Honkai Diary: Start With Picking Up A White-Haired Treasure

Three days later, under overcast skies.

Cocolia arrived at the snowy plains just thirty kilometers away from her orphanage.

At her side were two agile and burly bodyguards dressed in black attire.

Within the surrounding snowfield, a Titan unit silently concealed themselves beneath the pristine white blanket, ready to engage defensively or launch a deadly assault at any moment.

Further out, sniper squads kept their sights trained on the area, prepared to provide precision fire support during critical moments.

This was the most extravagant force that Cocolia could muster within such short notice.

The technical documentation for cold fusion devices was still being deciphered, but its authenticity and functionality had already been confirmed.

Dealing with a trader capable of providing groundbreaking Forbidden Tech, potentially powerful enough to rival Schicksal, yet leaving no trace before or after each transaction, compelled Cocolia to deploy this formidable lineup. Firstly, for security reasons, and secondly, to demonstrate her utmost respect towards this enigmatic figure.

Her black-clad guards brought forth two solid wooden chairs, but deeming it insufficient, Cocolia added a table adorned with refreshments and warmed water, ready to brew a pot of red tea for her mysterious guest.

Feeling adequately prepared both diplomatically and militarily, Cocolia gracefully took her seat, patiently awaiting her enigmatic visitor.

"Still half an hour left."

Cocolia retrieved a pocket watch from her seemingly bottomless cleavage, glanced at it, and tucked it back away.

With a yawn, she stretched lazily behind her.

"Ahh~"

Underneath her snug green military jacket, impressive curves threatened to burst forth with each movement. Coupled with that seductive, languid sigh, the sight was enough to make any man's blood boil.

The two black-suited bodyguards serving as her guards couldn't resist shifting their gazes momentarily before swiftly regaining composure, not showing even the slightest hint of weakness.

No man could help but look at such a scene, but being privy to Cocolia's true nature, they fully understood how cunning and dangerous the woman known as the "Witch" could be. So while stealing glances was inevitable, harboring other thoughts... well, unless they wished for a miserable death, best not indulge those fantasies.

Cocolia rubbed the tears at the corners of her eyes, uninterested in disciplining her subordinates. She had been tirelessly working on this irresistible deal for quite some time, barely getting any sleep over the past few days.

She decided that upon returning, she would have Bronya keep an eye on Rozaliya and Liliya, those rambunctious kids, while she retreated to her quiet bedroom for a full day of rest.

Just as Cocolia's drowsiness deepened, three small figures emerged, trudging through the snow in the distance.

"They're here... Wait, all children?"

Squinting, Cocolia discerned the composition of the approaching group.

One of the girls wore a white hat and furry coat, resembling a round and charming snowball. The other had short hair with a unique blend of pink and light purple hues, donning a red cape and small red boots. With her quiet demeanor, she evoked images of Little Red Riding Hood or perhaps a fairy-tale princess.

These could be the children Cocolia was meant to adopt as part of the deal—or they might not be.

Wait, that girl with the mixed pink-purple hair is...Sin Mal? Cocolia recognized her—the child she almost took under her wing. However, due to Bronya's rare display of resistance and the insatiable greed of Sin's prospective foster parents, the adoption ultimately fell through.

The last one, a boy with white hair, walked ahead confidently. Judging by how closely the two girls followed him—was he the true leader of their group?

But why did three kids come instead? Where's the person behind the scenes? Did they get cold feet? Or were they unable to show themselves?

As Cocolia analyzed the situation, her instincts kicked in when facing these children. Her gaze softened, adopting a maternal warmth—ugh! I mean, the aura of a gentle and beautiful big sister!

"Hello, little ones, are you here to see me? It's been quite some time, Sin."

As they approached, Cocolia asked with a faint smile, her tone exceptionally warm rather than shrewd and sharp like during negotiations.

At the same time, she prepared four cups of black tea.

Although they might just be children out for a spring outing with no connection to any transaction, Cocolia preferred using her Darjeeling to treat youngsters rather than some mysterious buyer whose identity remained unknown—it brought her greater joy.

Kiana and Sin exchanged glances without speaking, both looking toward Zeke.

However, Zeke simply took a seat across from Cocolia, picked up his cup of tea, and sniffed at the faint white steam rising from it.

"Darjeeling, but quite mediocre quality. Looks like your orphanage is indeed strapped for funds."

Zeke set down the teacup, delivering his mild assessment.

Cocolia's eye twitched slightly.

True, she had risen through Anti-Entropy ranks rapidly, commanding her own Titan force powerful enough to trounce most mid-sized nations' armies, along with several laboratories under her control. Yet, paradoxically, she didn't have much liquid cash on hand.

Most of her assets were fixed, and after covering personnel expenses and maintaining facilities, only a small fraction remained available. As a result, Cocolia's desire to indulge the children with endless shopping sprees remained merely a wishful dream.

