Chapter 132: Sin Mal Walking Right into the Trap
Wendy nodded, somewhat bewildered. "So what exactly does it mean? Parallel worlds?"
"Close enough. You can just understand it that way for now," [Wendy] nodded. "Irene, or rather, the Miss Irene you saw earlier is the same. We both come from another world."
"But rest assured, we only have one goal: to help this world. That's all."
Although a newcomer among Irene and the others, [Wendy] didn't resist Irene's goals; instead, she supported them with both hands and feet. Although she didn't know what would happen to her world after she died...
But right now, this world in front of her had to be protected as well. Of course, rescuing this world's version of herself from the abyss was also one of her goals.
"So you really are another me," Wendy looked at [Wendy]. "And from a certain perspective, the future me."
"That's right, you catch on fast." [Wendy] nodded. Then, the conversation suddenly shifted, "As for what consequences might have occurred if I hadn't communicated with you, or if you hadn't figured it out yourself... do I need to explain it in detail?"
Hearing [Wendy]'s words, Wendy fell silent for a while. She wasn't stupid. Brought up by [Wendy], she also thought of the most likely, or rather, the only possibility.
"I would become a Herrscher in the future, right?"
"Mhm, and destroy everything down there completely." [Wendy] nodded, her expression turning serious as she pointed downwards. "A Herrscher suddenly erupting in the branch below, without anyone noticing or being on guard."
"The area of effect would encompass the entire Oceania. This is our future, your future. Of course, the original one."
Wendy raised her hand, a cyan whirlwind swirling at her fingertips according to her will. "Would I really do something like that?"
"When a taut heartstring snaps, there's no predicting what a person might do."
Wendy shook her head. She also believed she wouldn't be corrupted by the Will of the Honkai, believing she could serve as a containment vessel for the Gem of Desire.
However, when all of one's efforts were denied, when one's dreams were trampled upon, when one's dreams could no longer be realized, the snapping of a heartstring often happened in a mere instant.
And after the heartstring snapped, all previous perseverance would be nothing more than a passing thought in the face of that broken string.
As for whether one would sink into depravity from then on, or suddenly wake up after seeing all the destruction they caused, that would depend on one's own fate. And this was the difference for the if-line Wendy overcoming her Destined Death.
"Then, what should I do?" Wendy clenched her fists. She was a Valkyrie; she couldn't accept the possibility of herself destroying a city, or even an entire continent.
She gained power to protect this world, not to one day destroy it. This was an intolerable thing for her as a Valkyrie.
"You don't need to do anything, because you have already done it." [Wendy] looked at Wendy and smiled. "Do you still feel like you're going to lose control now?"
"No."
"Then that settles it." [Wendy] smiled, reaching out to pat Wendy's shoulder. "So now, throw away those thoughts in your head. Don't be surprised; I am you, and I know exactly what I would be thinking in this situation."
"So there's no need to worry now. You won't turn into that, and you won't become the past me."
The smile on [Wendy]'s lips carried an indescribable flavor. Looking at that smile, a hint of complexity flashed across Wendy's face. She could imagine the tragic state within [Wendy]'s few words.
For Wendy, who had once resolved to become a Valkyrie and protect the world, that kind of scenario was tantamount to torture, especially when the main culprit behind the tragedy was herself.
"So, just properly enjoy the warm life that follows." [Wendy] stood with her hands behind her back, looking at Wendy. "And then, come with me to witness the future that the past me failed to see."
"And then..." The surface of [Wendy]'s body emitted a bright light. With a gust of cyan hurricane, Irene's figure reappeared in front of Wendy.
"Please become a hero together with us."
Wendy looked at Irene and nodded vigorously: "Mhm."
The atmosphere seemed just right, but in Irene's mind, it probably wasn't the case.
[Oh, how cool, Irene.] Little Corruption's voice sounded full of laughter.[How long did you practice that line?]
[Is that something an amateur would say?] [Wendy] unhesitatingly began to ruin Irene's moment.
[I say, can you two not ruin the mood at a time like this? The atmosphere was so good.]
[Wendy, you shut up too.]
Irene's consciousness slapped her forehead. It seemed she would never be associated with serious scenes in this life.
She had no choice; who told her to have Little Corruption, who replicated Elysia's mindset, in her mind.
[Mhm, alright, alright.] Little Corruption raised her hands in surrender, humbly admitting her mistake. But Irene knew very well that Little Corruption humbly admitted her mistake but would definitely never repent.
