"Why are you here…"
Seele's eyes trembled slightly, and she stumbled backward, flustered, afraid to look at the person in front of her, avoiding his gaze.
She had made up her mind that for Lin's wish to protect humanity, and for her own wish to stop seeing more people die, her will would not change, even if Lin himself rejected her.
But when this person reappeared before her, and that familiar gaze came through the helmet, she couldn't help but want to escape.
A certain kind of dread took root in her heart.
However, a different emotion quickly took hold of her.
"Why must you care if it's heads or tails?"
Lin did not notice her strangeness, or perhaps… he simply didn't care.
He looked up, staring at the coin continuously descending in the air, seemingly equally fascinated by its two sides.
"I have always wanted to see you…"
Lin lowered his head. The dim viewing screen was like an opaque mirror, reflecting Seele's forced smile.
"Lin… I've done a lot of bad things…" Her fingertips were trembling, her whole body weighed down by that emotion. She smiled pallidly, wanting Lin to see her smiling face, "But I did it because I don't want to see the people around me perish anymore, to end the chaos in Moth's Flame, to make those scumbags who exploited the soldiers atone, and to fulfill your wish… I know you will surely oppose me, because that's the kind of person you are…" (Monthly fee group 694936135)
"So, I'm sorry…"
"When did I become like this…"
Large teardrops gushed out with her rapid breathing, blurring the figure of the person in front of her.
"But it will end soon… I will make the dead rest in peace. The era where people die on the battlefield, killed by foolish orders, will arrive soon…"
"Please, just wait for me a little longer…"
Seele didn't know what she was saying. Her words were incoherent, wildly pouring out the confused emotions in her mind. She never sought Lin's personal forgiveness.
Just for a moment, even if it was just for a fleeting second, if this phantom could nod to her, confirming her actions…
"What are you talking about?"
The person wearing the helmet asked the nearly hysterical girl in a flat tone.
"I…"
"Do you know him well?"
"…"
All her words were cut off in her throat, unable to be spoken.
An indescribable emotion spread from the depths of her heart.
The "person" wearing the helmet placed their hands on the helmet. They said unhurriedly: "You said you wanted to fulfill his wish, right? Then do you understand him?"
"Of course, I understand him! He told me his thoughts, his will. We bear the burden of the departed…"
"Yes, bearing the ideals of the departed. You also said you would let the dead rest in peace, but you… haven't you already betrayed the ideals of the departed?"
"…"
"You say you understand him, but you are doing the very thing he detests the most. So, do you really know what he is thinking?"
"…No."
"Don't you not even know what he looks like, his past, or anything about him?"
The "person" removed the helmet.
On the face beneath the helmet… there was nothing.
Eyes, nose, mouth… all were absent. There was only blankness, only "nothingness."
The same "nothingness" as her heart.
"You are just seeking self-satisfaction."
The flesh on that person's face wiggled, and under Seele's astonished gaze, it transformed into…
Her.
The exact same face, the exact same posture, and even the exact same look of terror.
However, the "Seele" in front of her quickly composed the expression on her face.
Finally, she looked at the Seele identical to herself and gently curved her lips.
"But this is also good."
"You don't want anyone else to die."
"I want to defeat death."
"You want to defeat Honkai."
"We will surely be able to… protect the people around us."
…
"Lin, I have two pieces of bad news. Which one do you want to hear first?"
As Lin was about to board the transport plane, a sudden communication from Spaciel made him pause his hand on the boarding ramp and answer the call instead.
The first sentence was an urgent one, devoid of any joking tone.
"…"
"It seems you're not in the mood for my rambling, so I'll be brief. First, the assassination of the high-level executives at headquarters that I previously told you about has been resolved."
"Resolved?"
"Rather than resolved… it's more like it has ended. Dr. Einstein discovered the mastermind and successfully thwarted his scheme, but immediately afterward, some members of Moth's Flame staged a mutiny. A large number of members and high-level executives unfortunately died. Thankfully, Dr. Mei deployed the Titans in time to suppress the rebellion."
"…"
High-level executives, scheme, mutiny… these all coincided with the thoughts of a certain person in his gradually recovering memories. Lin was silent, having already determined who the mastermind was.
The man whose face was also blurry in his memory, the man who called himself "Lin" and gave that name to Lin (Lín cóng).
"So, there's no point in you rushing back to headquarters. And the second piece of bad news is… that mastermind escaped capture. According to reconnaissance, he is on a transport plane heading towards the Fifth Branch, coming in our direction."
"This is the recording from the transport plane during the mutiny."
Spaciel transmitted an image. Lin gazed at the man and the members of the Fifth Squad in the footage.
And then, everything from the past collapsed at that moment.
…
"Cough, cough… It seems you won't survive long enough to get your revenge, huh…"
Spaciel lay on the ground, his face ashen, his colorless eyes staring at the figure standing before him.
"This truly is unexpected…" He wanted to laugh at this moment, but he couldn't. The aura of death continuously emanated from the "person" who was still and looking down. It was a tangible black mist, making the sound of corrosive hatred as it silently approached him, who was unable to move.
He hadn't expected the Sixth Herrscher to descend at this moment.
According to the original pattern, the cycle for a major Honkai Outbreak would be about a year, leaving quite a bit of time until now. He had thought that after completing his plan, Moth's Flame would have ample time to recover from the purge before facing the Sixth Honkai.
But this time, Honkai had once again taken advantage of their vulnerability, preparing to bring down divine punishment upon foolish humanity at the height of Fire MOTH internal strife.
Had he done something wrong again…
Spaciel's body was crying out; this was a biological being's instinctive reaction when facing absolute "death."
But—
"Is there still a chance…" Spaciel fiercely bit his tongue. The intense pain briefly stimulated his mind. His gaze burned as he stared at the Sixth Herrscher, who had not yet completely finished the transformation. "Is it because the surrounding Honkai Energy hasn't risen to a concentration sufficient to condense a Herrscher Core?"
The transformation of all Honkai beasts involves a process, just as Honkai Energy erosion has several stages. The process of creatures being transformed into zombies, Honkai beasts, or even Herrschers isn't non-existent; it's simply that the concentration of Honkai Energy is too high, making the process instantaneous.
Currently, their location was in a high-altitude, sparsely populated, low-Honkai-Energy zone. Even if a major Honkai outbreak could raise the surrounding Honkai Energy concentration, there was still an initial value deviation.
"Cannot let the Herrscher… land in the city… crash… send coordinates and intelligence…"
Spaciel propped himself up with his hands, letting his soul tear at his flesh, and dragged himself up from the ground.