Schicksal Oceania Branch.
The entire base had been reduced to absolute ruin.
Not only that, but even the island city hundreds of kilometers away from the base had now become a living hell. Wandering zombies and Honkai Beasts scoured the streets and alleys for any surviving humans... even those who were already on the path to becoming zombies themselves.
"Squelch."
The fresh bloodstains were wiped clean.
The pure white wheelchair, emitting a faint electric hum, passed through the wide-open doors of the base.
The girl, clad in a loose-fitting white shirt and a gray jacket slung casually over her shoulders, looked upon the scene before her with a blank expression.
"They're all dead."
The distinct tips of her hair were lifted by the wind.
The ends of her once impossibly smooth, turquoise-black hair, near her ears and cheeks, had already faded to a pale green.
Just like her eyes... ethereal, yet lifeless.
"They had perfectly good arms and legs."
Blood stained the rim of the pure white wheel hub.
The dismembered corpses blocking her path were sliced into ribbons of flesh by a gentle breeze the moment they touched her belongings.
"And yet, in the end... weren't they all just 'too weak to stand against the wind'?"
The ones lying on the ground were all her comrades and colleagues.
Their images and faces, once deeply etched in her mind, began to fade.
Whether it was the admiration for her, "the A-rank Valkyrie captain with the most potential for promotion to S-rank," or the disdain for her, "the eyesore in a wheelchair who couldn't even complete the most basic communication tasks properly."
It was all gradually being swept away by the wind.
"THUD!!"
With a loud, heavy impact, a Templar-class Honkai Beast finally smashed through the last door leading to the command room. With the authority the girl once possessed, she could have entered this place without an announcement. But from the moment she was confined to a wheelchair, she no longer had the right to enter, even with prior application.
In the room filled with "ALERT" projections and piercing alarms...
"Clack."
The girl's path was blocked.
A woman, her face covered in blood, with a long brown ponytail she "vaguely remembered" as belonging to her former adjutant, desperately gripped the spokes of the wheelchair.
"We... Wen..."
"Thwip!"
The girl flicked her finger, her expression unchanging.
From wrist to neck, an elegant thread of wind sliced everything in its path in two.
"Who was that?"
"...Ah, well. It doesn't matter."
No one could stop the girl's advance any longer.
The wheelchair stopped in front of the command room's enormous screen. The distress signal to European HQ was just a few words short of being sent.
"Schicksal."
A gentle, weak voice sounded from her throat.
"Otto!"
And then, a sound like a beast's roar, filled with resentment and madness, was ground out from between the girl's teeth. Even though there were no other humans around, the habit of keeping her voice down remained unchanged by the circumstances.
No, that wasn't a voice. It was an emotion that had been suppressed for so long.
"Screech!"
The tires made an irritable sound as they scraped against the floor. The wheelchair beneath her pushed back a distance of less than forty centimeters... the brake pads were still faithfully fulfilling their mission to "never retreat."
The girl stood up.
Her legs, wrapped in layers of bandages like a mummy's, supported her body as she rose.
The ability she had never cherished, had thought she would lose forever, and had now regained, allowed her to take a first step she had not taken in a very long time.
"..."
Her bare feet landed on the cold metal.
But the girl's expression remained unchanged, as if the nerves in her legs had not yet recovered.
Standing before the control console, she typed with unerring precision on the familiar keyboard. The unsent distress signal was deleted, letter by letter, until the coordinates that should have been sent to European HQ were changed to the eastern part of the Eurasian continent:
Schicksal Far East Branch, St. Freya Academy.
---o---
"A distress signal from the Oceania Branch."
Inside St. Freya Academy, the trio, having just finished a simulation test, was intercepted by Theresa and brought directly to the flight deck. The engines of the battleship Hyperion were already ignited, and Himeko, clad in her combat uniform, had been waiting for them.
"A mid-sized Honkai energy reaction of about 500 HW has been detected in Oceania."
"The Valkyrie forces stationed there are understaffed, and the Oceania Branch has sent a request for support. You three are the only Valkyries left at the academy right now. This mission is simple, consider it a substitute for your make-up exam!"
