The steady hum of the simulation chamber was broken by the ragged sound of breathing. Yuzu sat doubled over in his chair, one hand clutching his head, the other braced against the armrest as if to anchor himself to reality. His whole body trembled, every breath shallow and uneven.
Kiana was beside him in an instant, kneeling on the cold floor and rubbing circles across his back. "Hey… hey, it's okay," she murmured softly, though her own voice still carried the rawness of tears. "You're safe."
But Yuzu wasn't looking at her. His golden eyes were unfocused, haunted, his lips trembling as fragmented words spilled out.
"Vi… Visage…" His throat tightened around the name, as though speaking it carved through him. "…I… I remember, but… it's… too broken." He pressed his palms to his eyes, shaking his head in denial. "Like shattered glass—I can't… I can't put it together."
The room was tense, every gaze drawn to him. Even Mobius's lips, usually set in sly amusement, curved down faintly with interest.
Kiana's brows furrowed, but she forced her voice to steady. "I… I had been wanting to ask something anyway, so maybe it helps." She glanced toward Mobius, uneasy but determined. "How does a Herrscher… uh… come to life? I mean—what makes them… awaken?"
Her words seemed to pull another figure into the conversation. Raiden Mei, who had until now stood near the back, raised her head sharply at the question. Her violet eyes flicked to Mobius, curiosity and dread entwined. "…Yes. I want to know that too."
Mobius's smile returned, faint but sharp, as if savoring the opportunity. She tilted her head, her serpentine eyes glinting with clinical delight.
"Ah… such a simple question, and yet one so many dance around," she began, her tone lilting like a teacher addressing children. "Herrschers are not born in the way you or I understand birth. They are catalysts. A person is pushed beyond the edge of despair—loss, betrayal, hopelessness—and the Honkai answers. It threads its will into that fracture in the heart, twisting grief or anger into power. In essence…" She spread her hands like a performer finishing a trick, "…Herrschers are the Honkai's answer to human weakness."
Mei's lips pressed tightly together, her eyes falling shut as though the explanation carved too close to something personal.
Kiana frowned deeply, holding Yuzu's trembling hand in both of hers. "So… it feeds on despair," she muttered bitterly, her tone tinged with disgust.
Mobius smirked. "Precisely. And when the despair is deep enough, you get not a survivor, but a Herrscher."
No one spoke for a moment. The weight of her words sank into the chamber, pressing down on them all. The simulated hum of machinery and Yuzu's unsteady breaths were the only sounds left.
And then, quietly, almost too soft to hear, Eden folded her hands together. Her eyes lingered on the flickering screen where Viktor moved through the illusion of the past.
"Oh Viktor…" she whispered, her voice heavy with sorrow. Her lips moved against each other in a fragile prayer, one meant only for herself.
Please… do things differently this time.
-
The trio had just stepped out of the small wave of relief brought by the reunion of the stragglers and their families when static crackled faintly in their earpieces. Viktor's eyes flicked up instantly, dagger still turning idly in his hand as the quiet voice of Dr. Mei bled through the comm-line.
"…listen carefully. A Herrscher signal has been detected nearby."
The words slammed into the air like a thunderclap. Chris's grin froze on his face, his body going stiff before he threw his head back with an exasperated groan. "You've gotta be kidding me—here?! In this dump, after all we just went through?"
Yuzu's eyes widened, the color draining from his face as his voice faltered. "…a Herrscher… now?" His hand instinctively tightened on the hilt of his short blade, the boy's knuckles turning white.
Mei's voice was calm, measured, but the weight beneath it was inescapable. "The signal is weak. Barely there. But yes… it is here. Almost as if it has only just found its catalyst."
Chris swore under his breath, raking a hand through his unruly hair as he started pacing. His chest puffed with frustration, but his voice carried that faint edge of fear he didn't want to admit. "Alright, alright—we've dealt with this kind of crap in theory before. We don't wait for it to blow. We separate people, split 'em up. Keep them from clumping together so the damn thing can't feed on their emotions."
Yuzu shook his head furiously, stepping in front of him, eyes wide and pleading. "We can't just do that! They just found each other again. You saw the way that boy hugged his father, Chris! You want me to tell them to split apart when they've only just been reunited?" His voice cracked with the weight of the thought, horror already settling in his stomach.
"At least they'll be alive!" Chris shot back, his voice booming, heavy with desperation. "You think I like this? I don't! But better split up and alive than whole and dead!"
The young swordsman's shoulders quivered, his breath catching as he glanced at the group of families still embracing, tears still streaking their dirty faces. "We don't even know yet!" Yuzu's voice strained with both panic and hope. "The signal's weak—you said it yourself! It might not even have fully awakened!" He turned quickly, almost begging for confirmation. "Dr. Mei—please tell me that's true!"
For a heartbeat, there was only static. And then Mei's voice came back, clipped but steady. "…You are correct. The signal is weak. The host is not fully realized yet. But it is… growing."
Chris swore again, muttering something foul under his breath as he punched the side of the half-collapsed wall they were standing near. Dust rained down but he didn't care, his frustration too hot. "Damn it! This is the worst case—weak or not, if it hatches while we're standing here, we're all screwed."
Viktor had been silent all the while, eyes sharp, fixed not on the families but on the surrounding ruins, his instincts flickering like a blade in the dark. His jaw clenched. Something in him already knew where this was going, though the memories on the edge of his mind blurred and refused to take shape.
Then Mei's voice returned, firmer, more deliberate.
"…I have pinpointed the signal."
Every breath in the group seemed to pause at once. Chris lowered his fist slowly, turning with narrowed eyes. Yuzu's lips parted, his throat tight, heart thundering in his chest.
Mei did not soften her delivery. "The Herrscher signal is… resonating from a young boy."