Saint Freya Academy, in a certain dormitory
"Cocolia really knows how to seek death! You'd better warn her. Judging by that boy's relationship with the 3rd Herrscher, he can command her as he wants- and he himself also seems quite strong."
The red-haired doctor with twin tails complained loudly in the holographic projection in front of him. The background was that of an Anti-Entropy Research Institute.
-Welt Yang, the leader of Anti-Entropy, was silently listening to the complaints of the executor and scientist Frederica Nikola Tesla in the teacher's dormitory of St. Freya Academy
"Heh, but by now, that second clone might already have been reduced to ashes, like the previous one." The not-so-young, beautiful girl put her hands on her waist, her expression gloating, "After all, Raiden Mei by herself can easily annihilate all of Cocolia's trash clones!"
Ignoring her brash words, Welt shifted his gaze
"I'll deal with Cocolia at a later time."
The brown haired man took a deep breath, his expression solemn as he browsed and read the information on the terminal word by word.
"I have seen this boy named Adamian Anatolyevich Andreev before….. But he seems mysterious. He rarely attends classes, and he often disappears for extended periods of time."
-And because of that, he never paid any special attention to this student. He has also never mentioned this student to Tesla and Einstein
Although Welt entered Saint Freya without even changing his name, he was still self-aware that this was the territory of Shickshal- so he didn't dare contact Anti-Entropy often
….
'Wait…'
Welt subconsciously frowned
After all, Adam was a male. To have attended this Academy along with the other four survivors of the 3rd Eruption, he should be a survivor; thus, his honkai adaptability should be quite high
He knows himself well. He would definitely pay special attention to this rare adaptable male.
Adam also seemed to have a close relationship with the 3rd Herrscher
-So under these circumstances, why had he unconsciously ignored Adam up until today's incident?
….
"What! So you saw him?"
Interrupting his alarming thoughts, Tesla leaned forward with her hands supporting her weight on the table in front of her.
"What's the matter with that guy? Who actually is he?"
"I don't know for sure."
Shaking his head, he continued to read Adam's collected information.
"He's quite strange….Though I'm sure he's not undercover or disguised in any way."
After a while, he slowly let go, lowering his hand and closing the terminal interface.
-Along with that, the data was permanently deleted
Looking up at the red-haired figure who had a thoughtful expression on the screen, his expression eased and relaxed a little
"From my observations, he isn't a bad person. So there's no need to be hostile to him."
He paused, a thoughtful look emerging on his face once again
"Although I don't know from which Organization he's from, or if he's actually part of any organization at all…."
So far, he only seems 'mysterious'.
However, in Welt's eyes, compared with Otto and the elusive World Serpent, Adam at least looks like a relatively 'normal' boy
"That is logical." Tesla nodded, not refuting it in the end, "However…You should approach him and communicate with him."
"Of course, I also have this intention-"
The brown haired man's face suddenly changed. With fast movements, he tapped a certain button
"That's all for now. Someone's coming!"
Before Tesla could ask anything else, he ended the encrypted communication hastily.
Then, calmly, he looked towards the door.
Ding
With his gaze fixed on the doorway, the bell rang as expected
'Who could it be?'
Mumbling inwardly, he walked towards the door, peering through the peephole
-It was a tall silhouette, the light and shadow outlining his broad body, reflecting a kind of 'beauty' that wasn't natural at all
He was wearing an inky black coat. On his head rested a similarly black top hat that was utterly incompatible with the rest of his outfit and that barely hid his very attention-inducing silver hair
-That's right, it was the same Adam whom they were discussing just moments ago!
Turning the door handle, Walter smiled gently
"Student Adam, how can I help you at this hour?
Opening the door, he pretended not to be surprised
…..
"....."
Seeing his history teacher acting so 'natural', Adam was reminded of a certain sentence he had read in a certain Honkai Impact Chinese fanfiction
"Walter Young, have you eaten yet?"
With a completely neutral and serious face, the silver-haired boy asked with a very concerned tone right to this man's face
"...I've eaten a rather extravagant meal, thank you."
The history teacher nodded politely, giving way for him to enter
"But I have to remind you that my name isn't 'Walter'."
"Oh, right. Then pardon my intrusion, Joachim Nokianvirtanen."
With a smile on his face and a carefree expression, the boy exclaimed as he followed the owner of this house into the living room.
-That's right, he just casually uttered this teacher's true and actual name!
A light, cosmic glow flashed in his brilliant blue eyes for a split second.
And in that split second, he ensured that this was a truly safe space where no outsiders would hear the conversation on the inside
Sitting casually on the sofa as if he owned the place, Adam's smile widened
"You even know this name?" Welt's expression didn't change, but his gaze on him narrowed. "It seems like you really aren't as simple as you appear to be…"
Of course, though he seemed unbothered, there was no doubt that his vigilance had heightened considerably
"Thanks."
Welt walked into the living room with two cups of steaming green tea.
"Green tea??"
Under Adam's incredulous gaze, he pushed one cup in front of the boy, and then he sat opposite of him.
