"Of course, this one knows that Mr. Aaron possesses the ability to defeat this one with ease."
At this moment, after sensing the oppressive pressure radiating from Aaron, Rita rose elegantly from the seat beside him.
"It is just that this one still believes there is no need for Mr. Aaron to hold such resistance against Schicksal."
"I need to correct you there. I don't have any ill will toward Schicksal. Objectively speaking, I personally admire you Valkyries who fight on the front lines."
Seeing Rita tactfully leave his side, Aaron's tone softened a few degrees.
"However, Miss Rossweisse, no matter how hard-working and admirable the members of an organization are, if the person at the helm doesn't intend to steer it in the right direction, that organization isn't worth my trust."
"Mr. Apocalypse may be a genius, but right now, his mind isn't focused on 'fighting the Honkai'."
"...Actually, this one has been curious about something since just now."
Listening to Aaron's words, Rita asked with a smile, her eyes shifting slightly.
"Mr. Aaron seems to know a lot about our internal intelligence at Schicksal. Pardon this one's bluntness, but that isn't intelligence that can be 'easily' obtained."
"Oh, want to know?"
"If possible, this one would certainly like to know. Of course, I wouldn't ask you to give this up for nothing."
"Ha, forget it. Kiana, let's go."
After standing up, Aaron used his Magnetic Field power to transmit his voice to Rita as he brushed past her.
[Don't be too curious. If your curiosity is too heavy, Otto might not let you off the hook.]
"Eh? We're leaving already?"
Realizing that Rita didn't seem to have any hostility, Kiana glanced at the delicious-looking food one last time before reluctantly following in Aaron's footsteps.
"...Ha, you two are truly too cautious."
Glancing at the food on the table, Rita could only shrug helplessly alone.
Of course, there were no special ingredients added by Rita in these dishes.
But even if Rita conveyed this through her actions, it wasn't strange that the other party didn't trust a Valkyrie they had fought before.
However, this gentleman is actually unexpectedly easy to talk to?
I can indeed feel that he holds no serious hostility toward Schicksal.
As for Overseer Otto...
Recalling the things she knew, Rita could only express her helplessness; there were reasons why Overseer Otto was disliked.
Even Dr. Magi, who had collaborated with him for many years, couldn't tolerate Overseer Otto's atrocities. And the bottomless things Overseer Otto has done... there are plenty.
Human experimentation is inherently disgraceful. If Mr. Aaron... forget it, as a suspected victim of human experimentation, he certainly wouldn't like Overseer Otto's behavior.
However, the situation is a bit off.
K423 currently shows absolutely no signs of awakening.
But the oppression she vaguely radiated just now... it actually gave me a feeling no less intense than Mr. Aaron.
This oppression didn't stem from any Honkai Energy fluctuations, which were almost non-existent on her.
And since I'm in good condition, naturally I wouldn't have a false sense in this regard.
Ha, Overseer Otto's plan... why do I feel it's become unstable again?
She hasn't awakened the power of the Herrscher yet, and this intense pressure wasn't even granted by Honkai Energy.
Then, when the time comes, if K423 awakens the Herrscher's power...
Sigh, although I gained new intelligence from this probe, this intelligence gives me a headache.
Moreover, I've felt something was wrong since just now.
When I made contact with Mr. Aaron, I could feel a wave of killing intent instantly lock onto my body.
No, not just killing intent.
This dangerous sensation made me feel that the enemy locking onto me could easily take my life.
Although this killing intent vanished in an instant, in terms of feeling, that enemy is more noteworthy than Mr. Aaron's group.
Mn... Aside from the missing Anti-Entropy Sovereign Welt, there shouldn't be any humanoid combatant in Anti-Entropy that could give me this kind of feeling.
Wait, what if the person who locked onto me this time isn't an enemy from Anti-Entropy, but from another organization?
I previously deduced that Mr. Aaron was a member of a third organization outside of Schicksal and Anti-Entropy, but looking at it now, that answer might not be correct.
