"The Kiana Kaslana you know is not actually the real Kiana. She is a Kiana clone created using the genes of Kiana and the Herrscher of the Void—named K423."
Since Ren Amamiya had already accepted Siegfried's request, he had the right to know the truth.
Moreover, even if Tesla withheld this information now, given Ren's demonstrated abilities, it wouldn't take him long to uncover that truth. Therefore, after a brief moment of thought, Dr. Tesla began to eloquently explain Kiana's true identity and origin to Ren and Raiden Mei.
"Kiana... is a clone?!" Upon hearing this explosive news from Dr. Tesla, Raiden Mei's pupils trembled violently, her mind reeling from the immense shock.
How could Kiana, such a good Kiana, suddenly turn out to be a clone and not the real person?!
"I see. So the Kiana Kaslana Mei knows is actually a clone of the real Kiana, and a special experimental subject incorporating the Herrscher of the Void's genes..." Ren mused, gently stroking his chin, a thoughtful expression on his face. "...No wonder she dreamed of fighting the Phantom Thieves, and no wonder I was navigated to other Shadows when I tried to search for Kiana's Shadow."
Raiden Mei and Kiana were extremely close, so learning Kiana's true identity threw her into a state of shock, as if questioning her entire reality.
Ren, on the other hand, only knew Kiana Kaslana through Mei, and that Kiana girl even viewed him with the hostility one would reserve for a love rival. Therefore, Ren easily accepted the premise that Kiana Kaslana was actually a clone.
If Kiana was a clone, then all the abnormal phenomena related to Kiana Kaslana that occurred in Mementos could be explained. Because she possessed the Herrscher of the Void's genes, Kiana dreamed of Ren and Mei conquering the Herrscher of the Void's Palace.
Because K423 wasn't the real Kiana, when Ren used the MetaNav App to search for Kiana Kaslana's Shadow, he was led to Durandal instead.
From this perspective, Durandal might be the real Kiana Kaslana, who just happened to have amnesia and had forgotten her true identity. Although there was a possibility that Durandal was also one of Kiana's clones, Mementos was a world of the mind formed by human cognition.
K423 perceived herself as Kiana Kaslana, yet Ren couldn't find her Shadow in Mementos and was instead navigated to Durandal, who didn't even know the name Kiana. This indicated that although Durandal was unaware, she was clearly highly associated with the cognitive identity of "Kiana Kaslana" in someone's mind.
According to Raiden Mei's testimony, the K423 Kiana she knew, while strong, was only so in comparison to ordinary people; she was completely incomparable to Siegfried Kaslana. Ren, however, had fought the Shadows of both Siegfried and Durandal. Durandal could already threaten Siegfried's top-ranking strength in the Kaslana Palace.
Even from a strength perspective alone, Durandal seemed more like Siegfried's real daughter than K423 did.
However, even if Durandal truly was Kiana Kaslana, this matter was completely unrelated to Ren. After all, Ren didn't know Kiana, and Raiden Mei's friend was K423, the Kiana clone. There was no need for him to steer the conversation with the Anti-Entropy Sovereign towards such a meaningless topic.
Compared to Durandal, Ren was currently most interested in matters related to the Herrscher of the Void.
"Besides Herrscher of Reason clones, your Anti-Entropy actually created Herrscher of the Void clones too? And even let Kiana wander outside." Ren had personally witnessed the Herrscher of Reason clones Cocolia created through Anti-Entropy.
Even if Anti-Entropy produced another Herrscher of the Void clone, Ren wouldn't be the least bit surprised. However, Kiana, as an experimental subject for a Herrscher of the Void clone, was clearly a relative failure. She hadn't inherited the powerful spatial abilities of the Herrscher of the Void, possessing only the characteristic brute strength of the Kaslana family.
But then again, if Kiana wasn't a failed product, Anti-Entropy wouldn't have allowed her to escape from the laboratory and wander into the outside world.
"You, you, you!! I, I, I—!!!" Discovering that Ren actually considered Kiana a Herrscher of the Void clone created by Anti-Entropy, the already hot-tempered Dr. Tesla instantly turned beet red with anger.
