperor-class Honkai beast, her eyes wide with shock and confusion.
She even forgot she was injured, the pain that should have been screaming through her nerves was completely gone as she stood there, stunned.
Right now, she truly felt like she must be dreaming~
————————————————————————
“What!? Bird’s nest head! Did I hear that right?! Bird’s nest head!”
A red-haired twin-tailed girl who had seen nearly a century of life yet still looked like a teenager grabbed the shoulders of the equally century-old blue-haired girl beside her and shook her hard.
“What did she just say she was?!”
“…In public, you should call me Doctor Einstein, Doctor Tesla.”
For the first time, Einstein’s usually calm voice wavered as she stared at the monitor.
Streams of data representing spacetime parameters, numbers that would make an ordinary person dizzy with a glance—flowed rapidly across it.
Her still, lake-like eyes narrowed slightly, as if she were witnessing the birth of a miracle.
“And… no, you didn’t mishear. She really did say…”
————————————————————————
“The Herrscher of Flames!?”
HIMEKO was still reeling from the revelation, her unblinking gaze fixed on the alluring, gallant figure before her.
Inside, waves crashed violently.
What nearly stunned her into silence was the overwhelming Honkai energy radiating from the other Himeko—like a sleeping ocean awakening.
The air itself was thick with heat, and everyone could feel the Herrscher power building far beyond that of the Herrscher of the Void.
Sirin had only just awakened, far from her full strength.
But Himeko’s state had already been completely restored by Kanami.
“Mhm~”
Her long crimson hair danced like flames as Himeko slowly extended her hand toward her otherself.
In the latter’s wide-eyed stare, the Gem of Haste embedded in the crimson armor’s energy core floated toward Himeko’s palm, as if answering her call.
“Without him here, you’d better not use this thing.”
Seeing her other self so completely bewildered made her smile grow even more amused.
But that expression didn’t last long.
Noticing her other self’s body was nearly burnt out, she frowned slightly and tilted her head toward the flame-rose-marked shoulder.
Pale skin bore faint crimson markings, strange light flowing across them like serpents, outlining a golden-sword-like emblem—a symbol that seemed to carry a thousand years of legacy.
“Ji Lin-senpai, I’ll leave the me of this world in your care.”
She bowed deeply, her tone sincere and solemn, her voice carrying unreserved respect.
Whether it was Ji Lin’s protection of Shenzhou, her battles against the Honkai, or sealing Chiyou with her own body, she was a warrior worthy of honor.
“The me of this world?”
Murmuring to herself, HIMEKO sharp enough to put the pieces together was already forming a guess from her other self’s words and actions.
Even if that guess was utterly absurd, her eyes were locked on the red emblem.
“Ji Lin-senpai? A… Stigmata?”
The emblem dissolved into golden particles of light, gathering into a figure that was both familiar and strange to HIMEKO.
Ji Lin smiled gently and nodded toward HIMEKO.
Such a distinctive pattern was instantly recognizable to any Valkyrie, and HIMEKO herself had only managed to extend her own life by obtaining Ji Lin’s Stigmata.
But the Stigmata before her was completely different from the one she bore.
“Could you… maybe explain what’s going on here first?”
HIMEKO’s gaze shifted back and forth between her otherself and Ji Lin.
Ji Lin looked down at her with gentle warmth.
“Accept my power, and you’ll understand everything.”
Before HIMEKO could respond, Ji Lin gave her no time to react—her figure dissolved once again into golden particles, surrounding HIMEKO and slowly merging into her battered, war-torn body.
The Stigmata, already enhanced multiple times by the Honkai, unleashed its overwhelming power, rapidly repairing her injuries while sharpening her control and adaptability to Honkai energy.
“T-This… this…!”
It was as if every cell in her body sang with life an unprecedented, exhilarating sense of rebirth flooding her veins with raw strength.
And with that strength came something else, every memory Ji Lin carried from the moment Chiyou revived, to her ascension as the Herrscher of Domination, and everything since.
HIMEKO’s eyes widened, her face frozen in utter disbelief, the stubborn cowlick on her head swaying as if to express her inner shock.
The other Himeko allowed herself a moment to savor that priceless expression—then, wielding the blazing Judgment of Shamash, her figure vanished in a streak of molten light.
Her target: the Herrscher of the Void, who seemed to have just entertained the idea of fleeing.
“Herrscher, did you really think you could… escape?”
Returning her own words verbatim, Himeko’s blade tore straight through the imaginary space spread before her.
“Impossible! The Gem of Haste should still be on that woman’s body!”
The Herrscher of the Void’s face twisted in panic.
Raising both hands, she instantly opened dozens of imaginary portals around her, each launching spears of subspace that glimmered with cold light, all locking onto the approaching Valkyrie.
“You don’t get it, do you? …Actually, I don’t really get it either.”
Her casual, almost lazy tone didn’t match the intensity of battle at all.
With a light swing of her molten-gold greatsword, Himeko smirked.
“Someone told me he was a miracle… and then, the miracle came true~”
The raging torrent of power within her body surged into the sword in her hands.
The air temperature climbed without warning, searing flames erupting from the blade.
In an instant, the torrent of destruction spread, shattering every subspace spear.
The blazing edge swept up in a storm of fire, the air itself shimmering like it was about to boil.
With another swing, Himeko unleashed a solid blade of flame that slammed into the roaring Benares, forcing its jaws shut and sending it crashing to the ground.
Herrscher of Flames at full power, plus the Judgment of Shamash—did you think this was a joke?
Forget one core… actually, no—this would make her a two-core, maybe even three-core Pufferfish. Not that it mattered.
Even a six-core Pufferfish wouldn’t withstand an unrestricted Judgment of Shamash.
When these two forces combine, it’s far beyond simple addition.
The only reason she couldn’t beat the Herrscher of Domination was because that one was operating on previous-era, seven-core strength.
With another swing, an endless tide of flames exploded forth, like molten magma erupting from the depths of the earth.
The inferno devoured every Honkai beast surrounding the Hyperion, their screams drowned in the blaze.
Finally, her eyes locked on the Herrscher of the Void—now with a hint of fear in them. Himeko’s lips curved into a cold smile.
“Relax, I’ll hold back. Wouldn’t want to harm my student’s body, after all.”
“Burn.”
The apocalyptic flames surged from the Judgment of Shamash—the kind of light only a dying star could release.
This was the meaning behind its name: Judgment of Shamash.
“No! Stay away from meee!”
The Herrscher of the Void frantically spawned layer after layer of imaginary-space shields to block the attack, but each one shattered like paper under the blazing edge.
One strike—Eternal Ashes.
The queen who had once ruled like a goddess was now… nowhere to be found.
