Atonement

Well, the first thing Otto did after Liu Bai left was to wipe out his own family. Main branches, nephews, cousins, and all those other relatives—he wanted them all dead!

As a result, only Otto and Theresa still bear this surname, which is why the other two families don't want to mess with Otto.

The kind of ruthless person who sacrifices his own family members before taking the stage is someone no one in their right mind would want to mess with. Anyway, this family is finished. Regardless of whether this bloodline can continue, Otto will definitely retire from the scene after a hundred years of old age. There's no need to be stubborn and fight a madman...

Then Otto lived for five hundred years, outliving all the original group of people who disliked him.

However, if the Lord God had any ideas, Otto said he wouldn't mind promoting the Apocalypse name even further.

"Let's find a seat."

Otto glanced at Anna, who was clearly a little uneasy, and said in a businesslike tone.

Anna subconsciously felt a little relieved when she heard Otto's tone... Well, whether it's a male or female bishop, this kind of businesslike tone is the most relaxing.

"Yes, Your Excellency."

Anna gave Otto a standard military salute, then pulled up a chair and carefully sat down.

"By the way, was that Lord Liu Bai who just spoke...?"

Anna paused mid-sentence—whether it was her imagination or not, the atmosphere had seemed tense for a moment.

"It seems someone has already told you why I called you back for a report?" Otto said slowly.

"... Yes, I chatted with Lady Cecilia for a bit on my way back."

Unsure if the ominous aura she had just sensed was just her imagination, Anna became even more cautious and subdued.

"However, Lady Cecilia only briefly told me about the recent changes in Schicksal ... To be honest, just seeing Lady Cecilia alive is already quite surprising." Anna's expression was slightly subtle as she spoke.

But thinking about it, it makes sense. It would be strange if you didn't have some subtle feelings when historical figures appeared in front of you.

"How meddlesome... By the way, how did Cecilia introduce the Lord God to you?"

Otto muttered something, but given that he was in the wrong against Cecilia and her family, he couldn't say anything about Cecilia's "overstepping" of bounds.

Moreover, Anna originally belonged to the Schariac family, so it was only natural for Cecilia, as an elder, to guide the younger generation.

However, Otto was quite curious about how Cecilia addressed her own Lord God —this was one of the few amusing things Otto could find.

"He just told me about Lord Liu Bai's great achievements and then taught me how to address him..."

"Cecilia is being too cautious." Liu Bai was somewhat amused and exasperated, as his future mother-in-law's attitude was indeed a bit distant.

"I think that's more like it. If she really dared to call you by your name or address you by your full name... ha."

Otto, who had just been unhappy with Cecilia's overstepping of boundaries, was now quite satisfied with Cecilia's attitude.

"Well, to be honest, I'm just so-so about her."

Liu Bai sighed and stopped dwelling on the matter. After all, when Liu Bai talked about Cecilia just now, he was clearly addressing her as a junior—although Liu Bai didn't mind calling Cecilia his mother-in-law.

But others minded—including Cecilia herself.

"Enough with the small talk, let's get down to business— Anna, did anything unexpected happen during your stay on Coral Island?" Otto finally revealed the unfathomable aura befitting a bishop.

"An accident?" Anna paused for a moment, then shook her head. "Thanks to the team's dedication, there haven't been any accidents on Coral Island in the past two years. It's just that during last year's... well, the turmoil, a few Honkai Beast appeared, but they were all wiped out by our team before they caused any real damage. Every operation and result has been recorded."

Anna was somewhat at a loss for words to describe last year's large-scale rebellion and the awakening of the Herrscher —after all, on her way here she had seen the rebels, the Herrscher, and the leaders of the forces that supported the rebels sitting together, drinking tea in a harmonious atmosphere.

Well, although Cecilia told her about the changes in Schicksal, Anna was still a little confused about her own thoughts.

"I've seen all those operation records, but I just want to ask if you have ever acted without authorization."

"Absolutely not!"

"Don't worry, they won't blame you... really?"

