On the eve of the Fourth Eruption, Cocolia, who had completely missed her chance to participate in the operation and get a piece of the pie, was busy handling other matters.
At the time, Cocolia had gained a fair bit of confidence thanks to the partial army of clone soldiers she had received from Gray Serpent.
But after recalling her past encounters, that confidence didn't last long before it vanished without a trace, wiped away by those painful experiences.
Admittedly, with sufficient numbers, the clone soldiers could indeed become a force capable of suppressing Schicksal's troops.
But what Cocolia wanted wasn't a force that could 'suppress Schicksal's ordinary troops'; her existing Titan forces were more than enough to accomplish that goal.
Cocolia wanted a high-tier combat force capable of fighting in the big leagues.
Never mind having Herrscher-level power, she needed at least a top-tier combatant who could suppress an S-rank Valkyrie to have a chance of seizing a Herrscher Gem from Schicksal when disaster struck in the future.
During this period, although Cocolia had given the DNA of the first Herrscher of Reason to Gray Serpent, she herself had not given up on her own research.
And in her research during this time, Cocolia finally produced something that could amplify the power of the trump cards in her hand.
While continuing her high-end clone experiments, Cocolia had unexpectedly created a clone that grew at an extremely slow rate.
Even with Cocolia using growth acceleration technology, this clone couldn't mature into a self-sufficient Welt clone in a short period.
Because of this, he was unlike the three she had sent to St. Freya High School who were killed in action, each possessing the power of an entire army.
But at the same time, according to Cocolia's research, she discovered that this slow-growing clone not only possessed powerful Honkai Energy manipulation and adaptation abilities but also had partial authorities that were much closer to the Herrscher of Reason.
What surprised Cocolia even more was that because this special individual's physical growth was slow, his mental development remained at the same level, like that of a child.
If she had enough time, Cocolia wouldn't have minded raising him as her adoptive son, allowing him to unleash his power in the future and become her right-hand man.
But right now, what Cocolia lacked most were time and high-tier combat power.
So, Cocolia made a bold decision.
She took a huge gamble, transplanting all the Pseudo-Herrscher Cores from the other clones into this special individual's body.
As a price, all the Herrscher Clone soldiers whose cores were removed naturally died as a result.
But at the same time, the special individual's Honkai Energy intensity increased dramatically.
Of course, since the special individual's mind was still like a child's, he naturally couldn't endure the constant, explosive pain of the core transplant process.
To facilitate control over this special individual, Cocolia had long ago implanted a brain chip identical to Bronya's inside his head.
Under these circumstances, the special individual, now implanted with numerous cores, finally gave Cocolia the confidence to challenge others.
Control his body and mind, make him the [core] of the Sky Father, and then have Cocolia's subordinates set up an autonomous combat program to guide this special individual to kill enemies.
Although this method could easily expose too many of the Sky Father's weaknesses, for a Sky Father with sufficiently high energy intensity, a few flaws were hardly a problem.
Of course, the Sky Father, forcibly activated under such conditions, would enter a state of shutdown due to the pilot's mental breakdown.
But according to Cocolia's stress tests, the special individual could maintain combat for five minutes.
If it really came down to it and he couldn't win, after five minutes Cocolia could just use the Sky Father's built-in Quantum Teleportation System to remotely teleport it back to her base—
...For Cocolia, this had been her original plan.
But now, Cocolia discovered with absolute horror that the Quantum Teleportation System she had always relied on was suddenly unusable.
Cocolia, who had planned to let the Sky Father go on a rampage while she made her escape, was now forced to continue fleeing on foot.
In fact, Cocolia, who still hadn't recognized Yuna, had an impulse to turn back and fight.
That purple-haired nurse was definitely not an easy opponent, but Cocolia was still confident she wouldn't lose to an ordinary A-rank Valkyrie.
If she added this little traitorous girl to the equation... no, that's not wise.
The killing intent radiating from the other party was simply too terrifying.
Even if I could win, it wouldn't be worth it if she managed to hold me up or even injure me by trading blows.
After glancing at Bronya beside her, Cocolia ultimately decided it was better to play it safe.
After using the brain chip to control Bronya to delay the enemy's advance, Cocolia immediately abandoned the stationary Bronya, deciding to rendezvous with nearby friendly forces on her own.
Meanwhile, Yuna, who was frantically chasing Cocolia, saw Bronya and frowned slightly.
"Bronya, you..."
However, facing Yuna, Bronya said nothing more, merely raising her right hand and commanding Project Bunny to fire a beam cannon at the trees Yuna had created.
