The girl had pretty features, purple-blue fin-like ornaments by her ears that fluttered slightly, and wore a long dress with white stockings. Hugging her knees, she curled up inside the cocoon of light.
Perhaps because the cocoon had shattered, the girl's long eyelashes trembled slightly before she opened her pale violet eyes.
To Olivia's surprise, those eyes did not hold the brutality and lifelessness she had seen in Honkai-side creatures. Instead, they were filled with deep confusion and bewilderment.
"Where... is this?"
On the Self-Cultivation of a Master Actor
"What... is going on?"
The four of them looked at one another, unsure what to do for a moment.
"Captain... this?"
"Stay alert. I'll talk to her."
Olivia stepped forward slightly, maintaining a distance where she could clearly observe the girl's expression without getting too close.
"You seem to have retained your sanity... Haven't you been controlled by Honkai?"
"Sanity? What sanity?" The confusion in the girl's eyes deepened. "Where exactly is this? Why am I above the ocean?"
"Do you remember your name? Where are you from?" Olivia continued. "Don't be afraid. I'm an official from Oceania. Before I can help you, I need to determine whether you possess complete self-awareness and the ability to act independently."
"O-Okay... My name is Highmore. I'm from Iberia..."
"Highmore? That doesn't sound like a name. It sounds more like a codename... And Iberia? Isn't that in Europe?"
The more Olivia listened, the more confused she became. Highmore's introduction was incredibly detailed—so detailed that, if one ignored the fact that she was currently in Oceania, there was nothing wrong with it at all.
"Alright, I can now confirm that you've retained your self-awareness." Olivia made a gesture, signaling Highmore to wait. "I need to discuss this with my teammates. Please wait for a moment."
"Captain, could this be some kind of trap? Maybe she's trying to make us lower our guard..."
"That's unlikely. According to Schicksal's records, not only were previous Pseudo-Herrschers unable to communicate this smoothly, but even those who could communicate never concealed their destructive urges. So far, no Pseudo-Herrscher has demonstrated such a high degree of stability."
"Then should we..."
Although that team member did not finish speaking, the other three understood what she meant.
"That would be unwise. Although the Honkai Energy fluctuations around her aren't particularly strong right now, we still can't be completely certain."
"Let's stabilize her first and consider our options later. We should leave this kind of headache to the researchers."
"Um, Highmore." Olivia asked tentatively, "Can you sense the Honkai Energy or authority within your body?"
"Honkai Energy? I can." Unexpectedly, Highmore nodded, showing no unfamiliarity with the term Honkai Energy at all.
Olivia was the one left dumbfounded. "Huh? You know about it?"
"Is... is there a problem?" Highmore tilted her head. "If I didn't control the Honkai Energy, wouldn't I fall down?"
"But doesn't that contradict what you just said? How would a resident of a small town know about Honkai Energy..."
Beside them, one of the team members muttered softly.
"But... isn't that common sense? Why would I need to know about the energy inside my own body?"
"Alright, alright, let's not talk about that for now." Olivia shot the overly talkative team member a fierce glare, then said gently, "Highmore, since you can control Honkai Energy, could you try controlling the current Honkai Beast horde first?"
"Honkai Beasts? You mean those big creatures?" Highmore looked hesitant. "But I can clearly sense that they don't mean any harm..."
Those words immediately put all four of them on edge again. Olivia added, "The main thing is that we have some companions on the shore. They're rather fragile and might not be able to withstand the Honkai Beasts'... playing around."
"I see. Alright." Highmore nodded. "But I can't control these Honkai Beasts either. Still, I do know that after I woke up, it seemed like no new Honkai Beasts appeared..."
"That's true, Captain." One of the team members beside Olivia handed her the communicator in her hand.
"It seems that just now, our disrupted electronic signals completely recovered as well. Mia sent a message saying that this wave of beasts has basically ended. She's currently leading the team to clear out the remaining Honkai Beasts and zombies... She also asked whether it was because we succeeded over here."
"Succeeded... I wouldn't call it that."
After pondering for a moment, Olivia asked Highmore, "Highmore, you must still have many questions right now. How about coming with me? There's an official organization on my side that can answer your questions. If you doubt my identity, I can prove it to you once we return to shore."
"I-I don't have a problem with that." Highmore hurriedly replied, seeming somewhat at a loss herself. "And besides following you, I don't really have anywhere else to go..."
Seeing Highmore agree, Olivia nodded. Then she looked at the team member who had just handed her the communicator and said softly, "Go back first. Tell Mia about this on the way, then report it to headquarters and ask for instructions on how to handle this."
