7. Waiting to Awaken, Waiting for Him
As the world's largest organization combating the Honkai, Schicksal boasts a long history. Established in the form of a church as early as the 5th century AD, its influence is vast, with control extending over almost all of Europe and Asia.
Simultaneously, Schicksal is the world's most technologically advanced organization with the deepest research into the Honkai — Anti-what? What Entropy? Never heard of it! Doesn't exist!
The Schicksal headquarters, located above Vienna, serves as the operational nerve center. This is the usual garrison for the Valkyries, guarded by the strongest S-rank Valkyrie, and houses countless cutting-edge technologies that scientists covet.
The central core research tower at Schicksal headquarters also gathers numerous genius scientists and harbors who-knows-how-many pieces of "black tech" (advanced/secret technology).
It is the center of the entire Schicksal floating base and its tallest structure. With a pure white metal exterior, it appears both sacred and beautifully technological. At its pinnacle, a cyan core floats within the structure, showcasing Schicksal's substantial power while also functioning as a radar monitoring hundreds of kilometers.
Not long ago, during the rebellion led by the Far East branch, St. Freya Academy, against the Overseer Otto, even when facing the formidable power of the Herrscher of the Void, this place was not completely destroyed and has now been fully repaired.
In a brightly lit laboratory on the top floor of the research tower, a man with long golden hair stood before a medical pod, looking at the gray-haired girl inside wearing black armor, her appearance exceptionally young. A standard, artificial smile was on his face.
"The dead cannot be reborn; that is the law of this world. Even a Herrscher cannot defy this law. But you are different, my old friend, Fu Hua, or rather, the Celestial."
The man was tall and well-proportioned, with an elegant and noble aura, as handsome as a sculpture of David in the golden ratio — almost as if... not quite human.
"I confirmed that I severely injured you with a Divine Key over a month ago, yet you recovered completely very quickly, just like before... Who exactly turned you into this state? If possible, I would truly like to have a face-to-face conversation with that genius."
On one side of the girl's head, there was a faint mark. A month ago, it was a terrifying, unbearable to look at gunshot wound, but now it had healed completely.
After quickly recording data on his information terminal, the blond man did not linger and soon left the room.
Although he repeatedly called her "old friend," there was never any genuine emotion in the blond man's tone—after all, the girl before him was merely a pawn for his ultimate goal.
And the moment he left the room and the electronic door closed, the finger of the woman in the medical pod twitched slightly.
——————
Her consciousness awoke. Her vision was blurry, and she only felt many chattering voices by her ears, all using her own voice—some sounded very much like herself, others not so much.
"Hey, wake up, wake up! You've slept long enough. We still have lots of work to do, no time to rest yet!"
"Hmm, I... you are—"
"Me? I am you, a part of you, your most primitive instincts and impulses. Hurry up and remember who you are. We need to recover our strength quickly and get out of this damned place—We need to find my friend, my only friend! We need to fall in love! Get married! Have offspring! Love him freely! See, this is what instincts are for!"
"Uh, I... still can't remember."
"Ha, so troublesome. You'd better hurry up. The good news is, we prepared a method to shield brainwaves in advance; that bastard can't detect us. The bad news is, we ourselves might not hold on much longer—Look at her."
"Disciple! My disciple! Where is my disciple? Ah—Disciple! Otto, the Taixu Sword Sect will never let this go! You just wait!"
"That's the Superego. Originally she should have been the quietest one, but now she's going crazy, which shows our situation is bad. So, quickly remember who you are, let the Ego emerge, then we need to remember my best friend, her most beloved disciple, and... ah, this is the Ego."
"Brother, where are you? I, I didn't lose, I kept fighting. I know you're watching me, I know..."
"That's right, we also have a brother, the best brother. So remember quickly, remember their names—no, remember his name! We need to go see him! No... he will come to see us!"
The girl's thoughts were in chaos. In her daze, she saw the female warrior standing on the land of a new world, the transcendent Celestial standing apart from the world, the ruthless killer, the respected class president.
Without exception, beside her, there seemed to be a familiar person accompanying her.
And also...
That little girl in the martial arts school, ignorant yet happy, spending each day with the person she loved most.
The next second, the voices all but vanished. The girl's slightly twitching finger also stilled.
Black and red radiance bloomed within the medical pod, but it didn't trigger any alarms.
She felt it was necessary to think carefully about that forgotten person, the most important one.
She needed to sleep a little more, just a little longer—
——————
"Haah, so tired..."
Having finished a morning's work, Gao qi finally made it to the lunch break. Wearing the stifling protective suit, he walked with somewhat heavy steps towards the cafeteria at Schicksal headquarters.
Although the area of the Schicksal floating island isn't comparable to a city, it's about the size of a small town, with extremely comprehensive infrastructure. After all, the Valkyries here risk their lives to protect the world; it's normal for their environment to be decent.
In fact, Gao qi's work isn't particularly stressful. As the world's most technologically advanced organization, Schicksal naturally doesn't need pure manual laborers. Most of Gao qi's work involves operating Schicksal's various advanced engineering machinery for repairs and material handling.
