Honkai, why do you only throw me into high-level battles?

Though scholars and scientists by profession, Tesla and Einstein adapted quickly to their roles as "engineering supervisors," following the time-honored Anti-Entropy tradition (excluding Cocolia) of "rushing to the front lines whether needed or not."

To maintain the ruins' structural integrity, the six designated points on the map needed to be activated in opposing pairs simultaneously. Tesla and Einstein each took charge of three points, working in coordination. Cocolia, meanwhile, commanded her mecha forces, ready to eliminate any Honkai Beasts disturbed by the receding water.

The presence of dormant Honkai Beasts within the ruins was known to everyone from the start. However, Honkai energy readings suggested a manageable number. Cocolia, however, had stubbornly pushed forward with the exploration. At this point, the doctors could only exercise extreme caution, hoping to see the operation through safely.

"That damned vixen, after this is over, I'll make her pay!" Tesla seethed inside her mecha, before barking into the communicator, "Hey, Mophead, I'm done on my end. How about you?"

"Ready here," Einstein replied calmly, sipping cola through a straw while performing complex operations on the screen. "Dr. Tesla, regardless of the reason, since you're piloting the organization's only Arahato, please treat our valuable assets with respect. At the very least, detach your mechanical arms while operating inside the cockpit."

"I know that, no need to nag!" Tesla snapped, ending the conversation. "3, 2, 1, Activate!"

The two teams, positioned diagonally, pressed the activation buttons. A faint tremor ran through the ground as the surrounding seawater began to churn with increasing intensity. The water level visibly dropped from the dome, halting abruptly at the marked points, revealing large sections of the ruins and the ground below.

Also revealed were numerous dormant Honkai Beasts, now slowly stirring awake.

"Phew, thankfully, everything went smoothly." Tesla wiped away some sweat before switching communication channels and yelling, "Cocolia, your turn!"

"Hehe, Dr. Tesla, with the mecha you're piloting, why would you need my subordinates?" Cocolia said with a snicker. After being put in her place earlier, Tesla had stormed off to her ship and returned piloting the coveted Arahato, a clear act of defiance.

"Hmph, just you wait. When I finish building 'Project WOTAN', the Arahato, Schicksal, everything will be beneath my feet!" Cocolia thought, seething with resentment.

"Less talk, I don't have time for this!" Tesla retorted, piloting her mecha down into the deeper water towards the second designated point.

"Hmph, just this much, I'll let you off the hook for now," Cocolia thought, pleased that despite her protests, Tesla was still cooperating. Waving a thick metal arm of her Titan, she commanded, "Go! My army, tear them to shreds!" The former soldier relished this feeling of command.

With her order, nearly a hundred Titan mechas of various models marched with thunderous footsteps towards the still drowsy Honkai Beasts, beginning a near-unilateral slaughter. Cocolia, it must be said, had not been blindly confident; her preparations were indeed thorough.

"What's all the commotion? Can a beast get some sleep?" The Honkai Beasts might have thought, if they had been capable of such thoughts.

"Hey, Mophead, I think we should capture a few of these Honkai Beasts for research," Tesla said to Einstein before diving into the deep water, having caught a glimpse of the creatures. "These Honkai Beasts look different from any I've seen before. Their changes could make for a new research project." Talk of research rekindled her enthusiasm.

"They likely adapted to the underwater environment, much like normal biological evolution. I just glimpsed jellyfish and crab-like forms," Einstein agreed.

"Whether these physical changes indicate deeper alterations, perhaps even requiring adjustments to current Honkai Beast classifications, is indeed worth investigating." She paused, then added, "But first, let's finish the task at hand."

"You're right," Tesla agreed, and they both headed towards their second designated points, repeating the procedure before moving on to the third, without further incident.

"Phew, thankfully, everything went smoothly…" Tesla sighed in relief, watching the water level steadily decline.

With the outer six points successfully activated, the ruins remained largely stable, showing no signs of stress fractures or collapse. The final point, therefore, should pose no problems. A resounding success!

"I hope I never have to do anything like bomb disposal again…" Tesla muttered, feeling the tension drain away.

After resting for half a minute, and observing the Titan mechas passing by to clear out the awakening Honkai Beasts, Tesla opened a channel to Cocolia. "Alright, everything's completed. We'll meet at…"

Before she could finish, a violent tremor knocked her Arahato off balance.

"What happened?!" Tesla exclaimed, scrambling to regain control as her mecha crashed to the ground. Ignoring the jarring impact, she frantically scanned the screens and instruments.

"Why is this happening? It should be over, why the sudden tremors?" Fear gripped her, her heart pounding as she considered the potential consequences. "No, the data is normal, all calculations and executions are accurate… so where did the problem occur?"

The tremors intensified, deepening Tesla's dread. "What did we miss?"

"Dr. Tesla, what did you do?!" Cocolia, equally bewildered, lashed out at Tesla. "Are you trying to kill us all here?!"

"No… no…" Tesla ignored Cocolia, desperately searching for the source of the tremors. Then, with dawning horror, she cried, "The ruins, they're rising? Could it be… no!"

Realizing the only possible explanation, she shrieked, "Flood it! Flood it back!" It was the only solution she could think of.

