Choice

Why was she here at this time?

Lin Wei was greatly surprised.

Durandal's sudden appearance was something completely beyond his expectations.

It wasn't that she should still be away at this time. In fact, calculating the time, she should have returned long ago.

It was because, no matter the reason, no matter the justification, Durandal shouldn't be appearing before him, let alone blocking this place—the exit from Schicksal HQ to the outside world.

The reason was simple: right now, Otto was probably wishing this scourge, Lin Wei, would leave as soon as possible. He might even want to throw him off this floating island—the only reason he hadn't done so was because he had just suffered a loss and didn't dare give Lin Wei another opportunity to exploit the situation.

He wouldn't possibly set up any obstacles on this issue.

After all, having the holder of the Key of Erosion living next door, Otto probably couldn't even sleep peacefully—if he even needed sleep anymore...

Originally, based on the principle of "take everything the enemy wants, leave nothing behind," since Otto wanted to drive him away from the floating island, Lin Wei had planned to make this place his new home, determined to coexist peacefully with Otto, eating his food, drinking his drinks, using his things...

Until Otto couldn't take it anymore and came begging, or attacking. Or used some other method to make his life difficult.

Lin Wei was mentally prepared for this. After all, he had never let his guard down against Otto.

In fact, even without seeing Otto again, Lin Wei knew, putting himself in Otto's shoes, that Otto wasn't satisfied with the outcome of their previous encounter.

After all, the previous clash, full of hidden dangers, was, for both himself and Otto, unprepared, filled with haste and coincidence from the very beginning.

Needless to say for Lin Wei, he woke up in Schicksal HQ.

Although it was just the old headquarters, there was essentially no difference. He had to abandon all illusions and face it head-on.

But wasn't it the same for Otto?

All his confident plans were prepared for "Welt." They were useless against Lin Wei, resulting in Lin Wei, who was relatively more prepared, catching him off guard.

Lin Wei reckoned that even if he were in Otto's position, he would want to get even—especially when dealing with someone who posed such a huge threat...

He had to admit, this was the inevitable consequence of nearly going too far and then showing mercy, "shaking hands and making peace" with Otto.

But there was no helping it. Dealing with Otto was just that troublesome...

He had spent five hundred years successfully embedding himself into the key links of this world. If Lin Wei had arrived ten years earlier, he could have killed Otto without any scruples.

But at such a delicate time, with the curtain about to rise, Lin Wei had to exercise some restraint.

After all, even Kevin found Otto troublesome, ultimately resorting to fulfilling his wish to indirectly solve the problem. And Lin Wei faced the same problem as him:

Killing Otto would leave Schicksal leaderless in the short term. He would be consuming his energy with Schicksal's main forces, and the awakening process of the Herrscher of the Void would face many variables, potentially spiraling out of control. This would further deplete the human forces, aside from World Serpent.

More importantly, it would mean that the Stigmata Plan would become the only solution. Kevin would abandon all illusions and go all out to ensure the smooth implementation of this "worst-case plan."

At that point, if he didn't want the world to go to a bad ending, he would have to do everything possible to defeat Kevin, who would inevitably be using his full power.

Using his full power!

With his weak body? What a joke!

This meant that although he had solved a major problem in the short term, in the long term, he would face an even more unsolvable, bigger problem!

As for letting the world go to a bad ending?

Leaving aside the fact that Lin Wei, like Kevin, disliked this plan, if the old world was destroyed, would there be a place for him in the new world?

Don't be ridiculous. Kevin, bearing the power of the Final Herrscher, would be the first to come after him!

So it was you who sabotaged things earlier, leaving us with no new hope, huh?

"Choose, suicide or I'll do it for you."

(ノへ￣,)

Just thinking about such a future was headache-inducing...

So, to avoid the world line heading towards such an uncontrollable future, Lin Wei had to tolerate Otto's covetousness and schemes.

Choosing the lesser of two evils, compared to Kevin's "peerless power," he preferred to clash with Otto's so-called "peerless wisdom."

Otto's so-called wisdom, in Lin Wei's view, was just so-so. It was troublesome, but still within his capabilities.

It was playable!

And it was precisely to ensure that this game could proceed normally that Lin Wei decided to go all out, on top of letting Otto off the hook.

After all, for some people, if you meet them halfway, they will also meet you halfway. For example, with Grey Serpent, under the premise of reaching a consensus, it was easy to achieve a mutually satisfactory exchange of interests.

But for Otto, if you meet him halfway, he will only take advantage of you.

Win-win? Otto wants to win twice!

Therefore, to prevent him from having any unrealistic fantasies, Lin Wei chose to set the example from the beginning, so that no matter what means he used against him, he would have to weigh the consequences and think twice.

The effect was quite good, as it turned out. When Lin Wei played the "Kallen card," Otto readily accepted. On the one hand, it was naturally because "Kallen" was the greatest common factor between himself and Otto.