"Tch."
Although she was now the Herrscher of Death, Yuna was in a hurry to chase Cocolia, so she hadn't invested enough energy or effort into the trees she created.
Against Project Bunny's beam cannon, such inferior creations were, of course, easily pierced through.
Forced to a halt, Yuna stared at the girl before her, feeling not a single trace of hostility from her.
In fact, at this moment, seeing the tear stains near Bronya's eyes, Yuna finally understood why Bronya was standing here.
Before starting the operation, Leo Ash had told Yuna about the possibility of Bronya being controlled by Cocolia.
And Yuna knew very well that Leo Ash had said this in the hope that when she fought Cocolia, she would spare Bronya's life.
But now, looking at Bronya attacking her, Yuna's heart was filled with sorrow.
Bronya had been constantly trying to secure lenient treatment for Cocolia, and at the same time, she was always trying to find a way to make her wicked adoptive mother surrender to Schicksal.
Yet now, the well-behaved girl who had always thought of her adoptive mother's well-being had instead become a tool for her to escape her enemies.
What a good child.
It's just a shame your mother isn't a good mother worthy of you, but a monster who deserves to go to hell.
Bronya...
When you wake up, I won't ask for your forgiveness.
But I must take Cocolia's life today!
In the next instant, Yuna directly activated the Herrscher of Death's core, which she had not wanted to use, creating an Imaginary Barrier to block Bronya's attack.
And at the same time, as she placed her right hand on the ground, a wooden clone suddenly appeared behind Bronya.
If Bronya had her own consciousness, she would have definitely noticed the possibility of an enemy appearing behind her after seeing Yuna's move.
But now, with her mind and body controlled by the [Valkyrie System], Bronya was naturally incapable of noticing such details as she normally would.
By the time she felt the sound of rushing air from behind, the wooden clone Yuna created had already struck the back of Bronya's neck with its palm.
Under Yuna's exquisite control of force, she knocked Bronya out on the spot with just one blow.
And after Bronya fell unconscious, Project Bunny very quickly vanished from Yuna's sight.
Looking at this 'perceptive' robot, Yuna became even more certain of the fact that Bronya herself did not want to fight.
The final obstacle has been removed, so now...
After placing Bronya under a tree and notifying the Schicksal rescue team to protect her, Yuna, without another word, spread a pair of jet-black wings, just like the previous Herrscher of Death.
Since I've already used this core's power, I might as well go all out.
Kill Cocolia as quickly as possible, then go help Senior, and finally, suppress 'her' inside the core.
There's not much time, so I can't delay any longer.
I've already caused trouble for Senior twice. This time, I can't afford to hold him back again.
I've waited for this day for a long time, so now...
—Cocolia, I'm coming to kill you.
...
At this moment, facing the Sky Father, Leo Ash truly felt a little regretful.
He didn't regret having to fight this giant robot now.
He mainly regretted—letting Yuna have the pleasure of taking Cocolia's life all to herself.
Humans really are strange creatures.
Leo Ash had clearly killed so many Joyce clones, but now, looking at the child clone inside the Sky Father with an expression of immense pain, Leo Ash surprisingly couldn't bring himself to deal a fatal blow right away.
Because his face showed a pain that other Joyce clones lacked, I actually softened up?
If that's the reason, then I've really reverted to being a boring person.
Right now, I can tangibly feel that I've truly gotten stronger.
Because I'm stronger, I have more leeway, and my range of actions when facing enemies has increased, which should have been a good thing.
But now, for some silly reason, I'm starting to hesitate to strike?
With this mindset, I have the power but can't use it.
Because I got stronger, I got weaker?
How fucking stupid.
My state of mind has unknowingly developed such a huge problem.
If I truly feel sorry for him, I should be attacking with even more force.
Is this clone's life a life, but the lives of the other innocent civilians around are not?
The correct course of action is to finish the enemy as quickly as possible. Not only will it stop the little clone from being tortured further, but it will also minimize the damage the Sky Father does to the surroundings.
It seems that after this fight, I really need to relax for a few days.
Having sufficiently powerful strength without a mindset to match it will sooner or later lead to major problems.
This time, the combination of the Sky Father and this kid isn't strong enough, so I have time to reflect and make a judgment.
If I encounter a sufficiently powerful enemy next time, even a moment's hesitation in battle could lead to my defeat and death.
At this moment, looking at the Sky Father punching towards him, Leo Ash surprisingly stopped dodging.
