Second Key (2)

"A world that has been wiped out."

Hearing Su's words, Durandal's breath caught up slightly, she stared at the picture more intently only to realize that 'Kouro's' smile somehow gave off a vibe similar to Otto.

A man who was committed to the goal he wanted to achieve.

Looking at Durandal who was staring at the picture intently, Su then said, "It seems like you've met him, even have a close relationship with him."

Durandal didn't reply to his words, she just stared at the picture for a long time before asking, "What caused this world to be wiped out? Was it because of Honkai?"

Su stared at a yellowed leaf in his hand before answering, "Unfortunately no, this world was destroyed by an unknown cosmic being. That being we refer to as the [Herrscher of Shadows]."

Durandal's eyebrows raised slightly and turned to look at him, "What do you mean no? Didn't you call that being a Herrscher?"

"We call it that because it has abilities similar to one of the Herrscher of our Era. The Herrscher of Shadows." Su said before putting on a complicated expression as if recalling the past.

"You call this Herrscher of Shadows a creature... Does it have no gender?" asked Durandal, she felt a little strange calling the Herrscher of Shadows a genderless creature, considering most of the Herrschers she knew were female.

"Well... You are indeed not wrong, basically that creature was previously a mortal human like us." Su said with a slight smile at her question.

"Humans? Is it possible for humans to be that powerful?" asked Durandal with a little surprise, she knew that a Herrscher was so powerful that it was able to threaten the survival of mankind.

But... But to the point that it can arbitrarily invade other worlds... How powerful is the Herrscher of Shadows?

Su chuckled at her question, he pointed at the image of 'Kouro' that Durandal was looking at before saying, "That kid, he probably would have made it to the divine realm if it wasn't for the Herrscher of Shadows invading his world."

Durandal's eyes narrowed slightly at his words before asking, "How do you know?"

"I had been watching over that world until the Herrscher of Shadows invaded it and wiped out everything." Su said in a calm voice.

"Are you just watching, not helping him?!" Durandal said with a serious expression, a spear of light seemed to have formed in her palm.

"How can I help him? Our world and his world are separated by countless distances, I can keep an eye on his world only because of the Second Key's ability."

There was actually another reason Su did not help that world, it was because there was a high possibility that the Herrscher of Shadows would realize his existence thus putting their world in danger.

"... That thing is more dangerous than Honkai." Su continued.

He considered it that way because the Herrscher of Shadows invaded a world without certain rules, unlike the Honkai that developed together with human civilization.

Su did not know when the creature existed, but he first learned of its existence when he was carrying out Project Valuka forty-five thousand years ago.

The Herrscher of Shadows invaded other worlds, plundered resources, and even used the corpses of its enemies as its eternal army.

The countless number of worlds that the creature has destroyed makes its immortal army unnumbered.

The Herrscher of Shadows... was also the reason why Kevin wanted to run Project Stigmata immediately even though the project was originally aimed at Honkai.

Thinking of his old friend, Kevin, who was trapped in a bubble Universe in the Sea of Quanta, Su could only smile a little self-deprecatingly.

Indeed, if there was no Herrscher of Shadows, he and his remaining partner from the Previous Era might be able to relax and enjoy the peace brought by his late friend who had sealed the Herrscher of the End.

Unfortunately... He saw that the creature was on its way here, Su even predicted that the Herrscher of Shadows would take about 2 years to come here.

If not for the severe injuries the creature had suffered, the Herrscher of Shadows would have come sooner.

"I don't know what that thing's purpose is for sure, but... I feel like the Herrscher of Shadows is looking for something so important that it would not hesitate to invade other worlds."

Hearing his words, Durandal gripped the spear of light tightly in her hand before lowering it slowly with a complicated expression.

She closed her eyes sorting out every piece of information she got from Su, starting from the Second Key's ability, the cosmic being called the Herrscher of Shadows, and the 'Kouro' that the man in front of him said was capable of reaching the divine realm.

Did that mean that Kouro here was also capable of reaching the divine realm? But why would that be the case? How special is Kouro that he can reach the divine realm?

Hmm... Let's take a step back for a moment... When viewed from a different perspective, the closest thing to the divine realm are the Herrschers, as they can technically be called gods for being able to control concepts, even though their bodies are still basically mortal.

Does that mean Kouro is a Herrscher? And not just any Herrscher, but a special Herrscher?

Durandal thought of the reason why Kouro could reach the divine realm even though it was from an alternate world.

