Author: I'll put what happened next between some AL and KC girls meeting each other before I upload the next chapter.

"Inosuke is not daijobu" is the perfect description after the lastest Kimetsu No Yaiba chapter.


I have to settle this quickly...

While Prinz Eugen hasn't done anything suspicious or out of the ordinary, Bismarck still has her suspicions on her so Roon keeps an eye on her. Bismarck usually spends her time inside her office or elsewhere but when it's afternoon, she either drinks tea or coffee while taking in fresh air.

"You always like drinking a good cup of tea in the afternoon"

At the sound of Tirpitz's voice, Bismarck curved a faint smile when her younger sister walked towards her. Before the sudden turn of events, the two rarely communicated to each other but the change has somewhat caused the two to bond as sisters.

"Tirpitz? Shouldn't you be resting?"

"I've been doing that for the past few days. It's getting boring doing nothing"

"How's your mental state? You're not hallucinating again, are you?"

(Aah. I can't tell her I stabilized a bit when I had Eugen fix her mess)

"Tirpitz?"

"I just cleared a bit of...deep thoughts. I've been thinking about what happened too much it took a toll in my body"

Tirpitz reassured Bismarck with a gentle smile but Bismarck felt slightly uneasy as if she sensed another reason behind that smile.

"Is there something you want to tell me? You look like you have a lot in mind"

"It's been peaceful lately...and it makes me worried"

"Peace had you worried?" Bismarck raised an eyebrow

"Yeah. It's been a while since we last faced off a serious threat. I'm worried this peace..."

"This peace won't last long. We are at war after all, little sister"

Bismarck's voice deepened and her reply straight and serious. She is the leader of Iron Blood and she carries the lives of her nation on her shoulders. Bismarck bears responsibilities that one else could.

"I know that. We fight to end this war. Even though the end of this is pointless, I keep going and living in the 'now'. It's like I just ignore the end and just think how much my own actions matter now"

"Tir...pitz...?"

"Ah, sorry. I said something unusual again"

Tirpitz cleared her throat, embarrassed at how she unkowingly spilled out those words. Bismarck thought Tirpitz had returned to her normal self but it seems there's still slightly wrong with her.

(I need to focus while Eugen does her job. Aaah, seriously why did I agree on this) Tirpitz gritted her teeth.

She felt irritated when she was put into a position to trust Prinz Eugen after revealing her true intentions.

(Eugen better be right about this)

Tirpitz recalled the moment in the infirmary where Prinz Eugen proposed a plan. It was the moment Prinz Eugen whispered to her before leaving in a hurry.

(...and she should hurry up?! Roon may not be here right now but keeping my sister oblivious isn't a east task!)

Tirpitz steeled herself, but still infuriated at the heavy cruiser's request to her. Their last talk was when Tirpitz was in the infirmary.

"Bismarck might have the mental cube" Prinz Eugen crossed her arms

"My sister?! Why would she have it? She doesn't even know I have it" Tirpitz frowned

"Apparently, she visited Akagi and the wretched two-faced fox spilled out that you have the mental cube"

"Why would big sister take it?"

"To deal with Tyrant herself. That bitch of a fox told her Tyrant is trapped in a closed dimension and the only way to bring her out here to this side is through the cube"

"How?"

"The cube is a portable...portal machine if you put it in simple terms. While it's easy to carry around, it's less convenient since activating it and opening a rift correctly and stable enough is a hassle"

"..."

"Not to mention there's an entire ship in it too. It's either you open a rift or accidentally summon the ship of some dead person"

"I can't believe a cube can open a rift and summon a ship at the same time..."

"The cube is only a compressed form. It's real form is a smaller and weaker version of what the Siren uses"

After the long and confusing explanation about the black mental cube Tyrant possessed, Tirpitz shakes her head and decided to resume to the main topic.

"Okay, anyhow...if Bismarck indeed has the cube, how are you going to get it from her?"

"Try to sneak into her office and take it before she comes back. For that to happen, I need you to Bismarck" Prinz Eugen shrugs her shoulders

"H-huh?! Why me?"

"They don't suspect you...obviously"

"How the hell am I going to distract Bismarck?"

