"Lynelle, you're here."
High above the Sea of Quanta, Einstein gave a slight nod as she watched Lynelle, Bronya, and Mei file in from outside.
"Take your seats. The meeting regarding the Eye of the Deep project is about to begin."
"Wait…" Just then, Bronya looked curiously towards Einstein's left side, more precisely, at the person sitting there.
"Cocolia? Mom? Why are you here…"
"What's wrong, my dear daughter?" Despite being deep within the sea, Cocolia was still dressed in her usual Siberian attire. "Has it been so long that you don't recognize me? Does my little girl need a hug from her mother?"
"No, it's not that…"
Seeing that both Einstein and Theresa seemed completely unfazed, Bronya blinked in confusion.
According to her memory, her mother, Cocolia, had suffered a major defeat after the failed attack on St. Freya.
The radical faction she led had collapsed completely and was soon carved up and absorbed.
Logically, after losing such a political struggle, a life sentence would be considered a good outcome. Yet, Cocolia here seemed completely unaffected…
"Bronya, Anti-Entropy isn't what you think," Einstein said, smiling as if she had read Bronya's thoughts.
"Once we ensure our ideals and goals align, we don't judge a person's capabilities based solely on their past."
"While Ms. Cocolia has suffered repeated failures in her operations against Schicksal, her command of the Titan troops against large groups of Honkai Beasts has been quite commendable."
"This operation of ours may involve dealing with a significant number of lesser enemies, so she is the most suitable candidate… To put it in terms you'll easily understand, Ms. Cocolia is a specialist, an expert in PvE."
"Now then… since everyone is present, let's begin the pre-experiment operational briefing."
With that, Einstein activated the projection screen.
"Before we start, I'd like you all to watch a recording… This is the experimental record from the first activation of the Eye of the Deep. It is also the last footage we have of our Sovereign before he entered the Sea of Quanta."
"As you can see, the massive silhouette in the recording is the primary obstacle to both reopening the Eye of the Deep and rescuing our Sovereign. We have temporarily designated it as—'The Serpent'."
"Based on current intelligence, we infer that this entity known as 'The Serpent' is likely intricately connected to World Serpent, and there's a strong possibility it is their mysterious [Lord]."
Here, Einstein paused for a moment, then added somewhat oddly.
"Though, on a tangential note, according to the latest information gathered by Anti-Entropy's intelligence department, a rumor seems to be circulating within World Serpent."
"It's said that their 'Saintess' is about to assume her position. Judging by the title, if this Saintess truly exists, she would undoubtedly be the second-in-command right below the Lord of World Serpent."
"Her strength should not be underestimated, and it's highly possible she will participate in the plan to rescue their Lord."
"…"
The corner of Lynelle's mouth twitched. She shrank back into her chair slightly, feeling a pang of guilt.
If her guess was correct, the 'Saintess' Einstein was talking about was probably, most likely, sitting right here in this conference room, currently so embarrassed she was trying to dig a mansion out of the floor with her toes.
"Over the past month, I've carefully analyzed the experimental data from the first activation of the Eye of the Deep. I've reached a rather counter-intuitive conclusion."
Fortunately, Einstein didn't notice the anomaly of the "World Serpent Saintess" sitting below. She continued.
"[The Serpent] does not seem able to freely enter and exit the Sea of Quanta. It requires a beacon capable of locating the homeworld."
"Considering it attempted its breakthrough during the Sovereign's personal inspection of the experiment, we can boldly speculate that the beacon it requires is a Herrscher core from the current era."
"This means if we want to rescue the Sovereign, we will inevitably face [The Serpent] again—it's also his only chance to escape. After all, right now, the Sovereign is the only Herrscher within the Sea of Quanta."
"But if that's the case, wouldn't that mean only someone without a Herrscher core can enter the Sea of Quanta to rescue the Sovereign?"
Mei asked, puzzled.
"Not exactly. Think of it this way: having more targets doesn't necessarily increase the pressure. Regardless of how many Herrschers we send in, they will all return to the homeworld through the Eye of the Deep."
"The route is the same. It's equivalent to only exposing one coordinate to the Serpent, so it's not a major issue," Einstein shook her head.
"However, if any of you were to be captured by the Serpent, that would be different… Because once he obtains a single Herrscher core, it means he can freely enter and exit the Sea of Quanta—the core itself can be considered a positioning coordinate."
"Therefore, our plan can be broadly divided into three parts."
"First, we open the Eye of the Deep while Lynelle and Mei are not present. We use Anti-Entropy's quantum detection machinery to locate Welt and Seele and confirm their status."
"Second, at the moment of stable quantum tidal activity, we reopen the Eye of the Deep."
"This time, we need one or two individuals with quantum affinity to enter the Sea of Quanta and bring Welt and Seele back to the homeworld."
"Third, as you return to the homeworld, the Serpent will inevitably follow. At that moment, we will need Ms. Theresa's assistance—I need you to use the Oath of Judah to restrain the Serpent for at least thirty seconds. During that time, I will shut down the Eye of the Deep, trapping him inside forever."
"Among us, Lynelle, Mei, Bronya, and I are the primary candidates to enter the Sea of Quanta—we will split into two teams later."
"One team will enter the Sea, the other will serve as the reserve team. Cocolia will command the Quantum Titan units to clear out the Quantum Honkai Beasts that show significant resistance to Imaginary energy."
"Now, onto the details of the plan…"
--+--
After the meeting concluded, Cocolia stood up, stretched her stiff limbs slightly, and left the conference room directly.
After all, even though Einstein had mentioned not holding her past against her, and even with the safeguards Lynelle had placed on her, someone of her background still felt somewhat awkward in the conference room.
Besides… she had more important things to do.
Navigating through the complex structures of The Deep, Cocolia arrived at a rather concealed room.
After checking her surroundings, she pressed a few spots on her temples. Instantly, a familiar pinkish-purple fluorescence began to glow faintly in the depths of her eyes.
Then, she gently pushed the door open.
"It's been a while, Ms. Cocolia."
Grey Serpent gave a slight bow.
"It's been a while, Grey Serpent."
"Cocolia"—or rather, Lynelle—revealed a faint smile.
--+--
T/N: What is happening
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! 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.