After hearing Kiana's words, Durandal subconsciously nodded.
But immediately after, she realized they were currently on a mission.
This push-and-pull of self-restraint instantly made Kiana laugh.
"You, like this, where's the image of the S-rank Valkyrie who once galloped across battlefields and fought the Honkai?"
To this, Durandal's face flushed slightly, and she reflexively turned her face to the side.
But she didn't realize that this action exposed her already completely red ears.
At this moment, Durandal suddenly heard Kiana beside her speak up.
But clearly, the words weren't directed at her.
Thinking of this, an inexplicable feeling of disappointment rose in Durandal's heart.
So what if she was a world-renowned S-rank Valkyrie of Schicksal? She was still just a coward who didn't dare express her own feelings.
At that thought, Durandal suddenly remembered something her adjutant Rita once said to her,
"Lady Bianca, although people often say everything should go with the flow, there are still some things that you have to fight for yourself~"
And every time Rita said something like this, she always pretended not to understand and brushed it off.
Because she really didn't know how to face that man called "senpai."
Nor did she know how to face her own feelings.
Vaguely, Durandal seemed to recall something that senpai once said to her on the battlefield, a line that perfectly fit her current situation, "Hesitation will lead to defeat."
Thinking of this, Durandal mustered her courage and looked toward Kiana.
But just as she was about to speak, she saw Kiana also turning her gaze toward her.
'Uh…'
And Durandal chickened out.
God knows how panicked Durandal felt at that moment.
Whether it was back in that danger-filled Elysian Realm, or when facing Judgment-class Honkai beasts…
Durandal had never been this flustered.
And now... How to put it?
You could only say, one thing overcomes another.
———
At the same time, in the real world.
After seeing this scene play out, Ivana instinctively looked toward Kiana sitting beside her.
'It was already at this point, and that silly girl was still smiling foolishly at her big sister's awkwardness in the video?'
'Didn't she realize what a serious girl like Durandal would be like when it came to matters of the heart, how obsessively serious she could be?'
At that thought, Ivana suddenly became aware of something.
With Kiana's silly personality, maybe she truly hadn't noticed anything at all.
Otherwise, she wouldn't have said such naive things like "If we're happy, then let's all be together forever."
Thinking this, Ivana instinctively glanced around the living room.
Antique Grandpa, Cooking Wife, Bloated Pufferfish, and that Paramecium...
And adding herself, the great Miss of Knowledge, there seemed to be someone missing?
'Oh right, that old geezer is probably still in the kitchen helping Kiana's mom.'
But this help… seemed to be taking a bit too long.
———
[Back to the Video]
Just as Durandal was tangled in her own feelings, she suddenly received a call from Otto's secretary, Amber.
From Amber, she learned that Otto and her own adjutant Rita had already located the Herrscher of Domination's core at St. 537 Cathedral.
And Otto also stated that as long as they went to St. 537 Cathedral, he would assist them in retrieving the Herrscher core.
However, out of caution, Theresa originally wanted Kiana and the others to return to the Hyperion, while she would go alone.
But Kiana stated that, if it was her fate, then she wouldn't be able to avoid it anyway.
Besides, the current her already had the strength and confidence to face everything.
Durandal, watching from the side, responded, "Amber, I will also go with Lady Theresa and the others. May I ask if the Overseer has any further instructions?"
On the other end, Amber fell silent for a moment, as if she was reporting to Otto.
After a moment, the call reconnected, and Amber relayed Otto's message to everyone, "Lady Theresa, Durandal, the Overseer says, so long as the other [Otto] is not absent, then everything will proceed smoothly."
To this, the Otto from 500 years ago said firmly, "No problem. Though I cannot replace the [Overseer] you speak of and make up for anything, when it comes to what I can do, I, Otto, will not shy away from responsibility."
———
[Didn't expect it. This Otto from 500 years ago is actually this kind of person?]
[He doesn't feel like a scheming mastermind at all, but rather a good man full of responsibility?]
[So what exactly did Otto go through to become what he is now?]
[Bro, if you endured 500 years of internal torment, you'd probably go crazy like Otto too.]
[Sigh… Suddenly feel a little bad for Otto in this moment…]
[Wake up sisters! Have you forgotten? Feeling sorry for Otto means you'll be unlucky for a lifetime!]
———
[Back to the Video]
As the plot progressed, Theresa and the others arrived at the location Otto had mentioned.
However, just as they were about to follow Otto's lead and enter St. 537 Cathedral, Otto's voice suddenly sounded,
"It's time. Rita, retrieve our experimental subject."
The moment Otto's words fell, a cold scythe swept from the shadows, leaving behind a sound that was somewhere between dull and sharp.
Immediately afterward, Theresa discovered that the Otto from 500 years ago, who had followed them here, died in front of their eyes.
Seeing this, whether it was Theresa and the others or the viewers in the real world, they all had the same thought.
Otto… truly was ruthless.
He even dared to kill his past self.
But just as everyone was feeling indignation over the death of Otto from 500 years ago, Rita calmly explained the cause and effect,
"Relax everyone~ It was merely one of the Overseer's soulium bodies."
Before Theresa and the others could even ask, Otto kindly explained the whole sequence of events.
In short, although Kiana had recently defeated the Herrscher of Domination, its Herrscher core had cunningly hidden itself in the Imaginary Space, looking for a new host, waiting to rise again.
And to lure the snake out of its hole, Otto deliberately created a soulium body, even inputting memories from 500 years ago into it.
At that time, Otto had just lost Kallen, the most hopeless, darkest period.
So, as expected, he became the perfect host target for the Herrscher of Domination.
After hearing all this, though Otto did retrieve the Herrscher core in the end, everyone still felt somewhat uncomfortable.
Because in their eyes, a being with self-awareness was equivalent to life.
Their expressions made Otto find it all very amusin, as if watching something hilarious.
"Why are you all so surprised? Is this the first time you've seen me do something like this?"
"For example, due to some unavoidable reason, I once killed a boy's father. And he's hated me ever since, for decades now, standing firmly against me…"
"Heh~ So what should we say about this? Sure, he lost his father, but he still has me~ I can totally serve as his life's guide, can't I?"
"Another example, I once, for the sake of researching the Herrscher's power, took the Second Herrscher from this boy's hands. At that time, he even tried to eliminate her on behalf of humanity."
"After that, I killed her, revived her, and tortured everyone on the Hyperion for the sake of her power."
As if not seeing the crowd's furious expressions, Otto still wore his indifferent look and kept speaking to himself, "Of course, there's still…"
"That old friend who once helped Schicksal get on the right track, a pioneer in resisting the Honkai…"
At this point, Otto's gaze instinctively turned toward Kiana.
But Kiana knew, Otto wasn't looking at her, but at the person behind her.
"Unfortunately… our ideals didn't align. So I could only hold back my reluctance and…"
"Heh~ never mind, let's not talk about such trivial matters…"
"In any case, what I want to say is, Otto Apocalypse never once cared about what he's done, even if these things may be monstrous in your eyes."
"The only thing I care about… is fulfilling my lifelong dream!"
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