The Floating Council.
Seven mask projections, representing supreme power, floated in the darkness like several long-decayed idols.
"Is there still no progress regarding the search for 'Sample 002'?" The voice was mechanical and cold, like an electronic synthesized voice squeezed from a metal throat.
"The attack on the transport team ten years ago was too bizarre. No wreckage, no corpses, as if it were wiped from the world by God's eraser." Another voice spoke with a hint of irritation, "Without that sole successful case, the klaxosaurification experiments have hit a bottleneck."
"We must find her. She is the key to unlocking the 'star entity'..."
"How are things at Plantation 13?"
"Dr. Franxx seems to be conducting some special parasite cultivation experiment; it's the final attempt prepared for 'strelizia'."
"Let him do it. They're all consumables anyway."
The council returned to a dead silence, with only cold data streams silently traversing the darkness... Area 13, Cerasus.
Mistilteinn, also known as the Birdcage.
Under the massive artificial greenhouse dome, there was none of the biting wind and snow of the outside world; instead, it was a lush forest scene.
Today was the induction ceremony for Squad 13.
A group of boys and girls in uniform were lined up neatly in the central plaza.
Although they hadn't officially piloted a FRANXX yet, the spirit in their eyes was completely different from ordinary parasites who only knew how to follow orders.
As a special experimental squad, they retained more emotions and individuality.
At the very front of the line, the boy with Code 016—Hiro—was looking up at the transparent dome that resembled an artificial sky.
Having missed that fateful encounter, he hadn't faded into obscurity like he did in the original timeline.
On the contrary, as the genius with the best stats in this batch, his eyes were clear and sharp, though a hint of lingering confusion always clouded his brow.
Deep in his memories, there was always a red shadow running, crying, and... calling out for something.
"Hiro, what are you looking at?" Beside him, Ichigo, Code 015, leaned in, her eyes under her short blue hair showing unconcealed concern.
"It's nothing." Hiro withdrew his gaze, his fingers subconsciously rubbing his chest. "I just feel like... the sky today looks a bit different."
"Different?" Ichigo looked up in confusion.
The next second, an alarm tore through the tranquility of the Birdcage.
Wuuuuuu—!!!
Piercing red light instantly enveloped all of Plantation 13. The originally calm atmosphere suddenly surged violently, as if an invisible giant hand were roughly churning the clouds.
"Enemy attack? Is it a Klaxosaur?!"
"How can this be?!"
"What should we do?!"
"..."
The boys and girls, who had never experienced such a storm, immediately fell into a panic, instinctively searching for cover.
"No... that's not a Klaxosaur." Hiro stared intently at the sky, his pupils suddenly shrinking to the size of pinpricks. "That's..."
The clouds burst open, and a massive platinum-gold battleship occupied everyone's vision.
There was no fire from any thrusters on the ship's hull; instead, countless complex and profound runes flowed slowly, emitting a sacred pressure that made one want to bow down in worship.
This was not a product of technology, but a means of transport Hansen had casually conjured.
Fantasy Manifestation—
Noah's Ark.
"Warning! Unidentified flying object intrusion! Level... unmeasurable!"
"Defense systems offline! Fire control radar locked!"
"Damn it, just when were we invaded?!"
Inside the plantation's command tower, everything was in total chaos.
The platinum battleship didn't launch any attacks; it simply descended quietly, eventually hovering above everyone's heads like a deity looking down on ants.
Immediately after, two figures leaped down from a height of a hundred meters.
No parachutes, no thrusters.
Like two falling meteors, they slammed straight into the central plaza of Mistilteinn.
Boom—!!!
A massive shockwave kicked up a cloud of dust, and the originally flat ground of the plaza instantly cracked, with spiderweb-like fissures spreading wildly in all directions.
The air blast, carrying debris, blew the pilot candidates nearby off their feet.
The dust cleared.
In the center of a massive crater stood two people.
Hansen stood with one hand in his pocket, his black trench coat snapping in the strong wind.
Beside him, the girl holding his arm wore a red military dress uniform. The slim-fit cut perfectly outlined her breathtaking curves, and a white cape draped behind her like a monarch's.
Her cherry-blossom pink hair flowed freely, and the pair of dark red horns on her head, far from being gruesome, added a touch of exotic allure.
Zero Two held a lollipop, taking a casual lick, her emerald-green eyes lazily scanning the terrified boys and girls around them.
That gaze held neither pity nor curiosity, only a brand of arrogance known as "disregard."
"Is this the new home Darling mentioned?"
Zero Two spat out the candy and wrinkled her nose in distaste. "The air is full of the scent of the weak. It smells awful."
"It is a birdcage, after all. Little birds that haven't learned to fly naturally have that scent."
Hansen chuckled softly and stepped out of the crater.
"Who... who are you?!"
Ichigo scrambled up from the ground and instinctively shielded Hiro. Though her legs were trembling, she still managed to shout her question.
Zero Two's gaze finally paused for a moment.
She looked at the short-haired blue girl, a playful curve tugging at the corner of her mouth.
Swish!
No one saw how she moved.
There was only a flash of red, and Ichigo was sent flying, slamming heavily into a tree trunk behind her.
"Too noisy."
Zero Two appeared where Ichigo had been standing, one hand on her hip, her slender red-soled high heels lightly crushing a stone slab on the ground.
"When Darling is speaking, small fry aren't allowed to butt in."
The entire area fell into deathly silence.
Such overwhelming physical ability was simply monstrous!
Hiro stood in place, his body as stiff as a stone.
In that instant just now, when the pink-haired girl darted past him, the fragrant breeze she left behind carried a hint of familiarity that made his very soul tremble.
Those horns... that gaze... "You are..." Hiro reached out a trembling hand, trying to touch that red back. "From that time... eh?"
Some kind of image seemed to flash in his mind, making him instinctively want to say something.
But Hiro immediately realized that he had no impression of the beautiful girl before him.
It wasn't memory erasure or confusion, but—
Between them, they had never met.
However, Zero Two didn't even turn her head.
She ignored Hiro's existence and turned to pounce into Hansen's arms like a clingy kitten, rubbing her cheek against his chest.
"Darling~~ I want dessert. I don't want to look at these boring brats anymore."
"Of course, you can have as much as you want."
"Ha, Darling really is the best~~"
Hiro's hand froze in mid-air, and it felt as if something inside him had shattered.
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