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[October 14, 2017 — Saturday, 14:50]
"The Schicksal Headquarters… before the Cologne Floating Island."
"I'm back."
As the ship slowly descended, Theresa gazed at the familiar yet clearly dilapidated landscape below.
Her heart filled with indescribable emotion.
Unconsciously… so many years had already passed.
Before long, a familiar figure stepped forward to greet them.
"Captain of the Immortal Blades, Durandal, acting under the orders of Overseer Otto Apocalypse, hereby welcomes Lady Theresa Apocalypse of the Far East Branch!"
"There's no need for formality, Durandal. You should know that the situation is extremely complicated right now, so I'll get straight to the point—"
Theresa looked up at Durandal.
Her tone was no longer lively or cheerful, but carried a trace of solemnity.
"What arrangements has the Overseer made for what comes next? And where is the clue regarding the Herrscher core?"
"The Overseer said he is currently handling the aftermath of his resignation and is short on manpower. He has ordered me to fully assist all of you in investigating the areas around here that were affected by the Herrscher of Domination's core."
Durandal carried out Otto's orders with impeccable precision.
"Additionally, the Overseer previously used the remnants of the Theater of Domination, together with the Second Divine Key, Key of the Thousand Worlds, to make contact with the Imaginary Tree."
"He speculates that it may be precisely because of that action that this area has now become linked to the Herrscher core."
"After all, after World Serpent destroyed the Vemur test site, part of the supporting facilities for the Thousand Worlds were transferred and relocated to this old headquarters."
But as Durandal spoke, Tesla suddenly cut in.
"Wait—what did you just say? Otto used the remnants of the Theater of Domination? When did that happen?!"
"One month ago," Durandal replied calmly.
Dr. Einstein immediately followed up.
"That was already long after the Herrscher of Domination had been defeated. At the very least, Anti-Entropy has no way of re-entering the Theater of Domination—let alone making use of it."
"Perhaps the Overseer himself could answer your questions, but at present, I can't get in contact with him either."
Durandal spread her hands helplessly.
"…I admit, this is rather awkward. But it could also be said to be his usual working style."
"That's not your fault… Grandpa has always been like this—especially when he's secretly planning something."
Theresa said with deep empathy as she looked at Durandal's helpless expression.
"Perhaps. But no matter what, it was with his help that I was able to reconnect the world bubble I was originally protecting back to the Imaginary Tree."
"In that regard, I have nothing but gratitude toward him."
Durandal didn't focus solely on Otto's negative aspects—she was clearly expressing her stance.
And indeed, that was her nature.
She would not side with Otto simply because she was a Valkyrie of Schicksal, nor would she excuse him just because he was the Overseer.
She judged purely from a rational standpoint—
Whether Otto's orders were correct.
Whether they aligned with Schicksal's original purpose of protecting humanity.
If the answer was no, Durandal would firmly stand against Otto without hesitation—for the sake of humanity.
And in her view—
Otto Apocalypse, the current Overseer of Schicksal,
was undoubtedly a schemer, an extreme egoist, a master manipulator of human nature, cold and indifferent by temperament.
He had, in the past, harmed many innocent people through his plans.
But…
Since the establishment of New Schicksal over five hundred years ago—eventually growing into the world's largest anti-Honkai military organization—
From the standpoint of protecting humanity and opposing the Honkai,
Otto's merits far outweighed his sins.
The number of people he had saved far exceeded the innocents caught up in his schemes.
To the present-day Durandal,
Otto Apocalypse was, so far, still a qualified—indeed, an exceptionally capable—Overseer of Schicksal.
Standing on the front lines of defending humanity and fighting the Honkai,
Durandal trusted Otto, and firmly upheld his orders and decisions.
[Ningguang: It seems… Miss Durandal still trusts Otto quite a lot.]
[Tesla: That's just because Otto is too good at winning people over!!]
[Kiana: He's clearly done so many terrible things… so why…]
[Fu Xuan: You can tell Miss Bianca isn't being misled by Otto.]
[Keqing: I can see it too—Durandal clearly thinks for herself.]
[Durandal: Even after seeing this evaluation, I still believe… my judgment in the footage was not wrong.]
[Durandal: Overseer Otto is not someone who can be defined by simple good or evil.]
[Otto: Tsk tsk, Bianca really does understand me~]
[Durandal: Lord Otto, please stop making meaningless sentimental remarks.]
[Einstein: Still, regardless, Otto's actions ultimately led to the world bubble being reconnected to the Imaginary Tree.]
[Einstein: That point is undeniably his achievement.]
In the footage—
When Durandal stated this fact, Tesla was visibly stunned.
Einstein's expression remained unchanged, but inwardly she was slightly shaken.
(Reconnecting a world bubble to the Imaginary Tree—that's an "impossible" challenge.)
(But at this stage, we still can't infer Otto's true objective…)
Einstein's vigilance toward Otto rose yet another notch.
"Miss Durandal, earlier you mentioned that 'clues to the Herrscher core appeared near this old headquarters'—what exactly do you mean by that?"
"Taken literally, I'm referring to abnormalities in the spacetime environment. The Overseer believes that these anomalies are very likely related to a runaway Herrscher core."
"And under that premise—the missing Herrscher of Domination's core naturally becomes our primary suspect."
