CHAPTER 100: ICISEI EPISODE 100

Episode 100: Otto · Apocalypse, so to speak...

~Dimensional livestream, Chat Room~

[ Paimon (Genshin Impact): "Even so, is it really appropriate to directly call yourself a false god?" ]

[ Aqua (KonoSuba): "A god is a god. How can a false god call himself a god?" ]

[ Yuri Nakamura (Angel Beats): "The power of a false god." ]

[ Yuri Nakamura (Angel Beats): "Then, how powerful is the true god? Of course, excluding a certain blue-colored god." ]

[ Aqua (KonoSuba): "?" ]

[ .....]

『 However..... This attack still failed to harm Otto in the slightest....

"Stigmata, Herrscher? You want to surpass the original with an imaginary phantom?" Otto mocked while enduring the attack.

"If you can do it, I will accompany you to the end."

⟦ In the fierce battle ⟧

After a fierce battle, Otto, who had been mocking the two earlier, was knocked to the ground in the blink of an eye.

The Seed of Imaginary fell out of Otto’s body and returned to the space behind him.

Although Otto was knocked to the ground, he still stood up indifferently.

"Hehe, it’s far from over."

Seeing this, the two refused to give up and continued to launch ability attacks.

"There’s no way. As long as this place is protected by the Imaginary Tree, my power can continuously recover."

"You can’t kill me like this."

"This energy that cannot be reshaped is absolutely endless."

"You can’t do it with just a mere Herrscher of the Void."

Otto coldly mocked while enduring the fatal blow given by Kiana. 』

『 .....』

~Dimensional livestream, Chat Room~

[ Paimon (Genshin Impact): What should we do? We keep killing him, but we can’t kill him? ]

[ Tesla (Honkai: Impact Third): "Didn’t that person named Nagamitsu say it before?" ]

[ Paimon (Genshin Impact): "Ah? Did she say something?" ]

[ Tang Keke (Love Live): "I didn’t pay attention to that before... but I should be able to know by looking down, right?" ]

[ Yukinoshita Yukino (Oregairu): "Even if we know, what’s the point?" ]

[ Tesla (Honkai: Impact Third): "You’re right, you’re absolutely right, what’s the point? After all, it’s a matter of the future." ]

[ .....]

『 But just as a fleeting opportunity arrived, Durandal shouted: "Kiana, now!"

As the shout fell, a spear quickly stabbed out, directly nailing Otto to the wall.

Kiana also took the opportunity to activate her power.

"Now, let your power be buried with you!"

"Mom, Dad, Himeko-sensei, Class Monitor, Theresa."

"This is the debt you owe each of them!"...

After a violent explosion, the screen plunged into darkness again. 』

『 .....』

~Dimensional livestream, Chat Room~

[ Himeko Murata (Honkai: Impact Third): "Owe, our debt." ]

[ Himeko Murata (Honkai: Impact Third): "Will everything in the future be done by the Archbishop?" ]

[ Umaru Doma (Himouto): "He doesn’t look like a good person. He was such a gentle person at first." ]

[ Shinomiya Kaguya (Love Is War): "People change in a peaceful life." ]

[ Tesla (Honkai: Impact Third): "*!!!" ]

[ Himeko (Honkai: Star Rail): "Is this a success?" ]

[ Welt Yang (Honkai: Star Rail): "Yes, he is indeed dead, but not completely dead." ]

[ Saitama (One Punch Man): "What do you mean, what does it mean to be dead, but not completely dead?" ]

[ Hu Tao (Genshin Impact): "Dead? Do you need our Wangsheng Funeral Parlor to help you reincarnate?" ]

[ Zhongli (Genshin Impact): "Funeral Director, this may be a bit difficult to do." ]

[ Hu Tao (Genshin Impact): "It’s such a pity that this customer in front of me can’t be obtained." ]

[ Oyama Mahiro (Onimai): "Don’t talk about such terrifying topics in such a calm tone." ]

[ .....]

『 When it lit up again, they were back in the empty church.

The two hadn’t recovered yet, and a voice that shouldn’t be there suddenly sounded.

"Well done, Bianca, Kiana."

"That voice is..." Durandal said in surprise.

Equally incredulous was Kiana, who had just defeated that person with her own hands.

"Otto?".... 』

『 .....』

~Dimensional livestream, Chat Room~

[ Shizuka Hiratsuka (Oregairu): "Didn’t he say he was dead?" ]

[ Theresa (Honkai: Impact Third): "Grandpa." ]

[ .....]

『 The voice, suspected to be Otto’s, seemed to sense their surprise,

Without waiting for them to ask, he spoke first:

"Don’t be so nervous, two brave warriors. You did indeed reverse the false god’s laws in an instant, turning my consciousness into such a lonely ghost."

