On how PhDs become human evil

With a mysterious smile, Otto said, "It's nothing, just hunting. We'd like to invite Miss Chen to join us, since our prey this time is a cunning fox."

P.S.: Update

P.S.: Otto personally deals with Yae Sakura; the epic showdown between the blonde loser and the pink-haired fox.

P.S.: I'm begging for recommendations, donations, and favorites! I've got monthly tickets and even death threats, but not a single donation! Brothers, I can't just freeload! Let me make a living!

Section 43...emmmm, I'm stuck.

Otto pulls the protagonist and Chen Sir to confront Yae Sakura—that's my current line of thought. I have absolutely no idea how to write it from here on out. Let me think about it some more. Should the blonde loser and the pink-haired fox fight each other? Or should they shake hands and make peace to fight together to revive Kallen?

One hundred words, one hundred words, one hundred words.

Section 44, Chapter 19: A Love Triangle Lasting Five Hundred Years

Perhaps due to the Honkai, Changkong City at night appeared unexpectedly eerie and terrifying. Countless zombies and Honkai beasts roamed the streets, and ruins lay abandoned on the streets... If an unsuspecting person saw this, they would definitely think they had come to some kind of ruins.

Right now, at Otto's request, Bai Jie and Chen are walking in Changkong City.

Wearing a monocle-like data collector, and using fifty drones scattered throughout Changkong City, Bai Jie was able to accurately grasp every movement in the city, even at night.

"Hmm, everything is at a normal level. If there's anything unusual, it's probably the Senba Academy. The Honkai energy concentration is a bit high." After analyzing the data transmitted back by the drone, Bai Jie came to this conclusion. "However, a Herrscher appeared at Senba Academy just a few days ago, so it's normal for the Honkai energy concentration to be high."

"Is that so? It seems we've arrived too early." Otto said with a mysterious smile. "No, it's not that we've arrived too early, it's that the other side has hidden themselves. What a cunning fox."

With a furrowed brow, Bai Jie could no longer contain his doubts: "Otto, you said you wanted me to help you catch a fox, but you still haven't told me whether it's a real fox or someone with the nickname 'Fox'. And you specifically asked me to detect the Honkai energy reaction. Don't tell me it's another Herrscher."

If that's really the case, Bai Jie is really going to have to retcon the book. What happened to the rule that only one Herrscher would be born per Honkai? Two Herrschers were already an exception, and now there's a third...

As if sensing Bai Jie's concerns, Otto said to him in a comforting tone, "Dr. Fafnir, have you ever heard of the existence of pseudo-Herrschers?"

"A pseudo-law healer? I've read some related materials, but isn't that just a hypothesis?"

—A pseudo-law enforcer.

They are beings of higher status than the Herrschers, and are also humans who have been modified by Honkai energy and endowed with powerful abilities.

There are many reasons for the emergence of pseudo-Herrschers. The most common are high-level assassins and humans with high suitability. It may also be the materialization of a certain concept by Honkai energy.

There are also special cases, such as when the original Herrscher disappears and the remaining Honkai energy gathers to form a new Herrscher sample.

Although pseudo-Herrschers are not as terrifying as Herrschers, if pseudo-Herrschers are allowed to exist, even if Honkai energy does not develop to the level of Herrschers, it will still become a very huge threat.

The above content is from the Destiny Database.

“Indeed, I used to think that the pseudo-Herrscher was just a hypothesis, but it wasn’t until the Second Honkai Impact 14 years ago that I finally confirmed that the pseudo-Herrscher was not just a hypothesis, but a real existence.”

"You probably don't know this, but during the Second Honkai Impact, the Second Herrscher obtained four additional Herrscher Cores on the moon and used them to create an existence that was infinitely close to a Herrscher. Its combat power was much stronger than that of an A-rank Valkyrie, and that was the beginning of the confirmation of the existence of pseudo-Herrschers."

"Recently, I reread the database of Destiny and discovered information that I had overlooked for five hundred years."

Upon hearing the term "five hundred years," Bai Jie couldn't help but become interested, since five hundred years was a time of extraordinary significance for Otto.

"Five hundred years ago, my Kallen said this during her trial before her execution: 'I have fallen in love with that Herrscher.' However, the first Herrscher of this generation did not appear until 1952."

"So I've come to the conclusion that my Kallen didn't fall in love with a real Herrscher, but rather with a pseudo-Herrscher."

