"What are you talking about?" The eyes of 'Welt' were filled with hatred as he looked at this unknown Valkyrie before him. "Who exactly are you?!"
He was clearly the invincible 'Welt', so how could he suffer such a defeat at the hands of a nameless nobody?
Intense anger drove him to twist his body, struggling against the chains until they rattled clamorously. He wanted to rouse the Honkai energy within his body, but the energy that originally flowed through him was now like stone, completely unresponsive to his command.
"Sigh, you really are weak." Irene lifted 'Welt' by the scruff of his neck. "Mn, looking at it this way, it seems Cocolia didn't give you anything to call for help either."
"She treated you as a consumable item, didn't she?"
As Irene spoke, she patted the pockets inside 'Welt's' clothes. Given this guy's flamboyant personality, if he had anything, he certainly wouldn't hide it deeply; it would be right on his person, like in his pockets.
Just as Irene thought, she quickly fished out a few ampoules from 'Welt's' pocket, along with something that looked like a smoke grenade.
"Heh, she didn't even leave you a mobile phone." Irene looked at the items in her hand and shook her head. It seemed she wouldn't be able to get anything out of this guy's mouth. But that made sense; he was just a clone, after all.
If he completed the mission, great. If he couldn't complete the mission and was abandoned directly, there wouldn't be any issues either. Cocolia probably didn't expect this guy to accomplish anything from the start.
Not even leaving a method of contact suggested she probably intended for him to go to a rendezvous point for recovery only after completing the mission.
Understanding this, Irene couldn't be bothered to waste her breath. She was destined not to get any information from the mouth of someone who knew nothing. As for his purpose in coming here...
There was no need to ask. One goal was definitely the Herrscher of Thunder, Raiden Mei, and the other was her. Whatever else might be said about Cocolia, she would at least take action when it came to caring for her daughter.
So, Irene raised her hand. The Honkai energy condensed by the Taixuan Sword Qi gathered at her fingertips. With a final flick, she struck 'Welt' directly on the temple.
However, being a copy of 'Welt' after all, this strike merely knocked him unconscious.
"I estimate this matter isn't over yet." Irene handily dislocated the opponent's joints, lifted 'Welt', and looked up at Himeko. "There's no news from Theresa's side either. I'll go look for her and hand this guy over to her while I'm at it."
"Mn, no problem." Himeko nodded. Since the opponent had come with such fanfare, it certainly wouldn't be that simple. "Irene, you be careful too. You are likely one of their targets as well."
"Rest assured, I'm very strong~" Irene smiled, then released Judah and switched into the Cat's form. Finally, she dragged 'Welt' in her hand and left.
Watching Irene leave, Himeko looked into the distance. "Let's go, Fu Hua. Let's see if Anti-Entropy has left us any surprises elsewhere."
"Okay, Teacher Himeko." Fu Hua nodded and joined Himeko on patrol. At the same time, Himeko used her authority to inform other on-duty Valkyries of the potential Anti-Entropy invasion, strengthening security to cope with any possible situations.
Irene dragged 'Welt's' body but did not go to find Theresa. Instead, like an angler who had hooked a massive fish, she acted as if she had suddenly developed amnesia.
She walked aimlessly through the campus, heading toward the Back Mountain. Although one could also reach the training grounds this way, it was definitely not the shortest path.
And this was the result Irene wanted to see. Just as she expected, the moment she entered the woods, Irene saw the person she was waiting for on the small path ahead.
"Is this really necessary? Mr. Welt, no need to be so cautious, right?" Irene casually tossed the 'Welt' in her hand aside. "I've been waiting for you for a long time."
"I took this small path just to show you. Since that's the case, what is the point of observing for so long? It's quite tiring, isn't it?"
"...It seems my disguise was a bit too simple." Standing on the path, Welt frowned as he listened to Irene's words. "I have stayed here for a few years, after all, and have never been discovered. How did Teacher Irene know?"
