Koschei, You Really Only Think About Yourself / What a Filial Family, Folks

At that moment, Talulah beside them froze, her face filled with despair. "Kiana, I know I was wrong just now. I shouldn't have forcibly dragged you into suffering with me, but this is important. Can you be a little more reliable? Is this the time to make snap judgments?!"

"The more I look at her, the more she seems like Talulah..." Kiana began to doubt herself.

At that moment, Shoko stepped forward with a confident smile. "No, there's actually another way to tell."

"What way?" Both Talulahs spoke at once. Then they froze before saying in unison, "Why are you copying me?!"

"Koschei! Do you have to be this disgusting?!" ×2

It had to be said that Black Serpent understood Talulah deeply. As long as she wanted to, she could perfectly imitate Talulah's every movement, with not even the slightest flaw in the details.

It was like the Great Sage Equaling Heaven encountering the Six-Eared Macaque—truth and falsehood were impossible to distinguish.

"Both of you, calm down. Let Shoko speak first." Qianyi raised a hand to stop them, then gestured for Shoko to continue.

With a plan already in mind, Shoko confidently said, "We can speak in the Dimensional Chat Group. The real Talulah has access to the Dimensional Chat Group. In other words, she can see what we say in the group, while Koschei cannot. As long as we say something in the group and have the Talulah in reality repeat it, the truth will come to light."

Customer Service Xiangzi is at your service: 111. Talulah, just say these three numbers later.

Talulah immediately understood and repeated what Shoko had sent. "111."

Shoko smiled. Just as expected, Koschei had no way to...

"111. Talulah, just say these three numbers later." The other Talulah repeated it as well.

Shoko froze on the spot.

Wait, could this thing even see the Dimensional Chat Group? Was this chat group really that useless?!

In truth, Black Serpent could not see the Dimensional Chat Group at all. However, through the Origin Stone Arts she had left inside Talulah, she could precisely learn Talulah's every movement, including her thoughts.

Whenever a thought surfaced in Talulah's mind, the first to know would not be Qianyi, Kiana, Shoko, or the others. Nor would it be Alina, FrostNova, Patriot, or the rest. It would be me, the immortal Black Serpent Koschei!

"How could this happen..." Shoko had thought her method would work perfectly.

Had she accomplished nothing again? Had she been no help at all?

Qianyi placed a hand on Shoko's shoulder and comforted her. "Calm down, Shoko. Actually, I still have one last resort."

"If you have such a good method, why didn't you just use it from the beginning?" Talulah was speechless. Why was everyone keeping things hidden? Or were they, like Kiana, just planning to beat her up?

"Because this method is dangerous. It will cause you enormous harm. In severe cases, it may leave your mind with irreversible trauma." Qianyi's expression was solemn.

"Then you underestimate me, Qianyi. If it can solve the Black Serpent problem, no matter how great the price, I can bear it." Talulah wore a faint, sorrowful smile. Clearly, she had prepared herself.

The next moment, the other Talulah also spoke. "Qianyi, you know too little about Black Serpent. Give that old bastard even the slightest chance to catch her breath, and she'll cling to you like a nightmare. This may be our only chance to destroy Black Serpent. If we miss it, she may never show herself before you again for the rest of your lives. If killing her means I have to die here, I'll do so willingly."

"Fine, since both of you are ready." Qianyi's expression remained solemn. "Telling wolves from dogs is simple. Look at their expressions: when angry, wolves grit their teeth, while dogs pant. Look at their tails: slow wagging means wolf, frantic swaying means dog. Look at their farming: sparse wheat means wolf, broad rice means dog. Look at their personalities: busy means wolf, idle and crazy means dog. And to tell who is Talulah and who is Koschei, we only need to look at one thing."

"What thing?" Both Talulahs asked at once.

