Consciousness, as if having been submerged in the deep sea for a long time, finally struggled to the surface.
Captain Kael first felt a peculiar... lightness?
It was as if every cell in his body had been thoroughly washed and reshaped, filled with unprecedented vitality.
But what followed was a dull pain and extreme confusion from deep within his brain, as if it had been repeatedly struck by a blunt object.
He struggled to open his heavy eyelids, and it took several seconds for his vision to focus.
What met his eyes was not the pure white ceiling of the medical bay he expected, nor the familiar ceiling of his own dormitory, but a cold, metallic, silver-gray dome, covered with complex pipeline interfaces and embedded light strips emitting a soft blue glow.
The air was filled with the smell of disinfectant and some... indescribable, sweet-smelling chemical reagent.
'Where... am I?'
He tried to move his body, but found his limbs stiff and somewhat uncontrollable, as if they hadn't moved for a long time. He propped himself up on the cold platform beneath him, which seemed to be the inner wall of some kind of life support pod, and slowly sat up.
Looking around, it was a completely enclosed room with a futuristic, high-tech feel.
The walls were smooth alloy, with no windows, only a tightly sealed, extremely heavy-looking airtight door. Besides the life support pod he was in, there were only a few glowing screens displaying various data and charts, and some strangely shaped instruments he had never seen before.
Memories flashed chaotically in his mind like broken shards of glass—piercing alarms, Theresa's startled face, pale light, soul-tearing tremors, boundless darkness... Theresa! Sirin! Bianca!
How were they?!
A strong wave of anxiety surged through him, and he abruptly tried to get out of bed, but stumbled due to the "strangeness" of his body, almost falling.
He gripped the cold pod wall, gasping for breath, trying to adapt to this body that felt both familiar and alien.
Just then, the heavy airtight door hissed softly and slid open.
A figure, silhouetted against the light from the corridor outside, slowly walked in.
Golden long hair was styled into an elegant bun, a perfectly tailored platinum bishop's robe, and emerald green eyes like the finest jade, carrying a smile that seemed to see through everything yet was unfathomably deep.
Otto Apocalypse.
"You're awake, Kael."
Otto's voice carried a hint of languor and... some indescribable anticipation?
She stopped a few steps away from the life support pod, her hands elegantly clasped in front of her, carefully observing Kael, as if admiring a newly completed work of art.
Kael looked at her, his brows tightly furrowed. The chaotic memories and the scene before him filled him with wariness and confusion: "Where is this...? How did I get here?"
Otto did not immediately answer his question, but tilted her head slightly, a look of curiosity and playfulness on her face.
She spoke in an almost 詠嘆調 tone: "Oh, Kael, according to common sense and the estimated side effects of the surgery, you... should have lost most of your memories by now. But..."
She paused, her emerald eyes fixed on Kael's, with a hint of probing, her tone suddenly becoming extremely "sincere" and even a little "wronged," "...I still want to confirm it myself. Do you still recognize me? I am your fiancée!"
Kael: "!!!"
He was completely stunned by this statement, his brain crashing for several seconds.
Fiancée?! Bishop Otto?! What kind of cosmic joke is this!
The expression on his face quickly changed from alert and confused to incredulous and absurd. He even subconsciously took half a step back, leaning against the cold life support pod, and replied with a dry, firm tone: "...Bishop Otto, please don't make such jokes. It's not funny at all."
The "sincerity" and "wronged" look on Otto's face instantly froze, then transformed into a very subtle, almost imperceptible hint of surprise and... disappointment?
She let out a soft "tsk," and muttered to herself, her voice almost inaudible: "Strange... the fusion process was perfect, and the Honkai Energy impact data on the neurons also met the standards... theoretically, he should have lost his memory... Could it be that the adaptability of the kaslana and Schariac mixed bloodline produced an unknown resistance?"
Although her whisper was soft, Kael's senses seemed exceptionally sharp at the moment, catching the keywords "fusion process," "Honkai Energy impact," and "memory loss." A chill ran down his spine.
"Bishop Otto, what exactly did you do to me?" Kael's voice deepened. "I remember I was at headquarters, under attack... How are Theresa and the others?"
Otto seemed to snap out of her thoughts, putting on her inscrutable smile again and waving her hand.
"Relax, Kael. What I did to you was to save your life and grant you greater power. As for Theresa and those two little girls... they are fine, very safe. In that attack, the Third Empire used specially made Honkai Energy weapons. You suffered a fatal soul tremor and Honkai Energy erosion while protecting Theresa, and conventional medical means were powerless to save you."
She walked to a light screen, bringing up a series of data and physiological model diagrams that were too complex for Kael to understand, her tone as flat as if she were introducing an ordinary technology.
