Chapter 364

"Regardless of the circumstances, if the spacetime projection is true... then Bishop Otto has really dumped a huge burden on us, just like the second Honkai..."

Einstein concluded that whatever the situation, since they were here, they had to take responsibility for handling it. Perhaps this was one of the reasons Otto had sent them? He was certain they wouldn't stand idly by.

"Everyone, since you all have such serious concerns, why don't we use this time to explore the area where the anomaly occurred together? After all, whether it's Schicksal or Anti-Entropy... preventing the Honkai is our inescapable responsibility. Lady Theresa, what do you think?"

Durandal made this suggestion partly because the situation was indeed as described, and partly because she wanted to improve her relationship with Einstein and the others. Durandal was quite bothered by Einstein's earlier comment that she was treated as an outsider, since she would definitely be with Shen Gonglin in the future. Therefore, it was her duty to maintain good relationships with these friends. This would be a win-win situation, balancing public and private matters. Durandal made this suggestion to Theresa, and the loli headmistress, whose name was called, finally snapped out of her daze.

"Hmm, I think what you all said makes sense... Hmm? Oh, indeed. However, you should be able to understand that because of the presence of a certain bishop, our troop deployment is actually quite stretched. How about this, Durandal, I'll go and verify the situation with you alone, what do you think?"

Although she was a little distracted, Theresa still took their conversation to heart. They couldn't put all their eggs in one basket, since they couldn't be sure if it was a trap set by her grandfather. So Theresa suggested that she and Durandal act together first, and then assign tasks to the others after they were sure.

"Hey, Theresa, isn't this a bit too risky?"

Tesla clearly understood Theresa's meaning. The Red-haired Twin Tails raised an eyebrow and tried to dissuade her. What if Otto and the others detained Theresa? She actually lacked trust in Durandal, so this was indeed too risky.

"It's alright. Even from the perspective of being a hostage to Schicksal, I am the most suitable person on the Hyperion right now."

Theresa shook her head. She had other considerations. As the head of the Far East Branch and a commander, she was a suitable hostage. Besides, Otto was her grandfather. Theresa didn't think she would be in any danger. So, from any perspective, she was the most suitable candidate.

"... I see. After the series of events that have occurred, it's understandable that Senior Theresa would have such concerns. In that case, please allow us to leave behind civilian personnel from the Immortal Blade on the Hyperion to facilitate subsequent communication efforts. What do you all think?"

Chapter Sixty-Seven

Durandal spoke in this way, and although that's what she said, the girls present were all shrewd and understood what Durandal meant.

Theresa went to serve as a hostage, so Durandal, in order to put their minds at ease, also took the initiative to arrange for the civilian staff of the Immortal Blade to serve as hostages with them. Originally, I tended to think that Durandal was a character being used by Otto, but this decisiveness and initiative... Einstein suddenly felt that she was one of his own.

Come to think of it, Durandal had "accidentally" sent Schicksal's supply ships to ports controlled by Anti-Entropy more than once during her time in power, so she should have been considered one of them long ago. Shen Gonglin's social skills are just too strong.

Now that Durandal has shown sincerity, they should do their work more thoroughly this time.

"Okay, there's no problem with Anti-Entropy in principle. However, Ms. Theresa is not a technician, so she may not be very efficient in gathering intelligence. To make up for this, I would like to trouble you two to bring Dr. Tesla along during the on-site investigation."

Durandal showed enough sincerity, so Einstein felt they had to reciprocate. Compared to Otto, she trusted Durandal more, since they would be sharing a bed... well, not sharing a bed, but being allies in the same camp. They couldn't afford to make things so awkward. This was partly due to sincerity, and partly because it was indeed necessary.

Theresa is just a silly little girl; these kinds of research and surveying issues should definitely be handled by professionals.

"If Dr. Tesla has basic self-protection abilities, then there is no problem."

Durandal had no objection to Einstein's suggestion and could sense Einstein goodwill. She nodded to the doctor with slightly disheveled hair, thinking, "No wonder Shen Gonglin often praises her; she's really thoughtful."

"You can rest assured about that; Dr. Tesla's mech piloting skills are world-class."

Einstein made this assurance. It's hard to say about other things, but as the Iron Man: Anti-Entropy Branch, Tesla not only has a mechanical glove on her left hand for self-defense, but also has superb mech piloting skills. As the creator, she can even dance in a Titan. She has no problem with basic self-protection. However, both Durandal and Einstein seem to have ignored Dr. Tesla's own opinion.

