Honkai: Oh No, I’ve Become the Herrscher of Corruption?! - Chapter 22

Shub-Niggurath’s molars ground together as she stared at Salome’s limp body—her limbs splayed, her eyes vacant.

But the howling wind and the mountain-like pressure crushing her spine were brutal reminders:

The enemy still lives.

This is no time to grieve.

Above the Herrscher of Icefall, the glacial crystal’s diameter had surpassed a kilometer—and showed no signs of stopping.

As the only mobile unit left, Enoxia was torn between shielding the others, disrupting the Herrscher’s charge, and finding a way to deal actual damage.

Her head throbbed as if splitting in two.

“Once Fu Hua attacks, everything will turn around…”

The thought flickered, but Enoxia dismissed it.

Kevin’s in the Quantum Sea. Su’s in the Seed of Sumeru. And Sa… who knows where she’s hiding?

By all logic, she was currently the strongest being on Earth.

So why did something—someone—feel like it was deliberately stalling her?

“Huh? Since when did the sun turn… purple?”

Her gaze snapped upward.

A thunder sphere—already over a kilometer wide—blotted out the sky.

Only one being could conjure this: Sirin, wielder of the Herrscher of Thunder’s core.

“Sirin? But wait—”

The sphere swelled until it rivaled the glacial crystal’s size. Then, with a flick of Sirin’s finger, it slammed downward.

BOOM—

The collision between a Tri-Core Herrscher’s mystery-shrouded power and a Tetra-Core Herrscher’s wrath was cataclysmic.

Deafening. Blinding.

Every survivor was hurled like leaves in a typhoon—directionless, helpless.

“Goddamn it! If they’re evenly matched, why not just teleport the glacial crystal away with Void powers? Why clash head-on?!”

Even Enoxia—a nascent Herrscher—was merely a slightly larger leaf in this storm. She lasted mere seconds longer before the shockwave catapulted her kilometers away, leaving her headfirst in the snow.

She’d tweaked her data to withstand multiplied gravity. Now, it made her the farthest-flung.

As the aftershocks faded, she clawed free and scanned the horizon.

The battlefield had become an apocalyptic diorama:

Dark clouds. Blizzards. Lightning. Thunder.

At its center, Sirin and the IceFall Herrscher traded world-ending blows like titans grinding the cosmos to dust.

“Welp. Guess I’m obsolete here.”

Enoxia dusted snow off her sleeves.

“Time to check on the others. Sirin clearly isn’t holding back for anyone’s sake.”

She wasn’t wrong.

Sirin wanted collateral damage.

If the weak perished in the crossfire? Good.

Her deliberate energy clash was a gambit to erase both the Herrscher and Valkyries at once.

…

Nearby, Siegfried mirrored Enoxia’s predicament—upside-down in the snow, legs kicking like uprooted radish stems.

“Lixue, help me!”

Theresa, still recovering, strained to pull him free. With Cheng Lixue’s aid, they each grabbed a leg and yanked.

Minutes later, Shi Yuqi Luo and Shub arrived arm-in-arm. Cecilia spotted the group and sprinted over.

“Kira, Niggurath—everyone! Are you hurt?”

Her gaze swept over them, bright with concern.

“We’re fine.”

Shigure Kira and Shub exchanged glances. Despite everything, Cecilia’s vigor remained unshaken.

Respect deepened in their eyes.

“Captain,” Cheng Lixue said, “the abnormal gravity vanished after the blast. We can move freely now. Orders?”

Her mind raced even as she asked.

Cecilia activated her comms.

“Bishop, it’s me. Current status is— Understood.”

She turned to the group.

“We’re cleared to retreat. Let the two Herrschers fight. Only observers need to stay.”

Everyone knew what Otto really meant:

Wait for mutual annihilation. Then mop up.

Shigure Kira and Shub understood—this was Cecilia buying their survival. Salome’s death proved A-rank Valkyries were outmatched here. Staying would burden the team.

CRASH—

Sirin hammered the IceFall Herrscher into the ground, electricity searing its form. She’d tested each core’s power—thunder seemed most effective.

“The trash from Schicksal couldn’t even scratch you, but you’re still no match for me☆!”

Sirin preened as lightning charred the Herrscher, filling the air with the stench of burnt protein.

Watching the “pufferfish” inflate with victory yet again, Enoxia sighed.

“A Tetra-Core overpowering a Tri-Core is baseline. And she hasn’t noticed—despite her advantage, its absurd regeneration negates all real damage.”

That said, Sirin had forced it to abandon gravity control, leaving only ice powers.

Enoxia studied the Herrscher’s erratic movements.

Theresa’s earlier attack in the Divine Prayer field must’ve disrupted its energy flow. It’s struggling to stabilize.

“If it can’t use the Rock Core now… maybe we can extract it. With luck, we’ll even save Welt Yang. Once it’s down to just ice, finishing it should be simple.”

As Enoxia strategized, the others reached their own conclusion.

“Siegfried and I will stay. Everyone else, evacuate.” Cecilia smiled wryly at her husband. “I know arguing is pointless.”

Siegfried met her gaze, steadfast.

“Damn right. What kind of man hides while his wife fights? Wherever you go, I follow.”

Cecilia shrugged.

“See? But don’t worry—we’ll both come back. Promise.”

Theresa hefted Oath of Judah—conveniently flung near her by the blast—and activated its skate mode.

“Keep that promise. Kiana’s waiting.”

Just as she prepared to lead the retreat, a shadow materialized before them.

“The Queen decrees: No one leaves alive.”