"So, I used some... unconventional methods, to perform Fusion Warrior surgery on you. Now it seems the surgery was very successful. Not only did you survive, but your physical functions and Honkai Energy adaptability have also made a qualitative leap. Congratulations, Kael, you have now surpassed the scope of an ordinary Valkyrie."
Fusion Warrior surgery? Honkai Energy erosion? Fatal injury?
Kael processed this information, the chill in his heart growing stronger.
He looked down at his hands, feeling the surging and unfamiliar power within him, and finally understood where that "lightness" and "strangeness" came from.
"How long... was I unconscious?" He asked a crucial question.
Otto casually swiped on the light screen, and a clear calendar interface popped up, the date prominently displayed—June 15, 2013.
Kael's pupils suddenly contracted!
He clearly remembered that the attack happened in... the autumn of 2000! That is to say... he had "slept" for nearly thirteen years?!
A strong sense of unreality swept over him. Thirteen years... Theresa, Sirin, Bianca... How were they now?
Thirteen years was enough time to change too many things.
"I need to see them."
Kael looked up, his gaze fixed on Otto.
"Not yet."
Otto refused directly, her tone leaving no room for doubt, "Although your body is stable, it still needs a period of observation and adaptation. Moreover, the outside world believes that 'Captain Kael' bravely sacrificed himself thirteen years ago. Your sudden appearance would attract a lot of unnecessary trouble."
Kael clenched his fists, but he knew that in Otto's territory, he had no room to resist.
He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down: "Then, at least give me something to do. I can't stay here forever."
Otto looked at him, an unreadable glint in her emerald eyes.
She seemed to have anticipated Kael's request.
She pondered for a moment before seemingly reluctantly saying, "Alright, since you insist... There happens to be a simple observation mission that might be suitable for you now."
She operated on the light screen a few times, bringing up an encrypted file with a codename printed on the cover—K423.
"Go to Changkong City in the Far East, find and observe this individual. Record her daily behavior, social relationships, and any abnormal energy fluctuations. Do not contact her or interfere with her life unless absolutely necessary."
"—Of course, even if you do interfere, it won't be a big problem."
Kael: ...Otto gave the instruction, "This will help you familiarize yourself with the current world and test the stability of your newly acquired power."
Kael took a special terminal disguised as an ordinary smartphone from Otto. It already had limited information about K423 and a map of Changkong City downloaded.
He said nothing more, just nodded.
Under Otto's arrangements, Kael quietly left the laboratory hidden deep underground and stepped into the world eleven years later.
Everything outside felt strange to him.
Skyscrapers were denser, the vehicles crisscrossing the streets had strange designs, and the communication devices in people's hands were vastly different from those in his memory.
He followed the instructions on the terminal, taking various modes of transport, and eventually arrived in Changkong City.
This was a peaceful and prosperous coastal city, completely different from the war-torn front lines in his memory.
According to the last updated location on the terminal, K423 had recently been frequently appearing in a park in the city center.
Kael easily found it—a sunny, grassy place filled with leisurely citizens and playing children.
His gaze, like the most precise radar, slowly swept across the park. Soon, in a relatively secluded bench area, he locked onto a target.
It was a young girl in ordinary casual clothes, with striking, moon-white silver hair tied into practical braids.
She was lying ungracefully on her back on a bench, a flipped-open manga book covering her face, her chest rising and falling gently with her steady breathing, clearly asleep.
Kael's brows furrowed.
This was Otto's important target for him to observe?
This seemingly defenseless girl, who could sleep so soundly in public, exuding an innocent aura as if her "IQ didn't exceed that of a slipper limpet"?
He activated the terminal, preparing to record from a distance as required.
However, when he zoomed in the optical lens and clearly saw the lower half of the girl's face peeking out from the edge of the manga book—his fingers suddenly froze!
His heart felt like it was being fiercely clutched by an invisible hand!
That face... the curve of that nose, the shape of those lips... except for an extra unruly, sticking-up ahoge on her forehead, she was almost identical to the Kiana Kaslana in his memory—the little girl who had been renamed Bianca and entrusted to Theresa's care!
No, wait... Kael's breathing suddenly became rapid. He stared intently at the sleeping face, a more absurd and horrifying sense of familiarity surging through him.
Not just like Bianca... the area between her brows, a certain temperament unconsciously revealed in her sleep... even carried a hint of Sirin's shadow?!
That purity intertwined with... some hidden, indescribable etherealness!
How was this possible?!
A girl who looked like Kiana, and vaguely resembled Sirin?
Codename K423?
Kael stood rooted to the spot.
What exactly was Otto trying to make him "observe"?
He looked at the girl sleeping soundly on the bench, his heart filled with immense questions and a strong sense of unease.
(I've already changed the synopsis, ehe.)
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