"You're the little sister. You think of the way"

"Why you-"

"Bismarck spends her afternoon drinking coffee outside her office. Try to keep her distracted as long as you can"

Tirpitz shakes her head as she finished remembering her conversation with Prinz Eugen yesterday.

"Tirpitz? Is there something wrong?"

"Just remembering annoying memories. I don't know why"

Bismarck raised an eyebrow, puzzled to why her sister suddenly became nervous and uneasy like there is indeed something she wished to tell her older sister but can't for some reason.

Meanwhile...

With Tirpitz currently keeping Bismarck's attention away from Prinz Eugen, the latter sighs as she freely moves without suspicious eyes locked into her. On her way to the building to where Bismarck's office is, Graf Zeppelin notices Prinz Eugen seemingly in a hurry.

(Hmm? Where is she going? Wait that's...)

The incomplete aircraft carrier stopped to turn at where Prinz Eugen is heading, quickly realizing she's heading to a suspicious location.

(Purifier is dealing with the shipgirls in the other world. I have to hurry now)

Prinz Eugen hurriedly walks until she reached Bismarck's office. Confirming with no person in sight in both directions, Prinz Eugen casually enters the private office. Usually, no one is allowed to enter without Bismarck's permission but Prinz Eugen has a goal to accomplish and she isn't the type to obey such rules from the beginning.

"To think she got the mental cube before I do. That damn fox is sure giving me more reasons to hate her"

Prinz Eugen clenched her fists but her expression displayed little anger. It may now be visible but she is indeed upset especially that someone like Bismarck is hindering her.

"The cube is emitting a faint signal but I can't exactly tell where"

Prinz Eugen can sense the black mental cube through her Code much like Code-T but she can only detect that it's on close proximity without accurate location.

"Hmm...?"

Prinz Eugen sensed a jolt from a certain direction, sensing the black mental cube.

"I see. A typical hidden vault, huh"

Chuckling at the cliche, Prinz Eugen curved a faintly amused smile while trying to close in on the cube's location.

"Bingo"

The vault is finally found concealed behind a bookshelf. Without a moment to waste, Prinz Eugen just broke it open thanks to her enhanced abilities of her a Code. She grabbed the ominously glowing cube from where it was sealed and sighed in relief.

"Now to open the rift and bring out Tyrant before the Sirens take her back"

Prinz Eugen closed the vault with a broken lock and hid it once again so Bismarck may not easily realize the object she stole from Tirpitz...had been stolen by Prinz Eugen.

"...?!"

Prinz Eugen instinctively hid behind the cube on her back at the second the door turned...and Graf Zeppelin entering. Deeply suspicious, Graf Zeppelin furrowed her eyebrows towards the casually smiling heavy cruiser.

"What are you doing here? No one is allowed here without Bismarck's permission"

"I could say the same thing to you"

"I only came to check after seeing you in a hurry. It turns out you did head to Bismarck's office"

"Well, yeah...that's kind of obvious"

"So tell me, Prinz Eugen, what are you doing in our fleet leader's private office? You were in a hurry after all"

"..."

The first thing Graf Zeppelin noticed is one of Prinz Eugen's hand is placed behind her back.

"What are you hiding, Prinz Eugen?"

As the suspicion rose, Graf Zeppelin approached the heavy cruiser who felt cornered as she is caught in the act.

"...Fufufu. Let's stop with this silly play of ignorance. You're suspecting me, right,?"

Prinz Eugen slowly approaches the wary and on guard Graf Zeppelin.

"The truth is, I came to pick this up since I'm in a hurry"

Prinz Eugen revealed that she had taken the black mental cube and toss it in the air, making Graf Zeppelin shift her attention to the cube. In the span of two seconds, Prinz Eugen knocked Graf Zeppelin away with a single strike from her.

"What-?!"

The aircraft carrier is knocked to a wall and down to the ground. She never expected for Prinz Eugen to strike her with a force equivalent to a battleship. With the aircraft knocked down, Prinz Eugen gently picks up the cube next to her.

"Sorry but I have no time to play around"

Prinz Eugen hurriedly leaves the office with the black mental cube and ran past several shipgirls. Roon with a nervous Leipzig saw the heavy cruiser ran past them without noticing them.

