When Humans Collapse, They Only Love Valkyries

His gaze fell on Judgment of Shamash, which Siegfried had slapped onto the table. Otto smiled.

"Long time no see, Siegfried."

"Is this a local specialty you brought me?"

Originally, Otto had wanted to crack a joke and call Siegfried "father-in-law," but he worried Siegfried would just pull out Judgment of Shamash and blow his head off.

He wasn't tough enough yet to tank Judgment of Shamash.

So he'd save that kind of talk for Raiden Ryoma next time.

"Bishop Otto, what do you intend to do to my daughter?"

Unlike his younger days, Siegfried's face now showed the marks of age. His deep-set eyes locked onto Otto, sharp as a hawk's gaze.

His right hand pressed down on Judgment of Shamash.

If he could help it, he didn't want to appear before Otto. But Otto had made contact with his daughter. With Otto's insight, he must have already recognized her as the girl he had once snatched away from him.

"Oh? Which daughter are you referring to?"

Otto called up his system panel and equipped Judgment of Shamash. The blade materialized across his thigh, hidden from Siegfried's view by the table.

With his hand on Judgment of Shamash, Otto finally felt a shred of safety.

"Which Kiana Kaslana is it?"

Hearing Otto's light, dismissive tone, Siegfried's forehead bulged with veins.

Because his biological daughter, the real Kiana Kaslana, was in Otto's hands.

"What schemes are you plotting?"

Siegfried asked in a low voice, but he didn't dare speak loudly, afraid of drawing Kiana out of the restroom.

This was adult talk. No need to drag children into it.

"Me? I want K423 to join Schicksal."

Otto said it bluntly. There was no point in hiding it.

"Are you trying to create the next Cecilia?"

Hearing Siegfried's accusation, Otto let out a light laugh.

"No, no, no. She's unique. She won't be the next Cecilia. She's the first Ki... K423."

"It's a bit hard to call her by that name, actually. I'd really like to interview you, Siegfried. Why did you give K423 the name Kiana?"

Otto was genuinely curious about Siegfried's thought process. His own biological daughter was still alive—why would he give his daughter's name to her clone?

At least he himself could never do something like that.

The original Otto couldn't have done it either. Amber and Theresa's names were proof of that.

Siegfried fell silent. Perhaps he really wasn't a good father.

"Siegfried, you might be a hero, but you're not a good father. At the very least, you're a clumsy one."

Otto said it plainly.

"You left when K423 was young, choosing to protect her from the shadows instead."

"I'm guessing you wanted her to be independent, to grow, to forge her own bonds."

"That way, even if she learned the truth in the future, it would soften the blow of realizing she was just a clone of your daughter."

If the future remained unchanged, the future K423 would indeed come to accept her identity.

Everything Otto was doing now was for that same purpose.

To let Bronya suffer less when she learned the truth.

"But I think you can see it. Kiana has spent these years wandering aimlessly. You could say that finding you was the only purpose in her life."

"She's been living like a walking corpse."

"..." Siegfried was silent, because Otto wasn't wrong.

"So I want to make her a Valkyrie. As Kiana's clone, and with the Herrscher of the Void Core, she will definitely become an outstanding Valkyrie in the future—maybe even surpass Cecilia."

"I can promise you that Kiana will one day become a beloved Valkyrie."

"You know as well as anyone that no one understands Valkyries better than I do."

Otto said this, but his focus was razor-sharp. The only reason he could sit here and talk with Siegfried like this was that Siegfried didn't know what Otto had done during the Second Honkai War.

In Siegfried's eyes, Bishop Otto, though unscrupulous, was still on humanity's side, doing everything he could to fight the Honkai.

He had defected from Schicksal only because Otto's methods had touched the people he cherished.

"I can't trust you."

Siegfried said. He couldn't bring himself to trust Otto.

"Then can you trust those people in Anti-Entropy?"

"I know you've been in contact with Anti-Entropy since the Second Honkai War. But are the people there really any better?"

"Cocolia didn't just frame Raiden Ryoma—she used his daughter for experiments. If the Herrscher of Thunder really awakens, not many people in Changkong City will survive."

"They both ran experiments. What right does Anti-Entropy have to act holier-than-thou?"

Even though Otto stirred up plenty of trouble during the Second Honkai War, he wasn't taking the blame for the Third Honkai War that birthed the Herrscher of Thunder.

The only thing he could be criticized for was standing by and doing nothing about Cocolia's actions.

"Pass this on to Anti-Entropy for me: tell them their days of having it both ways are numbered."

Due to lingering historical grievances, Anti-Entropy hated Otto to the bone, so Otto had no intention of letting them off easy—otherwise, he'd be disrespecting his own life.

Siegfried's expression shifted. He'd only learned about Cocolia's actions a few days ago, and it was already driving him crazy.

