Kallen gently hugged Kiana and said, "Thank you. In the countless cycles of the past, it always led to the same ending. The Honkai Beasts would rampage, and I would die under the claws of one of them, then the next cycle would begin anew.
No matter what I did, I could never escape this ending. I was like an actor on a stage, constantly performing the same script. But this time, you've shown me a different ending.
It's truly wonderful to have met you all."
Being held by Kallen like this made Kiana blush a little. Fortunately, Kallen let go quickly. After all, Kallen was a mature woman of twenty-five; her figure wasn't something a young girl like Kiana could compare to. If she held on any longer, Kiana felt like she might get a nosebleed from pure bliss.
Over on Bronya's side, the moment the Honkai Beasts appeared, she knew something was wrong. This wasn't part of Ming Yu's plan. The quick-witted girl pondered for a moment and vaguely guessed who had released these beasts. The Schicksal Valkyrie troops weren't in the city right now. Kiana and Ming Yu alone couldn't handle all these Honkai Beasts. She had to go help, and even if she couldn't help them eliminate the beasts, she had to get them out.
With this thought, Bronya hurried downstairs, intending to meet up with Ming Yu and the others. But when she reached the street, she found that the situation had long spiraled out of control. Rampaging Honkai Beasts were slaughtering civilians unimpeded, and Schicksal's resistance was feeble. The knights were retreating step-by-step under the Honkai Beasts' assault, completely powerless to deal with the disaster.
Though her knowledge of history told her that Schicksal ultimately used Honkai Energy weapons to resolve this crisis, the situation was still dire for now. She had to find Ming Yu and the others as soon as possible!
A Honkai Beast noticed Bronya and charged at her, swiping its claws. Its massive body knocked over the stalls lining the street, scattering goods everywhere.
Rolling away clumsily to dodge the attack, Bronya felt a sense of frustration. She couldn't use Project Bunny here. Without her weapon, she was completely unable to deal with these Honkai Beasts.
The Honkai Beast swiped its claw again, but Bronya was powerless to dodge this time. As she watched the claw get closer and closer, despair welled up in her heart. *Is this the end?*
Suddenly, a hand reached out from nowhere and blocked the Honkai Beast's claw. A human arm was far too fragile compared to the beast's powerful claw, yet this person blocked it with a single hand, completely immobilizing the entire Honkai Beast.
Bronya's gaze traveled up, and she saw a blond young man in purple aristocratic attire standing there, a faint smile playing on his lips.
"What do you think you're doing to my little kitten?" the young man said lightly. With a flick of his fingers, the Honkai Beast's nearly five-meter-tall body was sent flying. After the young man had sent one beast flying, the other Honkai Beasts seemed oblivious to his presence, continuing their slaughter as if nothing had happened, neither approaching nor deliberately avoiding the area.
*Otto?* Bronya was startled. *No, not the Otto from here, but the current Overseer of Schicksal, Otto Apocalypse!*
"Oh my, it's not polite to barge into someone's private garden, you know, little kitten." Otto gently picked Bronya up and said teasingly, his eyes full of mirth.
Although Otto used a gentle tone, Bronya felt her heart tighten, as if it had skipped a beat.
But Otto didn't seem to blame her. He continued, "Don't be nervous. While I don't like people running around in here, you all have shown me some interesting things."
As soon as Otto finished speaking, a hundred-meter-long black dragon began to wreak havoc, turning any Honkai Beast it touched into ash.
Witnessing this scene, Bronya was utterly astonished. *This black mist... it's like the mist from Ming Yu's Black Abyss, but how can it be so powerful?!*
Otto looked at the black dragon, also a little surprised. *Is this the power of Black Abyss? Even without White Lily, it still possesses such might. This person's talent is truly astonishing.*
"It seems your companions have found something rather unusual," Otto said, still wearing that playful smile.
When he saw Kallen hugging Kiana, Otto felt an inexplicable annoyance, and the top of his head felt itchy. *The sun is a bit strong. I should wear a hat next time,* Otto thought to himself.
When the Honkai Beasts were annihilated, Bronya jumped out of Otto's arms and ran in the direction of Ming Yu and Kiana. She was still wary of Otto; after all, he was the Overseer of Schicksal. Who knew what strange tricks he had up his sleeve.
Watching Bronya leave, Otto smiled faintly and murmured, "It seems the show is over. It's time to send someone to check on K423 personally. I trust you won't disappoint me, K423."
With that, Otto's figure vanished into thin air, as if he had never been there.
By the time Bronya arrived, Ming Yu had recovered slightly. He stood up, leaning on Black Abyss with one hand and Kiana with the other.
"This space's playback record is about to end," Bronya stated, her face expressionless.
Only then did everyone notice that the space in the distance had begun to collapse, the effect rapidly spreading towards the center. The entire space probably didn't have much time left. Their time was short.
"It seems it's time to say goodbye," Kallen said with a smile.
"Big Sis Kallen..." Kiana choked out. Goodbyes were truly the worst.
"The area is beginning to collapse. Prepare to log out," Bronya reminded them.
"Well then, farewell, Miss Kiana, Mr. Ming Yu," Kallen said, waving with a smile.
"Goodbye, Big Sis Kallen!" Kiana shouted, waving back at the gradually fading Kallen.
Ming Yu nodded, saying silently in his heart, *Goodbye. We'll meet again soon, though you probably won't recognize me then.*
As the entire space dissolved into blocks and disappeared, the three of them left that space and logged out of the virtual world.
"This is...?" The scene changed, and Ming Yu found he hadn't returned to reality but had arrived in Otto's estate. But it was different from his last visit. The vast estate was now eerily quiet. Not even the chirping of insects or birds could be heard, and there wasn't the slightest breeze, as if the entire space had frozen in time.
In a pavilion not far away, a blond, green-eyed youth in purple attire stood proudly, a playful smile on his face, quietly watching Ming Yu.
*Otto?* Ming Yu was startled and immediately became vigilant. It was likely because of what happened in the data space. Ming Yu knew Otto had been monitoring everything in there, but he wasn't sure what Otto had noticed about him. After silently considering his story and making sure it was all plausible, Ming Yu walked towards Otto.
*Tap, tap, tap.* The sound of his boots on the ground echoed crisply in the empty estate.
Patiently watching Ming Yu walk up to him, the smile on Otto's face grew wider. "Although you probably already know who I am, allow me to introduce myself on our first meeting. I am Otto Apocalypse, the current, humble Overseer of Schicksal."