"World Serpent?"
Lynelle's mind immediately went to Mobius from the Elysian Realm: "Why them?"
"According to the data you gave me earlier, the leader of the World Serpent is an entity whose combat power is so broken he could single-handedly take on your entire organization combined."
"This person is sealed in a place called the Sea of Quanta and needs a Herrscher core from the current era as a beacon to guide him out."
Madam Herta's voice paused. "On a side note, I'm actually quite interested in this so-called Sea of Quanta of yours, but... never mind."
"Getting back on track, with your help, Anti-Entropy's power has been expanding at an alarming rate."
"Schicksal, wary of your rapid growth, has also begun stockpiling strength and training outstanding Valkyries, much like an arms race."
"In this situation, the World Serpent's window for obtaining a Herrscher core can only be 'the sooner, the better'. If they wait too long, they might not even get a ticket to the contest."
"So, let's now take stock of the known statuses of all the Herrscher cores in the world."
Herta tapped the screen. "The first Herrscher, the current leader of Anti-Entropy. Moving directly against him isn't just a question of whether they could kill him—the act alone would be a declaration of war against Anti-Entropy, and the current Anti-Entropy is not to be trifled with."
"The second and third Herrschers are both at St. Freya, the domain of Otto's granddaughter."
"By your account, the academy has at least two S-rank combatants, plus a main battleship. Most importantly, making a move on Theresa would likely provoke a furious retaliation from Otto."
"The cores of the Herrscher of Death and the Herrscher of Flame are currently at Schicksal Headquarters. The difficulty of obtaining them is roughly on par with the first two combined."
"So…" Lynelle was slowly catching on. "The only core the World Serpent can realistically target is the Herrscher of Wind core on Wendy?"
"Correct." Herta nodded. "This isn't a multiple-choice question; it's the only solution."
"After all, you said the World Serpent doesn't know you're here in Oceania. As a remote area far from the core regions, Oceania's strength and disaster response speed aren't on the same level as the others."
"Moreover, on the surface, Oceania only has one A-rank Valkyrie, Ragna, and a crippled test subject, Wendy. It's a complete soft target."
"And if Otto wants to lure the World Serpent into attacking Oceania, he just needs to put out word that the Herrscher core fusion experiments there have made a breakthrough, expecting Wendy to fully control the Herrscher of Wind core within a few months."
"Once that news gets out, the World Serpent won't be able to sit still. A successful experiment would mean their only option vanishes, leaving them with none."
"Next time you're over there, check Schicksal's recent scientific journals. See if there are any articles like that."
"But…" Lynelle still hesitated. "Even though Kevin is still in the Sea of Quanta, his attitude towards Herrschers who can retain their humanity is quite lenient."
"Even if Wendy hasn't mastered her core, she can still barely use some of the Herrscher of Wind's authority. Moving against her would be like…"
"Silly." Herta gently rapped Lynelle on the head.
"You still don't get it. For World Serpent right now, awakening Kevin is their absolute priority. Everything else must take a backseat to that."
"Besides, they only need a Herrscher core from the current era as a beacon. They don't necessarily have to kill Wendy and dig the core out. They can just snatch Wendy, core and all."
"In a large organization like the World Serpent, it's inevitable to have both radical and conservative factions. Even if the radicals want to kill Wendy, the conservatives would stop them for fear of the master's disapproval."
"However, the side effect is this: if the radicals take a step back and propose not killing Wendy but just kidnapping her and bringing her to World Serpent, then the conservatives, motivated by maintaining organizational harmony and achieving the ultimate goal, would most likely agree to this plan."
"The radical faction of World Serpent…" Lynelle mulled over the term, mentally searching for corresponding individuals.
If nothing else, Jackal definitely counted. The Gray Serpents probably weren't a monolith either; Gray Serpents like the Poet likely weren't too common.
Of course, radical Gray Serpents might not be numerous either; most were probably quite neutral.
But…
A sudden idea popped into Lynelle's head.
'Huh, if I were to, like, dramatically 'die' in front of World Serpent forces when they attack, and then let 'Snake' take over my spot, wouldn't World Serpent get a major purge?'
She wasn't sure if 'Snake' would be willing to stand up for her, but her dissatisfaction with Jackal was a given—after all, that was recorded in the original story's plot.
And Jackal showed great disrespect towards the Flame-Chasers, even as Elysian Realm memory constructs, so 'Snake' probably wouldn't mind using this chance to get rid of her.
But…
Considering Elysia had just seriously told her not to treat death as a joke and to cherish her own life, plus the fact that 'Snake', while very good to her, had reasons Lynelle still couldn't figure out… this plan was probably best shelved for now.
Otherwise, Lynelle had a feeling… whether World Serpent got purged or not was uncertain, but she'd definitely be the one ending up unable to get out of bed.
Be it from the Elysian Realm side or the Oceania side.
"Gah, better not trouble 'Snake' or Elysia. I should think of another way."
"The Elysian Realm isn't supposed to interfere with the outside world in principle, and I'm technically a stowaway there anyway. Maybe… ask Anti-Entropy for some backup?"
--+--
Just as Lynelle was still figuring out how to throw an elbow at the World Serpent, over in the Honkai Impact 3rd world, an internal meeting at World Serpent headquarters had already descended into a shouting match.
"Heh, I'm definitely not taking this mission. Someone else can go if they want."
"Raven, you dare disobey an order?!" Jackal roared. "Are you even a cadre of the World Serpent?!"
"Oh, so you do remember I'm a cadre, just like you," Raven sneered.
"Then you should also know that in the World Serpent, only the master has the direct authority to command me."
"Whether it's Gray Serpent or you, you only have the right to suggest tasks to me. If you're illiterate, you can come audit a preschool class at my orphanery and learn what 'suggestion' means."
"Then tell me, if we don't go for the core in Oceania, should we go start a firefight with Schicksal Headquarters or Anti-Entropy? Or raid St. Freya and learn how to follow in Cocolia's footsteps?"
Jackal slammed the table hard.
"In the current situation, if we don't get the master back, do you think your combat strength is enough to guarantee I can proceed with the verification of Project Stigma ?"
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.