As evening approached, a meteor streaked across the sky above the Mediterranean Sea, arriving above the floating island that served as Schicksal's headquarters.
They say the Hyperion is a ragtag outfit, and it shows when you compare it to Schicksal. Their administrative center, a cluster of giant floating islands, had as many as nine main islands named after Norse mythology. The surrounding small and medium-sized islands guarding them were countless. Pick any one of them at random, and its surface area would dwarf a mere aerial battleship.
"But these small islands can't fire a magic cannon that threatens an S-Rank Valkyrie."
Unconsciously murmuring her inner thoughts, Bianka dived down, landing steadily on Asgard, the main island where the combat training area was located.
"Lord Durandal?"
"Rita! Can you stop popping up like a ghost all the time?"
The seductive voice appearing behind her like a wraith failed to startle Bianka, who was used to this. She turned around with her hands on her hips, her attitude rarely showing a trace of annoyance.
The young woman in her twenties was breathtakingly beautiful. Even a simple maid outfit couldn't hide her unparalleled charm.
She stood there quietly, her rare ash-blonde short hair covering her left eye. Her wine-red eyes shimmered like waves, and the beauty mark at the corner of her right eye added a touch of fatal allure to her exquisitely perfect face.
"Even if Rita appears like a ghost, I can't escape Lord Durandal's fatal gravity, can I?"
Rita tapped the corner of her lips and smiled demurely. Even her inadvertent gestures carried a certain amorous grace.
Born with seductive bones.
In ancient Shenzhou, such a woman would be called a "disaster water" (femme fatale). Her mere existence could be the source of conflict or even chaos.
Bianka turned a blind eye to this. First, her own looks and figure were not inferior to the other party's, so she had some immunity. Second, they had known each other for many years, and the girl was long accustomed to her best friend's style.
She huffed lightly, ignoring Rita's habitual teasing, and walked straight toward the Immortal Blades training ground.
She needed to absorb the essence of her battle with Fuli as soon as possible.
Rita didn't mind. She took elegant steps, following beside her childhood friend. "Lord Durandal, you seem to be in a very good mood."
Bianka ignored her and kept walking.
"Let Rita guess. Hmm... is it related to that Lord Fuli?"
Bianka's footsteps paused. She was just about to ask how Rita knew.
Then she remembered this person was famous for assassination and intelligence gathering. Knowing her movements was all too normal.
Keep walking, keep walking. Valiantly and spiritedly.
"It seems Rita guessed wrong. In that case, if strange little rumors about Lord Fuli being kept by Lord Durandal inexplicably spread through Schicksal in the future, I presume My Lord won't be troubled or anxious about it."
Dragon walk, tiger—pace failed.
Bianka turned back helplessly, dragging out her voice, "Ri—ta—!"
Only in front of this childhood friend she grew up with would the girl show such childish behavior, no different from her peers.
Rita, however, wouldn't let it go. The maid fell to the ground, keeping her covetable black-silk-clad legs together. She lifted a slender finger to wipe away the tears spilling from the corners of her eyes. "Lord Durandal has a new love and forgot her old love. Boohoohoo... C-Clearly, Rita was first!"
Her tear-stained face annoyed Bianka to no end. Of course, she knew Rita was acting, but the whispering Valkyries around them wouldn't think so.
It happened to be dusk, the time when training ended. Exhausted from a day's work, they were walking in groups of two or three and soon surrounded the area tightly.
"What did Lady Rita say? That Lord Durandal has a new love and forgot her old love?"
"Hiss! I said before that there was something going on between the Captain and Vice-Captain! Which bastard argued with me saying same-sex couples can't reproduce? Step out!"
"A man who can catch Lord Durandal's eye... I really want to ride! Pfft! I'm really curious!"
"Lady Rita, I'm your fan! If Lord Durandal doesn't want you, I do! Look at me! Look at me!"
A single stone stirred up a thousand waves; this was exactly it.
This information fermented quickly and spread outward. Before long, half of Schicksal discovered with astonishment—that legendary Durandal had actually started dating her first boyfriend in life.
Helpless, Bianka picked up Rita, who was still "sobbing," and flew into the air, returning to the dormitory garden adjacent to their quarters amidst the gossip of numerous Valkyries.
Putting the maid down, she said grumpily, "Are you satisfied now?"
"It should be 'Lord Durandal is satisfied', right?"
Rita stood up with a smile, her posture as she tidied her skirt enchanting and bewitching. "With this, the intelligence that 'Fuli and Durandal are deeply involved' will be delivered to the desks of all Branch Chiefs."
Bianka was stunned, then smiled bitterly. "Even so, there was no need to sacrifice your reputation—"
"What reputation does Rita have? Or rather, every beautiful woman in a high position always lives under the tinted glasses of the world."
Rita smiled mockingly. "Rather than letting it become a tool for unscrupulous people to profit from, it's better for us to use it appropriately and keep the power of public opinion firmly in our own hands."
"Only with a stable rear can Lord Durandal fight bravely on the front lines without scruples, isn't that right?"
