"Otto—!!"
Elias glared at Otto with uncontrollable fury. Even though he knew the figure before him was merely a soulium body, even if he tore it to pieces, it would have no real effect on the man himself.
But at this moment, what Elias felt was an eruption of rage, akin to a volcanic explosion—so intense that his Herrscher powers briefly surged out of control for a few seconds.
Just as Elias was about to use the authority of the Herrscher of the Void to retrieve Sirin and Avrora, Otto's finger, resting on the trigger of his imitation of the Judgment of Shamash, pressed down slightly—like a silent warning that he could pull it faster than Elias could act.
"Guh…!"
"Hahahaha! How utterly ridiculous! Just the mere movement of my finger was enough to make a Herrscher cease resistance. As expected, your dazzling, gem-like humanity is your only and greatest weakness!"
Otto laughed wildly, full of arrogance and self-satisfaction. But his method—taking a girl hostage to threaten a young man—only drew disgust and resentment from those around him.
"Let the girls go, Otto."
"Lord Overseer, please don't do this."
"Grandfather, this is too much."
"Even if you are the Overseer, you can't do this."
"Otto, give up. All you're doing is turning every one of us against you."
Welt, Cecilia, Theresa, Siegfried, and Fu Hua all locked their gazes onto Otto, their expressions filled with anger and disapproval.
Though some among them were his subordinates, none of them were mere puppets on his strings.
They were warriors who fought for what was right—Valkyries and Herrscher of Humanity who fought to protect the beauty of the world. They would not stand idly by and allow his actions to go unchecked.
However—
"Alright, alright~ To think that all of you—my most capable subordinates, my dearest granddaughter, my closest old friends—would rather betray me and side with a Herrscher. How heartbreaking… But I suppose Otto Apocalypse deserves this."
Otto let out a long sigh, as if he were filled with regret and disappointment—but there was not a single trace of genuine emotion in his voice.
"That being said, before you betray me, perhaps you should rationally consider whether you even have the ability to act against me."
"Otto, what do you mean by that?!"
"Haah~ Welt, I think you should check on Anti-Entropy first. Ten minutes ago, Schicksal launched a large-scale assault on your organization. If you don't go to their aid now, you might only find ruins and corpses left behind."
"What did you say?!"
"Immortal Phoenix, my dear old friend, don't look at me like that. Don't worry, I would never threaten you. It's just… Cheng Lixue recently took on a high-risk Honkai Beast extermination mission, and she's been missing for three hours now. As her master, don't you think you should be more concerned?"
"Otto, what have you done to Lixue?!"
"Heh, and finally—Cecilia, Theresa, Siegfried—have you forgotten that your beloved daughter/niece is still on Schicksal's floating island?"
"What are you planning to do to Kiana?!" x3
How utterly terrifying.
This was Otto Apocalypse.
This was the obsession of a fool who had lived for five centuries.
Even though his personal strength was not the greatest, Otto Apocalypse was undoubtedly one of the most dangerous people in the world—no, perhaps even the most dangerous.
With just three sentences, he completely paralyzed five people's ability to act. With just the mere movement of his finger, he forced a Herrscher to surrender.
He had mastered the art of manipulating hearts, using what was most precious to each person as chains to bind their actions.
"Welt, Fu Hua, go," Elias said, clenching his fists.
"Herrscher of the Void, you..."
"Everyone has something they must protect—something more important than their own life. I understand that feeling better than anyone... My own affairs don't concern you, and you wouldn't want to lose the ones you cherish either."
"Thank you." x2
The images of their precious comrades and disciples flashed through their minds. These were irreplaceable treasures they had to safeguard, even at the cost of their own lives.
After thanking Elias, the two immediately turned and left.
"And you as well—Cecilia, Theresa, and… whoever else? Never mind, it doesn't matter. I believe that family is the most important thing in this world, so… don't interfere. It wouldn't change anything either way."
"Herrscher of the Void, thank you. And… I'm sorry."
"…It's fine."
Clap. Clap. Clap.
Applause echoed from the side. Otto, holding his gun pointed at Sirin's head, clapped his other hand against the back of his palm as if giving a round of applause.