"Graf Zeppelin?" Roon spots a weakened a Graf Zeppelin

"Warn Bismarck! Hurry!"

"W-what's going on?" Leipzig is confused

"Prinz Eugen is the one working the Sirens! She's the traitor and she's getting away with the cube"

"What?! That damn-" Roon quickly chases after Prinz Eugen

"Leipzig, warn Bismarck! We can't let her get away!"

The timid light cruiser quickly left without a second to waste while Graf Zeppelin whose body is in pain and weakened thanks to the attack from the mental cube. Just as Bismarck finished her tea and enjoyed her afternoon, Leipzig came rushing.

"I don't know what's going on but Graf Zeppelin said E-Eugen is the traitor and she ran off with the cube"

"What?!"

Hearing that Prinz Eugen is indeed a "traitor" and she took off with the black mental cube, Bismarck quickly heads to the port where her ship is anchored.

"Bismarck?"

"Tirpitz, you stay here! And don't you dare follow me"

With a direct order to Tirpitz, Bismarck left the worried Tirpitz since Prinz Eugen had triggered this event.

"They're making this harder for me!"

Prinz Eugen fled for the open seas knowing she is going to be quickly pursued by the likes of Roon.

"I won't even have enough time to open the rift properly. It will take a portion of power but Purifier is about to open the rift!"

Prinz Eugen activates the black mental cube, but before she manifests the machine from its compressed form, Prinz Eugen received a call from Observer.

[Fufufu. It looks like you're having a hard time]

"I haven't received a call from you lately. Having fun letting me do your work?" Prinz Eugen asked with a slight hint of displeasure

[I am an Observer after all but I interfere once it's necessary. You are in a bit of trouble right now, no?]

"Obviously. I admit I played around more than I should and now I'm in this mess"

[Fortunately for you, I'm feeling kind today]

"What do you mean?"

Pinpointing Prinz Eugen's location, several portals opened and with each one, a mass produced ships emerged.

[That will stall your allies long enough for you to finish the task I gave you]

"I thought it was Purifier's job?"

[There has been a setback on her side. The Bismarck over there proved to be a nuisance much like the one in Iron Blood]

"Hmph. Even a Siren is having trouble. This is a first..."

She left the pursuers to the mass produced ships. She knows normal ships can't defeat the likes of Bismarck but they will buy her enough time for her to open the rift.

"Tch! This is annoying"

Bismarck dodged one projectile to another, having difficulty with dealing several ships at once.

"...?!"

Dive bombing Stukas arrived and finished off one battleship after landing three direct hits.

"Bismarck, we'll take care of the mass produced ships here. We can't let Eugen get away with the cube"

Graf Zeppelin along with several Iron Blood shipgirls arrived to deal with the enemy ships, including Roon who turned on her "destructive" nature.

"Understood"

Bismarck entrusted the cleaning of cannon fodder of an enemy to her fellow Iron Blood shipgirls and hurried before Prinz Eugen escapes.

"...?!"

She pursued at top speed but as she catches Prinz Eugen in her view...so did the cube that manifest it's released form as a machine that can open the rift. The annoyed Prinz Eugen faces Bismarck.

"I really shouldn't have played too much, huh. I guess either I miss you people or I just underestimated all of you"

"Prinz Eugen, why did you turn against Iron Blood"

"Back-stabbing my own nation is a small price to pay. Treachery is trivial if it's for a not destroyed future, no?"

"What do you mean?"

Prinz Eugen turns towards the machine and since Bismarck would shoot her at any moment now, she is forced to hurry and take a shortcut.

"The same reason why Tyrant slaughtered Iron Blood in the future. Even after the betrayal and murder...she was willing to sacrifice it all because of you"

"Because of me?"

"Yeah. For your sake...she shouldered your burden before you went off and die like the others"

"What's that supposed to mean? Answer me, Prinz Eugen!"

Bismarck shouted at the top of her lungs and demanded the answer from the smiling Prinz Eugen.

"That's not for me to answer, Bismarck..."

For a moment, Prinz Eugen's voice turned solemn and in that same moment, the machine activated and slowly opens a rift. A flash of bright light followed. After it faded away, a figure is forced out of the rift similar to being pulled away by an invisible force.