"It's too late," Einstein said, her calm voice betraying her shock and regret. "Ms. Cocolia, we need an explanation—no, there might not be time. Let me be brief." Unlike Tesla's impulsiveness, Einstein remained composed.

"Simply put, Ms. Cocolia's blueprints were flawed. The barrier isn't just for the upper section of the ruins, to keep out water and provide air. It's more comprehensive than that." She took a quick breath, then continued,

"The barrier system extends to the base of the ruins, completely enclosing the entire structure. It's designed to be suspended in the deep sea, not resting on the seabed—but I don't understand, Ms. Cocolia…"

"The data you provided was over 90% accurate, so why was this crucial detail omitted?" Einstein was deeply frustrated.

The barrier system, dormant for 50,000 years, had allowed the ruins to merge with the seabed, preventing them from detecting it during their surveys.

Activating the complete barrier system, however, not only separated the water inside and outside, but also severed the ruins' connection to the earth.

With the internal water drained to a critical point, basic physics took over: buoyancy exceeded weight, and the ruins began to ascend.

"Ms. Cocolia, I have reason to believe you deliberately withheld this information, to deceive and manipulate us!" Tesla yelled furiously. "With such a colossal blunder, how are we supposed to explain this to the Sovereign?"

"I... I..." Cocolia stammered, now realizing she had likely been played. Gray Serpent's blueprints, shared without reservation, were accurate, yet a minute discrepancy had led to this catastrophic outcome.

However, revealing this would implicate her in collusion. Damn, it was just a transaction! Cocolia fumed with anger and fear.

"We'll settle this later!" Tesla, prioritizing the immediate crisis, shouted new orders. "Quickly, flood it! Fill it back up!" She desperately hoped they weren't too late.

"Too late, Dr. Tesla…" Einstein said, ignoring Cocolia. "Once coffee dissolves in hot water, it can't be restored to its original state. That's the Second Law of Thermodynamics."

She paused, then added with a sigh, "Anti-Entropy…Anti-Entropy…but entropy isn't so easily reversed."

As she spoke, the "bubble" encasing the ruins broke free of the seabed, now floating serenely in the water, emitting a brilliant light.

But outside, the seafloor continued to erupt, spewing magma, bubbles, and black smoke, the devastation spreading rapidly.

"Roar!" Inside the ruins, the remaining Honkai Beasts within the residual seawater, centered around the seventh node, fully awakened, leaping out and swarming towards Anti-Entropy's forces. Cocolia frantically directed her mechs to repel the attack.

But this was just the beginning…

"Rumble… Boom!" The seafloor exploded, sending shockwaves that tossed the ruins upwards, jolting everyone inside.

The seabed churned as countless Honkai Beasts, like a legion of the undead, clawed their way out of the earth, a writhing mass of monstrous forms. They roared, churning the already murky waters into a frenzy.

A small portion, drawn to the ruins, began to converge on their position. The rest, save for a few that scattered, followed the fissures in the earth, rapidly moving away.

"Engage the enemy!" Cocolia yelled, trying to rally her disordered mecha forces.

The Honkai Beasts, though a small fraction of the horde, numbered in the thousands, surrounding the ruins but unable to penetrate the barrier.

However, this wouldn't last. With the ruins adrift and the power source destroyed, the protective barrier rapidly dimmed, threatening to leave them exposed.

But Tesla, ignoring her besieged companions, focused on the retreating Honkai Beast army. "Don't let them escape!" Their trajectory, heading towards the Mariana Trench, was all too clear.

"They'll overwhelm Southeast Asia!" Driven by the potential devastation, Tesla pushed her Arahato to its limits, tearing through the Honkai Beasts blocking her path and giving chase. A smaller swarm, drawn to her, surrounded and impeded her progress.

"Damn it!" Tesla despaired.

"Dr. Tesla, only you can do this now!" Einstein's calm voice cut through the chaos. "We're trapped underwater, communications are down. You need to surface immediately and report this, request backup!"

"Backup?" Tesla, her battered Arahato reeling from the onslaught, suddenly regained focus. "Yes, backup… we need backup!"

With a final burst of energy, she blasted a hole through the Honkai Beasts above and rocketed towards the surface, leaving the battered mech behind like a missile.

"Anti-Entropy… Schicksal… anyone!" Tesla pleaded, then a thought struck her. "And Lin Wei… he's in Southeast Asia, he has a Divine Key, he can help!"

Breaking the surface, she immediately contacted Lin Wei. He was their best hope.

"Hello, Lin Wei!" Tesla cried frantically. "Something's wrong, we've caused a disaster!"

......

Schicksal HQ, the floating island.

"Overseer, Rita has just deployed a fourth-generation Valkyrie battlesuit." Amber reported to Otto, her lenses flashing as she registered the activity in the armory. She knew Rita wouldn't do so without good reason.

"Oh? It seems Rita has made a discovery…" Otto said with interest, only to be interrupted by blaring alarms.

"Overseer, a massive tsunami has emerged east of the Philippines, rapidly approaching the islands!" Amber relayed the urgent news. "Schicksal satellites detect high concentrations of Honkai energy within the wave. The situation is critical!"

"What?"