[Actually, there's another thing I just noticed. There's a somewhat special signal wandering around in the Hyperion's maintenance tunnels.]
[Oh? What do you mean?]
[I'm not sure yet, maybe wait two minutes. But what is certain is that it's someone from Anti-Entropy. However, it doesn't really seem like a spy. I don't think a spy would enter from a place like that.]
Little Senti's voice carried a hint of uncertainty. For no other reason than the route the other party chose was simply too strange. The maintenance tunnels established for the Hyperion's inspections...
Those places were indeed generally unmanned, but aside from a few channels used for inspecting external systems, all the exits were inside the Hyperion battleship.
Moreover, even if Little Senti didn't say it now, as long as the people in the Hyperion's monitoring room paid a little bit of attention, they would be able to see the figure swaggering through the maintenance tunnels.
What kind of spy acted like that?
[That's quite interesting.] Irene also raised an eyebrow.[Can you roughly guess which direction they're heading in?]
[The medical area. Oh, wait a minute, I know who it is.] Little Corruption suddenly spoke up, obviously having already seen who the infiltrator was from the surveillance cameras placed in the maintenance tunnels.
[From your tone, is it an acquaintance of ours?] Irene teased slightly upon hearing Little Corruption's tone, but then thinking about the medical area she just mentioned, the corner of her mouth couldn't help but twitch.
She didn't need Little Corruption to tell her; she could already guess which acquaintance it might be.
[Is it Cocolia?]
[No, it's not. It's Sin Mal. She's probably here looking for Bronya or Seele, likely under Cocolia's orders. But speaking of which, is this child really that bold?]
Back in her time, she had encountered Sin Mal a few times. Although her presence was very low, for a Herrscher of Corruption whose main body was a virus like Little Corruption, meeting once was enough to leave a lasting impression that could be recalled at any time.
[Her, huh? Even if Cocolia lost her mind, she probably wouldn't come over personally.] Irene nodded. [Put on a disguise and send a message to Himeko.]
[A fish has come knocking on our door, or rather, someone has delivered one to our doorstep.]
"Himeko, how is it?" Theresa, carrying Judah on her shoulder, turned to look at Himeko. "They should be acting pretty honest over there, right?"
"Honest, of course they're honest. Would they dare not be?" Himeko shrugged. The Branch Director had been scared out of his wits; how could those people from the research area dare say half a word of refusal?
They wished they could skip all the procedures entirely, sign the transfer agreements, and get them to leave as quickly as possible.
Theresa nodded. As long as things went smoothly here, there would be no problem. "Irene should have already sent Wendy back, right?"
"Not yet. I told Adjutant Irene to send me a message after they headed back, but it seems they haven't returned yet." Himeko shook her head and casually took out her phone. But looking at what was on it, Himeko couldn't help but frown.
"What's wrong?"
"It's nothing. Probably just a mother missing her daughters, so she sent someone over to take a look." Himeko shrugged and put away her phone. "You continue dealing with these higher-ups. I'll head back to handle it."
"Mhm, I understand."
Hyperion · Maintenance Tunnel
Sin Mal struggled to squeeze herself out of the narrow maintenance tunnel. Just as she breathed a sigh of relief, she glanced at a signpost and prepared to continue towards the medical area to find that unlucky bastard.
"Seriously, if it weren't for Mama, I definitely wouldn't have come to a place like this, and she even told me not to force..."
Before Sin Mal could finish her sentence, she suddenly spun around, her rapier appearing in her hand. But before she could do anything, a large sword was already resting on her shoulder.
"Hello there, Miss Stowaway." Himeko held her greatsword level, fixing it next to Sin Mal's shoulder. "I don't recall seeing you on today's visitor list."
"If you're here to visit friends, please remember to buy a ticket and submit an application next time."
Seele and Cocolia's relationship had already been fully explained by Bronya last time, including the matter of Cocolia's Orphanage.
Therefore, Himeko had already guessed that Sin Mal must have come this time under Cocolia's orders. As for whether she was here to deliver something or directly kidnap Seele, that remained unclear.
"...Like I need your permission!" Sin Mal wasn't one to be easily frightened. She directly swung her rapier, attempting to knock the greatsword away. But Himeko's other hand was already prepared with something else.
A Valkyrie-specific stun gun—a stun gun with specially enhanced voltage tailored for Valkyrie constitutions. It wasn't used often, but it was just right for today.