Of course, those initial hardships were behind her now. As time went on, things only improved. Cocolia firmly believed that one day soon, she would be able to indulge the children with all their favorite sweets, toys, and fashionable clothes.

After briefly processing this setback, Cocolia quickly realized these three kids before her weren't random bystanders; they must likely be the very individuals she sought to meet.

"Using children? The people pulling your strings seem even more despicable than I imagined."

"There are no puppet masters. I am the person you wanted to see. And frankly, you're not in a position to make such judgments." Zeke glanced at her indifferently but continued matter-of-factly: "You aren't some benevolent soul."

"It's true that you care for children deeply, especially those from the orphanage. If faced with choosing between them and your own life, I believe you'd make the heartwarming choice any mother would."

"However, you're also a woman who has endured too much, severely lacking in security. You stubbornly believe that absolute power and status alone can protect both yourself and the children. For this purpose, you could—no, you inevitably would resort to any means necessary... including exploiting your own children."

"Naive to the point of stubbornness, disregarding right and wrong—most people might see it as misplaced priorities, but you would walk this twisted path unwaveringly. That's just who you are, Cocolia."

The two men in black felt their sphincters tighten; they had never witnessed anyone openly critique Cocolia like this.

The children were utterly confused by what they heard. Their lack of life experience prevented them from clearly forming an image of Cocolia based on these words alone.

Only Cocolia experienced instant chills down her spine.

If Zeke had merely revealed her height, weight, age, recent experiences, or even today's choice of underwear, she wouldn't have been greatly surprised. A powerful organization is expected to possess robust intelligence capabilities, after all.

But Zeke didn't focus on such specific details. Instead, he provided a profound and accurate psychological profile of her character, drawing from her life experiences—a depth that even she hadn't considered herself, with precision she couldn't refute.

It felt as if she were a character in a fictional work, and the other party had read her comprehensive character profile with uncanny accuracy.

This indicated that the person behind the scenes not only had access to her intelligence but also conducted extensive and long-term observation and analysis of her.

In terms of information warfare, Cocolia felt she was at an absolute disadvantage. Similarly, this demonstrated the depth of the adversary's schemes, making it clear they couldn't be taken lightly.

"No matter what you wish to discuss, using a child as a messenger lacks sincerity, don't you think?" Cocolia suppressed her smile, her tone slightly chilly.

Zeke sighed.

He indeed preferred conversing with wiser individuals like Otto. While Otto would ponder deeply, he never showed it; instead, he calmly tested and verified theories out of sheer interest. Unlike Cocolia, who immediately launched verbal counterattacks without restraint.

Such reactions merely exposed her insecurity.

"As I've already told you, there is no one else behind the scenes—it's just me. The technology belongs to me, I wrote the letter, and I gathered your intel. If you ask who I am, I'll simply say: even Otto Apocalypse himself has acknowledged me as...a genius."

As soon as she uttered the word "genius," countless silvery-gray spheres materialized around them. Palm-sized, they floated densely across several kilometers of sky, filling Cocolia's field of vision.

Moments later, sparks crackled over the ground three kilometers away, revealing the hidden Titan force concealed beneath the snow.

Immediately following this, the floating orbs transformed simultaneously. Miniature black tubes resembling protruding camera lenses emerged from their spherical bodies.

Then, countless red lasers pierced through Cocolia's Titan guard corps. The massive robots once again lay motionless on the ground, but this time, it was utterly and irrevocably so.

Cocolia's earpiece emitted brief static before falling completely silent—a sign that even her outer sniper and support forces had been neutralized.

In this fleeting moment of chaos, two black-suited bodyguards instinctively drew their guns for defense. Before Cocolia could stop them, her vision blurred, and Kiana and Sin vanished from sight.

The next instant, she heard the thuds of two burly men hitting the ground behind her.

Cocolia turned around to see Kiana's endearingly goofy grin on one side and Sin's devilish smirk—healthy yet undeniably villainous—on the other.

In less than a single breath, her formidable guard team, which she believed could fend off double-digit A-rank Valkyries, had been completely decimated.

"Ah~"

Zeke casually sipped his tea, noticing a significant difference in taste compared to Robbins' premium brews, as expected.

Cocolia stared at him, her throat tightening as she asked hesitantly:

"Just who...are you exactly?"

"You can call me Zeke, Miss Cocolia. I sought you out to discuss potential collaboration. Are you interested in learning more?" Cocolia swallowed hard and nodded.

Surrounded by countless floating orbs—the autonomous defense drones—and under the aim of thousands of laser cannons capable of piercing Titan mech defenses, did she really have a choice to decline?

What kind of joke is this?! I'm just a frail woman with no fighting prowess!