She said softly, "Or could it be that Lord Durandal simply hates Mr. Fuli and doesn't want to have a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship with him, even in name?"
Bianka opened her mouth, finally deflating. "Fine."
Hating Little Li or something... just thinking about it makes me almost want to slap myself.
"But it doesn't have to be boyfriend and girlfriend, right?"
The Goose mumbled.
"Prey is not allowed!"
Rita smiled brightly. "Lord Durandal's prey is the Immortal Blades' prey. And as for the Immortal Blades' prey... so far, not a single one has been lucky enough to survive."
This concerned her professional ethics, and even more so, her philosophy of perfection as a maid.
"By the way, it's also impossible for Lord Durandal to become Mr. Fuli's fiancée. That position has already been preempted by Lord Theresa."
"!!!"
Bianka jolted awake like a fierce woman.
How could I forget about that!
...Forget it, it doesn't matter. Senior Theresa is just looking for a shield anyway.
But speaking of Senior...
Suspicious eyes fell upon Rita's soft and curvaceous body.
The maid's smile remained unchanged. "What is it, Lord Durandal?"
"That's Senior Theresa's fiancé. Rita, don't you have anything to say?"
"If even Lord Bianka thinks it doesn't matter, then naturally Rita won't have any objections."
The bad woman, who had long known the Goose's true identity from Otto, had a profound smile.
To say she wasn't jealous would definitely be a lie. Even if it was just in name, for the adorable Lord Theresa to have a fiancé...
But compared to that, Sister Rita expressed that she wanted to watch the drama unfold among this group of people even more.
Ah! Too interesting!
Ah! Too twisted!
Lord Fuli, the moment you learn the whole truth, how will you choose?
Rita couldn't wait!
Don't blame Rita for being cruel! Who asked you to firmly remember the promise with Lord Durandal (True Kiana), but completely forget Rita and Lord Ragna?
They say a child's character is set by age three. On one hand, the 8-year-old Little Fuli was telling the Little Goose in a baby voice that he liked Kiana the most. On the other hand, he was pestering Ragna all day to secretly take him to play at Sister Rita's flower shop.
Heh! A destined philanderer!
...
Ending the transaction with Mei, Theresa and Himeko disconnected from the Hyperion.
The director's office, which had been lively earlier, was left with just the two of them again. Fu Hua, who had been there before, was nowhere to be seen.
On the sofa, Himeko stretched her body, her legs, white as jade, extending straight out.
"Getting old. Sitting for a bit makes my body creak."
Flames transformed into a pair of large hands massaging her shoulders. She rested her chin on her hand, smiling playfully. "Lord Principal, who took such a huge advantage of the Hyperion, don't pull a long face like a kitten. Eight trade agreements, including the magazine expansion, were all acquired at 40% of the market price. Clearly, someone won't be sleeping well tonight."
Why?
From joy.
How could one not be happy about a business deal where the profit doubles instantly upon resale?
"That's exactly why it's annoying!"
Lying on the desk, Theresa's voice was muffled. "Thinking that if I had just been a bit tougher earlier, all these things would belong to St. Freya... I, I!"
She moved her small hand to cover her heart.
Don't say it. It hurts!
"If they really joined St. Freya, they might not necessarily have brought these things out, you know?"
Theresa looked up, her tender, cute face full of incomprehension. "Not necessarily, right?"
"Very necessarily."
Himeko answered teasingly, the charm she exuded in that instant dazzling to behold.
"Fine."
As the saying goes, if the chest isn't flat, how can one flatten the world? If the breasts aren't huge, how can one gather people's hearts?
Seeing her old friend, who had always been good at winning people over, say so, Theresa had to temporarily put aside the grand plan she had just started conceiving.
Coo! Coo!
A holographic news pigeon folded its wings and landed outside the window. Its red eyes looked at the two people in the room, as if asking if they wanted a freshly baked newspaper.
Himeko sighed repeatedly. She could suppress the desire to read that thing.
However, her old friend, who was still a child at heart, definitely couldn't.
Sure enough, Theresa flipped over and dove with the speed of lightning covering one's ears before stealing a bell, grabbing the fat and tender pigeon. From the small backpack on its back, she took out the same newspaper she had wanted to read earlier—but had been destroyed twice by Fu Hua and Durandal—and browsed it at light speed.
Life is hard, Big Sis sighs.
She plugged her ears, ready to face the coming storm.
After a while, nothing happened. Himeko looked up in surprise, only to see Theresa putting the newspaper away with a slightly red face.
"What happened? What happened?"
"Ah? N-Nothing!"
Theresa shook her head vigorously, her white braid tied in a "hairstyle of death" (motherly side ponytail) flying in the air.
Perhaps the topic related to Fuli hadn't been involved when she read it earlier, or maybe he was too poor and could only afford a tiny, inconspicuous corner of the newspaper, so much so that both Bianka and Fu Hua subconsciously skipped that part.
Theresa didn't.
