Chapter 91: Blindly Making Up Stories

Serenade had agreed with Kallen that she would first meet with Otto and perform a task that would take approximately three minutes.

Worried about Serenade's safety, Kallen rushed into the estate almost as soon as three minutes had passed.

Her first sight upon entering was Otto aiming a gun at Serenade.

Without hesitation, Kallen charged toward Otto, throwing herself between the gun and her friend.

"Otto, what are you doing?!"

Kallen stared at the man before her. Though disappointed in Otto, she never imagined he would threaten her closest companion. This betrayal made her blood boil. In her heart, this sister-like bond—closer than twins—was sacred.

Yet Otto had dared to raise a weapon against her.

Of course, Serenade wasn't the sole reason for Kallen's anger. Part of it stemmed from a disagreement that had arisen between Kallen and Otto before they stole the Black Box.

"You... another Kallen? Two Kallens?"

Seeing the sudden appearance of Kallen, Otto glanced between the two women. They looked exactly alike.

From what Otto could tell, both Kallens seemed genuine—at least physically. He couldn't be certain about anything else yet.

Even so, this left his mind reeling. How could another Kallen appear out of nowhere?

"Which one of you is Kallen?"

Otto hesitated between the two women, then stared uncertainly at the Kallen before him. His brow furrowed; this completely defied his expectations.

Earlier, Serenade's words had made him suspect something might be controlling Kallen's body. After all, he was ninety percent sure the body before him now belonged to Kallen.

But now there was another one—this development couldn't have been further from his initial assumptions.

"..."

Neither Kallen nor Serenade answered his question. Serenade wore an amused expression, while Kallen kept her gaze fixed on the gun in Otto's hand.

"Apologies!"

After a moment's hesitation, Otto lowered his weapon and offered an apology.

"I'm Kallen..." Seeing the gun lowered, Kallen exhaled in relief, her tense posture relaxing.

"Oh, then what about her?"

Otto pointed directly at Serenade, accepting Kallen's claim without a shred of doubt. Yet his finger remained trained on Serenade as he asked Kallen.

"She is also Kallen," Kallen said calmly, glancing at Serenade.

"Uh..."

Otto stared at Kallen, his face clearly showing that he thought she was joking.

"She's another version of me. You can think of it as the Phantom Thief's ability to transform into another form of myself," Kallen explained briefly.

While others might not have understood Kallen's explanation, Otto immediately grasped the basic idea. Still, some lingering curiosity remained.

"This is unprecedented, truly unheard of. But... I believe you, Kallen. Let's discuss this inside first!" Otto nodded, looking at the two Kallens before him. Apart from... curiosity, there seemed to be a hint of happiness in his expression?

Since both are Kallen, then... there's nothing to worry about.

Besides... two Kallens mean... double the...

Wait, my Kallen is one-of-a-kind. What does this mean now?

Otto's mind raced with these thoughts, but his face remained completely neutral as he nodded.

The three of them entered the room. Otto led Serenade and Kallen to a study-like area, had them sit down, and immediately went to pour water for both girls.

This kind of treatment is probably reserved only for Kallen!

After all, even gods (Honkai) were mere pawns in Lord Otto's game.

After pouring himself another glass, Otto sat across from Kallen and Serenade, finally beginning to inquire about the situation.

This matter proved difficult for Kallen to explain. While she believed Serenade was another version of herself, she couldn't clearly articulate how Serenade had come to exist. Thus, Serenade herself would need to provide the explanation.

Serenade gazed at Lord Otto before her, paused momentarily, and began to organize her thoughts.

She couldn't possibly reveal the Ai-chan System or her transmigration to him—she hadn't even told Kallen and Yae Sakura about it.

Thus, she would have to provide a mix of truth and fabrication to explain herself. However, Otto wasn't like Kallen, who would believe any half-baked story. Serenade had to approach this with utmost caution, carefully crafting her explanation (or rather, her deception).

"Otto..."

"Yes?" Otto turned his earnest gaze toward her at the sound of her voice.

"You're familiar with the concept of parallel worlds, aren't you?" Though this was the 15th century, it wasn't the standard historical period but rather the 15th century within the Honkai World.

As a result, many advanced concepts were already known to those at the highest echelons of society.

After all, before the year 3000, the surviving super soldiers from the previous civilization had planted seeds of knowledge about their era through mythological stories, passing down fragments of their legacy.

Though most of these stories were false...

For instance... in mythology, Jingwei was depicted with huge breasts...

(TL Note: A Huge Class Monitor?! (⊙_⊙))

Even if this advanced knowledge proves insufficient, for someone possessing the Void Archives—the divine key known as the First Divine Key, the Revelation Key, and the Buddha's Relic—understanding must come naturally. This artifact, capable of replicating weapons, tools, and divine keys based on the user's comprehension of their construction principles, also houses an almost infinitely vast repository of knowledge within its core.

This knowledge space contains the accumulated wisdom of the previous civilization gathered by the Law of Reason. Due to the unique properties of the Law of Reason's power, this knowledge has been preserved alongside the Herrscher Core.

In essence, Otto now wields a significant portion of the previous civilization's most advanced knowledge.

The theory of parallel worlds? Otto undoubtedly comprehends it thoroughly.

"Parallel world? You mean you're Kallen from a parallel world? But earlier you said you were the incarnation of Phantom Thief Purple Raven," Otto, who prided himself as the world's most intelligent man, immediately grasped Serenade's meaning and countered with skepticism.

"That's exactly what I'm about to explain. I'm not entirely from a parallel world. You can think of it like this... I'm the rebellious will that emerged after Kallen became the Phantom Thief. A part of Kallen that, for some reason, separated from the main consciousness and became an independent entity.

I am Kallen, but Kallen isn't necessarily me..."