"Third Herrscher!"
"Third Herrscher, get your ass out here for this great one, or I'll tear this crappy school down!"
Within the grounds of St. Freya Academy, the Welt clone "Welt-One," whom Otto had previously encountered, bellowed arrogantly.
On the ground before him lay several fallen Valkyries, their bodies broken and twisted like wrung-out rags.
He looked around haughtily. Though a dozen Valkyries surrounded him, there was not a trace of panic on his face.
This great one is the First Herrscher, Welt! These little girls should be praying to the gods!
A cruel smile spread across Welt-One's face as pseudo-black holes formed in his hands. Cocolia had ordered him to find the Third Herrscher hidden within St. Freya, but he had no idea how to find a Herrscher.
So, he decided to turn the place upside down. The Third Herrscher would have to come out obediently then, wouldn't she?
Dozens of mechs blocked the paths of numerous Valkyries, wreaking havoc across the campus. St. Freya Academy was a place for training Valkyries; its defenses were not particularly strong. In fact, a single being like Welt-One was enough to cause chaos (as seen in the Anti-Entropy Invasion manga arc).
This time, in addition to Welt-One, Cocolia had also deployed a large number of Titans.
She was truly desperate to capture the Herrscher of Thunder to cut her losses.
However, she was destined to lose everything.
---o---
In a battle not far from there, a fiery red figure weaved through the battlefield, but a dozen Titans clung to her like maggots on a corpse. With their coordinated attacks, she found it impossible to break free.
A red greatsword sliced a Titan in two. Murata Himeko took a deep breath. The moment the first explosion had sounded, she had donned her battlesuit and joined the fight.
And she had been pinned down almost immediately.
Even as the second-strongest individual at St. Freya, she was temporarily trapped while facing the coordinated assault of a dozen Titans. This was all within Cocolia's calculations; there were few Valkyries at the academy worthy of special attention.
Watching the Titans rampage, Himeko's heart burned with anxiety. She could hear the despairing cries of the students she had taught as they fled, and the instructors in their battlesuits were unable to quickly defeat the Titans, which were specifically designed to counter Valkyries.
Dammit!
Her Vermilion Knight suit was on the Hyperion, but if she broke away from the front line, the Titans would turn their fists on the others.
Himeko gritted her teeth. If she had her Vermilion Knight suit, supplied with energy from the Hyperion, she could match a Herrscher for a short time.
But there was no opportunity for that.
Her greatsword severed another Titan. The face of Captain Ragna flashed in Himeko's mind. With a ferocious roar, she charged into the pack of Titans like a wild beast, each swing of her blade severing a mechanical limb.
And a pair of calm eyes watched Himeko's battle from a distance.
"She really has grown so much."
Hidden in the shadows of the academy, Welt Yang observed Himeko's fighting form, a hint of gratification in his voice.
Himeko had been Welt's student. When she was in university, Welt had been one of her teachers. But after the accident involving her father, Himeko abandoned her studies to uncover the mystery of his disappearance, joining Schicksal to become a Valkyrie.
To be honest, this was the first time Welt Yang had been able to appreciate Himeko's combat style up close.
It was, one could say, an aesthetic of pure violence.
However, he only watched for a few moments before turning to leave.
Welt Yang didn't spare Welt-One a single glance.
As if in disdain.
And within that disdain, there was a hidden flicker of fury.
---o---
"Is there no one left? Is this all Schicksal's Valkyries have got? Is that it? Really? That's all?"
Welt-One continued his arrogant taunts. Despite possessing less than one percent of the original's power, that strength was still enough to overwhelm most of Schicksal's A-rank Valkyries.
"Hand over the Third Herrscher, now! Or this great one will kill you all!"
Welt-One was getting annoyed. His throat was sore from shouting. If he weren't afraid of accidentally hurting the Third Herrscher in hiding, he would have already flattened the area with a hundred times normal gravity.
Wait a minute.
If she's a Herrscher like this great one, she should be able to survive a hundred-G field, right?
