Dusk.
A blood-red sky burned like open flame.
The tip of the girl's nose caught a stench that made her want to gag. The reek of blood, mixed with the sharp sulfur bite left behind by gas explosions. Rain fell, and along the stone-brick streets flowed a strange, golden blood.
This was not a gentle world.
And the scene before her eyes was its ending. Overwhelming despair, fear, and pain crushed everything that little bit of gentleness this world once had.
In the end, nothing remained.
Elysia wandered the city without really thinking, feeling a faint sense of familiarity. Yet it was clearly not the world she belonged to. That realization did not fully settle until she saw the sign for MIYA Cat Cafe.
Only then did she understand.
This was not their world. It was the world of the mysterious girl she had met not long ago, the one who could turn her into a cat and summon her to another world. Kiyono Inori's world.
"What… happened to this world?"
"Honkai…? Don't tell me… when I crossed over, I brought the natural phenomena of Honkai with me…?"
Unease crept into Elysia's chest.
She had not volunteered to be summoned in the first place. Even if she really had brought Honkai to another world, tracing the blame back would still make it Kiyono Inori's responsibility, since she was the one who summoned her.
And yet, Elysia could not stop blaming herself. The pain squeezing at her heart blurred her vision.
Corpses.
The city was piled high with them.
Misshapen humanoids, cute magical-girl familiars, spine-chilling eldritch horrors, fanatics draped in strange religious robes…
Their remains were soaked in golden blood, stacked layer upon layer with an eerie sense of aesthetic, like building materials deliberately arranged by someone.
There were no humans left…!
Elysia only dared to peek through her fingers at the sight. This vision of a world meeting its end felt far too intense for someone who was still in the era of the Fifth Honkai.
"Heehee, honestly, you're such a handful. I guess I'll help you out, all right?"
"Are you ready, my dear Elysia? This is a very 'passionate' blessing."
Elysia remembered those words.
Right!
She had been fighting the companion Honkai beast of the Fifth Herrscher!
Because she had been so focused on eavesdropping on Kiyono Inori and her lively all-girl chatter, she got distracted. Then Inori said she would give her a blessing. The moment Elysia opened her eyes, she was in this world!
You call this a blessing?!
"Hey, hey, hey, Inori-chan!"
Elysia spoke carefully.
"Can you hear me? Inori-chan, don't scare me like this. I'm a delicate, sensitive girl too. Boo-hoo, I'll cry, I really will cry, you know?!"
Elysia used the skill Pretend to Be Pitiful, but there was no response from Kiyono Inori.
"Hello? Can you hear me?"
"One, two, three. Three, two, one. Anyone who hears a cute girl talking and doesn't answer turns into a piggy. Hey, hey, meow meow meow. Ignore me and you go from piggy to kitty!"
Elysia used the skill Act Silly, trying to bait Inori into snarking back, but still no reply came.
"…She really isn't here, is she."
Left with no other choice, Elysia began exploring on her own.
She was certain this scene had something to do with Inori's so-called blessing. She just did not know what this place really was.
A prophetic dream, perhaps, or some kind of illusion.
So far, Elysia had not seen the bodies of ordinary humans. Most humanoid corpses belonged to vampires, fanatics who had long lost their human shapes, or strange beings with animal heads.
The strangest part was this.
Blood in this world seemed to be gold. Elysia had never seen blood of this color before.
She tried to examine it.
What she found was terrifying. That blood contained an enormous, dreadful power. At the same time, it stirred recklessness, anger, and an urge to destroy.
Absolutely horrifying.
Was this the reason Inori's world was destroyed?
The golden blood made Elysia uneasy. Power that could drive people mad without them noticing reminded her uncomfortably of the relationship between Honkai and Herrschers.
"Hmm… looks like I can't contact Inori-chan for now."
"This place might be a byproduct of that blessing of hers. Something that lets you see the future, maybe. Since it concerns her world, I should gather some intel for her."
Thinking this, the pink fairy headed toward the area of the city where the golden blood's presence was strongest.
…
"Well, well. Looks like this is where the mastermind is hiding."
Elysia patted her cheeks, forcing herself to perk up. The atmosphere here was unbearably oppressive.
Even insects and cockroaches had been completely wiped out. It was practically a forbidden zone for life.
Yet strangely enough,
The closer she got to the source of the golden blood, the fewer twisted corpses lay piled by the roadside. For a long stretch, there were none at all.
"You are…"
When she finally laid eyes on the culprit behind it all, Elysia's eyes went wide in shock.
Overexposed, pale flaxen hair.
Skin so fair it looked almost translucent.
That signature inorganic, emotionally distant smile.
"…So, you finally came."
The girl tilted her head and whispered seductively. "If the world you come from is beyond saving, then why not… burn everything these eyes can see to ashes?"
Kiyono Inori.
But taller, more mature, and with a better figure. That gentle girl who was cold on the outside and warm within had become a demon king of annihilation?
The pink pig-cat could hardly believe it.
She was utterly stunned.
This was shocking enough to rank alongside "Elysia of Fire Moth was actually a Herrscher" on the all-time disbelief list. No way. No one would believe this if she told them.
Then,
As if sensing her thoughts, the girl's form gradually shifted from Kiyono Inori into Elysia herself. Faded pink hair, a sly smile.
"Hi. Darling, how does this feel?"
Even the surroundings flipped like turning a page, transforming into the familiar Fire Moth base Elysia knew so well.
"…!" Elysia's pupils shook. "Who are you really? No, never mind that. What matters is this. You're the one behind trapping me in this illusion, right?!"
She understood now.
This constant shape-shifting was not necessarily the fault of Inori's blessing. She had probably stumbled into some kind of illusion. Gah! This had to be a Herrscher's scheme!
The pink pig-cat had heard about this.
In deserts, mirages formed due to the refraction of light. This had to be that Herrscher using ice-based authority to bend light and trick her into an illusion!
Wow! This Herrscher was way too clever!
But still… being able to see through it meant she was pretty amazing too. Heh. If Dr. Mobius or Dr. MEI were dragged into this illusion, they would probably be scared stiff.
Only a brave and clever beautiful girl like her could unravel the Ice Herrscher's plot so easily!
She had to act!
The pink pig-cat's gaze turned wise as she tried to recall everything she knew about mirages, hoping to apply it and break this deadlock.
Elysia: (staring blankly)
???: (also staring blankly)
Elysia: (even more blankly)
"Oh, whatever, meow!"
Elysia gave up thinking. With a swish, she drew the Flame-Chasers' custom single-handed sword. "As long as I beat you, I'll definitely be able to go back!"
Normal Attack: Traveler's Swordplay!
A sword style honed while the pink pig-cat, still in elementary school, wore a cloak and traveled the world alone. Known for its speed and endless variations.
Fast, and wildly unpredictable.
Even a master swordsman could not read Elysia's intentions. If their speed stat was not high enough, they would be mercilessly defeated!
The mastermind did not dodge.
The pink pig-cat smiled, confident of victory, as multiple sword flashes sealed off every opening of the seemingly defenseless foe.
And then… the mastermind phased out!
Elysia: (stunned)
Whoa!! So it really was a mirage!! Am I actually that smart? Yay!!
As if!!
Why can't I hit anything?! What is even going on?! Inori-chan, save me, meow!! This blessing you gave me, you have to take responsibility all the way to the end, meow!!
…
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Let me know if I got a name wrong. I know basically nothing about MyGO.