"The battleship is turning, preparing to adjust the main gun and target ME Corp headquarters—Hey, hey, can you hear me, you sunbathing slacker on the observation window... Ugh, Miss Wendy."
Simon and several others darted to the front of the bridge, rapping on the observation window to rouse Wendy, who was resting against it.
"Huh? What is it now?" Wendy tilted her head, peering at Simon Lailey through the glass.
"We're detecting a high-intensity Honkai energy reaction at ME Corp. Wendy, did you notice anything unusual at the ME Corp building you were at earlier?"
"Unusual...?" Wendy pondered. "There was only one massive workshop inside the building. It housed a legless, oversized robot—similar in style to those Titans I tore down before, but much taller, maybe four or five stories high?"
"That thing's clearly unfinished, with no legs. Nothing to worry about. They actually put my Gem of Desire in that thing? What a waste!" Wendy waved dismissively, brushing it off as a minor concern.
"Miss Wendy, have you ever heard the saying...?"
"? What saying?"
"Uh... 'Legs are just for show...?!'"
Simon Lailey stared in horror at the massive, legless robot. It was propelling itself through the city with its mechanical arms, leaping between buildings like something out of AOT.
"No, seriously, what kind of garbage code did Anti-Entropy's programmers write? Is this how robots are supposed to walk?! Main Gun Battery! Blast that Abnormal Type's arm off! Skuld, Commander of the First Division, take over the rest. I have a long-term personal mission to deploy for, and it's urgent—"
Simon Lailey smirked strangely, then turned and left the bridge.
"That's so weird... Did they wire something wrong?" Wendy tilted her head curiously, studying the "swift-footed" Godfather Mecha on the deck. Meanwhile, on the deck, Ninti—who had handed Bronya over to the group and swallowed a few motion sickness pills—stood at the edge, observing her own "masterpiece" with a doubtful gaze at her hands.
"...Just rewiring a few cables could cause this effect?" Ninti fell into deep thought, as if a strange new interest had awakened within her...
-
"Achoo!"
"Ugh... It feels like the little one at home is about to go astray..."
"Oh well, they'll go astray eventually anyway."
Snow shook her head dismissively and bent back down to tinker with a device in her hands.
-
Dozens of kilometers outside New Nagazora City, aboard an Anti-Entropy stealth transport ship, Cocolia was locked in a tense staredown with a green-haired doctor.
"Doctor Yssring Leavtruth... care to explain this?" Cocolia asked, glancing at the "Doctor" beside her, whose lips twitched nervously as she awaited an answer.
"Is this even rational?!" Cocolia pointed to the Abnormal Type Godfather on the monitor.
"You want me to explain? I can't explain it either, Cocolia! Do you really think any human could do something like this...?"
"...Logically speaking, no carbon-based lifeform could pull off such a feat. So it really wasn't your R&D Department's doing?"
"Are you implying I'm not human, Miss Cocolia?"
The petite, green-haired doctor bristled at the implication her technology was being questioned, glaring back fiercely.
"Alright, Doctor, I apologize... So what exactly happened to the Godfather Mecha? Can you give me a rough guess?"
"Didn't you say ME Corp was infiltrated by Schicksal Valkyries? They must have tampered with it. This thing can't have gained sentience, and it was likely a very crude modification. Parts and screws are falling off everywhere, and armor plates are missing. You can tell someone deliberately loosened the screws. As for its behavior pattern, she probably crudely rerouted the signal wires, connecting the circuits originally meant for leg movement and balance to its arms or something."
The green-haired Doctor pursed her lips, casually glanced at the Abnormal Type Godfather on the screen, and immediately identified the problem.
"Also, why are you the one picking me up this time? Where's Sin?"
"Sin? Your precious daughter blew up my lab and got caught red-handed by the Leader and Dr. Tesla. She's been ordered to restore the lab within a day..."
The emotion in the seaweed-haired Doctor's voice was merely numb, as if she had long grown accustomed to the antics of this "dear daughter."
"Uh... my apologies, 'Doctor'..."
"You don't need to apologize to me, Lady Cocolia... Hmm, you seem to be missing the point—Sin was captured by the Leader himself..."
Yssring turned to face Cocolia, who appeared to have realized something and was now sweating profusely. She spoke slowly, emphasizing each word:
"The point is, the Leader has returned. We're not heading back to your Siberian lair... we're going to headquarters in North America."
"Yssring, considering we're both Executors..."
"You want me to let you off the hook? Land somewhere and let you go? Is that right?"
"And if I say no, you'll just point your gun at me?"
Yssring stared impassively at Cocolia, who had already moved her hand to the gun holster at her waist, preparing to take the seemingly frail woman hostage.
"Give up, Lady Cocolia—the Leader is on this very plane..."
Sharp, mechanical wings floated out from Yssring's back, and a semi-transparent shield enveloped the green-haired Valkyrie.
"Besides, why do you assume... scientists are inherently bad at fighting?"
The green-haired doctor sighed, as if preparing to throw a punch. On this ship, Leader Welt had instilled Doctor Yssring with boundless courage to confront Cocolia directly.
"Leave it to me, Doctor Yssring," a steady male voice interjected.
The doctor exhaled in relief, stepping aside as a tall, imposing man emerged from the far corner of the cabin.
When Cocolia saw the middle-aged man with brown hair and the Star of Eden clutched in his hand, her blood seemed to freeze in her veins.
"Leader... Welt..." she managed to choke out.
"Cocolia, you understand why I'm here, don't you? Was your deal with the Gray Serpent satisfactory?"
The man sighed again. His final words shattered Cocolia's last shred of hope.
"Wait! Leader Welt! If—"
"If you're imprisoned and your crimes exposed, the Anti-Entropy Radical Faction will descend into chaos, correct?"
Another figure materialized behind Cocolia.
"You? I remember you—the intelligence officer from the Divine Authority Squad!"
"Ah... You may address me by my other title, Executor Cocolia—"
"Anti-Entropy Executor—codenamed 'The Fool'."
The Valkyrie's face and figure gradually transformed before Cocolia's incredulous gaze, morphing into the appearance of a mature middle-aged woman with golden hair and purple eyes, as if she had emerged from the same embryonic source.
"You are under arrest—former Executor Lady Cocolia. The charges include treason, betraying the organization, framing colleagues, and causing severe economic and personnel losses to the organization—"
Yssring glanced at the arrest warrant, reciting the woman's crimes one by one.
"As for the Radical faction... you needn't worry about them. I'll handle them for you."
Simon Lailey offered a polite smile.