In the devastated battlefield, only blood and arrows remained. Raiden Mei stood motionless, the pink-haired girl's image reflected in her pupils.
Crack.
The sound of shattering ice echoed. Before she could react, the data of both Vill-Vs reached their limit, shattering into countless specks of crystalline blue light with a final crack.
Amidst the fading starlight, Elysia smiled charmingly, elegant and serene.
"Hi~ Mei. Long time no see." The girl smiled faintly, her voice as affectionate as ever, as if the few days of separation were merely the blink of an eye.
However, Mei felt no joy of reunion at this moment. Her expression was grave, her tone icy.
"Don't speak with her appearance. It only disgusts me."
"Eh? What are you saying, Mei? Aren't we good friends?" Elysia lowered her brows, appearing quite hurt.
But Mei wouldn't be fooled by her appearance. Only hostility remained in her eyes. "No matter how you imitate her, it's just a clumsy attempt. Change back to your true form, Herrscher of Corruption."
The Corruption's expression faltered, a complex emotion flashing in her eyes. "Sigh... Even though I use the appearance you're familiar with, speak the words you know, use the address you like, why aren't you happy at all?"
"Because you are not her," Mei stated coldly.
"I get the feeling you really dislike me?" The Corruption lightly touched her cheek, looking thoughtful. "That shouldn't be right. I just helped you deal with that annoying Flame-Chaser. Didn't I do you a huge favor?"
Her confusion didn't seem feigned; she genuinely appeared to think this way. She neither considered killing someone wrong nor understood why impersonating Elysia would be so hateful. To her, everything she did now was merely choices made based on instinct and learning.
"A favor? You killed my comrade and still have the gall to say you did me a favor?" Mei felt her blood pressure rising, her grip tightening on her katana.
"Isn't it true? This '[Pure Evil]' one was a bad guy. Not only did she want to occupy Vill-V's body, but she also wanted to kill everyone. After discovering my existence, instead of fleeing, she actively chose to cooperate with me."
The Corruption spread her hands, glancing at the consciousness space that was showing signs of collapse. "See? This plan of using consciousness as a trap was her idea. Even annihilating the outer layers of the Elysian Realm was her choice for me. I was merely the executor."
"Heh, hard to imagine someone who's done so much evil would claim innocence."
"Evil..." The Corruption seemed to hear something amusing and began laughing manically. "You actually think what I did was evil? But have you ever considered how many times you've been used by the Flame-Chasers since entering the Elysian Realm?"
She took two steps forward, closing the distance with Mei. "That one called Kalpas wanted to kill you without reservation! That Sakura only wanted to use you to find clues about her sister! That Kevin never trusted you from the start!"
She continued walking slowly towards Mei, her voice growing more agitated. "Have you forgotten? What Mobius did to you!"
"..." Faced with the Corruption's accusations, Mei found herself momentarily unable to retort.
"She betrayed you, almost killed you with her own stingers! And what I did... was simply the same thing!"
"Think about it! These Flame-Chasers are the source of your pain! They use you, betray you, subtly change your thoughts, trying to make you one of them!" As she spoke, the Corruption genuinely began to feel aggrieved.
"I just didn't want them to use you anymore! I just wanted to be your friend! I'm like you, we're both Herrschers, both existences hated by these Flame-Chasers! We were supposed to be on the same side, weren't we?"
Just as she was about to continue, Mei interrupted her. "Enough!"
"Herrscher of Corruption, you cannot sway me. Everything you've said is merely from your own perspective. Because you felt malice, you assume everyone harbors malice towards you. But I am different. I have my own thoughts. I can sense the kindness in others."
"Hehehe, kindness? How laughable." Taking a deep breath, the Corruption regained her composure. "Let me tell you a secret. I followed you in here from the very beginning. I experienced everything you experienced. Mobius's betrayal almost killed you, and it almost killed me too. From that moment on, I knew these people would stop at nothing to achieve their goals."
"You say what I did was evil, but Mobius wanting to possess your body – was that good? The Flame-Chasers collectively suspecting and ostracizing you – was that good?
Wake up, Raiden Mei! You are nothing but a pawn on their path to fighting the Honkai!"
"Pawn or not, used or not, those were my choices. They have nothing to do with you." If the old Mei might have wavered at the Corruption's words, the current Mei's conviction was already firm.
Possessing the power to protect others, to rid the world of suffering – that was her reason to fight.
"Conversely, you freely corrupt space, erase the traces left by others, yet claim to be considerate of me. Don't you find that ridiculous?"
"Mmm, I admit I corrupted the Elysian Realm, but that's my inherent survival instinct as a Herrscher. After all, you know, I am the Herrscher of Corruption. Only by constantly corrupting can I maintain my stability."
"Furthermore, while I killed these individuals, I also took over their data. In other words, you can see me as the continuation of their lives. When everything ends, they can leave their mark in another way. That should be considered a good thing, right?"
Finished speaking, the Corruption spun elegantly and chuckled softly. "Look at my current appearance. Isn't this proof of inheriting Elysia's will?"
"..."
Mei remained silent, but the Corruption sensed intense killing intent. She stopped moving, smiling sweetly as she explained, "Don't look at me like that. You should know, no one in this world cherishes this unique, beautiful appearance more than she did. Naturally, I do too."
"Because I have life, I fear death. Because I have form, I understand the pursuit of beauty. Because I started with nothing, I want to cherish everything."
"Born from nothingness, just like she was initially, I am slowly understanding the meaning of 'being alive'. Simply treating me as an enemy is rather unreasonable, wouldn't you say?"
Mentioning Elysia softened even the Corruption's demeanor considerably. "You say I've never felt kindness, but during the time I was attached to you, I actually felt kindness through you."
"Since you entered the Elysian Realm, she was the only one genuinely good to you. Even after sensing my corruption, her first instinct was to protect you. That's why I wanted to become her, to become the warm and bright [Elysia]."
"I never bore you any malice. Because you were the first person I came into contact with. We were never meant to be enemies. If not for Mobius's betrayal, we should have been friends."
"Now, have I explained myself clearly enough?"
Having said all this, they were now standing incredibly close. The Corruption reached out her hand, quietly awaiting Mei's response.