I Am Honkai

"Freeze! Grand General of Frost!"

The icy voice reverberated through the air, reaching the AST members surrounding her.

"What are you planning…?" A sense of foreboding filled Ryouko Kusakabe's heart, but before she could warn her squad, she felt a sudden chill engulf her. She couldn't move, couldn't speak; her entire body was frozen in place.

At that moment, Kusakabe realized this new Spirit was unlike any they had encountered before.

Unlike the elusive and confused Spirits they'd fought in the past, this one struck decisively, without hesitation, and without mercy.

Unfortunately, their past experience had dulled their instincts; they were treating this new Spirit the same way they had approached Princess, Hermit, and other gentle Spirits.

In the final moment before her vision faded, her gaze fell upon the tall, ice-blue figure. She glimpsed the dark blue veil, and behind it, a pair of ice-blue eyes.

"A monster…"

Esdeath floated midair with a serene smile, a polite yet chilling expression (Sebas: "See, etiquette. I trained her well!"). But her eyes—those were the eyes of a predator eyeing its prey.

This wasn't Origami Tobiichi's hate-filled desire for vengeance; it was the gaze of a seasoned warrior, a killer who viewed her opponents as little more than livestock.

Ryouko, who had seen combat during her training with the D.E.M. Corporation in Europe, recognized the gaze of someone who had taken lives. Esdeath had killed before—and not just a few.

The last thing she saw was Esdeath's icy gaze, before everything went black.

Crackle!

A freezing blue light radiated from Esdeath's position. The moisture in the air crystallized and expanded outwards rapidly, blanketing the area in ice.

In an instant, every AST member within range was turned into an ice sculpture, save for one that Esdeath had intentionally spared.

There were no screams, no struggle. They didn't even have time to realize they'd been frozen.

In just a few breaths, the seawater from the tsunami triggered by the spatial quake was also frozen solid, leaving towering waves suspended in midair as if in a frozen painting. The landscape stretched into a vast frozen wasteland.

Unintentionally freezing the tsunami, Esdeath had saved the coastline of southeastern Honshu from catastrophe.

"Weak."

Snap!

With a snap of her fingers, crack!

The ice sculptures began to splinter like shattered mirrors, dissolving into blood-streaked ice fragments drifting in the wind—a scene as haunting as it was beautiful against the backdrop of sky and sea.

"Captain! Everyone! Damn it… Ahhh!"

But Origami Tobiichi saw none of the beauty. In her eyes, the ice was hideous; five years ago, a Spirit had taken her parents, leaving her orphaned. Her hatred ran deeper than anyone else's.

Now, her mentors, her comrades, those she had trained with and fought alongside—all killed by this ice-blue Spirit, her entire AST squad wiped out!

"I'll kill you! I swear!!" Driven by a hatred buried deep within her soul, she clutched her head and let out a heart-wrenching scream.

Whoosh!

Sching—!

Her blue eyes bloodshot, Tobiichi drew her energy blade and dashed toward Esdeath, adjusting the output to its maximum as she swung downward with a furious roar.

"Blinded by revenge… Do you have no understanding of the situation, or even why you were spared?"

The speed enhanced by her artificial magic device might have been near the speed of sound, but to Esdeath, it was laughably slow.

She sidestepped the attack with ease and reached out, pinching the energy blade with two fingers and snapping it. In the brief moment of Origami's shock, Esdeath's hand swept forward.

Squelch!

Blood sprayed.

Origami's abdomen was pierced by an ice spike. Crimson blood spilled from the wound, dripping from her body.

"You're the strongest among them, right? But even so, you're just a mortal. I appreciate the determination in your eyes, the resolve of a true warrior. But resolve alone is not the same as a death wish!"

Floating before Origami, Esdeath dissolved the ice spike, shattering the thrusters on her back. She then gripped Origami's throat and lifted her effortlessly into the air.

"Where are the supernatural beings of this world? Show yourself! Don't you feel shame hiding behind mere mortals?"

"Cough… I'll… I'll kill you!"

"Heh, completely irrational—overwhelmed by hatred." Esdeath chuckled lightly, unimpressed by Origami's single-minded fury.

In her own past, when the Partas tribe was slaughtered by the Northern barbarians, Esdeath had been consumed by hatred. Her desire for revenge was absolute.

But she had transformed that hatred into a motivation for her own growth and strength.

Esdeath would never allow herself to be ruled by vengeance.

Should she kill her?

Her fingers alternated between a tight grip and a lighter hold as Esdeath weighed her options.

Three choices.

The reckless approach: kill her, then have Cornelia, Akame, and the Hunters conduct an investigation while she remained at her current position.

The methodical approach: spare her, regroup with the Hunters, and spread out to investigate this world's military strength, leaving Origami alive to report back.

The middle ground: leave her gravely injured, inflict more damage on the city to draw out the high-level targets while the Hunters carried out their investigation.

"Gah…"

While Esdeath deliberated, Origami's eyes rolled back.

The searing pain brought her to the brink of unconsciousness, her body weakening as blood loss and asphyxiation took their toll.

"Whether you live is up to you."

At last, Esdeath made her choice. She released Origami, and the unconscious girl fell, landing with a thud on the frozen ground below.

Esdeath chose the balanced approach.

"You should consider yourself fortunate that it was I and not Her Majesty. Had it been Her Majesty… I seriously doubt this world would still be standing."

It's rather shameful to admit, but despite Selene's continuous efforts to reshape her image as a harsh and cold ruler, her attempts have clearly been ineffective, with results falling short of expectations.

Selene: "Nonsense! When have I ever been tyrannical? This is slander!"

