Veliona carefully maneuvered through the streets with Seele cradled in her arms, observing the unfamiliar surroundings.
Everything here seemed alien—the sky bore a gloomy and oppressive hue, and every building appeared larger than the orphanage Seele had called home, resembling colossal monsters crafted from steel and concrete, devoid of any signs of life.
Seele, hailing from a small town, held few vivid memories of her childhood. She only knew that her life had taken a turn for the better after being adopted by Mother Cocolia.
The place where Seele found refuge was a remote town in Siberia, not particularly large, with mostly small and compact houses. The largest structure in town was likely the orphanage constructed by Cocolia.
Life there was tranquil and content.
People would even greet Seele as she walked down the streets, much friendlier than the monstrous beings wreaking havoc and attacking indiscriminately throughout the city...
"What are these things?" Veliona pondered.
Her knowledge stemmed from Seele, though Seele herself was far from ordinary.
She had been kidnapped by mercenaries due to the Stigmata adorning her body—though Bronya ultimately rescued her, forging a deep bond between them.
Guns and bullets fell within Seele's comprehension, but the concepts introduced by Cocolia during the X-10 experiment left her bewildered. Seele struggled to condense those opaque and incomprehensible ideas into a single sentence: "Accepting this experiment can protect Bronya, and also aid Mother Cocolia."
Now, these roaring, grotesque monsters clearly surpassed the knowledge of the rural girl Seele. Although unsure why, Veliona's strength had grown immensely. Carrying Seele effortlessly with one hand, she traversed the city without feeling the weight. She even seemed to possess abilities akin to those described in fairy tales as magic, occasionally teleporting herself and Seele a distance away.
However, Veliona was not reckless. She is just merely prone to impulsiveness. Confronted with these sharp-toothed, clawed monsters effortlessly tearing through steel and concrete, leaving deep scars on the asphalt with mere touches, she hesitated to provoke them.
Utilizing her newly acquired teleportation ability, Veliona managed to evade several batches of monsters with Seele, observing them roam the city freely and engage in battles with other monsters of varying styles, with metal fragments, debris, and quantum energy forming spots of light flying everywhere.
"Boom!"
An explosion resonated from a distance, prompting Veliona to swiftly retreat with Seele into the shadows of a building, cautiously scanning the area.
A ferocious and brutal monster flew past like a bowling ball, tumbling through the air, emitting squeaking sounds as if being kneaded by invisible hands, shrinking into indistinguishable, spherical entities, and finally embedding themselves into the buildings at the end of the street.
"...!"
A man with glasses, whose appearance contrasted with the surroundings, emerged. He looked serious, his clothes slightly wrinkled from intense movement, and his scarf torn by something, leaving only a short piece wrapped around his neck, fluttering like a flag in the wind.
Welt Yang gripped a steel bar, his brow furrowed. He increasingly felt the situation regarding the Seele was dire, even worrying about Raiden Mei and the others.
"Splash..."
"Hmm?"
The former Lord of Anti-Entropy pointed the steel bar towards the corner whence the sound came. He observed a few pieces of rubble falling from mid-air, rolling on the ground for a few rounds, with nothing else in sight.
Welt glanced at the nearby buildings' cracks, awkwardly scratching his head.
Surely, I'm not liable to compensate for these damages...?
Honestly, during his tenure as the Leader of Anti-Entropy, Welt sometimes felt more like a struggling merchant concerned with making ends meet each day than a leader of an organization capable of challenging Schicksal.
Experiments required funding, maintaining the organization's operations required funding, building mecha warships required funding, and establishing good relationships with various governments also required funding... A significant amount of capital flowed through Walter's hands but little remained, sometimes resulting in deficits.
To offset these deficits, Welt even borrowed technological equipment from Anti-Entropy and created the renowned "Arahato" series of animations. The only puzzling aspect was the unexpected success of "Arahato," which spawned various peripheral industries and made a significant contribution to bolstering Anti-Entropy's cash flow...
Subsequently, Welt delved deeper into this endeavor, even founding E.T. Studio after departing from Anti-Entropy, dedicating himself to the game industry.
Truth be told, there was still something left in Welt wallet.
However, after years of post-honkai reconstruction work, upon witnessing the pitiful state of the City, he subconsciously calculated the approximate compensation required. Welt instinctively covered his wallet, his face paling momentarily.
Oh, right, it seems that Anti-Entropy has already merged into Schicksal. Such matters should undoubtedly pose a headache for Theresa!
Welt straightened up and breathed a sigh of relief. He quickened his pace, and continued his journey. However, amidst the chaos along the way, he failed to notice the small tail trailing behind him.
"Impressive..."
Veliona observed as the man swiftly dispatched the monsters, even confronting a group of monsters along the way that made the young girl tremble merely at the sight of their numbers. After a strenuous battle, Welt eventually eradicated them all. Although appearing somewhat disheveled, this sight still profoundly impacted the tender heart of young Veliona.
Can humans truly reach such heights? As long as they possess power...
For the first time, Veliona felt a yearning for power stirring within her. She scrutinized Walter's every move, quantum energy unconsciously surging at her fingertips, intertwining into dark lines.
"Mr. Welt!"
A girl's cry echoed from afar, prompting the man to turn his head and spot Luo Lin and her group of four emerging from the corner, with a golden cube in her hand, its arrow pointing conspicuously towards him.
"B-Bronya... Shouldn't you be developing games in the studio?" Walter puzzled over the sight of the girl with silver spiral hair. "Why have you come to St. Fontaine... Ah, I see, it's Theresa's request, isn't it?"
Bronya blinked her eyes. "Mr. Walter, why do you not consider that it's because of your accident that I rushed here?"
"Well, I believe you understand my capabilities... And due to certain... historical events humorously referred to as 'jumping back-and-forth in the coffin'... I don't think you should be particularly concerned about my arrival..."
"Then you truly underestimate the weight of the name Welt Yang in my heart... Wait, who's behind you?"
Veliona emerged slowly from the shadows with Seele in her arms, her gaze fixed squarely on Luo Lin, as if under a spell.
[——!]
Something previously severed reconnected, and a phrase kept looping in her ears:
—If she could possess her, she would definitely achieve evolution!
Evolution...?
Veliona's thoughts struggled to process. She attempted to resist this inexplicable desire, but to little avail.
Luo Lin observed the red eyes of the other party and the fleeting blue light deep within the pupils, laughing awkwardly, "W-Why are you looking at me like that...?"
Veliona offered no response, merely quickening her pace once more. Her mind was already too consumed to accommodate further thoughts.
—Wishing to possess her, to touch her, to dominate her!
The next moment, Veliona felt something strike her neck, her vision darkened, and she lost consciousness.
Bronya supported the two Seeles with one hand and slowly retracted the other.