"Eugen...and you brought Bismarck"

To Bismarck's shock, Tyrant with an unusual left arm had appeared near Prinz Eugen who smiled at her return.

"For the record, I didn't bring her along. She followed me here"

"I see..."

"Tyrant!"

"It felt like I haven't seen you a long time, Bismarck...my sister"

"..."

Prinz Eugen automatically stands back and keeps her distance since a battle is sure to begin once they finish their conversation.

"Tyrant, you may once be my younger sister but I must take you down for you have lost sight of your path!"

Bismarck's spun her flag and changed its form to her proud sword, pointing it directly it at Tyrant.

"You say that but your eyes expressed hesitation..."

"..."

"Bismarck, you can never bring yourself to kill me just as you can never bring yourself to harm your comrades"

Tyrant clenched her fist, feeling anger directly towards Bismarck. While her grim expression couldn't display visible hatred, her voice alone is enough to express the message.

"I came here to finish off my past self. I won't let anyone hinder me anyone, not even you"

"Why do you target your past self, Tyrant? I want the real reason from you"

"My mental cube is damaged because I couldn't easily adapt to the Tyrant code. I thought it was impossible to recover until I found a solution"

"What's that?"

"Replace this damaged mental cube with the exact same one like replacing a part of any broken machine but taking it is not easy. I have to connect or else the cube will reject me"

Bismarck tightened her grip on her sword the moment she heard the truth from Tyrant herself. Her eyes dilated with anger, as Tyrant planned to kill Tirpitz and take her mental cube to repair hers.

"The Tirpitz in this timeline has little no significance. Making her cease to exist won't affect anything and yet-"

Bismarck cut off Tyrant's words by opening fire but such attack dealt little damage to a Code like Tyrant. Bismarck just wanted her to stop talking already so it didn't matter if she damaged her.

"Don't talk about my sister like her life is meaningless" Bismarck's expression darkened

"..."

"Tirpitz may not have been glorified like me but I will not allow a hollow shell insult my sister"

"I'm...a hollow shell, you say?" Tyrant raised an eyebrow

"Just by looking at you, I can tell you there's no trace of the Tirpitz currently existing now. You're just a lingering memory moved as a puppet by the Sirens!"

Bismarck swung her sword in the air and charged directly at Tyrant who blocked Bismarck's sword with her own. Sparked flew in the air as steel capable of penetrating and cutting a bill clashed in such force.

"I will take you down right here right now, Tyrant. To protect Iron Blood and to make sure Tirpitz will never take the same path as you!"

They clashed in melee combat, sword to sword and between two battleships. The spectator, Prinz Eugen anxiously observed the two insult and shout at each other. She has no intention to interfere whatsoever as this doesn't personally involve her.

"Hmm?"

While the two clashed, Prinz Eugen detects someone in her radar that the two couldn't bother to notice as they are too focused on each other.

"Nothing will change. Even if you were to put me down now, Tirpitz will fall down the same path!"

"The future is a blank sheet and our actions determine what's written on it. If Tirpitz's future is unavoidable then I will have no choice but to put down my own sister...for the sake of Iron Blood"

After pushing each other from the last clash, Bismarck opened fire at a short range. She didn't give enough time for Tyrant to react but the shot also dealt little damage.

"You are...making me angry"

(I made her angry?)

"You said you will kill Tirpitz at the instant she will turn against Iron Blood yet you refused to fight me with all your might"

"..." Bismarck gritted her teeth

"Bismarck, when it comes to your sister...you will point your sword at her but you will never strike her down. You lack the willpower to sacrifice your own sister if deemed necessary"

Even someone with an immense strength like Bismarck has her own personal weakness and Tyrant openly pointed it out. It was a weakness Tyrant despises the most.

"You can never make the sacrifice yourself. That is why you burdened me into making the sacrifice!"

Tyrant's anger had reached to the point where she would blindly shoot at Bismarck until she sinks and as her emotions overwhelm her, Tyrant's angered heart sought to lash out on Bismarck.

"...!"

