With the Herrscher of Sentience's departure, the commotion caused by the "double Fu Hua" incident quickly died down.
However, this calm only applied to Little Senti's situation.
In reality, a whole mess in Nagazora City still hadn't been dealt with.
Questions about what Lynelle and Seele went through with World Serpent and how they returned were still waiting for Lynelle to provide answers.
Most importantly, perhaps because she'd been away without a word for so long this time, Lynelle felt that Sirin and Kiana were looking at her... quite strangely.
Looks like there probably won't be much sleep tonight (sigh).
"What a long-awaited strategy meeting... though, I suppose this should be called a post-operation debrief?"
Night fell. After washing away the fatigue of the day, several girls gathered in a small room within Nagazora City's safe zone, sorting through the massive amount of information from the day.
"Let's go through things one at a time. First, Ana. I checked on her condition—she's sleeping very peacefully. I have to say, that 'Fu Hua's' Taixu Sword God was incredibly effective. I think she'll likely sleep until this time tomorrow at least."
"As for her Herrscher core... I'll need to apply a seal when she's conscious. Otherwise, it might be very inefficient, since the Authority of Corruption doesn't work well on Herrschers."
"And that Fu Hua who suddenly appeared... actually, I already know her identity, but... I can't really tell you."
"Huh?"
The girls glanced at each other, confusion on their faces.
"Or let me put it this way: regarding her identity, it's not that I don't want to tell you, but that I can't."
Lynelle spread her hands. "You can think of her ability as a permanent Fenghuang Down."
"If I told you her identity, then when you interact with her, you'd inevitably subconsciously repeat that identity in your surface thoughts. Honestly, that's not an outcome I want to see."
"Wait..." Bronya raised her hand. "Then... because of what Lynelle just said, Bronya has already guessed. What should we do?"
"A-and me too..." Mei's expression was somewhat apologetic. "Sorry, I've been a bit obsessed with detective games lately."
"Simple." Lynelle snapped her fingers. "The visitor count for the trip to Mount Taixuan is reduced by two."
"...Then we're doomed." Bronya covered her face. "Bronya feels like maybe only Kiana will be able to go on that Mount Taixuan trip."
"Actually, that's what I originally thought too. Take Kiana as transport, then bring along Lixue."
"Don't worry, given Lixue's level of 'respect' for Fu Hua, even if I don't say anything, she should be able to sense something. But actually, Lixue has a pretty high tolerance regarding that Fu Hua's identity."
"Eh? Why..."
Feeling like she hadn't understood anything, Kiana tilted her head in confusion.
"The reason is simple." Lynelle gave a thumbs-up. "Given Lixue's level of being a Fu Hua-only fan, no matter what kind of Fu Hua it is, she likes them all the same!"
"Bronya is momentarily at a loss for words..."
"So, let's set aside the Mount Taixuan issue for now. Anyway, my stance is that we can bring this childlike Fu Hua back to Anti-Entropy to take care of too."
"After all, she's kind-hearted, honest, and well-behaved. If we don't pick her up, are we just waiting for her to turn dark on her own out there?"
"I don't even know where to start with that..." Kiana scratched her head. "And Lynelle, didn't you call that Fu Hua 'Big Sister Hua'? Why are you calling her a child now?"
"Silly Kiana, in Shenzhou tradition, these things aren't contradictory. It's actually quite common worldwide. Like, you might see a little girl call one adult woman 'grandma' and another woman of similar age 'little sister.'"
Lynelle pinched Kiana's cheek as she explained.
"So, Fu Hua's status is generationally higher than Lynelle's..." Mei murmured to herself.
They had all learned after the Schicksal battle that Fu Hua came from the Previous Era.
Combined with what that "Mystery" she encountered in the core said earlier... Mei felt she had guessed something rather incredible.
"Okay, we'll handle the Fu Hua matter when we get to Mount Taixuan. Next, Lynelle, shouldn't you explain another thing now?"
Ending the discussion about Fu Hua, Kiana immediately shifted the topic, turning to pinch Lynelle's cheeks instead.
Even her eyes turned one gold and one blue, indicating Sirin had popped out too, joining Kiana in wanting the juicy details.
"Out with it! What's this about being a World Serpent Saintess? And how did Seele become the Herrscher of Death?"
"And, and, Seele told Bronya earlier that after the Nagazora City matter is over, she still has to return to World Serpent, but she didn't tell Bronya why," Bronya added.
"Uh..."
Lynelle helplessly raised her hands. "Alright, alright... let's go through things one by one..."
"First, the reason I went back to World Serpent with Kevin isn't all that complicated... It's simply that, in terms of identity, he can be considered my relative. And at the time, because my strength had hit a bottleneck, I had to return to World Serpent to see my mom."
"Huh?" x3
"M-mom?"
Kiana's eyes instantly turned completely gold, proving Sirin was now in control of the body.
"W-wait, Lynelle, how come I didn't know you had... shouldn't you be an orphan? Otherwise, how did you get captured and taken to Babylon Tower back then?"
"Ahem, the reasons are complicated. Honestly, even I haven't fully figured out the specifics yet, because the one in World Serpent is just a memory construct of my mother."
"As for why I was at Babylon Tower back then... rather than ask me, you might as well ask Kiana. She might even be able to make up a reason for you."
"Suddenly Lynelle's background feels very complicated..." Bronya remarked. "Lynelle, you don't have some hidden power that'll let you take down the Herrscher of Finality in one go later, do you?"
"That..." Thinking of her own "battle record" with the Herrscher of Finality, Lynelle couldn't help but cover her face.
"Unfortunately, your Lynelle only has the experience of being taken down by the Herrscher of Finality in one go..."
"As for Seele, her issue mainly lies with the Herrscher of Death core. Bronya, you should know that Seele has always had an inner persona. But the Herrscher of Death core chose that inner persona as its suitable candidate."
"If left uncontrolled, that Seele would quickly be forced to lose dominance over the body. That's something neither Seele wants to see."
"So, right now, she's studying under a lady within World Serpent who is an extreme expert on dissociative identity."
"Extreme expert means...?"
"She has eight personalities."
"That certainly qualifies as being an expert," Bronya said, momentarily speechless.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.