(Calm down! Calm down! I don't know why this so-called savior suddenly appeared to pick a fight, but that's irrelevant now. The only thing that matters is keeping my composure!)
Otto took a deep breath, staring at the golden blade of Judgment of Shamash aimed at him. The irony was not lost on him.
In the past, he had always been the one to hold the sword over others—but if what the man before him said was true, and all the Divine Keys were indeed his weapons, then perhaps this was the strongest being ever forged by an entire civilization.
Otto let out a bitter laugh. No wonder even Durandal had been completely overwhelmed—she hadn't stood a chance against him.
After all, Durandal was his prized SSR after five hundred years of selective effort—the greatest talent he had ever seen—and yet she had fallen without even being able to properly fight back.
(What a terrifying monster...)
"Otto Apocalypse, you might as well say whatever you're thinking. Reading minds is easy for me."
Elias' voice was calm, but the implication sent a chill down Otto's spine. There was no ability more terrifying to a man who lived by his intellect. A mind-reader was a far greater threat than brute force.
Otto's eye twitched. He could now confirm one thing—this savior truly had no weaknesses.
Controlling his soulium body, Otto slowly stood upright under the crushing gravity, forcing a warm, springlike smile onto his face. He placed a hand over his heart and bowed slightly toward Elias.
"Welcome, O First of the Flame-Chasers, Savior of the Previous Era. Cough! Lovely Valkyries, allow me to formally introduce our esteemed guest."
He clapped his hands together with feigned enthusiasm.
"Behold! From the legends of the Previous Era—the one who single-handedly slew all thirteen Herrschers—the great Savior himself! Let us give a warm welcome to this honored Flame-Chaser. Glory to World Serpent~"
Otto's flattering applause echoed through the chamber.
This was the only course of action he could think of—to display goodwill as clearly as possible, to convince Elias to at least talk rather than strike. His top priority was getting that sword away from his neck.
It was a little humiliating, sure, but Otto didn't care. Even if he did, there was no point. He had mastered the art of patience centuries ago.
"What? He's the Savior of the Previous Era?!"
"No wonder he defeated Lady Durandal so easily."
"Uh... what do we do now?"
"..."
Elias was silent for a moment, then dispelled the gravity field. Everyone felt the crushing weight vanish, and gasped for breath in relief.
"Everyone, relax. If this Flame-Chaser wanted us dead, we'd all have been flattened into paste by now. You may leave."
"But, Archbishop—"
"Staying here won't help. I'll speak with him alone. Ah, Rita—bring us some fine refreshments afterward."
"Yes, Archbishop."
Following Otto's command, the Valkyries rose and departed the study. Still, as each left, they couldn't help but sneak one last glance at Elias.
"Gray Serpent, Jackal—you two go explore Schicksal. Take whatever catches your eye. Don't hold back with this guy." Elias said casually.
"Haha, of course! Don't worry about it—you can take whatever you like. I'll make sure everyone knows." Otto replied, a bead of cold sweat forming on his soulium forehead.
He could now confirm something very unfortunate.
The Flame-Chaser standing before him—a man wielding absolute power—clearly disliked him.
He had no idea what he might've done to earn that hostility, but right now his only option was to stay humble and hope Elias didn't develop the urge to kill him.
Because even with countless soulium bodies, Otto doubted he could survive. After all, every scrap of soulium used by Schicksal had been excavated from the ruins of the Previous Era.
Showing off technology from the Previous Era before the savior of that same civilization—Otto realized—was probably not the best idea. Who knew what other tricks Elias might have up his sleeve? The Abyss Flower incident alone was proof enough.
That weapon had been in Schicksal's hands for centuries, meticulously studied for just as long. Yet only today had they learned it possessed a recall function—responding to its true master's call.
"Yes, my Lord, we'll go at once."
"Move it, Gray Serpent! I can't wait any longer!"
Gray Serpent and Jackal were visibly thrilled. The thought of raiding Schicksal's headquarters in broad daylight and taking whatever they pleased—something they'd never even dreamed of before—filled them with glee.
Their reverence toward Elias overflowed like an unending tide. Just look at him—what a comeback story! Once, World Serpent had fallen into ruin. Its officers had either resigned or betrayed the cause, leaving only two loyal members—neither with any combat strength.
