Saving Private Kal'tsit

—"Doctor?"

Persephone shook her head. Her gaze traveled across the distant void, towards the depths of the research center where Miss Surtr's main body was located. The red and black greatsword floated peacefully to Surtr's left and right.

—If, at the moment it happened, I hadn't genuinely rushed forward out of anxiety, that sword would have killed me instantly, thirty-one times over, and then carried Surtr's body to space or some other high-energy realm.

--after all...

"It's my responsibility," she said.

There's one more session after the meeting.

Chapter 179: Saving Private Kal'tsit

—My responsibility... Ah, yes, of course it's my responsibility.

—After all, it was I who proposed this experiment. I was the one who took advantage of her trust, I was the one who induced her to do the actions I anticipated.

—I told her from the very beginning that this would be a 'sleepless night'.

Persephone, thoughts pulsate in the sea of consciousness.

Is Surtr hard to guess?

It wasn't difficult, because Surtr had never hidden anything from those close to her—she could easily see through Surtr's patterns of behavior. She knew how to ignite her competitive spirit, how to guide her to venture into unfamiliar territory.

—My previous deduction was correct: her ability to explore the dream world is influenced by her way of thinking.

Therefore, it was to be expected that her mental capacity would be depleted when she engaged in overly radical dream exploration activities... My only oversight was that I did not expect her physical reaction after her mental exhaustion would be so enormous.

She gritted her teeth.

She had a premonition when she saw Surtr begin to eat voraciously. And her question, "Are you hungry?" was intentional—she had expected Surtr to become weak and exhausted. That would make it easier for her to take action, to advance further while he was emotionally vulnerable, or to help other crawling idiots learn to walk.

She had assumed it would be like this, but the reaction after the failure was not what she had anticipated—yet even though it was unexpected, it was still within the emergency plan. And the subsequent changes were precisely due to her actions.

She actually had more than one way to awaken Surtr prematurely—her time rewinding couldn't affect Surtr's subjective state. So she could have simply let Surtr's out-of-control body run rampant on the earth, until the moment his consciousness returned, then taken him back to the point before everything began. Even if she didn't disregard the changing circumstances, after five consecutive time rewinds, Surtr's state was being reconstructed.

She had the opportunity, or rather, the absolute right, to safely remove Kal'tsit's body on her second attempt. But instead, she chose to leave Kal'tsit's body there, forcing her to become 'linked' with Surtr. She knew she could do this because it was perfectly safe—after her third reboot, Surtr's physical body would be able to identify Rhodes Island operators. And if she rebooted it one or two more times, perhaps that red-haired thing would revive at the very beginning!

—So I did it, I schemed against her. I took advantage of her trust in me, and my understanding of her. I deliberately created this opportunity. And my goal now is...

—This allows Kal'tsit, this unlucky soul who's almost missed the last train, to finally get a ticket into the dream world... that bed will allow Kal'tsit to briefly merge with her. And she will begin her dream exploration while her consciousness is blurred. She will be weak, and in this weakened state, she will participate in the dream exploration alongside the fully conscious Kal'tsit ... This exploration will be the closest Kal'tsit and she will ever be. If she's even luckier, perhaps while she's weak, Kal'tsit will be able to take care of her and be intimately close to her.

Ah... all the scheming and plotting, only to benefit someone else.

—I hope Kal'tsit can at least wear this wedding dress... I will surely pay a heavy price for what I have done today. I hope Kal'tsit will be worthy of my sacrifice.

A voice suddenly sounded beside him, a familiar voice, Casters's voice.

"Doctor, Doctor?"—She looked up and saw Amiya beside her, looking at her with concern and gently tugging at her sleeve.

"Are you alright?" The Little Rabbit's eyes were slightly red. She could tell that Persephone had rewound to death more than once.

"If..." She gently took Persephone's hand and placed it on the side of her neck.

"... If you can't help yourself, I can help you like Theresia did..." The Little Rabbit gritted her teeth, forcing a smile. "... I can do it, Doctor. Even if it's something really outrageous, I can—"

"There's no need for that," Persephone shook her head, ruffling the Little Rabbit's soft hair—the meeting was over, and all the participants had left. Now, only she remained, along with Amiya, who was worried about her.

