History always repeats itself.
The first time as tragedy, the second as farce—especially when you're the one orchestrating the same tragedy all over again...
"No!"
Hearing the girl's heart-wrenching scream from a distance behind him, a thought surfaced in Otto's mind. He marveled at the absurdity of reality and scoffed at his own hypocrisy.
After all...
Bang!
Launched skyward like a cannonball, Lin Wei found himself hurtling toward the surging purple torrent. As the world spun around him, he felt a sudden, searing heat in his chest, as if some unknown electronic component had just burned out.
The pain was so intense that he instinctively reached for it, only to pull out a handful of unrecognizable fragments.
What the hell is this?
Lin Wei wondered with a strange sense of curiosity. It was just like him to be preoccupied with such trivial matters, even at a time like this.
"Heh, Bianka, I don't recall agreeing to let you give him Gnus as a parting gift..."
Otto chuckled as he backed away, distancing himself from the "danger zone."
"But no matter. A simple self-destruct command was all it took. No harm done."
Otto knew his most prized student like the back of his hand.
That was why, when Durandal had executed the plan by flinging Lin Wei into the energy torrent, Otto had noticed her subtle, sleight-of-hand movement.
As she grabbed Lin Wei's chest and arm, she had secretly slipped her old device, Gnus, into his clothes. Not only had Otto seen it clearly, but he had anticipated she would do exactly that.
So, under the guise of "maintenance," he had made a small modification...
"Overseer..."
Though her little trick had been exposed, Durandal felt no guilt. Instead, she met Otto's gaze head-on and stated a simple fact in a somber tone.
"He will die."
Could Lin Wei's body, which was far from robust, withstand a direct, close-range blast from the Second Divine Key's overwhelming power?
Even if he survived and was "successfully" banished into the Sea of Quanta, how long could he last in that completely alien dimension without an anchor or any guidance?
Durandal didn't know. Her duty prevented her from changing the Overseer's decision.
Even so, she didn't mind doing what she could within the bounds of her duties and principles, hoping to find a solution that satisfied everyone.
But Overseer Otto seemed unwilling to leave even that tiny sliver of hope. Was this truly...
"I know."
Otto's tone remained unchanged.
"The threat of the Key of Corrosion is too great. To prevent any unforeseen accidents, the best choice is to banish it from the Eigenworld completely, letting it sink into the deepest depths of the Sea of Quanta, never to see the light of day again."
From the very beginning, he had never intended to "recover" the Key of Corrosion; his goal was to "destroy" it. Sinking it into the Sea of Quanta was the most effective and safest method of "destruction"...
"I am aware of all that, Overseer," Durandal said.
"It's almost word-for-word what you told Rita and me when you explained the plan. But..."
But why refuse to leave him even a single chance at survival?
Durandal couldn't comprehend it. She didn't understand.
"I gave him a chance. Unfortunately, he arrogantly refused it..." Otto said with a sigh.
"Therefore, to avoid leaving behind unnecessary loose ends for the future, I had no choice but to resort to this."
"But why?" Durandal pressed, refusing to back down. She didn't believe Lin Wei's crimes were so heinous as to warrant such a cruel "execution."
She could guess the real reason, but out of respect and trust for Otto, she refused to acknowledge her own suspicions...
"As I've said, we are banishing the Key of Corrosion. And that man, Lin Wei, is precisely the 'unnecessary trouble' I spoke of," Otto said with a gentle smile, his voice as warm and pleasant as a spring breeze.
"After all, neither of us wants to leave a massive, unpredictable threat looming over us when we finally execute the grand plan we've prepared for so long to save the world, do we?"
Otto's tone was earnest. "This concerns the fate of two worlds—the one we live in, and the world that exists within you..."
"..."
Faced with this kind of emotional manipulation, Durandal, who was never good with words, couldn't find a rebuttal. She could only remain silent.
Overseer, is every one of your plans like this? Meticulously detailed, yet always with hidden parts that only you know beforehand?
Durandal thought silently. She remembered Lin Wei, who had sacrificed so much in Manila only to end up like this.
She thought of the scarred, white-haired man with sorrow-filled eyes she had recently seen at the Anti-Entropy headquarters. For the first time, a seed of doubt about Overseer Otto began to sprout in her mind...
