Inches thick steel cuffs keep Tirpitz's wrists together, preventing her from moving her hands other than lifting her arms. It might have made her hand movements limited, but the ice covers the cuffs' surface and everything else around Tirpitz. The room had been instantly turned into a freezer with the exception of sharp icy protrusions everywhere.

"We have nothing to talk about....." Tirpitz clicks her tongue

Iron Blood is successful in limiting Tirpitz's chill, but it's less effective when Tirpitz is hostile and furious. The source of that hostility is Bismarck, who's sitting a few meters from her. Surprisingly, Bismarck could withstand the negative temperature around her judging by her relaxed expression and the way she just crossed her legs with her hands clasped together.

"Tirpitz, resenting me will do you no good. Your anger is only worsening the cold you emit" Bismarck lightly shakes her head
"Then what am I supposed to feel? Letting me survive but stripping me of warmth is far worse than slowly dying" Tirpitz lifts her hand just on her chest level
"You're alive because it's too early for you to die right now"
"You made me pay the price when I didn't even ask to live!"

Tirpitz immediately stands up and couldn't hold back her rage against Bismarck. The brief yet uncontrollable outburst causes the temperature to drop further, but Bismarck remains unfazed.

"Every second of my life right now is torture. You don't care because you're not the one living with this condition. I can't touch anyone and everything feels too cold!" Tirpitz shouts at the top of her lungs

Even when the usually quiet and calm Tirpitz verbally lashes out and shouts, Bismarck's expression doesn't even change the slightest. She stares at her younger sister with her usual stern and neutral expression.

"Do you even know how miserable I am right now? I don't have a normal life anymore because you decided for me" Tirpitz sits back down
"To fight is our main purpose. Being alive right now is the best outcome for you" Bismarck frowns
".......!" Tirpitz widens her eyes at the response
"Be at least thankful you get to live another day. Not everyone gets to overturn certain deaths"
"Thankful? Are you joking with me?! Do you want me to thank you or Iron Blood for turning me into living ice? How blind and narrow-minded can you possibly get?" Tirpitz grits her teeth and holds back her voice
"Watch your tone, sister" Bismarck stands up
"Sister? Did you really see me that way? Never once did you look at me like a younger sister....."

Tirpitz couldn't even feel angry at Bismarck right now and reduces it to frustration and a slowly growing grudge. The air around is far too dry and freezing for her to shed a single tear. Tirpitz can only lower her head and strongly bite her lower lip but no blood would spill.

"That's not really important.....because we're kansens. We don't know whether we'll live or die, so relationships are often short-lived" Bismarck couldn't provide her own answer
"You should have let me die....." Tirpitz looks away
"That's out of the question. As a battleship of Iron Blood, it's your duty to fight for our nation. You must live because you must fight" Bismarck reminds her
"There you go again" Tirpitz clicks her tongue out of irritation
"I ordered the procedure to ensure your survival, Tirpitz. You're a battleship with a duty to fulfill"
"Is duty all you think about?" Tirpitz clenches her fists
"As a leader, yes. I have a lot of duties to fulfill and responsibilities to hold"

Throughout the conversation, Bismarck speaks as a leader who only focuses on her duties and abandons their personal feelings. Bismarck isn't ignorant of her own words, but she keeps them beyond a stern and stoic expression.

"You should try to use that freezing ability, Tirpitz. The core has potential and the same goes for you. However, you tend to hold back and do as you wish" Bismarck leans a bit forward
"I will fight on my terms but you couldn't even let me die on my terms. Do you expect me to just ignore everything and take orders from you again?" Tirpitz throws a sharp glare
"You don't get to decide on that, Tirpitz. To fight is the duty every kansen must fulfill" Bismarck reminds her again
"I would rather die again than cooperate with Iron Blood"
"You're making this difficult" Bismarck groans

This puts the two of them at a stalemate. Tirpitz is becoming stubborn while Bismarck wouldn't allow Tirpitz to do as she pleases. It's the first time Tirpitz is defying Bismarck when she's used to going along with Iron Blood without a care.