In the instant the Sky Father's fist was about to hit him, Leo Ash directly used the armor creation ability of [Zero Knight: Moonshade] to create a massive gauntlet on his right hand, using this giant gauntlet to block the blow.
"Heh, after observing for thirty seconds, I can roughly judge the flow of its energy."
"This thing looks huge as hell, but as long as I break its key parts, you probably won't be able to move anymore, right?"
Of course, the child piloting the Sky Father at this moment had no idea what the self-muttering Leo Ash was talking about.
Controlled by the combat program set by Cocolia, all he knew was that—if he didn't defeat the enemy before him, he would only continue to be tormented by the program transmitted from the chip in his brain.
The child, terrified of pain, naturally thought his chance had come when he saw the enemy in front of him stop dodging.
And after one punch failed to smash the enemy, the child decisively brought his other fist down as well.
However, if it were a warrior of any decent skill, they would absolutely not get too close to Leo Ash at this moment.
After all, Leo Ash chose to stand still not because he had lost his mind and wanted to take the hit head-on, but because...
—The move he was preparing to use to one-shot the enemy required time to charge.
After identifying the key points on the enemy's body, Leo Ash directly fused Honkai Energy and mana at his fingertips.
Only this time, worried that his output wouldn't be enough, he added the third special energy he possessed, [Dimensional Energy], to his piercing killing move for the first time.
When Leo Ash had experimented in the dreamscape before, it wasn't that he hadn't tried attacking with a fusion of three energies.
It was just a pity that, at the time, Leo Ash found after launching the attack that he couldn't control the fusion process of the three powers well. It was very easy for the energy to blow up his own hand before it even hit the enemy.
However, ever since that experience in the illusion, Leo Ash felt that the Sphere inside his body had undergone some changes.
The unawakened Sphere had originally emitted ordinary Dimensional Energy.
But now, although [The Wavering Scales] still hadn't fully awakened, the Dimensional Energy it emitted now had an additional characteristic.
After fusing this type of Dimensional Energy with mana and Honkai Energy, Leo Ash discovered that the three powers, which were originally difficult to reconcile, actually maintained a delicate balance under the catalysis of the new Dimensional Energy.
I see, so the Dimensional Energy stimulated by [The Wavering Scales] also has a 'balancing' ability?
Now that the third power has been successfully fused, then in the future...
Heh, I'll worry about the future later. Right now, it's time to end this.
In the next instant, Leo Ash fired the energy cannon fused between his fingers directly at the giant enemy before him.
"Explosive Beam Cannon!"
By the time Leo Ash shouted these words, the light cannon had already hit the Sky Father's body.
After the battle with the Herrscher of Finality in the illusion, Leo Ash had already developed a variant usage for the beam cannon.
Only this time, because the enemy's energy shield wasn't very strong and didn't need to be weakened by Phantasmagoria, Leo Ash omitted the [Weaken] step from the three-step process of [Weaken], [Pierce], and [Explode], directly causing the beam cannon to detonate inside the Sky Father upon impact.
As the three types of energy rampaged inside the Sky Father, the machine, which had only undergone anti-Honkai energy treatment, was internally ravaged by the other two energies injected into its body.
Even if the child clone hadn't completely lost his ability to act, with the operating system now destroyed, no matter how ferocious the expression on his face became, it couldn't change one fact.
After the giant Sky Father was one-shotted by Leo Ash, it was impossible for him to defeat the enemy as his orders commanded.
As the Sky Father crashed to the ground with a roar, Leo Ash even saw the child get thrown out by the powerful impact, getting battered and bruised on the spot.
However, in the next second, looking at the child, Leo Ash felt the killing intent he had just suppressed instantly surge countless times over.
This killing intent was naturally not directed at the child before him.
The person Leo Ash wanted to kill now was, of course, only Cocolia, who was not here but was manipulating the child to perform such actions.
At this moment, the child clone, controlled by Cocolia, was actually crawling towards Leo Ash despite having broken bones all over his body.
The child's eyes were filled with confusion; he still bore not a shred of hostility towards Leo Ash.
But because of Cocolia's command, the child had to do everything in his power to defeat the enemy before him.
After strolling up to the child, Leo Ash cast Phantasmagoria on him, instantly rewriting his perception and sending him directly into a deep sleep.
After casually using a Powerful Healing Spell to heal the child's injuries, Leo Ash looked towards Siegfried, whom he had propped up nearby.
