Second Key (1) 

The next morning, on the bed, there was a reflection of sunlight from the window shining on her body, making the sleeping Bronya raise her eyebrows slightly and open her eyes.

Looking at the window that displayed a clear sky, Bronya yawned before stretching her body not caring about her slightly sagging clothes.

This was the first time she felt like she slept so soundly like this, the refreshing feeling that came over her body signaling that the previous incident was not a dream.

While thinking about this with a slight smile, Bronya realized that Kouro was no longer beside her.

"Where is subject Kouro?"

She got up from her bed and stood looking around before noticing that on the nearby dining table there were several dishes such as salad, meat-filled sandwiches, bacon and fried eggs, and a steaming glass of milk.

Bronya approached the table and found a letter on the table that read ["Breakfast for you, Bronya."] with a picture of Chibi Kouro looking at her with a smile while posing 'Peace'.

Reading this letter made Bronya unconsciously smile a little and mumble.

"Kouro..."

...

Kouro was currently walking towards the Overseer's office, he was greeted by several researchers and Valkyries who passed by him, not only that he even happened to cross paths with Nakuru.

Kouro looked at him with a casual expression though his heart was a little complicated considering Nakuru's true gender, moreover he wondered if Nakuru had already made his Battlesuit considering he was now an A-Rank Valkyrie.

In the end Kouro greeted him and Nakuru simply nodded his head with a casual expression in reply.

After Kouro walked past him, Nakuru turned to look at him who was already quite far away with a strange expression.

"That's strange, did he get stronger? In just a month? I sensed an immeasurable depth from his aura..." He muttered with a serious expression.

Nakuru truly had keen intuition, he could sense the increase in Kouro's strength that even Kiana, Mei, Ayame, Higokumaru, Durandal and even Herrscher's personas could not sense.

'Moreover, my mission has now changed, from watching Kouro to recruiting him as a member of World Serpent now.' He remembered Mobius' order yesterday.

Nakuru turned his head to stare at the sky with a pensive expression.

For some reason, his intuition was vaguely pressing on his heart that soon something big would happen.

It was an absolutely unbearable feeling pressing down on him as if he had to become stronger or else he would be suppressed by that pressure.

"I must become stronger soon... Just like him..." Nakuru muttered with a determined expression.

...

"Excuse me, Overseer Otto."

Kouro's voice was heard from behind the door, Otto who was looking through the archives and signing the files assisted by Amber then raised his head before saying.

"Is that you, Kouro-kun? Come in."

Kouro then opened the door and saw Otto who was busy with the data files, he looked at the data which turned out to contain the previous Era's knowledge that Schicksal had collected.

Kouro's expression suddenly changed slightly and looked around.

"Hm? Was it just my feelings?"

As soon as he entered the room, he felt as if he was being watched from a fairly close distance, but just as he was about to look for the person watching him, the feeling of being watched instantly disappeared as if it had never existed.

He then turned his attention towards Otto before remembering something that made his eyes light up. He finally remembered that there was a special plot from the comic that had probably happened a month before or so right after he carried out the [Job Change Quest] and went to the parallel world.

The comic focused on Durandal and Rita who were ordered by Otto to search for the Second Key in the city of London, England, where it was discovered that the Second Key was connected to the mythical story of "King Arthur".

The Second Key or Cosmic Juggernaut is a Divine key in the form of a train locomotive that has the ability to cross the 'bubble universe' and create an artificial 'Bubble Universe'.

Long story short, they managed to find the Second Key and brought it to Schicksal a week after obtaining it, Otto then configured it before testing it and opening a portal connected to the 'Bubble Universe' in the Sea of Quanta.

Then for some reason, Su, who is one of the remaining Flame-Chasers carrying out the Valuka project, which was a project aimed at observing other universes to see if there were parallel universes that had won against 'Honkai', suddenly pulled Durandal into the pocket dimension where he lived.

Long story short, Su told Durandal that she was the key to defeating Honkai, and gave the rest of his power to Durandal before finally dying.

But there is a plot twist here where just as Su was about to breathe his last, Su suddenly realizes that he was in a strange place.

A place where he met the supreme god of the universe of 'Honkai Impact' who was not bound by a fundamental structure even [Honkai] was nothing more than a toy for the god.

<[The Unconscious]>

... 

'According to the original plot, it was like that, but considering the history of this world has changed a long time ago, maybe Su won't meet The Unconscious or... Su met something else...' Kouro thought.

"So, Kouro-kun, are you here to report about your leave?" Asked Otto in his characteristic voice.

Kouro retracted his thoughts and nodded his head, "That's right, Overseer Otto I just wanted to report that my leave period is over."

"Uhm~ For now there is no suitable mission for your team, you can either be idle for a while or do another mission."