"Hey! You guys agreed so easily... Didn't anyone even ask how I felt?"

Tesla spoke up rather unhappily. It wasn't that she was unwilling, but the feeling of being told what to do without being asked for her opinion was very uncomfortable. Did her opinion not matter?

"Oh? So that means Dr. Tesla would prefer to stay on the Hyperion as a liaison so that he can be responsible for contacting Bishop Otto when necessary? And I was thinking of filming Dr. Tesla's performance this time and showing it to Shen Gonglin, since he often says that Tesla is extremely useful."

Einstein continued to flatter Tesla without batting an eye, but the girl was easily swayed by his smooth talk. He often claimed to be very useful, and would his dashing figure be photographed while he was out and about? Thinking of this, Tesla's face lit up with joy. However, the twin-tailed doctor felt she needed to be a little reserved and not be so obvious.

"Ah... I see. Whoever wants to take responsibility for that can take responsibility! I don't want to hear that bastard's voice again! In that case, I'll go to the scene... It's not because of Shen Gonglin! It's just that we're the only two senior technicians on the Hyperion... Hey, if you really want to film it, remember to use Line 2. That camera was just replaced, so it's clearer. Got it?"

Tesla tried to cover up his misunderstanding, but his arrogant demeanor made everyone present burst into laughter. This girl was too easy to understand! She couldn't resist a little provocation, and her smug and happy laughter almost reached her ears. Durandal couldn't help but take a deep look at Einstein. She really knew how to handle Tesla. She was much better than Tesla. After all, that red-haired girl was just an arrogant person.

"What's with those looks you're giving me! Forget it, Theresa, Durandal, let's go! We're not going to stoop to the level of this troll with his messy Chicken Coop Head."

Tesla knew, of course, that Einstein was playing a trick on her, but there was nothing she could do; she just fell for it. Tesla snorted and turned to leave, while Durandal and Theresa quickly followed. This silly girl, she didn't even realize she was going the wrong way.

"Dr. Tesla, let me lead the way. The core of the problem should be over there. Do you see that mountain over there? That's the old palace where the three major families used to live. The spacetime projection phenomenon is appearing in this small town at the foot of that mountain. All irrelevant personnel in the dangerous area have been evacuated, and there are no signs of the anomaly spreading. Senior Theresa may be more familiar with Kolosten Town than I am... But has Senior Theresa been here before?"

Acting as a tour guide, Durandal corrected the route in a very subtle way. She was quite adept at this, after all, Shen Gonglin was terrible with directions, and this wasn't the first time she had done something like this. Speaking of being familiar with this town, Theresa should certainly be the most familiar with it.

"Hmph, why would I come to a place filled with the stench of corrupt bureaucracy... Ah, I wasn't talking about you two, I'm so sorry."

With a cold snort and arms crossed, Tesla felt the place reeked of decay, so she blurted it out without thinking. But as soon as she spoke, she regretted it. They were both Valkyrie who had come from here, and by saying that, she had included them in the conversation. It was really wrong of her. Although Schicksal was corrupt, as Valkyrie of Schicksal, they were both excellent and respectable people.

"It's alright, I understand. Now, let me introduce some basic information."

Durandal, of course, wouldn't take it to heart. She knew what Schicksal had in store... Otto had done, so Tesla's reaction was perfectly normal. It was much more comfortable to be around the outspoken Tesla than to be around someone like Otto. At least Tesla would say whatever came to mind, while Otto... it was common for him to dig several traps in a single sentence.

Chapter Sixty-Eight: The Valkyrie Who Doesn't Like to Study

After gathering her thoughts, Durandal began to explain what she had learned. Something unusual was indeed happening in this town, and this information had to be shared with them.

"Based on the results of our preliminary investigation, the time and space ahead of us overlap with information from the 15th century. Explaining the specifics will probably be difficult to understand, so seeing is believing. Let's start confirming things from the square over there... using the device that's compatible with Gnius."

I had already investigated the situation here before, and this feeling was really hard to describe. In the overlapping areas of time and space projection, we might receive fragments of ancient information. These fragments could be small physical objects, sound clips, or even emotional reflections. It is really difficult to express this in words, so the best way is to let them experience it for themselves.

