Wandering Through Schicksal

Any short-term pleasure was a black hole capable of devouring long-term interests.

He had never been someone who let desire control his mind.

"Brother..."

Cecilia stood there, half-wrapped in a bath towel. She seemed to want to come closer, yet timidly remained where she was.

"These are your clothes." Wearing the air of someone who had entered sage mode, Otto calmly stepped forward and handed Cecilia the clothes Amber had sent over. "Put them on, then I'll take you outside for a walk and show you the world beyond."

"Okay."

Cecilia obediently walked over and accepted the clothes.

Otto turned and walked to the window, gazing at the Schicksal construction projects scattered around. His eyes drifted for a moment before quickly returning to focus.

To wield such immense power, one needed abilities equal to it.

That included the endurance to see a plan through as it unfolded.

"I-I'm changed, Brother."

Otto turned around. The woman had changed into a nun's uniform, wrapped tightly from head to toe. Her chest rose high beneath the fabric, but the flowing cloth concealed her soft curves.

Only her hair was still somewhat disheveled, loosely tangled together. He stepped forward, hooked her slender hand with his own, and guided her to sit before the vanity mirror.

"I'll help you comb your hair, Cecilia."

"Brother..."

Cecilia hesitated. She felt that allowing Otto to comb her hair was overstepping, yet an inexplicable anticipation arose within her.

Conflict showed on her face, but in the end, she still shook her head.

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

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

Otto was merely being polite with his words. In his heart, he would never pass up an action that could increase her favorability. He picked up a wooden comb and let Cecilia's flowing hair fall loose.

Having just bathed, her hair still carried the scent of shampoo. Her snow-white locks had a satin-like texture, glinting with flecks of silver beneath the sunlight.

He slowly ran the comb through her silver-white hair, gently arranging it and guiding her head back. Her blue eyes faced his, and then he began combing the hair beside her ears.

Cecilia obediently let Otto handle her as he wished, her head resting against him as her clear, beautiful eyes watched him concentrate on combing her hair.

The tenderness in those blue eyes made Otto frown slightly. He quickly moved again, slowly turning Cecilia's gaze toward the vanity mirror.

After staying in darkness too long, sunlight could make one dizzy.

Ever since transmigrating, his nerves had remained taut. He had been thinking about how to play Otto, how to scheme and arrange his plans, how to protect himself. During the twenty days of traveling through the Book of Void, he had spent less than ten hours sleeping.

The exhaustion and calculation filling his eyes had briefly fallen into the starry gaze of a woman as pure as blank paper, leaving him momentarily distracted.

He could not immerse himself in such tenderness.

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

The road ahead involved far more than playing Otto and protecting himself.

As the Lord Bishop of Schicksal, Otto not only had to make use of human organizations hostile to him, such as Anti-Entropy, World Serpent, and St. Freya, but also play a game against Honkai as one of the players.

His future could never be spent amid beautiful, positive energy.

When faced with such a sacred gaze that stirred not the slightest impure thought and seemed almost capable of purifying him, he could only flee swiftly, then clutch the black authority in his hand once more.

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

It should be fine to catch his breath behind holiness.

Otto gradually relaxed and focused on combing Cecilia's hair.

The faint afternoon light spilled into the room. Their breathing gradually merged into one, as if one deliberately indulged the other, waiting for the other's breath.

Only their synchronized breathing remained in the room, along with the sound of the wooden comb brushing through hair.

The woman's hair was soft to the touch, carrying a rich, fragrant scent.

The wooden comb moved downward through her hair bit by bit, occasionally catching on a small tangle that hindered its progress.

But Otto did not mind. He simply lifted that handful of hair and let the comb glide downward. Whenever it met resistance, he applied a little force and adjusted the angle as he combed.

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

Cecilia closed her eyes, enjoying the tranquility of the moment. Her cheeks were faintly flushed, and sweetness tinged her smile.

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

She did not know why, but she liked this feeling very much.

The feeling of leaning against him.

The feeling of being protected by someone else.

It was not merely because he felt familiar.

There was also... attachment.

Cecilia always felt that whenever she leaned against Otto, the panic brought by her amnesia would vanish completely. All confusion, pain, and loss would be swept away.

This feeling of being cherished seemed rare.

So rare that she felt she had experienced it only a few times even before losing her memory.

So rare that she felt there had been very few people like him even before losing her memory.

But she did not dislike this feeling.

On the contrary... she was so attached to it that she was almost obsessed.

The Saintess counted time through the fluttering in her heart, accompanying the hand combing her hair with emotions no one else could sense as it slowly moved through her locks.

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

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Wandering Schicksal

"Put on the goggles—yes, like that. Then... if you run into anyone, don't speak first. If you have any questions, ask me, understand?"

Otto repeatedly reminded her. Although Cecilia did not know why, she still obediently nodded.

"Once you recover your memories, I'll hold a press conference for you," Otto said gently. "I'll let everyone know you've returned. But since remembering things gives you headaches right now, don't let anyone discover you for the time being, so you won't lose composure on the road. Okay?"

"Okay."

