The robot uprising was erupting throughout the Asgard Honkai Experimental Center.
The computer virus first spread through the warehouse storing the food-delivery robots. Soon after, every robot in the warehouse was infected and began charging toward various parts of the facility.
By the time the guards realized something was wrong and tried to stop them, even the defensive armed robots had already defected.
Chi-chi (Klein wants to rest.)
An armed robot raised its rocket launcher and fired at the main gate, blasting it open. The cell block where Vill-V and the others were being held was thrown wide open as well.
"Don't worry. Klein won't attack anyone. She just wants to apply for leave."
Magician Vill-V tapped the armed robot's dull metal head with a wrench she had picked up from who knew where.
Chi-chi— (Save Klein.)
The armed robot spun its head as if sobbing, then hoisted its rocket launcher and continued bombarding the next location, as though destroying the workplace would somehow guarantee a vacation.
"Let me make this clear—the Klein robot uprising in the Golden Courtyard wasn't my doing... If you're looking for [Almighty Vill-V], what does that have to do with me, [Magician]?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about, Fuka." Hua grabbed Vill-V's hand and urged, "Hurry, everyone's already escaping."
The MOTH guards were scrambling everywhere—putting out fires, suppressing escaped Honkai Beasts, and dealing with zombies spawned from Honkai energy leaks. They had no time to worry about the prisoners.
"Careful. There's a wandering zombie over there."
Just like the first time they had fled that alley, Hua hurriedly led Vill-V in search of a safe path.
Hua wasn't particularly skilled at this sort of thing, but Vill-V was even worse.
At least Hua possessed a martial artist's instinctive alertness. Vill-V, in terms of mobility, was completely an ordinary girl. The quantum computer didn't even have a structural map of the facility, so finding their way was pure guesswork.
If Vill-V were left alone, who knew whether she would end up embodying that classic high-IQ anime beauty trope—hopelessly lost.
After weaving and dodging for quite some time, outside the wall of a first-floor restroom, Hua caught Vill-V as she climbed down from a window and exclaimed excitedly, "Fuka, we made it out!"
"Wait, wait—Hua-chan, I—I can't breathe."
Vill-V was still that same athletic disaster. On top of that, with those inconvenient breasts of hers, she had to constantly mind her balance after just a few steps. Otherwise, the excess inertia would nearly send her sprawling.
Having a large chest was truly troublesome. She had almost gotten stuck halfway through that tiny restroom window just now because of it.
This wasn't some inexplicable delicate insecurity, nor was it humblebragging.
It was simply the difference between reality and anime. In anime, it didn't look like it caused much trouble. In real life, it was genuinely a headache.
If Scholar didn't regularly take care of them, those massive 1,200-gram burdens would have long since caused permanent lower back strain and neck and shoulder damage.
Now, even the slightest tremor would set her whole body bouncing. Any physical activity required special caution—to avoid body-checking someone with her chest or suffering the embarrassment of her bra snapping.
Every step made the soft weight sway and rebound, the distracting, almost mesmerizing rhythm of her breasts bouncing only making the struggle to keep her footing harder.
Back when she had been a man in her previous life, she had never needed to worry about such things.
For a girl who loved hopping around, perhaps only someone with a Herrscher physique like Elysia could truly handle a figure like this.
Huff—ha. Vill-V—one hand braced on her knee, the other supporting her lower back—struggled to steady her breathing. "Oh my aching back. It feels like I just swapped shifts with [Expert]. The Great Magician can't even make a dazzling entrance anymore."
"When we get back... I—I'm definitely developing a magic trick to make my chest disappear... Or maybe have Expert design some kind of anti-gravity compression bra..."
Seeing Vill-V gasping for breath, Hua supported her shoulders and reminded her, "We still need to keep running, Fuka. Otherwise the soldiers will catch up."
Setting aside Hua the Immortal, Vill-V's limited stamina simply couldn't compare to MOTH's well-trained soldiers. Not to mention, the soldiers had vehicles.
So their next plan was to steal a car.