"Soon, everything will be settled as you wish, so before that, I congratulate you."

"Congratulations on overcoming control and restraint, and congratulations on stopping me from destroying your history and loved ones."

"Of course, I also congratulate myself on finally being able to bid farewell to life without regret."

"Archbishop, we have stopped the crazy plan you mentioned." Durandal asked Otto’s voice with a sigh of relief: "Then, can you tell us your true intention now?"

Hearing Durandal’s words, a hint of helplessness appeared in Otto’s voice.

"Heh, you’re really stubborn, Bianca."..

"What, even at this point, you still don’t want to see me as a true enemy?"

Otto’s words made Durandal silent for a while.

"I naturally cannot forgive what you have done, but I will not forget your nurturing of me. Moreover, even now, I still feel that—"

"Deep down, to some extent, I still believe in what you taught us."

"Heh, how stubborn, child." Otto laughed self-deprecatingly, "To be honest, from the very beginning, I wanted you, everyone, to stand against me and see me as an unforgivable villain."

"Although the first half was successful, the second half obviously failed."

"Alas, should I feel annoyed or relieved?"..

"Anyway, you did win against me, and at the same time, you defeated the existence behind me."

"This is a remarkable achievement. Using these experiences, you will eventually defeat Honkai and bring long-lasting light to this world you cherish."...

"And I also have the opportunity to lead the world I cherish to a similar future."

"No, to be precise, it is to hand this lost torch into her hands."

"Her?" Kiana seemed to realize something.

Durandal, hearing this, immediately understood Otto’s intentions for all his actions.

"Could it be...?"

After the two of them had figured out their thoughts, I began to speak.

"Hahahaha, it seems you all know, don’t you?"

"That’s right, even if I was infinitely close to a god, before I was defeated by you, I was just a servant of the Imaginary Tree."

"I was tightly bound to my own world. Although I held the power to reshape it, I had no freedom at all."

"So, from the very beginning, I made this gamble."

"I gambled that human determination could create an instant miracle, making the rules of the Imaginary Tree chaotic and submissive for that one moment."

"Kiana Kaslana, I once called her K-423. In the past, the power of love allowed you to do it, right?"

"Now, I have also proven that anger can achieve the same effect."

"I placed the last glimmer of hope for reviving Kallen here, and it proved that I gambled correctly."

"Only the miracle created by the Herrscher of the Void can reorganize this endless existence in the instant stillness of the imaginary space."

"It allowed the chess pieces of that world, my carefully selected starting point, to find an opportunity to take root and sprout in a new land."

"This is something I could never do when I held power but was a servant."

Otto quietly recounted, and Durandal responded with a solemn gaze:

"In other words, in order to reshape the world five hundred years ago, you had to transcend reality, become part of the imaginary space, and become a prisoner there?"....

"And to change that world, to rewrite that person’s destiny, you had to exile yourself?"

"Even if doing so would cost you your life, or even make your existence disappear from the world forever?"

Otto asked Durandal back with a hint of curiosity: "Of course, don’t you think this is a perfect ending?"

"Just like Prometheus stealing the heavenly fire."

"At that miraculous moment, I sent the power of the Imaginary Tree, which transcends reality, into the cracks of the world."

"It created a branch of history and also saved your beloved world from destruction."

"Although, for me, the latter is not so important."

"But thank you for letting me witness the miracle unique to me and her at the end of my life."

"I will leave this world with all my sins, and for those of you who continue to move forward..."

"The ladder to overcoming Honkai has revealed its first steps, although the road is winding and difficult..."

"But at the end, there is indeed light."

"Goodbye, heroes."...

Suddenly, Otto seemed to remember something important.

He said to the two with a hint of regret:

"Tell Theresa for me... I’m sorry, her grandpa won’t be able to attend her coronation."

As the regretful words fell, the man’s aura truly dissipated.

Meaning, Otto Apocalypse,

The man who ruled Schicksal for five hundred years,

The man who made everyone fear him,...

Finally disappeared, ushering in his end. 』

『 .....』

~Dimensional livestream, Chat Room~

[ Otto (Honkai: Impact Third): "My little Theresa, she finally succeeded in becoming the Archbishop of Schicksal." ]

[ Otto (Honkai: Impact Third): "Although I may have done some things that might make you unhappy," ]

[ Otto (Honkai: Impact Third): "Although you weren’t my biological granddaughter at first, so many years of living together have proven it, haven’t they?" ]

[ Rita (Honkai: Impact Third): "Oh? Our future new Archbishop has finally taken office?" ]

[ Theresa (Honkai: Impact Third): "Grandpa....." ]

[ Chika Fujiwara (Love Is War): "Wuwuwuwu, he did so many things to save his beloved person." ]

[ Tesla (Honkai: Impact Third): "Phew, this time, I don’t know what to say about you either." ]

[ Tesla (Honkai: Impact Third): "Although you are a very hateful guy, now that I see you’re going to die, I feel pretty good." ] ...