In that case, let's just flatten everything!
A cruel grin spread across Welt-One's face. He raised his hands, Honkai energy gathering between his palms. In this moment, he felt like a god, with the lives of mortals held in the balance of his whim.
Though he was a clone of Walter Joyce, Welt-One truly believed himself to be the genuine First Herrscher.
He looked up at the night sky.
He could faintly perceive golden threads descending from above, like an emperor's canopy.
A crazed light flashed in his blue eyes.
"All of you can just die for this great one!"
The pseudo-black hole erupted. A terrifying force of one hundred times gravity pressed down. All the surrounding Valkyries were instantly forced to one knee, feeling an irresistible power that threatened to crush their bodies and snap their spines.
"You stop right there, you hear meeeeee!"
A piercing cry rang out. A white figure shot in front of all the Valkyries, her hair, as brilliant as moonlight, dancing in the air. Some of the more veteran Valkyries, seeing the back of the figure shielding them, called out instinctively.
"Lady Cecilia!?"
Cecilia had once had a massive following of admirers.
But as they focused their eyes, they realized that this figure was far more slender than the one in their memories.
Kiana, in her White Comet battlesuit and wielding dual pistols, stood before all the Valkyries.
Her azure eyes took in the surrounding wreckage and the fallen women on the ground. Her chest heaved, and a surge of rage rose within her.
She was an emotional person; she had met some of the people lying on the ground over the past few days.
Because she had gone to find Otto right after waking up, she hadn't tied her hair into its usual twin braids. Her long white hair cascaded down her back like a cape.
"Did you do this!?"
"All of this... was it you!?"
Kiana glared at the only male on the field, gripping her pistols tightly.
She genuinely liked St. Freya Academy. When her great aunt had first shown her around, Kiana could hear the pride in her voice.
But now, St. Freya had been ravaged into this state, a picture of devastation, as if it had been run over by a fleet of dump trucks.
This made her furious.
Welt-One didn't answer. He frowned, a faint sense of danger prickling at his senses.
His gaze passed over Kiana, landing on the cherry-blossom colored figure walking slowly forward.
Yae Sakura advanced with deliberate steps, dual katanas in hand. Each step was slow, but to Welt-One, it felt as if she were trampling on his heart.
She is dangerous.
Extremely dangerous!
Welt-One subconsciously took a step back. Then, he became enraged.
This great one... actually took a step back!?
The invincible me actually retreated?
This was unacceptable to him. His already unstable mind locked onto Yae Sakura, his expression promising a brutal death.
And he acted on it.
He swung his hands down, and the bone-crushing gravity pressed down once more.
Kiana's knees buckled. It felt as if a sledgehammer had struck her shoulders, and she nearly lost her footing.
Dammit, what is this power? I can barely move...
No, I have to stand up and beat that bastard! After all, I'm the protagonist!
Gritting her teeth, Kiana held her ground even under the immense gravity, refusing to let her knees bend.
But then, a cherry-blossom colored figure flashed past her.
And lightning split the night sky.
Kiana froze for a second. An arm flew through the air.
Yae Sakura now stood before Welt-One, her gaze cold and indifferent. She had no interest in him; she only cared about the things she cared about.
She had never been a good person.
Her blades had tasted the blood of countless people long ago.
She was a woman who was a perfect match for Otto.
The Seven Thunders of Retribution in her hands dripped with blood.
"Eh?"
Welt-One was stunned. He looked at his right arm. It fell from the sky and landed silently on the ground.
Eh? Why is my right arm on the ground?
What just happened?
Where's my hand?
Where's my hand!?
Yae Sakura said nothing. After severing his right arm with a single slash, she cleanly and efficiently plunged both her blades into his abdomen.
This was the God-Defying Miko: a woman of few words and many violent deeds.
Kiana was utterly frozen. Watching Yae Sakura take down Welt-One in an instant, she raised her left hand and pointed dumbly at herself.
Huh?
Wait... aren't I supposed to be the protagonist?