'That's right... The man in front of me mentioned the key word, the Herrscher of Shadows...'

The moment she found the answer, Durandal's mind instantly connected each piece of information until it reached a conclusion.

'... Unfortunately, I don't know much information about the Herrscher of Shadows because there are no records from the Previous Era about that Herrscher. However, I have a feeling that Overseer Otto knows something about this Herrscher...'

Durandal felt that her intuition was telling her that Kouro would likely be the key in defeating the [Herrscher of Shadows].

"... What is your reason for telling me all this? No, why did you call me here in the first place? I don't think it was just for this information, right?" asked Durandal with a wary expression.

"Yes. Actually it's still too early for you to know about the cosmic being, the Herrscher of Shadows. I called you here as a test, a test of whether you are worthy to take on the responsibility of being the savior of the world."

Su who was leaning back then stood up slowly and continued with his eyes slowly opening to reveal his fuscha-colored eyes.

"In the end... No matter what, as the strongest warrior of the Current Era, you must carry the burden of being the savior of the world, whether your enemy is Honkai... Or the Herrscher of Shadows. "

Durandal seemed to pause for a moment to digest Su's words before chuckling slightly, "... There's one thing wrong, I'm not the strongest and I'm not alone in carrying out that task."

She remembered Kouro, Mei, Kiana, Ayame, Rita and the others, they were strong and they would definitely not stand idly by when the world was in danger.

"I am ready to accept your test, Mr. Pioneer." said Durandal with a serious expression.

"... I really didn't expect that you would take the initiative to accept my test... From the various alternate worlds I've observed, it's really very difficult to gain your trust, even though I've prepared for your rejection." said Su with a raised eyebrow.

"Well... If you just talk without showing proof I probably won't have believed you as you say." Durandal retorted.

Su could only smile helplessly, no matter how careful he was in predicting something like the future in the end he would be played by the future as well.

"I have three trials that test your determination, your mentality, and your faith. I hope you are ready."

Hearing his words, Durandal took a deep breath before nodding her head.

Su then opened his eyes and looked at Durandal with a calm expression before snapping his fingers.

*Snap!*

Durandal's body suddenly had green-colored cracks before slowly turning into leaves.

"I will also temporarily lock your memories while the trials are in progress. Good luck." Su said to her.

Durandal felt her consciousness blurring as if her soul was being pulled to another place.

...

*Beep* *Beep*

The sound of the alarm woke Durandal up from her sleep, she opened her eyes slowly and lifted her head from the table before muttering looking at the thick book on the table, "Sheesh... Looks like I fell asleep while studying this case. Time to wake up. "

"Huh... I don't know why I had a strange dream of killing monsters using iron armor... Maybe it was my messy sleep schedule that made me dream of that." She muttered while brushing her teeth.

Durandal dressed neatly before looking at the picture frame showing her good friend who was a basketball player and waved her hand.

"I'll go first~"

...

The city of Nagazora suffered a disaster 5 years ago that left the city in ruins. Her best friend Rita was attending school in the town when the disaster happened.

'I haven't heard from her since then.' Durandal thought with a slightly sad expression remembering Rita.

Several years had passed, but there was no official information about how the disaster happened. And then somehow after the disaster a strange disease appeared that only affected humans.

Honkai Disease.

Purple streaks would appear on the victim's body, internal organ functions would stop, Durandal and the other doctors were unable to find the first patient or the pathogen that caused this disease.

Even worse, they could not find a vaccine or treatment that would be effective in curing the disease.

Those who have this disease... Have a 100% chance of dying, despite intensive hospitalization.

"Doctor Bianca!" A young blonde girl around 12 or 13 years old in the patient room looked up at Durandal with a happy expression.

"Hi, Anne, I'll check on you, how are you?"

Durandal smiled at Anne and checked her blood pressure and body temperature.

"Blood pressure and temperature are normal, show me those purple lines. "

Anne then looked down at her wrist to reveal the purple stripes.

"The lines are not spreading." Durandal muttered in a slightly relieved tone while filling out the form in her hand.

"Dr. Bianca, the other doctors say that I have Honkai disease... They say there is no cure for this disease.... Am I going to die?" Asked Anne with a trembling voice, her eyes welled up with tears at the thought that she was going to die.

Looking at Anne whose eyes were filled with tears, Durandal bent down slightly and wiped her eyes with a glove before saying softly.

"Don't worry, Anne, your condition is very stable, the disease will not worsen.  Rest assured, I will find a cure for you."