It was just a tiny, imperceptible seed, far from what one would call "disappointment," but it had still opened a crack, leaving a faint mark.
"..."
Otto had his own suspicions about her thoughts, but there was nothing he could do.
He knew he was finally paying the price for today's outcome, just as he would eventually pay the price for all his past actions...
Just as Lin Wei had said, he had long since burned all his bridges and planted countless bombs under his own feet. Now, he couldn't afford a single shred of failure. He could only press forward, no matter the cost, even if it meant drinking poison to quench his thirst.
Lin Wei, was this part of your goal, too?
Otto thought to himself as he looked up at the tiny black dot that had been swallowed by the energy torrent.
That man had managed to add one more seemingly insignificant weight to his already precarious balancing act...
---||---
By now, Lin Wei had already fallen into the torrent of energy unleashed by twenty Hyperion-class Honkai energy engines.
Hiding behind a hastily conjured "Projection: Oath of Judah," he was like a canoe caught in a Category 1.2 tsunami, on the verge of capsizing. If not for Pandora's protection, he would have been reduced to dust.
Even so, the sturdy black cross was already riddled with holes from the momentary blast, about to shatter.
Sigh, I guess you can't just rigidly apply old methods to new situations...
Lin Wei lamented inwardly. In the original timeline, Durandal had walked into the pillar of light unharmed, but that didn't mean he could do the same.
For one, everyone's constitution was different; not everyone possessed a body as tough as Durandal's battlesuit-like physique.
For another, Durandal's situation had been orchestrated by Su, the mastermind behind the scenes, who had secretly adjusted the "output" of the Second Divine Key specifically to send her to his side.
I don't get that kind of special treatment...
Lin Wei continued to sigh. The moment his projection of Judah shattered, he switched to the Abyss Flower. Activating it at full power, black and holy blossoms bloomed from the void, wrapping around him in layers, only to wilt and fall away just as quickly...
At this rate, before he was blasted through the gate into the Sea of Quanta, his defenses would be shattered first, and he'd be blown to smithereens!
But it didn't matter. Otto had his plan, and Lin Wei had his own...
---||---
"No!"
Anna watched in horror as Lin Wei was plunged into a desperate situation. With a heart-wrenching cry, she gripped the sword she had just acquired and, without a second thought, swung it furiously at Rita, who stood beside her like a willing accomplice to evil.
"Get out of my way!"
Clang!
Rita effortlessly parried the blow with her emerald scythe, the force of Anna's hate-filled strike sending the sword flying from her grasp. It spun through the air and landed somewhere in the distance.
But Anna didn't care. She used the opening created by her attack to dart past Rita, desperately running toward the source of the energy beam.
"Yuno, hurry! We can still make it!" Anna yelled anxiously.
"We just have to disconnect the energy lines and shut that thing down!"
In her panic, it was the only solution she could think of. She didn't have time to consider how she would get past Overseer Otto or even Durandal, nor did she dare to.
But her cries were met with silence. The only footsteps she heard were her own. A chill shot through Anna's already terrified heart—
She knew. Something must have happened to her other companion...
"Yuno...?"
Anna forced herself to look back. Yuno was still where she had left her, but now she was on the ground, twitching in agony.
At that moment, Anna finally fell into complete despair...
I'm all alone. What can I possibly do?
Anna's mind went blank. She felt something inside her heart begin to crack, piece by piece, as her soul plunged into a bottomless, bone-chilling abyss...
"My, what a convincing performance, miss."
Rita made no move to stop Anna. Instead, she continued to watch the "pained" Yuno on the ground with a calm, wary expression and a smile.
"The perfume Rita used in the lounge did contain a few minor medicinal components, but it was merely a research byproduct developed by the Overseer over the years using Lady Fu Hua's unique constitution. It would have a certain effect on MANTIS, or those with a similar constitution like Miss Yuno, but that's all it does, so..."
As she finished speaking, Rita's smile remained, but her wrist snapped. The cold, gleaming scythe swung down mercilessly at the defenseless girl still writhing on the ground!
Clang!
The next second, a sheathed longsword appeared out of thin air, held in a hand as pale as jade, effortlessly blocking the surprise attack.