After listening to Otto's words, Bai Jie rested his chin on his hand and thought for a while before asking, "So, Otto, are you planning to hunt down that pseudo-Herrscher? Or are you going to hunt it down?"

Bai Jie knew that Kallen held an extraordinary place in Otto's heart. In fact, Otto had lived for five hundred years in order to find a way to revive Kallen. To him, Kallen was everything, and he didn't even care about the Honkai Otto.

Now that he has learned the true identity of his rival from five hundred years ago, Otto is absolutely not going to remain indifferent.

Upon hearing Bai Jie's question, Otto smiled and said, "I don't intend to hunt her down. After all, she helped Kallen, and I am grateful to her in that sense. But she is still a Herrscher. If possible, I hope to capture her without endangering her life. You should be able to do that, Doctor, Miss Chen."

(Is that really the case? Otto, are you truly not resentful towards that pseudo-Herrscher? I don't believe you're the kind of person who would watch the one you love fall into someone else's arms and still offer your blessings.)

"Beep beep!"

Suddenly, Bai Jie's monocle lit up with a dazzling red light, and a piercing alarm sounded from the speaker in Bai Jie's ear. Bai Jie's expression changed drastically in an instant.

"This Honkai energy reaction... Damn it! It's a Herrscher-level reaction! This is unbelievable! A third Herrscher has actually appeared!"

"Looks like we've hit the jackpot, Doctor. Where is it?" Otto said, sounding rather eager.

After hesitating for a moment, Bai Jie revealed the location.

"At Senba Academy."

--------------------------

At Senba Academy, because a Herrscher had previously appeared there, the campus is now covered with thick plant branches and vines. Now that I think about it, perhaps the Herrscher defeated by Chen was also a pseudo-Herrscher.

"Sizzle—!"

Two sharp blades of light formed a cross and swept across the path, instantly slicing all obstacles in their way into pieces.

Sheathing his sword, Chen frowned: "Strange, I remember when I drew Crimson Sky to defeat that Herrscher, all these plants had disappeared. How did they reappear?"

"Perhaps the plants that were already here were stimulated by Honkai energy and mutated. More importantly, the location of that Herrscher-level Honkai energy reaction I detected just now..."

"It's up there." Otto had somehow looked up at the top of the school building.

Following Otto's gaze upwards, Bai Jie froze on the spot.

She was a goddess.

Her oversized clothes are reminiscent of traditional ancient shrine maiden attire, but with some differences. She wears a fox mask symbolizing the Inari god and a shimenawa (sacred rope) around her waist, while her lower body is clad in a pleated plaid skirt, much like that of a modern high school girl.

What's most eye-catching is undoubtedly the other person's long pink hair bathed in moonlight and the long ears peeking out from between the hair.

"Pink-haired...Amiya?" Bai Jie asked absentmindedly.

Seeing Bai Jie's bewitched appearance, Chen angrily grabbed Chi Xiao and slashed it across Bai Jie's forehead through the scabbard.

Duang—!

Bai Jie clutched his head and squatted down, crying out in pain, "My dear wife...it hurts so much!"

"Then keep your eyes to yourself. Don't think I'll tolerate you getting involved with other women."

(I'm jealous, absolutely jealous! But even though I'm jealous, my wife still makes my heart flutter!)

Just as Bai Jie and Chen were dealing with their family and emotional entanglements, Otto had already arrived at the foot of the teaching building. About eighteen meters apart, the two people who had both dedicated their lives to Karen finally met each other for the first time.

P.S.: Update

P.S.: Some people say the protagonist's name is bad and might discourage viewers, but actually, I just came up with this name randomly. My own name has the character "杰" (jie), and somehow it reminded me of Bai Jie (a famous Chinese actress), so it just came up by accident.

Section 45, Chapter 20: Chen: I am invincible!

Yae Sakura is having some trouble right now.

She had only just woken up from a five-hundred-year slumber two days ago, and as soon as she woke up, she found that everything around her was very different from five hundred years ago. Although it was in ruins, she clearly realized that she was not in the Yae Village she was familiar with.

With the idea of ​​taking it one step at a time, Yae Sakura began to wander around Changkong City. Although she encountered many Honkai Beasts and zombies, she was mistaken for one of them because she was a pseudo-Herrscher, and no battles occurred.

