Someone in Honkai, But Integrated Strategies Activated

The maiden's appearance was delicate, with purplish-blue, slightly fluttering fin-like decorations by her ears. She wore a long dress and white stockings, hugging her knees as she curled up in a cocoon of light.

As if due to the light cocoon cracking, the maiden's long eyelashes fluttered slightly, and then she opened her pale purple eyes.

To Olivia's surprise, these eyes did not possess the brutality and dead stillness of the Honkai-side creatures she had encountered before. Instead, they were filled with deep confusion and bewilderment.

"Where... is this?"

Chapter Twenty-Seven: On the Self-Cultivation of an Actor

"What... is going on?"

The four of them looked at each other, unsure of what to do for a moment.

"Captain... this?"

"Stay alert, I'll try to communicate."

Olivia moved forward slightly, maintaining a distance that allowed her to observe the maiden's expression well without getting too close.

"You seem to be able to maintain your sanity... You haven't been controlled by the Honkai?"

"Sanity? What sanity?" The maiden's confusion deepened: "Where is this place, and why am I on the sea?"

"Do you remember your name? Where are you from?" Olivia continued to ask. "Don't be afraid, I'm an official from Oceania. Before I can help you, I first need to determine if you have complete self-awareness and the ability to act."

"Okay, okay... My name is Highmore, and I'm from Iberia..."

"Highmore? It doesn't sound like a real name, more like a codename... And Iberia? Isn't that in Europe?"

Olivia became more confused the more she listened. Highmore's introduction was very detailed, so much so that if one ignored the fact that she was currently in Oceania, her self-introduction would be flawless.

"Alright, now I can confirm that you have indeed maintained your self-awareness." Olivia made a gesture, signaling Highmore to wait a moment. "I need to discuss this with my team members, please wait a moment."

"Captain, could this be some kind of trap? Like, making us lower our guard..."

"The possibility is slim. According to Schicksal's records, not to mention that previous Pseudo-Herrschers couldn't communicate so fluently, even if they could, their desire for destruction was never hidden. So far, no Pseudo-Herrscher has shown such high stability."

"Then should we..."

Although this team member didn't finish her sentence, the other three present understood her meaning.

"It's not advisable. Although the Honkai Energy fluctuations around her aren't strong right now, we ultimately don't have complete confidence."

"Let's stabilize her first and then make plans. We can leave these things for the researchers to worry about."

"Um, Highmore." Olivia tentatively asked, "Can you sense the Honkai Energy, or authority, within you?"

"Honkai Energy? Yes, I can." To Olivia's surprise, Highmore nodded, showing no unfamiliarity with the term "Honkai Energy."

This time, Olivia was dumbfounded: "Huh? You know?"

"Yes, is there a problem?" Highmore tilted her head. "If I don't control the Honkai Energy, won't I fall?"

"But doesn't that contradict what you just said? How would a resident of a small town know about Honkai Energy..."

Beside her, a team member muttered softly.

"But... isn't this common sense? Why would I need to know about the energy in my body?"

"Alright, alright, let's not talk about this for now." Olivia shot a stern glance at the talkative team member and said gently, "Highmore, since you can control Honkai Energy, can you control the current Honkai Beast tide?"

"Honkai Beasts? Are those big guys?" Highmore hesitated. "But I don't feel any malice from them..."

These words immediately made the four of them tense up again. Olivia continued, "It's just that we have some companions on the coast who are quite fragile and might not be able to withstand these Honkai Beasts'... playfulness."

"I see, alright." Highmore nodded. "But I can't control these Honkai Beasts. However, I know that after I woke up, it seems like no new Honkai Beasts have appeared..."

"Indeed, Captain." A team member beside Olivia handed her a communication device:

"It seems that just now, our interfered electronic signals have completely recovered. Mia sent a message saying that this wave of beast tide has basically ended, and she is now leading a team to clear out the remaining Honkai Beasts and dead soldiers... She also asked if it was because we succeeded over here."

"Success... I wouldn't say that."

Olivia pondered for a moment and then asked Highmore, "Highmore, you must have many questions right now. Why don't you come with me? I have an official organization that can solve your problems. If you doubt my identity, I can prove it to you when we get back to shore."

"I, I have no problem, of course." Highmore replied hastily, seeming a bit flustered. "Besides, I have nowhere else to go if I don't go with you..."

Seeing Highmore agree, Olivia nodded, then looked at the team member who had just handed her the communication device and said softly, "You go back first. On your way, tell Mia about this, and then report it to headquarters to ask for instructions."