Valkyries were dispatched in squads.
In the three-person squad of Kiana, Mei, and Bronya, Kiana had failed her final exams and was thus kept at the school for a mandatory retake. Since squad members stick together, Mei and Bronya had stayed behind as well.
Incidentally, as their teacher, Himeko received the same treatment, and her long-planned vacation went up in smoke.
"There's no time to lose."
After Himeko confirmed the entire mission procedure, Theresa immediately sent them aboard the Hyperion, watching as the airship departed.
"..."
Only after the Hyperion had left St. Freya's airspace did she speak.
"Principal, a communication from Lord Otto."
Behind Theresa, a certain "instructor" handed her a tablet... but Theresa did not take it.
"There's no need."
"If it's about the [Gem of Desire]—"
The golden-black cross hanging from her wrist trembled slightly.
"I know what to do."
---o---
"This place..."
"Isn't it a little too quiet?"
Kiana said, scanning her surroundings.
The Hyperion was extremely fast. As the closest Schicksal Valkyrie base to the Oceania Branch, the journey from the Far East Branch took only fifteen minutes.
The airship soon arrived above the Oceania Branch. After landing at the designated location guided by the branch...
Kiana and the others dropped in directly.
A simple crossroads, pleasant scenery, and over eighty percent of the area covered in vegetation and streams. There was no sign that a Honkai Eruption had occurred here, and the Honkai energy detector showed no abnormalities.
"No Honkai Beasts," Mei said, drawing the electromagnetic blade at her waist.
"But... there are no signs of human life either."
A 500 HW Honkai energy reaction, as stated in the intel, would inevitably be accompanied by the appearance of massive Chariot-class Honkai Beasts. Even in the narrow streets, their tracks should be clearly visible. It would definitely not be as silent as it was now.
"Could it be that the Oceania Branch evacuated the residents in advance, and the Valkyries took care of the Honkai Beasts as soon as they appeared?"
Kiana also drew her dual pistols, peering into the nearby windows one by one.
"Idiot Kiana."
Bronya opened the computer on her wrist, carefully checking the coordinates and intel sent by the Oceania Branch one more time.
"Only an S-rank Valkyrie can deal with a 500 HW reaction this quickly."
"Besides Principal Theresa, the only ones in Schicksal with that kind of power are the other two at European HQ."
Bronya's gaze lifted from her wrist.
"According to the intel,"
"The Oceania Branch only has one A-rank Valkyrie who hasn't been on a mission in a long time."
"Beep!"
Just as Bronya finished speaking, a new communication screen popped up directly in front of Kiana.
"Whoa-ah!"
"Don't be so dramatic, Kiana."
The communication was from Himeko on the Hyperion.
The difficulty of this mission was not high, and someone had to stay to guard the airship, so Himeko, as the captain, had not disembarked with them. Although the ship's name was Hyperion, this was not a certain starship of the same name that required its captain and first officer to go on away missions... hmm, to be precise, she was learning from a certain Ms. Silver's starship of the same name.
"It looks like you've reached the target location."
"That's right," Kiana said, spinning on the spot.
"But Teacher Himeko, there's absolutely nothing here."
She then glanced at Bronya, who was maintaining a triangular defensive formation a short distance behind her.
"Forget Honkai Beasts, we haven't even found any people. The life detectors and Honkai energy detectors we were equipped with before departure aren't showing any readings."
"Don't let your guard down."
Himeko frowned, her hands flying across the Hyperion's command console.
"It might be due to a magnetic field interference affecting the functionality of your personal detectors. The sensors on the Hyperion haven't found any Honkai Beasts either, but they have detected significant residual traces of Honkai energy."
"A Honkai Eruption definitely occurred here."
Himeko's gaze, which had just shifted away, returned to Kiana.
"Honkai Beasts are constantly evolving. We can't rule out the possibility that they've evolved some kind of stealth func—"
"BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!"
Red light, accompanied by an alarm, rapidly filled the background of Himeko's screen.
"Teacher Hime—"
"It's not from my side!" Himeko glanced again at the source of the alarm.
"A large number of Honkai Beasts are approaching your position!"
