12. Tesla: I'm about to box you up! / 13. Bianka: We're not married, and we don't have kids!

With the sound of motorcycle brakes, Bronya executed a beautiful drift and came to a stop in front of everyone.

"Hey, Bronya? Weren't you supposed to stay on the ship and help Ain with the experiments?"

"It was Doctor. Truss who called Bronya over, Headmistress."

The motorcycle transformed into Heavy Armor Rabbit and then disappeared. Bronya, on the other hand, pulled out a box that looked very high-tech.

"That's right, I called Bronya here. I plan to fuse these two cores, one large and one small, on the spot. I just contacted Doctor. Changguang from Schicksal, and she said she can provide the necessary equipment..."

Tesla took the box and explained.

"Oh, so Bronya, you've switched from riding motorcycles to delivering food?"

Sirin, who had finally gotten someone to change the subject for him, naturally wouldn't let this opportunity pass.

"You're the one delivering takeout! Bronya heard everything you said just now, all that arrogant talk..."

Bronya did not hesitate to retaliate.

Changguang's temporary research institute was not far from the square where everyone was. After following the lab in with curiosity and listening for a while, Kiana, who felt like her brain was about to explode, chose to slip out for some fresh air.

In a small garden outside the laboratory, she met Durandal shared the same idea.

"What a coincidence, you're out for some fresh air too?"

Kiana paused for a moment, then spoke first.

"I'm not afraid to admit it, but although as an S-rank Valkyrie, having a certain amount of theoretical knowledge is a must, it's actually more of a headache for me than my fighting skills."

Durandal nodded, making no attempt to hide her shortcomings.

"Compared to five months ago, you are much stronger, and your mastery of the Herrscher of the Void's abilities seems to have improved significantly."

"Hey, you could sense that too?"

"Of course, for some reason, I have had a lot of dealings with the Second Divine Key that Schicksal possesses— the Thousand Worlds Layered. Therefore, I am particularly sensitive to this type of spatial ability."

Durandal walked over to Kiana and leaned against the railing with her.

"I remember, five months ago, you asked me why I served Otto, why I helped Schicksal..."

"Yes." Kiana paused for a moment, "I also clearly remember your answer back then. You said, if there is no Schicksal, who will protect the billions of people on this planet?"

"And you also said that there is no absolute good or evil in this world, only missions."

"Of course, now that things have come to this, I can understand your stance and difficulties in saying these things, but... at the time I really didn't understand what the mission you were talking about was worth, and why you listened to Otto readily."

"However, judging from your demeanor, it seems that this question can be answered today?"

"That's right." Durandal smiled slightly, "After all, we may become comrades-in-arms in the future, so it's better to clear up any misunderstandings as soon as possible."

"In fact, the secondary reason for your doubt is that Bishop Otto is to me what Theresa is to you."

"Regardless of his current behavior, back then, he truly taught me what beauty is and instructs me on the duties of Valkyrie... It can be said that he was a crucial mentor in my growth."

"So, there's another main reason?"

"That's right. When I was 12 years old, for various reasons, Rita and I entered a World Bubble."

"In that World Bubble, we experienced challenges, made friends... and then, just like in a traditional adventure story, an accident happened."

"Driven by that accident, the people in that World Bubble had no choice but to choose me as a guarantee for the existence of that world. You can also understand it as that the World Bubble was anchored to me."

"So, you've been carrying the weight of an entire world on your shoulders all this time?" Kiana asked in surprise.

"That's right, compared to your experience, this may seem rather ordinary."

"For the past five years, I have been trying to find a way to break free from the anchoring to the World Bubble, because I cannot let the fate of the entire world be entrusted to me alone."

"And just a month ago, with the help of Otto and the Second Divine Key, I arrived near the Tree of Imaginary."

"And this also gives me the ability to transfer the World Bubble within my body to another person for safekeeping, so that this mission can be carried on and that the world will not be destroyed due to any changes in my life."

"So you can think of me as being a little freer now than before."

Durandal emphasized the word "freedom" slightly, which made Kiana clearly understand her meaning.

"I see..."

Kiana took the initiative to extend her hand to Durandal.

"Since our goal is to fight against the Honkai, then our paths will eventually merge into one."

"Yes, I think we are much closer to the finish line than we were five months ago."

Durandal smiled slightly and chose to respond to Kiana's kindness.

These two sisters, who had not yet recognized each other, held each other's hands for the first time.

Chapter Twelve Tesla: I'll take you out right away!

In the tense and exciting experiment, time passed quickly, second by second.

After waiting for nearly two hours, Tesla finally emerged from the laboratory with a satisfied smile.

"So, Dr. Tesla, did you succeed?"

Kiana asked nervously.

"Hmph, don't you know who I am? Merging cores is a piece of cake."

Tescha Qi, the wife of the spirit, triumphantly handed a box to Kiana: "With this, and the fact that Ain has just finished repairing the reverse tracking device that tracks the Thousand-Man Herrscher."

"We will soon be able to locate Xia Ling's position through the core."

"Of course, we also want to thank Changguang for its strong support."

"This is also part of my job."

Changguang laughed, "If time weren't so tight, I'd really like to go back to the Hyperion with you to see if we could successfully reverse track Miss Xia Ling after the core fusion..."

"Unfortunately, Bishop Otto has assigned me many more tasks. Sigh, I can only wish you success."

