The True Golden Finger in Honkai is Alicia!

Gwen, unsure how to feel, maintained a composed expression as he scrolled through the data on the screen.

Hmm... Otto's provided information was relatively objective, not completely dismissing Anti-Entropy and labeling them as mere conspirators.

Of course, his own biased stance was still evident.

Among Cocolia's data, the point that most caught Gwen's eye was: "In November 2013, under the guise of 'financial fraud,' she framed Raiden Ryoma, also an Anti-Entropy Executor, and had him imprisoned."

Late last year... it seemed the Third Honkai Outbreak wasn't far off.

Lost in thought, Gwen frowned slightly, casually closed the information, and shook his head:

"Hah...

Internal power struggles, framing each other...

Heh... Should I say humans always repeat the same mistakes?"

"It's hard not to agree."

Otto sighed with a similar sense of melancholy, saying:

"You should have noticed, the data states Raiden Ryoma's only daughter is still living alone."

"Is there something wrong with that girl?"

Gwen, who should have been unaware of the Gem of Conquest within Raiden Mei's body, asked.

"The girl herself is, of course, just an innocent young lady.

However... there might be something about her..."

Otto paused as he spoke and asked a question:

"You know, after the Second Honkai Outbreak, humanity obtained four gems with Authority from the Herrscher of the Void, excluding the Herrscher core."

"It's in the A-rank authorized database."

Gwen nodded.

"Among the four gems, the Gem of Plague, the Gem of Stillness, and the Gem of Desire fell under Schicksal's control, while the Gem of Conquest fell under Anti-Entropy's control."

Otto said with a serious tone:

"According to our personnel reporting from within Anti-Entropy, the Gem of Conquest has not appeared for several years.

And its last transfer record was in 2005, when it was transferred to Executor Raiden Ryoma."

"Are you implying that Cocolia framed Raiden Ryoma not just for ME Corp., but also for the Gem of Conquest that might have been in Raiden Ryoma's possession?"

"It's highly possible."

Otto nodded gravely.

"Moreover, given Cocolia's warlord tactics, it's unlikely she would have targeted only Raiden Ryoma and left his daughter, Raiden Mei, alone.

The most likely scenario is that she didn't obtain what she wanted and needed to get it from Raiden Mei.

And this item is very likely the Gem of Conquest."

"Logical and well-founded, hard to refute... though most of it is inferred."

Muttering to himself, Gwen put on a solemn expression:

"You mean..."

"Go and save the misguided girl, Gwen."

Otto said righteously.

"?"

Although he had anticipated it, Gwen couldn't help but lose his composure.

Chapter 19 Cocolia's Scheme: Ryoma, Don't Blame Me

After playing a small joke on Gwen, Otto also sent the mission target's information to Gwen's terminal.

"This is..."

Looking at the girl in the information who looked like a model student, Gwen "subconsciously" raised an eyebrow. After a closer look, his expression softened.

"Hmm?

What? Is there a problem?"

Seeing Gwen like this, Otto asked curiously.

"No problem,"

Gwen closed his eyes and shook his head gently before opening them again.

"It's just that this Miss Raiden Mei looks too much like our Dr. Mei."

"Heh, it's truly strange. Not only do these two have similar-sounding names, but their appearances are also quite alike."

Otto also expressed surprise and sighed at this.

"Who would have thought?"

Gwen shrugged.

In the end, Gwen accepted the mission, which didn't quite match his usual style—

"You don't have to push yourself too hard. Just think of it as encountering a fallen young lady while on vacation," a certain Bishop had said.

"As for investigating the whereabouts of the Gem of Conquest and getting revenge on Cocolia, just do what you can. Don't force it. Someone more familiar with these areas will cooperate with you later.

Of course, I'm not forbidding you from going directly to her, but that would be too dangerous."

Although Otto's orders were rather informal, considering Otto's usual lack of pretense around him, Gwen grudgingly accepted the mission.

After all, with Otto's permission, the opportunity to get close to Kiana, the core of the Sirin Project, wasn't something that came around often.

As for whether he would be sacrificed...

Gwen was confident that by the time the Sirin Project officially launched, he'd be able to send Sodium Chloride back to being a paramecium.

"Heh, Cocolia..."

After seeing Gwen off, Otto didn't rush back to his computer to continue working. Instead, he clicked on the file of Cocolia, who had been a mere insignificant warlord in Siberia just a few years ago.

"Behind you... who exactly is it?"

Staring intently at Cocolia's photo, Otto seemed to see, behind the woman in the military coat, a hidden viper poised to strike...

"Going on another mission?"

In Institute St. 1504, upon hearing Gwen's words, Choukai, who was working, waved dismissively.