Of course, advanced combat mechs like the "Aesir Baldur" that can fly around were impossible for Gao Qi to pilot. However, many engineering machines bore a resemblance to the Anti-Entropy Titans.
These Titan mechs, which had been destroyed by the Herrscher of the Void with a snap of her fingers, were repurposed by Schicksal engineers. Stripped of their weapon systems, they were transformed into engineering machinery under Gao Qi's control.
The real reason for Gao Qi's exhaustion wasn't work-related, but psychological.
This was his first truly systematic simulation. Compared to previous simulation sessions that lasted hours or days, this time he had lived over a decade of life in one go.
Unlike Fu Hua, Gao Qi didn't gain hyperthymesia from becoming a MANTIS,he can remember everyone and everything, unable to forget even if he wanted to.
Now, thinking back carefully, he could only recall fragments of his time with Fu Hua.
But if he simulated once a day, each time spanning over a decade, even if only fragments remained, it was genuinely hard for Gao Qi to adapt. It truly felt like "a day in heaven, ten years on earth."
"No choice, I have to adapt whether I like it or not. I'll deal with problems as they come. If it really becomes too much, I can just find the Fenghuang Down and store my memories there... Ah, forget it, let's think of something positive."
Shaking his head helplessly, Gao Qi raised his hand and made a grasping motion, sensing the elusive flow of energy within his body.
Although Schicksal Headquarters had been working non-stop on decontamination for a month, the Honkai energy radiation caused by the Herrscher of the Void still lingered on the Schicksal floating island.
This radiation had little effect on Valkyries, but for ordinary people, long-term exposure in such an environment was still harmful to their health. Therefore, all regular employees had to wear protective suits while working, which were extremely hot.
Seeing no one around, Gao Qi secretly unzipped his protective suit. The faint sensation of "energy surge" immediately became more pronounced.
Gao Qi had indeed gained Honkai energy adaptability. He could now manipulate the weak flow of Honkai energy in the air to enhance his body. This finally marked his first step towards gaining combat capability.
Of course, this power was still weak. The constant level of power Gao Qi could control now was roughly equivalent to a D-rank Valkyrie. Even going all out, he could only match a C-rank Valkyrie at best.
And Valkyries of these two ranks... were mostly responsible for logistical support. Unless they reached B-rank, they weren't even qualified to wear Valkyrie battlesuits.
However, for Gao Qi, this was a leap from nothing to something. It transformed him from an ordinary person into someone with Honkai energy adaptability. The system's A-rank evaluation for this reward was well-deserved.
As long as he continued simulating and achieved high evaluations within them, he would have the chance to obtain even better rewards.
"It's a shame that items from the simulator can't be taken out. From start to finish, only changes to my own being can be reflected in reality. Otherwise, I would have definitely taken several tons of those high-tech weapons from Fire Moth."
The simulator's enhancements for Gao Qi were limited to his body. If Gao Qi underwent the MANTIS surgery, that would be reflected in reality. But if Gao Qi were holding a weapon before dying in the simulation, he couldn't bring it to the real world.
Having gained Honkai energy adaptability, the current Gao Qi was like Sun Wukong returning after learning from Patriarch Subodhi. He was eagerly searching for a Honkai energy source and a suitable weapon.
After all, Honkai adaptability was just like wires and a switch. The higher the adaptability, the greater the conductivity. But Valkyries still needed a Honkai energy reactor as a battery and powerful weapons as the appliances.
The strongest "batteries" were naturally Honkai energy reactors, or even Herrscher Cores. And the most powerful "appliances" were undoubtedly the Divine Keys crafted in the Previous Era.
Gao Qi thought about it and felt he might be getting ahead of himself. At this point in time, those treasures already had their owners. Obtaining them would be extremely difficult, not to mention that for a rookie like him, obtaining them might actually get him killed.
"Sigh, better not think about it for now— Hm?"
Just then, Gao Qi suddenly heard a familiar voice calling out from behind, growing closer.
"Yo, Gao Qi! Good afternoon! Want to go get lunch together!"
Turning around, Gao Qi saw a girl with gray hair and red eyes quickly approaching him, a bright smile on her face.
"Yo, Miss 'Tool'. Haven't seen much of you lately."
Gao Qi also smiled and nodded at her—this girl was one of his few friends.
"Ha, don't call me by that nickname! It's bad enough when everyone else says it, but you're joining in too? Call me Alvitè! As for not seeing me, of course it's because I've been following Lady Durandal to save the world! Impressive, right!"
Hearing Gao Qi's words, the girl immediately pouted and gave Gao Qi a light punch on the chest, then proudly puffed out her chest.
"Come on, it's rare to see you. This meal is on me— I'll introduce you to someone important. Lady Rita is also there today!"
Pushed along by Alvitè towards the cafeteria, Gao Qi's gaze drifted through the corridor window towards the central research tower at the heart of the floating island.
For some reason, Gao Qi felt that... it seemed as if someone there was calling out to him.
——————
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?