The headquarters of Anti-Entropy is located in North America, and it has multiple bases.
Cocolia, who was imprisoned, was not in the Salt Lake base.
Currently, Anti-Entropy had relocated its headquarters to the Yellowstone base.
Underground detention zone.Clack!
The iron gate of a solitary cell opened from the outside.
A gray-haired girl with matching gray eyes walked in.
She wore two coiled twin tails and a brown female uniform.
Her legs, from the thighs down to her feet, had been replaced with mechanical prosthetics.
From inside the cell, someone watched her.
—Bronya!
Cocolia couldn't hide her joy.—Why are you here?
She hurried forward a few steps and tightly embraced the young girl.
Perhaps, at that moment, her motherly love was real.
But if we speak of the past...
That motherly love included subjecting her daughter to human experimentation.
Implanting a biochip into her head.
Staying alone in luxury hotels while her daughter couldn't even afford cake.
Forcing her daughter's body to hurt her best friend.
Cocolia's maternal love was something most people could never accept.
But now, having lost everything, she was no longer as desperate as before.
And finally, she let her true emotions show.
In response...
—Mama Cocolia —the gray-haired girl spoke calmly—, we've come to ask you something.
—The situation is critical. We hope you'll cooperate.
—New Herrschers have appeared.
With just those few words...
BAM!!!
Cocolia's heart skipped a beat.
New Herrschers?
Again?
Deep down... she didn't want to hear it.
She knew very well what she had done.
She no longer wanted her image to grow even worse in her daughter's mind.
Even so...
—Alright! Ask me anything you need.
—Bronya, I'll tell you everything I know.
Cocolia loosened the hug, but her hands still rested on the girl's shoulders, unwilling to let go.
She wanted to be closer to her daughter, even just for a moment.
It was then that...
—A few years ago, when you triggered the artificial collapse in Changkong City, you gave the order to capture a young man with black hair.
The girl asked directly:—Why did you do it?
—What was so special about that boy?
—Where did you first hear about him?
Upon hearing those questions...
—Uh~
Cocolia hadn't expected Bronia to be so blunt.
But she quickly recalled.
And answered seriously:
—Back then, to ensure the success of the artificial collapse, I set up many surveillance devices throughout Changkong City.
—And it was strange...
She frowned.
—That black-haired boy, who looked Chinese, was clearly just an ordinary person. But for some reason, he knew in advance what was going to happen.
—He told Raiden Mei about it... that is, your sister Mei.
The gray-haired girl reacted slightly, but said nothing.
—Tch...
Cocolia showed a strange expression.
—At that time, Raiden Mei probably hadn't come into contact with anything related to Honkai yet.
—Raiden Ryoma protected her very well.
—So when she encountered that boy, not knowing anything, she didn't trust him and called the police.
—After all, for a girl ignorant of the truth about the world, anything related to Honkai would sound far too fantastical, right?
—That's why my subordinates intercepted her call, and then...
—Heh!
The gray-haired girl suddenly smiled.
That smile twisted into a mad grin, as if her entire demeanor had changed. Cocolia was stunned.
Instinctively, as though shocked by electricity, she pulled her hands away from the girl's shoulders.
And in her sight...
—Heh, heh, heh! HAHAHAHAHA!
The girl burst out laughing uncontrollably, completely ignoring Cocolia. She seemed possessed by overwhelming madness.
She clutched her stomach, unable to straighten up from laughing so hard.
—Seriously... what a ridiculous reason.
—Clown! Buffoon!
—"Ling Ke, you're useless, a lapdog, a total [beep~]."
—So emotional, so self-righteous... proclaiming that your sister's world was beautiful, but in the end, she didn't even believe you.
—She reported you without a second thought! HAHAHA!
Laughing like a maniac, cursing, utterly deranged.
And then, Cocolia realized.
Her own daughter... Bronia, rarely referred to herself as "I."
—You... who are you?
She backed away several steps, her face pale, terrified by the revelation.
That behavior...
—Hello, dear Cocolia-mama-mama~
The gray-haired girl stared straight at her.
She twisted her head unnaturally, as if her neck might snap.
—I deliberately made my flaws obvious... and you still didn't notice I'm not your daughter?
—What a failure. A complete failure.
—That's your "motherly love"?
—In the end, just like me, you're nothing but a "loser"!
It was then that...
Tac tac tac!
Hurried footsteps echoed in the hallway.
And in seconds...
—You!
Another gray-haired girl appeared at the cell gate.
Bronya Zaychik.
Behind her stood several members of Anti-Entropy's special squad.
And also...
Some familiar faces to Ling Ke, still etched in his memory.
—Who are you?
Bronya asked automatically.
There was no way that this girl in front of her, who shared her face, was actually her.
But as she said it, she instantly realized:
—You're Ling Ke? That... Herrscher?
Bronya identified him instantly.
She had never imagined he could shapeshift.
Nor did she know it wasn't transformation in the traditional sense.
After wiping out more than 30,000 people in the West Asia branch, Ling Ke had unlocked a character template from the game:
[Character Template: "Silver Wolf's Dawn"]
Origin: Honkai Impact 3rd
Traits: Level mechanism, life regeneration, unlimited stamina, full equipment, superpower attributes, physical core, stun effect, weakness debuff, space-time core, shapeshifting...
Game Skills: Basic Attack – Heavy Particle Cannon, Dodge – Virtual Flash, Special – Explosive Impact, Ultimate – Roaring Charge, Captain Skill – Harmonic Resonance.
Additional Talents: High Honkai adaptability, world's number one assassin, firearms expert, elite diver, high IQ (180), financial guru, programming expert, top hacker, elite gamer...
Extra Note: Real name: Bronia Zaychik. This armor was used during her time in Anti-Entropy. The earrings were a gift from her "mother"...
And now...
—Long time no see.
The fake Bronia in the cell, standing in front of Cocolia, smiled sarcastically at the real Bronia.
—Tell me, am I your dark past?
—A malicious shadow you cast into hell yourself, now returning...?
She raised her left hand.
Clank!
A massive cannon materialized at her side.
It pointed directly at Cocolia.
—Stop!
Reflexively, Bronia shouted while raising her mechanical bunny.
From the side, her weapon aimed at the wicked-smiling impostor.
Behind her stood two more figures: one with white hair, and another of ambiguous identity (gray hair?), both on high alert.
Weapons already drawn.
And instantly recognizable.
—Kiana Kaslana... and...
—Should I call you Hua? Or Fu Hua?
The fake Bronia deliberately spoke aloud:
—Huh? Where's Raiden Mei?
—Bronya's already reunited with her Xi'er, but... what about you, Mei?
—Oh right, right...
—Mei is now the World Serpent!
—The true Herrscher of the Thousands from back then...