They only stopped when they saw the words [Garage].
"Huff—Hua, do you know how to drive?"
"No. What about you, Fuka?"
"Of course I do." Magician Vill-V proudly placed her hands on her hips. "Not just cars. I can drive chariots, tanks, even airplanes!"
"..."
Normally, a middle schooler wouldn't have a driver's license. Nor would they know how to operate chariots, tanks, or planes.
The facility's vehicles were all equipped with autopilot functions. Which meant they had naturally all been driven off by "Klein."
Ee-eee-eee— (Vacation, vacation.)
Ee-eee-eee— (No make-up workdays, no make-up workdays.)
Watching a cluster of unidentified robots cram themselves into a tiny jeep and rampage wildly through the base, Vill-V mercilessly seized control of the poor Klein robots, forcing them to stop protesting and give her and Hua a ride to their next destination.
The destination Vill-V and Hua intended to reach was not outside the base, but the transport aircraft tarmac where they had first arrived.
The outer perimeter walls were clearly patrolled by armed soldiers. No matter how chaotic things were inside the base, it wouldn't affect them.
If they tried to break through the perimeter walls, they would have to be prepared for a direct firefight with the armed forces stationed by MOTH.
The transport aircraft tarmac used to escort survivors, however, was located within the perimeter walls. The armed forces stationed outside would not attack that area.
Many others had the same idea. Dozens of people formed a small group and rushed toward the tarmac.
But naturally, the tarmac was also guarded by MOTH soldiers dispatched by the base. MOTH's management was strict—how could they leave such an obvious loophole?
To board the transport aircraft at the base tarmac, they would first have to get past dozens of MOTH soldiers.
Some survivors had indeed managed to obtain melee weapons during the chaos, but how could they possibly match the firearms in the soldiers' hands?
Not to mention, an electrified security net had been set up in front of the soldiers. For unarmed survivors, crossing it was nearly impossible.
Fortunately, however, it seemed the MOTH soldiers on the other side of the net had some kind of internal conflict. After a burst of commotion, the gunfire that had been directed at the survivors abruptly ceased.
"Survivors, over here, over here." Several MOTH soldiers opened the security net from the inside and beckoned for the survivors to enter.
At first, the survivors were suspicious, fearing a trap.
But time was short. There would always be those drowning in fear who couldn't afford hesitation. Even if it was just to grasp a single straw, they were willing to try.
So a few survivors charged in first. The MOTH soldiers holding weapons did nothing excessive to them, not even confiscating their weapons.
Only after seeing those reckless few board the aircraft unharmed did the rest of the survivors follow into the transport plane. Vill-V and Hua slipped in among them.
Inside the transport aircraft, the MOTH soldiers who had opened the security net passionately explained to the survivors, "We've long been dissatisfied with the inhumane experiments carried out at the rehabilitation center."
"Humans aren't lab rats to be killed whenever they want!"
"That's right. Our dream was to protect humanity. If the mission is this immoral, we'd rather not do it at all!"
The soldiers were so emotional that they even tore the MOTH armbands from their sleeves to show their resolve.
The transport plane quickly filled to capacity. Several MOTH soldiers remained at the aircraft entrance to bid the crowd farewell. They would wait for the next batch of survivors.
Or perhaps what would arrive instead would be the base troops who had resolved the robot uprising and come to suppress them. After all, the Klein robots were still only machines. MOTH had many ways to quickly bring them under control.
Beside her, Hua heard Conductor Vill-V sigh softly.
"They're soldiers with genuine conscience. It's just that the current MOTH doesn't deserve them."
Hua felt the same.
She had once believed that everyone in MOTH was like Captain Himeko—responsible and honorable. But now it was clear that wasn't the case. Looking at things now, not joining MOTH had been the correct decision.
But if she hadn't joined MOTH and also hadn't received Vill-V's help, her fate might have been the same as those experimental subjects floating in glass containers back at the base.
Inside the aircraft, the MOTH soldier piloting the plane noticed that many survivors were still shaken, so he comforted them.
