Chapter 85: Sixth Serenade's Decision

As Zofia lost her combat capability, the remaining Valkyries were swiftly defeated or incapacitated.

This battle held profound significance for the Yae Sakura sisters and Hokushin Mei.

It marked their first true confrontation against genuine Valkyries. Though their performance left much to be desired, these enemies proved fundamentally different from the Honkai Beasts they'd previously faced - creatures that could be countered through specialized tactics.

However, this experience had taught her many lessons, especially Hokushin Mei. Though she could handle one Valkyrie, two proved to be a struggle.

Only now did she truly understand that there are always greater heights to scale beyond the heavens.

Her current strength, compared to before meeting Serenade, had grown exponentially - now roughly equivalent to an A-rank Valkyrie.

Yet here stood multiple Valkyries before her, including an S-rank among them.

The old Hokushin Mei would have stood no chance against any of them.

Thus, Hokushin Mei's mindset had fundamentally shifted, allowing her to reassess the situation.

Her previous self had been too narrow-minded, becoming complacent with being invincible in this small Far East...

"Master, what should we do with these Valkyries? Should we kill them or..." Hokushin Mei approached Serenade, respectfully seeking guidance.

"Kill? No. Bring them back to the Shrine first..."

Killing them was out of the question; she needed to consult Kallen first.

"Understood..."

All fifteen Valkyries were bound with ropes crafted from materials harvested from Honkai Beasts—tentacles and such.

These ropes could... prevent even A-rank Valkyries from breaking free. As for Zofia... sealing her power would suffice.

-

With the Valkyries secured, the remaining Titan began transporting them to the Shrine. Once inside, they were all locked in a single room.

Kill them? Impossible. Release them? Unthinkable. This temporary measure would have to do.

Inside the shrine, Serenade stared blankly at the ruined Titan Berserker.

The machine wasn't completely destroyed; given time, it could self-repair—though that would take about a month.

Converting it back into a card would slow the repair process even further... so for now, they could only leave it as is.

"Serenade, try this frozen watermelon!"

Yae Rin approached with a piece of icy melon, offering it with a smile.

"Mm-hmm."

Serenade accepted the treat without hesitation.

On this scorching summer day, eating frozen watermelon felt like a royal indulgence.

After a few bites, Serenade noticed Kallen approaching with a troubled expression.

"Kallen, have some melon too!"

Serenade beckoned to her immediately...

"Thank you!"

Kallen's face brightened slightly as she joined Yae Rin and took a piece of melon.

These melons had been grown by Yae Sakura and the others, with a good harvest yielding plenty of fruit.

"How did the questioning go?" Serenade asked Kallen while munching on melon.

The Valkyries who had been captured earlier had already woken up. Kallen had gone to ask about the current situation within Schicksal and even tried to persuade them to leave the organization, hoping they wouldn't assist the fallen Schicksal in their wicked deeds...

But judging by Kallen's expression, it was clear she had failed.

"I told them about the Schicksal leaders' cruel and inhumane actions, but they didn't believe me. And... they didn't dare betray Schicksal." As expected, Kallen shook her head...

"...I'm not surprised," Serenade replied.

Most Valkyries had long been brainwashed by Schicksal. Even if they witnessed the truth with their own eyes, they would still believe the lies of the Schicksal leaders.

For example, at the beginning of the manga, when they saw the Schicksal leaders conducting cruel human experiments using Honkai Crystals, it wasn't just Kallen who witnessed it. There were many other Valkyries present.

But only Kallen chose to resist.

"From the moment they became Valkyries, they've been constantly brainwashed by Schicksal..."

Moreover, they're not like you, Kallen. Most Valkyries don't hold high status. For them, resisting Schicksal means certain death.

Of course they wouldn't follow Kallen in betraying the organization.

The overwhelming power of Schicksal is deeply ingrained in their minds, and they lack Kallen's self-sacrificial spirit.

Kallen wasn't a hypocritical saint, but someone with genuine saintly ideals.

A hypocritical saint refers to those who disregard objective reality, spout empty rhetoric about love and kindness, and unconditionally protect or indulge anti-social and criminal behaviors. They might even defend the underprivileged to the point of granting them special privileges. If society were to follow this path, it would inevitably descend into chaos and violence, becoming unmanageable.

Moreover, when faced with personal life-threatening situations, they would instinctively retreat and even blame others for not providing assistance.

The best example of this might be Zheng Cha from Infinite Terror, whose early behavior could be perfectly described as that of a hypocritical saint.

Kallen, however, was different. She would truly sacrifice her own life to protect the people she cared for.

"What should we do with them now?"

