"Mother."
Early the next morning, inside Qlipoth Fort.
Cocolia, who hadn't slept all night, gazed out the window with a complicated expression.
Just the day before yesterday, her beloved daughter, Bronya, had gone missing in the Fragmentum while leading a team to capture the outsiders.
After a day of searching, even resorting to seeking help from the Stellaron, Cocolia had almost given up hope, believing her daughter had perished.
Yet, just moments ago, the Stellaron informed her that her daughter had returned to the Overworld.
Of course, along with that came another piece of bad news.
From the images provided by the Stellaron, Bronya hadn't come directly to Qlipoth Fort to reassure her mother of her safety.
Instead, she had gone first to the Neverwinter Workshop and the military barracks. Without a doubt, she was seeking out that pair of siblings, Serval and Gepard.
Having sat in the seat of the Supreme Guardian for many years, Cocolia guessed almost instantly where Bronya had been during her disappearance. She even deduced her daughter's intentions.
Her dear daughter seemed intent on using force to "compel" her to step down.
To be honest, Cocolia felt a faint sense of pride in her heart about this situation.
After all, everything she had done over the years, while ultimately for Belobog's sake, had caused such significant growing pains that they could no longer be ignored.
The fact that Bronya could resolve to stage a coup against her proved that her upbringing of her daughter had been successful.
She had indeed raised a next-generation Supreme Guardian who wholeheartedly served the people, even to the point of defying her own mother.
If not for the matter of the Stellaron, Bronya would surely have become an excellent leader...
But...
Cocolia sighed.
Her mind had been growing increasingly clouded lately, a fact she was acutely aware of. If not for the severe shock of Bronya's disappearance, she doubted she could have remained this "lucid" for so long.
Perhaps she should take this rare opportunity to tell Bronya everything.
If Bronya truly believed the path she had chosen was right, then...
A sudden, indescribable wave of dizziness washed over Cocolia.
Then... what was it again?
Knock knock.
Just then, a rapping at the door interrupted Cocolia's thoughts.
"Mother."
Bronya, now dressed again in a Silvermane Guard uniform, opened the door to the Supreme Guardian's office.
"Bronya, my daughter... I'm glad to see you safe and sound."
Cocolia, holding her head, managed a faint smile.
"Where have you been these past two days? Were you injured in the fight with the outsiders..."
"I'm fine, Mother. They didn't harm me."
Bronya took a step forward, meeting Cocolia's gaze.
"During these days, I witnessed with my own eyes the conditions in the Underworld. And with the help of the Nameless, I learned the truth about the Stellaron."
"Mother, after experiencing all of this, I am more certain of one thing than ever... Your path is a mistaken one."
"Therefore, I wish to speak with you regarding..."
"Bronya, do you remember a principle I taught you when you were young?"
Cocolia's expression turned cold as she cut off Bronya mid-sentence.
"Do not make rash judgments without knowing the full picture."
"Do you truly know what path I have chosen? Do you understand the choices I face?"
"It seems I have sheltered you too well... to the point where you believe the people of Belobog can be saved merely by the sweet words of a few outsiders."
"Without knowing the full picture? No... Mother, I found an autonomous robot from before the Eternal Freeze in the Underworld. From its database, I have learned the complete truth about the Stellaron."
"Then why do you still cling to foolish hopes?"
Cocolia slammed her hand on the desk. "Destruction is an unavoidable future for us! The geomarrow deposits are nearly exhausted, the Fragmentum has already invaded the city. At best, we can only maintain the status quo for a few more years!"
"If destruction is inevitable, why not embrace the Stellaron now?"
"Embrace destruction... It seems, Mother, you have been corrupted too deeply by the Stellaron."
Bronya sighed. Then, she casually picked up a cup from the desk and hurled it to the ground.
Crash!
Almost the instant the sound rang out, the office door was violently kicked open. Two squads of fully armed Silvermane Guards stormed in, surrounding Cocolia.
"You all heard it. Cocolia persists in her perverse course, attempting to lead all of Belobog down the path of destruction."
Bronya took a rifle handed to her by a subordinate and slammed its butt against the floor.
"The Supreme Guardian Cocolia we knew is gone. Now standing before us is only... Cocolia, agent of the Stellaron."
"Guards, assist me in subduing her!"
--+--
"A rebellion against my splendid mother? How regrettable. I should've gotten Bronya a full set of gear before this. Then she could've had Frostmourne in her left hand and Clarent in her right, stacking the buffs to the max. A photo of that might've even fetched a good price from the Masked Fools."
Lynelle, residing within Bronya's body, watched the scene unfold with the air of someone enjoying the spectacle.
"But has Cocolia's connection to the Stellaron grown this deep? Half her body is already covered in ice fragments..."
"Ah, well. She's the only relatively human-like Cocolia I've seen so far. We spared the ones on the Honkai side; surely we can try to save this one too... Let's give it a shot."
Lynelle sighed and began remotely manipulating the power of Corruption she had previously infiltrated into Cocolia's body through Bronya's attacks.
To be precise, the amount of Corruption left within Bronya was now the minority. Lynelle herself had mostly transferred into Cocolia's body.
Using the unique perspective formed by the Corruption, Lynelle could clearly observe Cocolia's current state.
Nearly her entire body was entangled by faint, barely visible threads. These threads pierced through her form, all converging and extending towards the direction of Everwinter Hill.
"Threads... This brings back unpleasant memories. Good thing I got a nice little item from Sampo before setting out."
Lynelle pursed her lips. Before departing, she had guessed that Sampo, as Belobog's final trump card, must have privately stashed some good items for use if the Express crew failed. So, she had gone to "rob" Sampo.
And indeed, she found something excellent—a weapon that caught her eye immediately, reportedly procured by Sampo from Sparkle.
Rummaging through her pack, a mischievous smile on her face, Lynelle pulled out a ceremonial sword about the length of her arm.
Although called a ceremonial sword, it had a more fitting name:
The Damp (Scratch that) Little Sickle.
"Hmm... Why does it feel like my loadout is becoming more and more like Cyrene's standard issue?"
"Ah, forget it... no use overthinking."
A somewhat "wicked" smile spread across Lynelle's face as she reached out with the little sickle towards the threads entangling Cocolia.
"Hehehe, Stellaron, I'm gonna win for sure, ya hear!"
--+--
T/N: Tbh, i haven't actually played star rail since the beginning of penacony, so i didn't know cyrene(the young ver.) used a moon scythe. I was actually so confused for like 5 minutes, trying to understand why 昔涟 kept translating to cyrene cause i thought she used a bow… thought it was a diff character.
--+--
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.