At this point in time, Bronia knew very little about the era before the current civilization.
On one hand, she hadn't previously had access to that kind of crucial information.
On the other hand... one of the few people in the modern era who had truly explored that era—Raiden Mei—had not shared her recent experiences even when she joined forces with the three major organizations: Destiny, Anti-Entropy, and World Serpent, to confront Ling Ke.
For example: what she had seen and heard in the "Land of Past Lives."
In short—
Bronia didn't know that the Seele before her was, in fact, the vessel of the Sixth Herrscher—Herrscher of Death in the current era.
Of course, that's what would have happened in the original historical timeline.
Not long ago, the upper echelon of Fire Moth had already obtained intelligence regarding her (Seele).
With no suspense, the conclusion was simple:
"Even if she's only a physical vessel capable of becoming that kind of monster (Herrscher), she must be preemptively detained."
There was no need to dwell too much on the lengthy arguments in the virtual remote meetings.
In the end, the major leaders of Chasing Fire Moth unanimously passed the resolution.
Just like what had once happened in the original future timeline with Sakura's sister—Suzu.
Meanwhile
Berlin, Outer Ring District — Europe
Ling Ke had already arrived here.
Under the moonlight, his hands were in his pockets, his expression tinged with a slight smirk.
"Now that everyone already knows she's a Herrscher vessel, either monitor her remotely without interfering, or eliminate her cleanly and completely."
"Why bother with all this effort, half-hearted and indecisive, going so far as to fabricate a parent figure for her?"
Thinking of this—
"Ah, right."
The corners of Ling Ke's lips lifted.
"I guess the Fire Moth of this timeline is still stuck in their Spring and Autumn dreams—'Honkai Energy is the next-gen energy source we can fully control!'"
"To put it bluntly—they still haven't fully realized just how dangerous a Herrscher is."
"Looks like even the intelligence Mebius deliberately leaked was just another round of selection."
"And..."
Ling Ke looked in a certain direction.
"The battle between Kevin and Raiden Mei seems to have drawn even more of these 'superhumans'."
"Fusion Warrior Project... tsk."
He chuckled derisively.
At this point, he had found a perfect "audience seat" from which to observe the situation unfold.
Within the range of his perception, multiple forces had already entered the city limits of Berlin.
Aside from the mobile special ops unit from Fire Moth...
Kevin Kaslana
The Blazers
And even—
Representatives from opposing factions, each with different objectives, were now converging on a single "ground zero."
And at the heart of that "ground zero"—today's incident center—
Was Seele.
Surrounded by "Heavy Bunny Guards," Bronia made the right choice.
At that moment, she picked up the short-haired girl beside her in a princess carry and leapt directly over the orphanage wall.
As they soared—
"Rider_on!"
Bronia gave the order for Bunny to transform mid-air.
[Rider_on!]
[Switch_engine_drive!!!]
A sci-fi-styled motorcycle with a sleek blue-and-white design landed solidly.
"Wait—!"
They had barely settled into their seats when Seele, still somewhat dazed, reacted.
But Bronia had already twisted the throttle—rubber screeched against pavement.
"W-Whoa!"
In her panic, Seele instinctively clung to Bronia's waist from behind.
In that moment—
"You— You— You...!"
"Seele, listen to Bronia first."
Bronia was in combat mode now.
Her eyes scanned their perimeter rapidly, and her tone grew abnormally serious.
"Bronia still doesn't know if the target of that surprise attack was her—or you."
"But regardless of who it was—if we get far away from the orphanage, the chance of collateral damage to others drops drastically."
"Even if those attackers resort to hostage threats later, at the very least…"
"...By moving the battlefield now, we'll prevent any potential crossfire or shockwaves from harming the orphanage."
"This way, the children and Director Nata will be safe—for now."
The heavy Bunny bike came equipped with a semi-permanent energy shield.
So, aside from the inertia from that initial launch, both passengers now sat comfortably and steadily.
Under those conditions, Bronia's words reached Seele's ears clearly.
Seele said nothing.
Perhaps after hearing Bronia's words, she now regretted it.
Regretted bringing a stranger to the orphanage.
"This really had nothing to do with her..."
She thought to herself.
In her eyes, she was just an ordinary girl who'd grown up in an orphanage.
How could she possibly be the target of—
"It's obviously the one in front of me—who summoned a huge robot out of nowhere.
One that transforms into a motorcycle...
With powered armor on her legs...
A small girl who just leapt several meters with me in her arms...
She's the one they're after."
It felt like she had stumbled into a battlefield she had no business being near.
Just as Seele was about to say something—
"Bunny—try to hack into their communication channel."
[Roger!]
Came the digital response.
And then—
Beep... chi~
After a burst of signal fluctuations—
"Plan A has failed. Plan A has failed. Target has exited the designated zone."
"Target possesses high-speed mobility. Expanding interception perimeter."
"Requesting aerial support."
"Use of destructive weaponry is prohibited. Repeat: use of destructive weaponry is prohibited."
"Survival of the 'Sixth Herrscher Vessel' must be ensured."
"!!!" ×2
At that moment, both Bronia and Seele turned to each other in shock.
But—what they were thinking was completely different.
Seele, unaware of the inner workings, thought:
"Of course—it's her they're after."
"And I just got caught up in it."
While in Bronia's mind:
"The Sixth Herrscher Vessel?"
She had caught the keyword.
Earlier, Bronia had seen the Stigmata on Seele.
After all, this was her beloved sister—so she had once privately researched information on that totem.
Unfortunately, there hadn't been much data she could find back then.
But still—there was one critical piece of intel:
"Seele's Stigmata originate from the 'Sixth Herrscher—Herrscher of Death' of the Previous Era."
Now, combining that with:
Her enmity with Ling Ke
The intelligence analysis
And this "Seele" she had met today
As well as the current situation...
She seemed to understand what was about to come next.
But even so—
"Seele..."
With unwavering eyes, Bronia swore silently in her heart:
"You haven't become a Herrscher yet."
"Bronia will protect you."