"So let's do what we did before. The two of us will try it first," Kiana said, steering the conversation back on track. "What do you think?"
Although nothing could be read from Herta's puppet's expression, Kiana's instincts told her that Herta was definitely imagining something right now.
Geniuses were never short on curiosity.
She might not care about ordinary gossip, but if that gossip involved her current partner—and someone she was interested in—
She would absolutely be curious.
"What do I think? I think we absolutely have to bring Ruan in!"
Kiana's explanation not only failed to persuade Herta, it only strengthened her resolve.
As for the impact Kiana was worried about?
Ruan wasn't someone who would be easily affected. If she were, she wouldn't have achieved what she had today—nor become who she was now.
What was that phrase again?
Overthinking because you care too much?
"Why?"
Now it was Kiana's turn to ask why. This was something they had to discuss together. Without either of them, it couldn't move forward.
"If more people can help, why should I shoulder everything alone?" Herta countered.
An airtight reason.
Kiana opened her mouth, then closed it. She had to admit Herta was right. With their status and resources, why not call in more help instead of doing everything themselves?
"As for the thing you're worried about, that's pure overthinking," Herta continued. "She'll definitely be interested in this. If you don't include her, that's what would actually make her unhappy."
"But..."
"No more 'buts.' Efficiency matters. With Ruan involved, this will be much easier. You don't want us to waste half a day only to end up going back to her anyway, do you? And if she finds out you didn't trust her expertise in life sciences and chose to ask me instead, what do you think she'll think?"
As Herta spoke, the thoughts clouding Kiana's mind gradually cleared. Ruan might act like she didn't understand emotions—but she could absolutely get jealous.
Kiana suddenly recalled how Ruan had once mentioned wanting to research the integration of Propagation and Honkai, and how she had rushed overnight from the Xianzhou to the space station because of it.
"...Thanks for the reminder!"
The realization sent a shiver down her spine.
Herta glanced at her thoughtfully and said something completely out of nowhere. "I'll write you a letter of recommendation."
"What?"
"Go enroll somewhere. Further your education."
Kiana's mouth twitched. She understood perfectly well that Herta was bluntly implying she wasn't very smart and needed to improve her brain.
Herta added earnestly, "I'm serious. Read more books. It'll make you harder to deceive."
"...Thanks for the concern," Kiana said dryly, rolling her eyes. She took out her phone, then put it away again. "Ruan's still at the space station, right? I'll go talk to her."
"Suit yourself." Herta lowered her head and returned to her work, unconcerned. "There are puppets of mine on the station anyway."
Kiana left as soon as she decided to.
Activating her teleportation ability, she vanished from right in front of Herta, disappearing so openly that Herta looked up in confusion.
Not taking a ship. Just teleporting across star systems directly?
Fine. She had underestimated Kiana after all.
Meanwhile.
Without notifying Ruan in advance, Kiana teleported over—and immediately felt that perhaps she had arrived at a bad time.
Under the gaze of several people staring at her, she forced a stiff smile. "I guess this isn't the best timing?"
Inside the vast laboratory, many people were busy working. The sudden appearance of a living person caused no small disturbance. Instantly, she drew everyone's attention.
A brief commotion broke out.
Ruan exchanged a few words with the assistant beside her, then set aside what she was doing and walked toward Kiana. At Ruan's quiet instruction, the others fell silent, abandoning their curiosity and returning to their tasks.
"Is there something you need my help with?"
Kiana nodded. The moment she saw Ruan, she felt at ease. It was only then that she noticed the figure submerged inside a medical pod.
Her face showed obvious shock.
"Why is she here? Wait... the fox... was this the fox Herta mentioned?"
If she wasn't mistaken, the person lying inside the medical pod was Tingyun from the Luofu Sky-Faring Commission.
Back when she had been playing the game,
Whether Tingyun was dead or alive had been a hotly debated topic.
Unfortunately, her knowledge of the storyline only extended to just after finishing the Penacony main arc.
"Oh? Is she a friend of yours?" Ruan glanced back.
