Herrscher of Dominance in Honkai, starting with the abduction of Kiana

"If the plan fails, I'll likely die in Nagazora. You will inherit the Herrscher of Domination's power."

Days earlier, in the silent Theater of Domination, Kiana and Ren stood at the edge of the stage, gazing at the faint, golden outline of the Imaginary Tree in the distant void.

"Why take such a risk? There are less dangerous options."

"The Honkai won't give me time. The longer I wait, the less likely I am to escape its grasp." Ren turned, offering her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry. I've calculated every possibility. I won't fail so easily."

His gray eyes held an unwavering conviction. Kiana knew he wouldn't be swayed. She bit her lip, her voice barely a whisper. "Is she… that important to you?"

Ren fell silent, considering her question.

"It's not that she's important to me, but to the world. She's like the protagonist in a story. Even if the world ends, as long as she lives, there's still hope. The story can't end. She can't die. I'm just a fleeting shadow. She's the only savior."

"But to me… you are the savior."

Kiana's voice echoed through the empty theater. She searched his eyes, hoping for a different answer.

But Ren only smiled, offering no further explanation.

He understood her words, perhaps better than she realized. Everyone longed for a savior, yet no one could save themselves.

Sensing the shift in the atmosphere, Ren held out his hand, a Dominance core spinning, radiating a soft light.

"It's just a plan. I've sealed the Theater of Domination. The Will of the Honkai won't know my true intentions. I have to deceive myself first, before I can deceive the Honkai."

"Remember what I said. If I can deceive myself, how can you be certain I'm not deceiving you right now?"

Ren's smile was light, carefree, but Kiana couldn't bring herself to smile back.

You think you've deceived yourself, but you haven't realized… are you truly deceiving yourself, or are you being deceived?

Neither of them noticed the Will of the Honkai, observing them from the white void, its gaze cold and calculating.

…

A crimson star flickered in the dark sky. Then, a flaming comet descended, crashing into the frozen earth.

The collision of extreme heat and extreme cold unleashed a torrent of steam, condensing into a fine rain that fell upon the city.

Above the plaza, the air itself seemed to melt in the unimaginable heat.

Kiana, trapped within the icy prison, looked up, whispering a single name.

Ren.

Kevin, his brow furrowed, dispersed the ice before him with a gesture. A flaming greatsword, tearing through space, descended towards him.

He took half a step back, his hand reaching out, his fingers closing around the blade, the chill of Honkai ice emanating from his palm.

Even the flames of the Judgement of Shamash could be frozen. This level of heat posed no threat.

But as his hand closed around the blade, it shattered, exploding into a wave of fire that passed harmlessly through his fingers.

Kevin turned, seeing the figure concealed within the flames.

He realized Ren's target wasn't him, but Kiana, trapped within the ice.

The flames coalesced around Ren, forming a fiery vortex.

He slammed his fist into the ice prison, the flames responding to his will, piercing the thick barrier.

Cracks spread like spiderwebs across the ice. The prison shattered, the fragments reflecting Kiana and Ren's figures.

"Let's go. The experiment is over. We're leaving." Ren's voice was calm, reassuring Kiana after the emotional rollercoaster of the past few days.

But instead of a joyous reunion, a sharp shard of ice awaited them.

It pierced Ren's chest, sending him tumbling from the sky. Kevin, his expression impassive, flicked his wrist. The ice shard exploded, impaling Ren from within.

The frigid cold, which had merely numbed Mei's extremities, now spread through Ren's vital organs.

He gasped, blood spraying from his wounds, painting the sky a fiery red.

Kiana, reaching out to him, froze, watching in horror as he fell.

"Such heat… another unstable Herrscher." Even after impaling Ren, Kevin remained wary. The brief contact had revealed a threat far greater than Raiden Mei.

It wasn't a matter of raw power, but the sheer capacity for Honkai energy.

Mei, as a complete Herrscher, could contain and control vast amounts of Honkai energy, like a reservoir with a controlled release.

But Ren was different. He was a cracked vessel, overflowing, its floodgates open, forced to absorb the endless flow of Honkai energy from the Imaginary Tree. He was a fifty-liter bucket filled to the brim, leaking, threatening to burst.

"Is this the nature of the Herrscher of Flames? Unstable power in exchange for unparalleled destruction."

Ancient memories surfaced, the image of the Previous Era's Herrscher of Flames incinerating Australia flashing through Kevin's mind.

The portal connecting to the Imaginary Tree suddenly collapsed. The twenty Hyperion-class Honkai reactors overloaded, exploding. In a matter of minutes, Nagazora's Honkai energy had been completely drained.

Kevin didn't know what information Otto had obtained, but he wouldn't allow him to escape with the Second Divine Key so easily.

He glanced at Ren, lying motionless on the ground, confirming he was no longer a threat, and turned his attention to retrieving the Divine Key.

He froze a collapsing skyscraper, transforming it into a massive ice shard, which he launched towards the portal.