In the dim light of the St. Freya Academy underground chapel, Theresa looked at the unconscious forms of Cocolia and Einstein on the ground, her face etched with annoyance.
She was very concerned about the situation happening above ground.
But Grandpa had told her to watch these two, and St. Freya didn't exactly have a place to lock up enemies. After all, this was an academy, not a prison.
How could a school be a prison?
"Oh, right!"
The clever Theresa suddenly clapped her hands together.
She pulled out a bundle of rope, tied up both Cocolia and Einstein, and tossed them further into the underground chapel.
She then closed the heavy chapel doors. There, they shouldn't be able to get out now.
"Hmph, hmph."
Theresa nodded in satisfaction, then happily trotted away from the area.
A short while later, in the pitch-black underground chapel, a pair of violet eyes slowly opened.
Cocolia groggily regained consciousness.
Using a hidden blade concealed in her clothes to slice through the ropes, she rubbed her aching chest and used the faint, ambient light to observe her surroundings.
Einstein was still fast asleep beside her, showing no signs of waking up.
There truly is a gap between people.
Otto had struck them both in the chest. Cocolia had something to cushion the blow, but Einstein was... a little lacking in that department.
Looking around, Cocolia breathed a sigh of relief.
She could use quantum teleportation to escape right now.
But...
Cocolia's gaze turned dark and profound as she looked at the sleeping Einstein.
It seemed it would be a while before she woke up. By then, Otto might have already returned.
However, if Cocolia woke her up now, Einstein could escape with her.
But.
Are you kidding me?
A cruel smile crept onto Cocolia's face.
Without a moment's hesitation, Cocolia reached out and clamped her hands around Einstein's throat.
And squeezed. Hard.
"Ngh."
Einstein's body went completely rigid.
Even though she was unconscious, her body still reacted. It was the human instinct for survival.
However, Cocolia did not loosen her grip.
Einstein's face turned a bruised purple, her lips and nose darkening. The unconscious woman's eyes flew open, the whites heavily bloodshot, her mouth gaping wide for air.
Her hands clawed at Cocolia's arms, her nails leaving several bloody scratches.
Unfortunately, it was completely useless.
Suffocation overwhelmed her.
Her struggles grew weaker and weaker.
Until finally, she lay completely still.
Cocolia revealed a satisfied smile.
With this, one of her greatest obstacles was removed.
She could even conveniently pin the blame on Schicksal and Otto. It would enrage the conservative faction, making them throw themselves at Schicksal like moths to a flame, paving the perfect foundation for her to ascend to the position of Sovereign of Anti-Entropy.
Looking at the bloody scratches on her arms, Cocolia smiled sweetly.
Her body began to slowly turn ethereal as she initiated the quantum teleportation. There was no way she was staying here. She had her own ambitions; how could she possibly allow Otto to brainwash her and wipe away her personality?
"Einstein, so even a genius like you dies just like any normal person."
"Right now... you really look like a dead dog."
Cocolia said with a laugh.
Suddenly, she remembered the words Otto had spoken to her earlier.
"Heh, you want me to be your dog, Otto? Keep dreaming."
She, Cocolia, would never bow her head to anyone!
"However, I can leave you a gift."
Cocolia crouched down, wiped the blood from Einstein's face, and closed her wide, staring eyes.
Looking at the woman, Cocolia couldn't help but sigh with mock pity.
Tsk, tsk.
To think a grand Executor of Anti-Entropy would meet such an end.
But, allow me to use you just a little bit more.
A cold blade pressed against Einstein's even colder cheek.
The blade sliced through the skin.
It cut deep.
[O], Cocolia slowly carved the letter into Einstein's face.
Then she continued.
Soon, the right side of Einstein's face was a bloody mess.
And several more letters had been added.
[O T T O]
Like tagging a piece of pork at the market.
Einstein's face had been branded.
Cocolia looked at her masterpiece with satisfaction.
The fire of ambition in her eyes did not wane; rather, it burned even more fiercely.
This was the gift she was leaving for Otto.
A dead dog.
Because of this, and with her adding fuel to the fire, Tesla and the others would completely lose their minds and go to war with Schicksal.
It was a despicable method, but incredibly effective.
Having finished all this.
