40. Bronya and Raven?
Bullying ordinary mercenaries as a half-baked MANTIS is something that would earn Mei's disdain in the simulation system. Fortunately, however, Gao qi found himself in the year 2012—an era when few were aware of the power of MANTIS. So, when the young sniper aimed at an enemy's head from dozens of meters away, only to have her bullet effortlessly dodged before being pinned down herself, she must have been utterly bewildered.
"Hehehehe, better surrender quietly, cute little Silver Wolf~~"
Wearing the standard grin of a villainous mook, Gao qi chuckled mischievously as he pulled back the sniper's cloak. According to his understanding, this incident was the story of how the child soldier "Silver Wolf" attempted to assassinate Cocolia, only to be captured and brought into Cocolia's orphanage. It was precisely this orphanage experience that transformed the ruthless child soldier from "Silver Wolf" into "Bronya Zaychik." Although she lost the ability to express emotions due to experiments, she truly came to understand the meaning of feelings. Later, two years on, Bronya would become a member of the main cast, single-handedly raising the average IQ of St. Freya Academy. As for the Herrscher of Reason, or the "Big Bronya" whose bust would utterly surpass 50,000 years of growth compared to a certain little sister of Gao qi's—that would be a story for another time.
Still, Gao qi was quite excited to meet Bronya in the simulation—until he froze in shock. Beneath the cloak draped with withered branches and fallen leaves was not the wary, drill-tailed little girl he remembered, but a noticeably older teenage girl—
"Raven?"
Looking at the gray-haired girl before him, her crimson eyes filled with intense hostility and killing intent, Gao qi couldn't help but twitch at the corner of his mouth. Where's my Bronya? My big—well, at least future-big—Bronya! Where did she go!
Having just seen Raven before the simulation, how could Gao qi mistake her? Although the Raven before him appeared slimmer and more youthful, lacking the fullness and confidence of her future self, her gray hair and red eyes were unmistakable. In the next second, sensing Raven's reaction, Gao qi swiftly shoved his large hand into her mouth. His snow-dusted hand pried apart her clenched molars and clamped down on her pink, delicate tongue. He quickly retrieved a cyanide-laced suicide capsule—Damn, sis, you don't hesitate at all when it comes to poison!
"Stop, stop, stop! Don't move your tongue. I admit I might've come off a bit perverted, but I really don't mean any harm—Natasha! Nata! I just wanted to joke around with you."
Nearly causing a key character to commit suicide on the spot, Gao qi hastily released his hands and raised them in front of himself to appear harmless. Without hesitation, he called out Raven's real name—even her nickname. Instantly, Raven stopped moving. After a brief moment of shock, she eyed Gao qi suspiciously.
"That name—how do you know it? Who are you?"
"I should be asking what you're doing here!"
Gao qi was equally puzzled. He couldn't understand why Raven would appear in Bronya's storyline. But upon second thought, it wasn't entirely surprising. After the Second Honkai War, Cecilia's power granted Raven an exceptionally high adaptability to Honkai energy, which led to her being chosen by Gray Serpent. Taken from her brother's side, she became a mercenary under World Serpent. Currently, Raven was still in her developmental stage, likely not even having entered the Elysian Realm yet. It wasn't strange for her to be active and training within Siberia.
Whether it was a butterfly effect caused by Gao qi's arrival or Raven having actually attempted to assassinate Cocolia in the past—with both parties surviving—either was possible. However, before Gao qi could ponder further, his MANTIS senses detected footsteps approaching from the snowy field nearby.
"Just who are you? That name is only known by my brother—"
Instantly subdued by the unimaginable strength of the tall man before her, Raven initially thought she might be captured or even assaulted. She knew all too well the fate awaiting women in her line of work if caught. She had intended to use the prepared poison to end her life, but even that last resort was thwarted. Yet, the man before her uttered the nickname only her brother knew, leaving her hesitant.
Springing up from the snow like a carp leaping to its feet, Raven wanted to continue questioning him but was abruptly silenced as Gao qi covered her mouth.
"Shh, if you want to live, play along with my act in a moment."
Next, Raven saw a woman with golden wavy hair approaching them, carrying a child soldier—the target of her assassination attempt. "Serpent" had given her the order: this woman was one of the executives of the Anti-Entropy organization. The research she was conducting was related to World Serpent's secrets. For the awakening of the Herrscher and the cause of World Serpent, these experiments had to be safeguarded by World Serpent itself. Though reluctant to admit it, before the Herrscher's awakening, the technological prowess of World Serpent's loyal servants lagged behind that of Anti-Entropy and Schicksal.
Raven's mission was to eliminate Cocolia and steal the experimental data—though if unsuccessful, Gray Serpent would step in to negotiate cooperation with Cocolia. Compared to hardliners like Einstein and Welt, Cocolia clearly had room for negotiation.
"Is this your captive, Mr. Zero? I won't comment on how you're handling her, but ensure she poses no further threat to me."
Cocolia glanced at Gao qi with a scrutinizing look, a fox-like smile playing on her lips.
"I'd only heard you often help homeless children in Siberia, which is why I wanted to deepen our cooperation—seems you're also interested in more mature girls, hmm?"
However, when she looked down at the unconscious child soldier with pale gray twin-drills in her arms, the tenderness in her eyes was unmistakable.
"…No, of course not. This is my sister, Natasha. You know, the best way to deal with enemies is to infiltrate their ranks. Natasha and I have always worked well together."
Under Raven's somewhat bewildered gaze, Gao Qi reached out with a large hand and patted her head.
