"Of course we're going to save Seele."
"But..."
Conductor's tone suddenly changed.
"The Herrscher of Death can basically be considered a miniature Finality, repeatedly cleansing and restarting human civilization. If we use an examiner as a metaphor, then the Sixth Herrscher, the Herrscher of Death, is like a midterm Honkai handed us—a simulation of the final exam."
Id showed a look of realization. "No wonder the Sixth Herrscher is the Herrscher of Death... But throwing a True Herrscher of Death at us right from the start? Did whoever wrote this test decide to take revenge on society and make the entire class fail together?! No wonder all the previous civilizations were wiped out."
While Seele, the Herrscher of Rebirth in the original story, was still fumbling with decay and rebirth, fighting enemies using flower spirits and sacred deer, the True Herrscher of Death Seele in this world could already directly tear enemies off the world itself and knead them around however she pleased.
As expected of a Previous Era Herrscher. Her power level was no joke at all. This was a genuine hell-difficulty survival template.
"So in other words, there is a limit to the power of human beings."
"What do you mean, Conductor? Are you telling me to stop being human?"
Conductor shook her head. "No. With that half-baked Herrscher of Reason power of yours, it's impossible for you to defeat a fully realized Herrscher of Death."
"We're going to defeat a Herrscher with the power of humanity."
"The power of humanity? MOTH?"
"It's us, Vill-V."
"There's a saying that learning is merely the process of awakening truths people have already forgotten."
"I've already discussed the plan with everyone else. But given our current situation, as you know, no matter how many plans we make, against a Herrscher of Death capable of controlling worldlines, it's basically the same as laying our cards face-up on the table. We cannot defeat her within a worldline she has chosen."
"Ugh." Id showed a troubled expression. "Then what are we supposed to do?"
"There's only one thing we can do. While carrying out the plan..."
"Believe in Seele."
"That's how we break the deadlock."
...
After explaining the most crucial part of the plan to rescue Seele to Id, what remained was to explain the executable portion of the plan.
Saving Seele was certainly important, but saving humanity couldn't be neglected either.
Vill-V had naturally been pretending when she acted in front of everyone as though she didn't understand the "giant radish." Vill-V couldn't reveal the fact that she too could retain memories from other worldlines. That was one of her trump cards.
As for what the "giant radish," Collective, really was, Vill-V had already investigated it thoroughly across multiple worldlines.
On the surface, Collective was a machine created by MOTH's upper leadership. In reality, it was an extraterrestrial lifeform that had arrived on Earth countless years ago and existed as a collective consciousness.
Perhaps because it had once been gravely wounded by something, it hadn't immediately occupied Earth. Instead, it had remained hidden on the planet, slowly recuperating.
It was unimaginably ancient, and since the Dusk Metropolis was located within the Mesopotamian region, perhaps even the origin of human civilization had something to do with It.
To It, Earth's living creatures were the perfect experimental subjects. Humanity's sudden evolution had all originated from Its experiments. Perhaps even Honkai had been drawn here by It.
Of course, these were merely unsupported speculations. But Vill-V would rather overestimate her enemy than ever underestimate one.
At the very least, according to Odin's account in one particular worldline, humanity had used It as the prototype to create the Ninth Mausoleum. Most organizations in the world might have unclear ties with It, and even MOTH was no exception.
That was also why Vill-V called It the fusion of every source of evil. If this were some anime, It would unquestionably be the ultimate final boss at the end of the story.
Of course, those organizations hadn't been actively created or controlled by It. In fact, even now, It still hadn't truly understood human civilization.
Its lifespan was simply far too long. Human civilization was only an instant to It, and every contact It had with humanity might as well have happened yesterday.
That was also because Its senses differed enormously from humanity's. Just as humans couldn't understand the high-speed world seen through a fly's eyes, to It—
Human civilization was the fly.
Naturally, such a terrifying colossal existence wasn't something Vill-V could simply decide to eliminate. This was a contest between human civilization and an extraterrestrial civilization. The power of a single individual was far too insignificant.
It wasn't as if Vill-V hadn't tried, which was exactly why, in one worldline, she had resorted to nuking the Dusk Metropolis flat.
Yet the nuclear bomb hadn't accomplished anything at all. The "giant radish" hadn't even turned red.
Judging from the "Honkai-energy scars" on the giant radish, the Herrscher of Death had probably fought It too, yet had still failed to eliminate It.
Of course, that didn't necessarily mean Seele had wanted to help humanity. It might simply have been because the "giant radish" was the greatest threat in this region, making it perfectly reasonable to eliminate It first.
And Honkai indeed targeted only humanity, but the "giant radish" was so deeply entangled with human civilization that It was essentially a massive parasite living on humanity. Treating It as part of human civilization's side was equally reasonable.
That alone showed how troublesome this opponent was.
Compared to this "giant radish," Lucheni of the Sky People, who could be eliminated with relative ease, was practically a cute little Bright Messenger toy.
Conductor said wearily, "Previous Era, Previous Era... You really were absurd as hell. Nothing but enemies like this, one after another. Human civilization would've had a harder time avoiding destruction than achieving it."
It was also thanks to the Herrscher of Death constantly restarting the worldline that Vill-V had been able to obtain intelligence she would otherwise never have acquired—perhaps this was the trump card Seele had managed to secure for human civilization after becoming the Herrscher of Death.
"We can't act against It in reality, but Collective's consciousness space is a different matter."
Expert adjusted her silver-framed glasses. In her hand, she still held the unfinished test doll of chibi Dark Seele.
"Id, do you see that Finality Kevin-style consciousness light gate?"
"Mm, I see it."
"You're still inside your own consciousness space right now. A consciousness space isn't something you can simply enter whenever you please. Just as Odin explained, there exists a so-called boundary between people. This is both the contradiction inherent to humanity and the shelter that protects us."
Id clapped her hands, suddenly understanding. "I get it! No wonder Collective wanted to create the Ninth Mausoleum and Olympus. As long as that boundary is erased, it'll be like opening the gates wide for Them! From then on, human civilization becomes Their vassal. They can do whatever They want to humanity!"
Conductor nodded. "Exactly. And those people who gaze up at the stars still think They're gods and obey Their every word."
"This light gate is the Audience Gate they created. Once you step through it, you'll gradually enter deeper and deeper layers of your own consciousness, eventually establishing a connection with Collective."
"Normally, this process would require a key. But if God personally issues an invitation and opens the door for you, then naturally there is no need for a key."
"And our objective is to step through the Audience Gate, and then..."
"Kill their God!"
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