Durandal shook her head. She had had this feeling before. When she touched those nodes, she felt as if she were tied to a cross. Something cold touched her abdomen, and Durandal felt as if she was bleeding, but she could not feel any pain. The dizzy feeling became more and more intense, and then suddenly disappeared.

In short, Durandal never wanted to experience anything like this again.

Guiding Tesla and Theresa to the place where the emotions were combined, Durandal saw their extremely pale faces and knew that they had also experienced that feeling. Durandal used her knight's lance to knock away the puppets that appeared. This kind of enemy was starting to appear in this place, but it didn't matter.

How are you feeling?

"Hmm... this is really not a comfortable experience. The lives of ancient people must be terrifying! But one thing at a time, it seems that the extent of the corruption here is much better than I initially expected. At least there haven't been any cases of houses being moved to the sky or ancient dead people running out in droves."

Tesla rubbed her head, banishing the unpleasant feeling. Durandal and Theresa exchanged subtle glances at her wildly imaginative thoughts. This Doctor really is good at using her brain.

"So, Dr. Tesla, what are your thoughts?"

"For professional matters, you should find professionals. That's why Tesla came here," Theresa asked the twin-tailed doctor. "What do you want to do in this situation?"

"Please wait a moment. I will configure a program based on the degree of erosion here to detect where the source of the anomaly is."

This is where her expertise comes in. Tesla snapped her fingers, and the Titan she had been piloting immediately extended a monitor. Tesla's ten fingers flew across the keyboard; she was a programmer, after all. As countless command lines scrolled by in sync with the sound of the keyboard, the monitor finally settled on a strange numerical chart.

Thank goodness Dr. Tesla came along; otherwise, Theresa really wouldn't know what to do in this situation. Programmers are always a must, no matter what.

"Okay, it seems the signal strength distribution is quite regular... Durandal, what direction is that?"

Based on the program's feedback, Tesla pointed into the distance and asked Durandal, "The signal indicates that there's something unusual there; there should be clues over there."

"Over there... is the center of Kolosten Town, Violet Garden Plaza."

Looking in the direction Tesla was pointing, Durandal recalled the topographical map of Kolosten she had seen before and gave the answer: Violet Garden Plaza. It was a pretty nice name.

"Hmm, is it the square? Okay, let's go check out that square. There's probably a 99.7% chance we'll find some useful clues... By the way, do you know what 99.7% means? It represents three standard deviations—"

Suddenly, she became very enthusiastic and prepared to give Theresa and Durandal a lesson on the charm of numbers. However, Theresa, who knew what this top science student was going to do, quickly interrupted her. This professor could go on and on if she started rambling.

"Dr. Tesla, we trust your judgment, so let's get down to business first. You can teach this kind of knowledge to Kiana and the others later."

She was the headmistress, after all. Theresa couldn't even remember how many years it had been since she had attended a class. Being next to Tesla suddenly gave her the feeling of returning to the classroom, which was just too... well, this was something she was completely bad at!

"... Alright, alright, I knew you Valkyrie didn't like listening to math, you didn't even want to listen to high school math about probability and normal distribution. Shen Gonglin is so incompetent because of your teaching methods... Let's go."

Seeing Theresa's "dislike of studying" attitude, Tesla helplessly shrugged. What could he do? Even if he wanted to teach, no one wanted to listen. She wanted to teach Shen Gonglin, but there was no opportunity at all. Whenever Tesla saw Shen Gonglin, she wanted to get close to him. Where would she find the time to teach?

Um... Actually, Shen Gonglin might actually be quite good at this kind of thing. Although that guy's attitude towards studying is extremely unprofessional, he's got a good brain. Maybe he doesn't look like it, but he's definitely a top student.

They thought this to themselves, but neither Durandal nor Theresa said it out loud. After all, apart from Shen Gonglin, most Valkyrie seemed to be like this. Although the Valkyrie's courses also involved a lot of academics, they basically only had a superficial understanding. After all, the main duty of Valkyrie is to fight against the Honkai. Even if you study and become a mathematician, what difference would it make?

Is she planning to teach Honkai Beast advanced mathematics to annoy them to death? If that really works, Durandal wouldn't mind conducting Valkyrie academic research at headquarters. So, in conclusion, what's wrong with Valkyrie not understanding these mathematical problems?

Obviously, there's no problem; everyone has their own area of expertise.

