With Christmas only three days away, the lakeside town of Lucerne was filled with a festive air. The old town—a relic of the past, was decorated with strings of light that hung over the main street. Each string was tied to one of the Gothic-era, medieval manors and cottages, which were nestled across the Bahnhofstrasse street on the banks of river Reuss.
Welt Yang, the current sovereign of Anti Entropy, gently touched the rims of his specs, placing it into position. His muffler was loosely wrapped around his neck as he sipped hot chocolate that Theresa had bought him minutes ago.
He held a copy of the indictment in his right hand, which had the name Alejandro Martinez printed on it. It was decorated with the Schikcsal logo (two wings) and a devil's head impaled with a sword. This document held the indictment and a report on the infamous operation 'Dusk' that the accused had designed and executed.
Welt sighed and took another sip. His body felt warm as the drink entered his system, protecting him against the chilly eddies that blew past him. It was his idea of not using his car today because of the morning sun, but now, late in the afternoon, it felt like a foolish decision.
The warm and comforting rays of the sun were now gone, leaving dark grey clouds hanging. There was no snowfall yet, but his watch predicted it was only a matter of time. Crossing the street, he entered the Reuss river sidewalk. The path before him was laded in snow, though it was a thin layer, thanks to the town workers. On either side, cylindrical structures, similar to hydrants, were placed every ten meters.
Out of curiosity, Welt decided to observe one of them. As he shuffled closer to the structure, he noticed that it had a crystalline surface that was burning red. He had heard about this element and its heating properties but had never seen one at work like this. The inhabitants of this town had converted a crystal with natural heating properties into a public heater.
He smiled as he turned his gaze towards the river. Despite the minus temperature, the pristine surface of Reuss had yet to freeze. Though on closer inspection he could see the edges had already begun to frost.
Welt exhaled from his mouth, letting out smoke. His eyes sparkled with innocent joy as he continued to do the same for a while. It reminded him of his childhood days when his father would take him to cold cities and villages. There was always something magical about winters that Welt could never understand. Was it the festive atmosphere? Or just the fact that the world seemed to be in a collective slumber? He didn't know, but personally, it was his favourite time of the year.
As he walked down towards Chapel Bridge, he gazed towards the majestic Swiss Alps that hung in the backdrop of this medievalisque town. And only a few kilometres from him was the grandiose Lucerne lake. The town of Lucerne, or Luzerne (in German), was nestled at the downfall of river Reuss and Lake Lucerne. And with the likes of the Swiss Alps surrounding it, this place made one of the most picturesque towns Welt has been to.
In contrast to Kolosten, this place seemed filled with life. Welt couldn't believe Otto had chosen this place as his secondary headquarters. With Chapel Bridge in sight, Welt stopped. He turned his gaze towards the main street, where a statue of a lady stood. It was very similar to the holy maiden statue in Kolosten, yet the face was etched differently.
On closer inspection, Welt also noticed that the school of art that had designed this statue differed from the one in Kolosten. Kolosten followed the tradition of Austrian-German philosophy with a more enlightened ideal in its figures. But the one in front of him had the ferocity of a warrior with eyes as gentle as a saint.
The hair was wavy, and the lady seemed clad in a medieval Schicksal uniform. She was barefoot, and in her arm, she held a lance chiselled in the likes of the abyss flower. On the stone platform on which she stood was a gold plate. On it were the words: Friede Schariac, the second coming of Holy Maiden Kallen Kaslana—Lucerne's Hero—Valkyrie Of Justice.
"She was the first Valkyrie who fought for fair trials of prisoner of war," Theresa walked next to Welt. She was clad in a black overcoat, with her Overseer uniform hidden underneath. She donned a beanie over her head and specs. "It is poetic how we will be conducting trials on war criminals in her hometown."
"I wasn't expecting you to catch up so quick," Welt confessed. His face was stoic as he gazed at the pizza place across the street. It was the name that caught his attention 'Restorante Rossini Pizzeria'.
"Me neither," She sighed. "But Kiana abruptly hung up without listening to me. So that was it."
"She is not happy with your decision?"
"I am hardly happy myself," She sighed and walked towards the closest heater. "So I can't really blame her."
"Isn't it our job as adults to protect children's dreams?" Welt smiled, breaking his gaze from the pizzeria and moving towards Theresa. "Even when the world might condone them."