"Understood, oh right, Overseer Otto can I borrow Helios? I want to go to St. Freya's academy for a while to kill some time." Kouro said after patting his head, he remembered Theresa who mentioned that Sakura and Higokumaru had joined St. Freya's academy.

He hadn't been to the academy for a long time, he missed the atmosphere there a little.

Otto looked at him before nodding his head with his trademark smile, "Alright, I'll give you permission, give my regards to my favorite granddaughter, Kouro-kun."

Kouro then said his goodbyes, as he turned to leave, his eyes glanced in a certain direction before turning his attention back and heading out.

Although it was only for a moment, Otto noticed which direction Kouro was looking at which made him stop his work and raised his eyebrows, he looked around his room before saying.

"It seems like in this month he has improved so much that he was able to notice your presence, Ashborn."

Ashborn emerged from the shadows and stared at the door where Kouro had left before nodding his head slightly.

"He has not only improved greatly... He has regained what was rightfully his."

Ashborn's eyes narrowed after saying that, he recalled Aponia's words yesterday that she had seen the future that this earth would be destroyed by the Herrscher of Shadows.

Aponia also said that she had told this to Mobius and the others. Then using Promotheus' super calculations, there was only about 2 years before the Herrscher of Shadows invaded the earth.

He must find a way to deal with this 'Inevitable' future or this universe will be destroyed... Just like most other "Bubble Universes"...

The key lies with Kouro, he was the only one who can potentially defeat the "Herrscher of Shadows" now.

'But... Why does Aponia think Kouro will die in the face of this 'inevitable' future?' Ashborn thought with a complicated expression his hands unconsciously clenched tightly.

If he could, he didn't want Kouro to bear this enormous responsibility where the burden of the salvation of mankind and the universe rested on his shoulders.

He had already promised himself and 'Ashborn' that he would protect Kouro from the shadows even if it meant his own life was at stake.

With 'that' technique that allows him to be able to revive someone from the dead for an equivalent exchange price.

The technique that became his final plan if Kouro died.

A technique that he acquired after he met with <[The Subconscious]> and  <[True Herrscher of Shadows (KOURO)]>.

__

A few weeks ago or rather a week after Ashborn got the Second Key, Otto who had adjusted the Second Key configuration then tested the Divine Key at Schicksal headquarters in a special testing ground.

"The Second Key still holds many mysteries. But at least the Soulium data on this Divine Key explains some things." Otto said looking at the screen interface showing the Second Key that would soon be tested with a glass of red wine in his hand.

"Over 4500 years ago, this Divine Key was used to analyze other parallel worlds in the Imaginary Tree, but... What were the people of the previous Era looking for parallel worlds for? Hasn't the Herrscher of the End been sealed?"

Ashborn looked beside him and also stared at the interface before answering her question.

"Of course, that's because the enemies they and we will fight are not just "Honkai". But there are also fanatical-minded cosmic-level beings with countless immortal armies under the command of those beings who have the goal of invading other parallel worlds."

This was the first time Ashborn had mentioned important information related to Honkai and the Imaginary Tree to him.

Otto gently shook his wine before saying with a calm expression, "... Is that cosmic being more powerful than Honkai itself?"

"... I don't know, but probably not, since the Cosmic Being was previously a mortal human. Moreover, the purpose of the cosmic being is still not clearly known except that it is blindly searching for something to the point that it does not hesitate to invade other worlds." Ashborn replied after putting on a thoughtful expression for a moment.

"I see... Even a mortal can become a god..." Otto muttered with his eyes sparkling.

Ashborn then glanced at him for a moment before saying, "Perhaps... This Divine Key will be the answer to your plan, Otto."

"Yes. I know. My old friend." Otto said with his trademark calm smile.

He then turned to look at Amber who was currently not far from him before saying, "Order Durandal and her team to prepare immediately, the first test of Second Key will begin soon."

"Understood, Overseer Otto." Amber said as she bowed her head slightly before carrying out her orders.

...

A few hours later in a testing field at Schicksal headquarters.

Seen Durandal and Rita along with their team "Immortal Blades" who were armed and in full uniform while in a position of readiness, they were all seen standing near the Second Key which was charging and raised facing the sky.

["Energy level now 80%"]

Seeing that her team was already in their respective positions, Durandal then contacted Otto using advanced wireless earphones.

"Overseer Otto, the Immortal Blades are in position."

Right after she said that, Otto quickly replied, "[Stay alert Valkyrie Durandal, anything can happen inside that dimensional rift."]

["Energy level is now 90%"]

After saying a few more words, Otto then activated the Second Key making the front end of the Divine key begin to emit a dazzling purple light before shooting up into the sky creating a large dark purple portal.

