MTLNOVEL Chapter 322: Closer
The sky roared as ice and star clashed. The falling snow, startled by the collision, drifted down like leaves from a tree.
A fresh layer of snow quickly covered the ravaged ground, settling on Kiana's shoulders. She instinctively reached out, catching a snowflake between her fingers.
The touch of the Herrscher of Ice's pure frost was chilling, yet familiar.
Blurry memories, like flickering images on an old television, flashed through her mind. Kiana closed her eyes, trying to grasp the fog-shrouded images.
Lost in thought, the Flamescion ember within her dimmed, its flames obediently merging with her body.
Flamescion was a legacy crafted by Ren. It was born from the fusion of the Gem of Haste and his Herrscher of Dominance powers. The fusion of a thousand human egos tempered the Herrscher of Fire's destructive nature. At the same time, its flames purified the malevolence within.
Ren had created it specifically for her.
This power, a combination of two Herrscher cores, was far too overwhelming for an ordinary Herrscher to wield. Only Ren, its creator, and Kiana could contain it.
Even then, Kiana needed time—and countless battles—to adapt.
Her growing mastery of Flamescion mirrored her own growth. Both her innate strength and her adaptability to Honkai had increased exponentially.
And because of this, a memory she had once suppressed began to resurface.
The ice encasing that memory was melting under Flamescion's warmth.
But it was fleeting. The fragmented images flickered for only a moment before fading again, as indistinguishable as a dream.
Kiana opened her eyes, a sense of loss washing over her.
Still, she quickly composed herself. Though the memory remained hazy, one thing was crystal clear—her promise to Ren. Even if she couldn't recall her past, she believed they would reunite.
And that reunion was fast approaching.
Lost in her thoughts, Kiana suddenly felt a familiar gaze upon her.
She turned sharply, but there was only a tree swaying gently in the distance, hundreds of meters away.
Yet her enhanced vision caught something others would have missed—fresh footprints beneath the tree, untouched by the blizzard.
Her earlier feeling hadn't been a mistake.
An image of a young man waving gently flashed through her mind. She smiled softly.
"Closer," she murmured.
Her journey from ARC City to Coral Island wasn't aimless. Along the way, she'd been following traces left behind by Ren.
The subtle clues, easily overlooked by others, were unmistakable to her. They were clearly meant for her eyes only. Only Ren could have left them.
In a way, they had been traveling together, separated by an invisible barrier.
At first, the clues had confused her. But eventually, she understood. Ren wasn't avoiding her—he was protecting her.
As her power grew, the traces began appearing more frequently and closer together. It was a sign. The threat Ren carried was diminishing.
"No matter what," Kiana whispered, determination burning in her voice, "once I'm strong enough, you'll have no reason to hide anymore, Ren."
…
Ren had just left the area when he suddenly paused, turning back to look in Kiana's direction.
A strange premonition washed over him. Their reunion… might be eventful.
But there were more pressing matters at hand. The Will of Honkai remained an ever-looming threat.
As a Herrscher, Ren's Honkai energy reserves were finite—far inferior to the boundless power of the Will of Honkai. Yet his puppet legion helped bridge that disparity, giving him an edge.
To counter the Will, he had entrusted a Herrscher of Dominance core to Anna. It amplified her abilities, pushing her powers beyond their natural limits.
Her incomplete Herrscher of Ice abilities wouldn't be enough on their own to face the fully awakened Herrscher of Stars.
Even so, Ren couldn't guarantee a complete victory.
The stakes were high. The Herrscher of Rock from the Previous Era had shattered an entire continent in its prime. If the Will of Honkai unleashed Chen Tianwu's full destructive potential, history could repeat itself.
Catastrophe would be inevitable.
Fortunately, events were unfolding according to his plan.
There was one key difference between the Herrscher of Stars and its counterpart from the Previous Era—human emotion.
Chen Tianwu's attachment to Anna was his weakness. That bond, fragile yet persistent, prevented the Will of Honkai from fully assimilating him.
Now, everything rested on Anna.
Her resolve.
Her willingness to fight for humanity.
…
BOOM.
Shattered ice crystals ricocheted like bullets, grazing Anna's white hair. The black mask of the Herrscher of Ice crumbled away, revealing her delicate features beneath.
Once, they had been each other's solace amidst despair. Affection had blossomed between them in the chaos of disaster.
Now, they stood as enemies on the battlefield. Each was determined to kill the other—yet willing to die by the other's hand.
All because of a choice made in a moment of weakness.
Her pale pink eyes locked onto Chen Tianwu's Herrscher form. A storm of emotions swirled within her—guilt, pain, and determination.
The title of Valkyrie was a heavy burden, one she hadn't been ready for. Overwhelmed by fear and self-doubt, she had chosen to run.
She had abandoned her duty.
Becoming a Herrscher, standing against humanity, she had expected herself to falter again. But then, she saw Kiana's unwavering resolve.
Kiana had been a mirror, reflecting the courage Anna lacked.
Where Anna had run, Kiana had stood firm. Where Anna had faltered, Kiana had carried the weight.
Inspired by that resolve, Anna made her choice.
This time, she would not run.
And her sin... was Chen Tianwu.
Failing to save his sister, Chen Tianwen, had left a wound that wouldn't heal. That failure had set him on the path to becoming a Herrscher. It was her debt, her responsibility to atone.
While she was still human, she had to make it right.
Thus, she struck a deal with Ren. In exchange for her Herrscher core, she gained a fleeting moment of freedom—and the power to fight.
"Chen Tianwu," she whispered, her voice steady, "let's end this."
Her words hung in the freezing air.
The swirling ice crystals around her froze mid-motion, as if time itself had stopped. Invisible threads extended from the Herrscher of a Thousand core, amplifying her power.
The Herrscher of Ice's authority over absolute zero—a freezing of molecular motion—was invoked. Kevin had once demonstrated this power, capable of halting even space itself.
Crack. Crack. Crack.
The air above Coral Island solidified. Space groaned under the strain as absolute zero expanded rapidly, trapping Anna and Chen Tianwu in a frozen prison.
With the core amplifying her power, Anna's strength far exceeded that of a typical Herrscher. This was a devastating attack, one that warped the very fabric of space.
BOOM!
A blinding light erupted skyward, almost piercing the heavens.
The frozen spatial cage shattered, collapsing into a singularity. The air roared as it rushed to fill the void, pulling in shards of ice and debris.
Shattered ice and stone rained down like a gentle drizzle.
The blizzard engulfing Coral Island dissipated, giving way to sunlight.
Two figures plummeted from the sky, their battle finally at an end.