Chapter 591: Next Time, Otto Dies

"Human, can you take me to see this world? In exchange, I’ll agree to anything you ask of me."

Luna’s crimson eyes looked pleadingly at Elias.

This world was too complicated, too unfamiliar. Her sister no longer wanted her, and she knew that alone, she would only be lost and unable to take a single step, much less fulfill the wish in her heart.

Therefore, she needed a companion. She needed a pair of wings.

The vampire girl’s small hands clenched nervously into fists. Yet after speaking those words aloud, Luna felt uneasy instead, because she realized the contract she had proposed didn’t seem fair at all.

So what if she promised to agree to any request?

She had nothing. She was merely a monster who shouldn’t exist in this world, a greedy vampire who only brought misfortune to others and had already committed sins.

A monster like her, one who shouldn’t exist, ought to be pierced through by a blazing spear and nailed to the deepest depths of hell.

However...

"All right, Luna. Leave your wish to me."

"Huh?"

Luna looked up in astonishment. She almost wondered if she’d misheard him. Elias had actually agreed to fulfill her wish.

"Human, is that really okay? You’re willing to help me?"

"Why are you so surprised? A bird yearning for freedom finally managed to escape its cage. Since I’ve happened to meet her, of course I’ll fulfill her wish and carry her back into the sky."

Perhaps Luna’s proposed contract truly wasn’t fair, but as a savior who fought for all that was beautiful, how could Elias possibly reject such a sorrowful wish? He didn’t care about profit or benefits.

It was simply that after hearing the girl’s story...

A wish had arisen in Elias’ own heart to show her this world. And he wasn’t the only one.

Elias believed that if Elysia, Kiana, Mei, Theresa, and the others were here right now, they would undoubtedly make the same decision.

Although Luna’s bloodlust caused her to involuntarily attack humans, she herself didn’t want to do it.

And according to Himeko, the women whose blood Luna had drunk hadn’t died. They had only fallen unconscious.

Elias: (They’re only unconscious. Can’t I just go heal them later? Aside from the disease known as death, there isn’t a single illness in this world I can’t cure. Uh, wait... even the terminal disease of death is something I’ve beaten plenty of times!)

So even if Luna truly had done something wrong, who in this world had never made a mistake? Even Elias was no exception. As long as she properly made amends, things could still be set right.

"Thank you, Human. I’m really happy."

Crystal tears welled up at the corners of Luna’s eyes.

The world was like a vast ocean of dazzling lights and temptations, while kindness was as difficult to find as the glow of a firefly. For a vampire like her, that was especially true.

At that moment, Luna couldn’t help marveling at her own good fortune.

Vampires believed neither in gods nor in fate, but her encounter with Elias beneath the crimson moon had surely been a miracle.

"It just so happens that I was planning to properly explore this city too. I’m sure it’ll be much more enjoyable with you along, Luna."

Elias raised a hand and gently stroked Luna’s head as he spoke.

He knew all too well just how great the difference was between traveling alone and traveling with someone beside you.

...

After that, the two returned to the bubble world.

Elias was no longer worried that Luna would run away. Until her wish was fulfilled, she would obediently listen to him.

"Get some rest early, Luna. Seeing the world takes plenty of stamina. If you have any problems, Rosemary and Ai-chan, my two companions, are right next door."

"Huh? Human, where are you going?"

"I have something rather important to deal with. I won’t be gone long. Hehe~ It’s something pleasant."

Elias looked through the window toward the night sky. A delighted yet murderous gleam shone in his magnificent heterochromatic eyes. Feeling that abyss-like aura, even the vampire couldn’t help shivering.

Rosemary and Ai-chan, who had just finished bathing and happened to pass by, exchanged a glance before silently mourning for half a second for whichever unlucky bastard had managed to offend Elias.

They had no idea who it was, but they were sure the other party would soon regret ever being born.

Ai-chan: "Seriously, who had the big guts to piss him off?"

Rosemary: "I don’t know, but if Captain has personally set his sights on them, they surely can’t be a good person."

Ai-chan: "That’s definitely true~"

...

Inside Schicksal Headquarters in this bubble world.

"Judging by the time, Kallen should have successfully made contact with A-872, Theresa. Although there’s only a single B-rank Valkyrie in Sapphire City who can assist her right now, that should be enough."

Otto sat in his study, swirling a glass of red wine in one hand as he spoke to himself.

Various data regarding Luna’s abilities were projected in midair. Even under normal circumstances, her strength was enough to surpass an ordinary S-rank Valkyrie. With sufficient blood, Kallen would be defeated in an instant.

On the surface, it seemed that Kallen would only have a chance of victory when Luna’s bloodlust flared up and all her abilities were drastically weakened.

But Otto naturally wouldn’t entrust the saint’s victory to such an uncertain possibility. He had therefore already placed the key to victory—or rather, mutual destruction—in Kallen’s hands.

It was a bullet created specifically to counter a vampire’s characteristics.

"As long as that bullet hits A-872, even a vampire will die instantly. No, perhaps I should say she’ll die instantly precisely because she’s a vampire."

"Of course, once A-872 dies, Kallen, whose life is connected to hers, will die again as well. But... that hardly matters. She was never the real Kallen to begin with."

As Otto spoke, a trace of dimness, disappointment, and ruthlessness entered his green eyes. With a casual wave of his hand, he brought up his research logs.

March 28, 1994.

Test Subject A-872 Research Record.

All previous test subjects implanted with cells from the Meta-Morph Honkai Beast Vishnu underwent complete dissolution. It has therefore been determined that Vishnu’s cells are excessively powerful and require another element to achieve equilibrium.