This evening, Yae Sakura arrived at Chiba Academy, intending to make do with sleeping there for the night. However, just as night fell, she sensed something entering the academy. Thinking it better to be safe than sorry, Yae Sakura drew her sword and slashed down all the strange things that had flown in.

She thought it was over, but not long after, Yae Sakura sensed someone entering Chiba Academy, and one of them carried a very strong sword intent, which even made her feel a little afraid.

To find out more, Yae Sakura went to the rooftop. The reason was that there was a novel in a desk in a classroom at Chiba Academy. Although the text was different from that of 500 years ago, Yae Sakura still managed to finish reading it. The novel said that looking down from a high place gives one more imposing presence and authority, and can psychologically suppress the other party.

As soon as Yae Sakura arrived on the rooftop, she saw the three people walking in from the school gate.

"That young lady with the red-sheathed sword must be the powerful swordsman I sensed. That oppressive aura... she's definitely a master of the Unseen Martial Arts level. And that red-sheathed sword gives me an extremely ominous feeling. Could it also be a deadly weapon?"

"What did the white-haired man just call me? Pink-haired Amiya? I don't know why, but I feel insulted."

"As for this last blond gentleman..."

For some reason, Yae Sakura felt a sense of "finally meeting him" as soon as she saw Otto, as if she had been longing to see him for a long time. Along with this feeling, a strange sense of jealousy also welled up in her heart.

She had something very important taken from her by Otto.

"Wait, this taste—"

Suddenly, Yae Sakura twitched her nose, then stared intently at Otto with utter shock.

There's no mistake, it tastes like Karen!

She leaped off the rooftop, landing silently on the ground like a cat. Yae Sakura looked at Otto and asked, "Sir, although it may be impolite, could you please explain why you smell like Kallen?"

Upon hearing this, Otto's brows furrowed immediately.

(This pink-furred fox can even smell Kallen! Could she have really done something to my Kallen? Unforgivable! Absolutely unforgivable—no, no, I need to calm down. Maybe it's just a kind of intuition. Trust yourself, Otto. Kallen is always pure and innocent.)

After a complex internal struggle, Otto revealed a perfect aristocratic smile and said, "Why does it smell like Karen? It's simple, because Karen is my wife."

Upon hearing Otto's words from behind, Bai Jie was stunned for a moment, then fiercely raised his middle finger where Otto couldn't see.

This old geezer is so shameless! Bai Jie has never seen such a brazen person before!

He even has a wife? Anyone who knows what happened 500 years ago knows that Otto chased Karen his whole life and never won her over! He's practically the ultimate loser! Forget about a wife, Otto and Karen never even had a casual relationship!

(I'm not lying about this. In my fantasy world, I've already maxed out Kallen's affection level. I've also completed all twelve Kallen routes in the dating simulation game developed by Fafnir, which features Kallen as the protagonist. I have a whole warehouse full of Kallen figurines. I watch every video related to Kallen twice a day. My love for Kallen is as clear as day!)

(And you, Yae Sakura, are at best an innocent bystander whom Kallen helped out of kindness, and even the culprit who caused Kallen's death. What right do you have to compete with me for Kallen? Come on, let me see your pathetic, defeated posture!)

If Bai Jie had mind-reading abilities, he would definitely yell, "Otto, you pervert!" How could the dignified Archbishop of Destiny have such a shameful thought? If Lin Dong were here, he would be cursing again.

Not far away, upon hearing Otto's explosive news, Yae Sakura was struck dumb, her entire body turning ashen.

Karen got married... Her beloved Karen got married... Karen fell in love with another man...

"Impossible! Kallen said she loved me... You're lying!" Incredulous, Yae Sakura drew her Sakura Fubuki sword and pointed it at Otto. "Evidence! Show me the evidence! If you dare lie to me, I'll kill you!"

With a disdainful smirk, Otto took out his personal terminal, opened a photo, and showed it to Yae Sakura. The photo was a wedding picture of Otto and Kallen, with a background full of pink hearts, exuding a romantic atmosphere.

(If I remember correctly, it was Otto who specifically came to the equipment department to ask me to help him with the Photoshop work.)

Marrying Karen was Otto's greatest wish all along, and to fulfill that wish, even if it was unreal, it didn't matter. Otto asked Bai Jie to help him get this photo, just as a form of psychological comfort. Bai Jie helped him out of pity at the time, but he never expected that Otto would bring it up now!