"Go on, go on. I've already debugged your weapons.

Remember to bring me back a souvenir."

"Choukai, if you keep this up, you'll lose me."

Gwen quipped, hefting the long spear in his hand.

"That would be wonderful."

Pausing her work, Choukai showed a look of relief, as if she had narrowly escaped something.

"In the months I've been your neighbor, I've rarely slept in until morning. You know, a beautiful girl who lacks sleep will age easily."

"It seems you still can't do without me, then."

Gwen chuckled.

"Alright, stop joking around with me. Be careful."

Glares at the person who shouted at him every morning across the balcony, Choukai waved her hand impatiently, but not forgetting to remind Gwen to be careful.

"Don't worry, I still need to come back to correct your terrible lifestyle habits. I won't die."

Carrying the equipment case containing his weapons and armor, Gwen left Schicksal headquarters—

"Because of my promise to little Theresa, and to be able to evade the hyenas under Cocolia's command, you can't use Schicksal transportation to the Far East. You'll need to find your own flights.

Of course, Schicksal also has specialized equipment cases to make it convenient for you to carry your gear."

Otto, who stated that he would reimburse all of Gwen's reasonable expenses during this period, said this, leaving Gwen no choice but to leave Schicksal headquarters and depart by passenger plane from Austria.

While waiting for his flight, Gwen opened his phone like any ordinary traveler beside him—

Spear of Sunlight: "Going on a mission again (sigh)"

Yolandale: "What's wrong? The number of missions you've completed is already no less than that of a normal A-rank Valkyrie, so you shouldn't be so dejected."

Yolandale, who was still on a mission but had just finished her fight and was resting, blinked, a hint of curiosity on her face.

A Maid: "Perhaps the mission is rather special, involving aspects that Mr. Gwen isn't too skilled in?"

Spear of Sunlight: "As expected of Rita (thumbs up). This is a long-term mission, not requiring too much combat, but I won't be back anytime soon..."

Spear of Sunlight: "So, Rita, I'm sorry."

Yolandale: "?"

Looking at Rita beside her in surprise, Yolandale's expression of "What have you guys been doing behind my back?" almost made Rita lose her composed smile.

"Mr. Gwen is probably talking about my birthday, right?"

After a moment of thought, Rita arrived at the answer. Yolandale, upon hearing this, suddenly understood—

Rita's birthday is March 1st. It's already the end of February. If Gwen is on a long-term mission, he really won't make it for Rita's birthday.

A Maid: "My birthday? Please don't worry about it.

The fact that you remember Rita's birthday is enough for Rita."

Spear of Sunlight: "That can't be said...

They're starting to board now. I'll chat later..."

"It seems Gwen really cares about your birthday, Rita."

In the camp, Yolandale said to Rita beside her.

"Hehe, so it's Rita's honor," Alicia said, tilting her head.

Alicia asked, "Speaking of which, Rita doesn't think she's ever told Mr. Gwen her birthday. I wonder where Mr. Gwen heard it from."

"Uh..."

Suddenly remembering that she had talked about birthdays with Gwen during a training session, Yolandale's expression became a little unnatural.

"This... that... I'm sorry, Rita, I..."

Meanwhile, deep beneath ME Corp. in Changkong City, Far East—

Cocolia, who thought her actions a few months ago were perfectly concealed and was completely unaware that Schicksal was already after her, walked with her subordinates through the Titan production line established by Raiden Ryoma through illegal fundraising. An unspeakable smugness was on her face.

"Raiden Ryoma, don't blame me. Blame Schicksal..."

She thought this smugly, but when she recalled the contact person, who was entirely shrouded in black and wore a strange mask, Cocolia suppressed her smugness and asked her subordinate beside her, "How is the plan progressing?"

Hearing Cocolia's question, the person carefully accompanying her immediately replied, "Lady Cocolia, the plan is proceeding smoothly. Raiden Mei is now the target of public criticism..."

Chapter 20: Raiden Mei's Predicament

"The situation is not optimistic..."

Gwen, who had just resolved a minor Honkai outbreak—meaning no Honkai Beasts... at least no big ones like Knights appeared, only a small Honkai event with MANTISes or beasts infected by Honkai energy—looked at the Schicksal terminal in his hand with a more serious expression.

Although he already knew that Cocolia would artificially trigger the Third Honkai in Changkong City and then capture the Third Herrscher for research.

However, after actually staying in Changkong City for a while, Gwen realized that the situation in Changkong City was far worse than he had imagined.

According to the Schicksal terminal's detection, the average Honkai energy concentration in Changkong City had far exceeded normal levels, which was why these minor Honkai outbreaks were occurring.