The organization still existed, yes, but it could no longer influence the course of the world. If not for their secrecy, the other three major factions would have eradicated them long ago.
But now, their Lord had returned—overwhelming and absolute.
He had effortlessly crushed the Herrschers of Dominance, stormed into Schicksal's headquarters, defeated Durandal—the strongest S-rank Valkyrie of the era—and forced Otto Apocalypse himself into submission.
Gray Serpent & Jackal: (Our Lord is invincible! All hail Eli Gate!)
...
Once the two had left, only Elias and Otto remained in the study. The air grew tense.
However, the Kallen Fantasy IV menu still floating mid-air on the holographic projector made the entire atmosphere slightly absurd.
"Ahem! Let's begin our real discussion then, Savior of the Previous Era. Let me guess—have you come here as a champion of justice to list out Otto Apocalypse's countless sins?"
"Do you even think your sins could still be counted at this point?"
"Haha, fair enough. Indeed, there are too many to list—probably would take three days and nights at least. So... are you here to punish me for what happened with the Herrscher of Dominance?"
Otto treaded carefully, speaking with calculated humility. He knew all too well that he was in an entirely passive position.
The being before him was someone he didn't understand—someone powerful enough to suppress an entire era single-handedly.
At that moment, Otto regretted spying on Elias' battle earlier. He had thought himself clever, believing his interference through Fenghuang Down had gone unnoticed.
"If that's the case, then I must apologize. However, I've already taken care of the one-thousand-and-first Herrscher of Dominance for you. Her Core just needs some time to retrieve—it's a bit of a complicated process."
Otto's tone was sincere. For once, it wasn't a lie.
The Core of the Herrscher of Dominance was unique. Upon defeat, its vessel would disintegrate, and the Core would automatically retreat into the Imaginary Space, searching for a new host—a new vessel of despair.
Had Elias not been in the Theater of Domination, using the Herrscher of the Void's power to seal the space and absorb the Core himself, a new Herrscher of Dominance would've already been born.
As everyone knew, the Herrscher of Dominance's Core sought hosts consumed by despair, grief, and negativity—far more than it cared about Honkai adaptability. Emotional corruption was its true criterion.
Otto's retrieval plan had relied on Cosmic Juggernaut, which he intended to use to project his five-hundred-year-old consciousness—the version of himself that had just lost Kallen and was drowning in despair—into the present era.
In doing so, he would not only mark the coordinates he needed to alter his past upon ascending the Imaginary Tree, but also use that hopeless projection to lure in the Dominance Core.
However—
"There's no need for that. It's already here."
"What?"
Otto's eyes widened in disbelief. He had no idea what Elias had done, but before he could speak, a golden gem materialized in midair and drifted into Elias' palm.
It was the final fragment—the last Core of the Herrscher of Dominance.
(Although it's hardly something to be proud of... when it comes to despair, who could possibly compare to me?)
Elias turned the Core between his fingers, expression unreadable. He, after all, bore the grief and tragedy of an entire era—the pain of failing to save those he loved, not once, but eleven times.
No one in existence better fit the taste of the Herrscher of Dominance's Core than Elias. Not even the Otto Apocalypse of five hundred years ago, who had lost Kallen, could compare.
"..."
Otto took a deep breath. He realized he couldn't see through Elias at all. Behind that white mask seemed to lie the greatest secret of the world.
To be honest, his curiosity was burning—but he didn't dare to pry any further.
"So, may I ask what brings the Savior of the Previous Era to my humble office? I have a few guesses, but I doubt any of them are right. Don't tell me you came here... to play video games?" Otto joked, gesturing to the floating Kallen Fantasy IV hologram.
"I have no interest in playing games with someone who bans every player better than himself. Enough nonsense. The Imaginary Tree—that's why I'm here."
Elias crossed his arms as he spoke. The single term he uttered made Otto Apocalypse freeze in shock.
"!!!"
Otto's eyes widened in disbelief, even fear. The moment Elias mentioned the Imaginary Tree, Otto knew—his most carefully guarded secret had been exposed.
But how? He had never told a soul—not even Void Archives knew of his plan to ascend the Tree.
"Eh~ Otto, I already told you—our Savior knows everything and can do anything," came Void Archives' trembling voice.
