Three figures quietly moved through the crowded streets of Arc City.
Disguised in civilian clothing, Theresa Apocalypse, Raiden Mei, and Bronya Zaychik blended into the bustling city.
Despite their disguises, two details stood out.
Around Mei's neck hung a violet crystal necklace, while Bronya wore a blue crystal necklace.
Bronya quietly reported: "Principal Theresa, we have entered Arc City. No sign of us being followed or monitored."
Theresa gave a small nod: "Roger. Maintain contact with Dr. Einstein."
Bronya responded immediately : "Understood."
Theresa then turned toward Mei.
Theresa: "Mei, secure the perimeters."
Mei nodded and moved to carry out the order.
Mei: "Yes."
As Mei moved away to inspect the surrounding area, Theresa muttered irritably : "We'll find that icky Serpent guy and get this over with."
She crossed her arms and continued complaining : "Can't they just send the intel to me by email or HOMU Chat? This is so stupid and old school."
Bronya calmly provided her analysis : "Bronya suspects that they are trying to avoid data theft or leakage."
Theresa rubbed her chin thoughtfully : "Hmmm... maybe this means that the intel is super-valuable."
While the two were speaking, Mei scanned the streets around them.
The vast city stretched endlessly with towering structures and glowing highways.
She couldn't help but comment quietly : "Is this Arc City? It's way bigger than I thought. Such prosperous cities are a rare sight, even before the Eruption."
Theresa overheard her and replied : "That's true. When more Honkai Beasts appeared...people abandoned their homes and moved into cities where there's real protection. As technology and resources became more centralized, these cities grew into megapolises."
Mei lowered her gaze slightly, thoughts drifting toward someone important.
Mei: "Finding a person in this megapolis is like finding a needle in a haystack... don't worry, Kiana. I will find you."
Theresa clenched her fist as she continued : "These intel dealers are born liars. Dealing with them is super risky."
Her expression hardened : "But this is the only chance we have for finding Kiana after fleeing HQ. I must give it a shot no matter how risky it may be."
Soon, the trio arrived at the designated location.
Mei reported quietly : "We've arrived, Theresa."
But something felt wrong.
The area was silent.
Too silent.
Theresa immediately warned the others : "It's too quiet. Something's wrong. Stay vigilant, girls!"
Mei scanned the surroundings and noticed scattered wreckage : "Destroyed mechs everywhere... a major battle had taken place."
They cautiously advanced.
Then they saw him.
A tall humanoid figure lay motionless on the ground.
He wore a long black jacket with a hood and an armored shoulder piece on his right side. His umbrella lay unfolded beside him.
Theresa approached the body and examined it.
Her expression turned grim.
Theresa: "What happened? The Gray Serpent...he's dead?"
Suddenly—
A loud automated announcement echoed through the sector.
System: "Warning! Criminal incident detected in Sector D-2814.Cease all violent behavior. Drop your weapons and put your hands in the air."
Several enforcement mechas descended around them.
Weapons armed.
Theresa cracked her knuckles.
Theresa: "Cease all violent behavior?We're just about to get started!"
In a flash, she summoned the divine cross Oath of Judas.
Golden spears burst outward toward the incoming machines.
At the same time, Bronya summoned Project Bunny, which unleashed a devastating laser barrage that disintegrated several mechs instantly.
Beside them, Mei drew her katana and dashed forward.
Her blade flashed as she sliced through multiple machines in rapid succession.
Metal shattered and sparks filled the air.
During the battle, Bronya simultaneously hacked into the city's security network.
Moments later—
The mechs stopped arriving.
Bronya reported calmly : "Bronya has hacked into their channel. All alerts have been switched off."
Mei sheathed her blade and looked around as she report :"It should be safe now. Let's head back to the Hyperion."
But Bronya raised a hand, stopping them : "Hold. Bronya thinks this murder is no mere coincidence. Bronya shall scan the Gray Serpent's body."
She activated her scanners and began analyzing the corpse.
A moment later, Bronya reported her findings : "A clean, lethal wound delivered with a single stroke by a pro. Valuables were left behind.But cellphones and info devices were taken away. Gray Serpent received several surgical augmentations and implants...all of which had been removed. Ocular prosthetics and neural implants are missing."