Cocolia's figure completely vanished from the room.
In the dim space, only the "corpse" lying on the ground remained. And in that darkness, her finger imperceptibly...
Twitched a few times.
---o---
In the private infirmary of St. Freya Academy, Otto sat in a chair, taking a sip of green tea.
"Sakura, is your body alright?" Otto asked with a smile.
Standing before him, Yae Sakura nodded.
She had only sustained minor injuries. The Honkai energy that had been stolen from her had returned the moment Joyce died.
"I am sorry. I failed to protect her," Yae Sakura said, her voice filled with deep guilt.
She was a secretary serving Otto, yet she couldn't even protect a single person. If this had been her era, she would have had to commit seppuku to apologize.
But Otto waved his hand dismissively.
"No, it was my misjudgment."
He took the responsibility upon himself.
It truly was his mistake. He wouldn't deny it, nor would he try to shirk the blame; he would learn from it and do better next time.
Otto hadn't expected that Yae Sakura, a pseudo-Herrscher, would be taken down so easily, or that the Honkai energy within her would be usurped.
In his calculations, even if Sakura faced Welt Yang directly, she should have been able to stall him even if she couldn't win.
But something completely outside his expectations had occurred.
After all, who could have predicted that Walter Joyce, a man who should have been dead for decades, would suddenly appear?
Even Tesla and the others probably wouldn't believe it.
"Is that man dead?" Yae Sakura asked, still feeling a lingering fear. If that man hadn't spared her life, she might have actually died.
"He's dead," Otto confirmed. He had watched Joyce get cleaved in two. But he then added, "But not completely dead."
"There are probably nine hundred and ninety-nine more just like him."
Otto stated. If his guess was correct, that "Joyce" was likely the Herrscher of Dominance.
The Herrscher of Dominance was also known as the Herrscher of Legion, or the Thousand-Person Herrscher.
The Authority of Dominance was highly varied and incredibly tricky. One wrong move, and it was very easy to be killed on the first encounter.
"It truly is a pity," Otto said regretfully.
The fact that Joyce hadn't dodged the blade and allowed himself to be killed meant he likely didn't want to be captured alive.
Otto had been preparing to step in and capture him at that moment, but unfortunately, Joyce had chosen to disintegrate himself with absolute decisiveness.
He could only say, as expected of Walter Joyce.
Otto didn't believe for a second that Joyce was truly dead just from being cut down.
It was just a pity that this Walter Joyce seemed to stand in opposition to him, and it didn't look like he was on Anti-Entropy's side either.
Joyce was standing on the side of the Honkai.
Is he the great general chosen by the Honkai?
The Will of the Honkai really has a good eye for talent.
But why would a man as righteous and noble as Joyce assist the Honkai? Had the Will of the Honkai threatened him using the people of Anti-Entropy?
No, if it were Joyce, he would still fight back against fate even then.
Could it be...
Otto guessed at a possibility.
When a human becomes a Herrscher, a Herrscher personality is born.
But when the First Herrscher was born, an anomaly occurred. The First Herrscher was born as a single, independent personality with no memories.
Could this current Joyce be... Joyce's Herrscher personality?
That would make a lot of sense.
Or perhaps...
Are there other possibilities?
Otto felt a pang of regret. If he had managed to capture Joyce alive, with the combined power of Fenghuang Down and Jizo Mitama, he could have pried out a lot of secrets.
Beside him, Yae Sakura's eyelid twitched.
There are nine hundred and ninety-nine more of him!?
This world was simply far too dangerous.
However, that man had told her earlier that she possessed a powerful force within her.
But Sakura had no idea what kind of powerful force she supposedly had.
She looked down.
Could there be a secret within my body that even I don't know about?
Sakura clenched her fists.
"Sakura, go find Himeko. Have her take you to the underground chapel, and fetch Theresa for me."
"Once you've delivered the message, you don't need to come back here. Go back to your room and get some proper rest."
Otto still had no idea that his adorable granddaughter had abandoned her post.
"Yes," Yae Sakura replied.
After she left, the room fell silent.
Otto took another sip of hot tea, then let out a breath.
He turned to look at the white-haired girl sleeping soundly on the bed beside him.
"So... just what exactly happened to you tonight?"