"At the same time, have them dispatch Oceania's aerial battleship. Bring the people who need to be brought. You understand."
"Alright, I'll go now." The team member answered solemnly, then turned around and sped away at full power.
"Then let's go too, Highmore. As you know, your situation is a little special, so we need to make proper preparations. I've already sent a team member back in advance to prepare equipment for examining you. We should be able to figure out what happened to you soon."
Meanwhile, by the shore.
Wendy and Mia examined the intelligence sent through the communications device together. Although Wendy currently had no combat ability, her sharp instincts as an A-rank Valkyrie remained. She had keenly noticed the breakthrough point of the incident just now, so Mia had called her over to study the situation together.
Being invited to help analyze the intelligence made Wendy feel a little pleased with herself. It gave her the feeling of, You all usually look down on me, but at a critical moment, don't you still have to rely on me to bail you out?
Then, the former genius A-rank Valkyrie and the experienced B-rank Valkyrie both fell into stunned silence.
I've seen all kinds of situations. (×)
I really haven't seen this situation before. (√)
"What? This Pseudo-Herrscher has the sanity of a normal person?"
"Huh? The captain brought that Pseudo-Herrscher back?"
The two looked at each other as they stared at the message on the communicator.
"She isn't... joking with me, is she?" Mia muttered.
"Then look at this emergency notice that just popped up. The aerial battleship is almost here already." Wendy pointed at the communicator. "If it's a joke, then it's a pretty huge one."
Along with the emergency notice came an evacuation notice.
"The Branch Leader is personally coming this time... It seems they take this matter very seriously." Mia frowned as she read through the mission details, then suddenly turned to Wendy. "However, it seems you can't leave with us."
"Dr. Ryan, who is in charge of the Desire Gem implantation experiment, sent me a message specifically asking you to stay behind and wait for him."
"From the sound of it, he's very interested in this Pseudo-Herrscher."
He Believed It, He Believed It!
As the aerial battleship arrived and the evacuation proceeded in an orderly fashion, the tourists and parasols on the vast beach were replaced by all kinds of temporary precision equipment and researchers in white coats.
"How is it? Is there any possibility she's lying?"
"No. There are no flaws in her microexpressions, and the results of several psychological tests all fall within the normal range."
"But one thing is very strange. Her understanding of Honkai is extremely limited. Can you believe that she knows how to use Honkai Energy but doesn't recognize most Honkai Beasts, let alone things like Pseudo-Herrschers?"
"That's only a matter of knowledge. What we're discussing now is whether she's psychologically stable and safe..."
Inside a temporary room, several researchers whispered among themselves while holding Highmore's various examination reports. Not far outside, Highmore was still undergoing further physical examinations.
As the instruments continuously collected Highmore's carefully controlled bodily data, the data reports compiled and summarized by the researchers below were steadily transmitted to the aerial battleship above the shore.
"Doctor, what do you think?"
Above the coast, Oceania's Branch Leader watched the surveillance footage below while asking Ryan, who was comparing various sets of data beside him.
"Strange, too strange." Ryan muttered to himself. "How can there be a Pseudo-Herrscher like this... Her Honkai Energy intensity might not even be enough to defeat an A-rank Valkyrie..."
"You mean she's controllable?" The Branch Leader adjusted his glasses, immediately catching the implication in Ryan's words.
"It's still too early to say. We need to see the follow-up examinations. But if her strength truly is only at this level, then even if she isn't controllable, she'll still be controllable from our perspective."
"This level of Honkai Energy intensity will severely limit her potential. As long as you don't teach her combat techniques, a single A-rank Valkyrie can keep her firmly suppressed. If it's a well-armed squad, they could even kill her easily without suffering much loss."
"Then I'll have to trouble you to issue a written report as soon as possible, Doctor." The Branch Leader lowered his voice.
"I know you very much want this experimental subject... But you know that headquarters will likely take a hard stance on Pseudo-Herrschers. Without sufficiently convincing data, we won't get past headquarters."
"As for that, I already have some ideas." Ryan pondered as he turned his gaze toward his screen. "I have a way to fool Schicksal, but what I'm afraid of right now isn't headquarters ordering us to kill her. It's headquarters trying to take her away..."
"Then we can try tying her to another project that can't be transferred." The Branch Leader suggested.
"You mean the Desire Gem?"
"That's right. Haven't our private assessments already confirmed that the project has essentially been declared a failure?" The Branch Leader revealed a faint smile. "Since she has to serve as a vessel anyway, using that project to tie down this new experimental subject would count as making use of waste."