Welt did not ask what Irene was talking about, nor did he deliberately play dumb. Everyone here was smart; Irene had already made things so clear that asking such questions would be an insult to one's intelligence.
But I still can't quite figure it out, he thought. I've stayed here for so long without anyone discovering my identity. Irene looks as if she has known for a long time.
Could it be that I left a flaw somewhere?
"Spread your hands. Let's be reasonable, did you really hide? Teacher Welt." Irene looked at the wary Welt, spreading her own hands with a trace of helplessness flashing across her face. "You didn't even change your name."
"How on earth did Theresa agree to that back then? Your explanation wouldn't happen to be that you just happened to have the same name, right? Mr. Welt, the Herrscher of Reason who fights for humanity?"
"...It seems you know more than just a little." Welt pushed up his glasses. The wariness in his eyes grew thicker, but he didn't dwell on this point too much.
Because at this moment, there was something that needed dealing with even more. Welt's gaze turned toward the 'Welt' who had just been thrown aside by Irene, lying on the ground, his life or death uncertain.
"This matter belongs to our Anti-Entropy internal disputes. Can you hand this fellow over to me to resolve?"
Irene looked back at the 'Welt' lying at her feet, a smile on her face. "Because he is a clone of Joyce, right? To be honest, they don't look very much alike."
"It seems Cocolia's cloning technology is still quite lacking, isn't it?"
"You...!" Welt's pupils constricted. The matter of Joyce passing the Core of the Herrscher of Reason to him—even Otto shouldn't be very sure about that.
"How does a guy like you know that?!" And the person shocked by this sentence wasn't just Welt. From behind another tree, the red-headed Tesla jumped out.
This matter was a secret among secrets. Aside from her and Einstein, who knew about it back then, it should be impossible for anyone else to know.
"You guy, could it be you are Otto's person?"
"Ah, no, no, I'm definitely not Otto's person." Irene shook her head decisively. "Of course, I am also not your enemy."
"At least in terms of fighting the Honkai, everyone's goal is actually the same."
"...Undeniable." Welt pushed his glasses, hiding the astonishment in his eyes behind the lenses. "But theoretically speaking, it is impossible for anyone else to know about this matter."
Aside from those who experienced it personally back then, no one could possibly know. Logically speaking, even Otto's side should only have suspicions.
No matter what, at least this matter shouldn't be known by Irene.
"So I still want to ask." Welt's gaze behind the lenses stared tightly at Irene. "Teacher Irene, exactly where did you learn this from?"
"Let me keep this secret for a bit." Irene smiled mysteriously. "Besides, what we wanted to chat about at the start wasn't this, right?"
Blue electric sparks appeared on Irene's hand. White light flowed along her hand into 'Welt's' body. The 'Welt' who was originally breathing faintly, basically near death, actually regained his vitality as sounds of cracking bones came from his body.
"Here." Irene swung her arm, throwing 'Welt' to the feet of Tesla and Welt. "This will be a bit more meaningful, although for you, it probably doesn't make much difference."
The electric light that just flashed on Irene's hand was 'Active Polarization'. The target of the enhancement was 'Welt's' life force, so the 'Welt' on the ground who had been knocked out by her earlier slowly woke up.
The awakened Welt clearly hadn't figured out his current situation yet, his eyes filled with confusion. Looking at the waking 'Welt', Tesla let out a cold snort.
Just as Irene said, this guy really didn't look like it no matter how you looked at him. The fact that this guy was a clone of Joyce was annoying to look at no matter what.
Hearing the sound, 'Welt' immediately looked over and saw Tesla's red hair, which appeared particularly distinct in the dark night.
"Tesla?" Before 'Welt' had time to fuss about why Tesla appeared here, he saw Irene, who had turned into a cat, at the side. Although he didn't know where that white-haired Valkyrie went, the one before his eyes was precisely his target this time.
And because 'Welt' had been beaten up earlier, his heart was full of rage. He completely disregarded Cocolia's instruction to capture Irene alive.
