Historia and Jiekhrund threw punches at each other.

A misdirected punch struck the control panel, causing it to spark and fly into the air, while a chair, kicked into the fray, spun toward Historia’s head. With a swift movement, she blocked the chair with her ki-imbued forehead, hiding her fist under the shadow of the chair before launching a strike.

Jiekhrund twisted his limbs in an odd but fluid manner, catching her arm with ease. But what he didn’t expect was that Historia hadn’t hidden her fist—she had hidden a revolver aimed straight at him. It was only at the last second that Jiekhrund realized the true weapon she concealed. Ki surged violently, ready to explode.

Bang!
With a deafening roar, the revolver’s barrel flashed with an azure light, and almost instantly, Jiekhrund bent backward in a desperate attempt to dodge.

It was a close call. The ki-enhanced bullet grazed Jiekhrund by a hair’s breadth. Blood splattered along the bullet’s trajectory, and the ricocheting shot shattered the wall. Jiekhrund’s skin showed a fine, sliced wound.

But the wound quickly healed. Historia paused, startled.

“Regeneration…?”

In a way, yes, but it wasn’t quite the same as the regenerative powers of immortals or vampires. What Jiekhrund was doing was using his mastery of Camouflage Ki to forcibly bind his blood and stitch his skin back together, creating a new face as if he were patching himself up.

Of course, it was still terrifying. It meant he could keep stitching himself together and continue fighting even when torn apart.

“That’s quite the ability you’ve got there.”

Wow. The Six-Star Generals really are something. I could probably buy a bit of time against a normal general, but against someone like him… if Historia wasn’t here, I’d have been obliterated in a single breath.
Acknowledging his strength, I couldn’t help but admire him.

“Especially for someone living a fake life!”

“Huey! Shut up already!”

Historia’s scream pierced the air as the fight intensified. But teasing someone so easily triggered is always so satisfying. And right now, my words are more effective than Historia’s attacks.

Jiekhrund shifted his focus back toward me, once again pushing Historia aside. In a one-on-one fight, such movements might have been meaningless, but with me positioned behind her, Historia had no choice but to stop him no matter what.

Fortunately, this time, she had a tool at her disposal.

Ki surged, ready to explode. The gunshot tore through the air, but this time, Jiekhrund dodged in anticipation, skillfully avoiding the bullet just as it was fired. The shot missed its mark, but Historia used the opening to close in on him again.

'He’s trying to make her waste bullets. Two shots down. Only one left… just one more bullet, and—'

Despite his rage at me, Jiekhrund remained calm. That’s the level of control you’d expect from the Six-Star General, Jiekhrund of the Abyss.
Even with his identity under threat, he stayed cold and calculating. It’s the same with all the Six-Star Generals—they’re terrifyingly dangerous. If Historia had been targeting me, I’d have been gunned down and died in agony.
It’s fortunate she’s on my side.

But that doesn’t mean I can just rely on her. Even though Historia is protecting me, I still have to do whatever I can to survive. Clinging to her and expecting to get through this easily isn’t an option.

All I can do here is attack him mentally.

“Is Jiekhrund’s life really so appealing? Worth risking your life to protect? I doubt it. Your life as Jiekhrund is just an extension of your usual work—stealing other people’s faces, infiltrating their lives, exposing their secrets, and destroying them from within. Your whole existence hinges on becoming someone else.”

With each word, Jiekhrund’s attacks became more intense. Historia, who was fiercely blocking him, was probably cursing me inwardly. Every time their fists clashed, it sounded like bombs going off.

It’s true—people tend to get angrier when someone tries to hold them back. Since he can’t vent his rage on me directly, it’s only building up inside him.

“Come on, Jiekhrund! I can read your desires. I’m the only person who can fulfill them, because your desires are what make you who you are!”

“SHUT UP!”

Jiekhrund threw a heavy blow at Historia while simultaneously hurling a sharp object at me. It was a finely sharpened piece of fabric he had torn from his own clothing. Although it was made of alchemical cloth, the force he threw it with, infused with his ki, was enough to make it deadly.

Hmph, but as a mind reader, I could already see the trajectory… wait, it’s moving too fast for me to dodge…

Bang!
At the last second, Historia shot down the projectile with her last bullet. Her accuracy was remarkable, even without the Sighter Technique. Honestly, with shooting skills like hers, does she even need Sighter? If you can hit your target like that, why bother with a guaranteed hit? What a waste of talent.

'That was the last bullet… what now? There’s no more options left…'

Ah, come to think of it, in the regressor’s memories, Historia awakens a new power in the future. It’s called Gun-Ki Harmony, a technique much stronger than Sighter. It seems incredibly powerful. Maybe she could awaken it now? I’m in danger too, after all. How about awakening it to save us both? Let’s ride this wave to safety together!

Now that Historia was out of bullets, there was no way to hastily create more through combat alchemy—the opponent was too strong. We were clearly in a tight spot.

Yet, despite being in an advantageous position, Jiekhrund remained on the defensive. Historia quickly understood why.

'He knows about my Sighter Technique. I’ve already fired three shots, and with my technique, the fourth bullet is always a guaranteed hit. Since he doesn’t know I’m out of bullets, to him, this revolver still holds that fourth shot. He believes I have a sure-hit bullet left!'