Thinking about it this way, Theresa and Durandal felt a bit more justified. Yes, it wasn't their fault; it was the world's fault.

These two are acting so strangely. When did they become so close? Tesla glanced back at the two Valkyrie who were encouraging each other, and for some reason, Tesla shuddered and immediately felt scared. He should hurry up and finish what he was doing and go back, or he would be really scared.

Chapter Sixty-Nine

"Huh? Chicken Coop Head's communication?"

The three of them set off to explore the Violet Garden Plaza, confident in their 99.7% certainty that they would find something there. Just then, Tesla's communicator rang. It was Einstein. Tesla answered the call in surprise. What was going on? Could it be that Otto had attacked the Hyperion while he was away?

[Dr. Tesla, there's something I'd like you to keep in mind while you're exploring. I just remembered it... and I feel it's quite important.]

Einstein's face appeared on the communicator. It was a rare opportunity to come to Kolosten, and he didn't know when he would have such an opportunity again. So, taking advantage of this chance, Einstein wanted to Tesla to do something for him.

"Okay, but why are you so serious? Is it some kind of secret about Schicksal?"

Rarely seeing Einstein's attitude, Tesla immediately became furious. She glanced at Durandal with considerable concern, while the strongest Valkyrie acted as if nothing had happened. She wanted to tell Tesla that her wariness towards her was completely unnecessary; they were actually in cahoots.

[You could say that, but it's definitely not the kind of secret you're thinking of.]

Einstein sighed. It was indeed a secret, but Tesla must have been thinking of the kind of secret that could overturn the entire Schicksal, judging from how excited she was. However, this secret, in reality, was just something that could bring them both some comfort.

"Alright, you 'Chicken Coop Head, stop playing coy. What do you need me to do?"

Seeing Einstein's hesitation and Tesla's indecisiveness makes me feel annoyed. Why can't he just say what he thinks like I do? That's Tesla's personality; what's there to hesitate about?

Okay, you remember Leanna, right? Riana Leanna.

Einstein uttered a name, and upon hearing it, even the lively Tesla visibly fell silent. How could he not remember that name? But what was Einstein trying to do by suddenly bringing it up?

"... Of course, everyone in Anti-Entropy remembers her. But what does that have to do with what's happening now? Chicken Coop Head, what do you want me to do?"

This name represents a memory for Tesla, a time when this Valkyrie provided him and the entire Anti-Entropy with tremendous help. Now she has vanished into history, and Tesla often thinks of her.

She was S-rank Valkyrie from a bygone era. Perhaps she too will leave her mark in this town that once served as the Schicksal Headquarters. Even if Schicksal considered her a traitor who helped us, it's impossible to completely erase all traces of her deeds. Here, we should be able to find some evidence of her existence.

Einstein was also somewhat downcast, but as was her usual tone, this "Chicken Coop Head" doctor reminisced about the past and looked to the future; she was a very rational person.

Einstein had previously considered Schicksal possibility that Schicksal might completely suppress Leanna, the "traitor" who had once helped Anti-Entropy. However, after careful consideration, Einstein rejected this possibility. After all, Schicksal still retains the main building of their Laboratory 42 in London. This is probably because older organizations tend to respect the intrinsic value of objects and are less likely to antagonize a silenced history. Therefore, Einstein judged that they should be able to find something they were looking for in this time-space distortion town.

In short, since they rarely come here, it's probably not a bad thing for them to be a little more careful.

"That makes sense. I'll take your kind words to heart. That Leanna ... I actually quite like her."

Having accepted Einstein's commission, Tesla continued on his way with great pride. After all, it was just something that happened along the way. Schicksal's former S-rank Valkyrie... Right, didn't he have a current S-rank Valkyrie by his side? Tesla was quite curious to know what she thought of him.

"Hey, Durandal, I'm a little curious... how does Schicksal promote us to you Valkyrie? If it were me, would I be portrayed as some kind of mad scientist? Schicksal would definitely spare no effort to smear us, right?"

She quickly adjusted her emotions; the red-haired twin-tailed girl, who had been somewhat dejected, soon regained her spirits. She turned to ask Durandal, after all, they were an opposing organization, and she felt it was possible that Schicksal could smear her.

"... No, I used to think you were just imposters or clones or something, but I never expected you to actually be people who appear in textbooks... To be honest, it feels pretty strange."