"...Not really. I just know of her. Sirin and the others are cooperating with the Xianzhou Alchemy Commission and are still stationed there." This was actually her first time seeing Tingyun in person.
She hadn't expected it to be under these circumstances.
"I conducted a transaction with a traveling merchant. She was part of the exchange," Ruan explained softly when she noticed Kiana's curiosity.
A traveling merchant? A transaction?
For some reason, a particular person suddenly came to mind. Kiana's expression turned strange. "He didn't happen to call himself Luocha, did he?"
Ruan raised a brow. "You've met him?"
"...He resembles an 'old acquaintance,'" Kiana said with an odd expression. "If you plan to cooperate with him, Ruan, you should be extra cautious. Anyone with that face is trouble."
Ruan nodded. "You've been on Jarilo-VI these past few days, haven't you? I heard Herta went to assist."
"She was invited by the Astral Express crew."
"So something happened on that planet?"
Kiana shook her head. She glanced around, hesitating slightly before speaking. "The situation there is still relatively stable for now. It's about the Stigmata. I have a new idea and wanted to ask for your help."
"A new idea?" Ruan pondered briefly. "Is it about the Stigmata world you mentioned before?"
"I'm planning to create a Stigmata terminal." Kiana explained her concept and the research she had done with Herta over the past few days. "Right now, we're stuck on the issue of a carrier. After thinking about it for a long time, I realized there's nothing more suitable than my own body."
Ruan frowned slightly. "Are you certain you want to do this?"
"I want to cultivate a clone of myself."
Ruan's gaze sharpened as she looked directly into Kiana's eyes. Her voice remained cool and calm. "Is this your idea, or Herta's suggestion?"
"My own idea."
Ruan said nothing more. Instead, she walked out of the laboratory, and Kiana quickly followed.
Only after leaving the lab—away from prying ears—did Ruan speak again.
"Why would you have such an idea? If your goal is merely to eliminate the Voidrangers on that planet, there are many other methods."
"So this isn't just a whim, is it?"
The question didn't seem to be seeking an answer. Without waiting for Kiana to respond, Ruan continued calmly.
"If you want to help that world, whether you or I act, there are countless ways. Yet you chose the one with the greatest risk."
"Is it because of Izumo?"
"If you intend to construct a complete Stigmata world, then a Stigmata terminal capable of containing all Stigmata is an indispensable component."
Faced with Ruan's self-answered questions, Kiana opened her mouth, wanting to explain—yet under Ruan's steady gaze, she fell silent.
Regarding the idea of a Stigmata world,
After returning from Izumo with Yae Sakura's Stigmata, she had brought it up to Ruan.
But the matter had been set aside.
Kiana had never dared to ask why. She had simply never abandoned the idea herself, wanting to turn the delusion in her mind into reality.
"Do you know why I stopped delving deeper into Stigmata research?" Ruan asked softly, looking at Kiana's profile.
She had studied Honkai far longer than Herta had—and with Kiana's active cooperation. Honkai, Honkai lifeforms, and Stigmata—she had already come into contact with them all.
She possessed an understanding of Honkai energy.
An understanding that had never been written down.
Kiana looked at her in surprise. So Ruan hadn't stopped because she lacked time—but because she had chosen to?
Lost interest?
That was clearly impossible.
"Because if you continued researching, you would eventually reach the Stigmata terminal?" Kiana ventured uncertainly under Ruan's gaze.
There had to be a reason for halting an experiment midway.
Either one lost interest and found it meaningless to continue—or there was a more compelling factor.
"Mm." Ruan acknowledged. "The Stigmata seeds I sowed were, in essence, research into the Stigmata you created—the blank Stigmata, the Unfinished Road. A fascinating phenomenon. Those seeds that imitate the blank Stigmata can truly function just like the ones you create. The only difference between them is likely stability."
"The same seeds, capable of blooming and bearing fruit in the same way. As if they were meant to exist from the beginning—embedded within Honkai energy itself. I merely guided out a power that was already there."
"Your badges and other abilities likely follow the same principle. You should already have some idea of this."
"And yes, as you guessed, if I had continued my in-depth research into Stigmata, it would have touched upon many more domains. The 'terminal' would have become an unavoidable threshold."
