Chapter 61: Chapter 61: Cocolia Orphanage
The soldiers brought news.
Cocolia had been abducted, her fate unknown.
Usually, even kidnappers leave some form of contact information, but Cocolia hadn't left a single clue.
As time passed, Cocolia's subordinates gradually realize that she wasn't as important as they know. The officer with the highest authority under Cocolia would likely inherit her remaining assets, becoming a new warlord or perhaps dissolving everything and living a carefree life of their own.
Of course, none of this concerned Cocolia directly. After being imprisoned in the secure room prepared by the World Serpent, Cocolia remained tight-lipped, much to Bronie's frustration.
Unable to extract any information from Cocolia, Bronie had to resort to other methods to find the location of Cocolia's Orphanage.
For example, examining expenditure records and daily travel logs. Eventually, Bronie managed to uncover some traces.
After all, Cocolia always carried her bank card with her.
Buying toys, clothes—these expenses always leave a trail, don't they?
Wherever one goes, they inevitably leave traces. Luckily, news of Cocolia's mishap would surely reach the orphanage. Then Bronie could rightfully take over the entire orphanage.
"It's a pity, you took a bullet in the knee. You'll need to use crutches for a while. Until I completely take over the orphanage, I won't let you leave. But I imagine your subordinates will soon take over everything you own, given that they won't be able to find you for a long time."
Bronie still believed in those guys' greed. It probably wouldn't take more than a month for Cocolia's fortune to dwindle significantly.
When Cocolia returns on crutches, how many people will still be willing to listen to her?
"Why are you ruining everything for me?"
"You should be asking yourself why you're ruining these children's futures."
"They never had bright futures to begin with. Is that something a kid like you should be concerned about?"
Cocolia glanced at Bronie.
After being caught, Cocolia initially thought that Cioara was the one controlling Bronie, but it turned out that dangerous mercenary hadn't done anything, and everything was Bronie's doing.
Unseen technology, projections reminiscent of science fiction, and technology that could even hack into banks—yet, Bronie was still just a kid.
And a very familiar one at that.
"It's precisely because I'm a kid that I can't stand for these things. Don't talk to me about sacrifices being worth it or necessary. I don't care. All these difficult choices stem from your lack of strength, right, Raven?"
"Although you seem to be thinking about something else, what Haxxor Bunny said is correct. All these difficult choices stem from your lack of strength. If you can't handle it, why bother researching Honkai? You might as well sell BBQ pork by the streets of Arc City."
Cocolia had nothing to say, only looking at Bronie again.
"What do you want to do with those children?"
"Hahaha! It's all part of my evil plan! I'll hire the best teachers for them, subject them to the torment of homework every day, and only let them wear the clothes I like. I'll force-feed them gourmet food made by top chefs every day and give each of them a phone so they're too busy playing with their phones before bedtime to hear my bedtime stories!"
It sounded evil, but in reality, it was just creating a better living environment.
However, Cocolia's expression was somewhat subtle.
"Do you have that much money? Can you solve the problem of Honkai affecting them?"
"Tsk, I have way more money than you! I understand Honkai better than you do, and treating it is a piece of cake. It's nothing difficult for me. Stop worrying about things you don't need to. If you truly love those children, you should spend the remaining time repenting for the sins you've committed."
With that, Bronie left the room where Cocolia was being held.
As they say, it takes a hundred days to heal a broken bone. Cocolia's leg would probably be unable to withstand high-intensity movement for quite some time.
So, there was no need to worry about Cocolia escaping.
"Where are you going?"
"Of course, I'm heading to the orphanage. There, many children have resistance to Honkai, but I suspect their health isn't up to par. So it's best to make contact with them as soon as possible and start treatment early."
"Treatment? Can you handle it?"
"I'll do my best. If I can't manage, I'll have Mobius guide me remotely. Though Mobius is a bit dangerous, it's still better than Cocolia. At least Mobius actually has the technology; we don't need to sacrifice lives for treatment."
"But taking over the orphanage, you're still so young. You can't possibly become the legal director of the orphanage, can you?"
Bronie's expression stiffened, as if she just realized this issue.
"Uh... then it'll be in your name? I'll provide the money and effort, and you just need to oversee it. Forget about profits; consider it your good deed. Let's leave the money aside. It's meaningless if it's not spent, especially for such a cause. Let's go. I'll leave Cocolia to your subordinates, and I'll go see what my orphanage looks like. I didn't expect my first real estate to be an orphanage."
"But it's quite meaningful, isn't it?"
"Perhaps."
The Ural Mountains stretch north and south for over 2,500 kilometers, with plenty of habitable areas.
Similarly, Cocolia's orphanage is within the Ural Mountains' range, so it's quite convenient to get there.
In winter, there's snow here, but in summer, it can get very hot.
After transferring ownership of the orphanage through proper procedures, Cioara brought Bronie to the orphanage without delay, knocking on the orphanage's door.
"The environment here is quite nice."