"Tirpitz, insubordination isn't taken lightly in our nation. Stop being stubborn because you're no child" Bismarck is trying to remain calm
"I don't care about Iron Blood's ideals and rules anymore, and I refuse to accept your words as orders" Tirpitz continues to be defiant

"Don't tamper with my patience, Tirpitz. You're being unreasonable" Bismarck's hands tense
"I should say the same thing to you"
"What?"
"You wasted the core that contained a large amount of energy just to bring me back. Even if you used it as a test on me, it's still an unreasonable gamble"
"Stop being emotional, Tirpitz. We, kansens of Iron Blood, must learn to detach our emotions. They cloud our judgement"
"Are you really putting me in the same place as you? To not care about anything other than our mission as kansens?"

No matter how much Bismarck speaks coldly and without care towards Tirpitz, it's surprising the latter doesn't even think of harming Bismarck. Despite all the building up frustrations and spite towards her older sister, Tirpitz sets aside the slightest thought of violence knowing it's futile and would only make things worse for her.

"Have you considered what I would feel if you saved me while paying the price? Did you stop to think how it would affect me?!" Tirpitz couldn't help but remain furious
"I've never seen you this furious before. Are you afraid you can never be with your friend again?" Bismarck remains stern and distant
"You're unbelievable....." Tirpitz continues to be disappointed
"I'm not letting my emotions get the best of me unlike what you are right now"
"How can I possibly stay calm knowing I'd be like this for the rest of my life?"

Tirpitz lifts her hands, displaying her frozen cuffs and the cold air coming escaping the area where the specially designed cuffs seal Tirpitz's wrists. Even if Tirpitz doesn't wish for it, her surroundings would be unrecognizable if the cuffs aren't suppressing her body temperature. Bismarck is the only exception, being the only one seemingly unaffected by the chill around her.

"You'll come around your senses eventually. Right now, you need the isolation to rethink and calm yourself" Bismarck suggests as she stands up
"Bismarck, you - ggh!"

Tirpitz suddenly becomes motionless when her shoulders drop and her head lower. Without explanation, Tirpitz almost reels in pain and tightly closes her eyes, causing the ice around them to subside and slowly retreat.

"Tirpitz?" Bismarck swallows her breath in worry
"......" Tirpitz only groans under her breath
"What's the matter?" Bismarck hurriedly walks towards her
".....Nngh....it hurts so much....." Tirpitz mutters while unaware of her surroundings
"Tirpitz, what's happening?"

When Bismarck is finally in front of Tirpitz, she sees that her younger sister tightly shuts her eyes close as if she's in excruciating pain. She trembles not because of her own cold but of in unexplainable pain instead.

"Why.....can't you....leave me be?!"

Tirpitz unleashes a violent gust of cold air strong enough to send Bismarck flying to the wall. The push is so sudden that Bismarck's back thuds on the steel wall, but fortunately she remains unharmed when the flying icy fragments only scratch her cheek.

"Tirpitz, what in the world are you doing?!" Bismarck demands an explanation
"Aaaagh! It hurts! Everything hurts. Why is it.....so painful?!"

Most people wouldn't notice it, but Bismarck notices Tirpitz's voice is much more furious than earlier and her tone isn't the usual one she uses. In fact, she incoherently screams while forcing her wrists to be apart.

"Tirpitz.....?" Bismarck is uncertain of what's happening
"Aaugh.....why.....this body....."

Tirpitz snaps the metallic shackles with ease, freely moving both arms now. The temperature drastically lowers that even steel is as fragile as glass before Tirpitz. Cracks begin to spread on the wall behind Bismarck due to the violent wind trapped inside the room and the shards of ice piercing through the walls and ceiling.

"It's you again.....but the traitor isn't here......!" Tirpitz stares at a confused Bismarck
"Traitor?"

Not only is Tirpitz speaking randomly with a voice forcibly restraining her anger, her eyes are now filled with killing intent and sharply locking into Bismarck.

"You have it, don't you? After that bastard.....destroyed my heart....." Tirpitz grits her teeth
"You're not making any sense!" Bismarck is unsure what she's referring to
"Shut up and die!" Tirpitz swings her left arm in the air
".......!"

Bismarck shields her arms in front of her face when the freezing wind shreds the wall behind her and sends her body helplessly flying like a rag doll.

"Ugh!"

The next thing Bismarck knows is that her body is tossed by the wind's current and her back only slides to the ground after at least four seconds in the air. As a result of the room being destroyed, the freezing temperature escapes into the open and begins to affect both land and air. Ice crawls to the ground and covers both concrete and steel with ease. The once warm atmosphere is overwhelmed by the wind carrying both ice and snow with each sweep.

