K424 of the Collapse World

From the moment Cecilia died fifteen years ago, this place was no longer their warm home, but just a place of sorrow and pain. The memories left here could not arouse his nostalgia at all. If possible, Siegfried never wanted to return to this place...

Siegfried walked around the main gate and climbed over the wall along an inconspicuous corner. After confirming that there was no one around, he quickly climbed up the pipe and jumped onto the balcony of a building on a certain floor. His swift and agile movements did not make any noise.

"call......"

Looking at the living room which was almost unchanged from when he left, Siegfried breathed a sigh of relief. Even though no one had lived there for several years, the cleaner in charge of the Kaslana family area was still cleaning the empty room as usual. Fortunately, the things that were originally left in the storage room should still be in their original state.

After all, there are cleaners who clean every week, so the clothes should not be damaged by rats. By the way, are there rats on the floating island of the Sentient Headquarters?

Siegfried thought about it and just took a step forward, but before his toes touched the ground, his eyes suddenly became sharp!

Although it was very slight, Siegfried still keenly heard the deliberately slowed footsteps in the next room...

Is there anyone else in this room right now?!

507 A Moment Apart

In the room that originally belonged to the bedroom, the silver-haired woman stared at the photo frame on the table, unable to look away for a long time.

"This is......"

There is a photo in the frame, which looks like a family portrait. A young couple stands together, and the little girl with silver hair is lifted above the man's head and placed on his neck, with a bright smile on her face; the silver-haired woman standing next to her also has a happy smile on her face, holding the man's arm and resting her head on her husband's shoulder.

Below the photo frame, there is a line of exquisite small words engraved:

Siegfried, Cecilia - December 1999.12.7,

Cecilia? Is that his wife's name? But the name Bishop Otto used to call himself was also Cecilia Shaniat, wasn't it?

The woman thought silently, her brows furrowed.

Although she was allowed to move around the headquarters, she was not allowed to go to residential areas. She was wondering why she came here unconsciously, but her eyes were attracted by this photo.

When she opened her eyes in the laboratory, she had no memory in her mind. She had no idea who she was, where she was, or what had happened. However, when she saw the residential building on the block, she walked towards it involuntarily under the compulsion of some force, and finally came to this room...

"This is a residential building... Jumping into the room from the window without permission is considered illegal trespassing, right? We need to leave quickly... But..."

Although she murmured to herself to convince herself, she was completely unable to look away. She stared at it for a while. Under some strange impulse, she finally couldn't help but walked forward, held it in her hands and looked at it carefully.

(Why... do I feel so familiar? I can't find this man's face in my memory, but why do I feel like I've seen him somewhere before? Did I forget something important...?)

Looking at the handsome face of the white-haired man, the woman shook her head and felt her thoughts becoming confused. When she turned her eyes to the woman on the other side of the photo, the strange sense of familiarity emerged again.

This was not the familiar feeling of an illusion just now, but she had really seen this face not long ago. Suddenly, the woman turned her head subconsciously, and the floor-length mirror not far behind her immediately reflected a silver-haired woman with confusion between her brows.

The moment she saw this scene, she suddenly realized that the face reflected in the mirror looked exactly like the woman in the photo!

"This is... me?! But what on earth is..."

The woman opened her eyes wide in astonishment. What was in front of her was very different from what she had known before. At this moment, a faint sound suddenly rang out outside the bedroom, which made her alert instantly.

(Is anyone here?!)

——Bang! !

However, before she could think about it, the door was suddenly smashed! A dark figure in a coat flashed into the room, pointing the gun in his hand directly at the stunned woman...

"who?!"

full

The powerful shout brought the silver-haired woman back to her senses instantly. At this moment, she had no time to care about her previous discovery and the slightly familiar voice of the black shadow. She instinctively turned sideways to avoid the direction of the gun barrel, and then turned her head and fled directly to the window behind her.

She had never forgotten that she was illegally trespassing into a private residence. So when she saw the armed man wearing a hat and sunglasses, she subconsciously thought he was the owner of the house.

As for guns, would the people living in the Tianming Headquarters still lack combatants? In any case, she didn't have time to think about it, and her first reaction was to flee from here.

The Valkyrie's powerful physical fitness was fully utilized. Her figure flashed on the spot, and the next moment she appeared beside the window accompanied by a strong wind. With a touch of her toes on the windowsill, she swung out of the building and melted into the dark night sky.

"..."

However, although this set of smooth movements took less than a second, the man who just rushed into the room - Siegfried could still see the trajectory of her movements and could stop her with blocking shots. However, this man did not do so. If he had seen the woman's face earlier, he would not even have pulled out his gun!

"...Cecilia?"

Siegfried stared at the open window blankly for a few seconds before regaining focus. He rushed to the window, pushed aside the curtains fluttering in the wind, took off his sunglasses and stuck his head out of the window, trying to find the silver-haired woman in the darkness outside.