At such close range, Sin Mal's attention was completely focused on Himeko herself, completely oblivious to the fact that Himeko, who was wielding a greatsword, was holding such a small gadget in her other hand.
Two electrode pads directly thrust into Sin Mal's abdomen. Following a burst of electric shock, the previously aggressive Sin Mal instantly collapsed paralyzed on the floor.
"Alright, alright. I know who you definitely came to see, and I know who sent you. Since that's the case, just behave."
"You..." Sin Mal wanted to resist, but wave after wave of numbness washed over her body. She wanted to yell 'despicable,' but only a few gasps of air escaped her throat.
"Let me see." Himeko held the stun gun and silently turned up the voltage a bit more. Then, she reached out and patted Sin Mal down, subsequently finding two mobile terminals in Sin Mal's pockets.
If she guessed correctly, one of them was meant to be given to Seele. My, it seemed Cocolia was quite honest after all. She didn't actually have the idea of making a move to directly kidnap Seele.
"Oh, right. As for now, Miss Sin Mal, you are under arrest for trespassing." Himeko pressed the greatsword against Sin Mal's neck, casually pulling out the electrode pads, and looked at Sin Mal. "To prevent putting Seele and Bronya in a difficult position..."
"I'll have to trouble you to come with me, Miss Sin Mal. And don't even think about crying for help or drawing anyone's attention."
"It's still a long way from the medical cabin section here. However, if you have anything you want to give her, I'm not unwilling to help pass it along."
"Also, by the way, did Cocolia leave any verbal messages for you? For Seele or Bronya's sake, I'm not unwilling to pass those along either."
"Go to hell..." Having regained her mobility, Sin Mal immediately wanted to fight back. But before she could finish speaking, Himeko grabbed her head and slammed it directly into the floor. The immense force instantly knocked Sin Mal unconscious.
"Did you really think I wouldn't use force?" Himeko lifted Sin Mal up, glanced at the surrounding rooms, and pressed her earpiece. "Help me open the door to cabin A464 in the medical area, and then lock down all access permissions to the cabin."
[Understood.]
After the adjutant's voice came through the earpiece, a cabin door next to Himeko opened in response. Subsequently, Himeko directly tossed Sin Mal inside.
She didn't plan to ask Sin Mal anything. Anyway, it was likely this child had just been thrown out as a pawn by Cocolia. It would be great if she completed the mission, but if she couldn't, she probably hadn't been given any crucial information anyway.
However, what made her curious was that the other party shouldn't be here looking for Bronya, otherwise she wouldn't have come to the medical area. And the only one in the medical area was Seele.
But how did the other party know Seele was with them, and specifically in the medical area?
"Hah, it seems our academy really needs to strengthen its information security." Himeko shook her head inwardly. This wasn't too hard to guess; in fact, it was so simple it was somewhat exasperating.
"Oh, about that, it really has nothing to do with our information security." Irene's voice suddenly rang out at this moment as she hurried over from the other side of the corridor.
"It looks like you've already finished dealing with it, Teacher Himeko?"
"What else did you expect? She's just a fledgling kid." Himeko shrugged. Taking her down directly with a little trick was incredibly easy for such a rebellious brat.
"But Irene, what did you mean just now when you said this had nothing to do with our information security?"
"Oh, I used this intel as a bargaining chip with the people from the Conservative Faction." Irene shrugged. Obviously, Einstein and the others must have already finished extorting them.
And they had utilized this intel as well. Sin Mal coming over this time was likely Cocolia's way of testing the authenticity of the information, and if it was true, to directly make a move and kidnap Seele.
"Oh, I see." Himeko looked as if she understood and nodded. Then, with a sudden lunge, she reached out to grab Irene's shoulder, only to be easily dodged by Irene with a quick step back.
"Tsk." Himeko looked at Irene, who was as slippery as a fish, clicked her tongue, and continued asking, "Just what kind of agreement did you reach with the Anti-Entropy Conservative Faction?"
"Irene, you know, Theresa knows, yet I'm the only one kept in the dark."
"Hmm, if I had to say, a pharmaceutical production agreement?"
"Huh?"
____
________________________________________
🌸 Help Love Bloom!
Our girls need a little push... and you can help!
💖 Gift for Everyone: Once we hit 50 Powerstones, I'll release +1 bonus chapter to warm your hearts.
🚀 Community Reward: If we reach 20 supporting members, we'll have a +5 chapter marathon across all stories! The romance won't stop.
👻 Come to our secret corner: Search for GirlsLove on (P). You know that's where the magic happens... 😉