"Femininity. The real Talulah is a genuine tomboy. You could throw her into a hydraulic press and still squeeze out not a trace of femininity. Black Serpent is different. She's seductive. But femininity isn't easy to judge, so we'll need some assistance." Qianyi took out two Magical Girl Henshin Devices he had just borrowed from Hiiragi Tina through a private chat. They contained no magic power, so transforming would grant no extra strength, only a costume change.

He tossed them onto the ground. "Transform. Transform into evil... no, Magical Girls, then dance. Every mystery will be solved."

Talulah: "Fuck you!"

I thought you were going to deliver some grand speech before two armies. Who knew you'd say something so crude?!

What do you mean I have no femininity?!

My femininity is off the charts, okay? Do you know the weight of being ranked first on Reunion's Most Popular Women list?!

My Tower Guards will show up any moment now and give you, the bastard who insulted my femininity, a thorough beating!

Talulah waited quietly for someone from Reunion or the chat group to step up and slap Qianyi in the face. Yet after waiting for a long time, no one came out. Instead, a group of people whispered among themselves and nodded repeatedly, clearly agreeing with him.

In an instant, the light died from Talulah's eyes. She mechanically picked up the yellow star-shaped transformation device from the ground and said with a face full of "joy," "Transform..."

Both Talulahs transformed at the same time, and their appearances immediately became drastically different. One still wore a military uniform, except her outfit now had an added skirt symbolizing strength, along with a military cap on her head. The other wore an exquisite, elegant black gown. Her long legs flickered in and out of view beneath the skirt, black stockings wrapped around her well-proportioned calves and outlined beautiful curves, while a collar adorned with a yellow star appeared around her snow-white neck. The pride and beauty in her eyes, combined with that collar symbolizing submission, fused two contrasting temperaments together and instantly left Talulah behind by a hundred thousand miles.

"Take down the one wearing the little skirt and stockings!"

Qianyi had already summoned Susanoo-no-Mikoto. Aiming at Koschei, he coldly said, "Give Talulah another hundred years and she still wouldn't put together an outfit this feminine! Tens of Thousands of Proverbs! Like the Act of Nation Founding!!"

"Brothers, there's no need to talk about honor when dealing with this kind of evil heretic! Let's get her together!" Kiana waved a hand. Just as she was about to follow up on Qianyi's attack, before she could charge out, a heavy halberd had already been thrown ahead of her.

At the same time, ice-type Origin Stone Arts sealed off Koschei's retreat.

It was Patriot and FrostNova!

Without giving Koschei any chance to react, after the two of them launched the first attack, the dark mass of Reunion members surged forward all at once.

Koschei had no time to do anything before the crowd trampled over her.

Talulah, who had been looking forward to beating Koschei the most, now stood motionless. She stared blankly at the scene and muttered:

"Do I really... really have no femininity at all?"

She felt something called a woman's pride shatter within her heart.

Koschei, You Really Only Think About Yourself

I'm so stupid. Really.

I thought the severe harm would be physical harm. I never expected it to be harm to my dignity and soul.

Why... why did I have to run my mouth? Why did I have to stop Qianyi's plan?

Being successfully recognized by my companions as the real me and successfully dealing with that old thing Koschei—those two happy things combined should have created even more happiness. So why... why... why did it turn out like this?!

How Talulah wished someone would step forward and question it. Question whether she was Black Serpent. Question why she had femininity too and was not being attacked. Question how absurd it was for Qianyi to use femininity to identify her. Yet not a single Reunion member questioned it. Even FrostNova, her best friend, tacitly accepted the claim.

It was as though this had already become everyone's shared understanding.

If I'd known it would turn out like this, I might as well... might as well have been beaten up alongside Koschei!

"Of all things... I didn't want to lose to that bastard in this!"

Talulah dropped to her knees with a thud, tears of regret spilling down her face. "Why... why am I inferior to Koschei in this regard..."

Was there anything more humiliating than a woman losing to her foster father in femininity?

"Heh, my daughter, you're suffering so much over such a trivial matter. How laughable. Search your heart—should you have won? Should you have won? Should you have won?"

