"There really is movement. But are you sure it's not dangerous? Forget it, doesn't matter. You want to go, right? Let's go take a look then."
--------------------------------------------------
Once upon a time, an individual named Otto Apocalypse passed away silently.
An indestructible obsession clung to him, harder than the rocks of the sea.
Even the seemingly immovable earth veins would one day change, as even the eternal sea has its tides.
But the obsession named Otto Apocalypse would not.
He was born for the return of the holy maiden. All else may change, but not this.
...
Void Archives- The Library.
This library has no true physical form, it can only exist within the mind of a suitable bearer.
The Void Archives, a weapon created by Dr. Mei of the Previous Era using the core of the Herrscher of Reason, the Key of Revelation.
Its normal form is a golden cube, capable of transformation.
It can replicate weapons and tools whose construction principles the user understands, even the other Divine Keys, though far weaker than the originals.
But this is not the most precious treasure of the Void Archives.
It contains a nearly limitless expanse of knowledge, knowledge of civilizations collected by the previous Herrscher of Reason, preserved along with the Herrscher core due to the unique nature of that power.
This is the true treasure of the pre-civilization! It holds the most precious power of the Previous Era.
Yet, for Otto, such treasure-like knowledge could be discarded at will, and even the mighty Divine Keys were not worth mentioning.
What he truly valued was the existence of the Void Archives itself.
The Void Archives, a special Divine Key with self-awareness.
At this moment, two Ottos sat facing each other.
Their similarity was as though a full-length mirror had been placed between them.
Had Welt been here, the two would already have been surrounded by the Star of Eden.
"Otto Apocalypse, it is truly surprising that you made such a decision." Void Archives smiled faintly.
"The world is always full of surprises. Precisely because of that, there is a sliver of possibility." Otto also smiled faintly.
Two identical faces stared at each other.
The scene was eerie beyond compare.
After a while, Void Archives spoke again: "Your plan strips yourself of even the slightest chance."
"Someone must move forward. Besides, isn't there still you?" Otto chuckled.
Within Void Archives' core and its microelectronic information was engraved the ultimate mission: to save humanity from Honkai.
On the road against Honkai, few could walk alongside it.
Otto needed to prepare a pure world for the holy maiden.
An ideal paradise, a peaceful world without Honkai, for this, he would stake his everything.
"You're that certain he is the key to defeating Honkai?"
"No." Otto shook his head lightly, smiling. "He is someone who inevitably can defeat it."
"The future has already been confirmed. This means that even if waves arise, as long as the path continues along its set course, the day humanity defeats Honkai is tomorrow. In that, I will devote the entirety of this body's strength."
Void Archives shook its head. It could not comprehend such emotion, but it understood humanity's persistence. At such a moment, there was only one thing it could say:
"I wish you success." All seemed peaceful.
...
Now. The main theme of the universe was tranquility.
Aside from a few worlds still torn by war, even planets once fierce had settled into prosperity.
Except for those who followed the will of Destruction, few in the cosmos willingly sought out conflict.
Jarilo-VI.
Snow still fell thickly.
Now, the endless whiteness was no longer something Jarilo's people despised for life. The people who had lived through those times would set aside their work, gather in small groups, sip warm drinks, and share memories while pointing at the drifting snowflakes.
"Old witch... Sister Natasha, be careful!"
"Hehe, little Hook, you must be careful not to catch a cold, or else..."
"I knooow!" Watching Hook's short legs run so quickly, Natasha smiled warmly.
"Such energy," Seele laughed with hands on her waist.
"Children's joy always comes so easily. I didn't have the mood before, but now it feels good to relax a little."
A flash of reminiscence crossed Natasha's eyes.
Once, snowstorms were Jarilo's most common scenery. Even children, after some time, would lose interest in the endless white earth.
Hide-and-seek was more fun.
"Seele, Natasha." The sound of boots crunching on snow approached as Pela, wrapped in a blue-and-white scarf, walked over.
"Bronya asked me to bring you. It seems urgent." Her expression was serious. Natasha's expression also stiffened.
"Then we mustn't delay. Seele, let's go."
"Mm!" Though she didn't know what was happening, Seele couldn't help but feel tense.
Under Godzilla's radiance, many forces had to show Jarilo-VI respect... except Destruction, sometimes with a touch of Elation or Propagation.
So for something to make Bronya so nervous, it must be about Jarilo-VI's future.
Thinking so, Seele sprang into motion, dragging the two of them toward the destination.