Shells from a long distance went flying straight towards, splitting one in half while the rest landed near her. Tyrant was somewhat thankful that an uninvited guest reminded her to stay calm when a shell landed directly on her.

"Tirpitz?! Didn't I tell you to stay?"

"You did. I just didn't listen"

Right now, Bismarck felt like hitting her own sister for disobeying and endangering herself but they have an opponent right in front of them.

"My past self arrived to confront her future self. This would be befitting a play of tragedy"

"It's tragic that I have to kill my own future to stop this madness"

"You will kill just one future but there are countless others...and your have already been set!"

"I know there isn't just one straight future but I will go with the one where you no longer exist!"

Like Bismarck, Tirpitz converted her flag into a sword resembling but not exactly like Bismarck's.

"Tirpitz, stand back. I will put down Tyrant myself"

"Don't do this for me, big sister..." Tirpitz softly responded

"...?!"

"You want me to spare the burden of sinking my future self, right?"

"That's..."

"I can understand that but this is my fight. This is between the future and the past"

Bismarck is on disbelief as Tirpitz looked back at her with eyes determined to confront her twisted future.

"Eugen, you can deal with Bismarck. I don't want her getting in my way"

"Fine, fine. I almost fell asleep watching anyway"

Prinz moved to face Bismarck who accepted her new opponent while Tirpitz decides to settle the score with her future self who is barely recognizable now.

"Tyrant, no matter how much I reject you...the truth can't be changed"

"Oh...?"

"You are my future self and if I continue denying that fact, I know I'll be making the same mistake and end up in the same path as you"

"You realized it faster than expected. I will commend you for that"

"That's because I can't to stand looking at you knowing that's who I will become if I continue the way I am"

"You're determined to change your own future but I'm more determined to accomplish my goal"

"Let's see whose more stubborn, me or my future self...!"

All four turrets pointed and with one shot, eight shells flew straight towards the enemy who deflected one of it by a slap from the back of the hand, much to Tirpitz's shock. The moment Tyrant deflected that one shell, Tirpitz switched to melee combat, forcing Tyrant the same.

"I will accomplish what I came for eve if that means killing the [you] existing right now!"

"Why are you determined to accomplish your goal?! What is it you'll do anything to accomplish?"

"I sacrificed my future because there's no undoing it or saving it. That's why I send it to hell along with my old self. I did that to finish what she started!"

Tyrant swung down but Tirpitz parried it at last second and pushed herself back. Blade to blade, shell to shell, the parallel existences fought each other without the intention to lose.

"You are still at the time where this world hasn't gone to hell so you will never understand why I would get to the point I became a pawn of the enemy"

"..."

"There were choices I was forced to make and I was forced to look away with every part of who I was I abandoned"

"..."

"Look at your own future, Tirpitz. Look at the decision you must weigh upon! No matter what you choose...the end has been set for you!"

Tirpitz never once took her eyes off Tirpitz and she gazed directly at the Code who's reason of living is being driven by one sole goal. Tyrant hasn't given up on everything just yet. As long as her goal exists, she will not allow herself to be put down by anyone.

"This reflection in front of you is the result of my decision to protect Iron Blood no matter the cost"

"Protect...Iron Blood?"

"Bismarck held Iron Blood dear and even after her death I did the same. There was no saving my timeline so I threw everything...just for a small chance! Even if it means turning against my own comrades!"

Raising her voice without a speck of intense emotion in her expression, Tyrant opened one salvo after another, win each one being barely dodged by Tirpitz. Her opponent is being pushed to its limit, her anger beginning to blind her.

"Tirpitz, I threw everything so that hell may never exist. That future can't be changed but this past still can still be changed"

"So you massacred your own comrades?!"

"I had no choice but to sacrifice them"

"Is that what you tell yourself?! Don't give me that shit! Even someone like me won't make a half-assed excuse like that"

Furious at how her own future could even slaughter her own comrades, Tirpitz opened fire twice while blinded by primal anger. Dealing with Tirpitz isn't difficult for Tyrant knowing how her past self fights and how weak Tirpitz is compared to her.

"...?!"

Tyrant took the opportunity and caught Tirpitz by surprise, grabbing her wrist and her neck.

"There are choice you will make and sins you will commit. That's why you must weigh upon it...Tirpitz!"

