"...Velocity 0.77, final trajectory correction!"
"Target locked, trajectory confirmed... Wait! The missiles vanished!"
"Detecting spatial distortions. It's Mikael's team... They phase-shifted the missiles. And Elysia... why are they..."
Lucien's smile didn't waver. "No matter. We still have three low-altitude cruise missiles launched from the Mediterranean Fleet..."
Before he finished, an officer shouted, "Cruise missiles hit the target!"
"Switch to satellite feed!"
"The Herrscher's been blown to pieces!"
"Quiet!" Lucien raised his hands, his voice booming through the command center. Everyone, regardless of their feelings towards him, turned to face him.
Only two were exceptions:
Vashak silently scoffed, slumped in his command chair, staring blankly at the screen.
Mei frowned, her lips moving silently, seemingly calculating something.
"As Chief of Staff of Fire Moth, I hereby declare—for the first time, humanity has defeated a Herrscher entirely through its own power..."
"Hold on!" Vashak gripped Lucien's shoulder, his strength distorting Lucien's voice.
"Woo—Woo—Woo—" Three piercing alarms blared, bathing the command center in red light.
The Honkai energy readings, which had dropped from 6500 HW to 4100 HW and were still falling, suddenly stalled, then reversed, rapidly climbing past the instrument's limit.
A bright red "9999" flashed. The command center fell silent. No one moved, no one spoke. Only the alarms continued their relentless wail.
They'd all experienced multiple Eruptions. Fear was inevitable. But their inaction stemmed more from the unknown—the overwhelming, terrifying unknown.
Why did Mikael and Elysia intercept the missiles? Why did the Herrscher look like a Honkai beast? Why did a Honkai beast have Herrscher-level energy readings? And why, after "killing" the "Herrscher," were the readings rising again?
The alarms stopped. A flamboyant female voice replaced them. "Hello? Did you all lose your minds?"
After years of silence, the command center's cameras remembered the fear of being hacked.
"The one and only!" Vill-V's face appeared on the screen.
"Fire Moth sure knows how to make a mess. To put it simply, that initial 2300 HW reading wasn't a Herrscher, but a Honkai beast—yes, a Honkai beast. Be grateful, mortals! Mikael has once again expanded your Honkai bestiary. Transcending Judgment-class, rivaling a Herrscher, a Doomsday-class Honkai beast—Mahadeva!"
Vashak and Lucien exchanged glances, a rare moment of understanding passing between them.
They wisely chose silence, neither interrupting Vill-V nor encouraging her.
The relationship between Fire Moth and Anti-Entropy was delicate. Neither wanted to give the other leverage.
But someone had to respond. Vashak's adjutant, Pro, stepped forward. "So, Miss Vill-V, what's the situation now?"
"Oh, you haven't grasped the meaning of Doomsday-class. It rivals a Herrscher not just in power, but in its mechanics. Thanks to your attack, Mahadeva is now in hundreds, even thousands of pieces. And soon, each fragment will grow into a giant Mahadeva... Hooray for Fire Moth! You've accomplished something truly magnificent!"
"Hundreds of hundred-meter tall Honkai beasts?" Pro repeated incredulously. "Impossible! That violates the law of conservation of energy. Where are they getting the... Honkai energy..."
"Oh, you know it's Honkai energy! This planet has an endless supply of that. Well, no point explaining. Here's the live feed!"
Vill-V tapped furiously at her keyboard. Fuxi, sitting at the console, threw up his hands. "Ms. Vill-V, please respect my work. I could have accessed the satellite feed myself if you'd just..."
"Don't mind me. It's just a habit... Wait... what is that?"
Everyone stared at the screen. As Vill-V said, the beach was covered in fragments, all slowly writhing, visibly growing, then exploding into puddles of goo, reforming into miniature Mahadevas.
But... the process was much slower than Vill-V anticipated. Normal, though. Most particles slow down at lower temperatures.
A visible wave of frost swept across the screen, freezing everything in its path.
Vill-V stopped mid-sentence.
Vashak frowned, looking at Lucien, who remained unfazed, sipping his wine. "Vill-V, what is going on now?"
Vill-V, hand over her headset, mouthed words silently. Vashak, unable to read lips, didn't understand.
Seconds later, her voice returned. "Excuse the interruption! Breaking news from your host, Vill-V: At 05:54 East Two District Time, the Fifth Herrscher appeared in Attica's coastal district. Confirmed authority—ice/low temperature?"
"So, the Honkai energy spike wasn't from Mahadeva splitting, but..."
Lucien shrugged, downing his wine.
"Wait! Where did Dr. Mei go?"
Pro looked around, scratching his head. "She left when the second alarm went off?"
"Klein, Captain Kevin's still in the lab, right?"
"Yes, Doctor. First Squad hasn't received any deployment orders. Captain Kevin's on standby, as per your instructions."
"Good... Prepare for surgery. Everything must be ready before I return!"
"Uh... Doctor, we don't have authorization..."
"Just do it... And patch me through to him."
Mei suddenly stopped.
She looked at her hands, her palms flushed red from the alarm lights, like...
The sound of her heel hitting the metal floor echoed through the empty tunnel.
Mei looked up, realizing it was her own footstep as she'd unconsciously taken a step back.
"Mei..." The young man's voice came through the comm, suddenly mature, devoid of its usual playfulness.
"Kevin... I'm sorry."
"Sorry for what? Mei, think of it this way, after the surgery, your boyfriend will be as strong as Mikael... Hey, does this Parvati factor really make me as strong as big bro Mikael?"
"Hehe..." Mei chuckled. "Even with a serious tone, your words are still childish... I don't know if you'll be as strong as Mikael, but shouldn't you be worried about the success rate?"
"What's there to worry about? It's over seven percent! Mei, remember that game I play? The drop rate is only 0.6 percent!"
"You have the nerve to mention that? You always hit the guaranteed pity and still get spooked. You're not exactly lucky, are you?"
Her tone was unconsciously scolding.
But her boy didn't care. "So what? Haven't you heard of the law of conservation of luck? Since I'm unlucky in games, I must be lucky in real life! Like meeting... Hey! Mei, if the surgery is successful, what's my reward?"
"Idiot!" Mei hung up.
The data wasn't entirely accurate—the success rate, after a year and a half of research, was closer to ten percent.
But that was still a gamble.
"Idiot, anything you want."
Darkness. Mei was familiar with it.
After thirty seconds, eleven "gravestones" lit up.
"The United Government has received reports of the Fifth Herrscher in Attica, correct?"
"...Vashak said Himeko has arrived in Attica."
"Do you really believe Himeko can stop a Herrscher? Don't forget, the First Herrscher is occupied with that Doomsday-class beast, Mahadeva."
"..." The eleven gravestones vanished. Five minutes of darkness and silence followed.
Then, [01] reappeared. "Dr. Mei, the Herrscher's authority seems to be ice. If we recall correctly, Parvati has similar abilities?"
"Yes, Secretary-General Keel. But we have no other options. Similar abilities mean no elemental disadvantage—better than being countered."
"...SEELE approves the Parvati factor hyper-MANTIS surgery on Fire Moth First Squad Captain Kevin."
"Don't thank us yet, Dr. Mei. You are responsible for all possible consequences of the surgery. SEELE, and the United Government, have no knowledge of today's events." Keel's voice echoed, laden with meaning.
She replied, equally cryptic, "I'll take full responsibility."