章 137: Chapter 36: Alas, I Am Ensnared

Upon seeing the familiar white-haired man, Luo Lin stood frozen in place.

Is he an NPC similar to Kalpas and Vill-V, refreshed by the consciousness space?

No, wait.

Luo Lin looked at Siegfried's increasingly strange and fiery eyes and confirmed that he was not an NPC, but the real Siegfried Kaslana!

Luo Lin was stunned.

"Why is Siegfried here too..." Luo Lin forcefully urged her brain, which had stopped due to shock. "Maybe he's secretly protecting Kiana? He seems to do that kind of thing..."

No, now is not the time to dwell on why this guy is here...

Because Luo Lin still looks like Cecilia, the Valkyrie with white long hair and a heroic bearing — look at his eyes, Siegfried obviously came for emotional reasons!

And because of a system module error, she hadn't found a way to change back yet...

Perhaps she needs to complete that garbled mission?

But if Luo Lin doesn't change back, how will she explain to Siegfried? Siegfried is Cecilia's husband, and he'll definitely notice that she's not the real Cecilia. Luo Lin isn't sure what Siegfried might do.

Although Luo Lin is certain that Siegfried showed great composure during the Second Eruption, making difficult but correct choices between "saving Walter alone" and "saving everyone in the world," completing a bitter growth process...

But when it comes to matters related to Cecilia... can he really stay calm?

More importantly, Sirin is now by her side, completely regarding Luo Lin as her mother—Luo Lin can't even imagine what a terrifying situation it would be if she were to clash with Siegfried, letting Sirin discover that her mother is actually someone else impersonating her.

Perhaps the best scenario would be for the Herrscher of the Void to awaken and end the game here in Nagazora.

With just one Herrscher of the Void, Luo Lin thinks she, Fu Hua, and Siegfried can still handle the situation, but if things get worse...

Like when the Herrscher of the Void awakens and opens a channel to the virtual space, trying to fill Nagazora with Honkai energy to accelerate her recovery... she's been there before!

Luo Lin watched as the Herrscher of the Void did just that on the snowy plains of Belarus!

Don't forget, according to the system, signs of activity from Thunder and Sentience have been detected... if the Herrscher of the Void wants to recharge, it could also boost the morale of the remaining two!

Even if the energy provided by this channel isn't enough for three Herrscher to share... but there's three Herrschers!

If three Herrscher appear during the Third Eruption, it would be a hellish joke.

Probably by then, not just Nagazora... but the entire Far East would be in ruins! (Sorrow)

Just as Luo Lin's mind was in turmoil, shocked, Sirin, who had been running around excitedly before, returned to her arms like a swallow returning to its nest, snuggling against her chest. "Mom, hug!"

"...Okay."

Luo Lin gave up thinking, bent down, and picked up the purple-haired girl.

Sirin giggled, hugged her neck, and looked around.

Not far away, Siegfried, who had originally prepared to take a step forward, abruptly halted his steps. He looked at the purple-haired, golden-eyed girl, his face turning grim.

"Herrscher of the Void..."

"Daddy!!"

Siegfried's white hair, even though it was extremely conspicuous even in this consciousness space, was easily spotted by Sirin, who sat on Luo Lin's lap and occupied the high ground. She waved excitedly at him.

Looking at the purple-haired girl's happy face pressed against Cecilia, memories deeply buried in his heart immediately resurfaced, pulling him back to the time of the Second Eruption.

In the illusion created by the "Key of Sentience: Fenghuang Down," Siegfried and Cecilia, and even the Herrscher of the Void Sirin, spent quite peaceful, even beautiful days.

The white-haired man murmured somewhat absentmindedly, "Am I under the influence of 'Fenghuang Down' again?"

Luo Lin, who was holding Sirin, walked over and happened to hear Siegfried's self-talk. Her mouth twitched involuntarily.

"Daddy hug!"

