The second game ended in a draw.
It wasn't that Otto lacked intellect; rather, his casual attitude had led to him losing all his pieces easily in the previous chess match. When he focused, playing Go was just as straightforward—a battle between two equally powerful entities where winning or losing wouldn't come easy to either side.
Frowning, Zeke waved his hand again, transforming the chessboard into a Go board.
"You went first last time, so shall I start this round?"
"As you wish, my dear friend!" Otto responded cheerfully, meeting Zeke's tranquil blue gaze. In turn, Zeke raised a slight smile, subtly intensifying the tension between them like the scent of gunpowder.
When Fu Hua, Kevin, and Su arrived at the palace, they found dozens of various chessboards floating around Zeke and Otto. Pieces of different colors moved back and forth across each board, all locked in stalemates with neither side willing to yield.
At the same time, beneath Otto's composed smile and Zeke's unruffled expression, a subtle undercurrent of rivalry was palpable.
"Zeke, these games are currently tied eleven points apiece; it's hard to predict who will prevail in the remaining ones. Shall we continue?"
"Business comes first."
Zeke waved his hand, dismissing all the chessboards with a nonchalant air.
Otto sighed softly but then smiled serenely, also displaying indifference to their game's outcome.
As they turned their attention to the approaching Three Heroes, Zeke's doppelganger beside the throne and Otto's follower Hera vanished from sight.
In the abstract, vibrant world, Zeke led with a golden crystal held aloft, followed closely by Hera. The malevolent figures moved intently towards their information-driven objectives—indeed, they appeared focused and serious. However, a smile tugged at Hera's lips as she declared:
"Black piece to B13, encircling your position, determining victory; chariot advances four spaces, sword revealed before the king; Ryoma moves forward one step, checkmate... Zeke, I claim three points!"
Zeke glanced back at Hera and calmly responded:
"White piece to D14, reclaiming one point, and you can have the other two. Six more games left, shall we continue?"
"Well, idle time is best spent engaged, it's your move now, please~"
"All right, Chess Game Three, I'll move my cannon..."
In the real world, within the Boule Chamber, Zeke and Otto exchanged glances, both narrowing their eyes slightly.
"Being overly competitive isn't healthy, Otto."
"You're right, my dear friend. Let's keep it moderate for enjoyment's sake."
Despite this dialogue, their interconnected avatars en route continued to engage fiercely, showing no signs of relenting. Encountering a worthy opponent is one of life's fortunate moments. Since no one else knew about their rivalry, they persisted, determined to establish a clear winner, regardless of appearances!
"???"
The other three individuals, overhearing their conversation, looked at each other with a sense of unease. They felt something was amiss but couldn't pinpoint what, so they remained silent, careful not to interfere with Zeke and Otto's ongoing actions.
Within the indescribable information dimension, Zeke and Hera engaged in their chess game while swiftly moving through it. Eventually, they arrived at a densely interconnected region filled with vast amounts of data.
"This is... the place."
Observing the invisible link between the golden crystal and this dense area, Zeke halted in the void, his expression turning somber.
Hera stopped beside Zeke, her ladylike fan disappearing from her hand as she held up her dress with both hands, her demeanor growing increasingly serious.
"How complex! It's almost beyond my comprehension... How could something like this manifest in our world?"
"But it has indeed existed. In terms of time, this power truly resides outside the real world... Hera, you've confronted that entity before. Are there any similarities?"
Hera glanced at Zeke, then carefully sensed the location akin to a black hole, concentrating immense information. She shook her head.
"It's hard to say. I confronted the God of Honkai during the Siberian campaign years ago, when my abilities were far less advanced than they are now. I cannot make a direct comparison."
"An inability to compare is still an answer."
"Hmm, indeed. Both phenomena lie beyond my current understanding. But look at this—it's truly mesmerizing, like a resplendent sun, don't you think?"
"While beauty may be striking, the most defining characteristic of the sun is its lethality. Alright, observing from outside hasn't yielded much insight. Prepare yourselves for a deeper dive."
After their brief exchange, Zeke placed the golden crystal back in his palm, straightened his uniform collar, and readied himself to exit the information dimension.
Hera nodded solemnly before regaining her composed and graceful smile—after all, death was merely a minor setback. To Otto Apocalypse, human lives were the cheapest expendable resources, insignificant in the grand scheme.
Golden, golden, golden!
Stepping into a space filled with immense pressure, Zeke and Hera were immediately greeted by a dazzling sea of radiant gold, so intense they instinctively raised their hands to shield their eyes.
In just a brief moment, their vision adjusted, allowing them to survey the vast golden realm crisscrossed with countless chains.
Zeke synchronized the scene to the Boule Chamber in the real world and glanced sidelong at Hera.
"Can you sense anything?"
"Pressure—not physical force but an indescribably immense amount of Honkai Energy, along with...and there's..."
"The feeling of being oppressed by a higher form of life, akin to when you encountered the God of Honkai before?"
"I can't be certain; it might not be exactly similar, yet I do perceive some resemblance. My intuition tells me we should proceed with caution this time, Zeke."
Hera spoke gravely, her concerns unmistakable.
Zeke nodded, extending his gaze through the gaps between layers of chains. There, curled up amidst the void, he spotted a silver-haired girl. Her graceful figure, gently floating silvery locks, and faintly visible perfect profile—this was undoubtedly Kiana's appearance, so identical that for a fleeting moment, Zeke almost believed it was his own Kiana lying there. He imagined calling out to her would instantly open eyes brimming with joy and love, followed by her pushing aside the chains to leap into his embrace.
"Zeke?"
"It's nothing; let's test her," Zeke replied nonchalantly, suppressing his racing heart.
Hera stepped forward and approached the edge of the chains. She extended her fair fingers to gently touch one of the golden links.
