I never would have guessed that this sickly-looking guy would pull a stunt like this.
As a witness to the New York incident, Schrödinger found the whole "pretending to be Welt" affair rather strange, even with her usually calm and collected personality.
Especially Lin Wei's effortless control when "casually" using the Herrscher's authority, coupled with Cocolia actually calling out that significant name, further deepened the sense of absurdity.
"Lord Welt..."
Cocolia slightly lowered her usually proud head, suppressing the annoyance of being inexplicably toyed with. "Your Lordship's appearance is ever-changing. Please forgive my failure to recognize you in a timely manner," she said, her tone as steady as she could manage.
Lin Wei's appearance was indeed completely different from the Welt she remembered, and his sudden appearance before her, an Executive of Anti-Entropy, in this unfamiliar form was certainly questionable.
However, the moment he nonchalantly demonstrated his control over gravity, all doubts vanished.
After all, compared to a physical appearance that could be easily altered, the unique Herrscher authority was the irreplaceable mark of the Sovereign of Anti-Entropy.
No matter how many questions she had, as a subordinate, she could only suppress them for now.
"Hehe, cough... It's not your fault, Cocolia. My appearance was indeed a bit sudden."
Lin Wei coughed and smiled, retracting the small bit of gravitational authority he had been exerting. He pointed his walking stick at the messy battlefield in the distance and ordered, "Tell them to stop. This should be a misunderstanding."
His tone was completely natural, as if he really were Welt. Schrödinger's strange feeling intensified.
"Yes, my lord."
Cocolia showed no signs of objection. With a wave of her hand, all the mecha silently put away their weapons. Only then did she say, "It seems today's farce was indeed related to you."
Unconditionally following orders was her duty as an Executive of Anti-Entropy, but that didn't mean Cocolia didn't need an explanation.
Lin Wei secretly observed this other-world Cocolia, feeling that she was much calmer and more calculating than the woman he remembered.
The massive "firework" could be seen by Bronya and Seele a few kilometers away, and by Cocolia's Orphanage dozens of kilometers away.
Therefore, when he fired that signal flare, Lin Wei had already prepared for uninvited guests.
His plan was simple: use Pandora's Box, the Ninth Divine Key, to demonstrate control over gravity, thereby "impersonating" Welt, to either repel or simply take down the meddlesome Cocolia, and successfully meet up with Seele.
He just hadn't expected that both groups would arrive at almost the same time, and that Bronya would be there with a pink-haired girl in boy's clothes, who must be... Sin?
This was indeed a bit delicate...
His Stigmata hadn't recovered, and the suddenly emaciated Lin Wei was practically an empty shell. He might be able to take down Cocolia, and maybe even restrain Bronya and Sin, who would fight for her out of resentment, but... what about Seele?
Therefore, Lin Wei hoped to resolve this sudden incident as peacefully as possible. To that end, against Schrödinger's advice, he had risked coming out to meet Cocolia in his original, thin clothes.
After all, that unprocessed bearskin was too bulky and completely at odds with the "First Herrscher" persona he was trying to portray.
Such an "out-of-character" performance would greatly reduce the credibility of his identity.
This caution was justified, because this Bronya had some subtle differences from her original world counterpart, and Cocolia's changes were shockingly immense.
If it were the Cocolia from the original world, her cunning was extremely shallow. After being almost forced to her knees by his authority, an act of near-rebellion, she probably would have immediately questioned him with furious indignation. How could she be so subtly menacing now?
She's not going to be easy to deal with... Lin Wei thought to himself. He didn't answer Cocolia's question, but instead asked at a leisurely pace, "How is the X-10 experiment progressing?"
As the Sovereign of Anti-Entropy, I have no obligation to answer a subordinate's questions. "Welt-Lin" subtly gave her a small warning.
Since he was already playing the role of a superior, he should be forceful and domineering to the end.
"...Not well, but it is still progressing steadily."
Cocolia's heart skipped a beat. She glanced at the somewhat disheveled Bronya and Sin in the distance and replied, "Two of these three children are participants in the next phase of the experiment, and the other one..."
The suddenly unfamiliar Seele filled Cocolia's heart with questions. "Your Lordship summoning the three of them to this place... could it be that you wish to personally participate in this project?"
If you're here to rush the progress, then you can do it yourself!
"Hehe, cough... I already said, this is a misunderstanding."
Lin Wei, wearing thin summer clothes in the -30 degree cold, endured the extreme chill. His gaze lingered for a moment on Seele, who was rushing toward them, and he said honestly, "I'm just interested in her..."
"Seele..."
This ambiguous answer fit with some of Cocolia's own suspicions. "It seems," she said, understanding, "that Your Lordship is aware of the changes that have occurred in this child?"
Faced with Lin Wei's misleading words, Cocolia's thoughts were in a turmoil. She felt both uneasy and unwilling. She didn't know what dangerous plans the Sovereign had for her daughter.
As an Executive of Anti-Entropy, should she continue to follow orders, or...
Her loyalty to Anti-Entropy and her love for the children clashed at this moment, causing Cocolia's mind to wander for a second. She didn't notice Lin Wei taking advantage of this brief opening to shoot Seele, who was now close by, a look that said, "Stay calm."
The one here now should be Veliona, right? Lin Wei was afraid this unstable factor would ruin his act. I hope this girl is smart enough. If she just blurts out my real name later, this whole play will be ruined!
"...?"
Veliona also noticed Lin Wei's gaze and was taken aback. She had been worried that Cocolia would harm Lin Wei, but now, looking at the relationship between them... why did they seem to be getting along so well?
Noticing that Lin Wei didn't seem to be in any immediate danger, both Seeles felt a sense of relief amidst their surprise. Veliona, still in control of the body, cautiously approached, wanting to see what the two of them were up to.
