Wow, this conversation had been incredibly awkward.
I lingered in the Sea of Quanta after finishing negotiations with Kevin, browsing the various World Bubbles for anything interesting. That's when I spotted a somewhat familiar scenario.
Hey, look! It's good guy Otto—Priest Otto! So this is one of the World Bubbles that Bronya passes through. I should check it out.
I had entered the Sea of Quanta using the Second Divine Key and carried the Gem of Desire. I hadn't encountered Welt yet, but I had already found Kevin.
He had come as soon as they had felt the Herrscher Gem.
"Hello, Pioneer Kevin," I said, all conviviality and soft hands. He stared at me for a long, uncomfortable while. Honestly, I was beginning to think my face had been replaced with a riddle, which Kevin was quite fond of.
"You… your body contains something unique. I have never seen anything like it," he eventually said.
"It's Abundance Path energy. It can delete Honkai Energy. Pretty neat, right?" I tossed the line like a party trick
Kevin had to kick his brain into high gear, which for him was second gear, at best.
"Delete Honkai Energy… like Seline?" he said finally.
"Think of it that way," I agreed. Then I produced the Herrscher Gem, carefully enclosed in a clear container so I would not be tempted to cuddle it, which would be bad. "Now, I know what you want. I can give it to you, but I need a couple of things."
He blinked. "What stops me from disabling you and taking it?"
"Well, if you touch me, or if I attack you with the Abundance Energy, all your Honkai Energy will be deleted. There's no way to recover it here in the Sea of Quanta. Since you're a MANTIS, that would kill you after a while, and I'd rather not do that."
"What… do you want?"
"Not much," I said breezily. "Two things. First, the Beacon to the cosmic juggernaut."
"That is how you arrived here? What happened with Su?"
"Su spent most of his time observing the future, he entrusted the Second Divine Key to me, and chose his successor, before moving on." I explained
"So… he is dead?"
"Nope. Just busy playing a game with higher-dimensional beings. He'll be back… eventually." He'll return to play with Sa in Version 4.
"He told you about Project Stigmata?" Kevin asked.
"I know all about Project Stigmata, but I'm still going to let you out for a few reasons. First, if humanity can't surpass you, Project Stigmata serves as a backup. Second, letting you out in a way that causes the least damage is nice, especially since the World Serpent might do something crazy."
"You don't want me to kill that Herrscher."
"Well, yes, actually. In fact, I have something for you."
I reached into my waist pouch and pulled out a stack of papers stapled together. I stepped toward Kevin, who backed away cautiously.
"Here, take this," I said, placing it on the ground and stepping back.
He picked it up and read the first few lines. I'd had Shamash ensure it was written in the Previous Eras version of English.
"A script?" Kevin asked, confused.
"Yes. You just need to act it out. That way, everyone gets what they want… mostly. Well, Welt dies, but he'll recover," I said.
And that was that. Well, aside from the negotiations, which dragged on for another five hours. I had to explain almost everything: the script, my abilities, what exactly I was seeking the imaginary tree for, why I behaved as I did, what happened to Su, and more.
Now, back to the World Bubble with Bronya.
Butterfly effect, sure was a thing wasn't it!
While I did say that I could help Bronya with her problems, the problem was that it was a different problem than I was expecting to have to deal with!
Seele's voice cut through the quiet, soft but firm. "Bronya, remember what I said earlier? That you'll have to make up for it."
I watched Bronya meet Seele's gaze. Their hands were still clasped together. The simple contact seemed to ground them, tethering their tension just enough to let a fragile warmth slip through. It was… nice, quite satisfying to watch.
…And meanwhile, I was still trying to figure out why that little speech I'd just given had worked. Honestly, I'd made most of it up on the spot, it just sounded profound enough to pass as wisdom. I wasn't even sure what half of it meant.
But hey, if it helped, it helped.
I wasn't really sure what would happen now that Bronya no longer needed to "resolve" this world.
After I'd first healed Priest Otto and everyone had been kicked out, he told me he was perfectly fine with dying. I'd asked if everyone else was perfectly fine with that too, and that was that.
So now, I had no idea how this was supposed to wrap up. Maybe the World Bubble would just… fade away. Maybe it wouldn't.
Either way, I hoped I could at least help Bronya get past what was still holding her back.
Honestly, I hadn't thought this through that far. It was complete improvisation, something I definitely shouldn't be doing.
Still, I figured I might as well have some kind of finisher. So I stood, brushed the snow from my pants, and said to the two of them, "You both seem to have some unresolved issues."
After all, Dark Seele had shown up earlier just to question me about that bit I'd tossed out regarding multiple Previous Eras. Bronya definitely was unaware of Dark Seele's existence at this point.
