Collapse, Kaslana's Way of Survival

Accompanied by a burst of electric sound, the windows and all the lights in the house flickered together, and finally went out completely.

The room suddenly fell into darkness, and one could not see one's hand in front of one's face.

However, before Wendy could react, all the lights came on again, and the vibrant scenery appeared in the window again.

Staring at the window that had been lit again, Wendy was stunned for a moment, then slowly frowned.

Just now... was there a power outage?

Here? One of the most important places in this branch of the Sky Mandate Oceania?

sizzle.

Suddenly, the electronic door that sealed the house was opened by someone.

Wendy, already wary, narrowed her eyes, her instincts, honed over the years, telling her what to do. She twisted her body and turned her wheelchair, facing the uninvited visitor with a wary attitude.

Then, due to his physical disability and unstable center of gravity, he fell down and fell to the side.

"Oh, if you have difficulty walking, you'd better be careful. Otherwise, if you fall and no one helps you, it will be very troublesome." A strange male voice suddenly sounded.

A strong wind suddenly blew up around them, and Wendy's falling body stopped instantly, and she sat up again with the help of the strong wind.

Gasping for breath in fear due to the sudden accident, Wendy did not rest and hurriedly looked in the direction of the gate - if her judgment in a hurry was correct, the person who made the sound was there.

But when she actually saw the person standing at the door, Wendy was stunned again.

A man wearing a clown mask was leaning against the door, looking at her quite comfortably.

Chapter 153 Illusion

Adjusting the clown mask that he had casually reappeared on his face, Kaino looked at the girl in front of him who was obviously wary of him with interest.

I had only heard of the name before so I didn't feel anything. Now that I have actually met her, Kainuo discovered one thing - the other party is really similar to Xier, both in appearance and personality.

Of course, I was referring to Lan Xier. If the person sitting there had a personality similar to Hong Xier, then the other party would definitely not just be on guard but would pick up whatever was around and throw it at me.

...No, if it was him, he might not be locked up here at all.

"Who are you?"

Looking at the man who had been leaning against the door without saying a word, Wendy's face showed a nervous expression, but she secretly moved her hand towards the emergency communication button.

Today wasn't a holiday, and even if it were, there wouldn't be anyone wearing a mask playing Guess Who I Am. Although she didn't know why the other person had deliberately lifted her up from the air as she was about to fall, she knew for sure he had bad intentions.

As for the target, it is not difficult to guess. He is here for her or the gem in her body.

"I advise you not to do anything unnecessary. It's best to put your hand back."

Glancing at Wendy's right hand, which was about to touch the button, Kaino shrugged and sighed.

Your hand is clearly moving towards the button. Do you think I'm blind and can't see it?

"And your stalling tactics are a bit too low-level. I'm wearing a mask, so why would I honestly tell you my identity?"

Wendy's pupils flickered when she heard Kainuo's words. After a slight hesitation, she folded her hands and placed them on her legs obediently.

"Hmm?" Kaino blinked, a smile forming at the corners of his mouth beneath his mask. "I thought you'd try to press the button and call for help while I wasn't paying attention, like on TV."

"That won't do anything except irritate you, will it?" Wendy said rather dejectedly. "If I do that, you can easily use the same strength that just held me up to stop me—I don't think the strength of my own hand is any greater than that of the previous one."

As she spoke, Wendy tightened her grip and her voice became deeper.

"And now that I think about it, now that I'm here, it might be useless even if I contact them urgently."

This is not difficult to understand.

Whether it was the Desire Gem that possessed the power of a Traveler or the body that showed the highest compatibility with the Desire Gem among all the experimental personnel, the Oceania branch had no reason not to arrange the highest level of protection for her.

This almost completely enclosed room also proves this point.

Yet, even in such a room, the other party had sneaked into this place with the highest security level without making any sound. If you think about it this way, it's understandable that the other party could have done something else.

"For example, planting a bomb on the route leading here, or poisoning a ventilation duct..." Wendy grinned miserably. "From what I understand, you Anti-Entropy guys often do this kind of thing, don't you?"

Reverse entropy?

Kaino blinked, his expression becoming odd.

The World Serpent was not mentioned probably because of lack of information, so it is reasonable to mention Anti-Entropy, and Anti-Entropy's reputation is indeed very bad on the Mandate side.

How should I put it? It was a truly reasonable and wonderful misunderstanding.

"Is that really the case?"

Seeing that Kainuo seemed to have guessed his identity and had not responded, Wendy smiled slightly miserably and slowly lowered her head.

"Whether it's the gem you desire or my body, you can take it all." After a moment of silence, Wendy, who had half lowered her head, slowly raised her head and stared at Kainuo, her eyes full of determination.

"But you can't attack anyone in Destiny, or I'll bite my tongue and commit suicide immediately... Since you covet the Desire Gem, you don't want me, someone who can perfectly blend with the Desire Gem, to die like this, right?"