Considering Siegfried was still unconscious and it was uncertain if he could drink medicine, Leo Ash temporarily refrained from using the Full Rejuvenation Potion on him.
The System said it had to be drunk, so he figured he'd better not try injecting it.
As for this kid...
After placing the child next to Siegfried, Leo Ash turned around without a second glance and rushed in Yuna's direction.
According to Leo Ash's guess, this child might be Welt's adopted son who appeared in A Post-Honkai Odyssey.
Returning to Anti-Entropy's conservative faction was one of his predetermined fates.
After all, they had no grudge against each other, so Leo Ash naturally wouldn't vent his anger towards Cocolia on him.
Cocolia, you will die here today.
However...
—Right now, I will absolutely not let you die so easily!
.......
At this moment, the fleeing Cocolia finally recognized the identity of the girl with wings on her back.
Dammit, isn't this little brat the Yuna who was taken back by Schicksal in Nagazora City and turned into the Fourth Herrscher?
How could Otto so easily let her start acting alone? Is he insane?!
But right now, no matter what Otto was thinking, Cocolia had to face a fact.
At her current pace, she was going to be caught by Yuna in a little while.
And what made Cocolia even more nervous was that she currently had no means to stop her.
In terms of combat power, an A-rank beating a Herrscher... that A-rank must be broken!
And now, with the Quantum Teleportation System disabled, she had not only lost her means of escape but also her last resort of summoning reinforcements to buy time.
This situation was undoubtedly a dead end.
And the Cocolia of now—how could she possibly be willing to die at the hands of a Herrscher!
At this moment, Cocolia looked back at Yuna behind her and suddenly saw a flash of pain on Yuna's face.
Hmph, just as I thought.
Because of her inner resentment towards me, her mind has been eroded by the Honkai.
If she wants to continue using the Herrscher's power, she has to risk completely turning into a Herrscher again.
And if she chooses to give up using the Herrscher's power, then—I still have a sliver of a chance to survive!
At this moment, Cocolia took out a syringe that Gray Serpent had given her and jabbed it directly into her neck.
As Gray Serpent's partner, Cocolia had of course obtained things like the Honkai Beast transformation serum from him.
And after receiving the serum, Gray Serpent had warned Cocolia that not only would it last for only three minutes, but after the effect wore off, the probability of not being able to change back into a human was absurdly high.
But for the Cocolia of now, she had no other choice.
If she didn't kill the enemy, she would be killed by the enemy. So rather than sit and wait for death, she might as well—
"Oh, so this is how the Honkai Beast that attacked Teacher Himeko was created."
From high in the air, Yuna looked down upon Cocolia, a cold killing intent instantly flashing in her eyes.
"In the end, you don't even want to be human anymore... This ugly form suits you quite well."
Cocolia, taking a gamble, successfully transformed into an Emperor-class Honkai Beast.
And then, in the next instant...
—Cocolia couldn't take any action before she was taken down by Yuna in a single move.
Cocolia, cornered, wanted to make a desperate last stand, but because she was too hasty, she forgot many things.
Emperor-class is inferior to Judgment-class, and Judgment-class is not necessarily a match for a Herrscher.
What's more, even after transforming, she was just an artificial, low-quality version of an Emperor-class.
Even if Yuna couldn't fully control her Herrscher powers, how could she possibly lose to such an enemy?
As the Fog of Decay corroded Cocolia's body, Cocolia had never felt so palpably that the flame of her life was gradually withering away.
However, after the Fog of Decay completely destroyed her Honkai Beast form, Yuna, who had landed in front of Cocolia, actually withdrew the fog and even used her Authority of [Rebirth] to heal a significant portion of Cocolia's injuries.
"You... what... what is the meaning of this..."
Her wounds healed, Cocolia lay on the ground, staring at Yuna with unwillingness in her heart.
"Even if I die, I will not—"
"Die?"
At this moment, Yuna, having forcibly suppressed the Herrscher Core and sealed away the power of the Herrscher of Death, summoned several sharp, poisonous vines that pierced into Cocolia's body.
"Why would you think I'd let you die so painlessly?"
As the poisonous vines pierced into Cocolia's body, she instantly felt an incredibly terrifying pain assault her nerves.
"Ever since I learned that you were the true culprit behind my matricide, I have been waiting for this day."
Watching Cocolia roll on the ground, wailing in agony, Yuna calmly took out a sharp small knife.
"This poison is something I specially developed for you using my authority."
"Once it enters a living body, it will magnify the sensation of pain countless times over. Even the touch of a single strand of hair against the skin will become an incredibly excruciating agony because of it."