····
"So dark... are the lights broken?" Moving blindly in the dark, Seele groped for a switch.
Bang!!
A sudden thundering sound nearly made her jump.
Before she could understand what was happening, something was placed on her head. Then, stars of light, flickering candles, swaying gently, shone dazzlingly.
"Happy birthday, Seele!"
"Eh? Ehh, ?!"
The lights came on. In the room stood Bronya, Cocolia, Hook, Clara, Topaz... everyone was there.
All smiling at a bewildered Seele.
"Today is Seele's birthday." Natasha laughed. "She's been so busy regarding Belobog lately she didn't even notice her own birthday. So we planned together to throw her a birthday party."
"Seele." Bronya raised a blue cake decorated with Seele's likeness.
Everything was said without words.
"It's so sudden, I wasn't prepared at all." Seele fidgeted with her hands, finally scratching her cheek, a little embarrassed.
Clara gently pulled Seele's hand and led her to the main seat.
After the initial shock, Seele reluctantly accepted the sudden change.
Looking around at everyone's shining eyes, her lips curved upward.
"My wish is..."
...
HI3rd. The past.
"My wish is for homework not to exist in this world at all!" With a wailing cry, a white-haired girl grabbed her twin tails and spun them like spirals.
"Why must homework exist in this world, it's evil!"
"When I become the strongest Valkyrie, I'll erase all homework!"
Kiana's sudden outbursts were something Mei was used to. She set down her pen and chuckled.
"A Valkyrie's battle isn't just about strength. Weapons, weather, terrain, all these directly or indirectly affect her combat power. On the battlefield, they're very important."
Nearby, Yuna's eyes spun in dizziness, nearly fainting.
"But there's just too much, it's too complicated. I'm just a high schooler!"
She pouted, slumping over the desk, her small head unable to take any more.
Himeko crossed her arms, watching the two as if they had already exhausted a lifetime's energy.
"Kiana, if you want to become the strongest Valkyrie, it can't just be empty talk. Durandal's current strength comes from her past efforts. And you, Yuna, as a Herrscher, you didn't even show what a Herrscher should in that spar. Even if you can't use your full power, you shouldn't hold back like that."
Mei nodded in agreement. "Himeko-sensei is right. The Herrscher's authority can actually be studied and understood, there's no reason it can't be used."
From her last spar with Durandal, Mei came to deeply understand her own shortcomings.
As the Herrscher of Thunder, holding authority, the embodiment of physical laws, she had merely swung a sword around in battle before, completely lacking the demeanor a Herrscher of Thunder should have.
Controlling electromagnetic fields.
Mei was engrossed in reading the book on electromagnetism in her hands.
Even for a good student, reading books continuously without a break was also a form of torture, but when this torture could visibly transform into power, the tedium could become nourishment.
"Why do I have to read a biology book?" Yuna held up her book and asked.
Fu Hua spoke: "The Herrscher of Poison's authority is 'poison.' This covers a very broad scope, but most poisons are beyond your current level of knowledge. In contrast, biological poisons are more suited to your situation."
Simply put, your intelligence isn't enough.
Fine, nothing to say in rebuttal.
After all, she had never studied this field before.
And besides, what kind of student stares at poisons every day!
The living room fell quiet again, with only the faint sounds of pages turning and pens scratching.
Not long after, Kiana once again gave in first, cautiously moving over to Himeko's side and whispering.
"Aunt Himeko, what were you all talking about? Was it about that bastard Siegfried?"
"That's not something you need to be thinking about right now," Himeko said flatly. But seeing Kiana's stubborn eyes, she sighed helplessly and said:
"We still don't know the situation with Siegfried. The only thing we can be sure of is that he's still alive, and maybe even living quite well. As for the Judgement of Shamash… it's just a weapon. Losing it doesn't mean much."
"Besides, that man is terrifyingly strong. Didn't you see it with your own eyes?"
At those words, Kiana immediately recalled the figure standing atop the glacier, wielding the Judgement of Shamash.
'With that kind of power, even the rumored overseer wouldn't be able to handle him, right?'
"But… I just feel like you're hiding something from us." Kiana scratched her cheek, trying to read their expressions.
Himeko felt helpless at her words.
Truth be told, when it came to intuition, this "stupid paramecium" had extraordinary talent. Perhaps this was what they called a fool's intuition.
...
World Serpent.