Judging by Mr. Aaron's tone, he really doesn't have any ill will toward Schicksal.
That tone doesn't sound like something a person from a hostile organization would say...
Maybe I misunderstood from the start.
A third organization exists, and Mr. Aaron is indeed not from Anti-Entropy.
But at the same time, he isn't from the third organization either... this is even stranger.
Where did he get so much Schicksal intelligence on his own???
This man has far too many mysteries surrounding him.
Although his actions so far have been about [Saving Humanity], no one knows the true thoughts in his heart.
I see, I understand now. That abnormal feeling I had when facing Mr. Aaron earlier.
I can't see through him.
Just as I can't see through what Overseer Otto is thinking, I can't tell what ideas he holds either.
The Lord Overseer also instructed me this time to improvise and see if I could bring back the Gem of Serenity...
He really thinks highly of me.
Facing two people who give me this much pressure, plus someone in the dark with killing intent toward me, I'll be thanking the heavens if I can just return to Schicksal.
Hmm, wait.
There might be people who want to kill a Schicksal S-Rank Valkyrie, but definitely not many.
And Mr. Aaron's previous actions, along with the [Herrscher of Thunder] by his side and the Gem of Serenity in his hand, will inevitably attract the attention of the third organization.
And if the third organization is watching him, then they might have been spying on us in the dark while I was talking to Mr. Aaron just now.
The killing intent disappeared in an instant...
This implies the other party really wanted to kill me, but suppressed that urge.
Think, who have I offended recently?
After recalling her missions for a moment, Rita realized the number of people she had offended recently was actually countable.
Usually, when at Schicksal, Rita's modest attitude meant almost no Schicksal members could find fault with her.
And when executing missions in the dark, the people Rita offended... were generally already dead.
In that case, using a bit of elimination, Rita directly locked onto someone she might have offended recently.
Previously, to investigate Aaron, she followed his nationality and found that Heliopolis Life Sciences, which cooperated with Schicksal, actually had some issues.
And after investigating Heliopolis Life Sciences, Rita had actually been paying attention to their subsequent movements.
Heliopolis Life Sciences didn't reveal any more slip-ups at the time.
But the mere fact that 'Schicksal started investigating Heliopolis Life Sciences' was enough to expose cracks in Heliopolis Life Sciences and invite people to kick them while they were down.
If one had to say who Rita offended recently, the higher-ups of Heliopolis Life Sciences were definitely among the biggest suspects.
Although judging this without evidence is too certain, if my hypothesis is correct, then everything makes sense.
The killing intent toward me was because I indeed caused trouble for Heliopolis Life Sciences recently.
But not making a move to kill me... Heh, aside from the possibility of complications with Mr. Aaron nearby, there's probably another reason.
Rita Rossweisse dying right after investigating Heliopolis Life Sciences—Overseer Otto would definitely notice this.
And if Overseer Otto notices, then killing me to silence me would obviously be playing with fire.
Ha, it seems the probability that Heliopolis Life Sciences has problems has increased a few notches.
After this mission ends, it seems the investigation into Heliopolis Life Sciences needs to be intensified.
Let's start with Heliopolis Life Sciences' accounts.
Heliopolis Life Sciences has made a lot of money over the years. If they are truly related to the third organization, the real accounts will inevitably have unexplained aspects.
Sigh, I don't know what the boss is up to.
A new faction has popped up and even has the guts to make a move on me.
Cocolia over at Anti-Entropy is being restless again.
Looking at it this way, Mr. Aaron's existence might actually alleviate some of the pressure on our Schicksal.
After all, even I...
Don't wish to see Lord Overseer harming my colleagues every day, or even letting others use the lives of millions to create Herrschers just because he has nothing better to do.
It seems I'll be busy for the coming period.
......................