"As for why I'm so familiar with it... after all, I personally experienced this poison with my own body and adjusted the dosage based on those experiences."
"You, you, you... you're a madwoman!"
After shouting this, Cocolia felt an incredibly terrible pain erupt from her own hoarse throat.
"A madwoman? Perhaps. From the day I killed my mother with my own hands, my world had already descended into madness."
Looking at Cocolia's venom-filled face, Yuna spoke very calmly.
"But, in the end, you caused all of this, Cocolia."
"I don't know if you were mentally prepared before you acted, but now... none of that matters anymore."
At this moment, Yuna dispelled the Honkai Energy around her, forcibly sealing her first Herrscher Core as well.
Right now, judging by her appearance alone, she looked just like the girl from her first meeting with Leo Ash—frail and helpless.
"However, it's time to put an end to this today."
"The one who pursued you was Valkyrie Yuna."
"The one who tortured you was Herrscher Yuna."
"Whether it's Herrscher Yuna or Valkyrie Yuna, in the end, they are both great sinners who killed their mother, and in my opinion..."
"The one most suited to kill Cocolia is, after all, Yuna as a human."
Facing the now powerless Cocolia, Yuna plunged the knife directly into her body.
"This stab is for Mei—it's a pity she's not here today."
"Guaaaahhhhhh!!!!"
Watching the wailing Cocolia, Yuna felt no other emotion in her heart and stabbed again without hesitation.
"This stab is for Kiana."
"I heard her say that she misses her father very much, yet you used her father to deceive her."
Watching the leader of Anti-Entropy's radical faction start to roll on the ground again, Yuna delivered a third stab.
"This stab is for Bronya."
"She always thought of you, always believed in you so much, yet you treated that child as a mere tool to be manipulated at will?"
"How disgusting."
Yuna, who had a thorough understanding of the human body, naturally did not kill Cocolia with that, instead delivering a fourth, equally non-fatal stab.
"This stab is for Senior."
"He's suffered enough because of you too...well, he should have been the one to do this, but I really couldn't wait any longer, so I can only apologize to him."
Looking at the ground covered in crimson liquid, Yuna delivered the fifth stab with immense calm.
"This stab is for myself."
"No other reason, I just wanted to stab you."
"And then—the rest are all for my mother!"
At this moment, an uncontrollable madness finally appeared on Yuna's face.
"Die! Die! Die! Die! Die!"
Repeating the same action over and over, Yuna, who was committing this brutal act, discovered an unexpected change in her own heart.
In the past, Yuna had wondered what she would become after her revenge was complete.
She didn't know if she would suddenly burst into tears or feel an immense sense of exhilaration after killing Cocolia.
However, after taking the life of her enemy with her blade, Yuna, now sitting on the ground, suddenly felt a sense of the absurd.
She didn't have an emotional breakdown and start crying, nor did she become completely crazed with joy.
Yuna, having slain her enemy, only felt her heart become incredibly calm.
It wasn't until Yuna heard the familiar sound of footsteps from behind that the mentally and physically calm Yuna slowly turned her head.
Behind her, Leo Ash, who had caught up, was holding a bottle of cheap champagne in his left hand and two more in his right, a look of regret on his face.
After confirming that Cocolia was dead, Leo Ash shook the champagne in his left hand and then sprayed it right in Yuna's face.
"...What a terrible taste."
Now with a face full of champagne, Yuna took out a handkerchief, wiped the champagne from her face, and spoke to Leo Ash with disgust.
"Senior, if you're going to pop champagne, can't you buy a better bottle?"
"Oh, this stuff is mainly for washing your face—look at the murder scene you've created. Walking out with your face covered in blood like this will scare the children."
"Besides..."
Looking at the dead Cocolia, whose eyes were still open, a hint of regret flashed through Leo Ash's heart as he said irritably.
"This champagne is to celebrate Cocolia's well-deserved death. Cocolia..."
"—this trash's life isn't worth anything. Using expensive champagne would be giving her too much credit."
"That's true."
Taking another bottle of cheap champagne from Leo Ash's hand, Yuna shook it vigorously.
At the same time, Leo Ash also held a bottle of champagne and began to do the same.
In the next instant, the young man and young woman simultaneously tapped their champagne bottles lightly on the ground and opened them in the same way.
As the cheap champagne sprayed into the air and showered down on them, the two finally shouted the same phrase in unison.
"Good riddance—"
"Time to pop the champagne!"
.......