"This ability may possess the potential to interfere with the human body, but at our current level of attainment, it remains beyond reach."
"After all, the complexity of human destiny far surpasses that of ordinary objects."
"Moreover, even if resurrection were possible, it would merely be a quantum ghost. Otherwise, it would truly become a divine art of defying fate and reviving the dead."
"In truth, the operational mechanism of this ability does not originate from that mysterious symbol. The capacity to wield it stems entirely from experience... or rather, from Scholar."
All of the above were merely Expert's speculations regarding the ability of Occultist. In reality, there were numerous contradictions between this ability and Expert's deductions. As for its true mechanism, perhaps only the Occultist herself understood it fully.
Of course, if one were to ask Occultist directly, she would most likely respond with a torrent of obscure and impressive-sounding jargon.
As for why the two black spears manifested in a quantum state, it was precisely because Vill-V had guided the Herrscher of Wind into exercising her authority.
The authority of the Herrscher of Wind inherently possessed the ability to generate ideal fluids.
Yet she herself had not mastered that power. She had not realized the true nature of her authority.
Thus, just now, Magician had used the guidance method taught by Scholar to prompt the Herrscher of Wind to respond to the call of the feathers, creating these two quantum spears.
The emergence of the quantum spears signified that the first stage of this battle had been accomplished.
They represented humanity's unyielding free will—a symbol of resistance against the predetermined fate imposed by the gods.
This was not merely a confrontation in the present. It was a struggle against the future itself.
In the future, the Sixth Herrscher—the Herrscher of Death—if Vill-V's conjecture was correct, would most likely be someone she knew.
Seele's counterpart—Seele... ah, that was a bit of a tongue twister.
But that was not important. What mattered was that before every tragedy settled into irreversible reality, Vill-V had to find a way to change a Herrscher.
For instance, using a Herrscher's own authority—borrowing force to redirect force—might be one possible approach.
This was the newly revised plan proposed by Conductor Vill-V. If it succeeded, it would undoubtedly carve open an entirely new future.
However, alongside immense potential gains came immense risks.
The greatest risk required the direct involvement of Expert Vill-V herself.
After all, puppets lacked self-awareness and could not precisely gather Herrscher data.
Though a Herrscher was also a puppet manipulated by the threads of fate, she undeniably possessed thought and the ability to adapt!
To prevent the plan from failing and allowing the disaster of wind to spread further, Vill-V had to step in personally.
Expert Vill-V removed her top hat and drew out an instrument from within. She began manipulating data through the quantum spears, attempting—before the Herrscher of Wind fully mastered control over ideal fluids—to completely lock her Herrscher Core and sever her connection to Imaginary Space, so that Wendy's original consciousness might regain control of the body.
Vill-V did not know whether Wendy's original consciousness still existed. If it had already dissipated, then everything would be in vain.
But one had to try. Success was rarely achieved in a single leap. Even Vill-V, standing at the pinnacle of human intellect, had to refine her plans through repeated trial and error before attaining a high probability of success.
In the eyes of the Mad Hatter Party, the omnipotent Mr. Mad Hatter had, in truth, stumbled countless times behind the scenes.
She merely concealed it all with flawless performances.
Snap—
Light burst from the quantum spears as innumerable quanta transformed into streams of data and flowed into the specialized instrument crafted by Expert.
"Data acquisition successful. Attempting to locate the Herrscher Core of Wind... localization failed."
That was truly bad news. The very first step had met with frustration.
Vill-V had anticipated vast differences between Herrschers of the Previous Era and those of the Current Era, but she had not expected the disparity to be this extreme.
Could it not be like the adorable Herrschers of the future who obediently revealed their Herrscher Cores?
In the future, even electric currents alone could stimulate a Herrscher Core.
And now, despite deploying quantum technology, Expert felt as though she had cast mud into the sea. Though fluctuations from the Herrscher Core could be detected, the quantum spears still failed to lock onto it precisely. They merely relied on their quantum properties to obstruct part of its imaginary characteristics, delaying the Core's expression into the intrinsic world.
Though that was bad news, worse news followed.
During the process, Expert also discovered that the Herrscher of Wind was gradually learning—through pure Herrscher instinct—how to manipulate ideal fluids.
In just ten more seconds, the Herrscher of Wind would be capable of removing the two quantum spears that sealed her.
This was absurd. According to Expert's calculations, the seal should have lasted at least dozens of minutes.
I risked my life, and all I bought was barely a dozen seconds?
Damn it... the Herrscher of Wind is a prodigy at controlling her authority!
Impressive. Truly impressive, Herrscher of the Previous Era!
...
The wind howled as one human and one Herrscher fell together from the sky.
Staring at the Herrscher whose chest had been pierced, Vill-V's trembling hands betrayed the panic within her heart.
Using the Herrscher of Wind's own authority to seal herself had always carried enormous risk.
The moment she broke free of the seal would also signify that her control over her authority had ascended to an entirely new dimension.
Perhaps to the quantum level.
A storm capable of sweeping through the Sea of Quanta—care to witness it?