"How is it possible! It was Cecilia, it was definitely Cecilia just now! But..."

The woman holding the photo frame standing in front of the table was undoubtedly the person who had appeared in his dreams countless times! But Siegfried was also sure that more than a decade ago, Cecilia used all her strength to activate the Key of God to protect herself from the nuclear missile launched by Otto and lost her life response. Siegfried saw it all with his own eyes. Now, how could that woman appear in front of him again?

507 A Moment Apart >>

As for an illusion? What a joke... The strong wind that just blew over me and the tiny crack on the edge of the windowsill were enough to prove that the woman I bumped into just now was definitely not an illusion!

"Damn..."

Although it was already early morning in the Far East, it was still midnight in Europe. Siegfried cursed inwardly as he could not find the woman in the darkness. He gave up the idea of ​​jumping out of the window and chasing her. However, thinking back to what he had just seen, he hesitated again.

Although I don’t know what’s going on, do I really want to let this opportunity go?

Siegfried standing at the window fell into deep thought. At this moment, he didn't know that the woman who had just escaped from the window did not leave quickly, but took advantage of the night to hide under the corner of the building next to her, put her conspicuous long silver hair into her collar, and secretly peeked at Siegfried standing at the window.

(Huh…?!)

Looking at the silver-haired man standing under the light, she almost screamed out and quickly covered her mouth with both hands, staring at the man who was leaning over the window and looking down.

(Very similar... No, he is the guy in the photo! His name is... Siegfried? Siegfried Kaslana?!)

Thinking of the name she saw on the photo frame, the last name immediately appeared in her mind, as if the name had been engraved deep in her mind.

She suddenly had a strange feeling that as long as she returned to that person, all the lost memories would be restored...

(Who is he? Someone I used to know... That person seems to know me too, should I go back and confirm? But if that's the case...)

As soon as she had this thought, she immediately dismissed it. As a member of a special department, entering the living area by mistake was a serious violation. If she turned back, she would probably receive a terrible punishment.

and......

The woman looked thoughtfully at the dark corner of the alley, her eyes narrowed slightly, then she shifted her gaze calmly, pretending that she saw nothing.

Sure enough, if I leave the restricted area of ​​activities, the people at the headquarters will not sit idly by.

Although I felt concerned, I had to let it go in order to avoid making a more serious mistake.

Taking a final look at the man who was still in deep thought, she shook her head, slowly lowered her body, and quietly left the residential area, climbed over the outermost low wall, and left directly.

Having lost her memory, her only duty now is to obey the orders of the Destiny Organization. Therefore, even though she knew that the existence of that person must be very important to her, these uncertain personal feelings were not enough to drive her to act against the rules.

However, a temporary retreat does not mean that she will give up on exploring the truth. However, in the eyes of some other people, such actions are enough to show her attitude.

When the woman's figure completely disappeared, in the direction she had just looked at, a girl wearing Valkyrie armor slowly walked out of the darkness, raised the mechanical eyepiece on her face, and pressed the control button on her headset.

"Lord Amber, B-rank Valkyrie Flora reports to you. Miss Cecilia has just left the Kaslana family residence."

......

"Siegfried didn't seem to have any intention of pursuing him. Although the two had direct contact, it was only for a moment. Based on the scene, I guess neither side confirmed the other's identity."

......

"Understood. I will continue to monitor Siegfried's whereabouts. Over."

After ending the call, the Valkyrie girl glanced at Siegfried who was still standing in front of the window in deep thought, then she silently retreated into the darkness again, leaving no trace.

Silently staring at the darkness downstairs, Siegfried's expression had returned to calm. His mind had recovered from the shock just now, and he had already guessed what had happened just now.

"Is this another experiment by that guy..."

As Shirley's face flashed through his mind, Siegfried's eyes darkened and he tightened the grip of the gun in his hand.

What just happened in front of him was definitely not an illusion! Since Otto could extract Cecilia's memory and inject it into K424's consciousness to create the individual "Cielice", then he could naturally use Cecilia's genes to create a real copy of Cecilia!

Regardless of why she appeared here, Cecilia chose to avoid me just now. Was it because of the same idea as Shirley?

No matter what, he would not believe that his encounter with "Cecilia" here was just an accident. Who knows what else the man is planning behind this.

(This guy... has repeatedly desecrated Cecilia's memory. To what extent do you want to play with our relationship? Otto Apokalis! One day, I will let you see with your own eyes the true form of the Skyfire Jiemie...)

508 birthday

The news that Siegfried came to the headquarters alone must have been known to the bishop. However, even though he knew the actions of the Far East branch members very well, Otto at this moment had no time to pay attention to the man who once threatened him.

......

"No trace of the World Serpent?"

Listening to the reports from his subordinates on the terminal, the blond man narrowed his eyes.

"They were just forced out of the Australian branch by Miss Shilis. How could they not leave any clues? Moreover, they should have evacuated in a panic during the attack by the Herrscher? How could they have had time to deal with the traces left behind?"