Seeing that Seele seemed to have understood his intention, Lin Wei was satisfied and looked away. Adopting the tone of the [Sovereign of Anti-Entropy], he calmly answered Cocolia's question.
"This girl named Seele, the Stigmata on her body has begun to awaken. It's natural for there to be some unexpected manifestations, just like with Raiden Ryoma's daughter."
"Stigmata? How did I not..."
"How did you know?" Seele's cry of surprise made Cocolia swallow the "know" that was on the tip of her tongue. That's right, the Sovereign is always so elusive. How would he know?
"Hehe, let's just say I have a special sense for these things." Lin Wei shook his head, his expression turning slightly serious. "I see these children are exhausted. If the X-10 experiment has not made any progress, for safety's sake, I suggest we pause it for a while. After I've done some research on Miss Seele's Stigmata, we can restart the project."
Here, Lin Wei said with a sigh, "We can't just let the children you've adopted be sacrificed for nothing, can we?"
"..."
Cocolia admitted that what he said was tempting, but only a little. She shook her head and said coldly, "Schicksal is pressing us at every turn. I'm afraid we don't have much time to waste."
The fact that the laboratory had to be located at the bottom of the Nattac Strait, far from the European continent, to avoid Schicksal's ever-present surveillance, showed just how precarious Anti-Entropy's situation was.
"Schicksal? Hehe... cough, cough..."
Having been exposed to the cold in thin clothes for too long, Lin Wei felt increasingly unwell. He couldn't help but cough violently a few times, then forced a relaxed tone. "A few days ago, I had a little run-in with Schicksal's Otto and a few of their S-rank Valkyries. They probably won't have much free time in the near future."
Veliona remained silent, just watching quietly and complaining to Seele in her mind, This guy Lin Wei is probably bluffing.
Although Lin Wei said it lightly, a little thought would reveal how thrilling it would have been if it were true.
Because he was wearing the "Welt" persona, Cocolia didn't doubt him too much. She was just astonished and confused. "I haven't detected any unusual movements from Schicksal recently?"
A major battle between the Sovereign of Anti-Entropy, the First Herrscher, and a core member of Schicksal—if such a thing had really happened, how could it have been kept quiet?
A major battle that happened in another world, of course you can't detect it here, Lin Wei complained silently.
Although Cocolia had her doubts, out of respect for Welt, she didn't consider the possibility that "Welt was lying." Because the Lord Welt standing before her had looked weak and fragile from the moment he appeared, which made her uncertain. "You... are injured?"
"Hehe, cough... just a minor injury." Lin Wei refused Cocolia's offer of support and smiled with forced ease. "He laid a trap for me and invited me to be his 'guest.' But he's not having a good time now either..."
This was the truth. After such a mutually destructive battle, Schicksal was on the verge of collapse. The disgraced Otto was probably still tearing his hair out over the wavering loyalty of his subordinates.
Although this all happened in the original world and had nothing to do with this world, it didn't stop Lin Wei from bragging about it in front of Cocolia.
Never mind if we're on different servers. The question is, is what I'm saying true or not!
Cocolia was now in a state of confusion.
Her intelligence network had been monitoring Schicksal and had detected nothing unusual, let alone the major battle "Lord Welt" had spoken of.
But he said it with such conviction, and his weakened state didn't seem to be an act.
After much thought, she could only conclude that the intelligence network she had built was no match for Schicksal's, and that even such a major event could be easily suppressed.
This conclusion made her both angry and unwilling to accept it.
"If there's nothing else, you can leave. Seele will stay and assist me with some necessary research. I will return her to you, unharmed, tomorrow or the day after."
Lin Wei saw that both Bronya and Sin couldn't help but glance at Cocolia after he said this, so he added with a timely smile, "Don't worry, I'll be nearby. I won't leave. If you're worried, you two can stay as well and keep your Seele company."
"..."
Veliona was speechless. She had just realized something. It seemed like there was no need to fight anymore. The matter was about to be resolved amicably?!
What just happened?
What did Lin Wei just do?
What did I miss?
She looked around with a confused expression, but no one could give her an answer.
"...Yes, my lord."
Cocolia wanted to say more.
But "Welt" had clearly stated his request, deadline, and promise, so she couldn't press any further. Her questions and confusion would have to wait for another day.
A blue light flashed, and Cocolia's mecha units retreated one by one. Cocolia gave Lin Wei and Seele a deep look, then teleported away as well, leaving the three girls staring at each other, at a loss, and Lin Wei, still standing in the snow as if petrified.
"..."
He held on for a few more moments. After confirming that Cocolia had left, Lin Wei's tense nerves finally relaxed. His vision went black, and he nearly collapsed. Schrödinger appeared in time to support him. "That was too reckless."
"Hehe, sorry," Lin Wei smiled lightly. "At least we avoided a meaningless conflict. Isn't that a good outcome?"
---||---
"Who was that ghostly woman?"
On the mountain ridge not far behind them, Cocolia had appeared at some point. She watched Lin Wei and the others leave, and naturally noticed the sudden appearance of Schrödinger, of whom she had no memory.
But that didn't matter.
"Heh, in the end, you still don't trust me." Cocolia sneered. She had also seen the weakness "Welt" had shown after she left.
She turned and walked away, issuing an inconspicuous new order into her communicator. "Send some medical supplies to this location."
With that, she disappeared in a flash of blue light.
Now, she had more important things to do. Since the X-10 experiment was on hold, she planned to use this time to overhaul and strengthen her weak intelligence network.
Whether it was caution or distrust, she didn't care. She was just doing her duty.
As for her three daughters...
Whether they were really research assistants or hostages while the Sovereign recovered...
Cocolia still sneered at this question. When the Sovereign returned them next time, she would demand an explanation!