"So, if we let him see it with his own eyes and experience the so-called future of Ena's Dream for himself, would he change his mind?"
Kiana put forward this idea. She couldn't truly recreate Ena's Dream, but constructing a similar dream or simulation was within her ability. It would be troubleso, yes—but being human ant daring to challenge oneself.
Her proposal was nothing short of shocking.
Robin remained silent for a long while. There was no doubt she trusted Sunday, but his stubbornness had manifested only recently.
She couldn't abandon reason, ignore the risks, and refuse to consider the most crucial question.
What if it failed to wake him up—and instead further strengthened his obsession with realizing Ena's Dream?
If that really happened, what would she do?
Kiana didn't interrupt Robin's thoughts. She had only raised the suggestion casually. Truthfully, she was curious as well—what kind of future was that? What expression would Sunday wear once his "wish" was fulfilled?
When a dream truly materialized before one's eyes, would that world really be the paradise he envisioned?
Kiana hadn't ignored Robin's concerns. But in her view, even if there were risks, reality itself would give Sunday a harsh wake-up call.
There was another advantage to doing this. It would allow them to see what kind of person Sunday truly was—and what his innermost thoughts actually were.
If even that couldn't shake him...
Then it would be necessary to pay close attention to his condition and find a way to correct it. After all, he was Robin's brother.
"What do you an?"
"If we want him to give up, there are two simple and direct thods. One is to sever his path with absolute strength and conviction. The other is to make him abandon it with his own hands."
Cutting off his path with overwhelming strength and willpower was the most straightforward solution. For Kiana, it was also the simplest.
But if she did that, there would be no way to keep it hidden. The aftermath would be extrely troubleso—especially now that the IPC had its eyes on Penacony.
The IPC had always wanted to reclaim Penacony.
Robin said nothing. She was thinking. The first option was the simplest and most direct. Though she didn't know the full extent of Kiana's power, she had spent enough ti with her to understand her capabilities.
But how could a battle end without injuries?
Win or lose, both sides were the most important people in her life—one was the person she loved, the other was the brother she had relied on since childhood.
And the second option?
On the surface, it seed more peaceful. But the hidden risks couldn't be ignored. There were simply too many variables and uncertainties.
She gazed at the dreamscape of Penacony.
Slowly, she made her decision.
"Kiana, what thod are you planning to use to let my brother see Ena's Dream?"
She looked straight into Kiana's eyes, unwilling to miss even the slightest change in her expression.
"The moria in Penacony is abundant," Kiana began, first ntioning the unique environnt here before continuing. "I'll use a blank Stigmata as a carrier. Together with Araya, I'll modify it, turning it into a special dream that can resonate with the environnt here."
She explained carefully to ease Robin's doubts and make it clear there would be no danger.
After all, this was already a world of dreams.
Using a dream to solve a problem seed perfectly reasonable.
It was precisely because of this special environnt that Kiana had gained inspiration.
"I'll send him into that dream. He can fulfill his ambitions there and personally witness what kind of future Ena's Dream would truly bring."
"Can I experience it first?" Robin looked at her seriously.
Her choice was self-evident.
Kiana nodded lightly. "Of course. I'll go find Araya and start modifying the Stigmata right away."
After a pause, she added, "The process will be pretty dull and tedious. Do you want to co with , or would you rather have so ti alone?"
Robin hesitated for a mont before speaking in a low voice. "I want to look at Penacony from a different perspective."
Her brother's transformation definitely had a reason behind it. Unfortunately, she hadn't returned to Penacony for a long ti and currently had no clues.
She wanted to search for answers.
She wanted to understand why he had chosen this path.
"Alright. Be careful on your own. Penacony might not be as safe as it used to be. If you run into danger, contact imdiately," Kiana said with a nod, having no objections to her decision. "Once I'm ready, I'll co find you."
Watching Kiana disappear from sight, Robin stood alone on the rooftop terrace, her expression turning sowhat desolate.
She couldn't understand.
Looking at the unchanging, eternally bustling scene before her, she silently made a vow in her heart.
On the other side.
Kiana's idea was good, and it was feasible at a basic level. But the efficiency was far too slow. She had gained considerable experience in creating Stigmata worlds.
However, when it ca to moria, she was nothing more than a brute-force amateur. She only knew she could use it—like picking up a tool and operating it—yet she had no idea how that tool was made, what its essence was, or what principles it operated on.
If she wanted to use that power for delicate, precise work, she needed to understand moria far more deeply.
It was like modifying a weapon—you had to know how it was made before you could alter it.
Though she could rely on the miraculous power of Honkai energy, putting it into practice would take too much ti.
And ti waited for no one.
How could she quickly acquire that knowledge?
The first people she thought of were her acquaintances. Acheron could be ruled out imdiately—there was no way she had studied moria.
Ruan i mainly researched biology. Even if she had touched on moria, it probably wasn't in depth.
Herta...
What was Herta best at again?
The Simulated Universe?
That seed more like her hobby.
Herta appeared to research whatever caught her interest. Who knew whether she had ever grown curious about moria in the past?
As for others...
Nas flashed through her mind one by one. In the end, Kiana settled on two candidates.
Perhaps Herta, who might have studied this field.
And...
Black Swan, with whom she had once shared a dance.
She would ask Herta first.
Acting imdiately, without caring what Herta might be busy with, she found Herta's contact and sent her question.
As expected, she received an automatic reply.
But she didn't have to wait long. Soon, a ssage ca back.
A single question mark.
[Herta: Has the sun risen in the west?]
Kiana stared at the ssage, puzzled. She didn't quite understand what it ant.
Was there sothing wrong with her question?
Or was it...
Suddenly recalling her experience at the space station, Kiana had reason to suspect that Herta was subtly mocking her for not contacting her at all since coming here.