"Mur....derer. How dare you kill me.....when I trusted.....you......" Tirpitz walks out holding what remains of the blasted wall

"Tirpitz, is that you?" Bismarck wonders if it's someone else who's speaking
"It hurts so bad. You....did this to me....." Tirpitz scratches her neck

As she's in a hallucinating state, Tirpitz isn't certain of the figure in front of her. It's still Bismarck, but to her it's vague so terribly that she's relying on her distorted senses to recognize her. In Tirpitz's current state, the pain is overwhelming her senses and giving her the idea of tearing her own body to get rid of the unbearable pain within her.

"Vic.....ugh.....damn you......!" Tirpitz continues to scream

The excruciating pain she couldn't relieve only worsens her emotional and mental state, causing the ice to further spread. At that point, half of the base is transformed into a deadly icy landscape and the sky above the Iron Blood base darkens from a blizzard consuming everything.

"What have you done to me this time?" Tirpitz is finally able to speak straight

By the time Tirpitz makes sense of the howling wind and ice covered base, she's furious looking at her hands and touching her cheeks with both of her hands. There's no one else around other than Bismarck, who's standing unsure how to deal with Tirpitz suddenly going berserk.

"You again?! Why can't all of you let me die in peace?" Tirpitz's sky blue eyes brightly glows
"Again? What are you talking about, Tirpitz?" Bismarck could barely see from the snow flying to her face
"You fused my wisdom cube.....you piece of shit! Not only you forced me back into this living hell, you dragged my normal version" Tirpitz clenches both of her fists
"I don't know what you're talking about"
"You don't have to know because you just need to die!"
"......!"

Tirpitz moves swiftly than she usually does and charges straight towards Bismarck. To her shock, ice covers her left foot, forcing her in one place. She couldn't force her foot free since Tirpitz swings her fist and successfully connects it to Bismarck's fist.

"Ggh!"

This senses Bismarck flying back again and spins in the air right before the right side of her face slides to the rough frozen ground. Bismarck remains in her normal state even when everything has been encased and consumed by the abnormal ice and snow.

"I'll never forgive you. Both you and Victorious" Tirpitz grabs Bismarck by the face
"Victorious? What are you talking about-"
"You know what you did!"

Tirpitz slams Bismarck to the ground the icy surface even cracks around Bismarck. The force would have cracked a regular person's skull open, but Bismarck is a resilient and durable battleship, so she only feels soreness rather than bleeding by now.

"You're out of control, Tirpitz!"

Bismarck grabs Tirpitz's hand gripping her face and tosses her to the side, sending her rolling away by at least three meters away.

"I'm not out of control Bismarck. I'm just unbelievably angry right now because I've been resurrected.....again!" Tirpitz pushes herself back up
"Huh?" Bismarck remains oblivious
"Just when I thought I could find peace in death, you dragged me back here. It hurts so much when you woke me up" Tirpitz clutches her chest
"Did the procedure actually fail?"

The only reason Bismarck could think is that it's a side effect adding to Tirpitz's outburst earlier. It doesn't explain the extremely low temperature surpassing the Arctic sea.

"Your death wouldn't be easy, Bismarck. After I deal with you, I'd take out Victorious as well" Tirpitz cracks her neck
(Why Victorious?)
"Then I'll just rampage until someone eventually kills me for good...." Tirpitz solemnly tells herself
"I don't know what's gotten into you, but you have to stop"
"I wanted to stop, but none of you could let me die in peace"

Tirpitz couldn't care about how Bismarck is both confused and oblivious since she's confused about her surroundings. The core of her blind anger stands right before her and ignores the pain coiling around her body.

"Ugh.....I remember the snow......then I was betrayed.....and split apart...." Tirpitz presses her hand on the left side of her head

The memories inside remain fresh and whole even after she's forced back into the life she despises the most. All she could remember is the unpleasantness of it and the other one she resents.

(I have to stop her!) Bismarck pushes herself forward
"Bismarck!"

Just as Bismarck lunges at Tirpitz and grabs her left arm, Tirpitz attempts to immobilize Bismarck by solidifying Bismarck's limbs with the concentrated coldness.

"Why won't you break into pieces?!" Tirpitz gets pinned to the ground
"No ice or flame can stop me!"

Bismarck presses her weight on top of Tirpitz by pushing her left forearm on her neck. This restricts Tirpitz's breathing, but it doesn't stop her in retaliating by grabbing Bismarck's neck with her right hand.