"How touching. What a brilliant and dazzling display of virtue. Herrscher of the Void, you seem more human than I do. Now, let's begin—hand over your Herrscher Core. No, hand over all your Herrscher Cores, one by one."
"Hmph! One day, Otto Apocalypse, I will kill you a thousand, no, ten thousand times over."
"I truly hope that day comes. Don't worry—once you've removed all your Cores, I will let you and your companions go. Schicksal will no longer trouble you."
"..."
Elias silently raised his hand to his chest.
Beads of sweat rolled down his forehead.
Soon, a blood-soaked violet gemstone was torn from his body, flickering faintly with arcs of electricity.
The Core of the Herrscher of Thunder—The Gem of Conquest.
"Take it!"
Elias flung the Gem of Conquest at Otto's feet, as if he were an angry child hurling a rock.
"Not bad, not bad. Keep going, but the next one I want is the Core of the Herrscher of Death."
"Otto, you son of a b****."
"Feel free to curse me. If you somehow travel back in time, my sister, my mother—take your pick, it wouldn't bother me. But for now, hurry up and hand over the Core."
"Hmph!"
Seeing Elias raise his hand toward himself once again—
Sirin's tears fell uncontrollably.
"No… No, stop! It's enough! Please, I beg you, stop! Elias, we're not worth it—we don't deserve for you to keep hurting yourself just to protect us. So please, stop!"
"Sirin, it's not about whether you're worth it or not. I'm simply protecting the ones I love. I'll be fine. Now, be good, close your eyes—it'll be over soon. Cough… cough…"
"Elias! Elias! No, please, I don't want to see you get hurt anymore! Why… Why do they keep doing this to you?!"
Sirin felt as if a hand had clenched around her heart. She gazed at Elias in despair, watching the most important person in her life bleed and suffer once again because of her.
Guilt, shame, grief, anger, sorrow, disappointment, rage, despair—an overwhelming storm of emotions threatened to drown her sanity.
Over and over, she asked herself—
Why? Why did it come to this?
Why was she always forced to stand by and watch?
Why was she powerless to do anything?
How many more times would she have to endure this?
Because of their uselessness, their weakness, how many more times must Elias be hurt?!
Enough. Enough!
She had had enough of this!
Sirin's eyes widened in fury, her silver teeth clenched tight. To be nothing but a burden to Elias, to see him hurt over and over again because of her—she hated it. She loathed herself more than anyone else ever could.
So…
"Bastard! Bastard! Bastard! You damn bastard! I'll kill you—go to hell!"
"W-what?!"
Otto was utterly shocked as the violet-haired girl he held captive suddenly began struggling violently.
Sirin ignored the imitation Judgment of Shamash pressed against her head—she even intentionally shoved her forehead against the gun's barrel.
At this moment, only one thought consumed her mind.
Move! Move! Do something!
If she couldn't bear to see him get hurt anymore, then she had to protect him!
Sirin, use this pathetic, worthless life of yours—this life that he has saved countless times over.
Do something for him!
And it wasn't just Sirin.
Avrora, Agata, and Galina—all three of them felt the same. They thrashed desperately, completely disregarding their own lives, struggling to break free from their restraints. To outsiders, it looked no different from a death wish.
Otto, who had mastered the intricacies of human nature, instantly understood what they were thinking—
Rather than sit idly by and watch their most precious person suffer because of them, they would rather die themselves!
Of course, their struggles were in vain. A body of soulium was not something ordinary girls could overpower.
But that sheer, overwhelming grief, that soul-crushing despair turned into a burning rage—their unwavering will to sacrifice themselves just to protect the one they cherished—
It made Otto hesitate for an entire second.
And that one second—
Was all Elias needed.
(Now! This is the chance!)
In an instant, he used spatial transmission to teleport Avrora and the others to safety, while razor-sharp blades of Ideal Fluid sliced clean through Otto's soulium arm, severing his grip on the gun.
In the next moment, Elias had already pulled Sirin back into his arms—and with a devastating punch, he smashed Otto's metal face.
The force was so great that his entire face caved in, leaving behind a deep, unmistakable imprint of Elias' fist.