49. A Terrible Day, An Unnamed Mark?
On the shore, the churning waves had already subsided, and the furious sea had calmed once again. The massive whirlpool, hundreds of meters in diameter, was slowly disappearing.
Soon, a car sped back from a safe distance in the distance, arriving at the beach. Raven and Cocolia stepped out of the vehicle and ran toward the two children lying on the sand.
"Hey, Zero, is that you—the underwater lab... You're all alive? Someone helped you fend off the Honkai beasts? It must be him... Start a search and rescue operation in the waters immediately. We need to find him, alive or dead!"
Cocolia's mind was in chaos. When she unexpectedly received the transmission from the underwater lab, her face lit up with joy. However, the voice on the other end of the line was not the familiar one she had expected.
"Zero..."
For a moment, the worst possible scenarios flashed through her mind. Shaking her head, Cocolia steeled herself and ran to the children's side.
"Bronya, Seele—how are you?"
No matter what, she couldn't show weakness in front of the children.
"They're fine. Zero protected them well. Bronya has a slight Honkai energy contamination, but nothing too serious—look, Zero even left them gifts."
Nearby, Raven gently swept her hands over the two children. Trained by the World Serpent, she possessed a unique talent for sensing Honkai energy with exceptional sensitivity.
Raven looked up, her gaze falling on the massive, technologically advanced robot beside Bronya, and the dissipating quantum armor and deep-blue scythe on Seele. Such advanced technology was something she had only seen in a place called the "Elysian Realm."
"Dad, Daddy!"
"Father! Don't go!"
The next moment, as if awakened from a dream, Bronya and Seele opened their eyes abruptly and saw Cocolia and Raven standing before them.
"Mom, Sister—where's Daddy? He—"
"...Seele, Father stayed behind."
Seele instinctively asked about Gao qi's whereabouts, sitting up and looking around. But Bronya, recalling what had happened before they were sent away, gently took Seele's hand.
"Dad, Daddy... Waaah..."
Soon, Seele also remembered the moment of parting. Finally, her limited strength could no longer suppress her sorrow, and she began to sob quietly.
Beside her, crystalline tears streamed down Bronya's cheeks. Her grief was overwhelming, yet for some reason, her expression remained impassive, with only the tears flowing freely.
The two hugged each other and cried, knowing that it might be a very, very long time before they could see their father again.
But they refused to believe this was a final goodbye.
"Father is still in that world... We... We will definitely find a way to bring him back!"
"Yes, I'm sure you will."
Raven pulled the two children into her arms. She wanted to set an example for them, to stay strong and not cry. But as she recalled the moments she had spent with the man named Zero over the past year, tears welled up in her eyes.
Even if she saved enough money to buy the island and villa, Zero would never be able to live there.
Raven knew it was time for her to leave. The opening of the Sea of Quanta would surely cause upheaval within the World Serpent. Fortunately, thanks to Zero, the "prisoner" mentioned by Gray Serpent had not been released.
The good times were over. Raven knew she had to revert from "Sister Raven" back to the ruthless mercenary she once was.
At that moment, Raven heard Cocolia dialing another number beside her.
"This is Cocolia, Anti-Entropy headquarters. Connect me to Dr. Einstein. I want to... make a deal with her."
Cocolia's expression was eerily calm, devoid of sorrow or despair. Yet, beneath that composed exterior, Raven sensed a terrifying power simmering within.
She remembered seeing this state in others before—in that space composed of memories, there were several pure madwomen... Cocolia's current state was exactly like theirs.
"Cocolia, you..."
"You know, when Zero tried to persuade me not to proceed with the X-10 experiment, he once said something."
A summer trip meant for a family reunion had suddenly turned into a disaster. Just as she had begun to consider retiring and had found a father for her children, he had sacrificed himself to save them and vanished into the Sea of Quanta. Faced with such a calamity, Cocolia suddenly smiled.
She finally understood why Zero always liked to smile—because sometimes, there was no other expression to make.
"He said that it only takes one terrible day to turn a normal person into a ruthless madman. If I had truly allowed the children to be sacrificed in the experiment, I would have slowly lowered my own limits, bearing the guilt as I descended step by step into the abyss. At the time, I didn't believe him..."
Waiting for the call to connect, Cocolia exchanged a glance with Raven, as if they could read each other's thoughts.
"Now I understand—it really only takes one terrible day for someone to fall into the abyss. Go back to the World Serpent, Natasha. Let's each walk our own path."
Cocolia knelt on the sand, embracing Bronya and Seele. Her gaze sharpened, as if she had reverted to the ruthless warlord, the fanatical executor of Anti-Entropy.
The gentleness and stability the man had brought her vanished with his departure, leaving Cocolia changed forever.
Finally, the call connected, and Einstein's calm voice came through on the other end.
"Cocolia, I've detected fluctuations in the Quantum Sea. What have you done?"