"Also, have them deploy the Oceania's aerial battleship and bring the necessary personnel, you know."

"Okay, I'll go now." The teammate responded in a deep voice, then sped up and turned away.

"Then Highmore, let's go. You know, your situation is a bit special, and we need to be fully prepared. I've already asked a team member to go back and prepare the equipment for your physical examination. We should be able to figure out what happened to you soon."

Meanwhile, by the coast.

Wendy and Mia were looking at the intelligence transmitted through the communication device. Although Wendy didn't have combat capabilities now, her eyesight as an A-rank Valkyrie was still intact. She had also keenly noticed the breakthrough point of the incident, so Mia called her over to study the situation together.

Wendy felt a little proud to be called over to study intelligence, feeling a sense of "You usually look down on me, but in critical moments, you still have to rely on me to get out of trouble."

Then, this former genius A-rank Valkyrie and this experienced B-rank Valkyrie were left staring in disbelief.

"I've seen all sorts of situations (×)"

"I've never seen a situation like this (√)"

"What? This Pseudo-Herrscher has the sanity of a normal person?"

"Huh? The captain brought that Pseudo-Herrscher back?"

Looking at the messages on the communicator in front of them, the two exchanged bewildered glances.

"She's not... joking with me, is she?" Mia murmured to herself.

"Then take a look at this emergency notice that just popped up. The aerial battleship is almost here," Wendy pointed to the communicator. "If this is a joke, it's a bit too much of one."

Accompanying the emergency notice was an evacuation alert.

"The Branch Leader is here in person this time... It seems they also value this matter highly." Mia frowned as she read the mission details, then suddenly turned to Wendy. "However, it looks like you can't leave with us."

"Dr. Ryan, who is in charge of the Desire Gem transplant experiment, specifically sent me a message asking you to stay and wait for him."

"From the sound of it, he seems very interested in this Pseudo-Herrscher."

Chapter Twenty-Eight: He Believed, He Really Believed!

As the aerial battleship arrived and the evacuation proceeded in an orderly fashion, the vast beach was replaced by various temporary, sophisticated equipment and researchers in white coats, instead of tourists and sun umbrellas.

"How is it, any possibility of deception?"

"None. Her micro-expressions show no flaws, and the results of several psychological tests are within normal ranges."

"But one thing is strange: her understanding of Honkai is extremely superficial. Can you believe it, she knows how to use Honkai Energy but doesn't recognize most Honkai Beasts, let alone Pseudo-Herschers and the like."

"That's just a matter of knowledge. We're discussing whether she's psychologically stable and safe..."

In a temporarily set-up room, several researchers whispered amongst themselves, looking at Highmore's various examination reports. Outside, not far away, Highmore was undergoing further physical examinations.

As the instruments continuously collected her controlled bodily data, the compiled reports were constantly sent to the aerial battleship hovering above the coast.

"Doctor, what do you think?"

Above the coast, the Oceania Branch Leader, while watching the surveillance footage below, asked Ryan, who was comparing various data next to him.

"Very strange, too strange," Ryan muttered. "How can there be such a Pseudo-Herrscher... Her Honkai Energy strength might not even be enough to defeat an A-rank Valkyrie..."

"You mean she's controllable?" The Branch Leader pushed his glasses up, immediately grasping Ryan's implied meaning.

"It's hard to say yet, we need further examinations. But if her strength is truly only at this level, then even if she's uncontrollable, she's controllable to us."

"This Honkai Energy strength will severely limit her potential. As long as you don't teach her combat skills, a single A-rank Valkyrie could suppress her. If it's a well-equipped squad, they could kill her easily without much attrition."

"In that case, I'll have to trouble you, Doctor, to issue a written report as soon as possible." The Branch Leader lowered his voice.

"I know you, Doctor, really want this experimental subject... But you know, headquarters' attitude towards Pseudo-Herschers will likely be very firm. Without sufficiently convincing data, we won't get past headquarters."

"Regarding that, I already have some ideas," Ryan mused, his gaze shifting to his screen. "I have a way to get past Schicksal, but what I'm afraid of isn't headquarters ordering us to kill her, but headquarters wanting to snatch her..."

"Then we can try binding her to other non-transferable plans," the Branch Leader suggested.

"You mean the Desire Gem?"

"Exactly. After all, our private assessment concluded that this project has basically failed, right?" The Branch Leader showed a slight smile. "Since she's going to be a container anyway, using this project to tie down this new experimental subject would be making use of waste."