With Anti-Entropy's current Supreme Commander Welt absent, most of the power had fallen into the hands of Reformist Faction leader Cocolia. For the sake of the organization's stability, the Conservative Faction—veterans like Tesla and Einstein—had no choice but to tolerate her.

But this time, Cocolia had caught them completely off guard. Before Tesla and the others could react, Raiden Ryoma, the Conservative Faction's key source of funding, had been thrown into prison.

Yet how was Otto's information so timely?

Could there be a mole inside Anti-Entropy?

"Siegfried, pass along two more things to your people."

"The matter of Changkong City will be handled by This Bishop. The Far East is Schicksal's territory—Anti-Entropy has no business making a mess of it."

"Since Anti-Entropy can't even clean up its own house, This Bishop will do the sweeping for you."

In the original history, because of their inaction, a Great Honkai erupted in Changkong City. Out of a vast city of millions, only a handful survived.

But now, Otto could save those innocent people.

If he could save them, then he would.

Siegfried fell silent, then stood up and nodded to Otto.

"I'll relay your words to them."

"But..."

Siegfried's eyes turned fierce as his right hand grabbed Judgment of Shamash.

"Otto, if you dare hurt Kiana, I'll become a vengeful demon and spend the rest of my life hunting you down."

This was a father's threat, made for his daughter.

But there was so little he could do for Kiana.

This father felt his own powerlessness.

Yet before he could level his gun at Otto's head, Otto tapped his own forehead with a finger.

"You could try pointing that gun at my head and see what interesting thing happens."

Otto's gaze turned cold as he stared at Siegfried.

The fierce fear the reckless, and the reckless fear the desperate. Siegfried paused, then sheathed Judgment of Shamash at his waist.

Otto spoke calmly.

"But I've received your threat."

"I'll take care of K423 and Kiana."

Chapter 13. Shaping the Bug Into His Own Form

Perhaps sensing that Kiana was about to return from the restroom, Siegfried left a final threat and promptly departed.

Unfortunately, he took Judgment of Shamash with him.

In truth, Otto could understand Siegfried's choice. Aside from agreeing to let K423 join Schicksal, he had no other option.

With Anti-Entropy's internal factional strife running deep, K423—who possessed the Second Herrscher's Core—would only throw things into greater chaos if she joined them.

And ever since Siegfried had taken K423 away, she had reappeared in Otto's sights. Siegfried knew Otto wouldn't let go again, and he didn't want K423 to keep fleeing and wandering with him.

A father always wants his daughter to be happy.

So he could only agree.

Otto breathed a sigh of relief. He had successfully bluffed his way past Siegfried, putting on a strong front. He knew Schicksal was his capital, and True Kiana at Schicksal Headquarters was the leverage that kept Siegfried from acting rashly.

It felt good to wield power through influence.

Still, the smooth resolution came because Otto and Siegfried currently had no irreconcilable conflict.

Though Otto had caused plenty of trouble during the Second Honkai War, back then Cecilia had used Black Abyss White Flower to unleash Holy Blood Liberation in order to save the Siberian plains contaminated by the Herrscher of Void's core rampage.

That was a death not even Black Abyss White Flower could reverse. Otherwise, Otto wouldn't have told Cecilia that once she used Holy Blood Liberation, she was doomed.

Before the Honkai Energy Fission Bomb even fell, Cecilia's life was already fated to wither.

So Otto couldn't help but think.

If Cecilia were still alive, things might have turned out much better.

Because the Saniyat family was Otto's loyal hound.

The Saniyat family—every last one of them, loyal unto death.

Hearing the approaching footsteps, Otto put away his grave expression and put on a smile.

Kiana walked toward him, and Otto turned his head to look at her, seeing a look of finality on her face.

She didn't return to her seat.

Instead, she stood before Otto.

She looked at Otto, who still sat leisurely in his chair, his emerald eyes calmly watching her.

"If I become an S-rank Valkyrie, will you help me find Dad?"

Kiana asked, and Otto nodded.

"Then this young lady chooses to join that so-called Schicksal."

Kiana reached out her hand to Otto, but Otto gazed at her jade-like fingers, not taking her hand, but asking instead.

"Did you wash your hands?"

Kiana: ?!

Hearing this, Kiana almost lost her composure. She had barely managed to make this decision in the restroom—one that might change her entire life—and Otto broke her concentration with a single sentence.

Hey! Is this the time or place for that kind of talk?!

Seeing Kiana like this, Otto merely revealed a smile.

He stood up, choosing not to shake Kiana's hand directly. Instead, he placed his left hand behind his back, like a graceful young noble, making Kiana can't help but sigh that the man truly had a good-looking exterior.

If he wore women's clothes, he would surely be a beauty capable of toppling kingdoms.

Otto leaned forward slightly, lifted Kiana's outstretched hand with his right hand, and lowered his head.

Otto gently kissed Kiana's fingertips.

"Little Kitten, welcome to Schicksal."