"What did you do to them?"
Standing atop a tall building, staring at the Fourth Herrscher floating in mid-air, Durandal narrowed her eyes. It was clear she had arrived too late.
She knew that Kiana and the others from the Far East Branch were here on a mission to recover the Gem of Desire—but upon arrival, all she saw was the Fourth Herrscher and traces of a battle. Not a single sign of Kiana's team remained.
Something had clearly gone wrong.
"Not much. I just made them quiet for a while and—"
"Kiana… Kiana was taken by the Fourth Herrscher!"
Before Wendy could finish, a voice came from behind her.
Turning slightly, she saw Bronya staggering out from the collapsed ruins with Heavy Bunny, struggling to support the unconscious Raiden Mei.
Kiana was captured by the Fourth Herrscher? But she's still right here…
Never mind. I just need to defeat her. This level of Herrscher shouldn't take long…
Durandal found it strange that Kiana's figure was nowhere to be seen, but she didn't dwell on it. Once she defeated the Fourth Herrscher, she could get her answers.
"It seems like… Hm? You're just going to charge at me like that? You could at least introduce yourself. It's rare to see a human who's a little different."
Wendy had been considering saying something to Bronya, but Durandal had already launched herself forward. This annoyed Wendy.
"Durandal—!"
Durandal didn't waste words and simply stated her name.
"Durandal? Then I'll introduce myself too. Wendy. You may call me Wendy."
Facing the rapidly approaching Durandal, Wendy remained unhurried, almost uninterested.
Not acting like someone who wants to fight at all…
Durandal couldn't sense the attitude of an opponent ready for combat. It made her wary—but she still channeled power into her fist.
"Haaah!"
Clang—!
"Why don't you use that weapon in your hand?"
A transparent shield formed from ideal fluid blocked Durandal's punch with ease. Wendy glanced at the black-and-white lance in Durandal's grip with mild curiosity.
"Or… do you think you can beat me with your fists alone?"
With a flick of her wrist, Wendy sent Durandal flying.
As expected… She's no ordinary opponent.
Steadying herself with Black Abyss White Flower, Durandal kicked off the ground and charged again—this time with her weapon.
She would not underestimate the Fourth Herrscher.
She easily received Durandal's strike…?
Watching from a giant monitor, Otto folded his arms, deep in thought. He had not expected this level of strength.
By all his calculations, the Fourth Herrscher should've been extremely weak. Wendy had never been able to control the Gem of Desire properly—thus a Herrscher born under such conditions shouldn't be powerful. Their scans of Honkai output had supported this.
Yet reality slapped him in the face.
The Fourth Herrscher wasn't useless at all—she was handling Schicksal's strongest Valkyrie with utter ease.
Granted, Durandal wasn't using her full power yet—but the fact itself was alarming.
Could the Gem of Desire have fused with Wendy over the years…?
No. The data shows no such indication. Then why…
What—?!
Otto's pupils contracted sharply as he watched the newest feed.
In the blink of an eye, Durandal's Black Abyss White Flower had been snatched from her hand, and she herself was sent flying.
What in the world is she doing?!
Because he had been busy thinking, he hadn't caught how it happened. Thankfully, the feed was fully recorded. He could rewind later.
Since I failed to get Raiden Shogun's weapon… I'll play with yours instead.
Seeing Durandal rush her again, Wendy decided to steal the lance—its aesthetic appealed to her.
Gone? Damn… I completely lost track of her…
The moment Wendy vanished, Durandal froze. She couldn't sense her presence anywhere.
"Don't look. I'm right here."
"King!"
The voice came from behind. Durandal immediately summoned a Self-Driven Phantasm to intercept the strike.
A massive autonomous weapon manifested behind her, its left arm holding a large sword and its right deploying a hexagonal barrier.
Such a big robot… and it looks way better than those earlier ones…
Holding a transparent spear of ideal fluid, Wendy thrust forward.
BOOM—!
The explosion tore through the Hex-Shield instantly. The huge weapon was skewered through the arm and crumbled into fragments before disappearing entirely.
"Queen!"
Durandal summoned another construct immediately, and simultaneously prepared to wield Black Abyss White Flower's power for close-quarters combat.
…Impossible.
Under Durandal's stunned gaze, Queen was cut clean in half the moment it appeared—by something she couldn't even see.
First Power Output — Spear of Light, Bloom!
Recovering instantly, Durandal activated Black Abyss White Flower's first approved power output. At this distance, even a Herrscher would have to evade.
BOOOOM—!
A blinding tide of white light surged skyward. The unleashed force flattened everything nearby, leaving a massive crater where they stood.
"…So this is all it amounts to. Well then—I'll be taking this."
Wendy held Black Abyss White Flower firmly. Standing beside Durandal in the center of the crater, she had tanked the output directly without a scratch.
Impossible…
Durandal had never imagined this outcome. She'd expected the Fourth Herrscher to dodge—at the very least. Anything but this.
Where… Did we miscalculate?
Staring blankly at the screens, Otto could not comprehend where this overwhelming power had come from.
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