"Prepare for battle!"
Whether due to interference or intentional termination, the communication was quickly cut.
The equipped detectors were still useless, but they were no longer needed. A massive explosion erupted less than 200 meters from the trio. Amidst the flying asphalt and countless shattered paving stones, a large number of Ranger-class beasts, accompanied by colossal Chariot-class beasts, made their swift appearance!
"Kiana!"
"Got it, Mei!"
Kiana was already prepared for battle. Although the number of Honkai Beasts was large, they were no match for the trio, who were not only naturally talented but had also gained a wealth of virtual combat experience.
---o---
"CRACKLE!"
Golden lightning struck the head of a Chariot-class beast.
The high-frequency magnetic field disrupted its sensory system, temporarily halting the massive beast's movements. And then—
"Project Bunny, FIRE!"
"BOOM!!"
The heavy cannon instantly pierced the Chariot's side defenses, and the building-sized Honkai Beast disintegrated in an instant.
"BANG!"
"BANG!"
At the same time, covering fire from Kiana sent a Knight-class beast, which had been charging at Bronya from behind, tumbling to the ground.
"Hmph~"
"Bronya, aren't you going to thank me?"
Kiana blew on the barrels of her guns, which weren't even smoking.
"Whoosh—"
"BOOM!!"
A beam from Project Bunny's secondary cannon shot down a Ranger-class beast that was attacking Kiana from above.
"Idiot Kiana, now we're even," Bronya said flatly.
Just as she finished, "Beep!"
"Kiana, what's the situation down there?"
With the twenty-odd "ambushing" Honkai Beasts cleared out, a communication from the Hyperion came through during the lull.
"Piece of cake~"
Kiana, hooking her finger around the trigger guard, gave her weapon a 720-degree spin in the air.
"..."
"Well, that's great to hear."
"I was just about to come down and help. A moment ago, a single Honkai energy reading of over 900 HW suddenly appeared from the location of the Oceania Branch base. It's rapidly approaching you."
"Looks like you can handle it just fine."
"Wait, wait, wait! Teacher Himeko, did you just say 'single' individual?!"
"HW," the standard unit for Honkai energy concentration used by Schicksal. An individual exceeding 900 HW was already at the level of a Honkai Emperor... due to unknown interference, the possibility of an Emperor-class Honkai Beast could not be ruled out.
"Scared?" Himeko teased Kiana as her image disappeared from the screen.
"Teacher Himeko!?"
"I'm here."
Himeko's voice on the comms grew fainter.
"You three hold on for a bit."
"My battlesuit... is a bit troublesome to put on."
---o---
"Click, clack."
High heels clicked on the hard alloy floor.
"A Honkai Emperor and two Templar-class."
"She is from the Kaslana family, after all... these kids should be fine."
Although she called it a battlesuit, Himeko's current attire was closer to a military uniform. As an A-rank Valkyrie and vice-captain of the assault squad, Himeko held the official military rank of Major in Schicksal, so this was her usual attire on the bridge.
Himeko had not originally planned to deploy.
After all, the initial intel was only at the "final exam" level.
But the subsequent intel from Theresa indicated...
"The Gem of Desire."
"Clank!"
In the core cabin in the central area of the Hyperion, Himeko passed through several identity verification procedures in the empty corridor.
"Can't rule out the possibility of a Herrscher, huh."
"BOOM!!"
The large door behind her slammed shut.
Her jacket, shoes, undershirt, and even the lingerie tied with delicate straps were casually tossed to the ground.
At the center of a massive automated suiting-up platform, Himeko was rapidly enveloped by various components held by mechanical arms.
Exoskeleton armor, impact-resistant protective suit, miniature nuclear fusion reactor.
[Valkyrie Armor · Nexus Armor: Crimson]
Himeko's life was already limited due to the Honkai energy erosion caused by her artificial stigma. Using this suit would only exacerbate the erosion. But as long as she could unleash the full power of the "Nexus" system equipped on the armor, she could achieve an output that surpassed even an Emperor-class Honkai Beast.
The degree of combat power amplification...
Was comparable to an armor model from the Empire two hundred generations ago.