With Tirpitz unable to break free of herself, Tyrant engulfed herself and Tirpitz in a space concealed by a black forcefield. She locked herself and Tirpitz, to prevent from Bismarck interrupting their confrontation.

"T-Tyrant...!"

"Code-F: [Tyrant]. System Recognition. Proceed with designated Protocol"

"...!" Tyrant felt the grip on her wrist would snap it off

"Synchronization successful. Initiating Code at once"

Tirpitz felt a surge of pain and electricity surge through her. Her vision of Tyrant disappeared as she views a scenery of smoke and flames.

"Tirpitz...what I have is the coordinates. The one the Sirens are looking for. I would never hand it to them so they will take it even if they have to kill me"

"Is there any way to protect it?"

"I can't protect it anymore. That's why I will entrust this power granted to me to you"

"The Tyrant Code. The one I will have to inherit from you..."

"Correct. These coordinates will lead to what can help cut the Sirens existence once and for all"

"A way to defeat the Sirens?"

Tirpitz screamed in great pain as information and memories closed through her, feeling like it's overloading her mental cube.

"W-what are these...memories...Tyrant...!"

"To make you understand, you will have to see it with your own eyes!"

"Ggh...!"

"You already saw a bit of memories and felt a part of it. That was just the beginning, Tirpitz! That was just...the start!"

Tyrant tightened her grip as Tirpitz continued to scream in pain that pierced right through her mental cube.

"Tirpitz, you must be prepared to shed blood in your hands"

"Y-you want me to kill someone?!"

"No, I want you to prepare so you may not regret if you were to sink your own comrades"

"T-that's...too much..."

"I'm sorry, my little sister...I truly am"

"Big sister..."

"For your sake, for everyone's sake...this is the only way...a future for all of us can be secured"

"Bis...marck..."

"This future can no longer be saved but there is one past that still can be saved. The one timeline the Sirens have yet to break behind recognition...and in that past is the reason why I am protecting this information"

Tirpitz refused to view more but the memory continued, slowly overloading her mind.

"Tirpitz, I'm sorry for giving you this much burden...but we both wished to protect our nation, our comrades"

"I know..."

"That's why curse my other self for being unable to act sooner because all of this is my fault..."

Before the memory could continue, Tirpitz rejected it as the toll in her mental cube is breaking her from the inside out.

"The Code - I just need a little more time"

"Like I'd let you-"

"This time, for sure, you will understand. You will die...my past self"

Tirpitz felt coldness surge in her as her consciousness is enveloped by pitch black darkness. She is close to losing consciousness with how Tyrant had breached through Tirpitz's mental cube. Her eyes are constantly switching between gold and blue as if an inner conflict had begun.

"Don't fuck with me!"

Tirpitz disliked expressing intense emotions such as anger but Tyrant is someone she couldn't help but feel pure anger and hatred. Using her one free hand, Tirpitz grabbed her sword and stabbed right through the side, missing the vital point in the abdomen. It's not easy to stab the intended part when she's being strangled and being mentally tampered at the same time.

"Ggh!"

However, this caused Tyrant to unintentionally loose her grip on Tirpitz as she pull out the blade from her body.

"It's not over just yet"

Tyrant ignored the blow and quickly retaliated while Tirpitz is recovering from viewing Tyrant's memories.

"...?!"

Tirpitz couldn't let out a word when she clearly saw right before her eyes and physically felt Tyrant's hand piercing her stomach. It was a brief moment of pain as she slowly feels numb afterwards.

"...?!"

The forcefield is broken through with Bismarck shattering a hole by herself.

"She broke through? That quickly? I see...so this is how she is when she unleashes her full might"

"Tyrant!"

Yelling at the enemy she's determined to end at the spot, she drove her sword to her chest, but unfortunately missed Tyrant's heart when the latter moved to evade Bismarck letting go of an incapacitated Tirpitz as a result.

"You should have gone-!"

In pointblank range, Bismarck directed all her turrets at Tyrant and shot all of it at once. This caused an explosion at the both of the. Hurting her target and herself. The damaged Bismarck fell on knee while Tyrant remained standing but Bismarck's reckless move paid off as Tyrant suffered significant damage.