"Hiss... As expected, it neutralizes Honkai Energy—a Divine Grace Barrier? No, this is far stronger than little Teresita's abilities. If this barrier is indeed at play here, then the amount of Honkai Energy sealed within this young lady..."
Withdrawing her finger, Hera felt a growing unease. She gracefully held her fan before her lips, her voice as soft as a gentle breeze, and called out:
"Respected Miss Kiana Kaslana, I, Schicksal Archbishop Otto Apocalypse, along with the King of Humanity, Zeke, have come to pay you a visit. May we speak?"
But Hera received no response—only silence and utter indifference from the young lady.
Still smiling, she counted: one second, two seconds, three seconds. Then, her emerald eyes ignited with a brilliant golden hue.
"You wish for me to invite you out personally?"
As Hera spoke, a golden ripple appeared behind her, and a chain shot forth, skillfully weaving through the existing chains' gaps to directly target the young lady deep within.
It's just a Divine Grace Barrier, after all. While others might be stymied, Otto had ways to neutralize its power, allowing him free rein over his abilities!
"Hm?"
Seeing Hera act so decisively, Zeke couldn't help but frown. Subconsciously, he wished to avoid witnessing harm come to a girl identical to Kiana right before his eyes. However, he understood that Hera's efficient probing was entirely justified. Moreover, this unfathomable Young Lady would not succumb to injury so easily.
Sure enough, just as Hera's chain was about to touch the girl's pink nightgown, it shattered from its tip, vanishing without a trace in an instant.
"Ha! Again!" With a cheerful smile, Hera waved her fan, creating multiple concentric golden ripples in the air. Thousands of chains emerged, mimicking their previous approach towards the girl.
Finally, she opened her flawless, golden eyes.
"Beware."
Zeke materialized beside Hera, placing his hand on her shoulder. Instantaneously, an indescribably immense power shattered all the chains in their vicinity, affecting both of them directly.
"Boom!!"
After the impact subsided, Zeke and Hera reappeared side by side, each lifting one arm forward. Their sleeves were torn apart—wait, Hera's also lost her ladylike fan, which she hadn't had time to retract.
"What a pity; Amber even painted it for me, making it truly unique." Hera withdrew her hand, shaking her head regretfully as the torn sleeve swiftly repaired itself.
Ignoring Hera's dramatics, Zeke focused ahead, deep within the countless drifting chain fragments. There stood the Young Lady, still curled up but now with icy golden eyes fixed upon them.
From this angle, she resembled Kiana even more closely.
"L-e-a-v-e..."
The girl didn't move her lips, yet her unceasing voice reverberated from all directions, echoing even within Zeke and Hera's minds.
Hera lifted the hem of her dress slightly, casting a questioning glance at Zeke. He shook his head, then faced the Young Lady directly and said:
"Friend or foe, give me an answer."
"L-e-a-v-e..."
"A formidable power, especially after your barrier shattered. It surpasses anything I've ever encountered. You warned me against interacting with the God of Honkai, knew my deepest secret, and claimed to be Kiana Kaslana... So, are you her from another timeline? And in that timeline, were you also known as Finality?"
The Young Lady remained silent, but the surging energy around her began fluctuating unstably.
To Zeke, this silence itself was a meaningful response.
"What is your purpose? Or let's return to the initial question: friend or foe?" Zeke calmly inquired.
So what if she was Kiana from another timeline? Merely an alternate version of the same person—during his journey through the Sea of Quanta, Zeke had encountered numerous such counterparts. Yet within his heart, there could only be one Kiana. No matter how closely resembling, the Kiana before him wasn't his Kiana. He understood this distinction clearly.
"L-e-a-v-e!" On the final syllable, a terrifying golden energy erupted forth, instantly engulfing both Zeke and Hera.
Just before impact, Hera instinctively stepped forward to shield Zeke's doppelgänger from the assault, but her efforts were futile.
Moments later, Zeke's Soulium clone vanished from this space. Yet Hera remained unscathed despite her disheveled hair—a testament to the capabilities of her Perfect MANTIS body, far surpassing those of Zeke's Soulium form.
"How dare you?!"
Though she hadn't disappeared with the shockwave, Hera was genuinely enraged by failing in her duty. Her golden locks swirled as intense Honkai Energy surged from every inch of her skin—yet compared to the energy emanating from the Young Lady, it paled significantly.
Unbeknownst to Hera, witnessing Zeke's disappearance had stirred not just her but also the instigator on the other side. The Young Lady's eyes narrowed, and a fierce glint emerged within them.
"Die!"
"Care to try me?"
The Young Lady raised her hand, and Hera mirrored the gesture. Across the void, their boundless Honkai Energies clashed, flooding the subspace with shimmering gold.
In the real world, within the imperial palace.
Under everyone's watchful gaze, Hera materialized, flickering several times before her grievously wounded body—drenched in blood and with countless bones piercing through her skin—fully returned to reality.
The unrecognizable Hera collapsed heavily onto the ground and was swiftly dragged outside by a mechanical arm.
"Preserve these traces on my body; obtaining this residual energy came at a great cost," Otto said with a smile to Zeke. "So, can it compensate for my minor mistake earlier?"
Zeke retrieved a golden sphere from his waist, containing the very energy crystal extracted by the Young Lady herself. Clearly, Zeke had already secured such energy samples long ago, rendering Otto's contribution insignificant.
Otto's smile faltered as he rubbed his nose, then emphasized, somewhat reluctantly, "Different stages mean different states. Perhaps what I brought back this time is even more valuable—in any case, I'm still reliable. So, could you please stop looking at me like I'm non-recyclable waste?"
"Fine."
Zeke nodded, lightly dismissing Otto's lapse in protection.
He then glanced around at the three Heroic Spirits present, who now stood solemnly.