Durandal said honestly, "But the textbook seems to be wrong. After all, the illustrations don't show that the two famous doctors are actually such beautiful girls."

"I see... Hmph, so you're adopting a strategy of complete ignoring it? But thinking about it, it makes sense. After all, we ourselves haven't appeared in public for many years. For the general public, realizing that there are a few people in this world who don't age is probably not a pleasant experience."

Tesla shrugged. There was nothing she could do; after all, she was a beautiful girl who wouldn't age. Come to think of it, there were quite a few people like that. Theresa and Shen Gonglin were the same, as were Durandal and the others... Honkai energy had completely altered their bodies... Not to mention they would never die, just looking at their appearance, it would be difficult for them to change any further.

"Dr. Tesla... I heard Rita mention that you all accidentally acquired your current physique because of the power of the Black Abyss White Flower?"

As she spoke, Durandal looked down at the knight's lance in her hand. The girl was holding the Divine Key, and this knight's lance seemed to carry a lot of weight.

"That's right. The overloaded Black Abyss White Flower has repaired our bodies to the point where they don't make mistakes with each cell division. Although Anti-Entropy has never had the opportunity to conduct a detailed analysis of the Black Abyss White Flower... the probability of this phenomenon occurring is probably no more than one in ten thousand."

Tesla revealed the reason why she and Chicken Coop Head had maintained their youthful and beautiful appearances for so many years. She was actually quite grateful for what had happened to her. If it weren't for this, how could she have survived until now, and how could she have met Shen Gonglin?

She can't possibly look like she's in her seventies or eighties, can she? As everyone knows, a young woman's age is linked to her appearance.

Chapter Seventy: The Former Master of the Black Abyss White Flower

"Is that so... Bishop Otto has conducted some experiments on the healing abilities of the Black Abyss White Flower in the past. However, the results were far from perfect."

She picked up the Black Abyss White Flower in her hand. She was the current user of this knight's lance, and before her, there were other respectable people who had used it, such as Leanna and Cecilia. Speaking of which, Durandal still considered herself to be just its user, not its master.

"Ha, what could his dog brain possibly research? Let's not talk about that person... just mentioning him makes me feel bad."

Tesla sneered and curled his lip. Why does Otto even exist in the world? People like him should have disappeared as soon as possible. He is the cancer of humanity. Tesla has never seen anyone worse than him. He is so annoying.

"...Feel sorry."

With a very straightforward personality, Durandal really thought it was her fault after seeing Tesla's reaction. Otto was indeed a very contradictory person. He had done good things and bad things. Those who were kind to him would always remember his kindness, but those who were hurt by him would also always remember his evil deeds.

"It's alright, I just say what I think. It's my fault, saying that in front of Theresa... I'm sorry, you two shouldn't take it to heart. Durandal, you're Schicksal S-rank Valkyrie, Otto will definitely treat you well. But... since you're the current master of the Black Abyss White Flower, you must take good care of yourself."

Tesla felt uncomfortable with Durandal's serious apology. She had only been targeting Otto, so why was she apologizing to her? She also realized that her personality had its downsides, such as criticizing Otto in front of Theresa. She should tone it down a bit. So Tesla changed the subject, saying, "Black Abyss White Flower, this weapon is actually ominous."

"Protect yourself... do you mean Cecilia- senpai, and Leanna- senpai?"

Durandal said this, and Tesla was quite surprised to hear Leanna's name from her. Schicksal really not blocked her information? Chicken Coop Head's guess was absolutely right.

"You know about Leanna?"

"More or less, she originally assisted the bishop in developing many technologies related to Soul Steel as a recipient volunteer, but in the end, their relationship broke down because of something."

Durandal didn't know much about that senior, but Tesla knew exactly why. The girl's expression turned somewhat grim as she spoke.

"That day, Otto stole her body and murdered the father of an innocent child. Not only that, in order to eliminate us who later established Anti-Entropy, he also planned to use Honkai Energy Fission Bomb bombs to flatten the entire New York City! However, New York City in 1955 was not destroyed by him. At that time... well, you just need to know that it was Leanna who thwarted Otto's plot, and she... paid for it with her own life."

If Otto were to talk about all the bad things Tesla had done, he could go on for a whole day and night and still not finish. Seeing Tesla like this, Durandal couldn't help but apologize again, not for anything else, but for reminding her of such tragic things.