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"Relax. I'm not so excessive that I'll peep at or tamper with your memories." Tatsuki stepped in, tapped Tesla lightly on the head, and ruffled Einstein's hair.
Even with anger simmering in one pair of eyes and cool disdain in the other, he didn't mind in the slightest.
"That's what you get for pointing guns at me."
He pinched Tesla's stubborn cheek, then Einstein's frosty one—playing the villain to the hilt.
"From now on, Anti-Entropy belongs to me."
"No internal feuds with Cocolia. Her extreme measures are banned. Do your jobs—fight Honkai. Don't scheme."
"I'm taking Cocolia someplace first."
He didn't wait for objections. Flick—he and Cocolia vanished.
"..."
Tesla and Einstein stared at the space they'd left behind. Then Tesla clawed at her already-mussed hair, groaning, "Einstein, what do we do—Anti-Entropy just got stolen!"
"..."
Einstein didn't answer. What could they do?
"We should try to break his control, right? Ugh—why do I keep calling him Master the second I speak?!" Tesla fumed, hair now a true disaster.
After a beat of silence, Einstein sighed. "I don't recommend trying. His power is… too anomalous."
"So we just sit here?" Tesla shot back. "What about contacting Welt?"
The First Herrscher might have a solution. Except… they didn't even know where Welt was—missing in action.
After thinking it through, Einstein nodded. She doubted Herrscher power alone could solve this—but for now, it was their only lead.
…
Tatsuki wasn't worried that Welt Yang could break his domination. He couldn't. If anything, Tatsuki was eager to see Welt return to Anti-Entropy… and discover the chair had changed owners.
"Back already—aaand with a guest."
Silver Wolf was first to notice him reappear—along with the blonde woman at his side.
"Mother Cocolia!"
Bronya's voice hitched. Mother was just at HQ—why is she here?
Furina's eyes glittered; she pointed her scepter squarely at Cocolia, wearing the look of one who sees through all.
"She is the mastermind behind this entire production, isn't she?"
Tatsuki applauded, indulgent. "Brilliant. As expected of Furina—one glance and you've got it."
"But of course. I am queen over water, courts, and people! Spotting the culprit at a glance is only natural."
Mei's gaze slid to Bronya, whose emotions were in turmoil. Mei wet her lips. "Bronya's mother… is the mastermind?"
She'd heard Bronya cry Mother Cocolia a moment ago.
The instant relocation from HQ to Changkong had rattled Cocolia, but her steel nerves pulled her together. She swept the rooftop; her eyes lit when they found Bronya.
"Bronya—"
She tried to trigger Annihilation Mode and pull Bronya out… but the words snagged in her throat. Her face soured in an instant.
Tatsuki read it all and snorted. "Don't bother struggling. You're under my control—resistance is pointless."
"Honestly? Be grateful you're Cocolia. If you were some random nobody, you'd already be dead."
He had no intention of killing her—possession, not execution. He already had a Cocolia among his women; he knew how to keep the guilty.
But to Mei's guess, Tatsuki slowly shook his head. "Cocolia is indeed one of the culprits—but the source lies elsewhere."
"Where's the source?" Kiana pressed in close.
Tatsuki's gaze turned to Raiden Mei.
Mei blinked and glanced behind—only sky beyond the rooftop.
"No need to look, Raiden Mei. You are the source."
He cut her confusion short and told her plainly.
"Eh? Me?" Mei pointed at herself, stunned.
Kiana protested at once. "Tatsuki, that's got to be wrong—there's no way Mei is the source!"
"She is."
Tatsuki hadn't explained yet when Cocolia spoke first. Things had reached this point; Tatsuki had clearly brought her to confess. As a decisive soldier, she judged the situation and chose to follow his lead.
All eyes shifted to Cocolia.
Expressionless, she confessed: "Raiden Mei. Her father is Raiden Ryoma of ME Corp."
"Ryoma—an Anti-Entropy executor—was framed by me and imprisoned. As for his daughter, I implanted the Gem of Conquest into her body."
"The goal was to trigger the Gem's power, make her a Herrscher, then take her Herrscher core."
"Bronya was dispatched by me to retrieve the awakened Raiden Mei."
"What? Is that true—Bronya!" Kiana whipped toward Bronya, desperate for an answer.
"..."
Bronya hugged the Homu plush, head bowed, silent.
Silence was an answer.
"..."
Kiana and Mei froze. Mei's mind went blank.
"I… am the source of this Honkai…" She staggered back, unwilling to believe. "I killed everyone in Changkong City…"
"Idiot." In her daze, a sharp, feminine snarl cracked against Mei's ear.
Zzz… bzzzt!!!
Darkness spilled over her vision; electricity sizzled in her ears.
Raiden Mei felt herself sinking into the dark. She didn't resist—if anything, she wanted to run.
From the outside—
Mei's eyes slid shut. Her body, like in sleep, rose slowly as violet lightning wrapped her and carried her skyward.
"Mei!" Kiana shouted, trying to pull her back.
"It's useless," Cocolia sneered. "This is Herrscherfication. She will become a Herrscher—and destroy everything here."
Zz—zz—!
Wild thunder speared up from Mei, punching through the clouds and lighting the dim sky—like a prophecy fulfilling itself.
"How… how could this happen…" Kiana had never imagined Mei would be the source. The whiplash left her grasping.
"In this Mei unit, the energy labeled 'Honkai' is spiking," Silver Wolf said, analyzing the storm crawling over the city.
"This is the birth of a Herrscher—Mei is becoming one…" Bronya couldn't name the feeling inside her.
Her mission had been to recover the Third Herrscher. But the Third Herrscher was her friend, and her mother had been seized by someone terrifying.
What was she supposed to do now?
....
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