In truth, things shouldn't have gone in this direction.
If Seele and her companions hadn't gone missing, Wendy could have quickly dealt with the situation at the stadium, reunited with them, escorted the trio to safety, and then returned to the city with her black armor.
Following that, the three pseudo-Herrscher would have been nothing more than appetizers for Wendy, who could have easily resolved the issue.
Then, even if Ana had transformed into a Herrscher, a fully-rested Wendy, who hadn't been poisoned or injured, would still have faced a tough battle, but she would have been able to hold her ground.
Meanwhile, Welt, without having to worry about the city, could have swiftly provided support to other cities in crisis.
In this scenario, the situation in the Far East would have been much better controlled, buying enough time for reinforcements from Anti-Entropy and Schicksal to arrive.
As a result, Raiden Mei wouldn't have needed to seek help from the moon, and Sigurd might have had the chance to make contact with that unspeakable being.
It was just the interception of three girls, yet the original Kiana turned the situation into what it is now.
Afterward, she left without a trace, and even if someone investigated later, no one would connect it to her, given her history of remaining hidden.
What she did seemed trivial, but the changes she caused were significant, like a time traveler altering a famous historical battle after having already seen history unfold.
In the end, as the two Herrschers were about to clash, Welt was on the verge of finding the missing girls, and Sigurd and Kiana were heading towards the most dangerous battlefield—Original Kiana vanished without a trace, leaving no evidence behind.
"Sigurd, I found the girls. They're all safe. I also dealt with a pseudo-Herrscher on the way. Now I'm arranging for a city-wide evacuation. Try to contain the battlefield as much as possible to avoid unnecessary casualties."
With the Herrscher battlefield nearby, there was no telling when the entire city might be engulfed in the conflict.
Welt's decision was the right one.
In the distance, Sigurd, who was approaching the battlefield, nodded.
"Understood. The battle won't spread. You make sure to hurry," Sigurd responded as a chilling wind, carrying the terrifying Honkai Energy, brushed against his face, almost condensing into liquid.
He shook his head, glanced at the steady-footed Kiana beside him, looked up, and continued forward.
...
Wendy felt something peculiar.
An instinctive desire for destruction raged within her mind, fueled by some unpleasant memories from her past, which only amplified her growing negative emotions.
With malevolence brewing in her eyes, she momentarily considered flattening the entire city but then stopped herself.
"So, this is... a Herrscher?"
Her cold gaze gradually regained some warmth as she looked at her pristine, flawless hands and then down at the beautiful, elegant green dress she was wearing.
Then, she gently raised her hand.
Whoosh!
The ideal fluid, concentrated into a line, easily sliced through the ground as if it intended to cut the city in half.
It took a while for the rumbling destruction to echo back to Wendy's ears.
Perhaps some people were affected?
A flash of guilt crossed Wendy's eyes, but she had no time to dwell on it.
The escalating power and the growing urge to destroy made it difficult for her to restrain herself.
At this moment, she needed a target to unleash her power on.
"Ideal fluid, a surreal substance with no friction and incompressible properties, symbolizing absolute strength and undiminished kinetic energy... Let's try a fluid cannon!"
Boom!
The invisible cannonball shattered the towering iceberg, sending the Herrscher of Ice, who was within, flying far away.
After that, in Wendy's perception, the fluid cannonball pierced through distant clouds, heading straight out of the atmosphere until it left the range where her Honkai energy could influence it, finally dissipating into nothingness.
Throughout the entire process, there was no sensation of atmospheric friction, and no extra energy was expended after the shot.
The sheer destructive power was astonishing, achieved with just a single thought.
"So, this is... a Herrscher?" Wendy murmured, repeating the phrase, suddenly understanding why a Herrscher is considered the enemy of civilization.
For example, in her current state, she could easily slice the island nation beneath her feet into pieces, or turn it into a honeycomb, or even wrap it in fluid and crush it directly—destroying a nation, eradicating countless humans, was just too easy for a Herrscher.