He raised his hand directly pointing at Irene, beginning to try to use the authority of the Sovereign from his memories, and commanded Tesla:
"Quick, help me! Kill this Valkyrie for me!"
"You truly are nothing like Joyce." Tesla merely glanced at the clone barking on the ground. "Finish it. This guy is making me feel a bit sick."
"What?" The clone was first stunned, but what followed was anger. "You want to betr..."
The clone's words weren't finished when he felt his shoulder being patted by someone. The clone turned his head, just about to throw a punch at them.
"Did you know?" Welt's eyes were obscured by the reflection on his glasses, and at the spot where his hand pressed down, a pitch-black sphere suddenly appeared. "Under ten thousand times gravity..."
The clone looked in horror at the black sphere appearing on his shoulder. His body twisted directly in that instant. Not even a final scream reached anyone's ears before he vanished from sight, leaving only a black hole in place that was still rapidly dragging surrounding matter into it.
"Even light cannot escape. No one can hear your scream."
"That reminds me of a classic horror movie I watched before." Irene looked at Welt. "'In space, no one can hear you scream'~"
"However, I still recommend you don't overuse your ability. Your body isn't in good condition right now, is it?"
"..." Welt pushed his glasses and straightened his body. "I won't trouble Teacher Irene to worry about that. Besides, I am the First Herrscher."
"Accurately speaking, the second generation of the First Herrscher." Irene spread her hands. "No need to be so surprised. I know many things. Including yours, including those doctors', and including that Welt Joyce's."
"And that includes the fact that you guys aren't here to cooperate with Cocolia's so-called Anti-Entropy invasion at all, right? Right now, Dr. Einstein should be discussing cooperation with Theresa, correct?"
With every sentence Irene spoke, the expression on Tesla's face stiffened a degree. The mechanical arm she wore emitted the sound of an engine starting up. Tesla couldn't understand why Irene knew so clearly.
A spy? But when they discussed this matter, it was just her and Einstein.
"Who exactly are you? What exactly do you hav..." Just as Tesla wanted to step forward, Welt turned slightly sideways, blocking Tesla's movement.
"Miss Irene, your understanding of us seems to be far greater than any of us imagined." Welt pushed his glasses, the space behind the reflective lenses filled with wariness.
"If Miss Irene does not state her purpose, it will be hard for me to guarantee your safety."
"Of course. Actually, what I want to do is also very simple." Irene took out a test tube prepared long ago from behind her. "Guess, what is inside this?"
"Poison?" Tesla looked at Irene. The abilities Irene had just displayed made it impossible for her to trust Irene completely; it might even be said there was a hint of fear.
A person she had never seen or heard of could say so many things, as if she had seen them with her own eyes. If that were true...
It was as if back then, under circumstances no one noticed, Irene had observed everything that happened like a ghost.
"Mn, no." Irene shook the liquid at the bottom of the test tube. "This is a potion, a potion capable of enhancing a person's Honkai Resistance."
"Liar." Tesla said directly. What was Honkai Resistance? It could be said to be the most important thing in this world. Apart from Stigmata and some technologies, there was almost no way to enhance it.
"There should be no way to enhance Honkai Resistance." Tesla's eyes flickered. Yes, just as she thought, there was almost no way. Conversely, that meant she knew there was a way to enhance Honkai Resistance.
From the data Welt and Siegfried collected from the moon back then, Tesla and Einstein learned that it wasn't truly impossible. The so-called Stigmata were not blessings falling from the sky, but gifts from the Previous Era.
But unfortunately, absolutely no research data was left behind, only simple introductions. But Tesla still didn't believe Irene could suddenly produce something capable of enhancing Honkai Resistance.
"Is there really not, Dr. Tesla?" Irene's face wore a smile that made Tesla somewhat afraid, as if even now, the conversation was still under Irene's control.
"Then I wonder, does Dr. Tesla know the name Dr. MEI?"
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