Otto's Humiliation

Elsewhere…

Whirr… click.

A woman in a cream-colored suit stepped out of the elevator, having descended to the deepest level of the secret underground laboratory.

She hurried down the now-crowded corridor, muttering about the sheer number of people present, and reverently pinned an intricate serpent-shaped emblem to her lapel.

Pausing at the door, she meticulously adjusted her appearance. Satisfied, she carefully pushed open the door and slipped inside.

"Lady Jackal!" she called out respectfully, but a quick glance revealed the lab was empty. Slightly confused, she called out again, her voice softer, "Lady Jackal?" as if afraid to disturb her.

"Master is not here."

From the depths of the lab, amidst towering equipment, a petite android girl spoke, her metallic visor flickering with light as she rapidly processed tasks. Her slender hands danced across the control panels of two machines, multitasking with effortless precision.

On a nearby table, a small cat opened one eye, assessed the newcomer, deemed her non-threatening, and went back to its nap, undisturbed.

The android, without looking up from her work, continued in her usual monotone, "Proceed with the evacuation."

As the android's fingers flew across the controls, the woman watched through the large glass windows of the lab. Incubation tanks in various rooms opened, releasing humanoid and semi-humanoid experimental subjects and constructs.

They rose in wisps of white smoke, gathering and awaiting orders.

"This…" the woman hesitated.

She had assumed Jackal herself had given the order to "dismiss all non-essential personnel, destroy data, and evacuate immediately." But it seemed the android had issued it on her own accord?

Noticing the woman's hesitation, the android, still focused on her work, spoke without turning around, "These are Master's orders, representing the will of the Serpent. As a subordinate, you must obey."

"…Yes!" The woman gritted her teeth. There was no point arguing with a machine. Besides, the android was right. If she dared to act like this, it had to be with Jackal's approval.

She just didn't understand why Jackal wanted her to dismiss the cover personnel hired from the outside world. Was she trying to avoid harming innocents? Impossible. She knew what kind of person her leader was.

"What do you need me to do?" The woman decided to focus on the task at hand.

"There are certain data recovery and deletion procedures that require your authorization as the base administrator," the android explained, pointing first to her own head—or rather, the quantum computer deeply integrated with her brain—and then to a server-like device across the room.

The woman glanced at the device, a pang of regret hitting her. This laboratory, this entire school, represented years of her hard work. Now, she had to abandon it all. Despite her regret and resentment, the Serpent's discipline was absolute. Orders were not to be disobeyed.

"…Alright, I understand." Accepting her fate, she walked towards the device and began the authorization process.

The android's visor flickered as the massive amount of research data and information stored within the lab was rapidly transferred to her "brain," thanks to the power of the quantum computer.

Bang!

A loud crash echoed from outside, followed by flashing red lights and blaring sirens.

Stan jumped down from the table, crouching low, its crimson eyes fixed on the door, ready to attack.

"What happened?" The woman, startled, looked around nervously.

"Schicksal Valkyries," the android stated flatly. "You don't need to worry about this. Continue your task."

Having already taken control of the base's systems, she quickly assessed the situation:

A "humanoid entity" covered in vines of varying sizes—the android couldn't categorize this version of Yuno as "human"—had barged into the upper levels of the lab, rampaged through the facility, torn apart the elevator doors, and forced its way down to this deepest level in a savage display of power.

_"This must be the suspected natural fusion warrior specimen Master mentioned…" _ The android quickly located the matching data in her database, saving the footage. Master would appreciate this valuable first-hand data.

As for the Valkyries trailing behind, the android showed little interest. But lack of interest didn't mean she would ignore them.

Thanks to her strict monitoring of the base, the emotionless android wasn't fazed by "Yuno's" sudden intrusion into the elevator shaft. Instead, she immediately initiated countermeasures:

A silent command, like an invisible ripple, spread from the android.

All constructs within range stopped their tasks, injecting themselves with a special solution. After a grotesque transformation, the constructs vanished, replaced by a swarm of Deadmen.

Under the silent command of the android, these newly created Deadmen, along with previously converted experimental subjects, charged towards the "intruders" like a well-trained army.

Under the android's precise control, the Deadmen on this level and the one above launched a pincer attack on the lone "Yuno." Vines lashed out, tearing the Deadmen apart. A gruesome pile of flesh and blood quickly accumulated at "Yuno's" feet.

But the Deadmen felt no fear, continuing their relentless assault, hindering her progress.

The remaining Deadmen climbed up the elevator shaft to the surface, preventing the Valkyrie squad from joining "Yuno."

Despite the seemingly organized defense, the line was fragile, easily broken by "Yuno." But the android remained unmoved, meticulously recording every detail of "Yuno's" combat performance, focusing all available cameras on her, documenting this rare "combat experiment."

"Yuno" was too ferocious. The Deadmen wouldn't last long. The android diverted some of the Deadmen climbing upwards to join the siege, trying to buy more time.

"Done!" The woman, drenched in sweat, collapsed onto the floor, relieved. She looked up at the android, whom she had previously dismissed. "Can we evacuate now?" Glancing at the monitors, she had witnessed the carnage in the corridors outside. She knew her only hope of escape lay with this machine.

"Yes. But there's one last step: we need to destroy the data here to prevent it from falling into Schicksal's hands." The android, having completed the data recovery, nodded, then shook her head.

She even turned to look directly at the now-disheveled woman—the first time she had done so. Although the android wore a visor, the woman felt a chill run down her spine.