Black Serpent's hands and feet were bound by Void Bands, and she knelt on the ground like Louis XVI about to be sent to the guillotine. Yet she showed little regret. Instead, she was filled with indignation. If she had not been tied up and unable to move, she would definitely have fiercely patted Talulah's head.

"Black Serpent, shut up!" Talulah snapped.

"Why should I shut up? I spent countless years planning for this. You were under my control the entire time, dancing to my tune, without any chance to fight back. Yet I ended up being kicked to death like a stray dog by the roadside, and I can't even imagine how I could have beaten you."

Koschei had witnessed the Khan's cavalry stamp across the earth, heard the sharp screech of Nightmare Kheshigs' curved blades scraping across skulls, heard naval artillery volleys blast tens of thousands of Rus Warriors into ringing deafness, and watched the once-unrivaled Gauls be dismantled into blood and mud until nothing remained.

Her identity as an immortal had given her a perspective and experience far beyond ordinary people, but all of it was useless against this group.

In the end, she could only offer this assessment: "Bullshit Susanoo-no-Mikoto, bullshit Herrscher of the Void, bullshit Patriot. Talulah, without them, do you deserve to win?"

"Wait, how is the Herrscher of the Void underhanded?" Kiana retorted.

"Wait, how is Susanoo-no-Mikoto underhanded?" Qianyi retorted.

You're the fucking most underhanded one!

Koschei wanted nothing more than to kick Qianyi, this hellish bastard, to death. If her opponents had only been Talulah, Kiana, Patriot, and the others, even if she could not defeat them, she would still have had every chance to run.

As a soul, even if these people could attack her, as long as she wanted to escape, none of them could stop her.

After leaving Talulah's body, she could have gone to one of her other spare bodies and waited for the day she returned like lightning. But Qianyi had opened with Tens of Thousands of Proverbs: Like the Act of Nation Founding, a Special Attack against consciousness and spiritual bodies, and kicked her straight out of the network.

He had unleashed his ultimate right at the start and emptied her health bar in one blow. Koschei had been so furious that she laughed.

"Kill me or torture me, just get it over with!" Koschei thrust out her head, looking ready to die heroically.

"Hmph. You offended us and still want to die? It won't be that easy." Qianyi assumed the stance of White Crane Spreads Wings. "Don't forget, we paid money. The customer is God."

"What the fuck does you paying money have to do with me?!" Koschei nearly coughed up blood.

"It does matter. We spent money and went through so much trouble to come to Ursus and kill you. Do you think we can go back empty-handed?" Qianyi returned to a normal stance, considering how to squeeze coins out of Koschei.

"Exactly." Kiana chimed in from the side.

"Cut the crap!" Shoko stepped forward, grabbed Koschei by the collar, and demanded, "You're a duchess, right? You must have plenty of inheritance. Bank cards, passbooks, and all the gold buried in your basement—hand it all over."

Why did I voluntarily spend money to come freeze in Ursus? Wasn't it to get some ducal inheritance and repay my sixteen billion?

If you don't drop any coins, wouldn't I have spent fifty points for nothing?!

Do you know I have to check in and do daily quests for a full fifty days just to save up fifty points?!

Do you know how hard points are to earn?!

Toyokawa Shoko's sudden outburst stunned everyone. In their impressions, she had always been a refined young lady. Why had she suddenly revealed such a vicious appetite?

"Heh." Seeing that they were after her inheritance, Koschei regained her composed demeanor and mocked them. "It seems your alliance with my daughter is not so stable after all. But if you wish to make trouble atop Ursus, you will have to pay the price. No matter where you flee in the future, Ursus's iron hooves and blades are fated to catch up with you, tear open your chests, and cut your throats..."

Just as she thought she had regained some control over the situation, Qianyi drew Ksitigarbha from his waist and brought it close to her face with a smile. "Koschei, you've been spying on us from inside Talulah this whole time, right? If so, you should know what this is. As far as I know, Ursus's blades must be restrained by rituals and combat suits to prevent them from losing control and becoming Abyssals. What do you think will happen if I make the technological equipment on their bodies fail?"

