Chapter 339

Kiana: "Bronya, this thing doesn't seem to be very useful."

What exactly is the purpose of the tracker when they catch a Herrscher?

Bronya: "Perhaps it's because the appearance of a large number of Herrscher in one place is inherently illogical... It's a bit tricky."

If it were in the Sea of Quanta, when Welt put her to the test, Bronya could use a tracker to pinpoint the location of the Herrscher Core.

But in the St. Freya Academy, a place teeming with hidden talents, it really became a useless asset.

For now, all we can do is leave it as is, keeping an eye on it occasionally to see if we can help her find the Core of the Herrscher of Reason.

[In the scene, the Thousand-Man Herrscher took Bronya's Herrscher Authority and disappeared. Bronya was also thrown out of the rift and reunited with Seele.]

"Seele, the enemy is more dangerous than we thought. The doll has disappeared; we must leave here immediately!"

Bronya grabbed Seele's hand and ran forward.

We must leave immediately.

The Thousand-Man Herrscher have already taken away the power of the Herrscher of Reason, and will surely be greatly enhanced. This was a mistake she made due to carelessness, and she must not implicate Seele!

The two were running when they suddenly encountered another doll.

Bronya immediately assumed an attack stance.

"Wait, Sister Bronya, she doesn't seem to intend to attack us," Seele reminded her from the side.

Bronya then realized that the doll in front of her was just standing there muttering to itself, like a soulless shell.

"A conspiracy, haha, a conspiracy. That's right! It's all a conspiracy. Everyone is isolating me, ignoring me, and ostracizing me!"

The doll shouted angrily, "You give me the hardest and most tiring work, assign me tasks that are impossible to complete, and even give me less food at lunchtime than others!"

"I've had enough! I'm going to get my revenge! I'll show them what the company will be like without me! Let them all regret it, hahahaha."

The doll let out a maniacal laugh.

She was lost in her own world, her heart consumed by anger, and she didn't even notice the person beside her.

Bronya and Seele exchanged a glance and silently walked around the doll.

They hadn't gone far when they encountered another one.

"Why, why? Why do we have to change it again? How many versions is this already? What's with all this 'bigger and smaller at the same time,' and 'multicolored black'? Here's the pen, just say it yourself, okay?"

Compared to the anger of the previous doll, this one seemed overly sorrowful.

"I have absolutely no talent, I shouldn't be a designer, I shouldn't even be born into this world."

"My life is a joke, a complete and utter joke!"

Bronya frowned, feeling that this doll was radiating even stronger emotions than the previous one, and quickly pulled Seele away.

After turning a corner, a third doll appeared before them.

"I know, Mom and Dad, uncles and aunts all like my older sister more. They always tell me that I should be proud to have such an excellent older sister."

"The teachers also favored my older sister. They always asked me, 'Your sister can answer correctly, why can't you?' Even when choosing gifts, she always picked first, and I got the rest."

I am not her shadow!

Sadness, anger, resentment.

In the plays of the Thousand-Man Herrscher, the emotions of the puppets are amplified to an almost tangible Infinity.

A pang of heartache rose within Seele, who was affected by the situation.

"Sister Bronya, I find it so strange. Those dolls were originally just ordinary people, so why did they turn into this?" Seele clutched her chest.

Bronya shook her head. "No, they are the Tenth Herrscher, not humans. They are merely puppets manipulated by the Honkai Consciousness."

"But the experiences they recounted, the pain they endured, truly happened to someone unknown, and it fueled despair in her heart," Seele said, her head bowed.

"Xier, don't be fooled. Everyone will experience pain and sadness, but there are also moments of happiness, touching and joy."

Bronya pressed down on Seele's shoulder.

"But these dolls are different. They're like a manifestation of negative emotions amplified and driven to extremes. Don't get pulled into that vortex!"

Seeing Seele's confused look, Bronya felt a cold sweat trickle down her back.

Such terrifying empathy.