She stomped her foot forcefully, her mind, usually incredibly sharp, becoming sluggish due to the overwhelming emotion, unable to even form coherent sentences.
K423 Kiana's creation was clearly orchestrated by that scum of scums, Schicksal Overseer Otto Apocalypse! To complete his plan, Otto had trampled on the lives and souls of countless brave and great warriors. For Ren to mistake Otto's personal actions for Anti-Entropy's doing was, for Dr. Tesla, who had long since cut ties with Schicksal and utterly loathed Otto, a complete and utter ultimate insult.
Even if it was a misunderstanding, it was enough to make Tesla sulk.
"...You're mistaken, Mr. Joker." Welt Yang pushed up his black-rimmed glasses with a somewhat helpless expression, his voice deep as he clarified for Ren. "Even within Anti-Entropy, human experimentation is strictly forbidden. The Herrscher of Reason clones you saw previously were merely the product of Cocolia's personal, unauthorized actions."
He then looked at Dr. Tesla, whose chest was heaving with ragged breaths as she fumed.
"Kiana was not born from an Anti-Entropy laboratory. The vast majority of Anti-Entropy's true scientific technology is applied to the production of weapons and mechs." From the very beginning, Anti-Entropy was a faction with a completely different philosophy from Schicksal, embracing a human-centric belief.
Schicksal brainwashed Valkyries with the slogan "Fight for all that is beautiful in the world," implanted them with artificial Stigmata, and threw them onto cruel battlefields to fight the Honkai with their lives.
While this was one necessary method to combat the Honkai, Anti-Entropy chose a gentler approach: developing unmanned mechs to fight the Honkai. Even if manufacturing Titan mechs cost several times more than training a Valkyrie, at least the number of sacrificed warriors would decrease.
Unfortunately, due to Schicksal's deliberate slander and the backstabbing influence of internal traitors like Cocolia, Anti-Entropy's public reputation was currently not very good.
"If Kiana isn't an experimental product created by Anti-Entropy, then who created her?" Faced with Welt's clarification, Ren merely nodded noncommittally and pressed further. Although he asked Welt, the moment the question left his lips, a name almost instinctively surfaced in Ren's mind, as if he already knew the answer.
And Welt Yang's reply, delivered in an even deeper tone, perfectly confirmed Ren's intuition.
"It was Otto Apocalypse. That Supreme Overseer of Schicksal. Combining Kiana Kaslana's genes with the Herrscher of the Void's genes to create clones—that was the plan he initiated."
"Kiana is not a failed experiment. On the contrary, she is the only successful case of survival after transplanting the Herrscher of the Void's Core in Otto's plan. To prevent Otto from obtaining and misusing the Herrscher of the Void's power, Siegfried and our Anti-Entropy organization rescued Kiana from Schicksal together and have been secretly observing and protecting her ever since."
"With Siegfried's combat power as a deterrent, Schicksal temporarily has no plans to forcibly retrieve Kiana. But if our Anti-Entropy organization contacts Kiana too frequently in private, Otto will likely lose his patience, proactively break the current delicate balance, and forcibly imprison and contain Kiana." Welt Yang lowered his head slightly, the reflection on his glasses obscuring his eyes, making it impossible for Ren to discern his current expression.
However, when discussing Otto Apocalypse, Welt's mood was clearly not particularly pleasant.
While Welt Yang was defending Anti-Entropy, Ren glanced at Cocolia cowering in the corner of the sofa. Cocolia's purple eyes looked somewhat timid. The moment her gaze met Ren's, she instinctively looked away.
Only after realizing Ren wanted confirmation of Welt's words from her did Cocolia slightly turn her head, keeping her gaze averted, and nodded faintly at Ren.
"Otto Apocalypse, Schicksal... It all connects again. So, it was Otto's doing after all," Ren murmured softly to himself. If Durandal was the brainwashed true Kiana Kaslana, then Otto Apocalypse was clearly playing a very classic villain trope.