As one who had existed in the Previous Era, it was well aware of Elias' reputation—his near-omniscient, godlike tactical intuition that bordered on foresight.
And now, once again, its Savior proved just how terrifyingly perceptive he could be—unearthing Otto's deepest secret with effortless precision.
"Hand over your plan, Otto Apocalypse. The one who will ascend the Imaginary Tree... is me."
"So it's to save the world again, then..."
Otto forced himself to remain calm, suppressing every hint of hostility. His mind screamed warnings—You cannot win. You cannot anger him. The only way to survive was to reason with Elias.
Saving the world—that was the only motivation Otto could imagine for Elias wanting to reach the Tree.
After all, whoever reached that place—the cradle of rules, the fountain of infinite possibility—would gain the brief but absolute power to rewrite reality itself. The world would become whatever that person desired. For instance...
A world without the Honkai.
After all, in the face of the Imaginary Tree, the Honkai, the Herrschers, even the Cocoon of Finality—were equally insignificant.
However—
"To create a world free of the Honkai? Hm. You could say that's one of my goals... a secondary one, at best."
Elias nodded slightly, then shook his head. That hadn't been his original intent—but now, it was.
Because he intended to take this world's Kiana, Mei, Bronya, and Sirin with him.
Without them, there would be no "main cast" left to save the world. And who knew what would happen to this parallel civilization? Perhaps it would be consumed by the Honkai and reset for the next era.
So Elias planned to ascend the Imaginary Tree and erase the Honkai from this world entirely—his insurance policy, one of two.
But saving the world was only incidental.
"Otto, what I truly desire... is the same as you—to return to the past and save the one I love."
"What?!"
Otto was stunned. Never in his life had he expected such an answer. But Void Archives understood instantly whom Elias meant.
"It's for Lady Elysia, isn't it?"
"Correct."
This was the conclusion Elias had reached after ten cycles of reincarnation.
Since saving Elysia in the past had proven impossible, he had no choice but to seek the answer fifty thousand years in the future.
The Authority of Domination—and the Imaginary Tree itself—were the only keys.
(Ah... what a long journey it's been.) Elias sighed inwardly.
He made no effort to conceal his intent—there was no need. Whether Otto approved or not didn't matter. Nothing in this era, nor this world, could stop him from ascending the Imaginary Tree.
Elias had long wanted to voice the secret buried deep within his heart—but ordinary people were not qualified to hear it. Otto Apocalypse, however detestable, had earned that right.
Through the Authority of the Herrscher of Sentience, Elias shared fragments of his memories with the fool standing before him. And in that moment, Otto was left utterly speechless.
It was a tale far more beautiful than his own.
A story that spanned a time far longer than he could ever imagine.
A love so deep it filled him with envy and helpless jealousy.
A bittersweet ending that moved even Otto to genuine sorrow.
"Hah... hahaha... unbelievable! Truly unbelievable! Who would've thought... I'd one day meet someone who actually understands me."
Otto pressed a hand to his forehead, laughing uncontrollably. A savior who had crossed fifty thousand years of time for the sake of love—that dwarfed even his own five hundred years of obsession.
In that instant, he felt a strange sense of kinship toward Elias... but overshadowing it was pure jealousy.
Because unlike Elias, Otto's love for Kallen had been one-sided.
His saint had ignored him completely in the end—choosing instead to spend her final days with that pink-haired fox spirit from the Far East.
But this man—this so-called savior—he and the pink-haired girl in his memories had loved each other deeply, a bond that Otto could scarcely even dream of attaining.
Even the things they did were eerily similar.
In Elias' memories, the pink-haired maiden had sacrificed herself to free the Herrschers from the Honkai's control, creating a future with hope. Yet it wasn't for the world—it was for the one she loved.
And now, this savior sought to ascend the Imaginary Tree, not for glory or redemption, but to return to the past with his newfound power—to save her, and by extension, the world itself.
Otto couldn't help but sigh in admiration.
What a perfectly matched pair they were—saving each other while saving the world as an afterthought.
However!
Otto: "A truly touching story, one that stirs even my wretched heart. But I too have someone I wish to save! Savior of the Previous Era—since you're like me, you should understand this: there's no way I'd willingly hand over the opportunity I've waited five centuries for!"
Elias: "Oh? So you intend to struggle?"
Otto: "...Give me a moment to think."
—
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