But some people argued.
"Wait, that's not right... Zombies and all that..."
"I think I actually ran into something like that once."
"..."
Yet more people around her countered, "Then how come I've never seen anything like that?"
Even if such things did exist, the government would probably try to cover it up.
But now this content creator is claiming that these Herrschers, in particular, are each more terrifying than the last—like gods bestowed upon the world, every single one wielding unimaginable authority, every one a manifestation of physical laws.
Tell me...
If beings like that really existed, wouldn't there be some sign of them?
She says the Honkai disaster is coming, that countless people will die horribly because of it.
But so far, we haven't heard anything about that, right?
Otherwise, how could anyone keep it hidden?!
And right then, you could see it!
There on the screen,
one silhouette after another appeared.
From the first Herrscher to the twelfth.
Each one was clearly labeled.
Even as static illustrations, they looked like reincarnated gods and demons.
The way they gazed down, as if looking at ants, sent a chill down your spine—it was downright creepy.
It felt too real!
But precisely because of that, many ordinary people were even less willing to believe that the content shown on the celestial screen had any connection to reality.
It's human nature to reject things we find hard to accept.
Besides that, on the screen, the virtual streamer also shared introductions about Honkai beasts and zombies.
She said:
[Although the distinctions between types of zombies and Honkai beasts mainly just indicate their species or race, remember this, everyone: even so, the higher the classification, the greater their power.]
[Let me show you some of the more common Honkai beasts and zombies.]
[...]
Common Honkai beasts and zombies, my foot!
Those who knew about the Honkai were completely stunned.
It matched up—everything matched up.
They'd seen some of these Honkai beasts before, and some of the zombies too.
Though most were unfamiliar, just like with those so-called Herrschers… those in the know were already sweating bullets.
By the window at the first Fire Moth research institute, Mobius's eyes gleamed with a feverish light as she pulled Blanca along, frantically taking notes.
"The Herrscher of Reason, the Herrscher of the Void..."
Hah!
Not only the symbols of their authority, but even the term "Herrscher" itself was something they only used internally for convenience—like a code name.
It hadn't been made public yet.
But still!
It all matched up.
The Herrscher of Reason was overwhelmed by soldiers.
The Herrscher of the Void was wiped out by heavy artillery.
Even though the Herrschers didn't seem all that powerful now—so much so that the higher-ups didn't even take them seriously—
Mobius knew better. The Herrscher of the Void was clearly stronger than the Herrscher of Reason. If Herrschers kept growing more powerful over time, the later stages didn't bear thinking about.
Like many others, even if she couldn't verify whether the other Herrschers shown in the celestial projection were real or not, she was inclined to believe they were.
Thunder, Wind, Ice, Death, Fire, Sentience, Earth, Domination… and even Binding, Corruption...
Just hearing the names, you could vaguely guess what they might be capable of.
But thinking further, if these were all the enemies they'd have to face in the end, if they had to defeat every single one to bring this to a close... then the future looked truly hopeless...
High-level officials from various nations, along with the shadowy figures behind major organizations, connected over video calls.
Some even gathered in the same conference room.
Their silence was deafening.
Even putting the Herrschers aside, the Honkai beasts and zombies alone were enough to leave them utterly horrified.
Some zombies, for instance, had bodies of steel, some could summon minions, some could fade into the void, and some possessed incredible martial skills.
A few here and there wouldn't be a big deal, but if they formed armies, if their numbers grew… The implications were too terrifying to dwell on.
And unlike the zombies, which were roughly human-sized, the Honkai beasts were massive, each one larger than the last.
The smaller Seraphs were already about a meter long, while the Knights stood three to five meters tall.
But the most jaw-dropping were the Templars—and even more so, the Emperors—reaching dozens of meters, some even a full hundred meters in height.
The good news was, nothing like that had been encountered yet.
The bad news was… they might appear in the future.
"Let's hear it," someone said.
"What do we do?"
"..."
The question hung in the air.
Someone else, hands trembling, stubbed out their cigarette.
"Let's wait and see," they said.
"See if we can gather more information."
"..."
Otherwise, panicking wouldn't help.
Now that they were more convinced the celestial projection was real, they watched the chibi-style virtual streamer speaking cheerfully, but no one felt like laughing. They just wanted this girl to keep talking, to share more.
If… this projection really was from the future, then maybe she was showing all this so that people in this time could see it, hear it, and learn more.
With more information, they could get a head start.
They might avoid compounding their mistakes.
It's worth noting that Fire Moth, at this stage, was still relatively uncorrupted, and the various nations were still holding together.
The internal power struggles within Fire Moth, the infestation of parasites, wouldn't really take hold until after the Third Eruption, when the organization's influence expanded dramatically.
For now, Fire Moth was still something like a Red Cross organization—under the alliance's jurisdiction, but not yet taken very seriously by individual nations.
And at this moment, in the celestial projection, the chibi streamer popped back up, having briefly introduced the zombies and Honkai beasts.
She returned to her main topic, speaking as though wrapping things up.
--+--
[So!]
[What we need to understand is that during the Previous Era, the Honkai was the source of all disasters.]
[Though it was a trial, it brought despair to nearly everyone. Even now, many feel the conditions for overcoming it are extremely harsh. It might be better to think of it as an apocalypse.]
[...]
[To put it simply, the Honkai emerges alongside civilization and vanishes when civilization falls.]
[From small-scale disasters like earthquakes and typhoons, to large-scale catastrophes like tectonic fractures, solar helium flashes, even comet impacts and supernova explosions—in that era, all could be considered forms of the Honkai.]
[Its most defining trait is that it grows stronger as civilization advances. The more developed the civilization, the more terrifying the Honkai becomes.]
[...]
Kiana considered mentioning the concept of the Cocoon of Finality, but such a crucial secret, widely known in the future, would seem out of place—now wasn't the time to bring it up.
So she set it aside for the moment and simply referred to it as the Honkai.
[Therefore, experts and scholars often say that an arms race is futile because you can never outpace the Honkai.]
[Yet without advancing technology and military strength, there's no way to combat the Honkai. It's a vicious cycle.]
[...]
The speaker might not have intended it, but the listeners took it to heart.
Even though the streamer's tone was almost playful,
those in the know felt a cold dread wash over them, their minds going completely blank.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.