"Really not—at most, it's just that some actions were actually taken first and then the application was submitted."

Anna panicked slightly and even revealed things that were considered unspoken rules.

When her own bishop questioned her so seriously about such a "trivial matter," Anna's Valkyrie intuition immediately told her something.

"Could it be that the Herrscher of a Thousand that Lady Cecilia mentioned have appeared on Coral Island? Or perhaps they have even infiltrated our Snow Lotus Squad?"

On such crucial issues, these Valkyrie are all straightforward and direct.

"So it seems to be the Manila Honkai Outbreak 15 years ago?"

Otto didn't answer Anna's question directly, but instead uttered a name that shocked Anna.

Why... why did you suddenly bring this up?

For the first time, Anna showed obvious anxiety on her face.

"Ha...it seems so— Anna, I remember the former Snow Lotus Squad was wiped out in the Manila Honkai Outbreak, right?" Otto sighed.

"...yes."

Anna's expression darkened, and she nodded.

"I remember you had post-war psychological treatment for more than six months, right? What was the final assessment?"

"... The doctor determined that I am fit to rejoin the team."

"Tsk, you don't look too good right now. Maybe you should get Schicksal psychologist treated better." Otto sighed.

This wasn't the first time Liu Bai had heard about the Valkyrie's psychological problems. More than sixty years ago, Reanna had mentioned that one of her surviving juniors had committed suicide after years of unbearable pressure.

Later, Ragna often mentioned these kinds of things to Himeko was still young at the time.

Now... Liu Bai feels that this child has had a tough time too, and perhaps Chen Tianwu's incident was just the fuse that triggered the breakdown.

"... What exactly happened?" Anna's unease grew stronger.

"Simply put, Anna Schariac, we believe you may become the vessel for the next Herrscher."

When asked to this point, Otto stopped trying to hide anything.

"For your safety, and for our safety..."

"I'm going to be executed?" Anna's pupils contracted when Otto said she would become Herrscher's vessel, but she managed to remain calm.

Right, only something like this would warrant calling me back and asking such a serious question.

Anna remained remarkably calm about her potential execution.

Rather than becoming a monster like Herrscher and destroying what she cherishes, Anna can accept being executed.

"Don't think about these things, have a drink of water first."

Liu Bai poured Anna a glass of water from the side.

"Don't worry, you won't die. Relax and don't torture yourself."

After Liu Bai had his body examined by Imaginary Archive, he heard the scientists' speculations about why Anna became Herrscher. They all agreed that it was a psychological issue—the saying "flies don't land on eggs without cracks" applies to Honkai.

"...Thank you so much." Anna breathed a sigh of relief.

She had to admit that ever since the word "Manila" came up, she had been on edge, and memories she had previously suppressed began to surface involuntarily.

But Anna knew she couldn't blame her bishop for bringing these things up.

Memories always come to mind unexpectedly—at least this prepared surge is far better than one day in the future when you're watching the news or gazing at the stars at night and suddenly your heart is torn apart by sad memories, and then your heart Honkai down and takes advantage of your vulnerability.

"That's right, just like the Lord God said, you won't die—in fact, killing you now would be the worst option."

Otto paused.

"You have to live. Your death will not affect the appearance of the Herrscher, but will only make the originally planned Herrscher appear randomly."

"And I... at least I'm monitorable." Anna nodded knowingly. "That's really good news."

"Yes, that's great news—but there's even better news."

Otto looked at Anna seemed to have cheered up a little, and continued, "The power of Herrscher can be controlled. Becoming Herrscher does not mean you have to be wiped out. Schicksal is now trying to accept ideas that were once considered heretical. It's just like it was five hundred years ago."

"Can it be... controlled?"

Anna's eyes flickered.

Liu Bai then spoke up at this moment, "Anna, have you seen Kiana? She's the girl who was called K423 in the old files."

"She... yes, I've seen her before. She's Lady Cecilia's daughter, right? And the former Second Herrscher... she's mastered the power of the Second Herrscher?"