"Both she and I are children who suffered in the disaster of the millennium. Over the years, we've been working in the mercenary business, and we also help some kids together. She's my good partner."
Hearing Gao Qi's "explanation," Raven couldn't help but widen her eyes, trying hard to recall such a person in her memory. But no matter how hard she thought, she couldn't remember having such an acquaintance.
"…Alright, I don't have time to trouble a little girl either. That's enough, Mr. Zero. Help me escort the child to Cocolia's Orphanage, and I'll settle the remaining payment."
Without further questioning, Cocolia, holding the young soldier familiar to Gao Qi, walked toward her convoy.
"…What exactly are you trying to do?"
Glancing at Gao Qi with some wariness, Raven felt like running away. But considering how he had subdued her earlier, she decided to behave.
"You and your brother weren't the only ones from your village who suffered in the disaster. Really, I remember we had a lot of fun playing together, Natasha—I never thought I'd meet a childhood playmate here. Seriously… Follow me, I'll introduce you to a good job."
Confident that Raven wouldn't remember her childhood clearly, Gao Qi—whose background already placed him growing up in Siberia—simply made up an identity as her fellow villager and casually walked ahead.
His gaze, however, fell on the girl currently cradled in Cocolia's arms.
[Sigh, Duckie is still the same Duckie, but I never expected… Raven's role would also come into play.]
Suddenly, as if struck by inspiration, Gao Qi thought of something amusing.
"By the way, Natasha… do you like children?"
Since Raven would eventually establish a orphanage in the future, why not let her learn from Cocolia's experience in advance? That didn't seem like a bad idea.
[And so, alongside Cocolia, you escorted the captured child soldiers back to Cocolia's Orphanage, bringing along the unexpectedly 'captured' Raven as well.]
[On the way, some of the controlled child soldiers woke up prematurely. Trained as killing machines from a young age, they suffered from severe post-traumatic stress disorder and immediately began struggling and biting. The escorting mercenaries had a hard time, and the convoy even came to a halt at one point.]
[But you were full of experience in handling children—whether it was taking care of real kids like Fu Hua and Kiana, an infant like Griseo, or even big babies like Mobius and Nuwa, you had a set of methods to deal with them.]
[Over the years, you had also been actively helping orphans affected by Honkai in Siberia, carrying with you various trinkets to soothe children. With the help of Honkai beast plushies, small toys, and candies, you quickly calmed down the group of bloodied child soldiers.]
[When you and Cocolia arrived at the orphanage, this cruel yet gentle woman finally revealed the true purpose of her collaboration with you.]
[Having long heard about your "uniqueness" compared to other mercenaries, as well as your compassion and care for children, she sincerely invited you to join Cocolia's Orphanage and participate in her mission to rescue Honkai orphans and child soldiers—this mission was merely a test.]
[Without hesitation, you shook Cocolia's outstretched hand—though you had one additional condition.]
"Perfect, Natasha. You look absolutely stunning in this outfit—don't get the wrong idea, though. This is traditional attire here. In the past, students even wore this as their school uniform."
In the quiet hallway of the orphanage, Gao Qi, now out of his mercenary uniform, walked side by side with Raven. He looked at the maid dress she wore—paired with flesh-colored stockings, a skirt that barely reached her knees—and her flushed face, nodding in satisfaction.
Thanks to Gao Qi's reliable reputation as a mercenary and Cocolia's confidence as an Anti-Entropy Executor, she agreed to let Raven and Gao Qi join Cocolia's Orphanage together. The two would be responsible for rescuing children and, when not on missions, taking care of them.
And Gao Qi wasn't wrong—this rather alluring maid dress had indeed been a student uniform decades ago.
"Ugh… If you want to humiliate me, just say it. Do you even know anything about my brother's whereabouts?"
Raven's face was filled with humiliation, enough to make her want to end it all. But considering how well Cocolia paid and the fact that she had inexplicably infiltrated Anti-Entropy, Raven decided to endure it.
"Besides, I have zero interest in these kids."
Still, she couldn't stand this man who kept leading her by the nose!
"No, of course I don't know. I don't even know your brother's name. A good, outstanding boy would only remember the name of the prettiest girl in the village."
Gao Qi shrugged. He considered himself a "prophet," so he had to be careful when making prophecies about things he didn't know. He didn't want to give this brother-longing girl false hope.
"But you should have a little more faith in your brother. If you survived, there's no reason he couldn't have—what I do know is that your claim about not liking kids is definitely a lie!"
No sooner had he finished speaking than a little girl's scream echoed in their ears. As if instantly forgetting what she had just said, Raven immediately and unhesitatingly rushed toward the infirmary where the sound came from.
Just as she ran into the room, a little girl with dark blue short hair hurriedly dashed toward them, hiding behind Gao Qi and Raven. Shyly, she pointed to a girl in the corner of the room.
"D-doctor, please help her. She seems to have woken up… Huh, who are you?"
Gao Qi casually patted the little girl's head and gave a gentle smile.
"Don't worry, Seele. We're here to take care of you—"
Looking up, Gao Qi turned his gaze to the girl who had changed into a yellow dress, tied with a black bow, now eyeing everyone warily, and to Raven, whose face showed a hint of sympathy. He couldn't help but smile.
And so, through Gao Qi's intervention, Bronya and Raven achieved an impossible meeting.
The story was now heading in an interesting direction.
Note: I'm new to translating so please be kind and tell me any mistakes you all find, I will try to release a chapter a day but don't expect much
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Raw: 崩坏模拟器,你找的人是我么?