If I weren't here, Seele would likely have fallen for the doll's trick.

Einstein: "So, my previous guess was wrong? The hosts of the Thousand-Man Herrscher aren't those who are frustrated and have dark hearts, but rather those who hate their own lives?"

No, perhaps there is no contradiction between the two.

Durandal: "Herrscher are the apostles of Honkai, Thousand-Man Herrscher are the Infinity magnified dark side, the embodiment of evil."

Sadness, anger, pain, and similar negative emotions can influence each other.

The Thousand-Man Herrscher are such a collective entity, a combination of the anger and resentment of a thousand people, which then sinks deeper and deeper, breeding more evil, and thus becoming a puppet of Honkai.

Durandal does not believe that the darkness of the Thousand-Man Herrscher is a manifestation of human emotions.

Einstein: "No, that's still not right. I still feel like something's wrong."

Einstein clutched his head, racking his brains. For a moment, she seemed to have grasped a glimmer of inspiration, but it quickly vanished without a trace.

Bronya: "Bronya thought of something. Elysia told us that a specific Honkai Consciousness doesn't exist. So what exactly is controlling the Thousand-Man Herrscher?"

"!!!"

Does the Honkai Consciousness not exist?

The Archbishop of Schicksal's eyes widened, but his years of training allowed him to conceal them well.

No, the Honkai does exist. Bronya just said is that the [specific] Honkai Consciousness does not exist.

So, what exactly was that [god] you encountered during the Second Honkai War?

Bishop Otto fell into deep thought.

Raiden Mei: "Bronya, do you think it's possible that the Thousand-Man Herrscher weren't actually controlled by anyone? Elysia distributed humanity among the Herrscher, and from then on, the Herrscher were all beings with self-awareness."

Bronya: "This..."

Bronya had certainly considered this possibility, but she just couldn't believe it.

Because it means that the Thousand-Man Herrscher are also human, but unlike the Valkyrie who become Herrscher, they represent those humans living in suffering.

They were living in dire straits, disbelieving in any hope, denying humanity, denying everything around them, and willingly becoming apostles of the Honkai.

Gray Serpent: "That's just how the world is. Some people live well, and some live poorly; some people are tall, and some are short; the successful are basking in the glow of success, while the unsuccessful are filled with depression."

Chapter 551 The Inferiority of Humanity

Gray Serpent: "When one person is riding high, another group inevitably becomes fuel for their fire. But when the fuel turns to ashes, no one will remember them."

Raven: "Yes, yes, I know you're full of grand theories, but can't you express what you're really trying to say in a simpler way?"

Gray Serpent: "I'm afraid if I tell, some Valkyrie of Schicksal will hunt me down and kill me."

Raven: "Tsk."

You're afraid? When have you, Gray Serpent, ever been afraid?

The Raven rolled its eyes, not believing his nonsense at all.

Durandal: "You're talking about me, aren't you? The Lord of the World Serpent has returned, and in terms of martial prowess, he's already the strongest in the world. There's no need for such concealment."

Gray Serpent: "I didn't mean anything by it, it's just that sometimes I find it funny. People always think the World Serpent is dark and bloody, but Schicksal many people died in order to create the Stigmata, does anyone remember?"

To outsiders, this may sound confusing, but those in the know understand perfectly well.

Before the Second Honkai War, Schicksal developed Stigmata technology, capturing girls to experiment on and Stigmata the technology.

This was also the trigger that led to the awakening of the Herrscher of the Void and sparked the Second Honkai War.

Gray Serpent: "I think those poor girls, if they were still alive, would surely be perfect candidates for Thousand-Man Herrscher. It's a pity they're all dead."

Once dead, there is no way to verify the truth; once dead, nothing can be done.

Schicksal does not acknowledge this, then the tragedy of those girls is merely bloodstains on the sand, easily dispersed by the wind.

Theresa: "Grandpa, don't you want to say something?"