"Besides, under my guidance, Oceania Branch already has considerable prejudice against Wendy. Tie this experimental subject to her, and it'll be easy to dispose of her in the future if necessary. There won't be much resistance."
"One ticking bomb is enough. I don't want another."
"Good idea..." Ryan praised. "Although you don't have much talent for scientific research, Branch Leader, your thinking is quite flexible."
"And you've also reminded me that if I want to secure ownership of this experimental subject, I may indeed need some outside assistance."
"Especially if I drag Otto's granddaughter into this. He shouldn't be shameless enough to snatch something that belongs to his own granddaughter, should he?"
Ryan opened his terminal. On the screen was a paper he had been reading.
The paper had been published in October, and its title concerned the formation and consciousness of Pseudo-Herrschers.
At the end of the paper, it stated that its source material came from a Pseudo-Herrscher incident resolved by the Far East Branch in the latter half of last year.
The authors were none other than Theresa, Branch Leader of the Far East Branch, and a newly appointed teacher—Xia Ling.
Some time later, at the temporary camp beside the beach.
"The examination ends here."
As that voice rang out, the white-coated researchers around Highmore stopped what they were doing and stood up together.
Highmore looked over curiously and saw two middle-aged men slowly stepping down from a transport aircraft that had just landed nearby.
The one in front appeared to be in his forties. He wore glasses and a white Schicksal officer's uniform, and was likely the Branch Leader of the Oceania Branch.
The other was clearly much older. He walked half a step behind the Branch Leader and wore a simple white researcher's coat. He was presumably the head of research for the Oceania Branch.
Arriving before Highmore, the leading man revealed a polite smile and said to Wendy, "Allow me to introduce myself. I am the person in charge of the Oceania Branch, and the person beside me is Dr. Ryan, who oversees the Oceania Branch's research assignments."
"As for your situation, we've reached a preliminary conclusion. Specialization matters, so I won't interfere further. I'll let Dr. Ryan explain the circumstances and your options going forward."
After saying that, the Branch Leader nodded slightly to Dr. Ryan beside him, then left with several researchers, leaving the two of them a private space.
"Hello, Miss Highmore. By now, I imagine you have a basic understanding of the nature of this matter."
"Mhm." Highmore nodded repeatedly, her voice carrying uncontrollable grievance. "But I really have no memory at all of this Pseudo-Herrscher thing you're talking about. I was clearly sleeping at home, and then suddenly..."
"Miss Highmore." Ryan interrupted her. "Sigh, I know you're very frightened, confused, and perhaps even somewhat wronged right now. After all, anyone would feel terrible if they woke up one day and suddenly found that they had become humanity's mortal enemy."
"You may still be clinging to a bit of hope. Perhaps you're imagining that we're lying to you, that this is some sort of prank show."
"Because your situation may be quite serious, the premise for our discussion is that you first need to recognize reality. So, you should look at this first."
Ryan handed three sheets of paper to Highmore. One was a map of an island, one was a document bearing official seals, and the last was a long list of names.
"This is...?"
"At the same time Captain Olivia sent back your information, I contacted the Spanish government through official channels."
"According to your description, you came from a small town in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula. You provided the town's name, the name of the school you attended, and information about your family."
"But according to the Spanish government's reply, no such town exists anywhere on the Iberian Peninsula."
"If we expand the search to the entire Iberian Peninsula, there is a school with the same name as the one you mentioned. However, the school provided student rosters from the past ten years, and obviously there is no one named 'Highmore.'"
"As for your parents and family situation, as you can imagine, no such people could be found either. If you don't believe me, you can look into it yourself once you board the battleship."
As Highmore's face grew paler and paler, Ryan sighed.
"Sigh, accept reality, Miss Highmore. Unfortunately, your memories may have been fabricated from the beginning."
Ryan's words were undoubtedly the final heavy blow that shattered the girl's psychological defenses. As his voice fell, he clearly saw all color drain from her face, her eyes filling with incredulous shock and despair.
Her hands trembled weakly, as though those light sheets of paper weighed a thousand pounds.
"As expected, a newly born Herrscher is easy to deceive. The personality and memories instilled by the Honkai Will cannot conceal a heart as blank as a sheet of paper."
"Now, she's taken the bait."
Recalling the paper from the Far East Branch and its speculation on the process of Pseudo-Herrscher consciousness formation, the corner of Ryan's mouth could not help but curve upward.
"Yes, he's taken the bait." Within Highmore's heart, a snicker flashed through her mind, identical to Ryan's.
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