On the other hand, Otto realized that if he didn't take this step, making it impossible for Lin Wei to back down, then Lin Wei would make it even more impossible for him to back down.

Thus, the two sides "shook hands and made peace," calling a truce. But this wasn't the end, it was the prelude to the beginning.

His turn was over, so from the moment he walked out of that door, Lin Wei had been waiting for Otto to make his move.

Lin Wei originally thought that this game would be limited to the narrow confines of the floating island. But Yuno's unexpected slip of the tongue caused the problem to spiral out of control from the beginning. So Lin Wei, realizing the danger, immediately responded.

If he had held onto a mentality of relying on luck and remained on the floating island, allowing Otto to calmly control Anna, then Lin Wei would have fallen into a completely passive position, and staying in Schicksal HQ would have lost its original meaning.

In a game of Chicken, one must strive for the initiative. Although it was a pity to lose a major piece, compared to the risk of the opponent breaking through his defenses, a necessary sacrifice was acceptable.

Therefore, I'll give you back Schicksal HQ. I'm not playing with you here anymore!

Since he was leaving, he might as well leave naturally and unrestrained, cleanly, and decisively—taking Yuno with him, leaving no alternative plan for Otto.

His departure also served Otto's interests. With a deadly blade pointed at his heart removed, he could also breathe a sigh of relief.

Because of all these reasons, Lin Wei never expected to encounter Durandal at this exit...

...

Seeing Durandal blocking the way, Yuno was only stunned for a moment before stepping in front of Lin Wei, guarding against her like a formidable enemy.

"This is the second time you've shown me that expression, Squat Member Yuno."

Durandal said calmly,

"Step aside."

"..."

Yuno didn't say a word, her body just tensing even further.

"It's okay, Yuno, relax."

Lin Wei gently patted Yuno's shoulder, stepped out from behind her with a relaxed expression, and smiled at the tall blonde girl not far away,

"She's here for me."

"You're quite carefree."

Durandal stepped forward slowly, her face expressionless.

"I always am."

Lin Wei replied calmly.

"Including deceiving Schicksal's Valkyries?"

Durandal remained expressionless,

"How many times has this happened? This time you're using Yuno to help you escape again? Do you know..."

...what punishment she would face because of this?

Before she could finish the second half of her sentence, Yuno interrupted,

"No, I'm leaving with him."

Durandal was stunned. She turned sharply to look at Yuno, seeing her stubborn expression that didn't seem fake, and then looked at Lin Wei with a displeased expression, saying word by word,

"Give me an explanation."

"As you can see, I've decided to take her with me."

Lin Wei looked at Durandal calmly,

"Are you going to stop me?"

He still didn't believe Otto would stop him from leaving the floating island.

Sure enough, Durandal said,

"If you want to leave, I won't stop you."

Durandal pointed at Yuno,

"But she's a Valkyrie of Schicksal, a member of the Immortal Blades. Of course, I won't allow it."

"As far as I know, Yuno hasn't been happy in Schicksal HQ."

Lin Wei said, refusing to back down,

"And despite having unparalleled talent, she's been almost completely neglected, almost allowed to go to waste. Miss Durandal, are you competent as a captain?"

"..."

Durandal couldn't help but fall silent.

Although she was nominally the captain of the Immortal Blades squad, she had actually been carrying out missions alone. She was often away, rarely having the opportunity to pay attention to the growth of her team members, including Yuno.

It wasn't just her. Even Rita, the vice-captain, was the same. Rita had once "apologized" to her, saying that as a vice-captain, she didn't even know some of the members' names and appearances, which was truly dereliction of duty.

Although she was apologizing very seriously, Durandal always felt like she was complaining...

"I handed her over to Schicksal, but the result is disappointing."

Lin Wei also said expressionlessly,

"In that case, whether for public or private reasons, I should take her to a place more suitable for her growth."

Durandal didn't ask further, just took out her long lance and thrust it heavily into the ground, staring at Lin Wei deeply, as if threatening him. Lin Wei signaled to the somewhat agitated Yuno to stay calm, then met Durandal's gaze calmly and without flinching.

After a long time, as if confirming that Lin Wei truly had a clear conscience, Durandal withdrew her compelling gaze, turned to Yuno, and asked earnestly,

"Is this your choice?"

"I..."

Before Yuno could answer, Lin Wei spoke first.

"In this world, how many people really have the right to choose?"

"Heh... Miss Durandal, even as strong as you, as talented as you, as someone who is certain to be rewarded for your efforts, besides trusting Otto, besides following the direction he points, walking the path he sets... do you really have any other choice?"

"If even you have no choice, what right do you have to expect others to be able to make a choice?"

Faced with Lin Wei's soul-searching question, Durandal remained unmoved, simply replying calmly,

"For such a grand proposition that determines the future of mankind, our individual strength is too weak, and naturally we have no room for choice. But for each of us as individuals..."