She knew what Amiya was talking about... in the past, when the Sarkaz Babel Tower still existed. Each death rewind would make her irritable and mentally unstable. Only through special treatments could this inner weakness be overcome.

Her most frequent tactic was to inflict pain on those closest to her—the closer the relationship, the greater the pain. The better the recovery would be— Theresia knew this, because it was part of the pact she and Theresia had made—she provided Theresia with strategic advice, Theresia would treat her like one of her closest confidantes. And if she performed a death rewind and continued to use this ability while mentally overloaded, Theresia would fulfill her promise. She would exchange her own pain for the other's recovery.

Most of the time, her violent desires were directed only at Theresia. On rare occasions when she became too out of control, she would indiscriminately attack everyone around her who trusted and respected her most. This contract, however, would end the moment Theresia died as part of the scheme.

She has no plans to renew the contract with Amiya.

Moreover, she doesn't need this kind of recovery help now.

"No need." So she repeated her decision, and tried to force a natural smile.

"I'm fine, this little bit of damage is nothing."

"Is that so..." Amiya's eyes dimmed slightly. But the next moment, she abruptly raised her head, revealing a bright, sunny smile. "I understand, Doctor. But I'll always be waiting for you. If you need anything, please call me immediately!"

Persephone nodded. The Little Rabbit then forced a smile and nimbly left—pretending not to see her worried gaze. After Persephone, she would shield the Little Rabbit from all the storms it would face, and she had little time to concern herself with such minor anxieties in the young girl's heart.

Because Amiya wasn't some ordinary, commonplace fourteen-year-old girl in need of parental love—she was the leader of Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals, the one who had been rebuilt in Sarkaz Babel Tower, and would gradually take over Chernobog in the coming days. She shouldn't, and had no time, for sentimentality here.

The purple-haired Maiden Doctor watched her leave. After the little bunny departed, she turned and headed to another area to find something she needed to focus on.

She arrived at the abandoned experimental center. At its center, approximately one hectare of the city area had been transformed into a pure lava pool— Surtr's true form slumbered within it in a relatively stable state. Her plan was to transfer the area sealing off the hospital to this pool before the seven-day deadline, sealing Surtr's hand and Kal'tsit together within it, achieving conceptual compatibility between them. The ultimate result would be a fifty percent certainty of sending Kal'tsit and Surtr into the dream world known as Dark Souls.

—No, more than 50%.

The girl raised her head and looked at the red and black greatsword floating above Surtr's main body—only today did she understand the true nature of this sword and realize who her greatest rival was.

—But perhaps that's not right either... You should already be at the finish line. If you consider yourself a human being...

—No, I remember Surtr never held any other weapon for more than five seconds. I see. You're such a jealous female, but only towards weapons like yourself... Only you can be a weapon, while it doesn't matter how many bed warmers or human maids come?

—It seems there's no competition between us, Laevateinn. I'm quite interested in the position of your beloved toy or head maid. And without your tacit approval, the moment I succeed in my scheme, you'll kill or seal me away after confirming my hostility, and stabilize Surtr's form until she heals and recovers.

She stared at the swords in the pool, but the swords paid her no heed—which was normal; if she succeeded in taking over, she would never care how many weapons Surtr possessed. And if their positions were reversed, the result would be the same.

Perhaps, in Laevateinn's eyes, it wouldn't matter if all the humans on this land died. But if they could bring Surtr some amusement, then he could choose to turn a blind eye to any slight transgression, or even go along with it.

"What good luck, Kal'tsit. Both I and it are paving the way for your future—is it because Surtr is so fond of you? Well, if I were to switch ways with you, I suppose I would never be able to rise from the earth again after I die thirty-one times."

She let out a soft breath, ending this pointless little jealousy.

There is still plenty of time, but Kal'tsit's opportunity is already sealed. And before that—

No matter what, betrayal is betrayal. Even a white lie is still a lie. I will eventually have to confess to her, and I will eventually have to pay the price. But I know her; she won't demand a price, she won't even consider it a form of deception, and she will trust me as before. So...

—Before she comes back, I have to devise a punishment that will cause me enough pain, but will also make her happy and free from any psychological burden.

She turned and left this secret place that would never change again.

So, that's how Kal'tsit was assigned to face off against Filianore in Dark Souls _(:з"∠)_

I calculated it, this section should be 11/75... roughly?