"To hurt yourself...just to hurt me. Have you lost your mind?"

This recklessness genuinely surprised Tyrant that she felt angry afterwards. As the barrier around them shattered completely, Tyrant glared at Prinz Eugen.

"You can yell at me later but..."

"The other Iron Blood ships are catching up" Tyrant clicked her tongue

"I'll deal with Bismarck and Tirpitz since there's something I want to talk about. Besides, as long as you have the coordinates, you can't waste your time here"

"..." Tyrant narrowed her eyes

"Ah, I see. So that's what happened. What about killing your past self thing? Did you ditch that?"

"..."

"Hahahaha. You are a horrible liar, aren't you?"

Tyrant has little concern that Prinz Eugen would stay and get herself killed or captured by Iron Blood.

"I can never truly kill myself in the end...physically that is"

Without a second thought or even the slightest hesitation, Tyrant left Prinz Eugen who wanted to stay to talk with the two who are prepared to fight her. As the rest of Iron Blood follows, Prinz Eugen smiled at them.

"That-" Roon wanted to attack her

"Easy there" Graf Zeppelin blocked Roon with her hand

Prinz Eugen then turned at the two and raised her hand, an unsurprising move since she either stayed to surrender or get herself killed.

"I thought this is the time to weigh your decision and choose which path you'll take but it seems this isn't the time"

"What do you mean?" Tirpitz calmly asked

"Tyrant wanted to confront you to know which decision weighs heavier and where you will fall. I guess that's reserved for what you can call a final showdown"

"...?"

"Aaaah. I thought this would come to a close now but it seems we're just getting to the good part"

Prinz Eugen has no sign of regret and Tirpitz isn't upset by her supposed betrayal. Well she's the only one whom Eugen revealed what she knows.

"My task wasn't a failure but I suppose I have no choice but to surrender"

"Despite your treachery, I will accept your surrender" Bismarck approached her

"How honorable of you"

Bismarck frowned at Prinz Eugen's sarcastic reply but she's already accustomed to it...most of the time she the others...not so much.

Later...

Prinz Eugen is taken into custody and imprisoned for siding with the Sirens and being an accomplice of Tyrant. While Graf Zeppelin handles the captured Prinz Eugen, Bismarck stayed with Tirpitz.

"What happened within that barrier?" Bismarck sat near Tirpitz

"...Tyrant made me see all sorts of things. All sorts of her memories...and it's still here" Tirpitz is still suffering from a headache

"She showed you her memories?"

"Y-yeah...and she tried to mess with my mental cube but you interrupted her just in time"

"Then I'm thankful that I got through before she could do anything to you"

Bismarck breaths a sigh of relief but Tirpitz remained anxious as even though Tyrant couldn't kill her, she left as if she accomplished her goal.

(Her memories...are inside my head now...)

What Tyrant did is not just share Tirpitz her memories, she "copied" a portion of it and now all of it are stuck in her mind. Someone's else memories became a part of her consciousness.

"You don't have to worry about me right now. I just need a bit of time...alone to think"

"In that case, I will give you some space for the time being. I still have to deal with the aftermath and question Eugen of her betrayal"

"Big sister"

Before Bismarck leaves Tirpitz to give her some space, Tirpitz softly called out.

"What is it?"

"Don't be too hard on Eugen. I don't believe she wanted to harm Iron Blood"

"Eugen may be one of the Iron Blood but she has to be held accountable for being an acomplice of our enemy"

"I see..."

"It's difficult for me to punish one of ours...but this is what I must do"

"..."

"We'll also have to talk later about you disobeying my order to stay put and putting yourself in danger"

"I understand..."

Bismarck tipped off her cap before closing the door behind her, letting Tirpitz spend some time alone for her to process what they had just been through. Alone right now, Tirpitz trembled and clutched her own arms, something she couldn't do with Bismarck present earlier.

"Just a little more time, huh..."

Her eyes lost emotions all of a sudden and in front of a mirror, what is reflected is her view on herself...a view different from the person it is reflecting. Her gloved hand slowly reached for her lips, the sensation of fabric slowly rubbing on her skin...and curved a satisfied smile.