"Big sister... can you take your hand off me? I'm cold..."
"You can be in the Sea of Quanta, but you're cold just because I'm giving you a few pats."
"..."
It seems like... I can't explain this myself?
"You didn't realize it, and that's why you're using that excuse?"
"Cough... Well, that's all thanks to the master's excellent teaching and big sister's skillful use of the knife."
"Alright, I'm not going to argue with you anymore."
MEI sighed, as if she were about to leave Kevin alone.
However, before Kevin could even catch his breath, MEI spoke again with an air of indifference.
"Then tell me about Su."
"..."
Kevin's gaze turned cold in an instant.
"Su..."
"Did you two have a fight?"
"..."
Kevin remained silent for a few seconds before speaking slowly.
"I kicked him out... At that time, I didn't know who was right and who was wrong between us."
"You're a bit smarter."
"But compared to you, big sister, and Doctor Mobius, we're all idiots... However, I might have actually kicked him out with the idea that 'Socrates is smarter than I am'."
"In other words, you kicked him out, but what if you had killed him...?"
MEI didn't continue, but Kevin managed an ironic smile.
"If I had committed a murder, I wouldn't be here anymore. The only thing I could do was avoid the master and the others, and then, when the time came, sacrifice his life to atone for his sins."
"Speaking of Su..."
"Death from exhaustion? The observation activities that pushed him to the limit exhausted Su's lifespan... But of course, Su's ability was mental, and she was one of the few who could face the Eighth Herrscher on the mental plane back then. Death might not have been her end."
MEI adjusted her glasses; she had also talked a lot with Bianca these past few days.
"But of course, Su... has a childish heart that even I envy... Kevin, do you know what Su chose in the end?"
"What?"
"She is letting the future of this generation be decided by the people of this generation."
"That's too naive, even for us..."
"Kevin, your way of thinking is a bit arrogant... We are nothing but ghosts of the previous generation. If we make decisions on our own, we won't just be fighting against the Honkai, but also against the current civilization."
MEI sighed.
Although she used to tease her younger siblings when she had nothing to do, to be honest, she only had a close relationship with these few disciples.
Therefore, when the time came to give them some advice, MEI didn't mind.
"Besides, do you have any effective solution, like our old Stigma Project?"
"Yes, it is very well done..."
"Perfection does not imply feasibility. Although Mobius and I are wise, it is very difficult for us to know what will happen 50,000 years from now."
MEI rubbed her temples.
"The so-called plan consists of following the will of heaven and the will of man. We entrusted the Stigma Project to you because we believed your strength was sufficient and that you were the strongest of our era... We were betting that you could subdue the strongest of this era, not that anyone could carry it out; this plan itself has uncertainties, but I couldn't say it then."
"I can't control it?"
Kevin arched an eyebrow and glanced at everyone present.
If he were in top form and wielding the Judgment of Shamash, there would probably be only a handful of people there who could defeat him.
"Let's not even talk about the First Herrscher who brought you here..." Dra. MEI pointed out.
"Do you see that blonde girl leaning on the professor? She is Su's successor."
"Her?"
Kevin arched an eyebrow.
"Not bad. She could barely contain me without using Judgment of Shamash, but she's still missing something... Hmm, no, it seems she does..."
Kevin frowned slightly, realizing something was wrong.
"If that girl unleashes all her power and is determined to fight you to the death, you'll still have a chance to win... but you might not win," MEI said in a low voice.
"..."
"She has a World Bubble inside her body, as well as the Durandal supercomputer from that era... Besides, she inherited Su's Sumeru Mustard Seed, which allows her to control the power of the World Bubble, and among her weapons are Durandal and the Abyss Flower. Can you win against something so certain?"
"It's not a certain victory, maybe a 70/30?"
Kevin thought for a moment and answered truthfully.
The decomposition capability of the Abyss Flower and the outrageous spatial cutting capability of Durandal... if he is careless, he will also crash and burn.