Just as Kiana was thinking about how to explain herself, another ssage from Herta popped up.
[Herta: Since when did you beco so studious?]
Kiana's expression fell instantly. So that was what "has the sun risen in the west" ant.
Just what kind of image did she have in Herta's mind?
Grumble as she might, she didn't take it to heart and began explaining.
[Kiana: Aren't I in Penacony right now? The moria here is abundant, so I wanted to learn more about it.]
[Herta: Be honest.]
[Herta: You're not the studious type.]
Not the studious type?
Kiana couldn't help but reflect on herself. She felt she was quite diligent. Hadn't she cooperated with Herta on a research project not long ago? If that didn't count as being studious, then what did?
Of course, she couldn't actually say that out loud.
Because Herta wasn't wrong. She hadn't asked out of curiosity. She needed that knowledge for sothing.
[Kiana: Alright, fine. I told you before that I ca to Penacony to help soone, right?]
[Kiana: I need knowledge about moria right now. So, have you done any research on it?]
Herta didn't reply imdiately. Soon after, she sent over a compressed file package.
Apparently, one of her puppet bodies had just finished compiling the materials.
Kiana's eyes lit up. She eagerly accepted the file Herta had sent—only to fall completely silent after opening it.
The mont the docunt loaded, she was t with dense walls of text and endless annotations.
She imdiately wanted to retreat.
How long would it take to learn all this?
Where was she even supposed to start?
What were these terms supposed to an?!
After skimming through it briefly, Kiana felt a phantom headache coming on. With this much material, how long would she have to study?
By the ti she mastered all of it, she could probably have brute-forced the finished product into existence already.
[Kiana: ...]
She sent an ellipsis back to Herta and decisively gave up.
There was another path.
She could find an expert in this field to assist her. With Araya handling the Stigmata and that person handling moria, the process would accelerate significantly.
They could reach her desired result in the shortest ti possible.
As for Herta's grand "learning package"...
That could wait for another day.
Herta could easily guess what she was thinking. From the start, she hadn't believed Kiana would seriously study it. Most likely it was just a montary impulse.
She didn't particularly care about it.
[Herta: The Astral Express' next stop is also Penacony. Rember to look for that Stellaron brat.]
[Kiana: Stelle? Why would I look for her?]
Once the Astral Express arrived, they would inevitably run into each other. But for Herta to specifically remind her—now that was strange.
[Herta: When she tested your Honkai Simulated Universe, there was a small accident. Go take a look for her.]
[Kiana: ???]
What did she an, there was a small accident while testing her Simulated Universe?
Kiana felt her entire being go cold.
[Kiana: A small accident? How small is small?]
[Herta: You'll know when you see her.]
[Herta: I have things to do. We'll talk after you et that brat.]
What? You can't just pique my curiosity and then leave it at that!
Kiana ground her teeth in frustration, silently vowing that the next ti sothing caught Herta's interest, she would dangle it the sa way.
Let her experience that maddening half-satisfied feeling too.
Still, Herta didn't seem particularly anxious, so Stelle's situation probably wasn't serious. If it was just a minor issue without danger, Kiana couldn't guess what kind of problem it might be.
She would have to wait until Stelle arrived and see for herself what had gone wrong.
"Forget it for now." She shook her head, pushing thoughts of Stelle aside. The priority is finding soone who knows what they're doing.
The candidate?
Of course—Black Swan.
She needed soone with deep knowledge of moria. In Penacony, who was more suitable than Black Swan?
As for whether Black Swan would help...
Their first eting hadn't exactly left a pleasant impression for the mokeeper. But given a mokeeper's curiosity, that sense of danger would probably only fascinate her further.
If given another chance to pry, Kiana suspected Black Swan would most likely continue courting danger.
mokeepers were bold like that.
She wasn't worried Black Swan would refuse. Compared to that, there was sothing else she cared about more.
Where exactly was Black Swan now?
The simplest thod would be to obtain her room number. But The Reverie certainly wouldn't casually disclose a guest's information.
Conventional thods wouldn't work. She had rescued Robin, and Sunday would soon realize she was involved.
It wasn't impossible that she would end up on the Family's wanted list.
Which ant she would have to use unconventional ans.
"I feel like I'm drifting further and further down the path of an outlaw."
Faced with this problem, her first instinct had been to use illegal thods to quickly achieve her goal. Even though ti was tight, she couldn't help but mock herself.
That said...
Illegal thods might be improper—but right now, they were extrely effective.
With a bit of Herrscher authority, she quickly obtained Black Swan's room number at The Reverie.
Unfortunately, the mokeeper was still wandering within the realm of dreams.
Her room was empty.
mokeepers walked the Path of Rembrance. They were not beings of flesh and blood. The way they entered dreams was naturally different from ordinary people.
Left with no other choice, Kiana wrote a brief invitation letter and left it on the table.
Just as she was about to leave, she suddenly sensed sothing. Narrowing her eyes slightly, she looked into the distance and casually rendered herself invisible.
In the next instant, she appeared ghostlike outside the door of her original hotel room.
The door had already been opened. The Family's hounds stationed at the entrance searched fruitlessly, baffled.
"Where did she go?"
"Search the surrounding area. If we still can't find her in half an hour, we'll report it as it is."
The steadier of the two hounds remained relatively calm. The universe was vast. All sorts of strange abilities existed. Penacony was famous as the Planet of Festivities. Encountering unusual individuals here was nothing surprising.
The two searched the room again. After confirming there were no hidden passages, no special traces, and no clues, one stayed behind while the other went outside to continue the search.
Little did they know that the person they were looking for was standing right outside the door, watching them.
"Looks like Sunday has finished talking with Aventurine," she thought silently.
She needed to speed things up as well.
She could at least start building the frawork first.
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