After completing the scan, she continued : "The murderer attempted to acquire intel from the Gray Serpent.Said murderer killed the Gray Serpent and removed all prosthetics, including ocular implants...perhaps for unlocking biometric security measures."
Theresa frowned : "Erm... so you're saying we got here too late?"
Bronya paused before speaking again : "Perhaps, but Bronya detects something else.There is a bio-verification chip hidden within the Gray Serpent's wrist."
Mei looked relieved : "Thank goodness. The murderer must have missed this."
Bronya then turned toward Theresa : "Principal Theresa, key intel is usually provided with a backup. Bronya can use this biometric chip to enter Gray Serpent's territory and get the backup."
Theresa immediately shook her head and said : "We can't do that. The Gray Serpent may be an intel dealer, but he commands plenty of power in Arc City. Only Schicksal would dare to murder a person like him. Staying in this city is far too dangerous for us."
Bronya lowered her gaze slightly.
Her voice softened : "Bronya understands the feeling of being manipulated and controlled by others. Subject Kiana is experiencing the same. Bronya must rescue subject Kiana at all costs."
Then she quietly added, her hand resting on the blue crystal necklace around her neck.
Bronya: "That's what Subject Kouga would do"
Nearby, Mei gently placed her hand over her own violet crystal necklace.
Her expression was filled with quiet sadness.
Theresa looked at both of them.
For a brief moment, she said nothing.
Then she let out a soft sigh, her shoulders relaxing slightly.
Theresa: "I... I understand...But I will call off this mission immediately if anything bad happens."
Her tone was firm despite the hesitation.
Theresa Apocalypse, Raiden Mei, and Bronya Zaychik infiltrated the stronghold once controlled by Gray Serpent.
The interior was heavily fortified.
Patrolling mechs moved in precise, mechanical routes.
The trio quickly ducked behind cover.
Bronya stepped forward, holding the biometric chip she had recovered earlier.
Her voice remained calm and precise.
Bronya: "Bronya used Gray Serpent's biometric chip to shutdown the patrolling mechs."
She interfaced with the system.
Lines of code streamed across her interface.
Theresa watched the machines cautiously.
Theresa: "Who is this Gray Serpent? How does an intel dealer afford all these mechs? What's he trying to protect with such tight security?"
Bronya continued her input without looking away.
Bronya: "Power off. End all mech subroutines."
One by one—
The mechs froze.
Then powered down completely.
Silence filled the corridor.
Bronya turned back to the others.
Bronya: "This place should be safe. Bronya shall attempt to hack into Gray Serpent's system to locate the intel."
A holographic interface unfolded in front of her as she connected directly into the database.
Theresa nodded.
Theresa: "Mei and I will patrol the surrounding areas during this time."
As the two moved to secure the perimeter, Bronya focused entirely on the system.
Streams of encrypted data flooded her vision.
Bronya: "Bioverification complete. Connected to Gray Serpent's database."
She paused briefly.
Bronya: "Hnngh... target is cautious. Defense modules detected."
Her fingers moved faster.
Bronya: "Let Bronya disable each firewall."
Time passed.
One layer after another—
The defenses fell.
Finally—
She broke through.
Bronya eyes widened slightly as the full database revealed itself as she thought to herself : 'Implementing global database scan...Searching according to query conditions...'
Then she spoke aloud, almost in disbelief.
Bronya: "The vastness of this data archive... Uncategorized, unlabeled, unindexed..."
She scanned deeper.
Bronya: "Gray Serpent actually saved raw network data of the entire Arc City..."
A brief pause.
Bronya: "Why didn't the Gray Serpent organize his data?"
Theresa stepped closer.
Theresa: "Is there any intel regarding Kiana?"
Bronya turned her head slightly.
Bronya: "Maybe there is, but Bronya requires several days for data mining."
Theresa frowned.
Theresa: "Should we take everything then?"
Bronya shook her head.
Bronya: "Impossible. Moving such a vast database will take even more time."
Mei stepped forward, concern in her voice.
Mei: "Is there anything else we could do?"
Bronya narrowed her eyes, thinking.
Bronya: "This intel dealer did not filter or organize stolen data. This is abnormal.Perhaps the Gray Serpent intended this? Bronya shall perform some inspections."
