The Serpent's End

"..." Looking at the white-haired idiot in front of her, whose mind was only on the game, Seele couldn't help but sigh inwardly and said, "Kiana, did you hear the captain calling you just now?"

She didn't want to lie, but... this white-haired idiot is such a worry!

"Is there?"

Kiana blinked, looking completely bewildered.

She suspected that Seele was lying to her, but she had no proof.

"Of course, Sister Bronya heard it too, right?"

As she spoke, Seele winked at Bronya.

"..." Feeling Kiana's suspicious gaze, Bronya nodded expressionlessly, "Yes, Bronya heard it too. It's probably some kind of secret snack."

"Hmm..."

Kiana immediately believed it to a large extent.

After all, the boy didn't really like cake, so it was perfectly reasonable for him to sneak a snack while going upstairs.

"Then you can't start a new game on your own before I get back!"

Kiana was still a little worried.

"We'll wait for you."

Seele immediately nodded in agreement.

Only after receiving the girl's assurance did Kiana feel completely relieved, and she turned and went upstairs in her slippers.

"Seele has turned bad too. But... Bronya doesn't dislike Seele like this."

Bronya stared directly at the blue-haired girl and said calmly, immediately selecting "Play another round".

In order to play with her a little longer, Seele didn't hesitate to use such a trick, so of course she couldn't let the girl down.

Seele: "..."

Tired, let's destroy it.

She felt she had really worried herself sick over this family.

On the other side, Kiana had only reached the middle of the stairs when she saw Shi Hen's figure.

Just as she was about to open her mouth to say hello, the white-haired girl froze when she saw the hand gripping the boy's chin and the beautiful face rapidly approaching.

"Humans, submit to me!"

Looking into the boy's dark eyes at a distance almost face to face, [Raiden Mei] spoke with a cold and arrogant expression, like a queen on a throne commanding her subjects to obey.

Shi Hen: "..."

He realized that something seemed wrong with the script.

Although the resurgence of Raiden Mei's Stigmata Will was within his expectations, shouldn't it have been a case of power-ups after encountering danger?

It's just a birthday celebration, where did this girl get such strong emotional stimulation to restore the Stigmata Will?

And... how did the Queen of Lightning become a domineering CEO?

That posture, that expression... Shi Hen almost doubted that this was some kind of Mary Sue world.

"Hen, Mei, what's going on here...?"

Stunned, the white-haired girl's brain completely shut down.

She felt completely unable to comprehend what was happening before her eyes.

In an instant, the purple light in Mei's eyes vanished.

Instinctively releasing her grip on Shi Hen's chin, the girl's face was immediately filled with panic. "This... that..."

She also felt she couldn't understand it.

She was still hesitating in her heart, but her body moved first, and she even said those kinds of things...

The thought of that sentence made Mei feel incredibly ashamed, and she wished she could disappear into the ground.

"We were just discussing the plot of an anime, Mei said she would demonstrate it for me."

Shi Hen explained with a smile.

"Oh, I see."

Kiana suddenly understood everything.

"No, that's right, that's how it is."

Mei nodded quickly, while secretly glancing at the boy.

She felt that the other person's excuses were a bit too practiced.

"Let's hurry down, Bronya and the others have already played several rounds."

As she spoke, Kiana pattered downstairs in her slippers, and then...

"Bronya, Seele... why are you two open again!?"

Suddenly, the white-haired girl's loud questioning rang out in the hall.

Hearing the shouts coming from below, Shi Hen glanced at the black-haired girl beside him, whose cheeks were flushed, and said, "Let's go down too, Mei."

"Um..."

With her head down, Mei let out a soft groan and followed closely behind the boy downstairs.

Chapter 178 The end of the snake

North Africa, the headquarters of the World Serpent.

In a secluded laboratory, watching one humanoid creature after another crawl out of the biochemical pool, don uniform clothing and mechanical prosthetics, and thus be branded as members of the Gray Serpent Clan, the administrator Gray Serpent couldn't help but fall into deep thought.

Since the seventeenth Gray Serpent went missing half a month ago, there haven't been any more Gray Serpent disappearing for a long time.

Logically speaking, this is likely because the enemy finally realized that he couldn't be killed in this way, so he chose to give up.

But as an observer who has coexisted with humanity since the dawn of civilization, the Gray Serpent does not rely entirely on such luck.

That unknown enemy might be secretly plotting something shady, preparing to launch a major attack on him.

But... what form of attack will the other side choose?

Raid the World Serpent headquarters and destroy this bio-pool that breeds the Gray Serpent?

