Watcher

After all, his profession was that of an ancient linguist, and Otto had only tasked him with translating ancient scrolls for Edison.

That way, he would no longer have to suffer in guilt every day.

"But the day before yesterday, Bishop Otto sent someone to give me a new assignment."

There was no need to explain the assignment; Edison already understood.

"...Planting bombs. Heh, that really sounds like him."

As the translator, the Finn had the right to observe the experiments in the laboratory and make certain corrections.

A look of disgust appeared on Edison's face, but it was soon replaced by confusion.

"Maybe getting rid of me is part of his plan, but... hmm, perhaps that's it? Forget it. There's no way to know."

Edison deeply felt that he could not make sense of that bastard Otto's logic.

So he simply would not try.

"Get him a protective suit! Then come with me. Clean up the mess you caused yourself!"

Edison coldly looked at the blond man sitting on the floor before her.

"...I understand."

Awake?

The moment Welt woke up in the back seat of the car, he saw a glowing sphere shaping its light into words.

Did you have that nightmare again? Or rather, that memory.

"...Yeah. The day in Berlin, the moment I was born."

Welt sat up sleepily.

"It was clearer than ever... three hundred thousand people, right?"

That was right. During the Berlin Honkai Outbreak—the First Honkai Outbreak—three hundred thousand people had died, and there had been one survivor.

The screen of light changed again.

As for why it had become clearer this time, it might have been because of the Honkai pulse. Aida had detected a trace amount of Honkai pulses.

"Is that so? Then that really is..." Welt tried to find a word to describe the situation, but his mind was far too muddled, and he could only give up.

It looked like something was troubling you.

"Ah..." Welt nodded. "Lately, I haven't just been dreaming of that Honkai outbreak in Berlin. I've also been dreaming of those... those victims who were once in Berlin."

So? Did you think you were an ominous child haunted by the resentment and hatred of three hundred thousand people, or a hero carrying the beautiful wishes of three hundred thousand people?

The Eden Star floating in the air asked him that.

"A hero..."

Welt rubbed his nose in distress.

"But... maybe I really am carrying their souls... It's really, really, really heavy."

The victims of the Berlin Honkai Outbreak had certainly suffered pain, helplessness, and even despair. But at the same time, there had been the brilliance of humanity... soldiers, Valkyries, and scientists who sacrificed themselves to stop the Honkai, along with ordinary people who stepped forward.

Welt felt... that he had to carry these people's wishes.

He could not allow what happened in Berlin to happen again.

That was a fine resolve. I thought leaving you to fend for yourself for so long had made you grow crooked.

"What are you saying, Senior..." Why did it feel like an old father looking at his son?!

After all, Einstein and Tesla are difficult to deal with, aren't they? They're practically two problem children!

"The two Doctors are pretty great. They're willing to include me in everything... Well, though I do feel a little like a third wheel."

Clang!

The Eden Star slammed hard into Welt's forehead.

Stop talking nonsense. Hold this sphere. Now I'll help you adapt to the Eden Star.

"Ah?"

Today... you might really have to step forward, little Herrscher.

Chapter 47: Watcher

Have you gotten familiar with the four output levels—0, 1, 2, and 3?

"More or less...?"

After choosing to accept that he carried the convictions of three hundred thousand people, the First Herrscher's power within Welt's body had gradually begun to awaken.

From his physical abilities to his analytical capabilities, Welt's powers had grown rapidly during the mere hour-long car ride.

As a result, he was mastering the Eden Star very quickly.

"I think I can use it."

As long as you can use it. The Eden Star bobbed, but remember this: keep the Eden Star's zeroth rated output tightly under control. Unless I allow it, you are absolutely not to unleash it.

"Eh? Why?"

The zeroth rated output was the Eden Star's most destructive move. If he did not use that move...

That ultimate move is cursed. It's never killed anyone since its debut... Anyway, the casting time is too long. None of us can stall for your casting, and you're the only real combat power. Though there's probably one more... but she doesn't count as real combat power.

"...So in other words, this move isn't meant to be used face-to-face. It's supposed to be used from a safe location as a strategic weapon, right?"

Yes, yes, yes. Welt, you really do have good comprehension.

"Uh..."

Don't be too nervous. I've arranged most things already. If we're lucky enough, you should only need to go through the motions.

"...Uh, what do you mean, if we're lucky enough?"

At a time when the atmosphere was clearly so tense, Liu Bai suddenly brought up luck... That only made people more nervous.

Well, it's not like I'm some genius demon strategist who can devise plans from within a tent and decide victory a thousand miles away. I'm not very confident either. If we panic, we panic together.

"..."

