The smoke from his cigarette drifted, a faint spark of fire in this world of absolute cold.
"You cannot escape, no matter what. The Herrscher of Ice must die here."
These words seemed to seal the fate of Anna, the Herrscher of Ice. In the distance, a flash of lightning streaked, and two tall girls gave chase, Durandal brandishing her great lance, and Raiden Mei wielding the Key of Devouring.
Looking at the three figures in the open clearing, Raiden Mei's eyes flickered with surprise. Why was Lu Ze here? Shouldn't he be on the Hyperion?
"Long time no see, Mei. But this time, you cannot interfere. However, as you said, the Herrscher of Ice must die here. But it must be me who kills her. My student's fate is mine to decide. Anna… just rest peacefully."
Raiden Mei did not reply. She glanced at Durandal beside her and directly positioned herself between the two. Regardless of who struck the blow, the outcome would be the same.
"Thank you, Mei. If we have time, I truly wish to have curry rice with you again."
"There will be."
Her long sword pierced the Herrscher of Ice's chest. Night Owl, standing nearby, widened his eyes and rushed forward, intending to stop it.
But a long, rectangular object instantly bound his limbs. He could only watch helplessly as the one he loved died.
"Anna, I'm sorry… I hope your next teacher will also be me."
At the critical moment, the surrounding Honkai energy surged again. Night Owl, the Herrscher of Earth, broke free from his restraints and struck Lu Ze's chest with a punch.
"With me here, none of you will touch her!"
Caught completely off guard, Lu Ze took the full force of the blow. Fortunately, his body was resilient enough that nothing serious happened.
"Are you alright, Lu Ze?"
He coughed a couple of times and sat up from the ground, waving his hand. He looked at the scene with a grave expression.
"Anna, I couldn't protect you. But I can only make you stronger, so strong that no one can kill you. Please accept my power."
He personally extracted a reddish-brown core and forcefully thrust it into Anna. Instantly, countless rocks in the vicinity slowly rose, gravity inverted, pinning them all to the ground.
The Herrscher of Frost and Ice was thus born, a Herrscher combining two powers. This pushed Anna's consciousness aside, and Honkai regained control of the body.
However, even so, she could not escape death. After all, there were two S-rank Valkyries present, and a Herrscher of Thunder. How could they not defeat a mere Herrscher formed from the union of two Herrschers?
In less than an hour, the Herrscher of Frost and Ice was slain. Afterward, Night Owl's body fell, crashing heavily onto the ground, while Anna's body was held in Lu Ze's arms.
As expected, there was preferential treatment. However, Raven soon arrived at the scene and successfully retrieved Night Owl's body. After all, their organization had a perpetually complaining, mouthy researcher who would want to take it back for experiments.
"Anna, rest in peace…"
The letter from her chest fell out. Three streaks of blue light silently injected themselves into Lu Ze's body. The forms of three Stigmata runes appeared on his back before quickly vanishing.
"This is…"
He opened the letter and read its contents. A single tear dropped onto the paper, quickly freezing into frost. Then, countless tears fell, but this time they did not freeze. With the death of the Herrscher of Frost and Ice, the city's climate returned to normal, and the ice on the walls began to melt. Everything was over.
"I didn't expect you had things you didn't say back then… I wondered why things felt odd. Now I understand…"
Even the strong Lu Ze was sobbing uncontrollably. This was the second time he had cried so heartbrokenly; the first was when he watched Professor Himeko die before his eyes.
"Why… why did it turn out this way? Why did Anna become the Herrscher of Ice? Why…"
The pink letter drifted away, landing precisely in Raiden Mei's hands. She picked it up with a hint of confusion.
"Teacher Lu Ze, thank you for your guidance and care over the past six months. You've not only taught me many things but also became my first male friend.
"During our time together, your every action is deeply etched in my mind. I can't forget you even in my dreams. So, I want to tell you: I love you! The day we met must have been the best gift from heaven!
"I feel your presence, I cherish the time spent with you, and I love sitting next to you, talking, sharing, and discussing.
"And the necklace I gave you? It symbolizes that you are my one and only. My mother gave it to me when I was very young. She said… if you give this necklace to someone you love, it can tie the two of you together. So, I believed her!
"I, Anna Schariac, will not love anyone else but you! I will marry no one but you!
Anna Schariac
Raiden Mei fell silent. It was clear that this student named Anna deeply cherished the male teacher before her. Everything experienced over these six months must have been the most precious memories for this girl.
"I… why does my heart ache so much? It shouldn't…"
She walked step by step towards Lu Ze and handed him Anna's letter back. "I know you're hurting right now, but I must take her away. I'm sorry, consider this a debt I owe you."
Raiden Mei directly took Anna's corpse. After all, besides retrieving Herrscher cores, they also had to recover the bodies, as many in the World Serpent organization were very interested in this corpse.
Mini Theater: Predictable
"So you're Anna, huh? You confessed even earlier than I did, and you even have a token of affection. Ah, that's so unfair!"
Bronya looked helplessly at Mei, pouncing on her directly. She needed to feel some warmth. *Sob sob sob…*
"But I just love Teacher, so you can't blame me, right? Besides, I'm already dead, so I can't compete with you. Therefore, the winner is definitely you."
Anna's pink pupils flickered, her eyes filled with sadness. It seemed she would never be reunited with the one she loved.
"Heh heh… judging by the author's usual writing, you're very likely to be revived. Don't ask how I know; I have the script."
Bronya pushed up her nonexistent glasses and looked at the script in her hand. Sigh… it's hard to say, really hard to say. It still depends on what the readers say… should she be revived or not?