"No! Mei!"
From inside the car, Raiden Ryoma watched his own daughter walk into the shop with a brilliant smile, accompanied by some punk kid who had appeared out of nowhere. His eyes were nearly popping from their sockets. If his wife hadn't been holding him back, he probably would have already stormed out of the car to see what was going on.
"Ryoma, if you charge in now, you'll just tip our hand. What we should be doing is figuring out exactly what's happened. Let's listen carefully from outside. If something irreversible is about to happen, it won't be too late for us to rush in and stop it then."
"Hmph! Fine, let's hear what's going on first..."
As soon as Raiden Ryoma finished speaking, he grabbed his phone and notified his men to get their weapons ready. The moment that punk inside tried to lay a hand on his daughter, they were not to hesitate—they were to charge in and take him down.
Inside the flower shop, the moment Xin Yu and Raiden Mei stepped in, the originally plain and unremarkable flowers suddenly swelled and grew. A massive table formed from a blooming daffodil rose up in the center of the shop, while several other flowers grew into chairs perfectly sized for people, surrounding the grand flower table.
Xin Yu took a seat on one of the chairs, and Raiden Mei sat down beside him.
"Your parents are right outside. They're sneaking over right now to eavesdrop. Do you want them to hear?"
Xin Yu produced two cups filled with osmanthus-infused tea.
"There's nothing to hide between us. If Mom and Dad want to listen, let them. Besides, they have to know who their savior is, don't they?" Raiden Mei said, brushing back her slightly messy hair, her face serene and smiling.
"I just hope they don't lock me up thinking I'm a mental patient."
"Then they'd have to lock me up too."
The two shared a look and smiled, then fell into a comfortable silence as they sipped their tea. Only after the people outside were in position and the two parents had their listening devices ready did Xin Yu begin to speak.
"To be honest, I didn't expect you to remember so quickly. It's likely because I took you outside once before and you received my blessing. The connection between us has become very deep. From now on, you can call yourself an Emissary."
"An Emissary?" Raiden Mei mused, lifting her left hand. She looked at the small spark of purple and silver lightning flickering on her fingertip and continued, "It's hard to believe. In such a short time, I've gone from a Herrscher of Thunder who hadn't fully matured into an Emissary capable of destroying a star."
"And that's not even the limit of your growth. Right now, time and space haven't fully stabilized, and I haven't finished rewriting the past and future. So your growth isn't yet complete. Once spacetime unifies, once I have rewritten and fixed history, you will become a true Emissary. In that case, you would be my second Emissary."
"The second? Then who's the first?"
"The first was someone I blessed during my travels across that universe, back when I was still unfamiliar with my own circumstances. A person with whom I shared a karmic link accepted that blessing and, along with my own growth, has truly gained the power of an Emissary."
"I thought it would be Miss Yae Sakura or Kiana."
"Their situations are rather special... Let's not talk about that. How is it? Isn't the rewritten story beautiful? Your mother didn't die from her illness, and your father didn't become a broken man because of it. He doesn't have to act as the strict father figure guiding you all your life. Your childhood is perfect. Are you satisfied with this story?"
Xin Yu smiled at Raiden Mei, his tone carrying the distinct air of a child who had accomplished something incredible and was now showing off to his friend.
And he had indeed accomplished something truly incredible.
Raiden Mei pursed her lips and asked, "What exactly happened? You're definitely hiding something from me."
"I'm sorry, I did hide things from you on this matter. I had to face an enemy I had no confidence in defeating. To prevent you from worrying, and to prevent you from blaming yourself for being unable to help, I chose to hide it."
"So, what kind of enemy was it?"
"It was another me. You know, in the original story, I shouldn't exist. I was like one of those transmigrators from stories, arriving in this world by accident. But the original me didn't have a deep attachment to this world, nor did he love it. He just wanted to go back to his own."
"But Heaven did not grant his wish. After a series of attempts, he still failed, and on top of that, he became infected by the Void. Under those circumstances, he split and divided himself, allowing him to utilize the power of the Void to its greatest extent in a short time without being consumed by it."
"In the end, he split into three individuals. One represented his obsession to return home and his hatred for this world. Another represented my naive past dreams and once-pure attachments. And the last was a rotting, empty shell, devoid of ideals and dreams."
"I was responsible for surviving in this world, relying on the power of the Void and Honkai, and step by step, I would perfect and grow through my naive mindset. Then, in the original plan, I was meant to become a sacrifice to fill the void of that Obsession, giving him the power to return home. He would then consume that rotting shell. After growing in such a way, he could guide this universe step by step, throwing all of time into chaos, making everything burn to become the fuel for his journey home."
"But due to an accident, or perhaps the good luck of a certain girl, he was exposed midway and had no choice but to commit suicide to hide his existence."
"And because of that, the shell that was meant to be the backup plan grew powerful instead. The one I had to face was that magnified shell."
"If he had won, the universe would have been destroyed. He would have preserved all the living beings of this universe, and after returning home and fulfilling his obsession, he would have let every being in the universe live in an eternal loop within a single, beautiful, happy day."
"He possessed all the abilities that I do, so I wasn't sure I could win that battle... Fortunately, we finally determined a winner and a loser. In the end, he chose to let go, allowing me to win the battle completely, letting me fill my own gaps and become the complete Xin Yu."
"Mei, I'm sorry for making you worry."
"You idiot. The one who should be sorry is me. You've given so much for me, and I've never truly given anything for you."
"No," Xin Yu said, taking Raiden Mei's hand and looking directly into her eyes. "What you gave was your entire self, your love. To me, that is already the most precious reward."
"Xin Yu..."
"Mei..."
"BASTARDS! Aaargh!"
Outside the flower shop, that string of words had left Raiden Ryoma completely bewildered. He had no idea what the two were talking about, but as he listened, he felt the atmosphere inside was getting more and more intimate. He immediately kicked out, trying to smash open the shop's main door.
But the seemingly fragile wooden door was now impossibly sturdy. The kick slammed into it, and Raiden Ryoma ended up clutching his foot in pain.
"You animal! You animal!"
Raiden Ryoma pounded on the wooden door, feeling as if his world was collapsing.