"2B, you knew about this...?"
Seeing 2B nod, the Commander instantly understood the truth behind the situation.
"What about 9S?"
"He'll be here soon—and that person will be coming along, too."
"Who is 'that person'?"
2B reached up and removed her blindfold, revealing her blue eyes: "A human... from another world."
As 2B spoke, a massive portal materialized beside her.
"Wow, we really made it here in an instant."
9S's voice rang out from the other side of the portal; he stepped through, having already removed his own blindfold.
"9S!"
9S looked toward the Commander who had called his designation: "Hi there—it's 9S. Commander, 2B and I have brought back the future of the YoRHa forces."
"The future..."
The Commander watched as a figure with waist-length white hair stepped out.
"A2..."
Following A2 were a purple-haired girl and a black-haired boy.
The moment she saw the pair, the Commander's eyes widened. She sensed no electronic signals coming from them—meaning they were not machines.
And in this world, there was only one type of being that possessed a human appearance without being a machine: a human.
As Takatsuki stepped through, the portal snapped shut behind him. Carrying the Jizo Mitama in his hand, he looked toward the Commander. Since they had infiltrated the Bunker by synchronizing data through 9S, the facility wasn't fully under their control yet—or at least, its core logic remained unchanged.
"Are you... a human?"
Hearing the voice from the raised platform, Takatsuki looked up.
"A pleasure to meet you, Commander of the YoRHa forces. My name is Takatsuki; I am a human from another world."
"Another world..."
Knowing the truth about humanity's extinction, the Commander was more deeply moved than any other android.
She felt an urge to kneel and pledge her loyalty right then and there, but Takatsuki's erosion virus rendered all the androids unable to move.
Just then, the flame icon displayed on the screen began to flicker erratically. "A communication request from the Human Council."
Communications from the Human Council usually connected automatically—after all, it was the supreme command authority—but within a bunker compromised and controlled by an alien force, even the Human Council had to dutifully submit a request.
"Connect."
As Takatsuki spoke, the Human Council's icon appeared on the screen.
"Greetings, visitor from another world."
"Oh? You already know?"
Takatsuki hadn't expected the Human Council to possess this information; perhaps they had been monitoring the bunker all along, even without a direct connection to its internal network.
"Yes. Human from another world, what is your objective?"
Hearing the mechanical tone of the voice, Takatsuki chuckled. "What is my objective? That's an interesting question. It really ought to be the other way around: what do you hope to achieve by making this call? Are you looking to surrender to me?"
"Although you are human, you are not our creator."
The other party's attitude was clear.
"Oh, is that so? It doesn't matter to me. Listen, my goal is to take the YoRHa. Since you don't need them, I'll take them."
"The YoRHa are assets of the Human Council."
Takatsuki had no intention of arguing with this guy over such things. If you're willing to give, I'll take. If you're not, I'll seize them.
"Then I'll seize them. I'll come back to talk to you later. For now, you may withdraw."
"..."
Before the other party could say anything, Takatsuki thrust his sword into the Bunker's control panel. The power of erosion instantly erupted, quickly taking control of the entire Bunker, and communications were cut off as a result.
A lunar server being hammered by the machine lifeform network naturally couldn't be a match for erosion. However, the other party was vigilant enough not to establish a network connection with the Bunker from the start, only using communication signals, so the erosion couldn't spread.
However, all of the YoRHa's space fortresses were brought under Takatsuki's control. Only then did he realize that there was more than one Bunker.
There were a total of thirteen orbital satellites under the Human Council, including four large laser satellites and nine military bases. Even after confirming the Bunker was infiltrated, one laser satellite had already begun aiming in the Bunker's direction.
"Tsk, how troublesome."
The moon base had no network connection for fear of being hacked, but the other orbital satellites did.
Jizo Mitama exerted a slight force and controlled the other orbital satellites.
"Alright, the troublemakers can't cause trouble for now. It's time for us to talk, Commander of the YoRHa."
Takatsuki looked in the Commander's direction. The Commander's attire was completely different from the other YoRHa; she wasn't dressed in black, but in a cheongsam-like outfit.
With a snap of his fingers, Takatsuki unbound the Commander. Before Takatsuki could speak, the Commander suddenly knelt before him.
"YoRHa, all members will obey your command."
"?"
Takatsuki looked at the Commander, utterly bewildered. He hadn't even changed their underlying logic yet.
"Ahem."
Clearing his throat twice, Takatsuki asked the Commander with some confusion, "I accept your allegiance, but I want to ask, why? You heard what your superior said just now, didn't you?"
The Commander shook her head: "The Human Council is not my superior. It's just that now that humanity is extinct, all androids need a reason to fight. But your appearance has changed everything. Even if you are a visitor from another world, it's undeniable that you are also human. The existence of the YoRHa is to fight for humanity."
"Mm, I'm very satisfied. Then I'll ask you another question. I want you to abandon this world and follow me to another world. Are you willing? In that world, there is a disaster called Honkai. I need you to take on the responsibility of rescuing humanity and fighting against Honkai Beasts. Are you willing?"
"Another world with humans?"
Takatsuki nodded.
"I am willing!"
It seemed this Commander was under even greater pressure than others. She immediately agreed after Takatsuki presented this option. Perhaps she had long grown weary of this world.
After all, unlike other YoRHa, the Commander had already caused the deaths of many of her comrades due to the Human Council's orders, such as A2's unit, and the repeatedly executed 9S.
Under such pressure, her not collapsing already showed immense resilience.
"Then, one last question. In my world, there are many humans, and among them are those who wish to destroy the world. So, before we go, I will modify your underlying logic, changing it from protecting humanity to obeying only me. I cannot give you any guarantees, but I can assure you that you will not need to fight against those humans. You will only be responsible for fighting Honkai and rescuing humans."
Seeing the Commander about to give an answer without hesitation, Takatsuki stopped her.
"As Commander, you naturally have the right to forcefully command others, but for this final choice, I hope each YoRHa member makes their own decision. For those who agree, let them return to the Bunker; I will take the Bunker with me. And for those who wish to remain in this world to fight the machine lifeforms and try to reclaim the surface, I will not stop them. I will give you one day. I will return after one day."