Koschei's face, which had been calm just moments earlier, immediately became uglier than that of a transmigrator who discovered he had entered the Warhammer world, become a Gretchin, and had his toes stepped on.

Holy shit! Don't!

Brother, I was wrong! I'll never talk shit again!

Only the Inner Guards' consciousnesses still belonged to humanity. Their bodies had long since become an unknown black substance. Once their protective equipment or combat suits were damaged and reality began to affect them, the Abyssals would lose control, causing annihilation and leaving behind a "Realm." A Realm left behind by one Inner Guard was enough to destroy a Victoria earl's estate.

There were at least a hundred Inner Guards within Ursus, with quite a few concentrated in Saint-Junburg. If they caused annihilation and left behind Realms, then...

"Please! I'll do anything! Don't let the Inner Guards cause annihilation within Ursus!"

This was the first time in nearly a century that Koschei had surrendered directly, unable to summon even the slightest resistance.

If she had not still been tied up, she would have grabbed Qianyi's hand, knelt on the ground, and desperately begged him not to detonate the Inner Guards.

But that did not stop her from lunging forward and biting Qianyi's pants, futilely trying to stop him, and then...

Qianyi kicked her away, his expression full of disdain.

"What kind of resolve did you have when you said that?"

"Koschei, you really only think about yourself."

Update Notice

I messed up! The time I was supposed to mention for the five updates was Sunday night at midnight, but my brain short-circuited and I thought tomorrow morning was Sunday night at midnight. Then I asked and found out tomorrow morning was actually Sunday at 12:00 a.m.

Aaaaaaahhhhhhh!!!

I'm truly sorry about this. I promised other authors I'd help them push the rankings tonight, so I can't release early. To show my apology, I've decided there will be at least five updates tonight, and for the following week, there will be three updates every day!

How about it? Sincere enough, right? Then shouldn't you give me some votes?

What a Filial Family, Everyone

"No, that's not it!

"Everything I did was for Ursus! I was thinking of Ursus!

"Without Ursus, I..."

Black Serpent, who had been kicked away, immediately pounced back and clamped Qianyi's leg between her chin and neck, pleading, "No, don't use Ksitigarbha on Ursus. I'll do anything. My wealth, my territory, my title as Grand Duke, even the other Black Serpents—I can offer them all."

"How utterly ugly, Koschei." Looking at Koschei writhing and wailing wildly on the ground, Talulah's eyes held no mockery, only pity. "A villain like you, who has committed so much evil, would actually end up this miserable."

"My daughter, as long as you help me, I'm willing to help you push the Infected Bill through, let the Infected become members of the Ursus Empire, and allow them to live alongside ordinary people as equals!"

Talulah shook her head. "I will create that future with my own hands."

"Talulah!" Koschei roared. "Do you understand filial piety at all?! I raised you for so long. What's wrong with begging you to spare your father?!"

Talulah: sweating yellow bean.jpg.

Speechless. This thing is actually my bargain-bin dad. This is really embarrassing.

Why are there so many Reunion members around? If there weren't so many people here, I'd really ask Kiana for a Void Spear, turn it into a bronze-headed belt, and whip you, Black Serpent, until you spun like a top.

Forget it. I should finish this thing quickly so no one finds out it's actually my bargain-bin father.

Black Serpent may not be ashamed, but I am.

Seeing Talulah raise her sword, Koschei's face turned pale. Her own death was a minor matter, but if this group lost their minds someday and activated Ksitigarbha, Ursus would be covered in Realms. She immediately shouted, "Grand Duke of Baikal! I can let you replace the Grand Duke of Baikal and take over everything he has, including the Third Army Group!"

The next second, Koschei felt a pair of strong hands help her up. When she looked up, it was actually her unfilial daughter!

"We were merely joking just now." Talulah reached out and pulled Koschei upright. "Let's discuss the Third Army Group in detail."