No, the World Serpent headquarters is always guarded by five to six officers, along with various mechs and bio-soldiers. Its defenses are just as tight as those of the Schicksal HQ.

Moreover, even if he loses this bio-pool, he can build other bio-pools.

One is all, and all is one.

As long as one Gray Serpent lives, he can rebuild the Gray Serpent Clan.

With this characteristic, he doesn't even know how he can lose.

Just as he was thinking this, the Gray Serpent suddenly felt a rod-shaped object pressing against its head.

"Good evening, Mr. Gray Serpent."

A familiar voice rang out, and the Gray Serpent turned its head to look, only to see an ordinary Gray Serpent.

No, what appears ordinary is merely the exterior; the person's inner self has already become someone else entirely.

Within the Gray Serpent network, he could not sense the presence of this Gray Serpent at all.

Moreover, this sound...

"White Dove, what are you doing?!"

Staring at the dark muzzle of the gun in front of him, Gray Serpent angrily questioned.

Without a doubt, the one pointing a gun at his head right now is the boy he once recruited.

"Mr. Gray Serpent, what do you think is the best way to save the world?"

Still holding the gun pointed at the other person's head, Shi Hen said slowly.

"..."

Staring at the face of the ordinary Gray Serpent before him, the Gray Serpent remained silent and did not answer.

He couldn't figure out what the boy controlling this body wanted to do.

"Throughout history, humanity has always been repeating the same mistakes," Shi Hen said calmly, as if the two weren't pointing guns at each other, but rather sitting and chatting over tea. "How can humanity possibly save itself?"

"That is why we worship our revered Lord."

Only those Flame-Chasers of Previous Civilization, possessing both immense strength and unwavering will, can lead this world into the future!

Gray Serpent added.

"No, Mr. Gray Serpent," Shi Hen shook his head slightly. "Why, have you never considered me?"

He felt that the Gray Serpent's vision was far too short-sighted; it couldn't even see his own star.

"White Dove, even after experiencing the baptism of the Elysian Realm, do you still not realize your own weakness?" Gray Serpent sneered. "Compared to those truly great beings, your power is nothing more than the light of a firefly."

He struggled to even defeat an S-rank Valkyrie of Schicksal. He really couldn't understand where the other party got the confidence to think that they could stand shoulder to shoulder with the Flame-Chasers.

"Mr. Gray Serpent, you're shortsighted," Shi Hen sighed regretfully. "Just like now, did you ever consider that I would point a gun at you?"

The Gray Serpent, which has accompanied modern civilization through countless years, is merely trapped in the illusions of the Previous Civilization.

The other party has never taken a serious look at the people and things of this era.

"You were the one who did all this during this time!?"

He questioned loudly, a red light flashing in the Gray Serpent's electronic eyes.

"There's no need to even ask that question."

Shi Hen chuckled lightly.

"... State your terms, White Dove."

"The Gray Serpent said in a hoarse voice."

The fact that he got this far means that the other party already has leverage to negotiate terms with him.

Just as the boy was qualified to join the World Serpent the moment he knocked on the door of the Raven Bar.

"I want to become a leader in the world."

He spoke softly, Shi Hen tone filled with an air of domineering confidence.

"You are not yet qualified to be compared with those Flame-Chasers."

The Gray Serpent shook its head.

The position of the Lord is the core of the World Serpent's faith and must never be shaken.

Even if he had to abandon this bio-pool and the World Serpent headquarters, he would never admit it.

"No, no, no, Mr. Gray Serpent, you seem to have misunderstood something," Shi Hen said calmly, his electronic prosthetic eye flashing as well. "I'm not negotiating with you, I'm just informing you."

The moment I stood before you, you had already lost.

As soon as he finished speaking, hundreds and thousands of Gray Serpent appeared, each wielding a Colt Defender and aiming it at the administrator, the Gray Serpent.

Looking at the Gray Serpent that almost filled his entire field of vision, yet none of them were actually part of the Gray Serpent Network, the Gray Serpent Administrator felt a surge of despair. "What have you done!?"

Since the boy could get so many Gray Serpent out of the network, what about the rest...?

As if responding to the Gray Serpent's thoughts, the Gray Serpent network endpoints that had existed in his mind disappeared one by one.

Almost in the blink of an eye, he could no longer perceive any endpoints.

It was as if he was the only Gray Serpent left in the entire Gray Serpent network.

No, he was the only one who was kicked out of Gray Serpent Network!

"Mr. Gray Serpent, have you ever heard of the Key of Erosion?"