Herrscher of Dominance in Honkai, starting with the abduction of Kiana

Under the soft lighting, the Cinderella in Mei's Collin's glass shimmered with a pale yellow glow. She gently lifted the glass to her lips, the faint scent of fresh fruit filling her nose.

Taking a small sip, the cool, fizzy juice slid down her throat, leaving the sweet and sour taste of orange and lemon lingering in her mouth.

It was more of a fruit drink than a cocktail.

"It sounds like you have something more to say." Mei knew the bitterness wasn't just in the Cinderella, but also in Raven, sitting across from her.

Pop.

Raven casually opened a bottle of vintage wine, poured herself a glass, and downed it in one gulp, as if in retaliation. The smell of alcohol wafted towards Mei, causing her to wrinkle her nose almost imperceptibly.

"Isn't that natural? I'm not like you Herrschers."

"As an ordinary person, my family and brother all died during the 2nd Honkai Eruption. The small island I finally saved enough money to buy was destroyed by the great eruption caused by the Herrscher of the Void. Even the temporary shelter I built for the children sank into the Pacific Ocean along with Nagazora."

Listening to Raven's account, Mei couldn't help but fall silent. She had read these records in the World Serpent forum before, but hearing it from the person involved still touched her heart.

"Seriously, I've wanted to kill you Herrschers countless times. I trained desperately for that very purpose, to one day be able to completely eradicate Honkai from this world." After finishing her first glass, Raven clearly became more relaxed. She poured herself another full glass and downed it in one gulp.

"Nagazora was my best chance. Dealing with two little guys who were only B-rank, I wouldn't even need to waste extra bullets."

"But you didn't do it then, and it's even more impossible now." Mei ruthlessly shattered her fantasy.

"Yeah, that's why you Herrschers are truly terrifying. It's only been a few months, and you've already reached this level. Not to mention you, that girl named Kiana is truly on the path to becoming a queen."

"Has her appearance changed that much?" Mei murmured. In her memory, most of what remained of Kiana was the image of a foolish girl. It was hard to imagine the Kiana who used to skip class transforming into a queenly figure.

"It's not so much her change, but rather my change. I used to hate the Herrscher of the Void so much, but when I fell into despair twice, it was the person I hated most who pulled me back from the abyss.

Her strength, her courage, her responsibility, and her mercy… even I unconsciously had the thought of submitting to her.

And that is why I say she is on the path to becoming a queen."

Raiden Mei listened quietly. This was the first time she had heard someone give Kiana such high praise, and it came from a former enemy. While feeling happy for her friend, it also strengthened her own conviction.

"However…" She finished her Cinderella in one gulp and looked at the electronic clock hanging in the bar. "You said you wanted me to join World Serpent, it shouldn't just be to drink here, right?"

"Of course… Look, he's here." Unlike Raven, who was still lazily drinking, Mei turned her gaze towards the bar entrance. At some point, a figure dressed entirely in black had appeared at the glass door, stopping in their tracks.

Tinkle.

The cold air from outside stirred the wind chimes hanging in the bar, producing a series of crisp rings. At the same time, the sound of hard-soled shoes contacting the ground clearly reached her ears.

The newcomer seemed to be a male, over 1.8 meters tall, wearing a black trench coat. He carried a heavy silver briefcase in his left hand and held a black umbrella in his right. There were no water stains on the umbrella, and there was no sign of rain outside, but the man stood straight, holding the umbrella steadily over his head.

A late-night bar, the dim night, the damp and cold air, and a mysterious man with strange behavior.

The other party had clearly entered through the front door of the bar in broad daylight, but the feeling he gave Mei was like a venomous snake slithering into the room from a dark hole, giving her a creepy feeling.

"You're here earlier than I expected, Gray Serpent." Raven finally put down her glass and nodded to the man in greeting.

As fellow World Serpent executives, Raven and Gray Serpent had a rather special relationship.

