Honkai, Traversing Otto, Path to Godhood

Fleeting pleasures are black holes capable of devouring long-term benefits.

He was never one to let desire rule his mind.

"Brother..."

Cecilia stood there, half-wrapped in a bath towel, seeming to want to approach but hesitating shyly.

"Here are your clothes," Otto, adopting a post-coital calm, walked forward and handed Cecilia the clothes Amber had brought. "Change into them, and then I'll take you out for a walk to see the world outside."

"Okay."

Cecilia obediently walked over and took the clothes.

Otto turned and walked to the window, looking out at the surrounding Schicksal construction. His gaze flickered for a moment before quickly regaining focus.

To wield great power, one must possess commensurate ability.

This ability includes endurance during the progression of plans.

"I, I'm ready, Brother."

Otto turned around. The woman had changed into a nun's uniform, completely covered from head to toe. Her chest rose high beneath the garment, but the smooth fabric concealed her graceful curves.

Only her hair was still a bit messy, softly tangled together. So he walked up, took her slender hand, and led her to sit before the dressing table.

"Let me help you comb your hair, Cecilia."

"Brother..."

Cecilia hesitated. She felt it was presumptuous for Otto to comb her hair, yet a strange sense of anticipation bloomed in her heart.

Her face showed a conflicted expression, and finally, she shook her head.

"You don't have to do this..."

"I'm quite happy to, my dear little Cecilia."

Otto was merely being polite, but in his heart, he definitely wouldn't pass up an opportunity to increase her affection. He picked up the wooden comb and spread out Cecilia's flowing hair.

Her hair, having just been washed, still carried the scent of shampoo. Her pure white hair had a silken texture, shimmering with tiny silver reflections under the sunlight.

He gently combed through her silver-white hair with the comb, softly arranging it, then pulled her head back. Her azure eyes met his face, and then he combed the long hair by her ears.

Cecilia obediently let Otto fuss with her hair, her head resting on his shoulder. Her clear, beautiful eyes looked at Otto, who was focused on combing her hair.

The gentleness within those azure eyes made Otto frown slightly. He quickly moved again, causing Cecilia's eyes to slowly turn towards the dressing table.

After staying in the dark for too long, the sunlight would be dazzling.

Since his transmigration, he had been constantly on edge, thinking about how to play Otto, how to scheme and plan, how to protect himself. In the twenty days he had spent with the Book of Void, he had slept less than ten hours.

The exhaustion and calculation in his eyes momentarily fell into the pure, paper-white maiden's starry gaze, making him slightly dazed.

He could not indulge in this gentleness.

Otto Apocalypse could not be infected by the light. He would yearn for the light, disguise himself as the light, but he would never sink into it.

The path ahead was not just about playing Otto and protecting himself.

As the Bishop of Schicksal, Otto not only had to skillfully manage human organizations hostile to him like Anti-Entropy, World Serpent, and St. Freya, but also to play chess against the Honkai.

His future was destined not to be spent in beautiful energies.

When faced with such a pure gaze, incapable of stirring even a trace of wicked thought, almost capable of being purified, he could only quickly retreat and then firmly grasp the black scepter in his hand once more.

But... while he could not face the light directly, he could still enjoy the starlight in the cracks at the boundary.

Taking a breather behind the sanctity was still permissible, wasn't it?

Otto's thoughts gradually relaxed as he focused on combing Cecilia's hair.

The soft afternoon light spilled into the room. Their breathing gradually synchronized, like a deliberate indulgence, one person waiting for the other's breath.

Only the sound of synchronized breathing and the friction of the comb against hair remained in the room.

The woman's hair felt very soft and carried a rich fragrance.

The wooden comb slowly moved down the hair, occasionally encountering a tangle that hindered its progress.

But Otto paid it no mind. He simply lifted the handful of hair, and the comb flowed downward. When it met an obstruction, he applied a little more force, changing the angle to comb through it.

His gaze fell upon the silver forest, his movements gentle.

Cecilia closed her eyes, enjoying the tranquility of the moment, her cheeks slightly flushed, a sweet smile on her lips.

This was not the first time she had been so close to Otto's body, but each time, it made Cecilia's heart race.

She didn't know why, but she loved this feeling.

This feeling of leaning on him.

This feeling of being protected by someone else.

It wasn't just because of familiarity.

It was also... attachment.

Cecilia always felt that when she leaned on Otto, the panic caused by her amnesia would simply vanish, and all her confusion, pain, and loss would be swept away.

This feeling of being cherished was rare.

So rare, she felt, that even before losing her memory, she hadn't experienced it often.

So rare, she felt, that even before losing her memory, there weren't many people like this.

But she didn't dislike the feeling.

On the contrary… she was captivated by it, even obsessed.

The Saintess used the throbbing in her heart to count the passage of time, her emotions, unfelt by anyone else, accompanying the hands gently stroking her hair.

At this moment, time was warm, and the years were peaceful.

PS: Please collect and vote!

Chapter 11: Roaming Schicksal

"Put on the goggles—yes, like that, and then… don't speak when you see people. You can ask me if you have any questions, understand?"

Otto's instructions were repeated, and although Cecilia didn't know why, she obediently nodded.