[ Tesla (Honkai: Impact Third): "Then I won’t argue with you today, I’m satisfied." ]

[ Otto (Honkai: Impact Third): "Oh? Then thank you very much." ]

[ Oyama Mahiro (Onimai): "He was clearly such a bad person at first, but in the end....." ]

[ Eriri Sawamura (Saekano): "No wonder the previous title was ’Pure Love Warrior’." ]

(A certain little blonde, while speaking, destroyed the draft in her hand.)

[ .....]

『 The scene shifts. In a blood-red space,

Not far away, a strange, large tree stood at the end of the horizon.

Otto, who had just disappeared, was stumbling step by step towards the large tree.

"Life is truly fragile."

"When I was a child, my sister died in battle."

"They said her soul was immortal, and her spirit would ascend to heaven."

"Generation after generation, humans always love to deceive themselves with such lies."

"To believe in that place called the afterlife, to believe that our thoughts can live on forever."

"They decorate the world as if there is no death, until death suddenly breaks into their lives, suddenly taking away the lives of their loved ones."

"Even if they know this reality, they will try even harder to deceive themselves, believing that love can transcend everything, believing that emotions can last forever."

"That’s right... love, and more emotions, they can create miracles, but the people who create miracles can only be those who are still alive in the world at that time."

"I was once an ordinary person, and I was also confused by these thoughts, imagining that human souls live in a higher place,"

"Dreaming that one day, the person I deeply loved could return to the world in a new body, living on in a better future."

"But unfortunately, the rules of the world are not like this. Death is truly the disappearance of thoughts, the end of everything. We cannot continue those extinguished starlight."

"Unless..." At this point, Otto paused.

Because what he was about to say was the true intention of his recent series of actions.

After a sigh, Otto Apocalypse whispered:

"We will reverse time, awaken the island of silent graves; re-inject the evergreen water of life into the past that buried everything, and the bifurcated path will unfold there again, and the choice between life and death will henceforth form two worlds."

"And all of this, the price is merely sacrificing one person, destroying one person, plus the disaster that originally wanted to kill us."....

"Unfortunately, by the time Otto Apocalypse understood this, he was already a notorious villain, thoroughly despised by the power he pursued."

Recalling the people who had been hurt by him for various reasons,

The Archbishop couldn’t help but smile bitterly.

In the end, he realized that the powers required to implement this plan,

Had unknowingly stood on his opposite side.

But he just smiled at this small matter, feeling indifferent.

As he said,

Even if he was hated by the power he pursued, it was no big deal.

"But it doesn’t matter, she did prove one thing: anger born of love can also possess power as strong as love."

"And behind such a hero,"

Otto paused, then mentioned the people he missed the most.

"Theresa, my dear little granddaughter, you are growing into an outstanding leader. In time, people will gradually forget your grandfather, letting his rights and wrongs fade with history, leaving only idle chatter after meals..."

"But, you should occasionally try fruits and vegetables other than bitter melon, right?"

"You always stay up late; you should eat more nutritious food to take care of your body." 』

『 .....』

~Dimensional livestream, Chat Room~

[ Otto (Honkai: Impact Third): "Did you hear that, Theresa?" ]

[ Theresa (Honkai: Impact Third): "I know, I’ll eat something else." ]

[ Theresa (Honkai: Impact Third): "Grandpa, why did you say that at the end?" ]

[ Otto (Honkai: Impact Third): "Hehe, after all, you are my obedient granddaughter." ]

[ .....]

『 For his little granddaughter Theresa,

No matter how many unseemly things this rather unqualified grandfather had done,

But no matter what,

As a grandfather, he was genuinely good to Theresa,

And also very concerned about Theresa’s health.

Even if she always preferred bitter melon....

As a grandfather, he at least hoped she understood this.

All of these points point to one problem:

His little granddaughter might be malnourished, which greatly worried him as a grandfather.

However, he believed that her friends would also care for her in his stead.

From their past actions, her friends were all good people.

On the other hand,

Even after his death,

Tomorrow’s coronation ceremony for the new Archbishop of Schicksal...

"Let me tell you one more thing, do you know? For your coronation tomorrow, Grandpa personally made you an Archbishop’s cloak."

"If you don’t mind, wear it to start your own new era, and wash away all the bad marks Grandpa left behind."

"...Theresa, my old friends, like the Immortal Phoenix, the Herrscher of Reason... they are all truly good people and will definitely help you, allowing you to forge your own path."

In Otto’s eyes, those old acquaintances were all pretty good guys.

At least when it came to Theresa, they were reliable and trustworthy people. 』

『 .....』