[If the sky is always dark, then survive in the dark; if making a sound is dangerous, then remain silent; if you feel powerless to shine, then crouch in the corner. But do not defend the darkness just because you are used to it; do not take pride in your own cowardice; do not mock those who are braver and more passionate than you. You can be humble as dust, but do not be twisted like a maggot. —Hyperion, Float-Tree-Man (Fu-Li-Ren)]
He was speaking up for Theresa, no matter how insignificant it might be.
"What's with 'Tree-Man', hehe~"
The Lord Principal closed the newspaper, her cute little face with baby fat unable to hide a sweet smile filled with happiness.
Fiancé, ring—to put it bluntly, these things were just a joke. They were a shield Theresa used to deal with those troublesome geezers, and a talisman to protect Fuli from being wanted.
Anyone in the know, even someone straight-laced like Durandal, wouldn't take this matter seriously.
However, this time, Theresa admitted that for that boy named Fuli, her heart really fluttered a little bit.
...
Time: 8:00 PM. Location: Fuli's room.
"There's A Way Back Home, Brighter Than Tomorrow And Yesterday~"
He was humming a tune happily, turning on the showerhead on the wall of the L-shaped bathtub to fill it with water.
The rotational exercise with Durandal during the day had consumed a lot of his energy. Under such circumstances, absolutely nothing was more comfortable than a nice bath.
Soon, the tub was full.
After adding rose-scented bath salts, he took off his bathrobe, threw it on the rack, and stepped briskly into the moderately warm water.
"Haa! Comfy!"
The scent of roses blended with the milky bathwater, moisturizing the skin and leaving a lasting fragrance. It was like a maiden's soft, slender hands gently caressing every inch of his skin, bringing Fuli an indescribably wonderful experience.
Sometimes, one had to admire Miss Mei's taste. The girl who grew up in a wealthy family was top-tier even in selecting bath salts.
It would be even better if there was a maid to massage my shoulders. Of course, that troublesome Miss Rossweisse is absolutely out of the question.
Recalling certain terrible scenes, Fuli suddenly shuddered.
He pondered for a moment, then suddenly stood up.
Covering his face with one hand, he muttered to himself in a tone full of oppressive force, "You are watching me, aren't you!"
The boy was just acting on a whim, suddenly wanting to imitate DIO's famous scene from JOJO Part 3.
Soon, he laughed loudly, lowered his hand, and fell back into the bathtub, splashing a large amount of liquid.
Little did he know, in two other rooms at this moment, beautiful girls in crimson-purple and pure white guiltily looked away at the same time.
Peh! Perverted girls!
Mei, having done similar things many times, quickly realized Fuli was just playing around. She openly moved her gaze back, resting her chin on her pure white wrist, and continued to admire the boy's smooth lines and tall, straight figure—a sight one could never get tired of. She even snapped a few photos from time to time for a rainy day.
Kiana, doing this for the first time, was embarrassed.
"Uwaaaaaah!!!"
She frantically waved her hand to disperse the spatial projection in front of her, rolled back onto the bed, wrapped herself in her little blanket, and curled into a ball pretending to sleep—looking exactly like a cat that had caused trouble while its owner was away.
What? Where did the spatial projection come from?
Just like the flight ability, she inexplicably mastered it after the Great Eruption in Nagazora ended.
After waiting a while and finding that no one knocked on the door from the outside...
"What the heck! Gave this young lady a scare!"
Letting out a long sigh of relief in her heart, Baby Kiana lifted the blanket. While unbuttoning her collar to let in some air, she couldn't help but yawn again.
The day's tossing and turning had consumed a lot of her stamina. Combined with the mindset of being tense and then relaxing, and the irresistible temptation of the blanket...
Unknowingly, the sound of even breathing echoed in the boudoir filled with girlish style.
Time flowed like sand. At midnight, a hoarse voice drifted into Kiana's ears.
"Give... it... back..."
In a pitch-black space where even light seemed to be swallowed, Kiana, struggling to breathe, suddenly opened her eyes.
She forced out a sound with difficulty: "You... let... go!"
"Give it back to me!"
The white-haired girl straddling Kiana paid no heed, her hands like iron pincers, deathly gripping the girl's throat.
Give what back to you? What do I give back?!
Kiana wanted to say this, but her body seemed completely imprisoned by some special power, unable to resist. She could only let the white-haired girl with blurred features increase the strength of her grip.
"Give Little Li... back to me!!!"
"You fake!!!"
Snap.
"Aaaah!!!"
Kiana woke with a start, gasping for air as she looked around wildly. The hour hand of the cat-shaped alarm clock on the bedside table pointed exactly at twelve midnight. The bright moon cast a reflection upon the sea—free of any light pollution—forming a ribbon of silver light that shimmered with the undulating waves.
"...It was a dream."
The girl relaxed, touching her throat as she muttered to herself.
But was it really a dream?
[Heheh~]
In a place unseen by K423, who was drenched in cold sweat, the Herrscher of the Void—white hair and golden eyes—lifted her face, filled with pure amusement.