It truly was a stroke of luck.
Durandal continued her mental analysis, picking up right where she left off.
With Kosma's situation accounted for, Kalpas was next on the list.
Kalpas's debut had coincided perfectly with the Fifth Honkai Eruption.
Finding him would naturally mean confirming the epicenter of that disaster. However, Kalpas was a different breed than Kosma; he couldn't simply be used as a reliable anchor.
Still, there was one detail worth savoring.
Shortly after Kalpas executed the Fifth Herrscher in a flash, he was taken in as a porter by the Sundown Alley Sanatorium, where Aponia resided. The children there had known him as "Mr. Mask."
Didn't that imply the epicenter of the Fifth Honkai Eruption was actually quite close to Sundown Alley?
Regardless of whether that was the case, once this vacation ended, Schicksal would not only launch a mission to find Kosma but would also pay a personal visit to that talent-rich neighborhood of Sundown Alley.
After all, the children suffering from Honkai sickness under Aponia's care were exactly the kind of people Schicksal was meant to save.
They hadn't gone sooner for two reasons: first, anti-Honkai serums and vaccines hadn't reached mass production yet, so a visit would have been futile; second, by the time those biologics were ready, the Third Honkai Eruption was already looming, leaving them desperately short-staffed.
Things were different now. With their hands finally free, Schicksal had no intention of letting that place slip through their fingers.
Moreover, perhaps they could bring Vill-V along this time.
She had lived in Sundown Alley for a while as a magician and even had an active arrest warrant there. She would likely make an excellent guide.
Kosma and Kalpas were essentially the linchpins of the Fourth and Fifth Eruptions, but as of now, they had no connection to Schicksal. Even if they encountered them in the future, it wouldn't be possible to whisk them straight into a Simulation.
As for Kevyn—who had participated in the suppression of almost every Herrscher from the Fourth to the Seventh—she was fundamentally different from the Kevin in the simulations.
Even if Durandal brought Kevyn in, she would just be extra muscle. It wasn't as if Kevyn could possess Kevin's body to access his memories.
When facing the Herrschers mentioned above, Durandal certainly wasn't lacking in backup, so there was no need to drag Kevyn along.
The same logic applied to Su. Even though Su was the primary force in resolving the Eighth Herrscher, the female Su of reality and the male Su of the Simulation couldn't exactly merge.
Besides, Durandal didn't have high combat expectations for the real Su; there was no need to make life difficult for a frail, scholarly doctor.
The other key figures were Sakura and Mei.
Before the Sixth Honkai Eruption, as opposition against Mei within Fire Moth grew, a high-ranking official ordered Sakura—a subordinate of the "Cocoon" unit—to assassinate her.
What exactly had Mei done to stir up such resentment within Fire Moth? How did Sakura join Cocoon, and why did she follow the order to kill Mei? These were secrets Durandal was dying to uncover.
However, she didn't plan on letting those two come into contact with the Simulations too early.
Based on the current rhythm of one Honkai Eruption per year, there were less than two years left before the Sixth Outbreak would hit.
For a Mei and Sakura who hadn't yet experienced the internal struggles of Fire Moth, Durandal didn't think it was a good idea to expose them to those dark memories prematurely.
It wasn't a matter of trust; it was simply out of concern for her comrades.
"Then again, it's a bit early to be planning all this. After all, if Mobius's research on Fenghuang Down doesn't go smoothly, I won't be taking anyone into the Simulations—not even you. I can't afford the price of being unable to wake your memories while we're inside."
Durandal spoke softly, her hand gently caressing Elysia's cheek.
"Mm... alright, I understand~ ♪"
Elysia wasn't strictly insistent on following Durandal into the Simulations.
Last time, she simply hadn't understood the situation. She had feared Durandal was in danger, terrified that if she didn't follow, they might never see each other again.
That was the only reason she had recklessly plunged into that swirling vortex of a portal.
Now that she knew the Simulations weren't particularly dangerous for Durandal—and that she herself risked being trapped forever if her memories didn't trigger—Elysia naturally wouldn't take the risk again until the Fenghuang Down research yielded results.
At a time like this, recklessness was the one thing that truly threatened to separate her from Durandal forever.
"It's getting late. I'll have the captain moor the cruise ship by the island. We can start getting ready for the bonfire and the fireworks tonight."
Looking out at the sky as it began to dim, Durandal shook her head with a soft laugh. "I didn't realize it while we were inside the cabin, but the day has flown by."
"Well, none of us are exactly 'normal' people; we don't feel fatigue the way others do. Speaking of which, little Griseo and Rin have napped more than once already." A smile naturally played on Elysia's lips at the thought of the two children.
Watching Elysia's smile, Durandal asked on a sudden impulse, "Elysia, do you... ever want a child of your own?"
Elysia blinked, startled by the question, before shaking her head. "If you mean through artificial insemination, then no."
"Of course not."
Durandal understood Elysia's reservations. She thought of Kiana, a clone Otto had created using her own and Sirin's genes.
Though she viewed Kiana as a younger sister, in reality, calling them mother and daughter—or perhaps 'father and daughter'—was more accurate.
There were also Theresa and Amber, born from the fusion of Kallen's and Vishnu's cells.
As for the technology Otto possessed, most of it came from the Void Archives. If you traced its source, wasn't it just the technology of this current world?
Perhaps the current level of tech was slightly behind, but within Schicksal, there was more than one titan of biotechnology. Both Mobius and Mei were masters of the craft, and since both of them also had female partners, Durandal didn't believe she was the only one harboring such thoughts.
"Let me rephrase that, Elysia. Do you want a child that belongs to the two of us?"
Durandal asked.
Elysia was stunned.
It was something she had never truly considered.
She loved all of humanity, but she had never imagined that one day she might nurture a brand-new life—a witness to her love for Durandal and a continuation of their lives together.
But the moment Durandal proposed it, the idea began to spread through Elysia's heart like wildfire.
Before she even realized it, she found herself nodding under Durandal's steady gaze.
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[A/N: There will be no pregnancy. Much like how Mei used her and Kevin's genes to create a child, it would be purely artificial, external cultivation.]
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T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL