16. Birthday Presents and a Sister's Kiss
"Just as planned, you, Kiana, and Siegfried retrieved K-423 and began your retreat."
"Anti-Entropy provided you with an electronic virus. After inserting it into the mainframe, all data related to Kiana's clone experiments in the research institute was completely destroyed."
"With one arm around Kiana and the other around K-423, and Siegfried leading the way upfront, you advanced. The Valkyrie guards were A-rank, but Siegfried subdued them with ease."
"The path was smooth and unobstructed. You successfully boarded the stealth fighter that Siegfried had acquired in advance and headed towards the location agreed upon with Anti-Entropy."
"Wow—"
"Whoa—"
White clouds surged backward rapidly past the reinforced glass as a stealth fighter sped through the layers of clouds.
Inside the cramped cockpit, two adorable little girls who looked strikingly similar—with white hair and blue eyes—pressed their faces against the glass, curiously gazing at the ground thousands of meters below.
For both of them, it was their first time riding in a fighter jet—and it was Gao Qi's first time too.
They looked identical, like sisters, except one had two large braids, appearing lively and energetic, while the other let her white hair flow freely, seeming a bit reserved, though her eyes were still full of curiosity.
Both wore identical pure white dresses, which Kiana had specifically brought for K-423. If not for having spent so much time with them and knowing their subtle differences, Gao Qi would hardly be able to tell them apart.
Kiana and K-423, the future Bianka and Kiana—the great heroines who would save countless lives—were now just two ordinary little girls.
"Alright, alright, stop pressing against the window. That area hasn't been cleaned in a long time. Come here, come here!"
But soon, a pair of large hands wrapped around their waists, gently rubbing their soft little bellies before pulling them into Gao Qi's embrace.
Both obediently sat on Gao Qi's lap. Kiana immediately burst into clear, cheerful laughter, while K-423 docilely let Gao Qi handle her. After several months of care, she trusted Gao Qi completely.
In that cold laboratory, everyone in white coats had treated her as nothing more than an experiment. Only Teacher Gao Qi saw her as a person. Even though she lacked common sense, her biological instincts allowed K-423 to distinguish who was good and who was bad.
"Ah, you're just too adorable! From now on, you have to call me 'big sister,' okay, K-423?"
Looking at the cute, delicate young girl who was almost identical to herself, Kiana's eyes sparkled with excitement. She gave K-423 another big hug—she had been longing for a new playmate.
"Wait, we need to give you a new name. When we get to our new home, you should have a new name—Teacher, help me think of one!"
Kiana had always yearned for friends, and now that she suddenly had a little sister, she became utterly exuberant, rubbing her face against K-423's repeatedly. Her well-intentioned but overwhelming enthusiasm troubled K-423, who could only tug at Gao Qi's clothes for help.
"Gao—Gao Qi?"
Although K-423 was technically a newborn clone, her physical development matched that of a nine-year-old. After several months of education, she could already communicate with Gao Qi using basic vocabulary.
Clearly, this enthusiastic "big sister" was causing K-423 some distress—she was a bit too enthusiastic.
"Alright, we're not completely safe yet. We can think about these things after we get out."
Gao Qi reached out and scratched the two little ones under their chins as if teasing kittens, watching them slump softly against his chest. He immediately fastened their seatbelts and looked up toward Siegfried in the pilot's seat ahead.
"I didn't expect you to know how to fly a plane. With skills like these, you could work as a private jet pilot."
Schicksal's fighter jets were far more advanced than the world's average, with instrument panels so complex they were dizzying. Yet, Siegfried handled them with remarkable ease.
"If I could fly on my own, I wouldn't bother with this complicated thing. But flight capability is only available in a few Valkyrie armors... Do you think Otto will send A-rank Valkyries after us?"
With his hands on the control stick and a crimson greatsword placed beside him, Siegfried kept his seatbelt unfastened, closely monitoring the fighter's radar, ready for combat at any moment.
"When you ask me that, you already have the answer yourself—we stole his future artificial Herrscher and the hero he was destined to cultivate, disrupting years of Otto's planning. What do you think he'll do?"
Gao Qi shrugged, his expression equally serious.
"Valkyries will definitely come, and there will be many of them. I'm not telling you to kill your colleagues, but you'd better not hold back too much."
A smooth escape was only the first step. In the original storyline, even without his help, Siegfried and Kiana had managed to achieve this much.
But what happened next was what Gao Qi truly wanted to change.
Otto wouldn't just send pursuers—he would deploy all his elite forces. If the future "Dumb Goose" and "Cicada" weren't under his control, many of his plans would fall apart.
In the original storyline, Otto sent a large number of Valkyries in pursuit. Even Siegfried struggled to protect the two girls while fighting them off.
In the end, the stealth fighter exploded, Kiana fell onto a snowy mountain, suffered a head injury, lost her memory, and was retrieved by Otto, becoming the future Durandal.
Meanwhile, K-423 escaped with Siegfried. After a period of Siegfried's depression, the father and daughter repaired their relationship—only for him to go and give K-423 the name "Kiana" as well.
Really, Siegfried? Even if you thought Kiana was dead, could you not have just told K-423 that her older sister was gone and given her a different name?
If you'd been more open with the child, kept fewer secrets, and avoided disappearing without a word, the "bug" might not have lost control so easily in the future—but in this matter, Gao Qi felt Siegfried hadn't handled it well.
However, with Gao Qi here, many things could still be set right.
"Overload the power furnace directly, push the throttle to the max and fly forward—as far as we can go. We've got our parachutes on, ready for the worst-case scenario of a crash at any moment."
"Understood."
The two adults quickly braced for the worst. Gao qi also helped the two little ones into the cabin's protective suits and parachute packs, making sure to fasten Kiana's helmet securely.
Even if they got caught by Otto later, at least she wouldn't lose her memory from a fall.
"Of course, our cooperation only lasts until we make contact with Anti-Entropy. This compensation is more than enough."
Then, Gao qi picked up a blue-and-black metal box from the floor in front of him, along with an assortment of gadgets.
Many of them were weapons and ammunition—powerful arms infused with Honkai energy. They might not be 5-star tier, but they were at least experimental 4-star weapons.
Among them, Gao qi recognized familiar arms like the Crystallized Reverse Blade and the Dark Glower Hand Cannon. Although these couldn't be brought into the real world, they'd still come in handy within the simulator.
However, the most crucial item was the heavily protected bluish-gray gem in Gao qi's hand.
The Serenity Gem—one of the four gems granted by the "Will of Honkai" on the far side of the Moon during the Second Honkai War, bestowed upon a certain inflated pufferfish-like Herrscher.
While it differed from a Herrscher core, it was essentially equivalent. However, when a Honkai eruption occurred, the chosen Herrscher would inevitably possess a core, whereas an ordinary person implanted with a Herrscher gem would most likely die instantly.
Of the four Herrscher gems from that time, three were taken by Otto, and one was acquired by Anti-Entropy. In the end, none of them were used for anything good—on one side, experiments led to the deaths of many Valkyries, while on the other, the Third Honkai Eruption was directly triggered.
The Serenity Gem, which governs the authority of death and life, decay and creation, was what Otto used to successfully create K423 with its assistance.
Aside from rescuing K423, obtaining this gem was Gao qi's primary goal for this mission. To that end, he had requested Anti-Entropy to provide a container capable of neutralizing Honkai energy reactions.
"If used properly, even without cloning technology, this thing can create living beings. It's just a shame that it would only be an independent individual, not someone we want to resurrect."
Staring at the silent, unresponsive gem, Gao qi could almost feel it whispering to him, tempting him to release it.
"I don't know what you plan to do with this gem, but you'd better be careful. If its Honkai energy reaction is unleashed, with your physical condition, you'd likely be infected and die instantly."
Glancing back at the Serenity Gem, Siegfried vividly remembered this gem he had torn from Sirin's abdomen during his rampage. With the Serenity Gem, the Second Herrscher became completely unkillable.
"Don't worry, I'm not that foolish—but aren't you afraid I might trigger another Honkai eruption?"
Gao qi raised an eyebrow at Siegfried, shaking the box containing the gem a couple of times. Acquiring the Honkai gem was a way for him to "seek death."
When he was ready to end this simulation, he would implant the gem into his body. If he was lucky, he would become the Herrscher of Death and be hunted down by Schicksal or Anti-Entropy. If unlucky, he would die instantly.
And if they failed to escape this time, Gao qi would use the gem directly to shield Kiana and K423 from their pursuers.
No matter what, before his death, he would attain the authority of death and life, decay and creation, and then let the system purge the negative effects of Honkai energy—a total win!
"Heh, if it comes to that, I'll personally give you a swift end. I'll even bring drinks to your grave."
Siegfried waved his hand breezily. Having resolved to escape from Otto, he shed some of his bitterness and regained a bit of his original carefree demeanor—if Cecilia hadn't left him, his sarcastic wit would've definitely rivaled that bastard Gao qi's.
At this point, Gao qi suddenly remembered something. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a pair of necklaces.
The plastic-made full moon necklace split into two crescent moons in Gao qi's hands. He personally put them on Kiana and K423.
"This is my birthday gift to you, Kiana, K423. Your lives from now on will be exceptionally remarkable."
Receiving the gifts, Kiana and K423 immediately began playing with them curiously. Though made of plastic, the shiny trinkets were absolutely beautiful in the eyes of two children.
They decided then and there that they would cherish these necklaces in the days to come.
"Thank you, teacher—mua!"
Without hesitation, Kiana leaned close to Gao qi and planted a big kiss on his cheek.
"O-oh, th-thank you, teacher... mua."
Beside her, K423 widened her eyes, hesitated for half a second, and though she didn't fully understand what kissing meant, she leaned toward Gao qi and gave his cheek a light, fleeting peck.
The two held hands and tried to fit the necklace pieces back together. In the future, they would be the best of sisters. They believed their lives would be even more wonderful.
"Hey—wait, calm down! This is just their way of showing respect to their teacher!"
Now it was Gao qi's turn to blush, his face flushing red. He looked up and met Siegfried's somewhat icy gaze—one hand seemed ready to reach for the Judgement of Shamash.
"This isn't my fault—they're here!"
His expression instantly turned serious. Everyone looked at the radar, where countless dots were rapidly closing in.
Otto's pursuers had arrived!
Note: I'm new to translating so please be kind and tell me any mistakes you all find, I will try to release a chapter a day but don't expect much
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Raw: 崩坏模拟器,你找的人是我么?