The headmaster knows the inside story of this matter and even witnessed Sirin's tragedy firsthand.

Otto: "My dear granddaughter, don't think of your grandpa every time something bad happens. I admit it's Schicksal's mistake, but grandpa can't supervise every single detail."

Theresa: "Wasn't the Artificial Stigmata experiment your doing?"

Otto: "I admit I turned a blind eye, but there was nothing I could do about it."

Bishop Otto shook his head and began to explain in detail.

Otto: "During the Second Honkai War, although Schicksal already possessed most of the world's freedom, its strength was still insufficient. Schicksal's strongest being Cecilia, and at most Z Siegfried, was not enough to deter others."

Otto: "My dear granddaughter, managing an organization is a very complex matter. Power is the cornerstone of authority, while interests are the leverage to reconcile conflicts."

Otto: "Whoever masters the latest technology for Artificial Stigmata will have more say in Schicksal. This cannot be decided by a single order, not even by a bishop."

Interests, interests are the bond that keeps the balance in place.

Under the Schicksal, there are various branches, Atlantic Ocean Branch, the Far East Branch, the split North American Branch, and so on. The headquarters is the center of power, but in order to obtain the Stigmata technology, the people in the branches will take risks.

Otto was the archbishop with absolute power, but ultimately it was the branch members who had to implement it.

Durandal: "Does the bishop mean that the branch members will disobey your orders?"

How come she didn't know the branch members were so arrogant?

Does she really think she bought her title as the strongest Valkyrie?

Otto: "The branch will obey orders from headquarters, but just because headquarters doesn't tell them what to do doesn't mean they won't do it. I can't exactly stop the Schicksal people from researching Artificial Stigmata, can I?"

Research requires experimental subjects, and experimental subjects come with costs. If the costs are too high, some people will take risks.

Unless the research into Artificial Stigmata is abolished, but that's impossible.

This creates an unsolvable spiral.

Himeko Murata: "But that would go against the principles of the Schicksal Valkyrie."

Otto: "This isn't a matter of right or wrong, but rather the inherent flaws of human nature. Just because the Far East Branch doesn't do it doesn't mean the Atlantic Ocean Branch won't. If Mandate of Schicksal doesn't do it, then someone else will. And Schicksal can at least guarantee that such a thing won't happen openly."

Especially after the Second Honkai War, incidents of capturing little girls to use as Stigmata experiments almost disappeared.

Apponia: "The inherent flaws of humanity... that's a familiar phrase."

Having not used the Precepts for so long, Apponia had almost forgotten how disappointed she had once been.

Pardofelis: "Sister Elysia, I've noticed you don't seem to worry about these kinds of things much. You definitely won't let this happen, right?"

They captured a little girl to conduct experiments.

Pardofelis felt that she, as an orphan from Dusk Street, definitely belonged to the category of victims.

Elysia: "Of course there is, but the solution is quite simple. Do you want me to teach you?"

Otto: "Simple? Hahaha, indeed, it is very simple."

At that moment, Otto understood immediately how the Flame-Chasers resolved their internal conflicts.

Theresa: "What method?"

Elysia: "If you all learn from Chakravartin and eliminate all the disobedient people, the rest will naturally obey."

Chakravartin: "Hmph, a piece of scum who deserved to die."

The headmaster remained silent.

If you can't solve the problem itself, get rid of the person who created it, and the problem will be perfectly solved.

This method sounds...

They're more than just reliable in ordinary terms!

Otto: "What, my dear granddaughter, do you want to give it a try? Whether it's the Immortal Crimson Bird or that Herrscher of Reason, as long as they wipe out all the high-ranking members of the world's high command, including the Schicksal branches, in one fell swoop and demonstrate absolute power, Grandpa can guarantee that this kind of thing will never happen."

A bolt from the blue struck Theresa's heart, and cold sweat trickled down her back.

His grandfather was serious; the Archbishop of Schicksal never joked.