2. Among a whole bunch of obvious flaws, chose the hardest difficulty / 3. Haimo: *sobs* I'll never act up again

Ain calmly said, "We need to make them understand that force is a prerequisite for having a voice, especially in this special period."

"Of course, if there are still those who remain stubbornly unrepentant..."

"Then we should let Yae Sakura start working." Xia Ling continued, "Uh, but is it really appropriate for us to say these things in front of Seele?"

"No, it's alright, Seele understands the Doctor's decision," Seele said softly.

"That's right, that's right, Xia Ling is actually to my liking this time." In Seele's mind, Black Seele nodded repeatedly.

"Wait, those guys are here again..." Tesla's communicator suddenly rang. "You guys talk first, I have to go deal with those old guys again."

"Dr. Tesla, if you really can't stand it, remember to use a method that solves the problem once and for all!"

Tesla staggered abruptly from behind.

"Although Dr. Tesla is a bit short-tempered at times, he's generally a kind person," Ain sighed.

"Forget about this, Seele. The reason I called you here is because I have a personal matter I'd like to ask you for a favor."

"Private, private matter...?"

Seele couldn't help but think of the conversation between Tesla and Xia Ling that had just taken place.

"Don't worry, for the sake of world peace, Seele will protect everyone!"

"Idiot, don't overthink it! Even if Doctor. Ain and I are ruthless, we would never let underage children do assassinations or anything like that!"

Xia Ling noticed that Seele's train of thought seemed to have gone astray in some strange direction.

"Here's the thing, Seele, there's only one month left until Anti-Entropy's 60th anniversary. So much has happened in this time, so we're planning to hold a commemorative party on that day to help everyone relax."

"So, I'd like to ask you to help me prepare some materials. Um... Xia Ling will also be going with you; she's going out for a while too."

In Chapter Two, amidst a group of flaws, I chose the highest difficulty level.

"Sister Xia Ling, are you going to Salt Lake City tomorrow too?"

Leaving the room, Seele asked curiously.

"Yes, but I'm mainly going to be with Kiana... There have been several incidents of mechs going out of control in Salt Lake City recently, Kiana needs to investigate the situation."

"I see... Come to think of it, although I've known Kiana for a long time, I don't think I've ever had such a long conversation with Kiana before..."

"Perhaps it's because Kiana is avoiding you."

Xia Ling looked into the distance and said slowly, "As you know, due to Kiana's special identity, she inevitably receives more attention in Anti-Entropy."

"Not all of these stares are malicious; many may simply be out of curiosity. However, there are indeed a few who harbor malicious intent."

"Before, when Kiana was eating in the cafeteria, there were no people at any of the tables around her... Later, she chose to eat right when the cafeteria closed."

"Of course, she doesn't care about what others think, but she also doesn't want to introduce any additional variables into the current situation, so she chose to back down."

"But later, whenever I had free time, I would take Kiana to the cafeteria with me, or cook for her myself... But her social circle can't just consist of just the few of us; she also needs the kindness of other people."

"So, Sister Xia Ling wants me to... I understand. As expected of Sister Xia Ling, she is such a reliable adult."

"That's a bit of an overstatement, but Seele."

Xia Ling's words were pointed. "When making new friends, you can't neglect your old friends. Kiana might not be the only one in this situation."

"Huh?"

Seele blinked.

Xia Ling stretched out her finger and gently pointed at Zi Seele's eyes, then turned and left.

"Too talkative..."

A self-deprecating murmur escaped Seele's mind.

"My other self, did you just speak?"

"No, no, you must have misheard!"

According to the original storyline, the first target of the Thousand-Man Herrscher was Black Seele. Although it is unclear why they did not choose to target a Herrscher, it may be because Black Seele also has considerable potential to become Herrscher.

However, in the original work, the little angel Seele successfully coaxed Black Seele back, so Xia Ling wasn't too worried. Compared to Seele, the problem she was considering now was that there seemed to be too many potential targets for the Thousand-Man Herrscher.

Compared to the original work, there are now three more Herrscher in the world who can move freely: Wendy, Anna, and Sirin. Among them, only Wendy can be considered to have successfully ascended and can completely defend against the powers of Thousand-Man Herrscher.

No one knows who the thousand people will target first, given so many alternatives.

"So, can we be certain that the Herrscher of Domination has descended?"

"Yes, Your Honored Master."

The Gray Serpent bowed and said, "We have found conclusive evidence, but we have not yet been able to capture any individual specimens."

"The Herrscher of Domination are unpredictable. Finding the outcome of her actions is not difficult, but finding her as an individual... requires a bait to provoke her to take the initiative."

Kevin's gaze was deep, containing a hint of unspeakable complexity, as if he were recalling some past event.

"Let Mei Raiden take this task. I think the Herrscher of Domination won't let Kiana and Hua go. When Mei Raiden came to World Serpent, I promised her that I would put her on the path of protecting Kiana."

"My Honored Master, Mei Raiden is a newly joined officer, shouldn't Raven assist her? Or perhaps Night Owl?"

"No need, just go and provide her with some help. As for Raven... the Herrscher of Ice may also be one of their targets, and her condition is equally unstable."

"My Honored Master, why not send the Rabbit to Coral Island?"

Gray Serpent suggested, "It seems that because of something Reed did, Rabbit has repeatedly suggested to me that I visit these 'friends' on Coral Island."

"Coincidentally, with her abilities, plus the other combat forces on Coral Island, even if there were two more Herrscher, they might not be able to take her down easily."

"Yes, you are free to arrange these things as you see fit."

"... in addition."

Kevin was silent for a moment, and just as Gray Serpent was about to take his leave, he suddenly spoke up, "If this Herrscher is dealt with successfully... could you pass on a message to Xia Ling for me?"

