In a hospital in Belobog's Underworld, Cocolia's eyes snapped open.
"I... I'm alive? What... what's going on?"
She sat up, looking around in a daze. She had been certain that having the Stellaron removed would kill her. But not only was she alive, she felt better than she had in years. Without the Stellaron's constant influence, her mind felt clear for the first time in a long time. The voices were gone.
Just then, a bandaged Gepard walked in. His face lit up when he saw she was awake.
"Supreme Guardian! You're awake! Are you alright?"
"Calm down, Gepard. I believe I'm fine," she said, her voice steady.
"My apologies."
"Gepard, what's the situation? Where are we?"
"We're in the Underworld hospital. You collapsed, so we brought you here. I'm glad you're okay." He let out a sigh of relief. With everything that had happened, he didn't think he could handle it if Cocolia was gone too.
"The Underworld?" Cocolia looked around. It had been so long since she'd been down here, the place felt almost foreign.
"As for the current situation... it's better if you see for yourself."
Cocolia walked out of the hospital and was greeted by a surreal sight.
The entire population of the Overworld was lying on the ground, pants half-down, being treated by Natasha for their... swollen rears, all while the Underworlders stared on with a mixture of pity and amusement.
The shame was palpable. The nobles of the Overworld, used to a life of luxury, looked like they wanted the ground to swallow them whole.
March 7th and the others were assisting Natasha. Aside from Gepard, they were the only ones from the Overworld who had been spared Mo Wang's spanking spree.
"What in the world is going on?" Cocolia was speechless. She was afraid this scene would give her nightmares.
One of the noblemen, seeing Natasha approach with a jar of ointment, tried to scramble away. "This is an insult! I am a nobleman! Unhand me!"
Natasha calmly held him down. "If you're injured, you stay still, unless you want it to get worse," she said, her voice cold and firm.
"Do you know who I am?!"
"Here, you are a patient," Natasha replied, applying the ointment. "And patients listen to their doctor."
The man let out a squeal like a stuck pig as the ointment stung. "M-Mommy!"
"As you can see," Gepard explained, "because of Mo Wang, we've all been driven to the Underworld. And Dr. Natasha is the only doctor here, so..."
Cocolia felt a headache coming on. "Wait, where's Bronya? I don't see her."
"Well... Commander Bronya, along with Serval, tried to stop Mo Wang to save you. They... have been taken captive."
"What?!"
"Don't worry," Welt said, approaching with March and Dan Heng. "I can assure you, Mo Wang will not harm Lady Bronya or Lady Serval."
"You!" Cocolia's eyes blazed with fury. "How can you be so sure?!"
"Well, because... because..." March stammered. She couldn't very well say it was all part of Mo Wang's script, could she?
---||---
Flashback to the hotel room...
"Why did you attack them?!" Welt demanded, looking at the unconscious guards. "Now we'll never be able to explain ourselves!"
He had been hoping to reason with Cocolia, but his three reckless companions had jumped the gun. Now they were officially fugitives.
"Come on, Master, this is no time to be a goody-two-shoes," Mo Wang said. "They attacked us first! The audience wants to see the protagonist become an emperor, not a punching bag."
"So what do we do now?" March asked. "Abandon the mission and go back?"
Even Welt was at a loss. Cocolia's betrayal had been so swift, they were in a completely passive position. They couldn't even leave, as the Stellaron's influence would prevent the Express from warping.
Just then, he noticed Mo Wang grinning at him, his eyes practically screaming, 'Ask me! I have a plan!'
"...What are you thinking?" Welt asked hesitantly.
"I have a plan! A big plan!" Mo Wang declared, channeling his inner Western movie mastermind.
"Spit it out," March urged.
"Ahem, I have three plans: a low, a middle, and a high road. Any one of them will solve our current problem."
"What's the low road?" Dan Heng asked.
"We just kill Cocolia," Mo Wang said, pulling a butcher knife out of thin air and brandishing it. "I sensed it earlier. The Stellaron is inside her. We just have to fight our way to her, kill her, and take the Stellaron."
"That's a great idea... NOT!" March exclaimed. This guy was really determined to ruin their reputation. If they did that, they'd be on the run for the rest of their lives.
"Okay, middle road: we go to the Underworld. Cocolia's tyranny has made her very unpopular down there. I give a rousing speech, incite a rebellion, and we overthrow her. She still dies, but at least it's more civilized, and we can blame it on their internal strife."
"A speech? You?" Dan Heng looked skeptical.
"Don't worry, I've read Mein Kampf three times. I can give a speech in a tavern that will shake them to their very souls!" Mo Wang said, producing a copy of the book.
"That sounds... slightly better," March said. "But do you have anything else?"
"I do, my friend, I do." He put the book away and handed out several scripts. "Listen, Cocolia is acting this way because she's desperate, and the Stellaron is manipulating her. What we need to do is restore her will to protect. That way, we not only save her life, but we also resolve the conflict between the Overworld and the Underworld. Three birds with one stone!"
"Really? Is that even possible?" March asked, suspecting he'd had this planned all along.
"Of course!" Mo Wang knew the whole story. He knew why Cocolia had fallen into despair. Generations of fighting a losing battle against the encroaching cold and dwindling resources had broken her spirit.
The arrival of the Express, offering a glimmer of hope, had been the last straw for the Stellaron, which had then amplified her despair and pushed her over the edge.
So, Mo Wang's plan was to remove the Stellaron, clearing her mind, and then take her to the Underworld to witness the people's resilience and rekindle her connection to the Path of Preservation.
The plan seemed sound, if a little convoluted.
But plans rarely survive contact with the enemy, or in this case, with Mo Wang's chaotic execution.
The first act had gone completely off the rails, but the end result was the same: the Stellaron was removed, and Cocolia was in the Underworld. It was just the whole "Bronya being held hostage and threatened with becoming his bride" part that they had trouble explaining.
Faced with Cocolia's righteous fury, the three of them could only think one thing: Damn you, Mo Wang, and your stupid script!