Honkai: Oh No, I’ve Become the Herrscher of Corruption?! - Chapter 89
After being thoroughly thrashed by Vill-V, Sirin and Bella trudged back to the hall, utterly dejected.
“Ah…?” A melodious voice echoed through the hall. Though neither of them understood what Eden was singing, the beautiful melody made them pause and listen.
“Miss Sirin, Miss Bella, welcome back. It seems your journey wasn’t very smooth—please, take a rest.”
Sirin glanced around for a while before finally plopping down on the sofa.
“Is something the matter, Miss Sirin? Are you looking for someone?”
Sirin scratched her head. “Where’s Enoxia? I don’t see her.”
Eden smiled faintly. “She hasn’t arrived yet, which likely means she’s getting along well with Miss Elysia. Miss Enoxia must have accepted her kindness by now.”
Hearing this, Sirin let out a sigh of relief.
“Enoxia really is something else. Now, just like me, she’ll have someone to take care of her.”
“I’m curious—what kind of person is Miss Enoxia in your eyes, Miss Sirin and Miss Bella?”
Sirin glanced at Bella, signaling her to speak first.
“My opinion doesn’t really matter. After all, my only purpose is to fulfill Her Majesty’s will. But if I had to say… she’s a strange person.”
“Oh? Would you care to elaborate, Miss Bella?”
“Unlike me, she had no real reason to fight for Her Majesty. And yet, she was the one who pulled Her Majesty out of hell, gave her a family, and made her happier. Anyone who brings Her Majesty joy is a good person in my book.”
“But… she’s not the same kind of good person as someone like Lady Cecilia. During the Second Impact, so many Valkyries died, yet she only saved Lady Cecilia and that girl, Cheng Lixue. When Misteln caused mass casualties, she only spared Alexandra. Hmm… how should I put it? She saves people, but only those she deems valuable. But… I’ve never been able to figure out what her criteria for ‘value’ actually is.”
“Her Majesty, Lady Cecilia—by ordinary human standards, they were already strong. If Enoxia had some goal to accomplish, they’d undoubtedly be powerful allies. If Her Majesty was willing to help her, then I could’ve been her ally too. But Alexandra… aside from taking care of Ivan and chatting with others, what could she possibly do that Enoxia couldn’t do effortlessly? Whether someone has ‘value’ seems entirely based on her whims.”
“As a Herrscher, she’s never actively sought to destroy human civilization, but she does target specific individuals or groups she dislikes in her own way… Should I go into detail about that?”
Bella glanced at Sirin, who still looked indifferent, then turned back to Eden.
“By all means, Miss Bella. Please share whatever you think is important.”
“That day, I was cleaning the house and thinking about how to improve dinner to better suit Her Majesty’s tastes. As I passed Enoxia’s room, I heard her yelling—probably cursing at someone. Something like: ‘These ***** only know how to stir up drama and spread hate online.’“
“Later, I found out she’d used the power of Corruption to dig up their personal information. She split them into two groups. For the first, she infected them remotely, turning them into zombies with the command: ‘Stay put until the Valkyries arrive, then attack.’ Every single one of them ended up riddled with bullets.”
“As for the second group… she altered their bank account balances. For the less severe cases, she moved the decimal point two or three places to the left. For the worst offenders, she just zeroed them out, saying: ‘If they can’t even afford their next meal, they won’t have time to spout nonsense online.’“
“And what do you think of Miss Enoxia’s methods, Miss Bella?”
“I think… she’s way too nice. She could’ve easily rewritten their minds, but she chose to respect their free will. If it were me, I’d have twisted their thoughts and made them hack each other to pieces—”
Bella’s eyes gleamed as she got carried away, even standing up from the sofa in excitement.
“Bella!”
Sirin’s sharp tone snapped her back to reality. Bella immediately dropped to her knees.
“Your Majesty, I’m sorry, I—”
“Enough. Go stand in the corner.”
Like a scolded child, Bella hung her head and shuffled to the wall. Eden watched in astonishment. A single reprimand had subdued a Judgement-class Honkai Beast, turning her into a harmless girl. In the Previous Era, such a thing would’ve been unthinkable.
Of course, in this era, Sirin was the only one who could pull it off. After all, there were only two Judgement-class Honkai Beasts around.
“Sorry, Eden. Bella couldn’t control herself…” Sirin trailed off, suddenly remembering that Eden was a MANTIS—why would she fear a Honkai Beast?
“No need to apologize, Miss Sirin. Miss Bella’s insights were quite valuable. I’m sure you, being far more familiar with Miss Enoxia, can offer an even more meaningful perspective.”
Sirin fell into thought, her cheeks puffing and deflating repeatedly.
“Enoxia… when she’s likable, she’s really likable. When she’s hateful, she’s really hateful.”
“Like Bella said, no matter what, she’s my benefactor. She never turned against me, not even when I had thoughts of destroying the world…”
“But even though she’s fearless against Herrschers, at home, she’s a complete coward. She craves family more than anyone, yet she’s too scared to take that step because she doesn’t want to ruin my relationship with Mom. Even with all of us around, she still chooses to suffer alone. That kind of Enoxia—I hate her!”
Sirin grew more agitated, leaping up from the sofa.
“And it’s partly my fault too. Back then, I lost control here because of a misunderstanding. Neither she nor Mom ever brings up what happened in Babylon Tower, just to avoid triggering me…”
“I know she’s mentally older than me, so obviously she’d be the big sister—though she’d never admit it. But the way she keeps her distance, acting like some bystander, like some tool just meant to save me and Mom—that attitude is the worst!“
“I can’t do anything for her, and she doesn’t care. But I do. Mom cares. And in the future, everyone else she saves—they’ll care too!”
Her emotions peaked, then gradually settled. Her breathing steadied, giving way to melancholy.
“Even if she did ruin my relationship with Mom… I wouldn’t have the right to blame her. Mom had her own family first. I was the one who destroyed it…”
“Sigh…“
After a deep breath, Sirin waved Bella over. The girl hurried to her side.
“Sure, if I had to rank them, Bella would always be first in my heart.”
“But that’s because… Bella was mine from the moment she was born. She’ll always belong to me. Enoxia’s different. I don’t have the power—or the right—to interfere with her life…”
Sirin’s mood sank further. She slumped onto the sofa, hanging her head low.
“And yet, just moments ago, you had a huge impact on me. You can’t just shrug off that responsibility, you know?”