Kaino scratched the side of his face, not knowing what to say to the other party.

Should he tell her that she couldn't really commit suicide by biting her tongue, or should he tell her that he could save her even if she tried to commit suicide through other means?

Or should I tell her that I had no intention of taking the other person away?

Turning his head to glance at the electronic watch hanging on the wall beside him, Kainuo gave up thinking.

15:42… Ten minutes should be enough. Since we have enough time, let's finish it quickly.

"Since you're aware of this, that's great. After all, this is a hassle-free and energy-saving option for both of us."

Without giving Wendy time to react, Kainuo took two steps forward to her and gently waved his right hand in front of her eyes.

Wendy's eyes, which were originally full of determination, instantly lost their luster. She sat motionless in the wheelchair as if she had lost her mind, like a puppet without its controller.

After confirming that the other party had no reaction, Kainuo nodded and snapped his fingers lightly with his right hand.

With a ripple-like sound, cracks appeared on Kainuo's body, and finally, his entire body shattered with a bang. At the same time, boundless darkness spread out, completely engulfing the entire room, including Wendy.

The world fell into darkness.

――Then, the light came on again.

It was still the same room, but Wendy was the only one left in the room, and Kayno, who was wearing a mask, was still nowhere to be seen.

The wheelchair was still parked in front of the window, but Wendy was no longer sitting in it. Instead, she lay on her side on the bed, her expression quiet and peaceful, her bandaged legs unconsciously curled up.

Outside the room, in the corridor, on the square... in almost every corner of the Pacific branch, one could see the urgently mobilized Valkyries lying on the ground in full combat uniforms, with expressions of fear on their faces, and with more or less injuries on their bodies.

They seemed to be having a nightmare, and even the shrill but somewhat mute alarm could not wake them up.

In front of them, pieces of red and white feathers sank into the dark imaginary gate one by one and finally disappeared; next to these Valkyries, burn marks caused by excessive temperature were scattered all over the branch, and a hint of burnt smell remained in the air distorted by the high temperature.

At first glance, it looks like a picture of hell.

……

"An, I'm sorry, Fu Hua, have you been waiting for a long time?"

After coming out of the toilet and returning to the training room, Kainuo looked at Fu Hua, whose expression was calm, and waved slightly embarrassedly.

"Not too long, only about 20 minutes."

Looking at the clock on the training room wall which read 15:34, Fu Hua shook her head.

After a brief pause, she continued, "If you're not feeling well, then we can end our sparring session today."

"No, no, I just had a stomachache because I ate the food that Kiana taught Seele to cook again today. I'm fine now." Kainuo put a pot on Kiana and waved his hand quickly.

"Besides, I was the one who asked you to come here to spar, so what if I leave first?"

"From a common sense perspective, your health is more important than these cumbersome formalities." Fu Hua looked Keno up and down before nodding. "But it looks like you're fine now. Let's continue our unfinished sparring session."

"to make."

Kaino smiled and nodded.

Chapter 154: Destiny Office Qi Er Shan Ling Si Jiusi

"Dad, I just played a game, and now you're telling me that the Desire Gem was snatched away in just a short time?"

Otto, who had just finished a game of Kallen Fantasy, looked at Amber who opened the door to report to him, threw the controller on the table, rubbed his temples, and looked helpless.

"Is the entire Pacific branch just sitting there doing nothing? If that's the case, why not allocate the funds they requested to the research and development of Kallen Fantasy?" Otto narrowed his eyes, his voice a rare hint of fatigue. "Where's their head? Have her come see me."

Although the Gem of Desire didn't play a big role in his plan, it was still a Herrscher core after all. It would be nice if he could use it to develop a reliable method to control the Herrscher.

Because of this, he even did not agree to his lovely granddaughter's application for Wendy, causing the other party to not answer his calls for a long time.

But the result?

Bang, the core is gone!

"The leader of the Far East branch suffered the most severe burns. While his injuries are not life-threatening, he is still receiving treatment," Amber said calmly. "Also, you've already spent a considerable amount of time and money on that game. I regret that I cannot agree to your request."

"If anything, I hope you'll stop playing it."

"Burns?" Ignoring Amber's next words, Otto raised his eyebrows and asked in question, his expression becoming a little more serious.

The withdrawal of funds was a joke, of course. He was well aware of the strength of each branch of the Mandate of Heaven. For example, the Oceania branch, with its relatively high technological prowess relative to this world and its numerous active Valkyries, was essentially immune to ordinary human wave tactics.

Then, the enemy was defeated in broad daylight when it was basically impossible for them to launch a successful sneak attack. This basically means that the enemy had deployed S-level combat power or above - not S-level like Rita, but S-level who had mastered the Key of God and could truly wield the power of God or even rival God.

Coincidentally, he knows almost all such people in the world.

