Deep beneath St. Freya Academy lay Schicksal's top-secret underground vault. This subterranean space, a critical strategic asset for Schicksal, was entirely devoid of guards. Cocolia stood before the massive door etched with the emblems of Schicksal's three founding families, accompanied by a petite blue-haired girl.
"Heh, Theresa and her group found us after all," Cocolia chuckled softly, still clad in her military-green coat, as she heard the message relayed through her earpiece.
"I thought Dr. Tesla had successfully sealed all communication channels. Well, no matter... the object we truly seek is already within reach."
"The rest is up to you now, Dr. Einstein," the golden-haired Anti-Entropy Executor said to the blue-haired girl beside her, uttering a name that should have vanished sixty years ago.
The massive gate slowly opened, and Cocolia's voice abruptly cut off.
"Come here, guests of Anti-Entropy."
"Come to me—"
"Come, listen to my voice."
"Step forward and sit at my side."
"Come closer and accept my gift."
The golden-haired Valkyrie sat at the control console in the secret chamber behind the gate, raising a goblet filled with red wine toward the two figures frozen in the doorway.
"You! The Schicksal Valkyrie! What are you doing here?! This is the Overseer's top-secret base!" Cocolia drew her gun, her eyes fixed nervously on the golden-haired girl before her.
"No need for doubt, no need for hesitation." The Valkyrie vanished from their sight in an instant.
"What—?!" Before Cocolia could finish her exclamation, she collapsed unconscious to the ground.
"My gift is as it should be—"
Snow reappeared instantly before them, extending the goblet of red wine toward the blue-haired girl.
Calmly accepting the golden-haired girl's goblet, Einstein followed her to the control console. Gazing steadily at her, she said, "You remind me of someone annoying..."
"Perhaps that annoying fellow from Lieserl Albert Einstein's memories really does have some connection to me?" Pressing her palm against the console's verification device, a slight prickling sensation ran through her fingertips as a drop of blood was extracted.
[Bloodline Verification Complete]
[Confirmed: Member of the Apocalypse Family]
[Welcome to Schicksal Classified Archives AO-1. You possess the highest administrative privileges for this archive.]
The cold, mechanical voice echoed through the cavernous underground chamber.
"You...?" Einstein stared at the girl before her, her expression a mix of astonishment and suspicion.
"I am Snow Apocalypse, daughter of Schicksal Overseer Otto Apocalypse. I believe the mechanical voice just now should have proven everything, Doctor."
"Even Headmaster Theresa Apocalypse of the Far East Branch doesn't possess the highest administrative privileges for this archive... The reason, Doctor, is something you and I both understand perfectly well."
"Open the St. Freya Underground Secret Laboratory, Mainframe."
[At your command, Lady Snow.]
The hidden doors slid open before them, revealing a row of life-support pods. Two "girls" lay suspended within.
"Cecilia Schariac's clones... to mass-produce Schariac's Holy Blood, then? The Holy Blood is indeed the Apocalypse Family's most prized creation in Schicksal history—"
"Is this what you intended to show Theresa? A clone of her former best friend?"
"Yes..." Einstein was visibly annoyed. Although the girl before her was undeniably cute, her sheer cheekiness rivaled even that of her father.
"It seems I've saved you a lot of trouble, Doctor—ah, Headmaster Theresa has arrived. I'll take my leave now."
"Wipe all low-level access logs for today, mainframe."
[ "As you wish, my lady." ]
"Doctor, let's meet in the Eastern Academy Forest later... You know which forest I mean, right?"
"Fine. Also... Miss Snow Apocalypse, has anyone ever told you—"
"Told me what?"
"Aside from being somewhat pleasing to the eye—you're just as punchable as your father?" Einstein's usually calm demeanor now flashed with irritation.