"That explanation is… not entirely implausible. But that depends on what you mean by 'spacetime abnormalities,'" Tesla said, regaining her composure.
"The specifics still require investigation. However, based on what we currently know… it appears that spacetime information from a certain period in the past has been projected into our present."
"…Oh. Spacetime information from the past, projected into the present."
Tesla repeated the phrase softly—then suddenly realized something was wrong.
"—Wait, are you talking about that kind of spacetime projection? The one the Chicken-Nest-Head researched specifically?!"
"Do you even realize what you're saying, Schicksal's S-rank Valkyrie?!"
"…In front of outsiders, you should address me as Dr. Einstein, Dr. Tesla."
Einstein calmly corrected her.
Then she turned to Durandal.
"However, Miss Durandal—Dr. Tesla has every reason to react so strongly."
"In our real environment, bending spacetime already requires enormous mass or energy. Spacetime projection is even more extreme."
"Generally speaking, such phenomena can only naturally occur on the far side of a singularity, within the depths of the Quantum Sea or the Imaginary Tree."
"In other words, without extremely special circumstances, this kind of phenomenon simply cannot appear openly on the surface of the Earth."
"But if what you say is indeed true, Miss Durandal—then the worst-case scenario is that this place will soon face another Imaginary Invasion, following Nagazora City!"
"No matter what—if spacetime projection is truly occurring—"
Einstein's expression grew uncharacteristically grave.
"Then Overseer Otto has dumped an enormous problem onto us—just like during the Second Eruption."
Hearing that Otto might once again have secretly set everyone up, Durandal let out a helpless sigh.
"Since you all share such serious concerns—why not take advantage of the time we have now and explore the anomalous area with me?"
"After all, whether Schicksal or Anti-Entropy… stopping the Honkai is our shared, unavoidable responsibility."
"…That makes sense. In that case, Durandal—how about I go with you first to verify the situation personally?"
Theresa spoke up at this moment.
"Even if we look at it from the perspective of being used as a hostage by Schicksal, I'm currently the most suitable candidate on the Hyperion."
"I see. After everything that's happened, it's perfectly normal for you to have such concerns, Senior Theresa."
Durandal nodded, immediately understanding Theresa's worry.
Given that Overseer's usual methods…
Setting a trap and detaining a key figure as a hostage was something he could do without the slightest hesitation.
Or rather—
In the past, Otto had more than once used Kiana as leverage to threaten Theresa.
Durandal was long used to this, and naturally understood Theresa's caution.
"Then please allow us to leave behind some non-combat personnel from the Immortal Blades on the Hyperion, so we can maintain coordination for follow-up communications. Would that be acceptable?"
At Durandal's proactive request, everyone froze for a moment.
(…Is she saying that, for fairness, we'll also be holding some of their 'hostages' at the same time?)
(I was originally inclined to think Durandal was just another piece being used by Otto…)
(But she's showing genuine sincerity here. In that case, we should probably make this cooperation as solid as possible.)
After careful consideration, Einstein spoke.
"Anti-Entropy has no objection in principle. However, since Ms. Theresa is not a technical specialist, please allow Dr. Tesla to accompany you during the on-site investigation."
After voicing a brief verbal protest, Tesla ultimately agreed to Einstein's arrangement.
Under everyone's watchful eyes, the three-person investigation officially began.
Durandal led the way, explaining as they went.
"To our right, on that mountain, is the old palace where the Three Great Families once resided."
"The spacetime projection phenomenon appeared within the small town at its foothills."
"All non-essential personnel have already been evacuated from the danger zone, and the anomaly has not shown signs of expanding for now."
"Based on preliminary investigations, the spacetime here has overlapped with information from the 15th century."
"Within the projection and overlap zone, we receive fragments of information from ancient times like this—these fragments may take the form of small physical objects, sound segments, or even emotional imprints."
As they ventured deeper, they began directly encountering these projected fragments of spacetime.
At last, through these scattered explanations, the viewers finally understood what Durandal meant!
[Ningguang: It seems… the scale of what Otto has stirred up this time is truly enormous…]
[March 7th: This… this was probably caused by Otto, wasn't it?!]
[Tesla: Such a severe disaster—and Otto is hiding somewhere, plotting who knows what!]
[Theresa: We can't let the Second Eruption happen again—we must stop this disaster!!]
[Herta: Just the energy of a Herrscher core alone, and it can cause such widespread spacetime overlap?]
[Einstein: I'm afraid… this is merely the overture to the performance Otto spoke of.]
[Einstein: Before his final conspiracy is revealed, everyone may simply be pieces advancing his plan.]
[Kafka: That's what makes Otto truly terrifying.]
Just as the viewers were growing increasingly anxious about the sheer scale of the disaster—
Under the overlapping spacetime—
A voice rang out from deep within the town.
A voice that was unbelievably familiar… and instinctively terrifying.
"Vera! Where are you?!"
"Vera—!"
"Damn it, what are these things?!"
What made everyone's hearts seize wasn't anything else—
It was that this voice…
Belonged to the very architect of this disaster!
Aside from the Honkai itself, the one being who inspired the greatest pressure and vigilance among all—
Otto Apocalypse, Overseer of Schicksal!
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