"Although the North American executive has faced political impeachment and public condemnation, he still wields unimaginable power—power derived from the vast network of influence he secretly built."
"Even though North America is currently in turmoil because of the Fourth Honkai Eruption, as one of MOTH's senior leaders, he still stands at the very top of the pyramid of power. Many of his political enemies covet his position and would love nothing more than to drag him down."
"If we point the finger at the North American executive just like that, we may only be doing exactly what the mastermind wants, allowing them to reap the benefits while others fight."
"If we want to identify the culprit with certainty, we'll need to make contact again."
Vill-V pinched the bridge of her nose and asked, "Is there any way to force him to show his true colors?"
"Luring a snake out of its hole requires sufficiently tempting bait," Dr. Mei replied, rejecting the idea. "And the chips we currently have aren't valuable enough."
Vill-V glanced at Dr. Newton, who was sprawled over a pillow on top of a desk, snoring away without the slightest idea that she had just been designated as bait.
"A director of MOTH's Engineering Department really isn't valuable enough."
"Unless..."
Vill-V's gaze met Dr. Mei's. She tapped the little top hat on her head and declared, "Use fire!"
"Vill-V, it seems we're thinking along the same lines." Dr. Mei nodded. Bracing both hands against the edge of the desk, she straightened her back, a razor-sharp light gleaming behind her glasses. "Since the snake refuses to leave its hole, we'll smoke it out with fire. Since we're MOTH, it should get a taste of real flames."
Kevin and Sakura sat obediently behind the desks, listening to the two women talk. They exchanged baffled looks, completely unable to follow what was going on.
Do you smart people always have to talk in riddles like this?
Can't you say something normal people can actually understand?
Seeing their bewildered expressions, Dr. Mei tapped on the keyboard and projected her computer screen onto the wall.
Displayed on the screen was an intricate web of relationships between MOTH and various organizations.
Pointing at the diagram with a laser pointer, Dr. Mei explained, "MOTH isn't a purely independent organization. Although it was originally established by the Human Union, MOTH has already grown into a colossal monster within human society."
"This monster possesses enormous amounts of technology powerful enough to reshape the world. The difference is comparable to that between the Industrial Age and the Agricultural Age. If this monster were ever unleashed, it would be enough to devour the entire world."
"That is why MOTH, this monster, has always been tightly restrained by the Seven-Person Council, the Human Union, and the United Nations."
"As an organization founded to serve as humanity's idealistic vanguard, the senior members of MOTH's council are anonymous individuals selected under the 'MOTH Project' according to the circumstances of the world's seven major regions."
"While in office, they are granted authority to mobilize most of their region's resources, while they themselves effectively stand outside the law."
"That also means every MOTH councilor enjoys an extraordinary status."
Vill-V nodded as she listened. These people were essentially the public-facing Wallfacers of the Three-Body world. Without undergoing review by the governing authorities of their respective nations, they could directly mobilize national resources to carry out their own plans.
Such a system was brilliant in the Three-Body world. In the Previous Era... it had become a joke.
The world of Honkai was even more brutally realistic than the Three-Body world. The inequalities and darkness of human nature were laid bare here.
Those capable of climbing to the top of the pyramid would never be impartial saints. They would be sophisticated ideologues skilled at manipulating people's hearts.
Whether they were egoists, exclusionists, escapists, or pacifists...
In the end, they were all people who saw only a fragment of the whole and would lead humanity down the wrong path based on their own narrow perspective.
A council system like this would only fragment humanity's strength even further and deepen its divisions.
And the mastermind who initiated Cocoon had probably realized this as well, so they had simply decided to let these people slaughter one another until a final wrong path emerged victorious.
Even if that path led straight to a dead end.
Vill-V could already foresee what would happen if Cocoon were allowed to continue developing. Once a final victor emerged among MOTH's leadership, human civilization would inevitably be driven into madness under that person's command.
Never mind whether human civilization could overcome the Honkai. The thought of an insane human civilization alone was terrifying.
Nuclear winter would probably count as one of the mildest possible endings.
That was why Vill-V and Dr. Mei rejected Project Cocoon so strongly, even though the project genuinely had a fairly high chance of stimulating humanity's survival potential.
But an insane human civilization would eventually destroy itself even without the Honkai.
That would simply become another kind of moth flying into the flame.
"Mm."
Sakura nodded, her expression unchanged. A ruthless assassin was always good at concealing her emotions.
Drawing parallels from her own experiences, Sakura could also imagine the madness humanity might ultimately descend into.
"Then what exactly do you mean by this fire?"
Snap. A cheerful flame sprang to life at Vill-V's fingertips.
"Why, naturally, it's going to be a spectacular, breathtaking fireworks show performed by yours truly, Magician, before the eyes of the entire world! Whoosh, whoosh!"
Dr. Mei's answer was far more rational and concise. "Honkai."
Fine. Neither explanation really explained anything. Kevin and the others could only wait for them to explain their explanations.
So Dr. Mei elaborated:
"In the eyes of ordinary people, Honkai is a raging fire that devours anyone it touches."
"But in the eyes of those senior figures behind the scenes, it is kindling capable of generating limitless value."
"Of course, he would never use himself as fuel. The firewood will always be other people."
...
A bodyguard in a neatly tailored suit entered the gravity chamber of NASA's North American space center.
The room was extremely dim, shadows swallowing the bodyguard's features.
A dumbbell rang out with a crisp metallic sound, echoing throughout the spacious gravity chamber.
A man in a spacesuit was doing sit-ups while holding an enormous dumbbell.
Still lifting the heavy weight, the muscles in his arms bulging with exertion as sweat slowly ran down his neck and arms, the man calmly asked, "So, has Forget-Me-Not taken care of everything?"
The bodyguard respectfully lowered his head. "Yes. Everything was carried out according to your instructions. We've already received the photographs confirming Dr. Newton's death."
No one would ever have imagined that this active-duty astronaut was the North American executive who held tremendous power within MOTH, as well as the king who ruled the dark side of the world—"Lucifer."
Lucifer continued mechanically lifting the dumbbell, which was even larger than he was, showing no reaction whatsoever to the news, as though the death of a MOTH department director were no more than a trivial matter.
That was hardly surprising. After all, more MOTH department directors had died at "Lucifer's" hands than could be counted on both hands.
Dr. Newton's predecessor as director of the Engineering Department had likewise died by his hand.