Then, countless enormous ice spikes shot down from the sky like meteors—a counterattack from the Herrscher of Ice.
Wendy looked up, her dark green hair swaying in the wind like a vibrant and free painting.
Without making any visible movements, a layer of fluid enveloped the space above her.
As the ice spikes descended and struck the fluid, they shattered into countless ice crystals.
"I should be the Herrscher of Wind? Indeed, creating fluid in the air can easily push the atmosphere, making it simple to generate strong winds... Let's give it a try."
Wendy spoke to herself, raising her hand.
A fierce wind blew from behind her, mixed with fluid blades that left a trail of destruction in their wake, heading straight for the Herrscher of Ice, who was surrounded by layers of protective ice pillars.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The wind, laced with sharp blades, tore through the ice layers, sending the Herrscher of Ice flying for the second time.
"Ah!!!"
The Herrscher of Ice, flying backward, let out a sharp scream, filled with either pain or hatred.
Then, the surrounding air rapidly cooled, and Wendy's hands were soon covered in a layer of ice crystals.
"Freezing so quickly?"
Wendy exhaled a breath of white mist, her pupils shrinking as she hurriedly wrapped her body in fluid.
The ideal fluid blocked heat conduction, rendering the Herrscher of Ice's cooling effect ineffective against her.
Wendy slightly bent her knees, and an invisible layer of ideal fluid appeared beneath her feet.
Under the combined effects of Honkai energy and the ideal fluid, she ignored air resistance, appearing in front of the Herrscher of Ice as if she had teleported.
"Calm down a little, Miss Ana."
Boom!!!
'I'm so strong!' Wendy thought with excitement in her eyes as she punched the Herrscher of Ice to the ground and then continued to pummel her with heavy blows.
...
Not far away, Sigurd, sitting side by side with Kiana on top of an ice pillar, looked at the endless scar left on the ground by Wendy's earlier attack and sighed.
He had just promised Welt that he wouldn't let the battlefield spread, and then Wendy did this—he had no time to stop her.
Hopefully, Welt wouldn't hold this against him; otherwise, Sigurd would lose face.
Sigurd then turned his gaze to Wendy, who was violently beating the Herrscher of Ice while enveloped in ideal fluid.
He turned his head and said to Kiana, who was swinging her slender legs:
"Did you see how she's fighting?"
"Yeah! Wendy has become so strong!"
"No, what I mean is, remember this as a negative example."
"Huh?"
Kiana turned her head, blinking in confusion.
Wendy seemed to be doing quite well, perfectly suppressing the Herrscher of Ice.
"The frightening thing about a Herrscher is that they can draw endless Honkai energy from the Imaginary Tree and possess powers that reach the limits of physical laws. To put it in terms you'd understand, unless it's a purely physical enhancement type, every Herrscher is like a max-level mage with almost infinite mana. Look at her, using a mage's account as a warrior's, and being so proud of it—doesn't that seem kind of stupid?"
Kiana was skilled at all things fun, including games.
Then, she looked at Wendy, who was hammering the Herrscher of Ice's face repeatedly.
Hmm... honestly, there was something a bit off about it.
"Remember, I emphasize physical training to make sure you have no weaknesses. But a Herrscher's fighting style should never involve rushing into close combat. Have you ever seen Welt exchange punches with someone? He always opens up a whole arsenal and relies on overwhelming firepower. Aside from his limited intelligence, which keeps his weapon levels low, he's the one you should learn from."
"Got it! I understand!"
Kiana nodded vigorously.
In the distance, Wendy's face stiffened as she continued to beat the Herrscher of Ice.
Feeling awkward, a cross-shaped vein popped out on her forehead.
<+>
Tn: If you want to see more chapter of this story, please go to my Ko-Fi[1], just for $5 each month, you can read till the latest chapter.
Latest Chapter in Ko-Fi: Chapter 274: Infighting? A Hundredfold Payback![2]
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