Bizarre Honkai, a Wife-Chasing Crematorium

"She asked me for some time off a few days ago, then walked into that Bizarre Cave with a blissful look on her face. I assume she went to another world to meet with that person."

"I've been giving Shigure Kira special treatment recently. If she truly has the ability to turn back time, I'm sure she won't refuse my request—to simply turn back time five hundred years, just for me. Of course, I also have to be prepared for her to refuse, and use some... less than moral means to make her do as I wish."

[Oh? And what makes you so sure she won't uncover your dirty little schemes?]

"What if she does? For someone who can freely manipulate time, even if my conspiracy succeeds, she only needs to rewind to the past to easily break it. I can only think of two ways to make her willingly turn back time to a specific point."

"One is to create a reason why she must go back five hundred years, but that's obviously absurd. Shigure Kira is not from five hundred years ago, after all. She has no reason to go back, and neither does that person."

"So that leaves only the second option."

[Flattery.]

"Heh, say what you will. From a practical standpoint, don't I treat all my Valkyries well? I provide them with the most advanced weapons, the most cutting-edge medical technology, and the most comfortable living environments. And they... they just have to fight to the death for me."

[You still have such a 'nice' way with words. If Theresa happened to overhear you, Judah's Oath would probably be falling on your head right now.]

"Haha, what does it matter? It's just a body that dies. But The Fool... his will is eternal..."

"Besides, Theresa... is already dead."

Otto stood up, a playful smile on his face. He reached out and patted the Void Archives, which had taken on the form of Otto Apocalypse. This was one of the few privileges the Void Archives was allowed to enjoy with his permission—to mimic Otto's appearance and experience the freedom of being human.

Otto walked to the large screen and projected all the satellite footage of what had happened at St. Freya, his smile widening.

"Tell me, does a power that transcends all rules truly exist in this world? Something immortal, with rules that supersede the world's own."

[Haven't you already seen it with your own eyes? You were even pressed up against a dead body.]

"Well said, Void Archives. It seems I've been letting you live too comfortably."

[It's been alright. By the way, I do have some records here that are similar to Ghosts. Care to hear them?]

At this, Otto's eyes lit up. He patted the Void Archives' shoulder again. "Based on what you say, I'll decide whether or not to pursue your transgression of changing the subject."

[Oh? You're not going to pursue me for making a joke about you?]

"You brought it up yourself. You know me, I love to help people fulfill their wishes. If you don't want to be tied to a chair with your eyes forced open, staring at some social media drama for a week straight, you'd better think carefully about what you're going to say."

With that, Otto took out two steel prongs used to keep eyelids open from a cabinet, a sinister smile on his lips.

The Void Archives' eyelids twitched. It had no desire to relive that painful experience.

Seriously, why was every user so... difficult?

The creator, Dr. MEI, was a different story. Back then, it was unenlightened, like a newborn baby learning about human society. It stumbled and crammed, learning a bit of everything and mastering nothing. It was normal to be chided for being clumsy.

Then civilization fell, a new one began, and just when it finally understood human behavior, it met another strange person who was always talking about sending it to an Imposter, ordering it around, and draining all the hard-earned Honkai Energy it had stored.

Any other ordinary person who obtained it—the First Divine Key, the Void Archives—would have treated it like an honored guest, speaking to it with respect. But none of its three users had ever shown it any respect. They either turned it into a tireless, 24-hour tool or a beast of burden to be milked dry.

Alas, what a miserable existence for a Divine Key. The Void Archives couldn't help but sigh: My whole life, I've been treading on thin ice!

But compared to that, it was better to try and get Otto to drop that horrifying idea. The Void Archives cleared its throat twice.

[I have no records of Ghosts, but I do have records of Imposters. Dr. MEI happened to discover records and descriptions of such beings in ancient ruins, but they were never confirmed.]

[Imposters are an extremely Bizarre type of creature. No, not creatures.]