Vill-V certainly did not.
"Please fall into quiet slumber, Miss Herrscher."
"For the sake of humanity's future, I—the great Magician Vill-V—must bring down the curtain on you here and now!"
Though righteousness filled her words, her hands trembled as she raised her weapon. There was not the slightest heroic bearing in her posture.
Vill-V was afraid.
With the originally planned dozens of minutes, she would have had ample time to execute alternative measures. As everyone knew, Conductor's plans were never gambled on a single egg.
Even on the ground below, Vill-V had already laid an inescapable net, waiting for the Herrscher to fall into it.
But now she was suddenly told that the Herrscher would awaken in mere seconds. In that short span, Vill-V could only resort to the worst possible contingency—direct confrontation.
Yet the Herrscher of Wind had gained unprecedented mastery over her authority. How was this even winnable?
Before absolute power, even a Magician's tricks might fail.
Magic was magic—not sorcery. It could not teleport. Curvature technology was not invincible either.
If the Herrscher activated a full-field slaughter and erased everything in an instant, what was Vill-V supposed to block it with?
She would die... she would die... she would die...
Fear surged like a tide, engulfing Vill-V's petite frame and nearly paralyzing her.
But in this high sky bordering cosmic darkness, there was no one else left who could stop the Herrscher. Only Vill-V had the capability.
To protect everything on Earth, she had to gamble everything here and pour out her full strength to defeat the Herrscher.
Shhh—
The translucent quantum spears dissolved into light and returned to the Sea of Quanta.
Along with them returned the Herrscher of Wind's astonishing and terrifying suppression.
Rumble—rumble—rumble—
The atmosphere churned. From space, one could see clouds converging toward a single focal point.
That focal point was the Herrscher of Wind.
Rumble—rumble—rumble—
Vill-V felt the air around her ignite. The violent motion of the atmosphere generated friction that released astonishing heat.
Heat enough to incinerate meteors.
Accompanied by raging winds and crimson lightning.
"Look—what is that?"
"An aurora?"
"Strange... why isn't there any wind?"
"It's freezing! I'm going numb!"
"My skin hurts..."
Countless inexplicable phenomena manifested across the skies of the world, as though the apocalypse were about to descend.
...
The United Nations had already begun issuing urgent notices to national leaders, instructing them to arrange shelter evacuations in preparation for the global crisis that would follow the destruction of the ozone layer.
One could imagine humanity's future—living underground without seeing daylight, only venturing to the surface through artificial ozone filtration nets for a fleeting glimpse of the sun.
Moreover, the global ecosystem would undergo immense upheaval. Whether humanity could adapt remained uncertain, but statistical projections suggested that at least eighty percent of the human population would be lost.
On the frontlines, amid the ground zero of the Honkai Eruption, the surviving human soldiers waited for the Herrscher's judgment.
They still fought desperately against Honkai Beasts and zombies among the ruins. Yet from the anomalies in the sky, they already understood—humanity had lost.
That was the power of a god, a catastrophe beyond the reach of mortal strength.
Nothing had yet occurred beyond the omens, but it was merely the calm before the storm.
Soon, some incomprehensible annihilation would surely descend.
And they could only watch with heavy hearts as the end approached.
A MOTH soldier rubbed the cross pendant at his neck and prayed softly, "My dear God, if You still love mankind, then please grant us a miracle."
...
Miracles must be fought for.
And someone had not yet given up.
Inside the crashed Tethys warship, the evacuation alarm echoed without cease.
The Herrscher of Wind's all-pervasive gusts had damaged the nuclear reactor. The warship could disintegrate and detonate at any moment.
"Damn it..."
Ignoring the blood flowing from her head, Himeko pushed herself upright against the captain's chair and the corpse of her adjutant.
She attempted to use the captain's authority at the console to activate the backup power and engines, only to be met with the message: Unauthorized Operation.
Of course. With the nuclear reactor on the brink of explosion, how could the ship's safety system permit the activation of another reactor?
Though the Engineering Department of MOTH often joked about "double the explosions, double the fun," that was merely talk. The system's safeguards strictly controlled the scope of disasters.
But this was not the outcome Himeko was willing to accept.
The MOTH fighter squadrons had failed to intercept the Herrscher of Wind. She had already entered the ozone layer.
The only force capable of stopping her was MOTH's newest aerial warship—the Tethys.
The Herrscher of Wind would inevitably seek humanity's extinction. She had already proven she possessed that power.
As a human, how could Himeko stop here?
How could she watch helplessly as everything Siegfried sought to protect turned into hell?
Why was it that Siegfried—that man—could single-handedly defeat three Herrschers?
And when it was her turn, she could do nothing at all?
"Damn it...!"
Himeko slammed her forehead violently against the control panel, as if trying to force the warship's system to change its mind.
Under normal circumstances, the ship's system would ignore this furious woman.
Yet a miracle occurred.
At that very moment, the control room lights flickered back to life.
"Authorized command confirmed. Tethys backup power activated. Engine program restarting..."
"Welcome, Master of the Stars."