"???"
Watching Li Mu say something so outrageous with such a perfectly calm expression, Kevin seriously wondered if she had misheard him.
"You're telling me… that god who holds humanity's life and death in her hands, the one trying to wipe out the entire world… is actually into girls?!"
Faced with Kevin's stunned expression, Li Mu nodded.
"Yes."
"..."
Ignoring the many emotions playing across Kevin's face, Li Mu continued, "Kevin, you are the one chosen by that god. The one capable of bearing everything She has."
"But unfortunately, you're not perfect. In that god's eyes, you still have a flaw, which means you can't fully accept Her embrace."
"And so, following the predetermined course of history, our generation of civilization is destined to be destroyed."
"All that remains is a spark of civilization, carried across fifty thousand years, taking root and sprouting again on the earth."
"In that new civilization fifty thousand years later, an individual will be born who is more compatible with the Cocoon of Finality than anyone before."
"She will embrace the Cocoon of Finality, bringing an end to this cycle that has lasted hundreds of millions of years."
As he said this, there was no joy on Li Mu's face. Only deep sorrow.
"Humanity will survive in the end, yes. But it will have nothing to do with us."
"Because everything about us, including all seven billion people of this era, is the price that must be paid."
Kevin more or less understood the shape of the future now. History was just another passing of the torch from one era to the next.
Still, she was deeply confused.
"So what does any of that have to do with you turning me into this?"
"It has everything to do with it," Li Mu said, straightening up. Then he suddenly asked a seemingly unrelated question.
"Kevin, do you believe there are two flowers in this world that are completely identical?"
Kevin shook her head. "Of course not."
Li Mu nodded.
"There are no two flowers that are exactly the same. But there are flowers that are similar."
"They have similar personalities, similar lives, and similar destinies."
Kevin frowned, confusion growing.
"So, Mu, what are you getting at?"
Li Mu interlaced his fingers and rested his hands in front of him as he explained calmly.
"The girl born fifty thousand years later, the one who can embrace the Cocoon of Finality, is a flower similar to you."
"In a sense, she is your counterpart. Your parallel self."
"If she can do it, there's no reason you can't. You already have the qualifications to embrace the Cocoon of Finality. You just have a flaw."
"In other words, if we eliminate that flaw, there's no need to gamble on the next era."
"You can take the authority of god fifty thousand years early and end everything right now."
"And by doing so, tens of billions of lives in this era will be saved."
"Two similar flowers…" Kevin murmured. "So that means the flaw is…"
She froze.
Kevin was not stupid. Once her thoughts started branching out, her brain kicked into gear.
"A flaw."
"The Cocoon of Finality is into girls."
"Turning me into a girl…"
Putting all of that together led to a conclusion so ridiculous it barely felt real.
The corner of Kevin's mouth twitched as she looked at Li Mu, her expression painfully strained.
"Mu… the flaw you're talking about wouldn't happen to be—"
"Yes," Li Mu said calmly. "Your gender."
"..."
Kevin fell into deep existential doubt.
But after everything she had already been through, her mental resilience had increased dramatically. She recovered surprisingly fast.
After all, she had already said goodbye to her little brother. Compared to that, the god secretly running the universe being a yuri fan did not seem quite as unbearable.
"So… what do we do now?" After steadying herself, Kevin focused on what she really wanted to know. How exactly did Li Mu plan to save the world?
Li Mu already had an answer.
"Becoming the god of Earth is extremely difficult. Starting from scratch would be even worse. Honestly, it would be almost impossible."
"But if homework is hard, copying homework is much easier."
"As her counterpart, all you need to do is walk the same life path that your future self takes fifty thousand years from now."
"Do that, and you'll inherit the power of the Cocoon of Finality."
"So that's why you turned me into a girl?" Kevin asked. By now, her anger had mostly faded, but the discomfort was still there.
"Just so I can walk someone else's life? Become a copy of another person?"
Li Mu spread his hands. "Then tell me, Kevin. Do we have any other way to save the world?"
"I don't think you want to watch everyone you care about die in the Finality catastrophe either."
"..."
"So what do we do next?"
In the end, Kevin did not refuse. Compared to a future where everyone she loved was almost entirely wiped out, becoming a girl suddenly did not feel that unacceptable.
Seeing that she no longer resisted, Li Mu quietly let out a sigh of relief.
All those backup plans had not been for nothing. He had finally reached his first goal. As long as the next steps succeeded, he would truly have a chance to turn the tables.
With that thought, Li Mu looked at Kevin and said, "A Honkai disaster is about to occur in Nagazora City. From it, a Herrscher will be born. You need to defeat her."
"A Herrscher?" Kevin blinked. Then she asked in disbelief, "You don't mean the Herrscher of Finality we just saw, right?"
With her current build, the only way she could defeat the Herrscher of Finality would be dying in such a ridiculous way that the enemy laughed herself to death.
Li Mu shook his head.
"Of course not. I'm not throwing you at the final boss right now. You'll be dealing with the Third Herrscher."
Kevin relaxed a little, courage returning.
"So how strong is this Third Herrscher? Not to brag, but I'm pretty good in a fight."
"She can more or less wipe all of East Asia," Li Mu said casually. "In the original history, at least several hundred million people died because of her."
"More or less?!" Kevin yelped.
"What, is that a lot?" Li Mu looked at her strangely. "She's just an early-game mob. She wouldn't even qualify to carry your shoes later."
"In the original history, you fought the Herrscher of Finality all the way to the Moon. You even ground the Imaginary Space into nothing."
Kevin could not help complaining.
"You said it yourself. That's later. Right now I'm just a normal high school student. What am I supposed to fight a Herrscher with, my head?"
Then another thought struck her. She eyed Li Mu suspiciously.
"Also, Mu. Aren't you a time traveler? You should know who this Herrscher is, right?"
"Can't we just grab them before they awaken? Lock them up or something?"
Li Mu suddenly looked her up and down with clear surprise in his eyes.
"W-What?" Kevin felt extremely uncomfortable under his gaze.
"I didn't expect you to come up with that," Li Mu said with genuine emotion, like a parent watching a particularly dumb deer finally grow up.
Kevin rolled her eyes. "What do you even think I am? A gorilla?"
Li Mu laughed softly, then shook his head.
"Unfortunately, that won't work."
"Unless absolutely necessary, I won't interfere with the life paths of Herrscher candidates."
"Why?" Kevin asked, puzzled. "Isn't it better to crush danger before it even starts?"
"I could restrain them before they awaken. I could even kill them outright. But then what?"
"Without that initial host, the Cocoon of Finality can just choose another one."
"Every human has the potential to become Its target."
"If that's the case, it's better not to touch them for now. At least that way, we retain an information advantage."
"We use this time to build strength. Then, when the outbreak happens, we kill the Herrscher instantly and minimize the damage."
Kevin sighed. "So what do you need me to do?"
"The time to deal with the Third Herrscher isn't ripe yet. But there are preparations we can make in advance."
"Kevin, I want you to go to Chiba Academy."
"And protect someone."
"Who?"
Li Mu did not answer. He simply took out a photograph.
Kevin looked at it.
In the photo was a girl with short purple hair and glasses, carrying an air of quiet intelligence.
The moment Kevin saw her, her eyes locked onto the image.
She pressed a hand to her chest, feeling her heart start to pound uncontrollably.
Was this what people called falling in love at first sight?
But when her palm pressed against her chest, all she felt was softness and a strange numbness. A wave of melancholy spread through her heart.
Kevin realized something.
At best, she could only be sisters with this girl now.
She looked up at Li Mu, her eyes filled with deep, wordless resentment.
…
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