"A 70/30 split already means 'life or death is at stake', right?"
Kevin remained silent.
"Well, that's enough talk about that, let's change our mindset."
MEI patted her younger brother's shoulder.
As a big sister, she had to take responsibility for her younger brother.
"Besides, a very kind lady with a cat's head just told me that someone commented that even if Dra. Mobius submerged my brain in formaldehyde, I still wouldn't be able to sustain myself... Kevin, do you have any clues about this?"
Once the business was finished, MEI showed a terrifying smile.
"..."
Kevin's gaze went lifeless in an instant.
Oh no! Am I really going to be soaked in formaldehyde?
"Ahem! Mmm... if I'm not mistaken, that girl is a Kaslana, right?"
Kevin tried to steer the conversation toward a more serious topic.
"If you can't change the subject, better not to do it."
MEI gave Kevin a kind pat.
"Besides, do you think my attention drifts so easily?"
"This... this..."
Kevin's eyes moved quickly around, hoping to find someone to save him.
But right now, his professor is being held by two women.
If he rushes in, he might save his life, but afterward, he might offend two more people.
Ah... now that I think about it, all these people could potentially become my Master's wife, right?
Kevin suddenly realized something.
Then Kevin immediately changed his mindset...
Although he looked down on the current civilization's military power, he couldn't look down on his Master's wife...
Therefore, Kevin couldn't ask the professor for help under any circumstances, so as not to offend two more.
He thought it would be best to run away and avoid trouble.
Only petty people are hard to deal with.
Eh... wait a moment.
Since my descendant could become my master's future wife, why don't I support her directly?
No! Now is not the time to think about those things!
If I don't get through this, I don't know when I'll wake up after eating!
Do I know any other trustworthy person?
Kevin finally spotted someone he recognized.
"Mom! Help!"
"Whoa! What the hell is this?!"
Kevin, who lunged forward, immediately received a kick to the face.
"Eh... what? Isn't that Kevin?"
Senti instinctively kicked the person before realizing she knew him.
"Are you here too? Wait, how the hell did you just call me? How gross!"
"..."
Kevin touched the shoe print on his face and began to question his existence.
Did I just get kicked by big sister?
And on top of that, she called me gross?
Has my character deteriorated to such an extent that even big sister, who is usually very tolerant, can't accept it?
"Cough... Isn't there a saying that a big sister is like a mother...?"
Kevin calmed himself down.
"Hey... that's an interesting way to put it, but the idea of Kevin calling me 'mom' is just plain disgusting, don't you think?"
Senti crossed her arms, tilted her head, and showed a thoughtful and disgusted expression.
Hearing big sister's complaints, Kevin finally realized something was wrong.
"Hey, big sister, what's wrong with our big sister...?"
"Kevin, let me tell you a story: there was a man who loved to talk too much. One day, he was walking down the street when someone stabbed him eighteen times."
"Is that it?"
"Isn't this story interesting?" MEI asked, adjusting her glasses.
"Sounds good."
Kevin opened his mouth, but immediately gave in.
Do you think you're going to die if you talk nonsense?
I understand.
And what if big sister becomes a Herrscher?
It's not a big deal, it's not a big deal... no way!
"Big sister, I want to go out for a while."
"Ehm... if you want to go out, just go out. Why are you asking me?" Senti tilted her head strangely and said.
Why does my younger brother seem even less perceptive than I remembered?
After receiving confirmation from his big sister, Kevin immediately ran out.
"Consider yourself lucky."
MEI sighed, but didn't stop him.
Anyway, it was just a joke among colleagues...
Though if Kevin doesn't leave, Dra. MEI wouldn't mind cooking again next time.
However, it seems this boy has no intention of supporting me.
It's my fault, as a big sister, for having neglected my younger brother's education...
"That's weird..." Senti watched Kevin leave.
"I was planning to meet up with him, but now I feel in a real bind."
MEI nodded with deep understanding.
...
"Ehm... daughter, dad has something to tell you."