"Well, you'll have plenty of time to come here and take care of these children in the future. I hope by then you'll have enough patience. Also, you'll have to take care of Kiana. If you don't visit her for too long, she might suffer from a Honkai outbreak again."
"I've told you, Honkai has nothing to do with Kiana. If it's irrelevant, it's irrelevant. Don't overthink it."
At this moment, the orphanage's door opened, and a middle-aged woman looked Cioara up and down.
"Hello, you're the incoming director Cioara, right? I'm Alona, the maid responsible for taking care of the children's daily lives here."
"I'm sorry about Cocolia's situation. Although I don't know what happened to her, I can't bear to see the children in the orphanage suffer. So I spent a little money to at least give the children a less terrible childhood."
"You're really a great person. And this young lady is..."
"I'm Bronie. I'll also be assisting in managing this orphanage in the future. Education matters will be handled by me. Of course, you don't have to worry about my abilities. You'll see."
Alona looked Bronie up and down.
Finally, she stepped aside and opened the door wider.
"Please come in. This orphanage was actually converted from a mansion. When the children have nothing to do, they help maintain the garden. I believe you'll like these sensible and clever children."
Passing through the garden and arriving at the villa, curious gazes emanated from the windows and doors.
"Sine, the new director is here. Let's meet her. This is Director Natasha Cioara, and Miss Bronie."
"I'm sorry about Director Cocolia's situation, but in life, there are always some people who are just passing by. All we can do is remember the deeds they once did. I'm the same. In the days to come, Bronie and I will accompany you through childhood until you grow up and become independent. Of course, you don't have to worry about being sick anymore. There will be no more sacrifices. We have found a treatment solution."
Suddenly, the children began whispering to each other.
Alona didn't know about Honkai, so outwardly, what Cocolia said was that they all had an illness.
After all, who would easily abandon their own children if they weren't sick?
Sin seemed to gather her courage and asked Cioara, "Is it true? Do you know what illnesses we have?"
When Sin saw Cioara hesitate slightly and look at Alona, she immediately confirmed that Cioara really knew about Honkai.
As the oldest child in the orphanage, Sin was the most sensible, the most talented, and the most favored by Cocolia.
She demonstrated her own value to garner more attention and protection from Cocolia, as well as a sense of security.
In fact, everyone in the orphanage lacked a sense of security, with more or less troubled childhoods.
For example, witnessing family members become zombie.
Or the outbreak of Honkai, with many Honkai Beasts suddenly appearing.
"I know about your physical conditions, and I've arranged follow-up treatment, so don't worry too much. Unlike Cocolia, we only hope that you can grow up healthy and then create your own future."
From the beginning, Cocolia adopted those children with a purpose, and more or less, they all had some resistance to Honkai.
Some had more resistance and almost died, while others had a bit more resistance and seemed quite formidable.
And all along, Cocolia had been instilling in them the idea that their purpose was to help her conduct experiments, so they felt that participating in experiments was only natural.
So after Cioara said this, she could clearly feel the restless agitation.
How had these children's minds been twisted? It was truly lamentable.
After a brief chat, following Alona's footsteps, they entered the director's office. Alona went to prepare lunch for the children temporarily, leaving Bronie and Cioara alone in the room to discuss the upcoming matters.
"How do you feel about this orphanage?"
Cioara asked Bronie for her opinion.
"The estate is quite large, and it seems the money was well spent. But that Cocolia really has no morals. The children have significant psychological issues. If left unattended, there will definitely be trouble."
"Militarized management, but not so strict. Their thinking is still in line with military standards."
"It's like a dog can't change its nature. Knowing she's incapable of educating them, she adopted them with a purpose from the beginning. Naturally, the children she raised would have problems, especially Sin. She lacks a sense of security."
Despite being such a lovely girl, she had to pretend to be strong to garner Cocolia's attention.
But after pretending for so long, she forgot her true self. Under that awkward psychology, it's possible for her to do something twisted.
Cocolia may not realize it, but Cioara nodded in agreement with Bronie's analysis.
"It's a long and arduous task ahead. Can you handle it?"
"It's not about whether I can or can't, but that I must. But I think Elysia will be able to do it. I'll try to do it her way."
"Approaching them as an older sister of similar age makes it easier to connect, right?"
"Anyway, leave the education to me. But I might not be able to stay by Kiana's side for a while."
"I understand. I'll talk to her properly, and if anything happens there, I'll be sure to contact you."
Cioara could see that Bronie had more important things to do.
And these children, honestly, Cioara wasn't very reassured either, so any help she could provide would count.
Seeing them die like this would still be uncomfortable for Cioara.
"If you're free, would you like to come and teach the children?"
"Me? Can I?"
"At least you're probably better than Cocolia. Just look at the vigor and spirit of those children, and you'll know."
"Yeah... It was too lenient to just shoot her in the leg... That crazy woman really should see a psychiatrist. I remember it's called... PTSD?"
"Whatever her problem is, I'm asking if you want this merit or not!"
"I do!"
"Then this office is mine. I'll be here playing games with the children while waiting for you to come over."
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