The portal seemed to have bent the space in the sky and from the portal, a point of light shone like a star in the night sky.

"Are we looking at the sky of another world? But why is there only one star in the portal?" Rita said in awe before asking politely.

Durandal's brows furrowed slightly at this and said, "There's something strange about that single star."

And sure enough-

... 

Otto who was staring at the purple portal in the sky with a serious expression did not realize that Ashborn who was beside him was staring at the single star in the portal with slightly raised eyebrows.

"CAUTION!" shouted one of the staff responsible for overseeing the stability of the charging Second Key.

"Second Key has absorbed power! The energy level is now 150%!"

"What?-" Otto's words were immediately interrupted when he saw the light rays shot out by the Second Keys become enlarged and uncontrollable.

....

"Teams retreat and take positions behind the security line!!! And close your eyes! Don't look at that thing!" shouted Durandal with a serious expression.

Rita on the other hand was evacuating the people near the Second Key to safety.

As Durandal was focusing on giving directions to her team, her expression suddenly changed as the purple light began to grow in size and was about to hit her.

["Don't be afraid Bianca, Amita's light is harmless, let it shine on you."]

The voice of someone suddenly appearing in her mind caught her off guard, so the Abyss Flower unknowingly slipped out of her grasp and let its body be illuminated by the light before disappearing without a trace.

Rita, who had noticed Durandal's disappearance, looked around with a worried expression while calling out his name.

"Durandal-sama!? Where are you, Durandal-sama!"

...

"Overseer, we just detected a time-space vibration near the Second Key. Master Durandal also disappeared right when that vibration occurred." a staff member explained to Otto.

"I see... Looks like I fell into a trap... Ashborn do you have any suggestions?" Otto turned to look at his old friend with a calm expression.

"Just wait, you can focus on analyzing the structure of that Bubble Universe." Ashborn said calmly.

Otto glanced at him before saying, "If you say so, then that means she should be fine and might even gain new powers."

"You really know me." Ashborn said with a calm expression.

...

A dazzling light illuminated her vision and displayed images of her, no, they were images that came from her memories even though there were some images that she did not remember and recognize.

"Wh-what is this?" muttered Durandal.

["Don't be afraid Bianca, this is your life."] Someone's voice echoed again in her mind.

Durandal raised her hand with a squint to protect her eyes from the blinding light before her vision returned.

"What a brilliant life, right? I've analyzed countless universes, but your existence impresses me quite a bit." The voice of someone similar to the one echoing inside her mind sounded again, but this time it was in front of her.

Durandal raised her head with a wary expression to stare at a slightly androgynous-looking man who looked to be in his twenties.

The man had knee-length hair the color of green tea leaves and was sitting leisurely while leaning slightly against a large, lush tree at the back. What interested Durandal was that the man was speaking to her with his eyes closed.

The man was Su.

"Did I just enter a Bubble Universe?" Durandal asked him cautiously.

"Yes, you are in a Bubble Universe that I created using the Second Key. You can call it... "

"The Seed of Sumeru." Su said in a calm voice while holding a leaf that fell from a tree.

"You created this Bubble Universe? That means you are one of the human survivors of the Previous Era? Who are you?" asked Durandal with a serious expression.

"You seem to know something about me, hmm... It's a pity that my communications with Mobius have long been disconnected... I don't know anything about the development of the outside world right now." Su muttered before looking back at her.

"You don't need to worry, I have no malicious intentions, Bianca. As you said I was one of the survivors in the Previous Era, you can call me a Pioneer." said Su and opened his hand to reveal a green leaf that had turned slightly hollow and yellow.

"To ease your fear, I will show you the Second Key ability." He said and showed an interface that displayed images of Durandal.

"Is that... Me?" asked Durandal in amazement, looking at images of herself that she strangely didn't remember, she saw images of herself as a professional racer, a spy, an artist, a queen, and more.

"Yes and no. The Second Key can identify the infinite possibilities that exist within you, Bianca. These are just a few of the possibilities."

"Analysis and observation. Unlike the Bubble Universe in the Sea of Quanta which is a fallen leaf. Those worlds live and breathe like a leaf on a tree." Su continued.

Durandal looked at the picture before turning her head to the side to see a unique image.

"Kouro?"

The picture was not like the previous one that predominantly showed her but showed Kouro wearing a white coat like a researcher or doctor and was talking to Ana and herself while smiling. 

The thing that interested Durandal was the smile of 'Kouro' himself, different from the real Kouro, his smile looked mature and calm but behind the smile, he could feel the heavy burden that 'Kouro' carried.

"This picture..." muttered Durandal.

"It's a possibility that came from the Bubble Universe." Su said.

"A world that has been wiped out."