Sirin opened her arms, but after waiting for a while without receiving a hug from her dad, she tilted her head and looked at Siegfried, who was increasingly puzzled.

"...Daddy?"

Siegfried pursed his lips, staring at the increasingly confused Sirin, his fingers clenched into fists, and he didn't move for a long time.

The two stood still, and Luo Lin's heart trembled with fear. She even felt the Honkai energy surging inside Sirin's body, so she quickly interrupted, "Siegfried, you're back from your business trip?"

"...Ah, yes."

The white-haired man finally spoke, his voice somewhat low, as he looked around warily.

—It seems I've fallen into an illusion, and someone intends to break through my consciousness defense with illusions.

It's probably Otto's trusted assistant, the Shenzhou person, Fu hua... Has Otto made up his mind to come after me? Is he planning to retrieve the Divine Key from me?

Fu Hua, floating behind Luo Lin, let out a loud sneeze, rubbing her nose in confusion. "Can consciousness sneeze? How fascinating."

Seeing Siegfried's eyes darting around, Luo Lin realized that he was using his unstable Kaslana brain, both in terms of upper and lower limits, for thinking. He seemed to be trapped in his own thought loop and might not snap out of it for a while.

She sighed, patted Sirin's back, and spoke softly, "Little Sirin, your daddy just came back from a business trip and is still very tired. Let mommy hold you for now, okay?"

"Um..." Sirin's mood was somewhat downcast, but she managed to control the surging Honkai energy within her.

Luo Lin breathed a sigh of relief as she slipped her hand into her pocket, pretending to search, but actually retrieved a piece of candy from the system's inventory. Swiftly, she slipped it into the purple-haired girl's mouth.

"There, there, a candy for you as a reward. How's that?" Luo Lin ruffled Sirin's hair, causing her to squint comfortably.

"Um... Boss? Do we still need to go find someone? If we don't continue searching, should I return the money to you...?" A cautious voice came from the side. Luo Lin turned her head and saw a distinctive figure wearing a cat-eared hood, holding a pile of shiny coins and hesitating.

Luo Lin blinked and asked, "Are you... Pardofelis?"

The cat-eared girl blinked joyfully. "Ah! Boss, you recognize me!"

"Um, well, I've heard of you..." Luo Lin felt slightly embarrassed by the title, but quickly adjusted her mindset and continued, "Did Siegfried just tell you to find someone?"

"Uh, Boss said he wanted to find Kiana Kaslana, and I happen to know where she is!" Pardofelis adjusted her bangs, responding cheerfully.

Upon hearing this name, Sirin's eyes lit up. "My sister! I want to find my sister!"

Luo Lin was somewhat surprised. "You know where she is?"

"Of course, I'm the best merchant!" Pardofelis puffed out her chest. "Whether it's people or things, as long as the price is right, I can definitely help you get them!"

"...Very authentic."

The cat-eared girl Pardofelis in front of her is probably an NPC constructed based on Luo Lin's impression. In terms of personality, tone, or profession, she matches Luo Lin's memory perfectly...

It's also possible that Luo Lin had been using Pardofelis to show off in Hyperion before she transmigrated, so the impression was particularly deep.

Seeing Siegfried lost in thought and then looking at Luo Lin, Pardofelis asked tentatively, "So... Boss, what do we do next?"

Luo Lin blinked. "Of course, we need to continue finding people. That's Sirin's sister... Let's go, Siegfried, stop overthinking."

Luo Lin nudged Siegfried with her elbow to snap him out of his brainstorming session. The white-haired man rubbed his waist with a grimace and muttered instinctively, "Cecilia, go easy..."

"Are you going to stay here alone on the street?" Luo Lin teased with a smirk, adjusting her arm to make Sirin sit higher. "Alright, let's go find Kiana, little sister!"

"Yay!" The purple-haired girl cheered.

"...," Siegfried scratched his head, his eyes flickering, and quickly followed suit.