Of course, while excessive kindness often made Kiana seem naive about many things, Ren didn't dislike this aspect of her. In fact, it was precisely this pure conviction that drew him to her so deeply.
The reason he brought Kiana to South Asia, aside from dealing with the Relief Association, was primarily to show her a completely different world, to let her experience its disparities firsthand.
Change requires understanding. Only through personal experience can one truly feel the weight of the word 'savior'. And the Relief Association incident was clearly an excellent opportunity for that.
Not interfering with Kiana's thoughts, Ren's gaze fell upon Vyasa.
This guy was smart. Facing interrogation by two Herrschers, he showed no resistance, basically answering whatever Kiana asked. But in reality, such questioning was meaningless. Ren knew Vyasa was hiding a great deal; he seemed forthcoming, but revealed nothing about the parts unasked.
However, Ren didn't specifically point this out to Kiana. After all, on the path to becoming a savior, encountering such problems was inevitable.
"Honored guests, you've finished asking your questions. May I leave now?"
"What do you think?" Although the issue of the caste system left Kiana feeling confused, her kindness didn't equate to stupidity.
No matter how cooperative this guy acted, it didn't change the fact that he had tried to ambush them earlier. Moreover, leveraging the inhibitor resources, Vyasa had undoubtedly bled South Asia dry. Colluding with the inner city, he caused massive civilian deaths. It was safe to say this guy was inextricably linked to the severity of South Asia's Honkai disaster.
"You promised me!"
"We did say we'd spare your life, but we never said we'd just let you walk away like this. Whatever other issues there are, you can slowly explain them in military court." With so many crimes, even without the death penalty, Vyasa was looking at life in prison.
Vyasa clearly understood this too. His cooperative demeanor vanished, and he struggled to his feet. "You can't arrest me! If you take me, all these untouchables will die!"
Unfortunately for him, Kiana was prepared and kicked him back down with one swift motion.
"Do you really think you're a god? The inhibitors were provided by Schicksal, not produced by you."
Seeing escape was hopeless, Vyasa looked utterly defeated, collapsing to the ground.
"On what grounds can you arrest me? Valkyries are not allowed to attack ordinary people..."
However, just as they thought he was ready to surrender, a venomous glint flashed in his eyes. He reached into his coat, grasping a second pistol hidden within.
"Die!" The hidden gun barrel left no trace. Vyasa roared, pulling the trigger directly at Kiana. As the gunshot rang out, a crazed expression, fueled by adrenaline, spread across his face.
The attack was too sudden; Kiana didn't react in time. However, for a Herrscher, firearms weren't much of a threat, causing minor injuries at most.
Just as Kiana braced for the bullet's impact, Ren moved faster.
The moment Vyasa fired, Ren raised his hand in front of Kiana. The high-velocity bullet stopped dead in its tracks the instant it reached his palm. Then, with a flick of his fingers, the bullet reversed its path, flying straight back into Vyasa's heart.
Thwump—
The bullet tore through flesh. Blood bloomed in the sunlight like a crimson spider lily.
This was the first time Ren had killed someone in front of Kiana. Blood spattered onto his face before he could avoid it, giving him an unusually sinister look.
"Ren..." The blood-stained boy reflected in her azure pupils, like a sharp thorn piercing Kiana's heart.
All this time, the image Kiana held of Ren was gentle and rational. She never imagined that one day, Ren would kill someone with his own hands.
Blood spread from the corpse, gradually pooling beneath it. Kiana's lips trembled; she couldn't speak for a long time.
After a while, she finally broke the silence. "Ren, you shouldn't have killed him."
"Why not?"
"He was just an ordinary person, after all. Whatever he did, it should be handled by the law."
"But what if the law can't punish him? You know this too, don't you? If it hadn't been us here today, the trap set with the HSN agent would have been enough to kill most Valkyries. If Himeko hadn't detected the problem here, how many infected people would have died because of his greed?" Ren asked calmly.
Killing Vyasa wasn't an impulsive decision. In fact, the moment Ren learned what the man had done, Vyasa was already dead in his eyes.
The reason he did it in front of Kiana, besides the sneak attack, was primarily because he felt it was time for Kiana to see his 'other side'.
"But..." The girl was deeply conflicted. She wanted to say something, but found that Ren's points seemed valid.
Before she could sort out her thoughts, a strong tremor suddenly came from beneath their feet. Simultaneously, thick black smoke billowed up in the distance, darkening the sky like storm clouds.
The next second, an invisible energy wave swept across the vast wasteland, kicking up clouds of dust.
Such a powerful energy discharge could only mean one thing—a Honkai Eruption.
Pushing thoughts of the Relief Association aside, the two immediately rushed towards the eruption zone. As they neared, they realized the eruption had occurred precisely in the shantytown they had just visited.
The crudely built shacks were now engulfed in raging flames. Black smoke from the burning tarps billowed upwards, blanketing everything below. Within the inferno, terrified screams and agonized cries rose and fell, accompanied by the roars of Honkai Beasts.
"Save people first!"
Kiana didn't hesitate, charging into the fire with the Lance of the Void. Ren was much calmer. First, he used his Herrscher of Ice ability to create an invisible firebreak line. Then, he directly located the source of the Honkai Eruption and sealed the rift in Imaginary Space.
Their roles were clear: Kiana rescued people, Ren controlled the situation.
Fortunately, this Honkai Eruption wasn't severe. The Honkai Beasts formed were only the lowest-level types; even Kiana alone could have handled them easily. The only complication was the large number of infected individuals already present; after the eruption, many instantly turned into Honkai Zombies.
Ren dealt with the Honkai Zombies one by one. Meanwhile, Kiana had basically evacuated the survivors. As the Herrscher of the Void, teleporting ordinary people was effortless.
Half an hour later, the small-scale Honkai Eruption was mostly contained. It had to be said, these people were incredibly lucky. Not only were two Herrschers present, but they arrived very quickly, dealing with most of the Honkai Beasts before they could cause significant damage.
The real cause of major casualties... was the sudden, raging fire.
These people had absolutely no concept of safety. All the buildings were crammed together; once a fire started, extinguishing it was practically impossible.
After handling the Honkai situation, the survivors were mostly settled. However, as Ren approached them, he couldn't help but frown.