After waiting for Cecilia to put on her shoes and lightly stamp her feet to show they fit, Otto took another step back and examined her a few times.

Not bad. The nun's uniform hid her figure, the goggles obscured her appearance, and if one ignored that sacred, ethereal aura, she looked exactly like a naïve, sweet little fool.

Later, he only needed to use Feather of Dust to interfere with the witnesses' consciousness a little. No one would ever guess anything.

"Smile."

"???"

Cecilia did not understand, but she still raised the corners of her lips slightly.

"Click."

"Good." Otto put away his terminal, having openly succeeded in taking a photo. "When you see other people, just wear that Kaslana smile like you know nothing."

Cecilia: "..."

She felt that it was strange, but did not mention it.

"Let's go. We'll take a walk around Schicksal first. If you remember anything, tell me. If thinking makes your head hurt, don't force yourself to remember. Relaxing is more important."

Otto extended his hand and hooked Cecilia's long, slender fingertips.

The pads of her fingers were cool yet smooth. With a little pressure, they felt soft and springy. Holding Cecilia's hand, he led her out the door as winter's chill rushed toward them.

It was the day after the winter solstice in Shenzhou. Winds from the frigid zone swept over mountains and seas from the distant icy ocean, only to be stopped outside Schicksal's climate control system.

Of course, as a city in the sky floating above the clouds, Schicksal Headquarters always possessed varied weather and scenery. Every kind of high-altitude weather brought special effects to the environment.

But there would never be frost and snow that froze all of Schicksal Headquarters, nor lightning strikes that destroyed important machinery.

Still, the chill in the air made winter's arrival unmistakable. Since they floated above the clouds, there was indeed sunlight—not warm sunlight, but slanting rays that fell lazily across the area, like someone slacking off at work.

Cecilia exhaled a breath and blankly watched white mist rise from her mouth. As she walked, it drifted toward her cheeks before dispersing into the air. Then the cold wind curled back, tousling her hair.

The woman could not help shrinking her head and moving a little closer to Otto.

There were not many people on the road, only scattered pedestrians coming and going. Some even walked right up to Otto before leaving as if they had not seen him. Naturally, he did not care.

"It's a little bleak..." Otto remarked.

He recalled a time in the Book of Void when he had taken Cecilia shopping. On a whim, the girl had asked whether Schicksal Headquarters could have a huge snowfall at the end of the year, so the Valkyries living there could experience winter's atmosphere.

But after she said that, a piercingly cold gust of wind had blown over, making her clutch her head and crouch defensively. Then she had weakly declared that she was giving up on the idea.

The expression on her face back then...

Otto turned his head and saw Cecilia shrinking her neck without saying a word.

Yes, that timid expression was still the same as before.

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

The delicate hand in his grasp tensed slightly and struggled with some discomfort, then relaxed again and stopped moving.

Otto's lips curved upward as he continued showing Cecilia around while explaining things to her.

"Schicksal Headquarters is a floating fortress that remains above the Mediterranean year-round. It stands high above the world, looking down upon it."

"This fortress is unimaginably enormous, comparable to some coastal islands. Therefore, it can also be seen as a massive group of floating islands."

"It is Schicksal's administrative center and the organization's most vital research facility. With the mission of fighting Honkai, it operates day after day."

"The air harbor in the distance is an important entrance to Schicksal Headquarters. Every one of them is guarded by Valkyries and giant mechs."

Valkyries?

Giant mechs?

Cecilia found it somewhat familiar and tilted her head.

Otto paused at that moment and recalled, "I still remember how we gave Divine Machine Heimdall the nickname Big Heim. When it entered overload mode, we called it Dr. Lobster."

Lobster...

An image of a red arthropod appeared in Cecilia's mind. She enlarged it several times, imagined it baring its claws before her, and burst out laughing.

She had lost her memories, but not completely.

She could remember lobsters, but not Dr. Lobster.

Otto glanced sideways at the woman, whose eyes had curved into crescents, and understood.

He continued leading Cecilia around Schicksal Headquarters, introducing all kinds of things.

"This is Divine Machine Baldr..."

"This is the Schicksal Laboratory..."

"This is..."

Before long, under his deliberate guidance, the two arrived at the headquarters' core area.

Amber seemed to have been waiting for quite some time. She gave a slight bow. "Lord Bishop, the meal you requested has been ordered and specially delivered to your office."

"It seems I haven't eaten anything in a long time," Otto remarked. "Ah, Cecilia too."

Amber nodded. "After using the Soul Steel body, Lord Bishop, you have gone twelve hours and fifty-three minutes without eating or drinking."

"After experiencing such a long span of time, eating and drinking are more of a habit to me." Otto entered his office, glanced at the food on the table, and the corner of his lips drooped for a moment. "Oh, right. Replace the red wine with bubble tea next time."

"Understood, Lord Bishop. However, when you do not wish to drink red wine, please pour it somewhere appropriate. Also, please do not smash the glass as well. The glass shards on the floor and wine stains on the curtains are difficult to clean."

"..."

Otto did not want to speak, and silently added this little secretary to his list.