"Mm. It will be easier for you to understand if you directly watch my memories."
The Herrscher of Reason can do something like that?
Planck placed her fair palm in front of Vill-V's eyes. "I'm going to use the authority of the Herrscher of Reason on you. You don't mind, do you?"
Seeing Vill-V give a slight nod in agreement, Planck's smooth hand covered her eyes. In an instant, the scenery within Vill-V's vision was replaced by boundless gold.
Well now, so it's basically VR viewing. But relying on the authority of the Herrscher of Reason, Vill-V's current state was more like the full-dive experience from Sword Art Online—she could even feel sensations.
Then, with a 360-degree field of vision without blind spots, Vill-V saw this world—a blue-black bubble world bound tightly by golden patterns.
Unlike a planet, it had no atmosphere, and no visible surface. Only strange currents of light and darkness flowed across it.
"This is... a bubble world?" Vill-V said in surprise, tinged with confusion.
Even if it was a bubble world, that shouldn't be possible. There couldn't be a bubble world belonging to a future world, because the intrinsic world-line pointers on the Imaginary Tree had never yet reached the future. Where would a future world detach from?
No, that's not right. I've glimpsed bubble worlds before. This one feels far more defined, and its sense of presence is absurdly strong. It's almost as if...
Planck's voice sounded beside her ear. "This place cannot be explained by simple bubble world theory. Look more closely at your surroundings."
Hearing that, Vill-V shifted her perspective. She then discovered that what surrounded the bubble world was endless gray mist—not the kaleidoscopic brilliance of the Sea of Quanta.
The gray mist was utterly motionless, as though it were directly veiled over her retinas.
If she had to describe it, it felt like a ring, tightly encircling the world Vill-V currently occupied.
It was clearly in all directions, yet it gave the impression of a ring.
And that unmoving gray mist made Vill-V recall a phrase: fog can transcend time.
Pain...
Perhaps this was Planck's small act of revenge—letting her experience what she herself had once felt...
Of course, aside from the pain, there were other indescribable sensations. But Planck could not simulate those. And even if she could, Vill-V, lacking the authority of the Herrscher of Reason, would not be able to receive that information. So what remained was only pain.
The memory continued. Enduring the pain, Vill-V swam toward the gray mist so close at hand. Yet no matter how she swam, she could not draw any closer.
"I can't get closer? No, that's not it." Vill-V glanced at herself—and discovered that she, too, was part of the gray mist!
"This is...?"
Looking more carefully, she found her body condensing, taking on the shape of her own physical form. But this was Planck's memory, wasn't it?
Ah, I see. This must be a slight adjustment Planck made so that my cognition would align more closely.
However, the moment Vill-V's body fully re-formed, the surrounding gray mist suddenly reacted. It began to churn. The gray mist that had remained at a distance no longer held back—it surged forward, trying to swallow Vill-V whole.
No, that's not right. It had always been like this. It was only because I had been in the same state as it just now—without boundaries—that I couldn't see it.
Once I gained a form and a boundary distinct from it, I could naturally perceive it.
The pain from earlier was actually them tearing me apart, merging with me, destroying me.
At the moment she perceived them, they gradually manifested physical forms as well—entities entirely different from Honkai Beasts, Quantum Shadows, or Imaginary Constructs.
Or rather... they were Vill-V...
Just as Otto and Mei had once seen the "Honkai God," Vill-V saw a pure white version of herself.
Without any emotion.
Without any will.
"Prometheus? No..."
And just as Vill-V was carefully examining what "He" intended to do, she felt a sensation of falling. A powerful attraction yanked her back into the real world.
It feels like I forgot something...
Conductor pinched her temples on both sides. Aside from the world and the gray mist, she had discovered nothing else in that observation. So she turned to Planck, who clearly knew more, and asked:
"What was that gray mist?"
Planck withdrew her hand and said solemnly, "That was the 'genuine article'... Honkai."
"Honkai?"
Isn't Honkai supposed to be that big eyeball that likes watching baseball?
I see. So Occultist saw and learned about Honkai here. In that case, my arrival in this world was also destined? Not merely a whim of mine?
Planck had no idea what Vill-V was thinking. With a trace of lingering fear, she continued, "That was the fundamental form of existence of 'Honkai'—untouched by interference from any other being."
"And all the 'Honkai' we have witnessed on Earth were actually born from the interference of other existences."
Conductor already knew this information, but she had learned it from plotlines of a previous previous life. She asked in confusion, "No one is more credible in saying this than a Herrscher born of Honkai itself. But where did you obtain this information? 'Honkai' wouldn't tell you these things, would it?"
Planck let out a soft laugh. "Of course not. But have you forgotten what kind of Herrscher I am?"
"The Herrscher of Reason..." Vill-V murmured.
"Correct. The Herrscher of Reason—forever pursuing truth, analyzing truth. Its unique ability allowed me, in the instant I came into contact with both, to obtain a vast amount of information regarding the differences between them."
Vill-V said enviously, "What a convenient ability. Just touch something and you get the answer directly."
After undergoing Imaginary Renormalization, Planck had likely already obtained part of the Authority of Truth. She might even have completed her ascension long ago, becoming the Herrscher of Truth and piloting a Gundam.
Oh right, Planck had already been piloting a Gundam. Let me see where you've hidden your ascension halo.
Planck, however, smiled bitterly inwardly. If only contact didn't come at the cost of memory.
That was right. The price of contact with that gray mist was losing many things—most of all, memories.
This was also another reason why Planck had to obtain the "information" of herself in this world. She needed to replenish herself.
But Planck remained optimistic. "Hahaha, you know, the Herrscher of Reason really is convenient. When I was little, I used to fantasize about having the ability to create whatever I wanted out of thin air just by imagining it."
As she spoke, a semi-transparent magical-girl outfit appeared on her body. She struck a pose as if shooting straight through someone's heart. And because of the authority of the Herrscher of Reason, a pink arrow adorned with a heart actually materialized.
Half-jokingly, she teased, "So? Do you want to try being the Herrscher of Reason? As long as you accept my Cupid's arrow, you'll gain access to the Herrscher Core of Reason."
What kind of public-transport core is that...
"Maybe later." Vill-V was indeed tempted, but she was not in a hurry. "Mm. You should explain this world first. When you disappeared before, you were investigating this world the whole time, weren't you?"