"Welt, please," Theresa looked at him pleadingly. "You know perfectly well why we are doing this."
"And all I am trying to say is there could have been a different way."
"Maybe so," Theresa rubbed her palms together. "But with the mess that Grandpa has left me with, I don't think we have the luxury of choice."
"That I can't deny." Welt sighed in defeat. This was his final and futile attempt to stop Theresa from getting Sal and Rita involved in the Tribunal.
"The path to peace is always scattered in blood." Theresa recited. "Grandpa used to say this a lot. As a child, I never agreed with his philosophy, but now, sitting where he sat for five hundred years, I can't help but agree with him."
"It was hardly about peace for him," Welt gave her a dry smile.
"True," Theresa nodded. "But we can't deny he did guide humanity to the course of victory. Necessary evil, I would say. Not that I am a big fan of his deeds."
"To defeat a monster, you become one." Welt mused. "But what happens after you defeat the first monster?"
"You are left with a new one." Theresa smiled. "And the cycle continues."
"And that is why you decided to break it."
Theresa's eyes widened as he glanced at Welt. He was smiling as his brown eyes gave him a knowing look.
"When did you find out?"
"Who can say?" Welt took one final sip and pushed the cup into the trashcan. "Maybe it was during the Kolosten war or maybe when we unhearted all the documents and footage from Liguenia."
"I never took you someone who spoke in riddles."
"I apologize," Welt smiled. His first earnest smile of the day. "Training the young ones has filled me with youthful energy again."
Theresa stared at him for a second, her blue irises blank as she couldn't believe what Welt had just said, that too with a straight face. And then she started laughing.
"What the hell?" She muttered in between her laughs. "How can you say that with a straight face?"
Welt only smiled as he let his colleague re-compose herself.
"Feeling better?"
Theresa nodded as she wiped the tears from her eyes.
"Glad to hear," Welt replied. "I can't have our primary judge drowning in guilt."
"Thanks," Theresa smiled. "Though I can't guarantee the prisoner's reactions to your youthful energy."
"For them, I won't be lenient," He sighed. "I don't even know if I can be unbiased. The crimes they committed, and then the audacity of claiming it was all for defeating Honkai. I have to hold myself back to not resort to violence."
"Now, now, Welt," Theresa smirked. "Like Dr. Tesla always say, Violence is the last step of the incompetent."
"It's Assimov," He shook his head. "She always uses it. Though I can't deny that she is right."
"As long as you know," Theresa started walking towards the Chapel bridge. The duo were going to Iustisia Palace, where the trials would be held tomorrow. The reason for their visit was to have one final conversation with the convicted who were imprisoned there.
"Also, did you read Alejandro's Indictment and report?" Theresa inquired.
"More or less," He replied as he followed her. "And yes, I understand why Sal is involved."
"That's just one facet of it," Theresa said grimly. "We will soon meet the second reason."
"Dr Bohban?" Welt inquired.
"Yeah," Theresa's eyes darkened. "He is the man behind all honkai-human experiments and one of the instigators of Operation Dusk. He is one person I can never forgive."
As Theresa walked into the Chapel Bridge, she felt a burning sensation radiate from her back. There was a scar—almost faded that reminded her of a time that she could never forget. A memory hidden underneath pain and suffering would resurface again as the new Overseer walked down the path of justice. She had decided to undo the wrong her predecessor had done.
Meanwhile, across the street, inside the cosy ambience of 'Restorante Rossini Pizzeria' sat Kiana with her arms crossed as she gazed at the raven-haired boy. His sea-green eyes were filled with concern and a tinge of fear.
A/N So well a bit of a late update. It wasn't as if I downloaded this new Gacha game called Wuwa, definitely not. Was completely dedicated to writing this chapter. Though jokes aside, this was honestly one of the intriguing chapters from a writer's point of view. Shifting to Theresa's and Welt's POV before the big court hearing allowed me to explore their thoughts about all this mess. I have always imagined Theresa and Welt to be on friendly terms since they joined forces post-Kolosten. So this chapter allowed me to explore their dynamics and well capitalise on them.
Now you might have noticed the chapter has been left on somewhat of a cliffhanger. I am sorry not sorry for that :3 But jokes aside that segment wouldn't have made sense as a whole. So I am breaking it into two parts. The next chapter is going to be a bonus, which I hope you all would like. Anyways I would stop for now and as usual happy reading.