She dove deeper into the system.
Moments later—
She froze.
Then spoke.
Bronya: "Suspicions confirmed.The Gray Serpent directed all data to a single access port.He owned an unimaginable intel processing tool.Tool would be imprecise. It is more like a she... a Cyborg."
Mei blinked in surprise.
Mei: "Cyborg? Like Gray Serpent who's received plenty of mechanical prosthetics?"
Bronya nodded.
Bronya: "Da. But the extent of cybernetic enhancements is insane. Her entire cerebrum is essentially modified."
Theresa's eyes widened.
Theresa: "How can that be possible?"
Bronya answered calmly.
Bronya: "Her brain is fused with a quantum computer to give her immense processing powers. Basically, he did not need to categorize data pilfered from the Arc City...The Cyborg can filter out data according her master's needs in a blink of an eye."
She continued scanning—
Then a map appeared on the holographic display.
A blinking dot.
Bronya: "The monitoring system has revealed her location. She is still here."
Suddenly—
The dot began to move.
Bronya's eyes sharpened.
Bronya: "Hold... target is on the move."
Theresa immediately reacted.
Theresa: "We must bring her in to locate Kiana."
The three moved swiftly through the corridors, chasing the cyborg.
Bronya kept her eyes fixed on the tracking display.
Bronya said : "The target is not too far away."
Theresa nodded, her pace quickening.
Theresa nod : "Now is the time! Let's catch up to that cyborg!"
They followed the blinking dot on the map, closing the distance rapidly.
Soon—
A silhouette appeared ahead of them.
The cyborg.
However, the moment they drew close, the cyborg reacted instantly.
Raised a hand—
And summoned mechs and said : "Protect this one, imbeciles!"
Multiple units materialized, weapons primed, moving to intercept.
The mechs launched their attack, attempting to delay Theresa, Mei, and Bronya.
But Theresa stepped forward without hesitation.
She activated the Oath of Judas—
Golden spears manifested and shot forward, tearing through the machines in her path.
Mei followed closely behind, her katana flashing with precision as she sliced the mechs cleanly in half.
At the rear, Bronya deployed Project Bunny, its cannons firing in controlled bursts—destroying any mech preparing to launch rockets.
One by one—
The machines fell.
Cleared.
With the path open, they surged forward.
They managed to catch up to the cyborg.
Theresa reached out and grabbed her by the shoulder and said : "I'm so sorry, but I really need your help to find someone..."
However—
When the cyborg turned around, her appearance caught them off guard.
She was a young-looking girl with short grey hair.
Most of her face was covered in mechanical parts.
Theresa froze in shock said : "...hey wait, isn't this just a little girl?"
The cyborg responded immediately, her voice mechanical and emotionless said : "Error: Underaged individual. An adult is required for the query. Standard payment schemes apply."
Theresa's expression shifted to irritation.
Theresa got angry said : "Underaged? What a rude little girl! I'm..."
Before she could continue, Mei quickly and manage to intercept try to calm Theresa down and said : "Principal Theresa, we can't afford to get angry now."
Theresa glanced at Mei, still visibly annoyed then said : "Of course... I know that! But the brat is so rude!"
Mei turned back to the cyborg, her tone gentle and reassuring : "I'm sorry, but Mr. Gray Serpent is gone. We are his... business partners. Don't be afraid, we're here to protect you."
The cyborg girl replied without hesitation : "You just dismantled mech units placed in charge of my security."
An awkward silence followed.
The three unconsciously glanced back at the wreckage of destroyed mechs scattered behind them.
Mei tried again, carefully : "We need your help to locate our friend..."
The cyborg interrupted immediately : "Payment first please." As she takes out a POS unit and continue :"Cash or credit? Please do not glare at me. I'm just following orders."
Bronya stepped forward, expression unchanged.
Bronya have a different solution and said : "We can't dally here too long. Bronya has a workaround."
Project Bunny shifted behind her, raising its cannon and aiming directly at the cyborg.
As she order Project Bunny to Raises cannon at the Cyborg : "We will pay using this. Now leave with us."
with that Bronya led the cyborg away, Theresa suddenly called out to Mei and said : "Mei, you stay! I have a mission for you!"