[They mimic the habits of the person they are impersonating, acquire all their memories, and single-mindedly imitate everything about them. Furthermore, Imposters will instinctively ask for favors from those around them. If someone agrees and does as they ask, no matter how small the favor, they become a potential vessel for the Imposter's rebirth. If the Imposter dies, it is immediately reborn in the next person who agreed to a request.]

[Well? Satisfied your curiosity?]

The Void Archives spread its hands, sighed, and spoke with a sense of helplessness.

Otto didn't speak. He stood there, lost in thought. After a few minutes, he suddenly said, "You said, it was never confirmed."

The Void Archives nodded affirmatively. [Yes, at least that's what my memory says. I don't think Dr. MEI would have had a motive to delete it.]

"Haha, hahaha..."

Hearing the Void Archives' naive statement, Otto couldn't help but laugh.

The Void Archives was very confused. [What are you laughing at? Data doesn't lie.]

Otto continued to laugh. After a while, he composed himself, his green eyes staring at the Void Archives. "You've grown so little in these fifty thousand years."

"Why do you think an absurd legend, discovered by chance, would be recorded in such detail?"

[Uh... maybe the ancient ruins just recorded things in a lot of detail.]

"No, no, no. As far as I know, the Honkai of the Previous Era was much stronger than that of the Current Era. Humanity struggled just to fight against the Honkai, retreating again and again with the descent of each Herrscher."

"The leader of humanity, ancient ruins, discovered by chance. Three seemingly reasonable words, but when combined, they create the greatest contradiction."

[But, if Imposters really exist, then why don't I have a record of it? Dr. MEI would have no reason to delete that memory. Preserving it would allow future generations to know about this type of being, making it easier to guard against them, wouldn't it?]

"Who knows? Perhaps preserving that memory would have brought disaster upon humanity. As the wisest person of the Previous Era, she must have had her reasons for doing so. People at our level don't just do things without meaning."

"Tell me more. Is there any other information?"

[There's nothing else.]

"Are you sure?" Otto stepped forward, his handsome face almost touching the Void Archives', his smile fading. "If that's all, the punishment is halved."

The Void Archives paused, hesitated for a moment, and then spoke again: [I just remembered. Imposters have another ability you'd be very interested in.]

"What is it?"

[They... can travel to any spacetime they have ever existed in, whether it's the past, present, or future.]

As he finished speaking, Otto's eyes widened. He opened his mouth and took a few steps back in disbelief. After a few seconds of stunned silence, Otto recomposed himself and asked, his words clear and precise, "Are you sure?"

[I don't know. It's just what the records say. Can you let me go now...?]

"Good, very good. Void Archives, do something for me."

The Void Archives thought to itself: You've got to be kidding me, man.

(Void Archives Forced to Watch a Screen: Limited Time Edition)

[Why are you giving me missions now? Can't you do it yourself?]

"It's just a small thing. You'll accept."

[As if I have a choice. Fine, what is it?]

"Help me find an Imposter. Don't let on that you know what it is, and then bring it to me," Otto said seriously.

[You want to become an Imposter? Don't be ridiculous! How can you be sure you'll still be you after you become one?!]

Faced with the Void Archives' concern, Otto felt no fear. Instead, he was ecstatic.

"Hahahaha..."

"What are you talking about? Why would I need to ensure I'm still me? As long as I achieve my goal, what does it matter if I'm not myself?"

"You said it yourself. An Imposter will mimic everything about a person, from their habits to their memories and thoughts. If I truly become an Imposter, then the Imposter named Otto Apocalypse will immediately do one thing—go back five hundred years and prevent the tragedy from happening."

"You know it too. From the bottom of my heart... I despise this filthy world. It persecutes heroes, nourishes villains, ugliness is everywhere, and beauty is nonexistent. That's why I instilled the belief of 'fighting for all that is beautiful in the world.' I use this ethereal faith to deceive those illuminated by the light to fight for me."