"So... Mei Raiden has already qualified to enter that place. Do you have any other plans?"

"Yes, Your Honored Master."

"Is this the square in Salt Lake City?... It's decorated with lanterns and colorful lights everywhere, it's so lively."

Looking at the bustling street, the giant Hormu doll, and the large mechs used by Anti-Entropy for assistance, Seele let out a heartfelt sigh.

"Next month's fourth is Independence Day, and big festivals and celebrations will be held all over the world. I'm sure it will be the same here," Xia Ling explained, looking around.

"If we have time then, we can go out and have some fun again. We can invite Bronya and Fu Hua too... It's been a long time since we've had a team-building activity like this."

"Yes... the last time was at the academy..."

Kiana's eyes dimmed for a moment, then she quickly changed the subject. "But, Anti-Entropy's founding anniversary and Independence Day seem to be very close. Will they take away from our holidays?"

"Don't worry, Anti-Entropy is quite humane in this regard; it doesn't have that evil system of adjusting work schedules." Xia Ling recalled some unpleasant memories from her past life.

"We still have quite a while before our scheduled meeting time with the other party, so let's accompany Seele to do some shopping first."

Kiana suggested.

"You and Seele can go. Don't forget, I came along the same route as you, and I also have a mission."

Xia Ling waved her hand. "Have fun?"

"Okay, Sister Xia Ling is done. Remember to send me a message."

Kiana waved.

After saying goodbye to Kiana, Xia Ling immediately found a place to hide.

She didn't have any particularly important tasks, but the purpose of this trip was to allow Kiana and Seele to spend more time together, and it wouldn't be good if she stayed by their side the whole time.

All I need to do is find a good sniping spot so that I can take action in time to control the situation if an accident occurs.

What's more... she also has a good show to watch.

Xia Ling silently closed her eyes, while simultaneously activating visual empathy on Highmore's side.

If all goes well, the first doll might be captured soon.

Chapter Three: Highmore: Waaaaah, I'll never be naughty again!

Ever since Wendy mastered the power of the Herrscher of Wind, Oceania has completely become her territory.

Although she tried to get Highmore to help during the Schicksal War, Theresa refused.

Theresa's reasoning was that you've already managed to escape this mess, and there's no need for us to drag you back in. In her view, she already owes Wendy enough.

Because Theresa's attitude was too firm, Wendy didn't insist. However, when faced with some requests from Himeko and Kal'tsit, such as hiding in the Sea of Quantum, she and Highmore would help whenever they could.

As for Otto... sorry, I'm in the Sea of Quantum and didn't hear you.

However, this cannot be considered an excuse. After all, Highmore did discover quite a few strange things in the Sea of Quantum, such as... some World Bubble that looked completely drained.

Considering that this might be the work of a certain Vita, Highmore would file a report with the Schicksal's database every time she encountered such a situation. Unfortunately, so far, she has not been able to find a World Bubble similar to Salt Snow Holy City.

Over time, Otto realized he couldn't control these two people, and Oceania became a neutral region.

Recently, some minor issues have arisen in this neutral zone.

"Wendy... I've been feeling something's off about Oceania lately."

"Really?" Wendy stopped her mischievous tentacles. "To prevent this from being just an excuse to change the subject, I need to hear detailed evidence. Otherwise..."

"No, don't move..." Highmore blushed, "I'm serious."

"Wendy, you should know that in order to ensure that there are no Otto's spies in the Oceania Branch, I secretly implanted Sea Creatures cells in every branch member."

"Hmm, I remember, but I don't usually sense it very well..."

"That's because you're Herrscher Sea Creatures transformed... your control over the Swarm isn't as high as mine," Highmore explained, then continued.

"Because I didn't intend to convert them all into Sea Creatures, but only wanted to monitor them, these Sea Creatures cells have remained dormant... But interestingly, I recently discovered that one person's Sea Creatures cells have a tendency to activate."

"Then... under what circumstances would this tendency occur?"

"Are you an idiot? You know perfectly well, you've even experienced it yourself." Highmore pouted and pinched Wendy's cheek:

"You did that to me back then, and you don't even remember it anymore? Waaaaah, I'm so sad. Has Wendy already lost interest in me...?"

"Ah—I remember now!" Wendy exclaimed suddenly, "It was when I had the Sea Creatures cells implanted, and those cells were fighting with the Herrscher Core for ownership of my body..."

"Waaaaah..."

"If you keep pretending to cry, I'll let you experience firsthand whether I've lost interest in you or not!"

This time, Highmore didn't dare to be cheeky anymore. After coughing a few times, she steered the conversation back on track.

"In short, after realizing that something was wrong, I did not try to fully activate the Sea Creatures cells in his body, but instead began to approach this person under various pretexts."

"After observing for a while, I made a major discovery..."

"What did you find?" Wendy's curiosity was piqued as well.

"His body seemed to have something wrong with him."

Highmore pointed to the calendar by the bed. "Look, it's June now. The temperature here isn't as hot as Africa, but it's at least the season to wear swimsuits and play in the water."

"And the person I just mentioned is the only one in the Oceania Branch who is still wearing long sleeves and trousers."

"Um... maybe he was injured somewhere?"

"But he missed all three of his recent physical exams," Highmore added, revealing another piece of information. "If it was because he was unwell, he shouldn't have missed the free check-ups."

"Most importantly, a colleague noticed that his body seemed to be developing some strange lignification..."

"So... he definitely has a problem!"

"So you mean we should go check on things tomorrow?"

"As expected of Wendy, she knew what I wanted to do before I even said anything."

"If you wanted to continue observing, you definitely wouldn't have told me... Since you've already told me, you must need my 'force' to protect you."

Wendy looked like she'd been there all along.