"Dad, where are we going next?"
In the morning, K-423 held Siegfried's hand, asking with an innocent expression.
Hearing this, Siegfried instinctively wanted to pat her head, but remembering that he wasn't supposed to be affectionate yet, he forced a cold expression and didn't answer.
Seeing this, K-423 didn't ask further and silently held Siegfried's hand.
As time passed, one night, while Siegfried was asleep, they were surrounded by Honkai beasts.
K-423, fearless, grabbed a branch and swung it wildly at the Honkai beasts.
"I won't let you hurt my dad!"
Her small frame looked so fragile compared to the massive Honkai beasts.
Just as the Honkai beasts were about to attack, Siegfried woke up, wielding the Judgement of Shamash and instantly annihilating all the Honkai beasts.
At that moment, Siegfried knelt on one knee and gently patted K-423's head.
"Thank you for protecting me, Kiana. Kiana Kaslana, you are worthy of the Kaslana name."
It was then that Siegfried heard through his earpiece that the next step was to make Kiana go berserk, and he needed to prepare to lose an arm.
Although he had read the script beforehand, Siegfried's mouth still twitched.
Couldn't they avoid the arm loss? Even if it could be reattached later, it would still hurt like hell.
But since the plot demanded it, Siegfried had no choice.
In the next moment, Kiana, injected with false memories of hatred, had her eyes turn golden.
In those false memories, she had almost been killed by this very weapon, so her instincts drove her into a berserk state.
"Second Herrscher, stay trapped within Kiana forever and never wake up!"
Wielding the Judgement of Shamash, Siegfried swung fiercely at Kiana.
But Kiana, already in a berserk state, didn't care. She used the Herrscher of Void's authority to block the attack.
With a wave of her hand, ribbons of void energy appeared, slicing off Siegfried's arm in an instant.
Feeling the pain, Siegfried gritted his teeth.
He continued to charge with the Judgement of Shamash, and after a fierce battle, he seized an opportunity to knock Kiana unconscious with the flat side of the greatsword.
Kiana collapsed instantly, falling out of her berserk state.
"Hey, hey, hey! Get me back now! It hurts! I'm really going to bleed out!"
Seeing the battle end, Siegfried couldn't help but wail.
Why was it that everyone else's acting didn't involve such severe consequences, but his did?
He seriously suspected he was being targeted.
As he wailed, a portal opened.
Cecilia stepped out, quickly using the Black Abyss White Flower to heal him, then reattached his severed arm.
"Alright, your part isn't over yet, so hang in there. Kiana and I will be waiting for you."
"Hehe, Cecilia, you're the best. Unlike those guys who just watch."
Siegfried tried to hug his wife, but Cecilia instinctively dodged.
After all, while the healing was done, the bloodstains were still there.
She still had to go back and hold Kiana later. If Kiana saw her like this, it wouldn't be good.
"..."
Your retreating action is so deliberate, such a small move but so hurtful~.
"I respect you as my senior, so please, turn off that damn speaker, you jerk!"
Seeing Chang Yuan appear with a speaker, Siegfried lost it.
Being rejected by his wife was already heartbreaking enough, but this inhuman senior had to play such a fitting song.
If he weren't outmatched, Siegfried would have made him understand that the Kaslana family didn't always have to protect people.
"Well, it just felt fitting, so I played it. Alright, you can continue with the script."
Turning off the speaker, Chang Yuan waved his hand, signaling them to continue.
But this time, Cecilia was a bit worried.
"Are we really letting Kiana travel the world at such a young age? She's still so small."
"Don't worry, her every move is under Schicksal's surveillance. If anything uncontrollable happens, someone will step in."
"Alright."
Seeing Chang Yuan's assurance, Cecilia didn't press further.
As everyone retreated, Siegfried continued his part.
He carried Kiana to a small village and stayed at a tavern for the night.
The next day, Kiana woke up and found herself alone, feeling panicked.
Then she noticed a letter on the bedside table.
Opening the envelope, she found a card inside.
『Kiana, due to certain reasons, I have to leave you. You are a strong child, and the rest of the journey is yours to walk.
The card contains all my savings from my years at Schicksal, enough to cover any expenses you may have. But a child with so much money can easily attract attention.
So, please be careful and stay safe. I will always love you, my daughter.
—To my dear Kiana Kaslana』
After reading the letter, Kiana's tears flowed uncontrollably.
"Dad, why? Why did you abandon me? Did I do something wrong? Dad!"
In the room, Kiana rubbed her eyes and cried.
She didn't understand why her father had left her. Was it because of that thing he had to do?
Watching the screen showing Kiana crying, both Cecilia and Siegfried felt heartbroken.
They wanted to end the script several times, but thinking of the possibility of defeating the Honkai and Kiana's destined role, they had to endure.
They could only console themselves, saying it was all temporary.
In the future, everyone would have a happy ending.
After crying for nearly half an hour, either because she had no more tears or because she had cried enough, Kiana stopped crying.
She carefully stored the card and memorized its password.
Over the past few months, she had learned several languages from her father. Though not fluent, she could manage basic conversations.
Thus, Kiana began her journey.
Unlike Chang Yuan and Elysia, who had companions, Kiana was alone.
But unbeknownst to her, countless eyes were watching her. She was the one truly carrying the name of the savior.
She was the one destined to end the Honkai.