During the 2nd Honkai Eruption, Gray Serpent rescued the homeless Raven, brought her into World Serpent, trained her, and raised her until adulthood. He was basically half her guardian.

However, although Gray Serpent had trained Raven, she had reached her current position entirely through her own efforts. Their relationship was more like that of colleagues.

As the founder of World Serpent and the person who truly maintained the organization, Gray Serpent was responsible for most of the tasks. Introducing ordinary personnel into the organization could be done with Raven's executive status, but a Herrscher like Mei definitely needed Gray Serpent's personal review.

Raven glanced at the clock. It was about 10 minutes earlier than the agreed time. Gray Serpent was a very punctual person, but considering that there were always unexpected situations, she didn't mind.

"Well, this is Miss Mei, who wants to join World Serpent. She saved me during the Coral Island incident, so my vote carries some weight in the recommendation, you understand, right?"

"Of course."

A muffled, hoarse male voice came from under the umbrella. Only when the umbrella was lowered did Mei discover that the man was wearing a pale mask.

Black knife marks crisscrossed like an "X," branded on the mask. His left eye was covered by the mask, leaving only the right eye exposed, a scarlet prosthetic eye emitting a chilling glow.

"Nice to meet you, Raiden Mei."

"You are Gray Serpent?" A sense of vigilance rose in her heart, and Mei subconsciously placed her hand on the hilt of her weapon. "If I remember correctly, you should have died once in the Sea of Quanta."

"Just some minor tricks. You can consider it the disposal of a clone." Gray Serpent lowered his umbrella and placed the briefcase he was carrying on the bar counter.

"I had the pleasure of meeting you once in Nagazora, but you had just awakened then, and probably wouldn't have spared me, so I didn't dare to come forward and greet you." Gray Serpent spoke as he opened the lock of the briefcase.

Mei quickly recalled this memory. After bidding farewell to Kiana in Nagazora, she and Liuli encountered World Serpent's fleet pursuing Theresa, and then directly clashed with Raven, forcing her to use the Rod of Acheron to escape.

"Just based on the experiment World Serpent conducted in Nagazora, you deserve to die a thousand times."

"That's true for you, and we're well aware of that. But the Stigmata Project needed experimental data. The method chosen at the time was actually the least efficient one. After proving its failure, naturally, we wouldn't use similar methods again."

As he spoke, the briefcase was completely opened, revealing a technologically advanced mechanical crystal inside, with circuit-like patterns within.

"Miss Mei, I know you must have your own reasons for joining World Serpent, but we don't mind. With Raven's guarantee, joining isn't difficult, but before you join, we must confirm that you can indeed fully control your own power. After all, a Herrscher, even for World Serpent, carries extremely high risks to accept."

"What do you need me to do?"

"It's very simple. Hold this crystal and inject Honkai energy into it as stably as possible. The stability of Honkai energy is the standard for judging a Herrscher's state, and it's also the key to ensuring a Herrscher is controllable."

Raiden Mei didn't immediately touch it, but instead released her own power to check if there were any traps on the crystal. Only after a few minutes, after confirming there were no special tricks, did she pick it up and hold it in her hand.

Honkai energy emanated from her palm, pale purple arcs clinging to the crystal, gradually entwining it.

Soon, the patterns inside the mechanical crystal lit up one after another, and the crystal began to rotate in her hand.

Mei maintained a stable output, continuously injecting her Honkai energy into it, but as time passed, her consumption gradually increased, yet the crystal, like a bottomless pit, was never filled.

At first, she didn't notice anything wrong, thinking it was just part of the test, but gradually, she finally realized something was amiss. This crystal didn't seem to be bearing her power, but rather actively absorbing her Honkai energy.

A sense of alarm suddenly arose in Mei's heart, and she subconsciously looked at Gray Serpent.

She vaguely saw a special mark of swirling black and white on his neck.

"The Obsidian Concord?!"

Tinkle.

Just then, the doorbell rang, and another Gray Serpent entered.

At the same time, the clock on the bar wall precisely reached the appointed time.