In fact, the unexpected predicament Otto currently faced was, in a sense, brought about by Jiang Qiao himself.
Because fifty thousand years ago, in the Previous Era that logically should have already perished, he had done something similar before.
Precisely because of this—today, fifty thousand years later, Otto's act of entering the game himself, deceiving the world and the existence above the rules, encountered resistance far exceeding that of the original storyline.
And he, precisely because he foresaw this, appeared here.
"This arduous path, it is my sin."
The lively girlish voice sighed, long and drawn out. [Theresa] faced the 'clowns' whose momentum had surged further with her arrival, as if undergoing a qualitative leap—if these beings were previously mere cannon fodder comparable to Chariot or Templar-class Honkai Beasts, then at this moment, these thousands upon thousands of bygone Phantoms of the Past had all reached the level of Emperor-class Honkai Beasts.
Thousands upon thousands of Emperor-class Honkai Beasts... This was an exceedingly terrifying scene. After all, Emperor-class Honkai Beasts were powerful existences second only to Judgment-class, often only one appearing during a major Honkai Eruption—humanity had truly faced only a dozen or so in total.
Yet now, they appeared here on a scale comparable to an army.
Even though there was still a significant gap between Emperor-class Honkai Beasts and Herrschers, this terrifying number was already sufficient to bridge that gap.
"You really know how to make trouble."
The girl complained thus.
He knew this didn't originate from the Cocoon, but from the Imaginary Tree, perhaps even from the existence above its rules.
But this was definitely not born of anger or resentment. If the entity had to provide a reason, its answer would surely be—Because I thought of doing so, therefore I did so.
Yet, facing this 'challenge' thrown by the other party, [Theresa] remained calm, unperturbed.
Just as Otto, as the False God, didn't unleash the true, complete power of a False God during the previous subjugation battle...
He, of course, was the same.
"Devour, Vishnu."
"Release, Judah."
"Full power deployment—"
A dazzling brilliance coated the girl's front. Her clear sky-blue eyes were like a still lake surface, shimmering under the light of the Imaginary Tree.
The soft cry was like a key, completely unlocking heavy shackles.
Chains of Binding, like swimming snakes, pierced through figure after figure surging forward, emerging from the ground, emerging from the air, filling every gap here, completing... a heaven-and-earth sealing lock.
And those entangled figures, before they could even struggle free, were enveloped by spreading black shadows, then, as if dissolving, vanished within.
This was the power belonging to Vishnu.
The power capable of devouring everything.
Using Binding to restrict the enemy's movement and resistance, then using Vishnu's devouring power to 'eat' them, turning them into a part of oneself—like a perpetual motion machine, cycling endlessly, flowing continuously.
Just like that, [Theresa] devoured the Otto-shaped clowns—the lingering echoes of past resentments—one by one, savoring the bursting flavor while witnessing the man advance towards the end he pursued.
"Kallen.... I've come to see you." Reaching out with all his might, touching the illusory yet tangible Tree of Existence, Otto's weak voice held a trace of nostalgia, anticipation, and.... relief.
---||---
On the ancient execution ground, chaos had erupted due to the appearance of Honkai Beasts.
Saint Kallen, awaiting execution, her fate hanging by a thread, looked on with shock and anger. With extreme ease, she broke the shackles binding her—for her, what truly killed her was never these laughable instruments of torture.
If she wished, Schicksal could never have captured her.
She chose to die herself.
Unwilling to associate with those despicable people, unwilling to betray her beliefs for a mere gasp of survival, Kallen Kaslana died for her era.
But, before that, until the very last moment of her life, she would still uphold the Kaslana promise as the shield of the people.
Even if protecting the populace meant paying with her life.
Time was too fleeting, fate too unkind, leaving her unable to mount an effective resistance.
If following the predetermined destiny—then the Schicksal Saint named Kallen Kaslana would inevitably die protecting the people, pierced through a vital spot.
Provided.
That was the predetermined destiny.
And now, there was a man, willing to give everything, foolishly obsessed for five hundred years, just to mend this regret, just to change this damned fate.
Thus....
That historically gray day, symbolizing the Saint's curtain call, was now dyed with the bright dawn of hope.
The white-haired girl looked up at the clear sky, gazing at the sin consumed by flames.
"Boom—"
A dull roar, splashing flames—the accomplice of fate, the Honkai Beast persecuting the populace, completely dissolved into specks of light, dissipating into the air.
Kallen, recovering from the aftershock, stared blankly at this scene. There was no luck of surviving a disaster, but rather, more of a deep sense of loss from the bottom of her heart, as if someone important had departed.
....Someone very important.
Her heart throbbed faintly.
But, listening to the soft whispers, the low murmurs in the wind, Kallen seemed to instantly understand something, revealing a relieved smile.
"He's gone."
A young girlish voice sounded beside her ear, startling her. Turning her head, her eyes met a white-haired girl standing by the wall, clad in seemingly brand-new Overseer attire—what caught Kallen's attention most was the face, extremely similar to her own.
Although their bust sizes were completely different leagues, Kallen still knew what she looked like when she was young.
"Yes, he's gone...."
Responding, she also looked questioningly at the girl who resembled her so closely—as if knowing the question the former wanted to ask, [Theresa] chuckled lightly: "In terms of current identity, I probably count as your and his granddaughter."
"....Grand.... granddaughter?!"
Hearing this title, Kallen froze for a moment, then her cheeks instantly flushed crimson.