"Out of selfishness," Ruan said, looking directly at Kiana and enunciating each word clearly, "I did not want you to become obsessed with it."
Kiana felt her chest tighten. "Ruan..."
"Think it through carefully, Kiana."
Ruan did not urge her to decide. From beginning to end, her only evaluation of the matter was that she had stopped her research out of selfishness.
"Come back to me after you've thought it through."
"Whatever you decide, I will support you."
So.
Should she take the risk?
Ruan had revealed the truth and laid the question plainly before her—asking whether she truly intended to proceed.
Risk.
In truth, it stemmed from an incomplete understanding of Honkai.
It was precisely because she did not fully understand it—because she did not know what might happen—that caution was necessary in the face of the unknown.
Kiana left the space station absentmindedly. Ruan had told her to go back and think carefully.
Meanwhile, in the laboratory, Herta watched as Kiana vanished—only to reappear alone not long after. The puppet's delicate face showed confusion once again.
"You've seen Ruan?"
How much time had even passed?
"Mm." Kiana nodded distractedly. Her mind was still occupied with Ruan's words—and that final question.
How was she supposed to choose?
"Why do you look like that?" Herta raised a brow. "Don't tell me Ruan refused you?"
"She told me to think about it carefully," Kiana said, lowering her head. "To give her an answer after I've made up my mind."
"What's there to think about? It's just cultivating a clone. That shouldn't be difficult for her. Wait—did you leave something out when you explained it?"
Herta's mind worked quickly—she immediately honed in on the crux of it. First, the likelihood that Ruan refused simply because she was busy was low. Second, Kiana's reaction was off.
"The reason you gave before for not wanting Ruan to help—that wasn't just an excuse, was it?"
"Of course not!" Kiana lifted her head in immediate protest. "That's genuinely what I thought. But... how do I put it? I kind of expected Ruan's reaction."
After all, Ruan hadn't researched Stigmata for long before shifting toward studying Honkai resistance—and then stopping further in-depth research.
Even though Ruan hadn't said anything explicitly,
Kiana had her own suspicions.
"What happened? Say it clearly," Herta said irritably. "You come to me for help and still won't speak plainly? Half-sentences and omissions?"
"...If you encountered a world destined to slide into the abyss, and you wanted to save it—so you steeled yourself and made a cruel decision. You sacrificed nearly everyone in that world to secure a sliver of hope. If it succeeded, then all those sacrifices would have meaning."
"But you failed."
"You personally brought that world to its end."
"All the prior effort and sacrifice became meaningless." Kiana took a deep breath. "I knew it was a world bound to fall into the abyss. I wasn't a complete failure. But the one who drew the final line through it—was me."
"I killed everyone. No amount of justification can change that fact!"
Her outstretched hand clenched into a fist. Kiana looked at Herta, lips pressed tight. "My mistake—I will make amends. I will use the Stigmata crystals they left behind to construct a Stigmata world. A real Stigmata world!"
She did not regret the decision she had made.
She only hated her own failure.
She wanted to do everything she could to make amends—so that those who hadn't died to Nihility or the Kami, but had perished in the Honkai Eruption—
Might gain even the slightest fragment of meaning.
"Oh. So that's how it is."
Herta listened to her impassioned words with a rather calm reaction. The only thing that mildly surprised her was that Stigmata truly did resemble memory in some ways—capable of being used to construct a world.
"Sounds like a challenging project."
Constructing a world of memory from memory itself wasn't impossible.
Then using Honkai energy to build a Stigmata world—
She believed it could be done.
There was at least some chance of success.
Kiana looked up at her. "You don't have anything else to say?"
Someone who couldn't even accept her own failure.
She was really...
"So you need to think it through?" Herta looked at her. "What do you want me to say? Praise you? Scold you? How boring."
"What's wrong with not accepting failure? If you want to do better, then go do it. If everyone gave up after failing once, how terrible would this world be?" Herta said in an almost offhand, faintly self-satisfied tone. "I don't understand your feelings. I've never experienced failure. I only know this: if you want to do something, then do it. Stop hesitating."