"She's teaching at Chiba Academy," Shigure Kira replied. The moment her words fell, Misteln's eyes widened noticeably.
Raven... a teacher? Was she teaching infiltration and tracking, or how to hit targets precisely with concealed weapons?
Misteln pressed a fingertip to her brow, suddenly recalling the drawings Bronya had once shown her—the woman always wrapped in a black trench coat patiently teaching children survival skills, spending all her money to build them a new home.
Although that small island home had been sunk just before completion.
Still, Raven would indeed make a good teacher.
Her gaze shifted to the silver-haired woman beside Shigure Kira, who had been smiling all this time. Misteln's tone immediately took on a teasing note. "And this one—why does she look exactly like me?"
"Hello, I'm Cecilia," Cecilia said gently.
"Cecilia?" Surprise instantly spread across Misteln's face. "How is that possible? Don't tell me that in your world, the script had Siegfried exiting the stage first?"
"Are you cursing Lady Cecilia?" Shigure Kira frowned at once, her voice filled with protective displeasure.
"Are there really so few absurd things in the Honkai world?" Misteln tilted her head, lightly tapping her cheek. "Aren't you curious why I look the same as Cecilia?"
Shigure Kira fell silent.
Ai had once chatted with her about what their world would look like if it became a game—it would definitely be a beautiful-girl action game, with all the characters being yuri.
But for someone like Cecilia, who had a clearly established partner setting, she often couldn't become a playable character. Yet what if some players still liked Cecilia?
Misteln existed as a substitute created to cater to that portion of players.
"I never got married," Cecilia suddenly said softly. The single sentence was like a key, instantly unlocking Misteln's confusion.
"Oh—so that's how it is." Misteln deliberately drew out her tone. Then her gaze suddenly locked onto their clasped hands, and she let out a light scoff. "So, does that make you two partners?"
The words were like a small stone tossed into water, throwing Shigure Kira into immediate disarray. Lady Cecilia and I are partners? Her face flushed bright red in an instant, even her neck turning pink. Her voice trembled. "Y-What nonsense are you saying! Lady Cecilia is the person I admire most. How could we possibly—"
Cecilia said nothing, only watching her with a smile, a shallow gentleness hidden in her eyes.
"Kira," Misteln's smile grew even more mischievous, "admiration is the emotion farthest from understanding."
"You!" Shigure Kira's eyes widened as she stomped her foot in anger, her fingers curling tightly.
"What about me?" Misteln blinked innocently, though her tone carried deliberate provocation. "If you're not more straightforward, one day Cecilia might be snatched away by someone else."
As she spoke, she stepped half a pace closer to Cecilia, her voice softening. "Miss Cecilia, how about living with me? You can do whatever you like."
"What are you trying to do?!" Shigure Kira bristled instantly like an agitated kitten, immediately stepping in front of Cecilia.
"Kira, calm down." Cecilia gently patted her back, then turned to Misteln, her tone still warm. "Misteln, stop teasing."
Misteln shrugged, withdrawing her playful expression. "Fine. But let me make one thing clear—the girls here are never vague about the people they like. Don't treat feelings like a joke."
"I understand." Cecilia nodded with a smile.
Shigure Kira, however, said nothing. She simply looked around.
Pairs of girls leaned against each other whispering, small groups with visibly close bonds, and even not far away, two girls with tails entwined were hugging intimately.
She suddenly remembered Kiana from that superpower world. Back then, she had dismissed the idea of "girls liking girls" as absurd—until she saw the tail Kiana could reveal and conceal in battle. Only then did she realize that certain things thought to have regressed could evolve again when needed.
"I'll show you around and help you get familiar with the place," Misteln said, turning to leave. After a few steps, she stopped and looked back. "Where do you want to go first?"
"Do you know St. Freya Academy?" Cecilia asked.
"St. Freya Academy?" Misteln raised a brow. "Why go there?"
"I'm the new principal there," Cecilia replied calmly, causing Misteln's steps to falter.
"The new principal?!" She froze for a moment, then shook her head in understanding. "I see."—Being appointed principal right after arriving... she must have connections, just like me.
After all, in this place, if you randomly grabbed a student, there was a high probability they were rulers of other worlds. If she could rely on Bronya to become a disciplinary committee member, it wasn't strange for Cecilia to arrive with such a status.
...
Kabane World.
Mumei awoke from a nightmare.
She jolted upright in bed, gasping for breath.
Fine beads of sweat covered her forehead.
"What did you dream about?" A voice sounded.
She looked up to see a handsome man standing by her bedside, smiling at her.
"I dreamed about them..."
Recalling the events of the dream, Mumei's heart began to race, her face flushing hot.
"Oh? Is that so?" Biba Amatori narrowed his eyes slightly.
Although he was the leader of the faction opposing the goddess, he held no malice toward Delta or Houraiji Kyuusyou.
In his view, the world should have always operated on the law of the jungle—the strong ruled the weak.
Delta surpassed humanity in every aspect. She was an absolute powerhouse.
Her only weakness—if it could even be called that, was that the only one she cared about was Houraiji Kyuusyou.
As for Houraiji Kyuusyou, in his memory, she was inferior to Delta in every respect, yet still a being beyond humanity.
He vaguely had a guess as to why she seemed comparatively weaker.
The so-called future memories everyone possessed were in truth a prophetic dream.
Among humanity in this world, there was certainly no one capable of making all of humankind simultaneously experience their own futures in a dream.
Then who had made everyone relive their futures in a dream was quite obvious.