"Task?"

Tesla and Theresa exchanged a quick glance. "Can you tell us what the mission is?"

"Uh..." Changguang showed a troubled expression. "Lord Theresa, you know that these things are subject to confidentiality regulations."

"If you're really curious, you can order me to tell you immediately after you take over... but now..."

Changguang shrugged, indicating her predicament.

"Of course, I'm not someone who blindly follows the rules. If the situation really deteriorates to a certain extent, I will offer some suggestions."

"Alright, Ms. Changguang, thank you for your understanding."

"You're welcome, Doctor. Einstein."

Just as Changguang was about to take his leave, Rita's communicator rang. He was watching Ain and Welt participating in the experiment via projection.

Rita made an apologetic gesture, then took out her communicator, and then her expression suddenly changed.

"It's a communication from Bishop Otto... I'll switch to the public channel."

As she spoke, Rita turned on the communicator's built-in projection function, and instantly, Otto's figure appeared in the air.

"My friends in the Hyperion, and my Valkyrie... Good afternoon, everyone. How is the research on the Herrscher Core going?"

"Grandfather ..." Theresa looked wary. "Didn't you say you had nothing left to ask us?"

"Oh dear, Theresa is so cold today... Is she still angry with me? She's just a clone, why is she holding such a grudge?"

Otto stopped teasing Theresa and Kiana when he sensed their gazes suddenly turn dangerous.

"Alright, enough joking. I don't really have anything to discuss with my Hyperion friends right now; I just have some tasks to assign to the S-rank Valkyrie of Schicksal."

"... Is it related to the trip you mentioned earlier?"

"As expected of Durandal, you reacted very quickly." Otto nodded approvingly. "That's right, I'm all ready now—you and Rita only need to come and do a small favor."

"Ah, the rest of the Immortal Blade team, continue to help my dear Theresa. After all, she's about to become an archbishop, so it's good for her to familiarize herself with the work beforehand."

"So, for most of you, this should be my last conversation with you, since I'll be setting off soon."

Otto looked around and then fixed his gaze on Welt.

"Is Mr. Welt also connecting with everyone? I'm so sorry I didn't let you have a very pleasant Thanksgiving in New York back then."

"Over the years, I have wanted to express my apology to you, and I have even imagined many ways: such as finding a monument, kneeling down on the spot, and performing a tearful performance for you."

"But now that so many years have passed, you probably don't need this kind of pretentious ceremony anymore, right?"

In what was supposedly their "last" meeting, Otto remained true to his original intentions and continued to fuel his hatred.

"Is this what you wanted to say to me before you set off?"

Welt said calmly.

"Otherwise, or to put it another way, do you think people like Kiana or Xia Ling need any apology from me now?"

Otto shrugged. "You guys are all heroes, you shouldn't be so petty."

"Then... Durandal, Rita, report to me at the Sunrise Observatory."

"Your other two companions are in position. Now, stand guard for me for the last time."

Otto abruptly cut off the communication, leaving everyone looking at each other in bewilderment.

"This..."

"Why are you covering my mouth, you 'chicken-head'?! Is this thing even speaking human language?"

Tesla grumbled indignantly.

"Even if you want to do something, Otto was just a projection."

Ain looked at Durandal and Rita: "So... are you two going?"

"I think we should go, whether out of duty or to find out what the bishop's plans are."

"Durandal said in a deep voice."

"Well, after all, the Lord Bishop probably dragged Little Xi into it too..." Rita sighed, "But don't worry, everyone, the current Bishop Otto can no longer fully represent [Schicksal]."

"Then you must be careful," Welt cautioned. "If Otto finds out that you are not useful to him, your situation may become very dangerous... Such things have happened before."

"Mr. Welt, are you referring to the former strongest Valkyrie of Schicksal, Senior Reanna?... I will keep an eye on it."

To Welt's surprise, Durandal knew who he was referring to.

Watching the two Valkyrie leave, Ain picked up the box containing the Herrscher Core.

"Then let's hurry back and prepare... It will take some time to reverse engineer based on the core's internal network, since the number of nodes corresponding to a core like the Thousand-Man Herrscher is too large."

"And..."

Ain didn't voice her next doubts.

This is because this method is not without the possibility of failure; the tracking device can only locate the core position, but cannot specifically search for a particular person.

If Xia Ling hasn't mastered most of the core technologies...

Ain didn't continue thinking about it. Since arriving in Kolosten, everything that had happened had a strange coherence.

She had a strong feeling of being arranged for her... even stronger than when she acted opposite Otto before.

Because of her trust in Xia Ling, Ain did not give a very deep consideration to a certain possibility.

But she had a bad feeling; according to Murphy's Law, the possibility she least wanted to see was precisely the most likely scenario at present.

Ain sighed almost imperceptibly, her gaze falling on the dark golden core.

In short, after the core reverse engineering was completed, all the answers became clear...

Chapter Thirteen Durandal: We are not husband and wife, nor have we had children!

Just as Kiana and the others rushed back to Hyperion to conduct reverse tracking of the core, Durandal and Rita had already arrived at the meeting point Otto had told them, the Sunrise Observatory on Kaslana Street.

However, perhaps because they arrived too early, or perhaps because Otto was preoccupied with other matters, Otto was not there when they arrived at the Sunrise Observatory.

On the huge observation deck, only two people, one adult and one child, were chatting happily.