Accordingly, Test Subject A-872 was infused with the energy of the Twelfth Divine Key, the Key of Corruption, Jizo Mitama.

The result was astonishing.

Not only did A-872 avoid dissolution, she even displayed a peculiar characteristic. Through the act of drinking blood, she can inject bacterial Honkai Beasts into her victims.

Within forty-eight hours, those infected by the bacterial Honkai Beasts will likewise transform into beings that are half-human and half-Honkai Beast.

However, infected subjects develop the same bloodlust and urge to drink blood as A-872. In exchange, infected subjects can share their lives with A-872, while their own blood-drinking behavior can also amplify A-872’s strength.

Conversely, so long as A-872 does not suffer a fatal threat, these infected subjects can obtain near-eternal life.

A thought suddenly occurred to me. Could these bacterial Honkai Beasts also affect the dead?

If... if that were possible...

On May 29, 1994, Kallen Kaslana, the deceased Saint of Schicksal who had been dead for 523 years, opened her eyes.

"I truly was ecstatic for quite some time back then. Only afterward did I realize the result still wasn’t what I wanted."

Otto shook his head regretfully as he spoke.

Even now, he could remember the sheer ecstasy he’d felt the instant he saw Kallen open her eyes. Otto Apocalypse had believed that his lifelong wish had finally been fulfilled.

However, the results of the subsequent examinations told a different story.

"Perhaps because the person whose blood was taken was already dead, the revived Kallen lost most of her senses, and her memories became vague and fragmented. She even... forgot who I was."

Otto’s hands clenched tightly into fists. The wineglass shattered at once, and crimson wine flowed between his fingers like blood.

The revived saint was no longer Kallen.

Those scattered fragments of memory had forged a new personality.

It was a new flame born from ashes.

It was an incredible and magnificent miracle.

But that wasn’t what Otto Apocalypse wanted. He didn’t yearn for a new flame. He yearned for the saint of old.

Therefore...

"If she dies... then she dies. Afterward, I’ll recover Kallen’s body and search for another method of resurrection."

Otto’s eyes were filled with indifference.

He didn’t care who died in Sapphire City now. A-872 was merely Kallen’s life-support device. Himeko was the daughter of a traitor. And Kallen herself wasn’t the saint he sought.

All three were irrelevant to him. Therefore, he had neither dispatched reinforcements to Sapphire City nor paid the situation much additional attention.

And so Otto didn’t know...

Kallen and Himeko were currently working at a burger restaurant to pay off their debt.

A-872 had encountered a white-haired young man.

And...

He himself was about to suffer the worst luck of his life!

"Long time no see, Otto. No matter which world you’re in, you always look just as punchable. That’s a relief~"

A young man’s voice suddenly rang through the study, a room where no outsider should have been present. Otto immediately shot to his feet.

"Who’s there?!"

He instantly pressed a hidden alarm while using Void Archives to mimic the Judgment of Shamash.

However, it was nothing more than a futile gesture.

"Me? I’m just a passing ally of justice. Remember that well, fool."

"What? You’re the Herrscher of the Void?"

Otto’s eyes widened in astonishment as he stared at the white-haired young man emerging from a black portal edged in gold. Such obvious characteristics immediately made him think of the Second Herrscher, the Herrscher of the Void.

At the same time, he noticed that something was wrong.

He had clearly triggered the alarm, so why had no Valkyries arrived yet? Under normal circumstances, five elite Valkyrie squads should already have appeared and completely surrounded the intruder.

"It’s useless. No one can save you now."

Elias snapped his fingers. In an instant, every electronic screen and projection inside the study displayed the emblem of Salvation.

Under the interference of the Herrscher of Corruption’s authority, every system within Schicksal had already become Elias’ plaything.

There was no chance that Dog Otto’s alarm would ever sound. Even if he screamed until his soulium throat tore apart today, nobody was coming to save him.

"...May I ask who you truly are?"

"Didn’t I already tell you? An ally of justice. The man who’s here to send you on your way. No need to be nervous. You’re definitely dying today."

"!!!"

Otto stared in horror as Elias suddenly teleported directly in front of him. Elias gripped the blade of the simulated Judgment of Shamash with one hand and, with the slightest application of force, crushed the greatsword into pieces.

Although a Divine Key simulated by Void Archives couldn’t compare to the genuine article, its power was still astonishing. Otto had never heard of anyone crushing one barehanded before.

"Don’t rush. The next thing I’m crushing is that soulium face of yours. Oh? Still trying to resist? Void Archives—disabled."

"What?!"

Otto was startled yet again as Void Archives, one of his trump cards, suddenly severed its connection with him. It transformed into a dull golden cube and fell to the floor.

"Trying to fight me with a Divine Key? That’s hilarious."

Elias chuckled and shook his head. Divine Keys had originally been weapons personally designed for him by Vill-V. Even if that wasn’t the case in this bubble world, he still knew exactly how to counter them.

"Wait, mysterious friend. Although I don’t know who you are, there’s no need for violence. We can..."

"We can finish this quickly."

Elias moved as swiftly as lightning. Before Otto could finish speaking, Elias’ right hand clamped over his entire face

Otto stared in horror at the person before him. Although he seemed to be trying to say something, only a few meaningless broken sounds escaped from his mouth, which was firmly trapped beneath Elias’ hand.

"...Guh... ah... ngh..."

"Thus Spoke Apocalypse? No. This is Apocalypse Has Nothing to Say. Hahaha~~ I finally understand how much fun Senti had in the original story. This feels amazing~"

As Elias slowly tightened his right hand, Otto’s soulium face produced the delightful sound of creak, creak.

What a beautiful melody.

It was practically heavenly music!

Elias: "That should about do it. Next time, Otto dies!"

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