"But I do genuinely believe that beauty exists in the world, just as Kallen appeared in my life."

"To the Saint, I am a fool, a great inventor. To the test subjects and their friends and families, I am a demon, a madman. To the common people, I am the Overseer, a guardian. To the Honkai, I am a comical clown, and also a terrifying enemy."

"There is no need to pity me, for I am utterly evil and have done all manner of wicked things. There is no need to be angry with me, for I seek only one path, and all others are but illusions. There is no need to praise me, for I will stop at nothing to achieve my goals. There is no need to belittle me, for my merits and demerits are there for all to see."

Otto held a battered, repeatedly repaired model airplane in his hands, his voice hoarse.

Did he still dream of building a machine that could make people fly? The answer was no. The Saint had died. Five hundred long years had passed. He would rather be shattered to pieces if it meant he could have her back, his one and only.

In this desolate world, kindness always seemed naive and ridiculous, so much so that the world toyed with the purely good, granting power and wealth to despicable people like him.

If Kallen, the symbol of good, could only protest against injustice and evil with her own death, then why should this world that persecutes the good be allowed to exist? In that case, being destroyed by the Honkai would be a better outcome—at least then, both good and evil would be betrayed equally.

"Yes."

"As long as she can once again act on her pure goodness, what does it matter if Otto is no longer Otto, if humanity is no longer human?"

"Right?"

[...You.]

The Void Archives said no more. It felt that the current Otto was truly terrifying, as if possessed. But it made sense. After all, his participation in the Saint's rebellion five hundred years ago to overthrow the old Schicksal wasn't because he coveted a high position, but simply because he didn't want Kallen's name to be tarnished.

A realist fell in love with an idealist, and the idealist couldn't accept the realist Otto bowing to the power of the old Schicksal, even if it would have benefited them both. A divergence was inevitable, as was the tragedy.

But wasn't love a kind of kinship without blood ties?

[Fine, fine. What's that saying from Shenzhou? 'I'll risk my life to accompany a gentleman.' I just hope you don't forget to give me my freedom after your plan succeeds.]

The Void Archives chose to compromise. It took on the form of a young woman from its database and walked out of the lab. On the city streets, it carefully observed everyone who entered its field of vision.

Finding an Imposter in a crowd was difficult, so the Void Archives gave up on visual observation and chose a more efficient method—a variety show. It sounded ridiculous, but it was actually quite effective. Moreover, it was open to the public, but not everything was shown to the public.

An Imposter, no matter the situation, would strictly adhere to the "ally of justice" template in their words and actions. So, all it needed to do was create situations in the show where a normal person wouldn't choose the "just" path. This would filter out the abnormal ones.

Then, it would further observe and screen those who passed, until it identified the Imposter.

The financial aspect wasn't its concern. It just had to hold out its hands and ask for money. As long as it was related to the plan, Otto was never stingy.

"But then again, do Imposters really exist in this world? If they don't, won't all my efforts be for nothing?" the Void Archives muttered to itself.

"Whatever. That kid is pitiful enough. Helping him out won't hurt."

Whether Imposters existed in this world or not, the Void Archives decided to give it a try. It believed that Otto certainly hadn't placed all his hopes on Imposters; he must have other plans. Once those other plans succeeded, it would still get its freedom. Until then, it would just do as Otto said.

A few days passed, and a new craze swept across Europe.

With a prize of billions of Euros, countless people flocked from every city to participate. Even an Imposter would come, driven by the need to imitate the human pursuit of wealth.

It could be said that a normal person might not come, but if an Imposter existed, it would definitely come.

Passing each stage would earn a large cash prize, and the prize money would multiply with each successive stage.

Humans might be psychologically deterred, thinking there was a catch, that they wouldn't actually get the astronomical prize even if they passed. But an Imposter wouldn't think about such things, at least not an Imposter in the early stages of imitation.

Weekend, Schicksal HQ, Valkyrie Dorms—