The lab was small—one could walk from end to end in under ten minutes. After searching for a long time without finding anything else of value, Sirin pressed the button by the door to leave.
The door opened. A blinding white light flooded the lab, and for a moment, the two of them—like miners who had worked underground for too long—were left sightless as they emerged into the light.
When their vision returned, they were stunned to find themselves standing on what seemed to be a shimmering lake, the sky above as clear and blue as the water beneath their feet. Turning around, they realized the lab had vanished without a trace.
In the distance, a blue figure came into view. Sirin recognized her immediately—it was Enoxia.
Yet, when she and Bella teleported to Enoxia’s side, Sirin couldn’t shake the feeling that this Enoxia was both familiar and strange—as if the timid, shy version she’d met before had merged with the Enoxia from their own world.
Noticing their arrival, Enoxia turned and instinctively took a step back when she saw Sirin.
“Sirin… you… I…”
Enoxia hesitated, her words trailing off.
“Enoxia, answer me—if we fail to overcome the Finality in the end, were you planning to use the Herrscher of Corruption’s power to ensure everyone survives in some form through that so-called ‘Stigma Project’?”
Enoxia’s eyes darted nervously, her expression panicked.
“Wh-why are you asking this all of a sudden? In our world, the Herrschers of Flame, Sentience, Legion, and Binding haven’t even appeared yet. There’s… there’s still plenty of time before the Finality arrives. When the time comes… the previous era and our civilization will work together. We’ll… we’ll definitely find a way.”
Sirin glared at her. “Stop dodging the question. I’m asking what you’d do if it really came down to that.”
“B-but… what if it doesn’t? This question doesn’t mean anything right now. Sirin, why are you suddenly bringing this up?”
Seeing Enoxia’s refusal to answer directly, Sirin decided to lay out everything she’d learned.
“The MANTIS warriors of the previous era were incredibly powerful. Even when the Herrschers were nothing more than mindless tools of destruction, and they had no idea what abilities the next Herrscher would have or how many there’d be… they still made it all the way to the brink of the Finality. But in the end, even after exhausting every possible resource, the previous era still fell. You told me that yourself.”
“So even if none of the twelve Herrschers manage to deal a fatal blow to our civilization… we’d still be powerless against the Finality, right?”
Listening to Sirin’s surprisingly sound reasoning, Enoxia stared straight into her eyes, her face etched with shock.
Seeing this, Sirin planted her hands on her hips, puffing out her cheeks again.
“Just because I don’t usually bother thinking about things I’m not interested in… doesn’t mean I’m actually stupid, you know!” (March 7th tone)
At that, Enoxia gave a solemn nod.
“You—!” Sirin’s temper flared. She jabbed a finger at Enoxia.
“Listen, even if it really comes to that, you are not allowed to do it. If you dare… I’ll… I’ll have Bella disable every electronic device on the planet, then lock you in imaginary space and never let you out until everything’s over!”
Suddenly, Enoxia’s gaze shifted—as if her personality had switched.
“Enough, Sirin. Stay out of this. Even if it does happen, you and Bella will be kept safe no matter what.”
Faced with this suddenly impatient version of Enoxia, Sirin didn’t immediately argue. Instead, she started thinking.
Hmph. So you think I’m stupid, Enoxia? Fine, I’ll use my brain to solve this today.
Enoxia’s acting like she’s being controlled by both the timid, shy [Enoxia] and this impatient [Enoxia]… No, wait. The bold, cheerful [Enoxia] once told me that they’re all just fragments of the real Enoxia. That means the key to fixing this is defeating the main body…
Wait, no—my goal is to save her, not kill her. Enoxia also mentioned that Herrschers of Corruption can corrupt each other. These two [Enoxia] fragments can’t be stronger than the real Enoxia, which means her true consciousness probably hasn’t been fully assimilated yet.
So the real solution is to stimulate the deeper consciousness within [Enoxia]… Got it!
After carefully analyzing the situation, Sirin turned to Bella. “Bella, attack!”
Bella blinked. “My Queen, didn’t you just say… you were going to use your brain?”
Though confused, Bella’s body moved on instinct, obeying Sirin’s command as she unleashed a breath attack toward Enoxia.
Enoxia raised her hand slightly, effortlessly blocking the same strike that had once injured Cheng Lixue. Before Bella could react, Enoxia appeared behind her, and in an instant, dark mist enveloped Bella.
However, the next moment, all three of them were pulled into imaginary space by Sirin. The sudden shift in dimensions destabilized the dark mist, and Sirin seized the opportunity to teleport to Bella’s side, yanking her free.
“Forgive me, My Queen. I tried to sever her connection to imaginary space with an electromagnetic barrier, but I failed.”
Since this was a true Herrscher, and Bella was only a pseudo-Herrscher at best, Sirin didn’t blame her.
“As long as you’re unharmed. Leave the rest to me—just stay back and avoid being corrupted.”
With that, Sirin teleported Bella to a safe distance and stepped forward alone to face Enoxia.
Though reluctant, Bella knew that if she were corrupted, she might end up attacking Sirin. So she forced herself to stay back.
“V, I told you—I won’t let you out until everything is settled.”
Enoxia glared at her furiously. “If you won’t let me out, I’ll break out myself!”
“Oh? And how?”
“With… my power!”
Enoxia, now a swirling mass of dark mist, exploded outward, rapidly encircling Sirin.
Sirin smirked and flicked a finger forward, slicing through the space in front of her. Then, with a sharp clench of her right hand, the fragmented space collapsed. Aside from a few wisps of dark mist that escaped, the rest was swallowed by the void, scattering into nothingness.
“Enoxia, in a data realm like the Elysian Realm, you might be unstoppable. But this is imaginary space—my domain.”