Siegfried and Kiana had finished crying.
Siegfried put his hand on Kiana's shoulder and spoke very seriously.
"Ehm... dad, say what you have to say."
Kiana felt a bit uncomfortable due to his serious expression immediately after crying.
"Don't worry, even if you say you'll find me a stepmother and give me a second chance in life, I can handle it."
"You brat, what are you thinking?!"
Siegfried, half-amused and half-exasperated, gave the girl a slap on the head.
"Do you see that... uh, Miss Bianca?"
Seeing Bianca leaning on Tian Shi's shoulder, Siegfried felt a surge of anger... but he could barely control himself.
After all, although the alliance leader had a certain tendency toward women, he was undoubtedly a good match.
"I saw her."
Kiana nodded.
As for Bianca, she had gotten along quite well with her these last two days.
They had even exchanged some fencing and firearms techniques, though Kiana was a bit surprised that Bianca, such a serious knight, knew something about guns.
"She is your sister."
"Oh, my sister... Eh... illegitimate son?"
"Do I look like someone with a messy private life?!"
"Ehm... then, Miss Bianca is..."
Kiana isn't stupid; she just doesn't want to use her brain, it's not that she's brainless.
So Kiana's expression immediately became complex.
"Yes, it's just what you're thinking... I found out later..."
His twelve-year-old daughter fell from a height of several thousand meters without any protection, and was even hit by a falling object...
To be honest, as a father, he didn't dare to have any expectations in this situation, and naturally assumed his daughter had died.
It wasn't until Ragna joined Anti-Entropy that Siegfried found out his daughter wasn't dead, but had simply lost her memory.
However, the problem is that this creates an inexplicably awkward situation.
"Then I..."
"Don't overthink it." Siegfried stroked his daughter's head.
To be honest, we are all unfortunate people.
"Let's find a time, like tonight or something... so we can chat quietly."
The topic of the name was a bit awkward for Siegfried, but it wasn't unsolvable: if he, as a father, really couldn't think of a name, he could simply give his daughter another one.
"Both of you are my daughters. Do you think you're not my daughter just because you don't have a name? Who said that? I believe you are my daughter."
Come on, let your father give you another name.
Ultimately, Kiana's current struggle revolves around the identity associated with the name Kiana, but this identity doesn't worry her father, Siegfried, at all.
"Yes, I know."
Kiana is, in fact, quite open-minded.
After all, she has lived through many ups and downs and has been known as K423 for some time.
While she's usually more carefree now, she has matured a lot and can hold her own when facing the world.
So it wasn't as complicated as Siegfried had imagined.
Of course, and more importantly, Kiana and Bianca now have a very good relationship.
Kiana realizes that Bianca is a person of integrity, so it's not hard for her to talk to him about things.
"Then, it's decided."
Siegfried stroked Kiana's head and then looked at Bianca, who was leaning on Tian Shi's shoulder.
"By the way... I'm new here and I want to ask you something."
"Eh..."
Kiana's intuition told her it was something serious.
"I mean... uh..."
Suddenly, Siegfried didn't know how to talk to his daughter about this subject.
But we can't avoid talking about it.
"Ehm... did your sister... sleep with the Alliance Leader?"
"Eh?"
Kiana had a hard time connecting the words "Alliance Leader" with Tian Shi.
"H-How can this be! Dad, you pervert, what are you thinking?! The professor doesn't even have a body yet, how could he do this to my sister?!"
"..."
What should have been a reassuring answer, inexplicably, didn't bring Siegfried any joy.
My own daughter's attitude... Weren't we talking about your sister?
The proper response shouldn't be: "The professor doesn't even have a body yet, how could my sister do that to the professor?".
And what my daughter said, "The master doesn't even have a body yet, how could he do this to my sister?"... Does it seem like she cares more about the leader than your sister?
Hey hey hey...
Seeing his girl's flushed face, Siegfried immediately had a bad feeling.
Did the alliance leader take out your daughter in a single blow?