"When you recover your memories, I'll hold a press conference," Otto said softly. "To let everyone know of your return. But for now, since recalling things gives you a headache, please try not to be discovered by others, so you don't lose composure on the way, okay?"

"Okay!"

After waiting for Cecilia to change her shoes and give a small stomp to confirm they fit, Otto took a step back and looked her over.

Not bad. The nun's habit concealed her figure, and the goggles blurred her features. If one ignored her pure and ethereal aura, she looked like a complete airhead.

Later, he'd use Feather of Dust to interfere with the consciousness of any observers, and absolutely no one would suspect anything.

"Smile."

"???"

Cecilia was confused but still curved her lips slightly upwards.

Click.

"Alright," Otto put away his terminal, having successfully taken a photo without shame. "When you see others, just give them that innocent Kaslana smile, like you don't know anything."

Cecilia: "..."

She felt a bit strange, but didn't voice it.

"Let's go. We'll walk around Schicksal first. Tell me if anything comes to mind. If your head starts to hurt from recalling, don't force it. Relaxing is more important."

Otto extended his hand and linked his fingers with Cecilia's slender, jade-like ones.

The woman's fingertips were cool but smooth and tender, with a slight Q-bounce when pressed. He led Cecilia out the door, the winter chill greeting them.

It was the day after the winter solstice in Shenzhou, and the cold wind from distant ice oceans howled across mountains and seas, only to be blocked by Schicksal's climate control system.

Of course, as a sky-high headquarters floating in the clouds, Schicksal always had ever-changing weather and scenery, with each high-altitude condition bringing its own unique environmental impact.

But there would be no frost and snow to freeze the entire Schicksal headquarters, nor lightning strikes to destroy important machinery.

Still, the coolness in the air made one feel the arrival of winter. Because it floated among the clouds, sunlight did indeed still reach them—not warm, but slanting into the area, lazily like someone slacking off at work.

Cecilia exhaled, staring blankly at the white mist that rose from her mouth. It then drifted towards her face as she walked, dissipating in the air. Immediately, the cold wind swirled back, scattering her hair.

The woman couldn't help but shrink her head and move closer to Otto.

There weren't many people on the path, just a sparse scattering of passersby. Some even walked right past Otto as if they didn't see him. Of course, he didn't mind.

"It's a bit bleak…" Otto mused.

He recalled a time in the Book of Void when he accompanied Cecilia shopping. The girl had a sudden whim and asked if Schicksal headquarters could have a massive snowfall at the end of the year, so the Valkyries living there could experience the winter atmosphere.

But after saying it, a bone-chilling wind had swept in, forcing her to cover her head and crouch defensively. She then weakly stated she'd abandoned the idea.

At that time, her face…

Otto turned his head and saw Cecilia, her head tucked down, silent.

Yes, that timid expression was just like back then.

He smiled, gently squeezing her hand, his grip sliding from her fingertips to the base of her fingers.

The hand he held tensed slightly, struggling a bit uncomfortably, then relaxed, no longer wriggling.

Otto's lips curved upwards as he continued to guide Cecilia on their tour, explaining as they walked:

"Schicksal headquarters is a floating fortress, perpetually suspended above the Mediterranean Sea. It overlooks the world from its high vantage point."

"This fortress is unimaginably vast, comparable to some coastal islands, so it can also be seen as a giant cluster of floating islands."

"It's the administrative hub of Schicksal and the organization's most crucial research facility, working day in and day out with the mission to fight the Honkai."

"The spaceport in the distance is the main entrance to Schicksal headquarters, and each point is guarded by Valkyries and giant mechs."

Valkyries?

Giant mechs?

Cecilia felt a sense of familiarity and tilted her head.

Otto happened to pause at that moment, recalling:

"I still remember we gave the Divine Machine Heimdall a nickname, 'Big Fatty Heimdall,' and when it entered overload mode, it was called Dr. Lobster."

Lobster...

Cecilia pictured a red crustacean in her mind, then magnified it several times. Imagining it brandishing its claws and fangs before her, she let out a soft chuckle.

Amnesiac, but not entirely.

She could recall "lobster," but not "Dr. Lobster."

Otto glanced sideways, seeing the woman's eyes crinkle. He understood.

He continued to wander through Schicksal Headquarters with Cecilia, introducing her to various objects.

"This is the Divine Machine Baldr..."

"This is the Schicksal Laboratory..."

"And this is..."

Before long, under his intentional guidance, the two arrived at the core area of the headquarters.

Amber seemed to have been waiting for a while. She bowed slightly. "Bishop, the meal you requested has been ordered and is specially delivered to your office."

"It feels like I haven't eaten anything in a long time," Otto mused. "Ah, Cecilia, you too."

Amber nodded. "After using the Soul Steel body, you, my Lord Bishop, have not engaged in any eating or drinking activities for twelve hours and fifty-three minutes."

"After such a long time, eating and drinking feel more like a habit to me," Otto said, walking into the office. He glanced at the food on the desk, his lips turning down for a moment. "Oh, right. Next time, replace the red wine with bubble tea."

"Understood, my Lord Bishop. However, when you don't wish to drink red wine, please pour it in an appropriate place, and don't smash the glass as well. The glass shards on the floor and the wine stains on the curtains are very difficult to clean."

"..."

Otto didn't want to speak and mentally made a note of this little secretary.