"Moreover, under my guidance, the Oceania Branch already had quite a few prejudices against Wendy. Binding this experimental subject to her will make it easier to deal with her in the future, without much obstruction."

"One ticking time bomb is enough. I don't want another one."

"Good idea..." Ryan exclaimed. "Although you, Branch Leader, don't have much talent in research, your thinking is quite flexible."

"And you've also reminded me that to secure ownership of this experimental subject, some off-the-books assistance might indeed be necessary."

"Especially, if I drag Otto's granddaughter into this, he shouldn't shamelessly try to take his granddaughter's things, right?"

Ryan opened his terminal, and on his screen was a paper he was currently reading.

The paper was published in October, titled "Formation and Consciousness Research of Pseudo-Herschers."

At the end of the paper, the source material was marked as coming from a Pseudo-Herrscher incident that the Far East Branch had resolved in the latter half of last year.

The authors were the Branch Leader of the Far East Branch, Theresa, and a newly appointed teacher, Xia Ling.

A while later, at the temporary camp near the beach.

"That's all for the examination."

As this voice came, the researchers in white coats surrounding Highmore stopped their work and stood up in unison.

Highmore looked over curiously and saw two middle-aged men slowly descending from a transport aircraft that had just landed nearby.

The one in the lead looked to be in his forties, wearing glasses and a white Schicksal officer uniform. He was likely the Branch Leader of the Oceania Branch.

The other was noticeably older, half a step behind the Branch Leader, wearing a plain white researcher's coat. He was presumably the leader of the research direction for the Oceania Branch.

Approaching Highmore, the man in the lead offered a polite smile and said to Wendy, "Allow me to introduce myself. I am the head of the Oceania Branch, and next to me is Dr. Ryan, the leader of the research tasks for the Oceania Branch."

"Regarding your situation, a preliminary conclusion has been reached. Everyone has their own specialty, so I won't interfere much. I'll let Dr. Ryan introduce the situation and your upcoming choices."

With that, the Branch Leader nodded slightly to Dr. Ryan beside him and then left with a few researchers, leaving the two in a private space.

"Hello, Miss Highmore. At this point, I believe you have a basic understanding of the nature of this situation."

"Mhm, mhm," Highmore nodded repeatedly, her voice trembling slightly with grievance. "But I really have no memory of this Pseudo-Herrscher you're talking about. I was clearly sleeping at home, and then suddenly..."

"Miss Highmore," Ryan interrupted her. "Sigh, I know you are very panicked, confused, and even wronged right now. After all, anyone would feel terrible waking up to suddenly find themselves the enemy of humanity."

"You might still be holding onto some false hope, perhaps you're still fantasizing that we're lying to you, that this is some kind of prank show."

"Because your situation is likely dire, the premise of our conversation is that you first need to recognize the reality of your situation. So, why don't you take a look at this first."

Dr. Ryan handed three sheets of paper to Highmore. One was a map of an island, another was a document with an official seal, and the third was a long list.

"What... is this?"

"At the same time Captain Olivia transmitted your information back, I contacted the Spanish government through official channels."

"According to your description, you're from a small town northwest of the Iberian Peninsula. You provided the town's name, the name of the school you attended, and your family information."

"However, according to the Spanish government's reply, no such town exists 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. But the school provided student lists from the past ten years, and clearly, the name 'Highmore' is not among them."

"As for your parents and family situation, as you can imagine, there's no record of anyone by that name. If you don't believe me, you can check it yourself on the battleship later."

Seeing Highmore's face grow paler, Dr. Ryan sighed.

"Alas, accept reality, Miss Highmore. I'm afraid your memories might have been fabricated from the start."

Dr. Ryan's words were undoubtedly the final heavy blow that shattered the young girl's psychological defenses. As his voice fell, he clearly saw the girl's face turn completely bloodless, her eyes filled with disbelief, shock, and despair.

Her hands trembled slightly and weakly, as if these few sheets of paper weighed a thousand pounds.

"As expected, new Herrschers are easily deceived. The personality and memories instilled by the Honkai's will cannot conceal her blank-slate inner self."

"Now, she's taken the bait."

Recalling the Far East Branch's paper on the inferred process of Pseudo-Herrscher consciousness formation, Dr. Ryan couldn't help but curve his lips into a slight arc.

"Yes, he's taken the bait." Within Highmore's mind, a smug chuckle, identical to Dr. Ryan's, flashed through.