"Why… uh…"

Her words were cut short. She froze, a look of disbelief on her face as she slowly looked down. A black blade protruded from her chest, right in her line of sight. Her cream-colored suit rapidly turned crimson. Blood gurgled from the wound, splattering onto the floor.

The soft dripping sounded like the approaching footsteps of death.

"Why…"

Her last question died in her throat.

The blade twisted, the downward-facing edge turning upwards. It sliced upwards, effortlessly cleaving through her heart, lungs, chest, and finally her neck, splitting her head in two.

A swift, brutal death.

Her lifeless body crumpled to the floor, a mangled mess of red and white, revealing her killer:

One of the three constructs the android had kept as assistants.

"..." The android stared at the gruesome corpse, silent, seemingly lost in thought.

"Meow!" Stan, startled by the sudden violence, jumped back. What just happened? Wasn't that woman their companion? Why did they kill her?

The cat's simple worldview couldn't comprehend such a senseless act.

The Deadmen in the corridor were almost gone. "Yuno" could break through at any moment, rendering all their efforts pointless.

"The final step: destroy all data…" the android murmured, issuing a new command. Even Stan's restrictor received a new directive.

Stan glanced at her, displeased but obedient. It left silently.

The android activated the last machine in the lab: the Honkai energy furnace that powered the entire facility. It was smaller than the one on Coral Island.

She overclocked the furnace, ensuring it would convert all stored Honkai energy as quickly as possible. Then, she cut off all power supply. The underground lab plunged into darkness.

But it didn't matter. The android had excellent night vision.

She channeled all the energy from the furnace into a single conduit, connecting it to a weapon: the menacing "Cyclops Prototype" cannon, operated by the three remaining constructs. As energy surged into it, an ominous glow emanated from the muzzle.

While called a "cannon," it was a true Honkai energy weapon, converting Honkai energy into a destructive force similar to a conventional cannon.

Usually, it was powered by internal Honkai energy shards, which already gave it considerable power, comparable to Schicksal and Anti-Entropy's cutting-edge weaponry.

But now, fueled by the entire base's energy reserves, its destructive potential was unimaginable.

Having made all the preparations, the android turned to leave, following the path Stan had taken.

But as she passed the woman's corpse, she stopped.

She hesitated, then reached out, tearing a piece of armor from her own arm, placing it gently beside the body.

If it weren't for the need to deliver the data stored in her "brain" to Jackal intact, she would have shared the same fate.

But now…

This small gesture of remembrance was the only thing she could do, a vestige of her former humanity—even though she no longer possessed such emotions.

Having wasted too much time, the android clutched her bleeding arm and ran towards the designated escape route.

Only the mangled corpse remained in the darkness, along with the silently waiting constructs, illuminated by the ominous glow of the charging cannon.

Bang!

"Yuno" finally broke through the wall of Deadmen, bursting into the lab.

At that very moment, the cannon reached its charging limit.

BOOM!

"Yuno," barely through the door, was blasted back by the earth-shattering force, her body almost torn to shreds.

"Damn it!"

The virtual personality tried to resist, but Otto, sensing the danger, instantly took control, dropping to the ground—something Yuno's personality would never do. He let the searing heat wash over his back, turning the underground facility into a fiery inferno.

"…Madwoman!" Otto cursed, relieved that the blast hadn't damaged his core consciousness. He quickly liquefied the Soulium in his body, enduring the searing pain as he repaired the damage.

Having watched the virtual personality tear through countless Deadmen, he had assumed World Serpent had exhausted their tricks. But this… this was a nasty surprise.

How could anyone be so ruthless?

BOOM!

The base's energy core couldn't handle the strain. After firing its devastating shot, the Cyclops Prototype exploded, taking the remaining constructs, the mangled corpse, and everything else in the lab with it. Even the ceiling was blown upwards, collapsing the level above.

The shockwave forced Otto to flatten himself against the ground.

The entire base began to collapse.

For a split second, Otto saw a wide tunnel in the distance, hundreds of meters away. A large, cat-like Honkai beast was sprinting away.

But before he could give chase, the collapsing debris swallowed everything.

"…Lunatics!" Otto spat, frustrated. He had to get out before he was buried alive.

The prey had slipped through his fingers. The thought infuriated him.

And there was something even more infuriating…

"Damn it! I should have brought Durandal!" "He Kun's" unreliable intelligence had made him underestimate the situation. He hadn't even considered calling in Durandal. She was his trump card, to be used only in critical situations.

But who knew…

"In a moment of crisis, my beloved Bianka isn't by my side… how tragic…" Otto thought, a mixture of frustration and regret. Who knew this would actually be a critical moment!

(╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻ [table flip]

Cursing under his breath, Otto retreated back into the elevator shaft. Thankfully, the steel structure was more resilient than the concrete and brick. While unstable, it still held.

As he ascended, the rustling sounds from above further irritated him. He looked up. Countless Deadmen were still diligently climbing up the shaft, following their previous orders to attack the Valkyries on the surface.

"..." Otto, still unwilling to reveal his identity, manipulated Yuno's body, unleashing a torrent of vines that snaked upwards, swiftly annihilating the remaining Deadmen.

The small act of vengeance slightly improved his mood.

Making me suffer such a loss… World Serpent, you've got guts.

Otto was now more determined than ever to crush them.

"Find them. Capture them!" he thought, his eyes burning with hatred.