Huge thanks to si_ri_4661 for the nonstop support—your power stones and comments keep this story alive.Your consistency means more than you know!... this one is for you
◇ Unlock early-access chapters on Patreon and enjoy an exclusive limited-time offer just released.Join us now: @patreon.com/plotwired
[Tesla: Tch… Kevin still doesn't realize that Otto never intended to sincerely cooperate with him, does he?]
[Fu Hua: Most likely… Kevin's goal was merely to stop Otto from obstructing World Serpent's plans. He never truly required Schicksal's cooperation.]
[Welt Yang (Star Rail): Indeed. The two were simply taking what they needed from each other.]
[Welt Yang (Star Rail): Otto needed the beacon of the Second Divine Key, while what Kevin needed was for his plan to proceed as smoothly as possible before the Finality arrived.]
[March 7th: So does that mean… Otto really disappeared from World Serpent's sight afterward??]
[Ruan Mei: Then Otto's final plan… is about to be set in motion?]
[Herta: I'm actually quite curious how Otto plans to realize his mad fantasy.]
[Sparkle: If only there were more people as interesting as Otto~ At least things wouldn't be so boring!]
The negotiations were a great success. Otto finally obtained the Second Divine Key—the one revealed to him through the guidance of the Watcher.
And just as agreed between Otto and Kevin, when Herrscher reactions were detected in Nagazora City, Raiden Mei arrived in search of Kiana.
On the way, she encountered Raven. The two clashed in battle, and in the end, Mei took Kiana with her.
After learning that Kiana had less than two months to live due to the erosion of the Herrscher core, Kevin told Mei of a method to save Kiana—on the condition that Mei join World Serpent.
Meanwhile, after obtaining the beacon, Otto began experiments in Nagazora City with the complete Second Divine Key, opening an Imaginary singularity.
Kiana rode Benares to stop the advance, only to be shot down by an Imaginary construct. Mei arrived and fought the Imaginary construct, but was defeated—
and in that moment, awakened her Herrscher powers!
Before the eyes of all viewers—
The Queen of Thunder was born!
Benares became the Thunder Herrscher's mount, Kurikara!
After the chaos subsided—
Mei joined World Serpent.
Kiana, having lost the Gem of Conquest, had the Herrscher core's power suppressed and was saved, then taken away aboard the Hyperion.
In a dimly lit room,
A man stared thoughtfully at the screen.
The first experiment had yielded results beyond his expectations.
Ding—
A soft chime sounded as a window popped up—
a report from Amber.
Within minutes, reports flooded in.
Raiden Mei had joined World Serpent.
K-423 had been taken away by the Hyperion.
The Fifth Herrscher was about to descend.
The balance of the world might once again be shaken.
But for now—
He didn't wish to concern himself with any of that.
Let Theresa take care of her for a while.
There were still many things he had yet to do.
In March of the same year, Ana became the Fifth Herrscher—the Herrscher of Ice.
World Serpent's Mei, along with Raven and Chen Tianwu, obtained the Staff of Hades to capture the Herrscher core.
Schicksal's Immortal Blades squad was fully deployed.
During the operation, Chen Tianwu defected, anesthetized Raven, and used the Staff of Hades to restrain Mei.
After learning the truth behind everything, Ana's emotions erupted and she became the Ninth Herrscher—the Herrscher of Rock.
In the end, she regained her sanity. To repay Ana for once saving her life, one powerful Herrscher core devoured another, evolving—
The Fused Herrscher, the Herrscher of Rimestar, was born!
Mei recovered the Herrscher core.
Bianka erected a grave for Ana.
The incident came to an end.
But elsewhere—
Something completely unexpected happened.
On the screen—
Within Schicksal Headquarters.
Fu Hua's body…
floated silently inside a treatment pod.
In the darkness,
A lively voice rang out:
"Hey, wake up! You've been sleeping for far too long!"
Another cheerful voice followed:
"Oh, don't try that old trick! Things are different now! Your brain hasn't suffered any damage at all!"