After leaving the restaurant, Aaron used his phone to notify Mei and Bronya of the new gathering point, while pulling a pile of wrapped sandwiches from his storage space and tossing them to Kiana.
"Wu... Ah, so annoying!"
Kiana caught the food, roughly tore open a sandwich wrapper, and took a fierce bite.
"That woman named Rita, she's a Schicksal S-Rank Valkyrie, right?"
"Instead of fighting Honkai Beasts... *munch munch*... why did she come to chat with us? Are Schicksal Valkyries always this free?"
No, the one who is truly free is probably squatting in an office secretly buying manga with public funds right now.
"Her combat power isn't considered the strongest to begin with; much of what she does is behind-the-scenes work."
Finding a bench, Aaron sat down and slowly closed his eyes.
"Since she appeared here, it means Schicksal has already discovered our location. And not just Schicksal—even Anti-Entropy and World Serpent should be nearby."
"Playtime is over. It's time to get to work. Here."
Kiana caught the juice Aaron tossed, downed it in one breath *glug glug*, and said annoyed:
"We only rested for half a day, right?"
"As a warrior of the [Kaslana Bloodline], don't you want to protect the world and the people?"
"Protecting the world and the people has never been an easy task."
"...Tch, I know, okay."
The problem is... forget it, Aaron isn't wrong.
As a warrior of the Kaslana family, I shouldn't be too lax.
Besides, I can feel it now.
After glaring sharply toward the north, Kiana's expression instantly darkened a few shades.
Since just now, someone nearby has been monitoring us.
Cocolia's running dog?
Or is it that the people from Schicksal haven't given up?
Whatever, no matter who it is, if anyone dares to cause destruction in front of us...
I can clean you up without Aaron lifting a finger!
.....................
In the distance, Raven, having been glared at by Kiana, was instantly startled by that look.
Tsk, the little girl from the Kaslana family...
As expected of the Liege's descendant, to be this strong in perception capabilities.
After receiving communication from Gray Serpent, Raven had rushed to the location designated by Gray Serpent immediately, monitoring Aaron and Kiana from the dark.
According to the follow-up instructions from Gray Serpent, the Key of Blankness itself cannot be moved, so Raven must ensure these two don't get close to the area near the River Thames.
And this time Gray Serpent issued a die-hard order. In other words, if it really becomes necessary, Raven has to run out and actively open fire on the two to attract their attention, anything to lure them away from the designated area.
Sigh, these days, the life of a wage earner is getting harder and harder.
And Rita Rossweisse... this woman actually appeared here too.
When monitoring Aaron and Kiana just now, seeing Rita caused Raven to lose control of her killing intent toward that woman for a split second, aiming the muzzle of the Seven Thunders of Retribution at her.
Although she quickly realized she had lost composure and immediately retracted her killing intent, that opening... Heh, you can't treat an S-Rank as a fool.
Although according to intelligence passed on by Serpent members lurking in Schicksal, this S-Rank Rita is far inferior to the active S-Rank Durandal, and also can't compare to the two former S-Ranks Cecilia Schariac and Theresa Apocalypse, someone who can mix into the S-Rank tier must not be underestimated.
This guy definitely already sensed that sliver of killing intent of mine.
It's just that making a move now... Sigh, not only might it make Schicksal vigilant, but it would also waste the Seven Thunders of Retribution's ammo.
The firing count of the Seven Thunders of Retribution is precious. Wasting it on this woman, never mind if Gray Serpent would let me off, I myself would feel like a total idiot.
Just work with peace of mind and continue monitoring.
Anyway, that little girl can't possibly—from this far away—Holy...?!
Seeing Kiana pick up a straw, reinforce it with the mana in her hand, and throw it directly at her, Raven immediately dodged the strike with a roll.
Accompanying the strike hitting the tree beside Raven, Raven saw a scene that terrified her to the core.
That reinforced straw didn't pierce the large tree.
The power attached to the straw...
—Directly blew the large tree away on the spot.