You built up the atmosphere like it was the final battle, then suddenly told me that...

What do you mean, panic together?! You bastard Senior, can't you give me a little more confidence?!

It can't be helped. We're the only two grown men here. If we don't shoulder it, are you going to make things harder for the two Doctors up front?

"Th-that's true."

"Alright, we've reached the city. It looks like the situation has been contained."

Tesla switched off the car and looked out at the streets beyond.

Flames and thick smoke rose into the air, and squads of black-clad bodyguards could vaguely be seen fighting fires and carrying out rescue work.

There was not a single fire truck in sight. Strange.

"Dr. Einstein, Dr. Tesla, you came too?"

A blond Valkyrie walked over, her spear carrying a white-and-purple creature that looked like a barnacle.

"Miss Reanna? You're here too?"

"I originally came here on vacation. I didn't expect to run into something like this." Reanna wore a bitter smile. "Can anyone tell me what's going on? Did that Edison fail to control her experiment?"

By the end, anger had appeared on Reanna's face.

"Although it does look like it..." Einstein adjusted her glasses. "But this thing... can a Honkai Beast like this emerge at this level of Honkai concentration?"

There had indeed been a leak of Honkai Energy in the city, but the Honkai Energy concentration where they stood was not high, and it was nearly harmless even to ordinary people.

"This..."

"Although I hate that bastard Edison." Tesla adjusted her glasses. "I have to admit that when it comes to putting people first, she does it better than your Schicksal."

Tesla's assessment left Reanna speechless.

Having served in Schicksal for more than a hundred years, Reanna naturally knew its style of operation.

Tesla's words were unpleasant, but they were not wrong.

"...I have my doubts as well."

At that moment, the communicator on Reanna's body rang.

"A message from headquarters..." Reanna made a shushing gesture to everyone, then answered the communicator in her hand.

Reanna held the communicator to her ear, but even so, everyone could still faintly hear an intelligent voice coming from it.

Sure enough, the one directly commanding Reanna, Schicksal's strongest, was Bishop Otto himself.

"My recommendation? My recommendation is that you don't send troops in like you did three years ago! Those ordinary people will only add to the casualties if they enter the Honkai core zone."

The other party's proposal seemed to have made Reanna very angry.

She could not understand why that wise Bishop would make such a suggestion.

"I believe the North American Branch's actions have been quite effective. They have already begun organized disaster relief in the outer areas. There is no need to insist on such a meaningless method."

Reanna glanced at the black-clad people carrying out disaster relief. Their actions were extremely cautious, much better than Schicksal's people, who only knew to send troops driving tanks into the Honkai core zone.

It was not that ordinary armies had no use. It was that the commanders of those Schicksal troops... simply lacked experience fighting the Honkai. Other than wasting the lives of those fine young men, they could accomplish nothing.

"..."

After that, Otto seemed to change the subject, and Reanna calmed down as well.

But the new topic clearly made Reanna's expression grow increasingly colder.

"...You're saying this Honkai incident was the mistake of Edison, the person in charge of the North American Branch? Fine. I'll investigate. If that's truly the case, I'll personally twist that little girl's head off—literally, Bishop."

Reanna shut off the communicator with a cold expression. Only then did her face soften somewhat.

"...It seems there really is something unusual going on."

Otto's figure appeared in Reanna's mind.

—From this man, who was several times her age, Reanna would sometimes sense Bishop Otto's indifference toward life.

Perhaps to those in power, all losses of manpower were nothing more than a string of cold numbers.

Reanna had to admit that perhaps this was what made a commander mature and reliable—using the fewest casualties to obtain the greatest benefit.

What a qualified leader had to do was not think about leading their brothers and sisters, but leading the entire team onward.

—That was sacrifice.

The Honkai could not negotiate with them, nor would it pity any living being. It was cold and merciless.

That was why there had to be such things as "necessary sacrifices."

This was a desperate battle without any warmth.

Yet the more it was like this, the more Reanna longed for another kind of warmth.

...She had seen enough sacrifice and tragedy.

Einstein, Tesla, Welt...

She had not seen such lively youngsters in a long time. The last time she had seen someone so full of life was a century ago—that person who liked to sign with "H.A." and constantly spoke in a skeptical tone.

Ah... it had already been a hundred years.

Reanna suddenly realized the passage of time.

A hundred years later, Schicksal was still lifeless. Everyone seemed as though Bishop Otto had absorbed every last creative cell from them.

Everyone was like that "Shenzhou Immortal," rigid and dull.

As a Valkyrie, a war machine, perhaps she should not be thinking so much.

But... machines had feelings too.

This machine of mine would insist on shielding them today.