"Most of you are from Shenzhou, so our destination will be the Shenzhou mainland."
What he didn't say was that what awaited them next would be a global manhunt.
MOTH operated with the support of the United Nations behind the scenes. Any act of betrayal against MOTH would ultimately be accounted for.
But the soldier had clearly prepared himself for that possibility long ago.
"I hope that after you return home, you can help reveal the truth. Let the world know about the crimes committed at the Asgard Honkai Experimental Center. Together we can save more survivors and defend humanity's dignity."
"Even though we're few in number, each of us is a spark that can ignite light across the world."
"This is to protect all survivors—and to protect yourselves as well."
His plan was to use media pressure to force MOTH to abandon the purge of survivors while also securing the release of more people.
Listening to him, the survivors gradually felt a faint sense of hope.
After all, this was no longer the age of feudal dictatorships. People spoke of human rights and democracy.
If the survivors appealed to the public through the media, moved people emotionally and explained the truth with reason, gaining public support, then even the United Nations would be forced to act cautiously.
What they failed to consider was that MOTH existed as a secret organization hidden in the shadows by the United Nations, unknown to the public. How could they possibly allow survivors who knew of MOTH's existence—let alone its internal secrets—to walk free so easily?
The most likely outcome was that the survivors would be silenced long before any information could be exposed online.
The soldier continued speaking throughout the journey, as though delivering a will—or perhaps reciting a solemn speech.
Only when the aircraft landed on the soil of Shenzhou did he finally deflate, slumping weakly in the pilot's seat.
Because through the cockpit window he could see that the runway had already been surrounded by United Nations troops across the Shenzhou mainland.
Clearly, MOTH had prepared in advance—alerting United Nations forces from sixteen regions and deploying satellite tracking to ensure that not a single fish slipped through the net.
Someone curled up in the corner of the cabin, trembling. "It's over. We're going to be silenced."
Another pounded his chest helplessly. "So going against the whole world really is impossible to escape from."
Regardless of what the people inside were feeling, the troops outside had already begun issuing commands through loudspeakers.
"Everyone inside, surrender immediately and shut down the engines."
"If the aircraft engines continue running, we will be forced to take action. This may include shooting down the transport plane."
The engines were quickly shut off.
The officer speaking outside sounded satisfied, then continued in an even firmer tone.
"Good. Next, the escapees inside the aircraft are to raise both hands so we can see them clearly. Then exit the plane one by one in an orderly line and submit to our control."
The armored vehicles' searchlights flooded the aircraft cabin, illuminating every face with blinding clarity.
Under the harsh beams, the survivors saw countless gun barrels aimed directly at them. The tension in the air made it hard to breathe.
At that moment, a light and cheerful voice shattered the suffocating silence.
Her figure appeared atop the now-motionless aircraft propeller.
"Dear audience members, ladies and gentlemen! Over here, over here! Please focus the stage lights on the magician!"
The soldiers operating the armored vehicle searchlights quickly tilted the beams upward, illuminating Magician's figure.
In the eyes of the United Nations soldiers, she indeed had both hands raised just as the officer had ordered.
But the excited, thrilled expression on her face left them deeply confused.
She didn't look like someone about to be arrested.
If anything, she looked more like a lottery winner who had just hit the grand prize.
"That's right! I am the magician you've all been waiting for the most—Black Tiger Fuka!"
Her fair skin glowed beneath the spotlight. The streak of red in her snow-white hair made it appear even more vivid and dazzling. Her bright eyes shimmered with a mysterious charm. Standing there, she looked almost like a fairy descending from the heavens.
Unfortunately, the strange pose she struck completely ruined the atmosphere.
"Prepare to die!"
"Take this—Taixuan Form Manifestation!"
The girl raised her slender arms, both hands forming a soaring gesture as she shouted with great momentum.
"Phoenix, appear!"
The moment she finished speaking, a massive creature burst up behind her, engulfed in flames...
A gigantic, chubby chicken.
Hahaha!