Meanwhile, somewhere within a dark underground cavern...
Step... step... step...
The Herrscher of Thunder had just returned from the Mu Continent, quite satisfied with the results of her trip.
She walked toward the cavern's only source of light.
Upon closer inspection, the illuminated area was filled with countless bottles and jars, along with various electronic instruments developed by humans.
Several figures in white lab coats moved back and forth among the equipment.
Of course, the most striking figure remained the girl with azure skin and pale hair. An oval Blood Crystal, resembling a vertical eye, was embedded in her forehead.
Kali.
Neither she nor the assistant-like "Spawn" beside her needed bright light to see. Both possessed night vision.
The faint, flickering light in the cavern actually came from the screens of the electronic instruments.
Their cold and eerie glow barely illuminated the surrounding darkness, making the atmosphere in the underground cavern feel even more sinister.
A moment later...
"You still couldn't contain your impatience."
Kali spoke without turning around as the Herrscher of Thunder approached.
"Didn't I tell you? They won't be able to make use of the Sea of Quanta Portal for the time being."
"And in the future..."
"Sooner or later, someone else would destroy it for us. I remember," the Herrscher of Thunder cut in. "But I still couldn't put my mind at ease. It was better to destroy it early."
"I don't want a single human to escape."
"Naturally, those few who have been bathed in the Exalted God's glory are exceptions."
"Sigh. Fine, have it your way."
Kali sounded helpless.
"You acted on your own and finished everything already. There is no point discussing it now."
Then she asked casually, "You didn't leave any 'tails' behind when you came to see me, did you?"
"Of course not."
The Herrscher of Thunder raised one finger and pointed at the Bloody Little Snake wrapped around her neck.
"Thanks to this, I can properly conceal my movements now."
The Bloody Little Snake was wrapped around the Herrscher of Thunder like a scarf, providing her with immense computational support.
However, it was no longer Kali's main body.
It was a specially created Spawn that functioned as a mobile base station.
Kali was a Herrscher who knew how to make full use of every resource available to her.
If she decided that acting alone was too dangerous, she would shamelessly cling to the Herrscher of Thunder's thigh without hesitation.
At the same time, she would hide her main body somewhere safe, just as she had done before.
Just as she was doing now...
"Huh?"
The Herrscher of Thunder walked over to Kali's side and looked at the human she was currently "fiddling" with.
Could this human even be considered alive anymore?
He sat slumped in a surgical chair in front of Kali. A bowl-sized section of his skull had been removed, leaving his brain exposed to the open air.
Two long, thin metal rods had been inserted directly into it.
His expression was dull and vacant. Saliva dripped from the corner of his mouth, his unfocused eyes stared at nothing, and his body twitched from what appeared to be involuntary reflexes.
It looked as though he had endured unspeakable torment and his mind had been completely shattered.
"Why did you suddenly start playing around with something like this?"
The Herrscher of Thunder frowned slightly.
In her eyes, enemies should simply be killed outright.
Or, like the Exalted God, one could break their spirits instead.
But this sort of physical torment was the crudest method of all...
"You simply don't understand."
Kali displayed rare patience as she explained things to her not-so-bright comrade.
"Humans are quite interesting."
"The instruments they create are fascinating, and so are humans themselves."
Kali glanced at the electronic devices scattered around them before continuing.
"Don't look so disgusted. I'm not doing this out of sadism. I don't have that kind of kink, nor do I have the spare time for it."
"Even if I did feel like indulging in something like that, doing it to only one person would be terribly inefficient and a waste of time."
Her lips curved into a playful smile.
"Do you know who this man is?"
"Not interested," the Herrscher of Thunder replied bluntly.
"He is a high-ranking council member of The Moths Who Chase the Flames," Kali answered anyway. "One of the people who profited from producing and selling 'Honkai Disease Serum' within India."
"On the day you and I attacked the Mu Continent, I had one of my Spawn seize him amid the chaos."
"Believe it or not, he had quite a few 'interesting little toys' hidden on his body."
"Tracking devices, emergency escape devices, life-support systems, and even a few things meant for 'playing around,' meaning weapons... It took me quite a while to remove all of them."
"Otherwise, I would never have dared to bring him straight here..."
"Can you get to the point?"
The Herrscher of Thunder was growing impatient.
"..."
Kali was left somewhat speechless.
Here I am, taking the rare opportunity to teach you something...
With the mood thoroughly ruined, Kali could no longer be bothered to continue her lengthy explanation.
Instead, she pointed directly at the exposed brain of the "living human."
"Of all the 'little toys' hidden inside him, the most interesting one is actually the change made to his brain."
Kali turned to look at the Herrscher of Thunder.
"You could say I have you to thank for this. By studying your Authority, I can now use the Sesha Gene to sense other people's brainwaves to a certain extent."
"Although the effective range and precision are still far from sufficient."
"To improve the precision, I have to use these electrodes..."
Kali pointed at the two long metal rods inserted into the man's brain.
"A crude setup like this would be completely useless in actual combat."
"However..."
When she saw the Herrscher of Thunder becoming increasingly impatient, Kali finally came to the point.
"It was precisely by using this ability that I discovered something."
"This man's brain has been tampered with."
"Hmm?"
For the first time, the Herrscher of Thunder showed genuine interest.
"What do you mean?"
"It's quite simple."
Seeing that her compatriot was finally interested, Kali's lips curved slightly.
"A psychic-type MANTIS... I believe that was the term."
"I suspect the leaders of every human faction have been 'brainwashed.'"
Kali appeared to have finished her experiment.
Without even bothering to wipe the blood from her hands, she activated her Authority and devoured every stain without wasting a single drop.
As a result, she also obtained the memories of this "living human."
Moments earlier, she had been examining the structure of his brain.
Now, within his memories, she saw... a nun.
"So that's how it is!"
"No wonder every human faction cooperated so flawlessly during the global Cold Wave. They behaved nothing like the species of professional infighters I remember."
"It turns out that these leaders have been puppets under someone else's control for a very long time, nothing more than marionettes dangling from strings."
"They can still think independently, but their inner thoughts are forcibly distorted by a certain 'signal.'"
"The victims themselves will never notice it. They will continue believing, in complete ignorance, that every decision came from their own hearts and free will."
"What a fascinating phenomenon."
At that point, an unmistakably mocking expression appeared on Kali's face.
"Humans... When it comes to evil and having no bottom line, we Herrschers might not even be able to compare with them."
"After all..."
She shrugged at the Herrscher of Thunder.
"At least we don't turn against our own kind... right?"
After hearing that, the purple-haired girl beside Kali nodded in agreement.
While the two chatted leisurely...
Crack.
Beside them, a tiny cocoon-like object inside an experimental vessel split open.
Kali noticed the movement immediately.
Without hesitation, she abandoned the living... no, the poor bastard who had finally been liberated after having a hole quite literally drilled into his skull.
Still barefoot, Kali hurried over to the experimental vessel. Her eyes remained fixed on the cracked cocoon, and a delighted smile had already spread across her face.
"So it was still usable after all."
Kali watched as something slowly pushed the cocoon open from within.
Then...
A beautiful purple-black butterfly emerged.
It gently fluttered its wings. Before long, it was flying up and down within the vessel.
"Excellent."
Kali nodded in deep satisfaction.
"The final 'Horn' is finally complete."
"Rest assured, 'Fourth Seat'..."
Those words were meant for Seele.
Kali's gaze turned fierce.
"I will make good use of the 'legacy' you left behind."
"Next, I will hold the grandest funeral imaginable for you."
"And all of humanity..."
"WILL BE BURIED WITH YOU!!!"