If she were personally handling matters in this world, Selene would never resort to extermination orders against those who resist. In her "merciful" approach, she would only consider them as… labor or livestock. Ahem, no, she means as part of the ten-in-one execution rule… well, perhaps that doesn't sound quite right either.

Esdeath: "Understood, Your Majesty. Your mercy is clear!"

At this point, even a battlefield commander like Esdeath, known for her ruthless sieges, views herself as more merciful and compassionate than Selene. Ah, how quickly the world changes…

Esdeath may be a fierce warrior, battle-crazed and renowned for her extreme interrogation methods, but she is also a general of the Empire. Strategic thinking is second nature to her.

Though this world's current military power appears weak, the crater over in central Eurasia still looms large as a reminder. Until the relative strengths of her forces and the enemy's are fully gauged, acting with reckless abandon would likely lead to trouble.

Had this been the Esdeath of the original timeline, she might have gone for the straightforward approach.

But the ten years she's spent at Selene's side, learning from her, has embedded a more cautious and calculating approach in Esdeath. Now, besides her inclination toward pleasure and self-interest, a bit of pragmatism has seeped into her instincts. After all, the last thing she wants is to have to cry out, "Your Majesty, save me!"—how humiliating would that be?

"Then for now, Grand General of Frost—Frost Knights," Esdeath declared, lifting her right hand and aiming at the ice-covered ocean below.

Whoosh!

A beam of ice-blue energy, glimmering with specks of violet particles, shot out from Esdeath's hand, bringing the frozen sea beneath her to life.

"Now, let's see… Faced with an assault on their city by a few 'toys,' will the supernatural beings of this world reveal themselves, or continue to hide like cowards? I can't wait to find out."

With those words, Esdeath's figure grew faint, her presence fading into the vast expanse around her.

All that remained was the ever-shifting, living frost that began to stretch across the ice, along with a particular "master of romance" who had yet to arrive on the scene.

With the speed of Esdeath's actions—from eliminating AST forces to departing the battlefield in under a minute—she hadn't left a trace.

Elsewhere, in the corridors of the Imperial Palace's Schönbrunn Hall, Selene sneezed three times in quick succession.

Given her current physique, the idea of catching a cold was laughable. Hmph… someone must be talking about me.

Raising her head, Selene surveyed her surroundings, noting how all around her, even the Imperial Guards, respectfully bowed their heads, careful not to meet the gaze of their increasingly unfathomable Empress.

"Your Majesty, please take care of your health," said Susanoo, the Imperial Palace's head chef, as he offered a handkerchief, concern apparent on his face.

Accepting the handkerchief, Selene nodded. "Thank you, no need to worry—it's probably just someone speaking ill of me."

Susano'o, however, did not dismiss it so easily. Programmed for his role with utmost loyalty, he took a more critical view, quickly making a suggestion based on Selene's recent dietary preferences.

"Your Majesty, if I may be so bold—Sichuan and Hunan cuisine, being heavily spiced, are not particularly suitable for health maintenance. Might I recommend incorporating medicinal cuisine into your meals?"

"Medicinal cuisine?" A glimmer of interest appeared in Selene's eyes.

"Yes, Your Majesty. Based on the many new recipes offered by each Astartes legion as tribute, I have developed several new dishes using ingredients from various worlds. Consider it a personal offering to Your Majesty."

Tilting her head thoughtfully, Selene tapped her chin with a single finger before nodding. "Very well, let's give it a try." Turning, she continued onward toward the central courtyard.

"Understood, Your Majesty."

Just then, "Your Majesty."

An imperial attendant quickly approached, respectfully announcing, "Your Majesty, Governor Lelouch has returned to the Conquered World—World 37 under the Astartes 2nd Legion, the Punishers."

"However, Lady Alyssa has taken his family members with her, seemingly very fond of them."

"Ah, let them be. They're just a few young girls with innocent fantasies, after all. It's a good thing if Alyssa, with her youthful heart, enjoys playing with them and making friends her own age."

Selene nodded approvingly, indulging Alyssa's innocent and cheerful nature as she flitted around, bringing joy to the palace. Having such a sweet, optimistic presence nearby was always uplifting for Selene's spirits.

"Come, let's rest a bit. Afterward, I may need to personally intervene over at Robert and Esdeath's side."

In Tengu City.

It had been a few hours since the unprecedented, single S-class spacequake—the strongest in the past thirty years aside from the Eurasian Great Spacequake and the South Kanto Great Spacequake—had struck.

The Spacequake had destroyed nearly half of Tengu City, reshaping the coastline and leaving a gaping hole where once there had been fertile plains. In a land-starved island nation, the government was furious. The Prime Minister's office issued orders to start an emergency operation to fill and reclaim the land.

Because the disaster struck so close to Tokyo, the usually slow-moving bureaucracy was forced into high gear. Supplies and rescue teams poured into the disaster area, mobilizing to restore the region.

Fortunately, Esdeath's ice had prevented the sea from flooding the crater, allowing the rescue effort to proceed without further complications. As they pulled out survivors and filled the massive hole, nearby AST forces were locked in battle.

Thousands of ice knights continued to wreak havoc on Tengu City and had even begun spreading into Tokyo's borders. If it weren't for the rare efficiency from the bureaucrats, bringing every AST unit in Honshu to the city, the losses would have been unimaginable.

AST Headquarters, Tengu City.

"You're telling me that in the initial engagement with the 'Snowstorm' Spirit, every AST operative—thirty-five in total, including Captain Ryouko Kusakabe—was killed within a minute, leaving only her?"

The AST official in a pressed suit and tie gripped his head in frustration as he glanced at the lone survivor, still in critical condition on an ICU bed.

"Save her, no matter the cost. That is an order!"

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