"Hurry up and check your memory bank, figure out who you are—we still have a lot of work to do!"
[Who… am I?]
"Think carefully. You are—"
As the lively voice spoke,
Countless fragments of memory flashed through Fu Hua's mind.
[Memories flooded into your consciousness like a tidal wave, as though they had always been lying in wait for your command.]
[You see many images: a girl standing alone in the freezing wind; a warrior clad in armor, golden sword in hand; a cold, merciless assassin; a transcendent immortal untouched by the world.]
"They are all you."
"They were once you."
"They are parts of you—understand? There's no time to waste. Once your brain signals fluctuate, he'll discover it very soon."
[He?]
The voice of her true self carried a hint of helplessness.
"Otto Apocalypse! Finish reading the memories—he's near the very end!"
"He's the Overseer of Schicksal. Your old friend. The only one who knows you're still alive…"
"A liar. A murderer…"
"We'll talk later. First, look at where you are right now!"
At the urging of the anxious voice,
Fu Hua slowly opened her eyes.
She lay inside a life-support pod, cold, slippery liquid surrounding her body.
"This device is sustaining your life. It seems to have healed all your wounds—including that one."
"Perhaps… this was his atonement."
"Hmph. I'd call it imprisonment instead!"
Even in her confusion,
Fu Hua recognized it.
NX-189—Schicksal's most advanced medical pod.
"Even by the standards of the previous era, it's the most advanced."
Bright lights. Massive instruments. Interwoven cables. Several life-support pods.
The room contained nothing else.
Curves scrolled across huge monitors as red lights flashed.
Fu Hua thought for a moment—
and decided to leave.
She felt her hands, clenched her fists. Her fingers and bones responded with a reassuring solidity.
She felt as if she possessed boundless strength.
This body's condition… was extraordinarily good.
"Do you remember the last time you were this healthy? Five hundred years ago? Maybe. It's been too long—far too long."
"This is the real you. Now—do it!"
With the exchange of thoughts complete,
Fu Hua hesitated no longer.
She punched through the life-support pod.
The liquid enveloping her body poured out completely, taking all pressure with it, leaving behind only lightness and ease.
And at that very moment—
"My old friend! You're finally awake!"
A familiar voice rang out.
Fu Hua turned toward the doorway.
A blond man stood there, smiling.
"That's Otto Apocalypse."
"Your relationship with him is… complicated, to say the least."
"He claims to be your friend—yet he deceived you."
"Won't you greet him? Well, never mind. You've just awakened—you still need observation and treatment."
"Although the results say you've fully recovered, you never regained consciousness. I was always worried something had gone wrong."
"You don't blame me, do you, old friend? Are you… all right? Do you recognize me?"
Otto looked at the silent Fu Hua, a trace of concern on his face.
But outside the screen—
The audience was utterly stunned!!
Otto revived Fu Hua?!
What… was going on?!
[Theresa: It's real… it really is Class Monitor Fu Hua!]
[Raiden Mei: But wasn't Fu Hua… the feather with Kevin…?]
[Fu Hua: Old friend? What exactly are you trying to do?]
[Durandal: Perhaps Overseer Otto never intended to kill Fu Hua in the first place! And Schicksal's technology is advanced enough to heal her!]
[Ningguang: But her injuries back then were clearly fatal, weren't they?!]
[Furina: Even a headshot could be healed…]
[Ruan Mei: On the other hand, Fu Hua is a fusion warrior from the previous era.]
[Keqing: But then—why would Otto do this?]
As Otto smiled,
Fu Hua heard her true self speak again.
"I'd recognize him even if he were ashes! Just tell him that!"
"First, see what he's plotting. We can't attack an unarmed man."
"Huh?! He can pull out a weapon at any moment!"
"Ask him why you're here."
"Why am I here?"
"Because I didn't want you to die."
Otto's answer caught everyone off guard.
Even Fu Hua—who hadn't yet sorted through her thoughts—paused slightly.