....If this girl before her was her granddaughter, didn't that mean....
Even someone as straightforward as Kallen felt dizzy thinking about everything this title represented—although she was an undeniable master player in the field of flirting with girls, a cunning lesbian, when it came to herself, she clearly wasn't very good at handling topics related to her own affairs.
"Alright, I guess you probably have a lot you want to say, questions you want to ask."
"However, this clearly isn't a suitable place for conversation."
"Let's find another place and chat slowly."
"Uh..... this....."
Kallen showed some difficulty regarding this suggestion. She glanced at the execution platform, but before she could say more, the white-haired girl who resembled her past self and claimed to be her granddaughter approached first, getting very close.
"Don't tell me you're still going to put on those shackles and obediently go back to be executed."
The close proximity allowed her to see her own reflection in the sky-blue eyes, even feel the hot breath easily. The young, slightly annoyed voice sounded beside her ear.
"How could I..... haha....." She turned her slightly blushing face away, whispering softly.
"That's good."
"After all..... Kallen, should I perhaps call you Grandma instead?" [Theresa]'s words made Kallen slightly anxious, and she quickly said: "....Don't! I'm not that old yet! It's weird!"
As a girl, she cared about these details too, okay!
Even if the other person really was her granddaughter or something, she didn't want to hear such a terrible address as 'Grandma' right now.
"Alright, then I'll still call you Kallen."
"Right now, your life isn't just your own, you know."
To this, Kallen, having learned much upon contact, gazed at the spot where the Honkai Beast disappeared and murmured softly.
"Farewell, my great inventor."
...
Under the ancient tree, gazing at the starry sky, Kallen spoke in a low voice:
"Sorry.... Because of me, Otto did too many wrong things."
The moment Otto arrived carrying the Cleaver of Shamash, she also received the chronicle of five hundred years from him. Though not detailed, it was enough for Kallen to understand what a convoluted journey it had been.
She was deeply moved by everything he did for her—even as a Kaslana who hated evil, encountering someone like Otto, she couldn't remain indifferent. Besides, they were childhood friends who secretly harbored feelings for each other. If not for later events driving them apart, she should have become his wife.
But, precisely because of the Kaslana hatred for evil, Kallen didn't ignore Otto's evil deeds because of this emotion.
To this, [Theresa] shook her head:
"He did many bad things, but he also did quite a few good things."
To achieve his goals, that man committed almost every evil imaginable—yet, he also indeed established numerous merits.
Setting aside the Black Death he saved people from, and the Schicksal he led for five hundred years, just concerning Kiana and Durandal, Otto wasn't solely evil towards them.
It should be known, whether it was Kiana's inheritance from Himeko to 'make the world into the shape you desire,' or Durandal's conviction from Ragna—the source of their beliefs was actually Otto, the great villain in everyone's eyes.
In this aspect alone, that guy had already achieved something similar to Elysia.
And the subsequent evil, he used his life to prove the correctness of the path they walked.
Although Otto's original intention might not have been so, from an objective standpoint, he did indeed achieve this fact.
This, too, was a merit.
After all, without a villain to prove his evil, using that evil to demonstrate and help them solidify their beliefs...
How could they ensure the correctness of their path?
"....Perhaps."
Kallen's expression was complex.
Even with the knowledge of five hundred years imparted by Otto, she wasn't the type to excel at thinking or understanding complex matters.
But she knew this was correct.
"Regardless, everything Otto did was because of me.... I cannot turn a blind eye to the evil deeds he committed."
"It's just that he can no longer atone."
"So?"
"I intend to spend the rest of my life repaying the evil deeds he committed over these years." Kallen's tone was incredibly firm. She wasn't the type to comfortably enjoy someone's grace after their sacrifice.
After learning what Otto had done, this thought had already formed in her mind.
Perhaps the length of her life, her own abilities, weren't sufficient to fully repay this sin. But even knowing this, she would still choose to do so—until her life reached its end.
Such an answer did not surprise Jiang Qiao.
After all, he knew well that with Kallen's personality, she would inevitably make such a decision.
"Then, let me give you a little help next."
He returned to this future, specifically carved out by Otto for Kallen, for this very reason.
The price Otto paid to save Kallen was achieved by eliminating his own existence—Otto Apocalypse the person.
This included not only the Otto of the main world but also Ottos from parallel worlds.
Precisely because of this, in this worldline Otto specifically created for Kallen, the Otto belonging to this world had already died along with the main world's Otto, completely vanishing.
Kallen's resurrection in exchange for Otto's death—on the surface, this seemed like a very profitable trade.
However, this era had an extremely important matter yet unresolved.
That was the rebellion against the old Schicksal, the old era.
After Kallen's death, Otto raised the Saint's banner and, with like-minded companions, overthrew the Schicksal regime, establishing a brand new Schicksal that would extend for the next five hundred years.
But now, the latter was gone.
Although the existence of Kallen, the Saint, sounded somewhat better than Otto...
Still....
Expecting Kallen to raise her own banner, rebel against Schicksal, and establish a new Schicksal?
The first half might be manageable. With Kallen's strength, it was indeed easy. As long as Kallen was willing to be the muscle, as the former Schicksal's number one enforcer, the best fighter, she could easily lead a team to overthrow the old Schicksal.
But the latter, having Miss Saint establish a new Schicksal...
Looking at Kallen, radiating the purity of the old era, untainted by modern knowledge, Theresa's expression became somewhat subtle.
This world seemed doomed right from its birth.