"Ha ha ha, I'll take that as a compliment for now, Doctor—"
The girl vanished before the blue-haired girl's eyes. Meanwhile, the unconscious Cocolia stirred awake, while the sound of hurried footsteps echoed from the end of the corridor—Theresa was rushing toward them.
-
Late at night, Eastern Academy Forest, St. Freya Academy
Welt Yang concealed himself behind a tree in a clearing within the forest, frowning as he observed Houraiji Kyuusyou standing in the center.
The girl seemed to be waiting for someone's arrival, the dry twig she gripped crackling audibly in her hand, betraying her restless agitation.
Houraiji Kyuusyou... why is she here? At this hour, the Valkyries should have returned to their dormitories to rest.
As Mr. Yang continued to observe Kyuusyou in the clearing, his anxiety grew.
Dr. Einstein is about to arrive... An Anti-Entropy Executor with no combat abilities is about to confront a Schicksal Valkyrie...
Mr. Yang made up his mind. Just as he was about to ambush and knock out the girl lingering in the clearing, the sound of hurried footsteps from afar drew his attention again.
The young man who had attacked the St. Freya Academy Valkyrie dormitories stumbled frantically through the forest path, cursing repeatedly.
"Damn it... I can't die here! I'm the Leader of Anti-Entropy! The First Herrscher, Welt Joyce!" the man roared in frustrated defiance.
"Those wretched Valkyries! One day, they'll pay the price!"
"Such a brave declaration... a clone of the First Herrscher, but courage alone is all you possess—"
Mockery, derision, contempt—her brief words dripped with countless layers of scorn. Houraiji Kyuusyou cut through the man's furious roar.
When did this happen?! Hidden in the shadows, Mr. Yang's gaze abruptly shifted to Houraiji Kyuusyou.
Her long, deep purple hair cascaded to her ankles, and her violet eyes had transformed into a turbid, scarlet red. The St. Freya Academy uniform she had been wearing moments ago had morphed into a white evening gown with purple trim. Cross-shaped cutouts along the hem swayed casually in the night breeze, while a crown of black thorns floated above her head.
"What bullshit are you spouting? I am Welt Joyce! I'm no mere clone!" The enraged Herrscher Clone, now completely unhinged, continued to roar in impotent fury, utterly oblivious to the perilous aura emanating from the woman before him.
Magma seemed to flow beneath the skin of the girl's right arm as she raised her hand and seized the Herrscher Clone by the throat, lifting him off the ground.
"You claim you're not a clone?" Kyuusyou's lips curled into a sinister smile as she leaned in close to his ear and whispered, "Then tell me..."
"So, so-called First Herrscher... can you tell me... what you did in New York on November 24, 1955? Do you remember what you said to Schicksal's Overseer?" The tall, purple-haired woman gazed at the Herrscher Clone before her, her expression dripping with contempt.
"What did I do...? What did I say?! I... Why...? I don't know? That's right! I must have forgotten..." The man's pupils dilated, his eyes becoming vacant as his mind desperately clung to denial.
Then, his final self-deception was shattered by Houraiji Kyuusyou's words:
"He said to Schicksal Overseer Otto Apocalypse: 'Tyrant of the heavens, witness the stars shatter!' At the cost of his own life—he saved New York City in that era."
"Yes, he's already dead. Anti-Entropy's original Leader perished on November 24, 1955. And you? You're just a clone wearing his face, stealing his name, and trampling upon his legacy."
"N-no! That's not true! You're lying!! Vanish under a hundred times the gravity, you pathetic worm!!!" The dark purple sphere reappeared beside the Herrscher Clone.
"Now, look at me... you pathetic creation—I bring you death." Ignoring the man's death throes, a pure black sphere materialized, devouring all light around it.
"Do you know? Under tens of millions of times the gravity... even stars would be physically torn apart—"
The black hole swallowed the Clone's figure, erasing his final scream and physical body from the forest.
"As punishment for defiling the name of a noble soul and injuring my young friend... death is the only atonement you deserve, insect—"