With her conclusion reached, Historia spun the cylinder of her revolver, fully aware that there were no bullets left. Yet she charged at Jiekhrund with newfound aggression, pointing the gun at him but never firing. She moved swiftly, her fists and feet striking as if the gun were still fully loaded, always keeping him in her sights.

Good. This is my chance. I too played along, pretending Historia still had one bullet left.

“Ria! He won’t be able to dodge your next shot. He knows his arms and legs will regenerate quickly, so aim for a vital spot and finish him with one hit!”

“I know that already!”

'Except, I can’t shoot!'

We were perfectly in sync. See? Those who have been tricked know how to play along best.

Each time the gun’s barrel aimed at his head, Jiekhrund moved closer, his body weaving rapidly. He was trying to close the distance and take the gun from her… but it was futile. To wrestle away the revolver, which was imbued with ki, he would need to use even more energy than what Historia had already infused into it. Instead, he wasted his strength parrying her elbow strikes, while constantly avoiding the gun.

And Historia kept fighting, pretending as if the gun was still fully loaded. Jiekhrund wasn’t battling the actual bullets—he was fighting against imaginary ones.

“The scariest bullet in the world is the one that hasn’t been fired yet. Because you never know when or how it will come.”

If he strayed too far to attack me, his whole body would be in her sights. Jiekhrund was effectively trapped by the fear of an empty gun.
Whew. I’m glad I only gave her three bullets. Lucky me, her revolver holds six rounds.

The fight dragged on for quite some time. While Jiekhrund had a slight advantage in hand-to-hand combat, Historia was holding her own—and more—with the revolver in hand. In fact, she was winning.

This lull gave me an opportunity to continue my strategy.

“Just like Jiekhrund, the bullet you’re holding is already spent. Everyone knows about your shape-shifting ability now, and once your secret is out, it can no longer be a weapon. Your value as Jiekhrund ends here. You can’t continue to exist as Jiekhrund anymore!”

“All I need… is to get rid of you…!”

“Haha. I’m not going anywhere! So, how about this? I’ll decide your next life for you. A new name, a new face, a new identity where you can truly be yourself! How does that sound? Tempting, right?”

“I don’t need that! I can decide that for myself!”

“Then go ahead! I’ll be the judge of how well you do!”

Even in the middle of fighting with Historia, Jiekhrund’s face kept shifting uncontrollably. His blank canvas of a face morphed from one identity to another. From behind Historia’s shoulder, I snickered as I watched.

“That’s Tyr’s face, isn’t it? I understand you’re happy about finding a good model, but are you sure you can handle it? That face would offend both the vampires and the Holy Church at the same time.”

As soon as I finished speaking, his face shifted again.
He was still listening, after all. I coolly continued my evaluation.

“Siahti? Looks much better with the arm still intact. But, hey, could you not use my friend’s face? It would make things awkward for me.”

Next, it was the princess’s face. I couldn’t help but chuckle seeing her innocent features clashing with Historia in combat.

“If that were the real princess, Historia wouldn’t be able to attack her in the first place, would she?”

And then, the face that appeared next was… an oddly heroic version of the regressor. I burst into laughter.

“Hahaha! That’s way too masculine! Sorry, but Shay isn’t that manly. In fact, she’s the most feminine person I know!”

Cross-dressing is something only a woman can do, after all. If anything, it’s an impressive take, considering she’s not even a real person.

And then… his face became my own.
For a split second, Historia faltered, and Jiekhrund landed two solid hits on her. But she quickly recovered, the blows not as damaging as they could have been.

“You know, seeing someone with my face cornering you like this actually feels pretty good. Is this what they call vicarious satisfaction?”

Suddenly, Historia smacked the face that resembled mine squarely on the cheek. The impact startled me so much I reflexively touched my own cheek. Whew, my heart almost skipped a beat—I thought I’d been hit for real.

Then, his face changed again… this time into the pale, gloomy visage of a woman, her mouth hanging open like a fool.

Ah, there it is. I’ve found you. The one who created the Military State.

Good. I’ve confirmed it.

“You know, that’s not bad, but I’d suggest something else entirely.”

Long ago, as a child, Jiekhrund was born to a courtesan. Like many children of such uncertain parentage, he too was raised to be a courtesan. The more skills one had, the higher their status. Pressured by his mother, he learned all kinds of talents.

There were many skilled performers in the brothel, and he quickly absorbed every trick like a sponge. As he grew, his talents began to shine, and a traveling theater troupe soon expressed interest in taking him in.

No brothel would willingly part with such a skilled performer. But at that time, theater was all the rage in the Empire. The quality of plays influenced the status of the surrounding kingdoms, so the theaters held great sway. A small brothel, operating under the Empire’s tacit approval, couldn’t resist the pressure.

The only issue was his attachment to the brothel where he had spent his childhood.
But a single word from a theater troupe leader changed his life.

If you stay here, you’ll never be anything more than a courtesan. But on stage, you can become anyone you want.

And with that, he abandoned his old life and became an actor. He took a new name, beginning his second life.

Back then, his heart must have been filled with hope. But, ultimately, it didn’t end well.

“So, why not change as I suggest? I can choose something much better for you than you could ever pick yourself.”