As mentioned before, Ling Ke was a Herrscher of Domination who kept every thread in his own hands.
Because he trusted no one, he had never once handed the right to use his authorities over to anyone else.
And because of that, his own learning ability had been pushed to an absurd level.
At the very least, a thousandfold.
And that number was still rising higher and higher as the Domination Puppets under his command continued to increase.
It was precisely because of that advantage that, over the past few days, he had used every spare moment to cram himself full of practical knowledge from every field he could reach. Medicine. Astronomy. Geography. Special operations. Art. He touched a little of everything.
At the same time, he had also used the chance to get a better grip on the authorities tied to the Herrscher of Reason and the Herrscher of the Void.
And today—
"Miss Rita, let's play a game."
Inside Rita's personal quarters at Schicksal Headquarters, the Domination Puppet wearing Ling Ke's face smiled as it spoke.
"Of course, you don't have the right to refuse."
Rita said nothing.
What she wanted to do now—and what she was already doing—was buy time.
The message had been sent.
At the very least, Lord Durandal had already received it.
Soon enough, she would come.
Maybe with others.
So—
"Before coming here, I carefully selected ten cities."
The Ling Ke puppet casually raised one hand and used the authority of Reason. A translucent image took shape in midair.
It was a virtual globe.
And now, ten red points were flashing across its surface.
"Arc City. Hot Springs City. Sydney. Ankara. Holy City… Delhi. And… Manchester."
A faint change passed over Rita's face.
She knew every one of those places.
"Exactly."
The Ling Ke puppet made a small gesture with one hand, like a host politely introducing an exhibit. "Just as you thought, Miss Rita. Nine out of those ten cities are places tied to anti-Honkai operations you once took part in."
"You could say the only reason they're still standing today is because, somewhere along the way, you helped save them."
"And the tenth city, Manchester…" The puppet copied the slight curl at the corner of Ling Ke's real mouth. "That one is your hometown."
He let the words settle for a moment before continuing.
"Now then. The introduction should be enough."
"The rules of today's game are very simple."
He raised a finger and pointed toward the floating globe.
"The ten cities above are the next full-scale targets of our offensive."
"Of course, since this is a war to the death, my side will not hesitate to do what needs to be done."
"We will slaughter those cities."
Rita's brows tightened.
Then she heard him continue—
"And you, Miss Rita…"
"From here on, you'll answer a few questions for me."
"If your answer satisfies me, then the city tied to that question will be spared this disaster."
"And naturally, since this is your reward…"
"which city gets pardoned will also be your choice."
Rita's heart sank.
She had spent years dealing with the world's ugliness. She had seen enough. Done enough. Endured enough.
So she understood very well what Ling Ke was doing.
This was another punishment aimed straight at the heart.
She had already seen through it.
The real point of this so-called question-and-answer game was not whether her answers were right or wrong.
It was that extra condition that looked almost incidental—
choosing which city to spare.
Because Ling Ke had never said the number of questions would match the number of cities.
And if there were fewer questions than cities, then every choice she made would not only mean saving one place.
It would also mean abandoning the others.
Just like back then.
Back when she had been part of the Nagazora investigation team, and she chose not to follow the emotional judgment in her heart.
That one choice had gone on to affect countless things afterward.
And in the end, it had helped give birth to the man standing before her now—
a Herrscher who, once upon a time, had been someone capable of hoping for better things.
"Well then. Let's begin."
The Ling Ke puppet had no intention of waiting for Rita's reply. He simply started on his own.
Rita, for her part, remained fairly calm.
At least on the surface.
She did her best to suppress the violent turmoil inside her and gracefully sat down on the edge of the bed again.
At a glance, it looked less like a hostage facing a monster and more like an old acquaintance quietly speaking with a long-lost friend behind closed doors.
And in that strange atmosphere—
"The first question."
"Miss Rita, do you think you're a good person?"
"..."
Rita had expected something like this.
She knew Ling Ke would never ask some neat, fixed question with a correct answer built into it.
No.
He would ask this kind instead.
The kind made purely to torment.
The kind where the answer depended not on logic, but on guessing the state of mind of the person asking it.
The kind with no settled answer at all.
So—
"No."
Rita gave her answer.
She believed that, coming from her, this was the answer Ling Ke wanted to hear.
And more than that, it was also the conclusion she herself had reached after years of honestly looking at what she was.
Over the years, as the killer known as Umbral Rose, she had taken far too much dirty work from Otto. Her hands had long since been stained with blood.
They were no longer clean.
Even out in the open, the true meaning of her place as vice-captain of the Immortal Blades had always left a bitter taste in her mouth. Every time that blonde girl smiled and said she trusted her completely, Rita's feelings turned complicated in a way she could never put into words.
And yet—
"That isn't the answer I wanted."
The Ling Ke puppet shook his head, regret plain on his face.
"In my view, Miss Rita, you are unquestionably a good person."
"?"
Rita blanked for a moment.
Then she heard him continue—
"You live in darkness, but long for light."
The Ling Ke puppet smiled faintly. "As far as I'm concerned, those eight words describe you better than anything else could."
"..."
Rita said nothing.
She only looked at the black-haired young man seated on the sofa not far away.
He merely smiled back.
He had no intention of waiting for her thoughts.
No intention of explaining further.
Instead, he moved on at once.
"Second question."
"To save someone is kindness. To not save them is a duty you owe to no one."
"Miss Rita, do you accept that way of thinking?"
"..."
Under the current circumstances, there was no doubt this was the cruelest question he could have asked.
Because the one asking it was Ling Ke.
The man whose cry for help she had once ignored.
So this time, Rita answered with the truth.
"I don't know."
She truly did not know.
Honestly speaking, Rita envied the people who could say "I do" without the slightest hesitation.
People like that lived much more easily.
But if the positions were reversed—if she were the one who needed saving—
would she still be able to say those words so lightly?
Among the countless people driven into despair, how many had prayed for some saint to stretch out a hand and pull them back up?
Maybe, back then, Ling Ke had only wanted a sliver of hope.
Maybe that alone would have been enough for him to keep struggling forward.
Enough to stop him from falling all the way into the abyss.
Enough to let him go on believing that somewhere in this world, there was still something worth fighting for.
But now—
"Mhm. I understand."
The Ling Ke puppet nodded. "Not knowing is also an answer."
He smiled.
"To be honest, I like that answer very much."
"So…"
He pointed toward the virtual globe still hanging in front of him.
"Choose, Miss Rita."
"Which city do you want to save?"