Adopting the enemy's daughter, brainwashing her to become his subordinate and adopted daughter, making the enemy's daughter fight for him on the most dangerous frontlines, and even intending for Durandal and Siegfried, the true father and daughter, to kill each other on the battlefield... This was a very, very classic villain plot.
To live peacefully and stably in the real world, Overseer Otto Apocalypse was clearly an unavoidable obstacle. Possessing the ability to rewrite the world and attempting to artificially master the authority of Herrschers... If ignored, this Otto Apocalypse might stir up some major trouble in the real world.
The P-series worldview had always been fraught with disasters; every new installment brought a new world-ending crisis. Living in this perilous merged world, Ren needed to deal not only with the false god Yaldabaoth but also guard against other crises that could lead to the world's destruction.
Anti-Entropy was clearly hostile towards Schicksal. To deepen his understanding of Schicksal and Otto Apocalypse, the Anti-Entropy Sovereign Welt Yang before him was currently the best source of information.
"Indeed, as expected of Joker, the Phantom Thief. Although you may not know the full picture, you've already uncovered the truth to this extent." Welt heard Ren's self-muttering. He silently adjusted his glasses, a slightly unusual glint in his brown eyes.
When Ren mentioned Otto's name, he showed no surprise, but rather seemed to have anticipated it, merely obtaining final confirmation for his deductions from Welt. Clearly, Ren, relying on the Phantom Thieves' power, had already figured out most of the hidden situation behind Kiana.
If Welt had arrived a few days later, Ren might have already gathered the final evidence on his own, no longer needing Welt to elaborate on Otto Apocalypse's crimes.
"I have some understanding of Otto Apocalypse. However, your Anti-Entropy organization should also possess information I'm unaware of... Shall we exchange some intelligence?" Ren sank deep into the soft, luxurious sofa behind him, proactively suggesting an intelligence exchange with Welt Yang.
Anti-Entropy most likely didn't know that Durandal was the real Kiana Kaslana. For narrative purposes in games, the true identity of brainwashed characters like Durandal who joined the villain's side was usually revealed late in the story... or at the earliest, in the mid-to-late stages.
If Anti-Entropy knew this, they definitely wouldn't remain indifferent to Durandal's existence. Siegfried Kaslana, Kiana's true father, would be the first to try and snatch Durandal back from Otto.
Since none of this had happened yet, and Durandal was still ignorant of her true identity, it meant the secret information Ren possessed still held extremely high value. It was fortunate he hadn't blurted it out for free earlier, letting Anti-Entropy get it without an exchange.
Otherwise, Ren, lacking equivalent intelligence to trade, would have ended up owing Anti-Entropy a favor.
"...." Upon hearing Ren claim he only had "some understanding" of Schicksal Overseer Otto Apocalypse, Bronya's light gray eyes instantly went half-lidded, like an emoji.
Right, right. After Cocolia provoked you, Schicksal's Immortal Blades unit raided her in the middle of the night, cleaning up her forces stationed in Nagazora City. Even Rita Rossweisse, an S-rank Valkyrie of Schicksal, can be ordered around by you like a common maid and will even skillfully give you maid service massages...
For Ren, who could command Schicksal's power to such an extent, to say he only had "some understanding" of Overseer Otto, Bronya almost couldn't maintain her composure. Fortunately, Bronya's emotional expression center was damaged; even if she couldn't hold it in, she ultimately managed to.
Only a subtle look appeared in her eyes when she glanced at Ren.
"Let me start..." Ren slowly intertwined his fingers. To show his sincerity to Anti-Entropy, he proactively revealed the top-secret information he possessed. "...Otto Apocalypse's goal, he likely wants to distort and reshape this world according to his own desires."
"You may not know, but Otto Apocalypse has already rewritten the world once. History diverged five hundred years ago... In the original world, Schicksal should have been called Christianity. It should have been merely the world's largest religious organization, not a world-class mega-organization highly integrating religious and corporate cultures."
This world had already been changed once. Besides Otto Apocalypse, the instigator, perhaps only Ren, the true Trickster, could recognize this reality as a human.