After assuring Anne that she was fine, Durandal walked out of Anne's room only to be stopped by someone as she was about to walk down the hospital hallway.

"Bianca, wait a minute!"

Durandal turned to look at the person calling her before saying, "Hm? Director Ragna?"

She saw Ragna hurriedly approaching her with a serious expression mixed with worry, "The condition of the patient in room No. 5 is deteriorating, the lines have spread to her heart. Her heart is starting to fail! The nurses have already taken the patient to the operating room."

Durandal's expression instantly changed and rushed to the operating room followed by Ragna.

... 

Dr. Durandal here as the most talented doctor tried to perform surgery to remove the tissue infected with Honkai disease from the patient's heart.

Unfortunately... Durandal's actions were in vain, the patient still died from Honkai's disease.

A few hours later after the operation was completed.

Durandal was sitting holding her knees with both hands while gritting his teeth.

"F*ck..."

She was frustrated at failing to save the patient.

"It's been a while, Dr. Bianca." Someone's voice suddenly appeared from beside her, making her turn her head alertly.

Durandal saw an adult man around 30 or 40 years old judging by his graying hair, he was also wearing sunglasses and tactical clothing.

"In case you forgot, my name is Paul Long, I'm from "Moth", I'm here to retrieve the victim's body. Is the body ready?"

Durandal stood up and nodded her head with a slightly sad expression, "Yes. She is... Her body is ready to be transported. Oh right, I don't know if you already know, but I sent a message saying I wanted to join Moth."

The Honkai disease was actually contagious, those who come into direct contact with the patient will contract the disease, unless they use gloves or special clothing.

Hearing her words, Paul raised his eyebrows.

...

"You're finally back, Bianca. It looks like you had a serious talk with Mr. Long from Moth. May I know what you were talking about, Bianca?" Ragna said as she threw her a can of coffee.

Catching the canned coffee, Durandal nodded her head, "Of course, director Ragna, I will tell you everything."

They then sat on a bench in the waiting room, Durandal looked silent for a moment as if she was organizing her words before opening her mouth.

"I applied to Moth a while ago, but it seems I wasn't accepted." Durandal said with a pensive expression.

"You want to join that strange organization? They spent over 5 years and didn't get much results on the treatment plan for Honkai's disease."

"No, maybe they've found it but don't want to share it.... Maybe it's because they can't do anything about the disease." Ragna said before throwing the coffee can in her hand into the trash can.

"Even so, I still want to try it even though the chance is small. I still have patients who believe in me. I will not disappoint them, I believe hard work will definitely pay off." Durandal said with a hopeful face.

Ragna smiled a little at her words, she then stood up and said.

"I knew you would say that, Bianca. But Honkai disease has a CFR (Case Fatality Rate) of 100%. I'll probably have another doctor perform the EOLC (End-of-life Care) procedure."

"But you, Bianca? You might be the miracle we all need. And that's why you're my best student!"

Ragna then patted Durandal's head and said in a happy voice, "Get some rest, I know you stayed up late for several days to study all Honkai's cases."

"Thank you, Director Ragna." Durandal said with a slight smile.

Ragna then said a few more words to encourage her before leaving.

Durandal waved her hand to her thoughtfully.

'Rita... I heard from Mr. Long that the survivors of Nagazora city will be taken by Moth. Rita, are you one of them?'

...

On the other side of the night, when director Ragna walked into her office, suddenly out of thin air Su instantly appeared in front of her with a cold gaze.

Su's eyes then shone brightly as he muttered looking at Ragna, "This is it... One of her lights."

"I have to get rid of you here." he said before raising his hand.

The files in Ragna's hand were seen falling to the floor.

.... 

Next day.

"Doctor Bianca! You are needed in room No. 18!" a nurse said to Durandal.

Durandal's expression instantly changed and hurriedly went to the room.

"Anne's condition is getting worse!"

"Anne!" said Durandal, wearing a mask and full outfit, looked at Anne who was in critical condition, she was wearing an oxygen mask with her face appearing to have purple lines spreading to all her hands.

"Dr. Bianca... I'm scared... I don't want to die..." Anne muttered in a weak but sobbing voice.

Dr. Durandal unconsciously gritted her teeth before holding Anne's hand, "You don't have to be afraid, Annie, I'm here with you, you have to be brave, okay?"

Su was standing outside the room listening to all her words with an unknown expression.

'Hope won't solve all the problems, Bianca. You won't be able to save her. The time has come, just let her go.'

"No. I won't give up!"