"This is none of your business, Einstein. All I know is that I have something you need. Let's make a deal—I want… the Conquest Gem."
Cocolia knew that she… was destined to fall into the abyss.
——————————
[Simulation Instance: Raven, Silver Wolf, and the Sea – Completed.]
[Rating: S]
[You have slightly altered Bronya's fate. Although she entered the Sea of Quanta, the power of the Authority of Death extracted most of the Honkai energy from her body.]
[She did not lose her emotional functions, but her facial expression system was damaged, making her medically expressionless.]
[Her leg balance was affected. While daily walking isn't hindered, she occasionally trips on flat ground. In the end, she grew accustomed to floating for movement.]
[To find you, she joined her mother's plan while keeping your warnings in mind, striving to prevent Cocolia from committing unforgivable sins.]
[Seele's fate was changed. She was not trapped in the Quantum Sea but stayed by Bronya's side, searching for traces of you.]
[Seele awakened the quantum-related powers within her Stigmata early. Dark Seele rarely appears. They also joined Cocolia's plan, initiating research on the Quantum Sea.]
[Raven left Cocolia's orphanage and returned to World Serpent. Following your advice, she purchased a villa inland to establish an orphanage, though she still secured an uninhabited island.]
[Outside of mercenary missions, she continues to search for clues about her brother's whereabouts and… another person. For this, she even takes on private jobs for Grey Serpent.]
[As for Cocolia… Your departure dealt a heavy blow to her. From then on, she began researching the power of the Honkai and pondering how to open the gate to the Sea of Quanta.]
[To achieve this, she easily crossed many principles and bottom lines. Even with her daughters' help, she didn't hesitate to… sell her soul to hell.]
[2014, the Third Honkai Eruption erupted in Nagazora City.]
"Hah, Cocolia, who would have thought that in the end, it's me…"
Sitting up from the bed, Gao qi let out a long sigh. She hadn't expected that, despite preventing the X-10 experiment, his "death" would push Cocolia further down the path of becoming a warmonger.
Moreover, although Bronya didn't have much Honkai energy left in her body, she still became an expressionless girl who prefers floating while walking—Gao qi feels that the Will of the Honkai is being rather nitpicky, forcing things to align with the original setup.
In this simulation, the only fates Gao qi truly changed were Seele's and the personalities of the children. Otherwise, Gao qi couldn't help but feel that he should have at least earned an SS rating.
"Sigh, damn Will of the Honkai. Sooner or later, I'll rip off your mask and give you a good slap in the face."
Gao qi's expression was particularly grim. He knew that in the next simulation, he couldn't just brute-force her way through. Gao qi had to think of a way to truly and effectively change fate—he had to fight against the very fabric of the simulated world!
Sitting up, Gao qi lightly patted his chest, and a deep blue, semi-transparent quantum armor immediately formed over his body.
[Reward Obtained: Stigma Memory – Quantum Sea Knowledge]
[Scientists MEI and Mobius of the Previous Era embedded a power called Stigmata in the genes of the next civilization. This contains not only power but also knowledge, technology, and "messages" meant for specific individuals. Out of trust, the will derived from the Stigmata shared its knowledge with you.]
[Stigma Memory – Sea of Quanta Knowledge: You have acquired the knowledge of the Death Stigmata and gained a deep understanding of the Sea of Quanta.]
[You can manipulate Honkai energy at the quantum level, utilize the power of the Sea of Quanta, survive within it, and gain an advantage against quantum-type enemies.]
[You can open a portal to the Sea of Quanta anytime, anywhere, allowing yourself and targets to enter. However, you cannot determine the return point to reality unless you use an additional spacetime anchor device.]
As Gao qi expected, knowledge of the quantum domain was brought into reality. Now, he could call himself a quantum character.
[Additional Reward: Nameless Mark: Destruction/Law (Sealed)]
[Two special powers detected your presence and imprinted their marks on you. However, an even more powerful force is currently sealing them, making analysis almost impossible.]
"Huh? Interesting, what could this be…"
Feeling the loneliness after parting with the children and their mother, Gao qi left the dormitory. While pondering the meaning of this additional reward with interest, she headed to the kitchen to prepare breakfast for the Valkyries heading out for work.
Suddenly, the door to the server room at the end of the corridor swung open violently, accompanied by flashing red warning lights. Technician Alvitr rushed out in a panic.
"Anyone there? Anyone? Why is everyone on a mission!"
After searching for a while and finding no Valkyries, Alvitr finally dashed into the kitchen, grabbing Gao qi's hand as if she had found a savior.
"Gao-Gao-Gao qi, the mission's gone wrong! Miss Rita sent a distress signal—we're the only ones who can save her!"
Note: I'm new to translating so please be kind and tell me any mistakes you all find, I will try to release a chapter a day but don't expect much
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Raw: 崩坏模拟器,你找的人是我么?