"Is this... my sister..."
Delta hands trembled as she watched the screen. An unconscious, two-toned monster lay there while people in white coats passed by with cold indifference. Then, several armored individuals entered the operating room...
"What are you doing to my sister!"
"We aren't doing anything to her." The person in charge adjusted his tie and spoke coldly to the furious Delta. "We are simply sending her to where she belongs. Once we find a way to restore 'heroes' like her to normal, you will be reunited."
Delta stammered blankly, "Restore to normal..."
"Precisely. They are heroes who sacrificed themselves for humanity. Therefore, we will do everything in our power to allow them to regain their human forms."
Seeing Delta desolation, the man raised an eyebrow and tapped the screen a few times. He looked up and said, "By the way, your sister left a message for you before the surgery. Do you want to hear it?"
"I want to hear it!" Delta expression jolted. She reached desperately for the tablet in his hand, but he coldly held it out of her reach.
"Please calm down. Before that, I must tell you one more thing. The agreement your sister signed with us stated that as long as she underwent the surgery, we would provide you with a prosperous life. In other words, no matter what you hear next, you can leave immediately. You won't have to wander anymore or sleep in trash heaps."
"..."
Leave immediately...
Delta face became expressionless. She looked at the man blankly. He said nothing more, simply playing an audio file.
"Big sister, I'm about to undergo surgery. Hehe... I didn't tell you in advance because I knew you'd definitely oppose it."
The familiar voice came from the speaker. Delta lowered her head, biting her lip.
"If you're hearing this, it means my surgery failed. But don't worry, they promised that as long as I took the surgery, they'd give you a good life. You won't have to wander anymore, and you won't have to fight people every day for our food..."
"Also, it's not just for you. This is a sacrifice for humanity—to become a hero, to have an identity to be proud of."
"I've always looked at your back... thinking how wonderful it would be to catch up to you one day. To become a hero like the ones in the fairy tales, just like you..."
"Sister... I'm sorry..."
The audio ended in pure sobbing. The pink-haired girl bit her lip until it bled. She dug her fingers into the flesh of her thigh as she listened to the crying; every sob pierced her heart.
Even the cold man in charge seemed saddened for a moment. He looked silently at the trembling Delta, the ice on his face thawing slightly.
"It's over. You may leave now." He put the tablet away and reached for the consent form in front of Delta. But as his fingers touched the paper, Delta slammed her hand down on it with a thud.
The paper crumpled beneath her grip.
"Give me a pen."
A smile finally appeared on the man's face.
Delta stared at the consent form, her sister's crying echoing in her mind.
She was her sister's hero.
A hero who could make herself and her sister proud.
...
"Bad news."
Mobius walked into the Spiral Workshop and spoke coldly to the busy Vil-V.
"Lin is a wanted man. The charges are betraying Fire Moth to steal classified intelligence, attacking a secret base, and murdering soldiers."
"Mm..." Vil-V placed her design draft into the machine. She was fully focused on the mold inside the machine as it solidified the parts from her drawings. "As expected."
"You knew? Meaning you knew he was acting on his own? Why didn't you stop him?"
Mobius tone was calm, but her eyes were devoid of warmth, looking at Vil-V back like a true cold-blooded predator.
"Once Lin decides on something, no one can stop him. Instead of letting him do it secretly and silently, I chose to give him a hand."
"So this is the result of your help?" Mobius sneered. "Now, he's a traitor."
Vil-V put on her goggles and heat-resistant gloves, opened the machine's hatch, and took out the finished parts to begin assembly. "Mobius, we both understand that the rulers of Fire Moth—their will is the will of Fire Moth. They provide all the resources, power, and economy. Even if I wanted to expand the Spiral Workshop by ten square meters, I'd need their approval. It's not so much that members of Fire Moth constitute the organization; it's that they are Fire Moth."
"Even if Lin discovered their secrets hidden in the shadows, what of it? Condemn them for being inhumane? Call them traitors? Send them to the guillotine?"
"Don't be ridiculous. It is because of them that Fire Moth can utilize such massive resources to fight the Honkai. Those who don't agree are free to leave, but only through the existence of this organization—which virtually dominates human society, politics, and economy—can humanity stand against the Honkai. Therefore, to Fire Moth, Lin is the traitor."
"Even if Kevin killed them all, it would only cause the organization to collapse. At that point, things would only get worse."
She adjusted the parts in her hand and said softly, "So, this result was as expected."
"Didn't you say you liked that idiot? Since you understand the reasons so clearly, why act so indifferent now?" Mobius narrowed her eyes, her slitted pupils shrinking. "Or are you just acting? Do you want to stay in Fire Moth and keep inventing your junk? Just sit still and hope the high command lets you lead the Divine Key project again?"
"Dr. Mobius, sometimes you aren't very good at hiding your emotions. For instance, right now, you are actually furious beyond measure."
Vil-V assembled the final piece, smiled, and placed the object on the floor. "I've finished the transport device you requested. You can use it to move around from now on. I gave the blueprints to Mei; if there's a problem, you can ask her for repairs."
"Wait." Mobius caught something in her final sentence. "What do you mean by that?"
"I mean..." Vil-V pulled out a prepared suitcase, put on her top hat, and curled her lips. "From this moment on, I am also a traitor."
Mobius looked at her in disbelief. "Are you joking?"
"Pointing a sword of rebellion toward the heavens... don't you think that's cool?"
Vil-V carried her suitcase past Mobius.
"Don't worry, Dr. Mobius. We will return one day, and that day won't be too far off." A mysterious smile played on her beautiful face, just like before every magic performance. "Those at the top dominate everything below them. However, there are always exceptions."
"..." Mobius frowned, seemingly catching a deeper meaning in Vil-V words.
"Then, I'll take my leave. I'm sure that when I return, I can fully devote myself to the Divine Key project... provided I'm not pregnant at the time."
"Hey..."
Vil-V waved without looking back and vanished at the end of the corridor.