The owner of that hand, the "Yuno" who had been convulsing on the ground, flipped to her feet. All traces of pain were gone, replaced by an alluring smile that would never have appeared on the real Yuno's face.
"You flatter me, Miss Rita. But didn't you already see through my act?"
With a flick of her thumb, "Yuno" unsheathed her sword. The sharp blade bypassed the scythe and thrust directly at Rita's face.
Despite being prepared, Rita was caught off guard and forced to stumble back several steps to narrowly dodge the attack.
"Pardon my intrusion."
"Yuno" smiled faintly and pressed her attack. In the close-quarters struggle that followed, a "sword" would always have the advantage over a long-handled "scythe." Rita was forced back again and again, looking increasingly flustered.
Her disguise gradually fell away, revealing a beautiful girl with long hair and fox-like ears. She wore a simple white shrine maiden's outfit, her expression serene yet her gaze sharp. She looked less like a shrine maiden and more like a pure swordswoman.
It was Yae Sakura!
"...Yuno?"
Anna was in shock once again. The events of the past few minutes had been a dizzying rollercoaster, but seeing her good friend suddenly transform into this unfamiliar figure was still a massive jolt.
What is happening?
Anna's small brain felt overloaded, but at the same time, hope reignited within her. She pointed toward the Second Divine Key and shouted, "Quick, over there!"
She hadn't forgotten that Lin Wei was still in mortal danger.
Yae Sakura, of course, knew what was important. She nodded slightly and then unleashed a heavy slash. Rita, who was already flustered and looking to create distance to regroup, used the force of the blow to retreat far away.
And then, she regretted it...
Yae Sakura gave her a cold, beautiful smile. Then, her gaze hardened, and her chest swelled slightly. As she took a deep breath, the sheathed sword was slowly drawn once more.
With every inch the blade emerged, dazzling lightning crackled more intensely along its length, and a low rumble echoed, like long-suppressed thunderclouds about to unleash an unstoppable divine punishment upon the world!
"Hah!"
With a crisp, pleasant cry, the third Divine Key, in its longsword form, was finally unsheathed amidst a triumphant roar.
It was as if it had returned to the world of fifty thousand years ago, unleashing its most unstoppable strike, a thunderous blow aimed at the tiny human blocking its path!
"Not good!"
How could Rita not recognize that this thing was, in all likelihood, a genuine Divine Key?
There's nothing here that needs protecting. If she wants to break something, let her!
Rita thought, instinctively dodging to the side and letting Yae Sakura's world-splitting strike hit empty air.
BOOM!
The thunderous blow sliced through the air. Though it missed Rita, it was clear that Yae Sakura didn't care.
As the sword fell, a devastating wave of electromagnetic energy erupted from the Third Divine Key, with Yae Sakura at its center, spreading out in all directions!
BOOM!
Zzzzt... Hah!
In that instant, countless devices were fried and shut down. The overwhelming electromagnetic pulse even traveled through cables and energy conduits into the deeper levels of the underground base, causing the entire facility to paralyze almost instantly!
Vwooom...
With a final mournful whine, the Second Divine Key, deprived of its power source, slowly ground to a halt. The torrent of energy shooting into the sky visibly diminished before vanishing completely.
.....
Lin Wei, who had been desperately holding on, was finally freed from his ordeal. His ascent stopped, and he began to enjoy the thrill of freefall...
The result's not bad, huh?
Lin Wei thought with a grimace. He knew that as long as he escaped, his plan was already halfway to success.
As for the other half...
.....
Meanwhile, Yae Sakura's "feint in the east, attack in the west" strike, though not truly aimed at Rita, was no mere bluff.
The lightning-fast slash not only shut down the entire base but also cleaved through the high wall in front of her, carving a long, bottomless fissure!
Crumble... crumble...
The endless yellow sand from the surface above lost its support and began to pour down into the chasm as if trying to seal the wound. A massive cloud of dust billowed up, choking and blinding.
"Heh heh, what an impressive display, miss. To turn this place upside down in an instant... Just thinking about having to clean this up is giving me a massive headache..."
"..."
Rita put on a gas mask to filter the dust-filled air. Carefully shielding Anna behind her, she confronted the once-again sheathed Yae Sakura with a cold glare.
"So, who are you, really?"