"Recently, Schicksal has been relentlessly tracking our whereabouts. That strongest Valkyrie of theirs, Durandal, and the Immortal Blades' vice-captain, Rita, are both involved," Raven said coolly.
"The matter of the Herrscher of Domination, Schicksal, Anti-Entropy, anyone who could have been involved already knows about it. Not surprising," Gray Serpent replied without the slightest surprise.
If anything, he was more surprised Schicksal had only now started investigating World Serpent.
That Archbishop was no ordinary person. Still, when it came to fighting against Honkai's will, Gray Serpent acknowledged him.
And right now, Durandal's investigation was limited to personnel checks, finding out who were World Serpent members and digging deeper into its cadres.
Though World Serpent had hidden in the shadows all these years, its foundations were vast. Such small troubles were hardly worth mentioning.
"Durandal is not a threat. Only that Archbishop of Schicksal, he's been very quiet lately."
A scarlet glint flickered in Gray Serpent's eyes.
As he said, that Archbishop was no ordinary man. Gray Serpent rarely feared anyone, but the one who sat upon Schicksal's throne was one of them.
Still, before absolute power, all of them were but fleeting shadows.
Seeing Gray Serpent's confidence, Raven only shrugged indifferently.
As long as the money was right, everything could be discussed.
"By the way, what is Jackal up to lately?"
...
Anti-Entropy.
"As expected, to enter the Sea of Quanta, one must be acknowledged by it. Otherwise, even approaching it is a problem," Herta mused.
She had not closed her eyes for three days and nights.
Her energy levels were so high even Tesla was afraid.
Back when she and Einstein did research, they often stayed up late, but no matter how late, they were still within human limits. This woman before her had long surpassed humanity!
"Besides that, finding the way back after entering the Sea of Quanta, and avoiding assimilation by it, these are all problems we must overcome now."
Mere trifles. How could they possibly stop Lady Herta, the 83rd seat of the Genius Society!
"Finding the way back isn't the issue. With anchor points we can fix it. But inside… how do we navigate?"
Though their entrance into this past world was connected through Godzilla's dream, Herta knew very well everything she had experienced, touched, and seen was real.
Therefore she took this seriously.
If they went in and never returned, drifting inside for a thousand years, that would be no joke.
At that moment, Welt walked in.
The moment he entered, he saw the three of them gathered around the Eye of the Abyss, researching.
"Put the Sea of Quanta research aside for now. There's something important I need to tell you."
Seeing his seriousness, Einstein and Tesla exchanged glances, puzzled.
Taking a deep breath, Welt spoke.
"We have news about the World Serpent's Sovereign."
At those words, even Herta was intrigued.
"World Serpent? That group hiding in the shadows? I've been quite interested in those who can rival Herrschers," she said.
After checking Welt's condition, Herta showed her usual intense curiosity about Herrschers.
If not for the overwhelming research projects she already had, she would have caught one to study by now.
Likewise, she was deeply curious about those capable of matching Herrschers. She was utterly inhuman.
"According to reliable intelligence, the Sovereign of World Serpent is from the Previous Era!" Welt said directly, without much buildup.
"The Previous Era?!"
Herta blinked. The Previous Era, tens of thousands of years ago.
She had thought that the white haired man was some junior, but now it turned out he was a survivor who had lived for millennia?
"Is the information reliable?"
Einstein opened her mouth and then closed it, trying to suppress her disbelief, she hurriedly asked.
"This intelligence came from Schicksal headquarters. I don't yet know who sent it, but the information is extremely detailed," Welt said gravely.
...
Night, St. Freya Academy.
In a messy room, a certain white-haired girl poked her head out from her quilt slightly, her eyes warily looking around the room for any signs of moment.
"Kiana, Kiana."
"Who's there?" Half-asleep, Kiana found herself in a strange place, similar to St. Freya, but not completely.
She wandered around for a while, and then the heavy, strange feeling pressed down again.
...
The next morning.
After finishing her morning training, Fu Hua paused when she saw Kiana's dark circles.
"Kiana, didn't sleep well yesterday?"
"Yeah, I had this dream… couldn't get a good night's sleep at all." Kiana shook her head wearily.
She felt like she could sleep for a whole day now.
But if she did that, Aunt Himeko would hang her up and beat her, right?
"Your body is your foundation. Nightmares often mean you experienced something deeply affecting during the day. Don't worry, it'll pass after a while."
"Mm, I'll keep that in mind."
Nodding her head, Kiana trusted Fu Hua enough to follow her words.