I turned and started walking back toward the orphanage, leaving Bronya and Seele standing alone on the hill, facing each other beneath the quiet snowfall.
As I approached the orphanage, little Joachim suddenly appeared, though this time, his presence felt entirely different. The light, timid air he usually carried was gone, replaced by something heavier.
"Hello, little Joachim," I greeted, keeping up the illusion.
"Lee," he said flatly. "What are you doing here?"
"I don't know what you're on about~" I replied lightly.
His expression didn't change. "I know you're the real Lee. How did you even manage to get here?"
I tilted my head. "What makes you think I'm the Lee you know at all? I'm just a lonely little priest of the Abundance."
"There are no versions of Lee in any Bubble in the Sea of Quanta," he said coldly.
I smiled faintly. "Figured that out after only four months, huh?"
"I'm just here to play my part," I said. "But I found this interesting little Bubble world. I wanted to see Bronya again, help her with her problems. Too bad I wasn't very good at helping."
"Actually," Joachim said quietly, "what you said had a profound impact on Bronya. Coming from someone who she thought was dead."
"Huh. Well, good thing after all then," I replied, a little surprised.
He folded his arms. "So… how are you here?"
"Oh, that?" I smiled. "I had a little help getting here."
His tone sharpened. "Something tells me you're not here to help out."
"Hey! I am very helpful," I said, feigning offense. "I've already done a great deal! And besides, I finally got the last piece I needed, so it looks like I won't be around to bother you for much longer, only a few months left!"
"What are you planning?" Joachim asked, voice low and steady.
"I just want to see everyone get their happy ending," I said. "I meant what I told Bronya, to pass the trial, to beat the Honkai. Actually…" I smiled faintly. "I do know the solution after all."
"And what exactly is it?"
"I can't tell you. Not now, not here. But you might get your chance. Just wait a few months, everything will be revealed."
His eyes narrowed. "You're not planning to help Kevin, are you?"
I activated a silent ping to Shamash and tilted my head. "What makes you think I haven't already?~"
Little Welt's expression shifted in an instant, before he stepped back.
"Why would you do that."
Lucky right now he wasn't very much of a threat, having to spend all his energy on protecting his core from Kevin.
"Well, lets just say I have some idea of how things will all play out, and this is all part of the grand plan."
"Ha, your just like Otto after all."
"Well, I mean, I'm not doing it for selfish reasons, so I am okay with playing the bad guy, after all, if I was selfish I probably could have left this world a long time ago. But then this world would be destroyed by the Honkai, not exactly something I want."
I pressed a button on my communicator, signaling Shamash to open a portal right behind me.
"Its time for me to leave for now. See you again under the countless stars."
I quickly backed up into the portal that had suddenly appeared
"Close it!" I shouted as the portal sealed behind me. After all, I wouldn't know what to do if Little Welt decided to follow me through the portal, even if it was only a part of him.
As the portal vanished, I sighed.
Well, that was... something. I mean, nothing major had happened, but I honestly shouldn't have interfered, I could have changed the outcome.
That was definitely the last time I was doing anything unscripted ever again.
A few seconds later, the Divine Key's comm system buzzed with an incoming call, from Otto, of course.
I patched it through to the wall monitor in the chamber. His face appeared, looking far too pleased with himself.
"How did it go?" he asked, voice practically humming with anticipation.
I sighed and held up the beacon. It was smaller than I'd expected, looking just like a grey cube for something so important that could change everything. A dense lattice of Soulium gleamed faintly under the chamber lights.
"The beacon," Otto breathed.
"Yes," I said. "You can start your research."
"I'll need the Divine Key back in the lab," Otto warned. "That means it won't be staying on the moon base any longer."
"I've got all the data I need," I replied. "Further lunar exploration isn't that important anymore."
"What about Kevin?" Otto asked.
"He has his little script for the upcoming events," I said. "Just for his exit from the Sea of Quanta. It's nothing he wouldn't have done anyway, it's more of a vague outline than anything concrete."
"I still don't understand why you think all this is necessary."
"Well, to be strictly honest, it isn't that necessary," I admitted.
"Then why do it?"
I shrugged. "It makes me less anxious. Something familiar feels better than something completely different."
Otto gave a faint laugh. "You really do seem to have an anxiety problem."
"Whatever," I muttered. "I'll send over the beacon and the Second Divine Key now. The Valkyries will stay on the moon base for the time being, and so will I. But we'll need somewhere to place them once Kolosten is ready. It's not like the Divine Key will be around after that."
"Already ahead of you," Otto said smoothly. "And the installations at Kolosten are complete."
"Hopefully this plays out according to plan."