"Student Adam, why have you come to see me?"
Walter picked up the teacup with a polite smile on his face.
A hint of solemnity flashed in his slightly narrowed eyes.
Since this student came alone….Then he shouldn't have told Theresa
"Do you have any questions regarding history?"
Reaching out for the black tea, Walter took a small sip.
He acted casually, still like a true teacher, even though Adam had already exposed his true name
"I do have something important that I need your help with."
Crossing one leg over another, the silver-haired boy leaned back, mirroring this elder's casual attitude
"To be honest, leader of Anti-Entropy…." He slowly raised his hand, pointing at the brown haired man while utterly ignoring the green tea. "I came here only for one reason- the Herrscher core of Reason."
…
As rising steam of the hot tea filled his eyes, Welt's movements suddenly paused, his act of sipping pausing
The casual and 'kind' smile on his face became extremely stiff, and the muscles of his face became rigid
He looked at the silver-haired boy who uttered these words casually with slightly widened eyes, brown pupils full of disbelief and shock
"I'm sorry, I don't think I heard you clearly. Can you please repeat that?"
A crimson light flashed faintly in his pupils, illusory gears appearing around them as his voice turned cold
….
Adam naturally expected Welt to react in this way.
-After all, what he just did was like invading a person's home and demanding their most precious possession
But of course, there's already a solution here: to Bargain!
If a deal can't be concluded, then it's probably because there aren't enough chips or money.
As a famous hot rich woman has said, almost everything in the world has a price- failing just means that what you offered wasn't enough
Of course, the value of the Herrscher core was as close as to 'invaluable' as it gets.
But fortunately, compared to material things, the payment needed to obtain this core is simply knowledge
….
"Don't be so quick to react, Mr. Welt." He raised his hand in a non-threatening gesture, "I came with sincerity, and I certainly am no bandit."
Looking at the brown haired man with sincerity, Adam tried his best to appear amiable
After all, while Welt is weak- the silver-haired boy still respects this hero of humanity very much
"....What do you want to do?"
Though Welt's frown eased, it still remained.
The other party made sense.
And also….He was friends with Kiana, Mei, and Bronya. He has observed these three new students, and they were undoubtedly good people- for this boy to be friends with them….He had to be at least a decent person, too
"Of course…." The silver-haired boy trailed off, smiling brightly, "-I want to make a deal with you!"
"Oh?" Welt's eyebrows raised, his eyes looking at him with curiosity "And….what is the content of this transaction?"
"The will of honkai, Otto's wish, the truth about honkai, World Serpent, the world of Honkai Star Rail…."
Adam spread his hands in the air with a theatrical flair as he listed off all these top-notch secrets with a casual and bright smile
"-Of course, you only get to choose 3 of these, so pick carefully!"
He adjusted the tophat, raising three fingers
"Heh….Of course, as an added bonus, I will also show you the possibility of defeating honkai."
Adam lowered his hand, putting it in his pockets as he maintained his stare on Welt
…
Value is relative.
As they say: 'One man's trash is another's treasure'
If it is just information, it is definitely a bit off to trade it for the first Herrscher core
To Adam, who has witnessed this story's end, the method of ending doesn't hold any value to him.
Because-
Even without getting Kiana to become Finality, he also has other ways of defeating honkai.
And naturally, when he says letting Welt see hope, he doesn't mean telling him about Kiana being able to transcend Finality
Naturally, it's about introducing other power systems that aren't native to this world.
Yes, just because it doesn't belong doesn't mean it can defeat honkai, but….It's hope
'Ah…Really, how troublesome'
Compared to someone like Welt, Adam would have preferred to deal with a persistent madman like Otto
Unlike the 1st Herrscher….If he simply told Otto a method to resurrect his dear Saint, Adam would be able to obtain Void Archives, Herrscher gems, and any Divine Key he wanted
However, it wasn't yet time to deal with that madman
….
"By the way, a friendly reminder."
Looking at Welt, who stood up excitedly because of his last words, Adam also stood up from the sofa, and faced the man's solemn expression head-on
"The moonlight throne is feasible… But unfortunately, due to the nature of honkai, it won't help at all in defeating honkai."
Silence.
Welt was completely silent at this time, but the red in his brown pupils was surging again, betraying the turbulent emotions in his heart
-It was natural.
After all, a person just told him that what his placed his hopes on, what the whole of Anti-Entropy worked for, and what his close friend sacrificed herself for, was all for naught
"Even if you convert all the honkai energy of this planet into normal energy…. Finality will still appear, and the world will still be destroyed."
"...."
The brown haired man was still silent. However, his face turned serious and dignified. His attitude changed completely, from the gentle history teacher, to the majestic first Herrscher who has fought for humanity
He showed no fear and no despair. After all, warriors always fought to the bitter end.
Even if the moonlight throne won't work, he will still find new ways for humanity to win this bitter war.
As for why he so easily believed this boy's words?
It was a…feeling, almost like instinct
…
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A/N:
Sorry dear readers. I was in uni and forgot to schedule today's chapter
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