Otto tapped his fingers rhythmically on the armrest of the chair. He was obviously not satisfied with the reply. After receiving the news that the Australian branch was infiltrated by the World Serpent, he immediately dispatched the elite Valkyrie troops to investigate the matter. However, the result was as above, and the former minister who had escaped was not tracked down.

Caroline and her forces seemed to have disappeared in Oceania within a day. No trace of any means of transportation could be found, whether by air or under the sea!

(Are they still hiding somewhere in New Zealand?)

With this in mind, Otto updated the search order again and mobilized the local troops of the Australian branch to assist in the search. However, two and a half days have passed and there is still no news from the tracking team...

No, it cannot be said that there was no news at all. At least, the search team still sent the "no target found" message to the headquarters to express their helplessness.

"I'm sorry, Your Excellency the Bishop...but the search area is too large. We can't determine whether the traitor is still in New Zealand or has sneaked into the Australian continent through some unknown means..."

"Unknown means? Apart from air and sea transport, how else can they cross the ocean? As for quantum teleportation technology... there shouldn't be any quantum control base station facilities in the New Zealand research institute, right? So, how else can they evacuate?"

"this......"

"Hmph, never mind. This isn't your fault. It seems that we may have underestimated the obscure organization 'World Serpent'."

Otto opened his eyes again and his tone returned to normal. The search had hit a bottleneck, and venting anger on subordinates was not the solution. Since he had been tricked, he could only learn from this lesson and optimize the next action plan.

"It doesn't matter if we can't catch them this time. At least we have to figure out how they moved. That's it. Let's keep searching."

"Yes, Lord Otto."

The communication was closed, and as the light screen disappeared in front of him, Otto still maintained the same expression as before. After a short silence, he lowered his head and closed his eyes again, sinking his thoughts into the depths of his sea of ​​consciousness.

(Do you know anything about the World Serpent organization?)

He said it silently in his mind as if talking to himself, and the next moment, another voice sounded in his mind.

"Oh...? Are you asking me?"

(…)

Otto remained silent.

Of course, there was no need to respond to the question, and he was not worried that the other party would refuse to answer. For five hundred years, as long as he took the initiative to talk to the Herrscher personality of Void Bank, the other party would definitely answer his questions.

"You're asking me about the World Serpent's intelligence? Idiot, even if we are sentient beings created by the Honkai, we can't predict the future. I've been by your side since the moment you awakened this civilization. How could I know something that even you don't know?"

(The technology they use, the way they act, and even the means of hiding themselves cannot be explained by the science and technology of this era. Is it possible that what they use is the technology left over from previous civilizations?)

"Don't you already have the answer to this question in your heart?"

(So, if they are related to the previous civilization, how come you, the First Key of God who claims to be "all-knowing", don't know anything about it?)

“Kid! You are well aware of the fact that the knowledge recorded in my core is limited to theories that conform to the laws of this planet! Then, how could I, a Herrscher who was defeated at the beginning of the previous civilization, know about an organization that may only be related to this knowledge?!”

(What about her? The will of the Herrscher of the End... can she satisfy my doubts?)

“You bastard… The system of collapse is just a tool to restrict the development of civilization on this planet. It is not a recorder of human civilization history, nor does it have such a function! Even if she is the highest authority in the system of collapse, she cannot see everything that happens in this world!”

(…)

"Why, you don't believe me? Do you want me to connect her consciousness for you so you can confirm for yourself whether what I said is true or not?"

(No need, what you said should be the truth. It seems that your ability is slightly worse than I thought... After all, you are just a tool to eliminate humans with your powerful force.)

"Hmph... brat, you..."

Without waiting for the voice in his head to finish its words, Otto withdrew from the sea of ​​consciousness and sealed Void Wanzang's consciousness again in the closed stigmata space.

I opened my eyes again and looked at the terminal screen in front of me. Very good, there is no reference information at all, and my search is at a loss.

Otto began to wonder if he had made a mistake in regarding Anti-Entropy as the greatest threat to Destiny. Perhaps the World Snake, which had remained mysterious from the beginning, was the enemy that he should be most wary of?

"Tsk, what a complication. The Eye of the Abyss that Anti-Entropy successfully seized has not yet been fully deciphered, and this unexpected development has occurred."

He raised his hand and made a slight adjustment on the terminal screen, and the image page switched to another plan.

In any case, since World Serpent is also an organization whose main purpose is to fight against Honkai, there is no need to regard it as an opponent on the same level as "Honkai" in terms of overall strategy.

Oh... No, I almost forgot that my most important goal right now is not to collapse...

The patterns and words on the light screen were reflected in the man's calm eyes, unable to conceal his resolute look at all.

As long as he can achieve his goal, Otto will not hesitate even if it means making peace with his former enemy, no matter who the other party is, or...what it is.