And add the word burn...

"The Holy Judge of Heavenly Fire?" Although it was a question, Otto's tone was firm.

Of course, if he guessed wrong and the Oceania branch was really attacked in broad daylight, then he would have to think carefully about withdrawing funding for the Oceania branch.

"If nothing unexpected happens, it must be the Holy Judgment of Heavenly Fire. The traces found on the battlefield of the Oceania branch are exactly the same as those left when the Holy Judgment of Heavenly Fire was liberated during the Second Collapse. Almost the entire Oceania branch was destroyed."

After a pause, Hu Bo continued, "What's quite surprising is that, despite the significant damage to the buildings, not a single Valkyrie died. The most seriously injured, like the head of the Oceania branch, can recover after a period of rest."

"If it's really Siegfried, then that's perfectly normal—how many Kaslanas would turn their swords against their former colleagues? The fact that he would attack the Valkyries instead of just taking the Gem of Desire is surprising enough."

Otto tilted his head and propped his chin with one hand. "Let me guess. Miss Wendy, who was able to merge smoothly with the Desire Gem, wasn't taken away, right?"

"Indeed," Amber nodded. "Ms. Wendy was left behind in the Oceania branch. And surprisingly, her legs have recovered."

"Wreaking havoc to divert hatred away from Wendy, the only one who was unharmed and even benefited from the incident. Well, it's a pretty good strategy, but it doesn't seem like something Siegfried would have come up with."

Otto tapped the table twice, frowned, and continued, "Although there is a possibility that Anti-Entropy is giving him advice, but..."

"But?" Amber tilted her head, sounding a little puzzled.

"No, it's nothing."

Shaking his head, Otto began to ask another question: "Does Bianca know about this now?"

Ever since Bianca personally approached him and learned of his true identity, he'd been desperately searching for fragments of his past, like a treasure map hidden in a house. Naturally, Siegfried, her still-living father, had also caught her attention.

Although she had no good feelings towards the clone of the Second Herrscher who used her former name to eat, drink and have fun in front of her aunt and brother, enjoying their care and even preventing them from recognizing each other openly without realizing it, Bianca still had a positive impression of this nominal father.

It was for this reason that Otto cancelled the wanted order for Siegfried. Upon learning that her biological father was wanted for preventing the Bishop from researching his clones, Bianca put the Black Abyss White Flower against his neck for the first time to threaten him.

If Bianca knew the truth about the Oceania branch this time, there was no guarantee that she would go out alone to look for her father - and letting such a strong Bianca wander around outside could affect his plans.

"It's difficult to conceal the news of the attack on the Oceania branch, but I have sealed up the specific information. Lady Yulandel only knows that this happened." Amber explained.

"That's great." Otto nodded. "Although we can't meet in person, we should have interrogated the members of the Oceania branch, right?"

"We've done everything," Amber replied. "Although Miss Wendy tried to conceal the information, we can still piece together the full picture through the records of other Valkyries and some instruments."

"Around 3:29 PM, the first person noticed that their opponent's Valkyrie had been knocked unconscious. Within three or four minutes, they managed to evade surveillance cameras and directly entered Miss Wendy's room. Because the time was so short, no one noticed anything unusual."

"By the way, according to the other party's description, the enemy should be a white-haired man wearing a clown mask." Amber glanced at Otto.

"Oh~" Otto touched his chin.

"Then, around 15:34 PM, an unknown electrical shock caused all electronic equipment in Ms. Wendy's room, including the surveillance equipment, to malfunction. This is how the Oceania branch finally noticed the anomaly."

"At approximately 15:42 PM, all the electronic equipment in Miss Wendy's room resumed operation." Amber paused and continued, "This is very strange. The previous current should have destroyed them all. This method, which is like reconstruction..."

"We are all very familiar with the power of the Ruler of Reason." Otto narrowed his eyes and said, "And then?"

"Then the enemy activated a weapon resembling the Holy Judgment of Heavenly Fire, injuring all the Valkyries. That's all," Amber said. "Do we need to call over Miss Wendy, who's hiding something?"

"Forget it. It's probably hard to get any useful information in the complete darkness." Otto waved his hand. "Besides, little Theresa will probably be looking for me soon. The Gem of Desire is gone anyway, so let's at least leave a good impression on her this time."

"Alright." Amber nodded. "One more thing. After testing by Destiny, it was discovered that the concentration of Honkai energy in Changkong City has been rising continuously over the past year, and is gradually approaching the level where a Mimi-Hermit will be born. Do we need to evacuate the people?"

As a world-class anti-Honkai organization, they regularly monitor the concentration of Honkai energy in cities with a high probability of experiencing a major Honkai event. Thanks to the help of an orphanage director, Changkong City was included in the monitoring list this year.

"Evacuate! SkyMandatory is an organization determined to protect the world. How can we not evacuate?"