"You could say that—I'm her teacher, you know? That silly girl usually only passes on her third makeup exam."

"..."

The third... make-up exam?

"I'm not kidding. It's only because Cecilia and Siegfried are reluctant to fight that their report card is enough to make that brat Kiana suffer a lot of pain."

"Pfft..."

The vivid description of "one flower blooming on one leaf" made Anna was originally tense, burst into laughter.

"So have some confidence in yourself." Liu Bai patted Anna's head. "But could you please recount the events in Manila back then? It's important to assess your mental state."

"...yes."

Chapter 371 Atonement

"Oh... so many things actually happened back then."

After listening to Anna's retelling of the Manila Honkai Outbreak, Otto, unusually, had a headache.

This is... indeed a bit tricky.

She believed that Anna had recounted the entire incident in detail, without hiding anything, but that was precisely why Otto was so troubled.

According to Anna's account, during that wave of Honkai, aside from the initial engagement and the final rescue, Anna was essentially negligent throughout the entire process.

Throughout the entire process, Anna was practically a deserter, and she also refused to help other refugees who were in dire need.

To be honest, given the severity of the situation, even if she were more forgiving than her AI, Anna should still have been sent to a military court.

Well, Otto didn't really care about being a deserter. After all, the Snow Lotus Squad was defeated after engaging the enemy, and all communications were cut off. As Valkyrie, retreating to the pre-arranged rendezvous point was perfectly acceptable.

The real serious problem is the subsequent failure to provide assistance when someone is in dire need.

"... I'm sorry, Your Excellency, I have failed in my duty." Anna's face showed barely suppressed remorse.

"... At least you turned around and came to the rescue in the end."

Otto let out a sigh of relief.

The Snow Lotus Squad, which was almost completely wiped out in the Manila Honkai Outbreak, was able to retain its members entirely thanks to Anna, the only surviving Valkyrie, who saved dozens of people during the Honkai.

Should we be so harsh?

Otto hates these moral choices—because Miss Otto doesn't have one and has to consider it for the sake of others.

"Anna Schariac, you are being dismissed in light of your negligence and cover-up during the Manila Honkai Outbreak."

"...Yes." Anna nodded hesitantly. "Anything else?"

Confessing her sins gave Anna a long-lost sense of relief, and she felt that the punishment of merely being dismissed was too lenient.

"Should he go to jail or at least be in solitary confinement...?"

"..." Otto was speechless. Even in her five hundred years of life, she had rarely seen such a person. "I have a powerful tranquilizer for Valkyrie. Shall I give you an injection?"

"It's not that it's impossible..."

"It's not that it's not good enough, my foot." Otto said irritably. If it weren't for maintaining her ladylike image, she would have smashed the cup next to her. "Dismissal means dismissal in lieu of dismissal. You wish you could just let it go like that. However, given the achievements of the Snow Lotus Squad over the past two years, there is no need to disband it."

"There are many ways to atone for your sins, but self-punishment is actually not very efficient."

Although Anna couldn't see him, Liu Bai still spoke leisurely.

"At least in the last two years, the situation on Coral Island has shown that you do indeed have a desire to atone for your sins."

Coral Island suffered no substantial losses during the several Honkai disturbances that Anna was stationed there. If Anna can work hard to improve herself, coupled with this achievement, it is not impossible for her to be promoted to S-Rank Valkyrie before retirement—of course, this promotion is more like a "honorary retirement" or a promotion of honor.

It's fair to say that in the past two years alone, Anna has indeed worked diligently every day, never daring to slack off in the slightest.

"But even so, those who died because of my cowardice back then..."

"You really need to figure this out yourself." Seeing Anna's still guilty expression, Liu Bai didn't know how to persuade her—after all, those people did die back then because Anna stood by and did nothing.

You can't say that your achievements in the past two years are enough to offset the mistakes you made back then, can you?

Is this even human language? It's even uncertain whether these words are meant to comfort or provoke.