Though Kallen possessed a genuine saintly mindset rather than the detestable hypocritical variety, human nature remains inherently selfish. While people may wish others to be saints, they're unwilling to bear that burden themselves or for their loved ones.

After all, such individuals rarely meet good ends—they die too soon...

This made Kallen particularly vexing for Serenade.

Fortunately, love can transform a person's character, capable of stripping even saints of their saintliness.

"Can we spare their lives?"

Kallen felt greedy, but... she truly couldn't bear to see these former companions perish.

"Of course. Otherwise, I wouldn't have merely knocked them out initially."

"But not killing them... we can't release them either. If freed... they'd never accept Schicksal's command and would continue opposing us."

"Then we'll just keep them locked up for now..." Kallen said without hesitation.

"What about later? We can't possibly keep them confined forever, can we?" Serenade looked at the person before her, who mirrored her own appearance.

"This..." Kallen found herself caught in a dilemma.

"Schicksal will never accept this outcome. If that's the case... shouldn't we turn defense into offense, shifting from passive to proactive?" Seeing Kallen's troubled expression, Serenade immediately voiced her own thoughts.

"You mean..." Kallen's eyes widened in shock as realization dawned on her.

"We should strike at Schicksal's headquarters... This endless passivity won't do. By purging the rotten Schicksal leadership and installing new management, we might save the organization from collapse. Don't you want Europe's people to escape the misery of living under this corrupt Schicksal regime?"

To change Schicksal's current situation wasn't actually too difficult, at least not for someone with absolute power like Serenade.

But since she would leave this world, she couldn't be the manager. Therefore, they needed someone who could fully control Schicksal in a short time and even develop it into something greater.

However, whether it was Kallen, Yae Sakura, or anyone else, none of them could achieve this.

Serenade could only think of one person: Otto.

Otto's efforts were clearly visible.

For 500 years, the development of Schicksal under Otto's leadership was something every captain understood.

Although in the game, Otto was a boss...

But in this world, Kallen hadn't died yet. As long as Kallen was fine, there was no difference between Otto controlling Schicksal and Kallen controlling it.

Even though he knew Kallen disliked him, he still publicly declared his love for a girl and canceled their engagement.

Did Otto resent or harbor ill feelings toward Kallen?

No!

To save Kallen, he even released Honkai Beasts from Schicksal's headquarters.

When facing him saving Kallen, not only did Kallen show no gratitude, she cursed him instead. After slapping him, she died trying to save the people amidst the chaos, falling to the Honkai Beasts.

Even after this, Otto didn't give up. He spent five hundred years, even willing to destroy the world, just to revive Kallen.

He clearly knew that even if Kallen was revived, she might still dislike him, or even hate him more for everything he did to bring her back...

But... whether Kallen likes him or not is Kallen's choice, and whether Otto is willing to give up the world for Kallen is his own decision.

Is there any reason to doubt this one-of-a-kind, devoted man?

So it can be said that what belongs to Otto also belongs to Kallen, and what belongs to Kallen still belongs to Kallen.

Moreover, Otto's talents are indeed far superior to Kallen and the others.

Kallen was stunned by Serenade's words, but immediately began to object.

"Schicksal's power is beyond our ability to resist. Going to Schicksal headquarters would be suicidal."

"I'm confident. As an SSS-rank Valkyrie, you should trust my capabilities." Serenade's conviction ran deep; the weapons in her arsenal were no mere decorations.

"Even so, who would take control of Schicksal? How can we ensure they won't become like the current leaders?" Kallen's doubts persisted.

"There's one person who can be trusted. He'd never succumb to power's temptations."

"Who?"

"Otto! Otto Apocalypse!" Serenade's gaze held unwavering certainty.

"What? Otto? Absolutely not! Even if anyone else could, not him!" To Serenade's surprise, Kallen's opposition intensified at the mention of Otto Apocalypse.

"Why?"

"Otto... I won't deny his genius or our friendship, especially in research. But... his current experiments have crossed forbidden boundaries. They could bring catastrophe to human civilization at any moment.

If he were to control Schicksal..."

Kallen shook her head repeatedly, her refusal absolute.

"But... Otto listens to you! Whatever you tell him to do, he'll absolutely do it. Moreover, he was originally one of the candidates for the next Schicksal's Great Archpriest. Taking control of Schicksal would be his natural right. Once we purge this batch of corrupt Schicksal leaders, Otto could easily take command."

"If it were anyone else, it might be very difficult, but with Otto..."

Serenade had thought it through carefully. There was no one more suitable than Otto.

Whether it was his capabilities, his status, or his absolute obedience to Kallen.

Although the game's Otto was a major boss, in reality, he was quite easy to handle. All it took was Kallen's word.