"Well then, I look forward to our pleasant cooperation."
The deal between Otto and Rin was struck.
As soon as she agreed, she pushed open the restroom door and went to find her sister.
The illusion was not dispelled, because Rin wanted to spend one last moment with the phantom of her sister.
Otto was in no hurry either. He also wanted to witness the Celestial's story to its very end.
Still, Rin agreeing to the deal was well within Otto's expectations.
Having met her sister in the illusion and having had contact with Yae Sakura, the condition of returning to a life with her sister by her side—after regaining her human memories—was an offer she could hardly refuse.
Furthermore, Otto and Rin had a fundamental disagreement on the matter of Fu Hua.
And Otto's fist was harder than Rin's.
If it came to a fight, Rin had no chance of winning. The first time she had sent a Chariot-class Honkai Beast to attack Fu Hua, she had noticed that Otto wasn't using the Authority of Binding, but something more akin to the Authority of Flame.
At the very least, he possessed more than one Herrscher's Authority.
This made Rin wonder: were the Herrschers fifty thousand years in the future all multi-core?
Rin knew she couldn't outplay Otto.
And their deal was a convenient way for her to back down.
"Enjoy the time you have left," Otto said softly after Rin was out of sight.
Next, Rin should be discovered to have a Herrscher reaction and then locked up in the MOTH base.
This was a story that ended in tragedy.
The Herrscher of Corruption would once again face her past.
But after Rin left the illusion, a new chapter of her life would begin.
He wasn't worried that Rin would go back on her word.
Because as part of their deal, Rin had to relinquish her power as the Herrscher of Corruption and allow Otto to wipe away all her past memories, to exist with a new identity.
Giving up her power was Otto's demand.
Otto needed Jizo Mitama.
But erasing her memories was Rin's request.
Perhaps it was because the child had harmed Yae Sakura five hundred years ago, and she was worried she wouldn't be able to get along with her.
Or perhaps, she couldn't let go of her hatred for humanity.
Or maybe it was both.
She would see Yae Sakura as a substitute for her sister, and Yae Sakura would surely treat her as a little sister in return.
Two wounded souls, licking each other's wounds.
But what was wrong with that?
A smile appeared on Otto's face. In orchestrating Rin's change of heart, he had at most acted as a military deterrent. The most crucial factor was Rin's love for her sister.
Family?
Brothers and sisters?
Otto thought back to his life before he transmigrated. Did he have any siblings?
He thought not.
So he was an only child.
And what about the original Otto?
Oh, Otto's older brother and sister had died young, his second sister had murdered their father, and his second brother hadn't met a good end either.
He really didn't understand the feeling of having siblings.
Otto returned to Fu Hua's side, watching as Mobius examined her. He couldn't help but wonder, what would it be like if the Celestial were his little sister?
Forget it. The Celestial is much better suited to be a wife.
A woman like her, once she commits to someone, will never change, not even if the sky falls and the earth crumbles.
However...
Otto was very curious. When Fu Hua woke from the illusion and remembered everything that had happened here, what kind of expression would she have?
Heh.
The events that followed unfolded just as they had in the original history. A few days later, Rin was found to have a Herrscher reaction. She was arrested and imprisoned in the MOTH base.
But Sakura, in order to save her sister, chose to force her way through the defenses, attempting a prison break.
Unfortunately, those who were terrified of Herrschers had already carried out their "righteous judgment" on Rin. When Sakura found her, she saw only a mutilated body.
Then, Rin transformed into an ultimate virus of pure consciousness, invading various systems and controlling humans, beasts, and even machines.
Humanity's last three remaining cities were annihilated by the nuclear missiles she launched.
And it didn't stop there.
Nuclear missiles rained down everywhere, a clear sign that the Herrscher of Corruption controlling the illusion was venting her rage.
Rage at her own death—that was humanity's fault.
Rage at her sister's death—that was her own fault.
Kevin wanted to take the mentally broken Sakura and leave, but she trapped him. Sakura proceeded alone into the depths of the base.
In the end, Sakura used all her strength to destroy the corrupted mechs and Deadwalkers, finally reaching Rin's side. As Sakura's life force faded, Rin's actions fell into disarray, giving Dr. MEI the opportunity to seal her.
Otto watched it all.
This time, he did not follow Fu Hua. The protagonists here were Rin, Sakura, Kevin, and MEI.
Because this part of the memory was not Fu Hua's, but constructed from the memories of the Herrscher of Corruption, Rin.
As for Fu Hua, she was clearing out cannon fodder.
As the base gradually fell silent, the white-haired man stood there in a daze. The girl with the sakura-fox ears lay on the ground, her eyes vacant, still clutching her weapon tightly.
The first of the Thirteen Flame-Chasers had made her exit.
And in a view only Otto could see, Rin stood before Sakura's corpse, gently embracing her sister, wiping the grime from her cherry-pink hair.
This was, after all, only an illusion.
"Why don't you just live in this illusion forever?" Otto said.
Rin, holding Sakura, heard his words and turned her head. Her once-malevolent face now showed a trace of helplessness.
"No."
There was a struggle in her voice.
Otto nodded. His previous words had been a deliberate attempt to cut off Rin's retreat.
He had been worried that seeing her sister's corpse would make her want to stay in the illusion.
"Then I'll take my sister back to the cherry blossom tree in our hometown."
"When the illusion is dispelled, you will erase my memories, Otto," Rin said softly.
"Mm."
Rin slowly lifted her sister into her arms and walked away, step by step. Otto said no more, simply watching them leave.
Rin did not dispel the illusion.
Because Otto wanted Fu Hua to break it herself.
But Rin had only taken a few steps before she turned her head back to look at Otto.
"Tell me, if she knew I was the monster that hurt her five hundred years ago, would she still treat me as a sister?"
She was talking about Yae Sakura.
"Yes," Otto replied. No matter the circumstances, he had to agree here.
"But I can't use the name Rin anymore. I remember her sister was called Yae Rin, right? Our names are so similar."
Having corroded Yae Sakura, Rin knew all of her memories, so she was no stranger to her past.
She, like herself, had lived a tragic life.
"Do you think I should use the name Yae Rin?" Rin asked.
"Hiyokumaru."
But Otto offered a different name.
"Your new beginning. You will be called Hiyokumaru."
Hearing this name, Rin was silent for a moment, then nodded.
"Mm, Higokumaru."
Her fifty-thousand-year life had been like a hell. The name fit.
Anyway, her memories would be erased soon enough.
She would disappear into the past, together with her sister, forever.
But Otto corrected her.
"No, Hiyokumaru."
"The really tasty kind of emergency food."
---o---