Otto Apocalypse gave a self-mocking smile.
"We've known each other a long time, old friend."
"I knew your brain injury wouldn't kill you—but I didn't want to waste twenty years waiting."
"In the end, you owed me nothing. I was the one who shot you."
"So I brought you back. I healed your wounds."
His tone was sincere, gentle—
But her inner voice showed no mercy.
"How skilled he is at disguising his evil."
"He's a venomous snake."
"There's no 'but'! He killed you! He brought Honkai down! He destroyed everyone at St. Freya Academy! He has no remorse at all!"
"Do you really dare trust him again? He'll betray you without hesitation! Think carefully—how did he treat you back then?!"
Within Fu Hua's mind,
Her true self raged fiercely.
The hatred for Otto was far from settled.
Guided by that voice,
Fu Hua's memories surged back.
The elegant man before her had once aimed a golden gun at her forehead.
In that memory, everything was eerily quiet—
except for the thunderous rage pounding in her chest.
"Immortal Red Kite, I did not lie."
The words fell—
followed by a gunshot that echoed across the sky.
The shot rang out.
Her life vanished with it.
Strangely, Fu Hua remembered feeling no pain at the time.
But now, recalling it—
the pain pierced straight through her heart.
"That's it! That pain—make him taste it too!"
"He's the most dangerous man on Earth. His evil scheme must be stopped!"
"And now is the best opportunity, isn't it?"
Slowly—
Driven by her inner consciousness—
Fu Hua, expression calm, stepped toward Otto Apocalypse.
"Wait, old friend… I—"
But in an instant!
Fu Hua moved like lightning!
She gave Otto no chance to continue speaking—
her hand clamped onto his face, freezing the smile there before it could turn to confusion!
Otto Apocalypse looked at her, as if trying to say something.
But with his face gripped tight, only meaningless sounds escaped.
And in the next second—
Before the disbelieving eyes of all viewers—
Fu Hua launched her attack on Otto!
She didn't even give him time to react!!
Punch after punch—
The screen gradually faded to black.
When the image lit up again—
Theresa appeared on screen.
Theresa: "This is the intelligence I've gathered."
Bronya: "…Unbelievable."
Theresa: "Schicksal Headquarters is in complete chaos…"
Theresa: "Multiple areas of the air port are damaged…"
Theresa: "Grandpa… Otto is missing. His status—alive or dead—unknown. Schicksal has faced many crises before, but never anything like this."
As she spoke,
Theresa instinctively called him Grandpa—
then faltered, forcibly correcting herself to Otto.
Clearly, everything that had happened recently had made the man she once called her closest family feel utterly unfamiliar.
"Durandal has taken over Schicksal. It's said that the third S-rank Valkyrie has also been deployed… Even during the Schicksal Civil War, there was never such a mobilization."
"Something serious must have happened ten days ago!"
"But… he won't fall that easily, right? Compared to an Overseer in the open, an Otto lurking in the shadows is far more terrifying."
Theresa muttered to herself—
worried for Otto's safety…
yet unable to ignore the fear that Otto might be quietly plotting another catastrophe.
Her heart was torn.
She didn't want Otto to come to harm.
But she also didn't want him to continue committing evil.
Yet at this moment—
The audience had no attention to spare for any of that.
What they were focused on was—
Otto… missing. Life or death unknown?!
And Schicksal Headquarters in utter chaos!
There was no need for further explanation—
All of this had to be the destruction caused by Fu Hua's awakening!!
So Otto—
Had he been killed by Fu Hua?!
In an instant!
Everyone's hearts trembled—
Almost unable to believe it!
◇ Leave a review and help unlock bonus chapters!For every 10 reviews, I'll drop one extra chapter as a thank-you.
◇ Power Stones = More Content!Every 100 Power Stones will trigger a bonus chapter release. Keep the support coming!
◇ Want early access?Get 60+ chapters ahead on P@treon—plus a limited 6% discount on all tiers.👉 patreon.com/plotwired