"Look, she's really chosen to fight to the death."
Detecting the Titans below raising their cannons, Welt sighed.
"Lynelle, it's your show."
"Relax, they're just puny Titans..."
Lynelle snapped her fingers lightly.
Instantly, the Titans, which had been aiming their weapons skyward, assembled beneath the aircraft like a well-drilled honor guard, forming a welcoming corridor.
"No matter how many times I see it, I can't help but marvel at how terrifying the power of Corruption is. Especially for an organization like Anti-Entropy that relies so heavily on technology..."
Tesla watched the number of devices rapidly increasing on her terminal and nervously wiped a bead of sweat from her brow.
"You'll probably be marveling at the Herrscher of Reason's power next... oh wait, no, maybe the Herrscher of Stars."
Lynelle chuckled, a card materializing in her hand.
"Mr. Welt, if you could hold the line here? I've taken over the entire base's smart systems. Neither aircraft nor mechs can launch. If they want to run, they'll have to do it on foot."
"I took a quick look earlier. The only way out of this base is the bridge behind us. Just block this point, and nobody's getting through."
"Mm."
Welt nodded. He knew all too well his current physical condition wouldn't allow him to fight without restraint. "Then, I'm counting on you to keep Einstein and Tesla safe."
"Don't worry..."
Lynelle crushed the card in her hand. "I shall sally forth in the form of the Reliable Welt."
--+--
"Madam Cocolia, the outer perimeter defenses have been breached!"
"Didn't I order the clone army to be deployed?!"
"Well..."
The messenger looked uneasy. "For some reason, the incubation pods holding them just... locked down. The control system froze too. We had to shoot the pods open to rescue some of the clones. They're assembled outside now."
"Tch. That person who can control the Titans again, I suppose?"
Cocolia's fingers trembled slightly involuntarily. "What about the data? How's the deletion progressing?"
"That's going smoothly!"
The messenger perked up immediately. "The tech department says they've reached 99.9% completion! It's just... for some reason, an icon called 'Pinduoduo' appeared on the computer screens..."
"Hah... That's a relief..." Cocolia let out a sigh. "Send those clones out now. We just need to buy a little more time..."
"Guh-ah!"
Before Cocolia could finish, the tightly shut door was violently flung open. A clone figure flew past Cocolia at high speed and, without even looking back, went straight out the window and down.
"Buy a little more time?"
A voice, sounding rather cute due to its youthful tone, rang out from the hallway. "Sure thing. I'll even give you an extra hour."
"However... you'd better find me a few more opponents to play with."
A young girl with long hair that faded from brown to pink strolled leisurely through the doorway, holding an ornate cane that seemed more for show than practical use.
"Y-you... How dare you?!"
Before Cocolia could finish, the signature irritable voice of a Welt clone erupted from outside: "Taste a thousandfold gravity—squish."
"Well said. Your reward is a private room inside a black hole."
Lynelle waved her hand dismissively. A Welt clone, compressed by gravity into a tiny sphere, fell from the air and landed on the floor with a thud.
"You... Who are you...?"
Witnessing her proud clone army being squashed like ants, Cocolia instinctively took half a step back.
"Who I am isn't important. What you intended to do is."
Lynelle casually flicked her finger. The terminal in Cocolia's hand flew straight into Lynelle's grasp, who then handed it to Einstein beside her. "Doctor, this is for you."
"Regarding her data—what was deleted and what wasn't—I've already compiled it all in here. You can decide what to do with it after you've looked it over."
"Thank you." Einstein nodded and began swiftly scanning through the data on the terminal.
"Deleted and... not deleted?" Cocolia's eyes widened in shock. "That's impossible! Just a moment ago, it was clearly—"
"I said, you really never learn, do you..."
Lynelle looked utterly unimpressed. "If I can control your Titans and your clone incubation pods, what makes you think I can't control your base's terminal?"
"From the moment our aircraft landed, you've had no secrets from me. For instance... the intel on World Serpent you're so desperately trying to hide."
"..."
After a long silence, Cocolia sighed and raised her hands.
"I'll accept any punishment you deem fit... But my children are innocent. Please, don't harm them."
"Don't worry. We're not as unscrupulous as you are," Tesla snorted. "Cloning the Sovereign himself, just to boost your own combat power... Hmph!"
"?"
Cocolia's head seemed to sprout visible question marks.
"Wait, you can accuse me of splitting Anti-Entropy, forming cliques, even conducting human experiments, and I'll take it... But cloning the Sovereign?"
Cocolia pointed an accusing finger at Lynelle, her nose practically twitching with anger.
"Then tell me, what is she? Huh? 'Cloning the Sovereign'... Aren't you guilty of the same thing?"
"M... me?" Lynelle blinked.
"Who else?! Tesla, let me tell you, my earlier words were directed at you! If you dare lay a finger on my daughters, I'll never rest, even as a ghost!"
"Ah? Me? Why would I target your daughters?" Tesla, who had been fuming moments before, was now completely bewildered by Cocolia's accusation.
"Ha! Everyone in Anti-Entropy knows you have a thing for the Sovereign!"
Cocolia stated it as if it were undeniable fact.
"Didn't you specifically tweak the Sovereign's clone to look like this, just to suit your preferences, during the cloning process? You damn lolicon, killing two birds with one stone, weren't you?!"
"Pfft... cough cough Tesla, I'm not laughing... pfft, hahaha, sorry, I really couldn't hold it in."
Beside them, Einstein watched Tesla's face turn visibly red at lightning speed. Her shoulders shook as she tried to stifle her laughter, but it was a lost cause.
"Cocolia, you ********, I'll **** your ****!"
Whether from sheer embarrassment or rising temper, Tesla unleashed a stunningly fluent stream of exquisite Anti-Entropy slang that left Lynelle wide-eyed.
"Sigh, what a pity... If I'd known Cocolia possessed such... earth-shattering wisdom, I wouldn't have had Welt guarding the bridge outside. We might have pierced through that paper screen between them..." Lynelle remarked to Einstein with genuine regret.
"Don't worry, there will be chances. But for now, let's not provoke our Lobster Doctor any further." Einstein was still struggling, and failing, to maintain a straight face.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.