"You're not a META, so how?!" Tirpitz tightens her grip on Bismarck's neck
"What the hell is happening to you?! You're not acting like a different person" Bismarck demands an answer
"I'm supposed to stay dead, but you just can't let me go. Both you and that Victorious" Tirpitz's dilated glare focuses on Bismarck
"......"

"Does it amuse you that I'm paying the price? Is it worth sacrificing your own sister, Bismarck?" Tirpitz couldn't move her body to push Bismarck away
"It's not my wish to see you suffer, but how could I let my own sister die?"
"Hypocrite!"

White sheet of ice thickens on the ground beneath Tirpitz and spreads further. The frost produces and swiftly sprouts frozen spikes to impale Bismarck enough to push her off from Tirpitz. The ice pierces both her shoulders and non-fatal areas in her abdomen.

"Guah!" Bismarck falls to the ground again
"I had enough of you.....not letting me die on my own terms....." Tirpitz pushes herself up
"Who.....are you?" Bismarck furrows her eyebrows
"You can't allow me to live nor die, so you broke my wisdom cube....." Tirpitz couldn't hear her

With each step Tirpitz makes, the ice beneath and around her thickens. It's only in their area where it's the coldest and no living being could survive even for a second, except for Tirpitz and somehow.....Bismarck.

".......!" Tirpitz couldn't take another step

Tirpitz lifts her arms and only sees her hands trembling. This confuses her for a moment but enough to make her take one step back....and another step back.

"My head......no.....I can't....not yet....." Tirpitz mutters to herself
"What's going on now?" Bismarck stands up
"It might have been too early......but it doesn't mean I won't come back...." Tirpitz begrudgingly swears
"......."
"I'll never forgive you.....Bismarck....."

At the moment Tirpitz's vision grows blurry and her knees about to fall to the ground, she stretches out her hand to Bismarck. There's only resentment in her that she refuses to fall so easily.

"......"

Tirpitz's eyes slowly shuts close, the rest of her body becomes numb. Right as her body is about to helplessly collapse to the ground, Bismarck rushes in time to stretch out her arms. She manages to catch Tirpitz in her arms and let her rest on her chest even after attacking her. Tirpitz's body may be too cold for anyone to touch without the inhibitors, but Bismarck remains unfazed as she's the only one unaffected by the blizzard that transformed their surroundings into a blank landscape of ice and snow.

.......
.......
.......

The two sisters sit across each other. Bismarck is calm and relaxed as usual while Tirpitz is quietly observing her out of curiosity and wariness. She's willing to let Bismarck retell the events, but there's no guarantee Tirpitz would believe her. If it isn't for Victorious' insistence, she wouldn't even think of approaching Bismarck and leave instead.

"I don't really understand what happened, but you attacked me out of nowhere" Bismarck crosses her arms
"Now that I think about it, I remember talking to you but blacking out at some point. When I woke up....." Tirpitz closes her eyes for a moment
".......It's either execute you or imprison you. I insisted on imprisoning you because I couldn't bring myself to kill my own sister"
"......." Tirpitz briefly tilts her head

It's the first time Bismarck speaks sincerely and honestly towards her that Tirpitz raises her guard. The concept of the ever serious and strict leader of Iron Blood speaking gently is something that didn't cross Tirpitz's mind for a long time. At least, ever since being imprisoned.

"Tirpitz, don't you truly recall what happened?" Bismarck leans a bit forward
"I told you already, I completely blacked out. By the time I woke up, you ordered for my arrest" Tirpitz sighs
"It was like you were a different person. You deeply hated me and the blizzard you unleashed was intense"
"I remember black out for moments, but the longest was the last mission with Victorious. I saw her get shot, and I couldn't think straight" Tirpitz rubs her thumb and index finger on her right hand
"Then do you think you unleashed the blizzard?" Bismarck sternly asks her
"I don't know, but it's possible. Do you believe I caused it?" Tirpitz crosses her arms
"That I can't say because I wasn't there. It would be just my random guess" Bismarck shrugs her shoulders
"I might have caused it, but they might have known....."

Although Tirpitz remains willing to speak and listen to her older sister, there are still details she doesn't wish to discuss. Bismarck is making effort to clarify misunderstandings which resulted in their situation, but Tirpitz remains vigilant of her actions and words.

"Iron Blood, or perhaps you know something about what caused me