Even if Otto hadn't influenced the MetaNav App's guidance, and Ren finding Durandal's Shadow in Mementos had nothing to do with Otto Apocalypse, Otto, possessing the ability to rewrite the world, even if not a true pseudo-god, was at least at the level of the strongest human beneath gods. Schicksal had a long history, but its complete transformation began five hundred years ago.
In other words, Otto Apocalypse was a mysterious entity who had been active in the real world since five hundred years ago, having lived for at least five centuries.
"With the power and resources Otto Apocalypse commands as Schicksal Overseer, changing this world, reshaping the power structure of Schicksal and even the entire globe according to his own will, is an easy matter... However, I believe the 'rewriting the world' you speak of doesn't refer to this." Einstein finished the liqueur chocolate in her hand, licked her finger with relish, then frowned slightly.
"Hey, hey, hey, when you say 'rewrite the world,' you're not referring to changing history, are you?! That guy Otto wants to change history, and he's already succeeded once?!" Dr. Tesla's eyes widened instinctively. Faced with this explosive information, her scholar's instinct immediately made her choose to reject and deny it.
"What a joke! This doesn't conform to the laws of physics at all! Do you know what miraculous and stringent conditions must be met, and what enormous energy is required, to go back in time?! Mophead, you're more familiar with this than I am, come explain it to him!!"
In terms of time travel, Dr. Einstein's research was clearly more profound than Dr. Tesla's. However, when Dr. Tesla turned to Dr. Einstein, seeking her support, she was stunned to find that Dr. Einstein, on whom she had pinned her hopes, had a look of dawning realization on her delicate, cool face.
"No way, no way, Mophead! You don't actually believe that Phantom Thief brat's nonsense, do you?! Think about his codename, he's Joker! He must be trying to tell a lie to fool us... Don't tell me you've studied the theory of relativity so much you've gone silly? You actually dare to believe such words?!"
Dr. Tesla and Dr. Einstein had known each other for a long time. Although Dr. Einstein's emotional fluctuations were very subtle, Dr. Tesla, who was extremely familiar with her, could tell at a glance that Dr. Einstein had accepted Ren's idea and had even come up with a theory that might sound plausible.
"Please calm down, Dr. Tesla. According to conventional laws of physics, changing history is naturally impossible..." Dr. Einstein gently stroked her chin. The more she thought, the brighter her cyan-blue eyes became, feeling her thoughts flow incredibly smoothly. "...But the authority of a Herrscher inherently transcends physical laws. Especially the authority of the Herrscher of the Void; her abilities are very special."
"If Joker's information is accurate, then by reverse-engineering from this ultimate goal, I seem to understand why Otto wants to artificially revive the Herrscher of the Void. He clearly needs to use the power to manipulate Imaginary Space, to achieve his goals through the Herrscher of the Void's authority."
"Just like quantum mechanics, Imaginary Space is also an area completely unexplored and unmastered by humans. For Otto to achieve his goal of modifying history, it's impossible through conventional means. Therefore, he can only seek the power to change from the Herrscher of the Void, from the source of Herrscher power, the very foundation of this world's existence—the Imaginary Tree—to rewrite the course of history."
Only by knowing what Otto truly wanted and what he had to do could Anti-Entropy gain the ability to obstruct and threaten Otto's plans. Otherwise, a blind Anti-Entropy would only be led around in circles by whatever false bait Otto threw out.
Only scholars of the caliber of Anti-Entropy's doctors could react so swiftly to Otto's true plan, the real intention behind trying to revive the Herrscher of the Void.
Even Dr. Tesla, who initially held a strong negative attitude, now showed hesitation after Dr. Einstein's explanation, feeling that her speculation might not be too far from the truth.
However, those with insufficient knowledge, like Welt Yang, Ryoma Raiden, Raiden Mei, and Bronya, were completely bewildered by the conversation between Ren and the two Anti-Entropy doctors.
...Although I don't know exactly what happened, could it be that history has really been changed once already?!