"For individuals, it is indeed very different. For some people, the path of life is a crossroads. Whether they go left or right, the future of their lives will be completely different. For example, Miss Durandal, if you had chosen not to become a Valkyrie, you could have chosen to become an athlete, a teacher, or some other profession. With your talent, it would just be a different kind of brilliance. There would just be one less top Valkyrie and one more top athlete or teacher."

Lin Wei first expressed agreement, and then said earnestly,

"But this world is very unfair. For some people, they have long lost the right to go left or right, or even the right to refuse. They can only choose to 'accept' or 'passively accept'."

"If I had a choice, I would just want to be an ordinary person, live an ordinary life, and have no interaction with Schicksal, Otto, you Durandal, or anything related to Honkai. But from the moment I was eroded by Honkai, none of this was up to me. I could only go forward, forward, constantly forward. This is my only choice."

Lin Wei pointed to Yuno,

"It's the same for her. From the moment she was fused and coexisted with the Honkai beast, she also had no choice. Either control that power and become a better version of herself, or be controlled by that power and become a complete monster. This is a difficult and thorny road, but Schicksal didn't give her the help she deserved, otherwise she wouldn't have come to me, a stranger she met by chance, for help."

Lin Wei looked at Durandal indifferently, seeming to express his dissatisfaction with her or Otto,

"Since you can't do it, since she asked me for help, don't blame me for taking her to find other methods."

"..."

Durandal was silent for a moment, then said calmly,

"Although I don't agree with your point of view, there is more than one truth in the world. Since you have your reasons, I won't force you."

With that, she turned her head to Yuno,

"Let me ask a different way—Squat Member Yuno, are you truly willing to leave with him?"

Yuno nodded heavily without hesitation,

"Yes!"

"Is that so? Then..."

Durandal nodded understandingly, retracted the lance stuck in front of her, stepped past Lin Wei's shoulder, and simply left a sentence,

"You may go."

"...Captain?"

Yuno was a little incredulous, calling out in surprise.

"It's rare that you're still willing to call me captain, even though you've regarded me as an enemy more than once."

Durandal stopped, chuckled ruefully,

"I brought you to headquarters. Today, I'm seeing you off. It's fate, I suppose. I only hope that our time together over the past year hasn't been too disappointing for you."

"..."

Yuno felt a pang of sadness, pursed her lips,

"It hasn't."

"Is that so? That's good."

Durandal waved her hand without turning her head, then strode away, not stopping at all.

"..."

Lin Wei looked deeply at Durandal's back, gradually disappearing into the night, not knowing what he was thinking for a moment. After a while, he gently patted Yuno and said,

"Let's go."

"Okay."

Yuno nodded, took one last look at the straight road extending into the dark night, and then looked at the small hole with a smooth cut not far from her feet. After a moment of silence, she quickly caught up with Lin Wei's footsteps.

"Do you regret it?"

Lin Wei asked with a light smile.

Yuno thought for a moment, and shook her head.

"Then, do you feel regretful?"

Yuno thought for a moment, and nodded.

"Are you sad?"

This time, Yuno nodded without even a pause.

"Anything else?"

Yuno pondered for a moment, and shook her head blankly.

"Do you also feel a little guilty?"

Lin Wei asked patiently, then added,

"Because Durandal really cares about you."

It was also the first time Lin Wei had discovered that the usually carefree, decisive, and unpretentious Durandal had a surprisingly delicate side, which was unexpected.

But thinking about how she was also a top-tier cat lover in secret, it wasn't so strange after all...

"...Yes."

Yuno pondered for a moment, nodded heavily, and then was at a loss again, unable to resist looking back again.

"Do you regret it now?"

Lin Wei asked with a light smile again.

This time, Yuno was a little lost, not knowing how to answer for a moment.

She did feel some sadness in her heart, but she didn't know how to describe it.

"This is human emotion, Yuno."

Seeing her slightly dazed look, Lin Wei said with a light smile,

"Whether it's sadness, joy, anger, or fear... these are all part of what makes us human. Experiencing them, savoring them, remembering the profound parts. Each of these emotional flows, the feelings they carry, are gradually enriching your soul."

After a pause, Lin Wei said in a gentle voice,

"Can you feel it? This is the feeling of being alive. Remember this feeling. Don't rush, take it one step at a time."

Repairing a broken soul, how could it be so easy?

"..."

Yuno was silent for a moment, reaching out to cover her heart, feeling that in the shattered, burned-out past, in the embers of the once emotionally rich, sensitive, and delicate girl, there seemed to be a little warmth again, as if it hadn't been completely extinguished.

The feeling was familiar, but also very strange.

"I..."

Yuno opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but not knowing what to say,

She just followed Lin Wei's footsteps a little closer.