『 "This is O-17. Are these… the remnants of Valkyrie armor? It seems the Valkyrie squad in this area has been completely wiped out!"
Theresa picked up a fragment, examined it, and then nodded in understanding.
"But these damaged mechs are still transmitting, making headquarters mistakenly believe the Second Herrscher is here."
"To think she can even control Valkyrie armor… just how powerful has the Second Herrscher's ability become?"
This discovery filled Theresa with growing unease. If the Second Herrscher's power had already reached this level, she and Siegfried would likely find it very difficult to stop her before Cecilia arrived.
"Theresa! Stop spacing out! The real Second Herrscher should be at O-23. We have to hurry!"
After reminding Theresa, Kiana was about to head toward O-23, but before taking more than a few steps, she pointed at a helicopter in the sky and shouted to Theresa, "Wait! A huge helicopter is coming our way!"
Theresa looked in the direction Kiana was pointing. Once she saw the helicopter clearly, her mouth fell open in shock, wide enough to fit an egg.
"That is… Destiny's anti-Honkai Beast class heavy helicopter. Can the Second Herrscher even control something like that?"
"She probably wants to use this helicopter to stall us. Kiana, shoot it down as quickly as possible."
"NEKO CHARM!!!"
A yellow runic matrix appeared above the aircraft, and from it emerged a highly technological cat leg, slamming heavily down onto the helicopter. 』
『 ....』
〘Zhao〙: Oh my, that move shares a striking similarity to yours. @Dialyn
〘Dialyn〙: The world is full of wonders; it's quite common. But I give that cat paw print a perfect score.
....
『 Subsequently, with Theresa's help, Kiana dealt with the helicopter, but the two of them still lost a lot of time because of it.
"Sigh, we've been delayed for quite a while. If this side was a decoy, then the Second Herrscher must be at O-23."
"Kiana, we must head there immediately. Headquarters, how long will it take to get to O-23 from here?"
The operator responded immediately, "15 minutes at the fastest."
"Connect me to Siegfried. Tell him he must stall the Second Herrscher at all costs. He absolutely cannot let her get near the 'Tower'!"
After instructing the operator, Theresa immediately hung up the communication and dashed toward the area where Siegfried was with Kiana. They hadn't run far before they received a transmission from Siegfried, who still had that cynical tone in his voice.
"Theresa, I heard the operator's report. It seems the Second Herrscher is heading my way."
"Hmph, looks like my luck is better."
"Siegfried, don't try to be a hero! I'll be there in 10 minutes!" Theresa warned Siegfried not to push himself while running and promised she would arrive soon.
"10 minutes? Ah, right, Theresa. When you fought the Second Herrscher earlier, how long did it take from the start of the battle to your defeat?"
After a moment of silence, Theresa gave her answer heavily, "…4 minutes and 50 seconds."
Hearing Theresa's answer, Siegfried lamented, "Oh boy, that's terrible news. I can see the Second Herrscher now. So, does that mean I have to hold out for twice as long?"
"If you can avoid a direct confrontation…"
Looking at Sirin walking toward him in the distance, Siegfried let out a helpless sigh to Theresa over the communicator, "Sigh, forget it. Besides, a stalling operation never really suited my style anyway. Alright, Theresa, I'll try to eliminate the Second Herrscher right here."
"Hey! As I thought, did you plan on using the Judgment of Shamash to take her down with you from the very beginning?! Siegfried!" Theresa yelled.
"Of course. Goodbye, Theresa," Siegfried responded lightheartedly, as if it were just a trivial matter of what to drink tonight.
"Oh, right. Take good care of Cecilia and Kiana for me."
Entrusting the two people he worried about most to Theresa, Siegfried cut off the communication.
"Wait! Siegfried!" 』
『 ....』
〘Kiana Kaslana〙: You stupid dad! Always trying to look cool! Idiot, idiot, big idiot!
〘Siegfried〙: Cough, cough, aren't I still here?
....
『 "Siegfried, don't do anything foolish! Kiana, we must speed up." Theresa put away her communicator and turned to urge Kiana, who was behind her.
"Theresa, you just said that after using the Judgment of Shamash, Siegfried would die with the Second Herrscher. What's that about?"
"The Judgment of Shamash is the heirloom weapon of the Kaslana family. Even among all the Divine Keys in Destiny, its destructive power is second to none," Theresa explained as she ran.
"Especially when the dual pistols break their seal, releasing Honkai energy to transform into the Greatsword of Fire. No matter what kind of enemy they face, they will be turned to ash."
"Stupid dad… to think he's that amazing," Kiana muttered after hearing this. As if remembering something, her face turned as pale as paper.
(Wait, the Greatsword of Fire… I seem to have seen it somewhere. It seems to be on the night Dad went missing… Damn it!)
Her memory seemed to have been cut off by someone at this point. The more Kiana tried to recall, the more her head hurt.
Noticing Kiana's distress behind her, Theresa asked with concern, "Kiana, what's wrong?"
Kiana shook her head, indicating she was fine, just having a sudden headache.
Theresa nodded and continued explaining the Judgment of Shamash.
"But after unleashing the Greatsword of Fire, the surging Honkai energy will turn the user to ash at the same time."
"Before Siegfried, three members of the Kaslana family had already died from using the Judgment of Shamash."
"How can that be! No! We can't let stupid dad die here!" 』
『 ....』
〘Stelle〙: Hmm… Since Shamash is extreme heat, couldn't I just use extreme cold to neutralize it?
〘Mobius〙: Not bad, little one. You've already grasped the most superficial aspect of the MANTIS surgery I performed on Kevin.
〘Elysia〙: Yes, and the price was that our bright and cheerful Kevin has now become like an air conditioner, surrounded by cold air all over♪
〘Pardo〙: But Boss Kevin uses Shamash's ultimate move as a basic attack. Overall, Dr. Mobius's surgery still did more good than harm. Plus, standing next to Boss Kevin in the summer is really cool.
〘Siegfried〙: Uses the ultimate move as a basic attack??! And this is what they call 'not powerful'?
{Let us shift our perspective to Siegfried, who is currently standing alone against the Second Herrscher}
....
『 Drip— Drip— Drip—
Blood dripped onto the snow one drop at a time. Accompanied by Siegfried's heavy panting, the perspective slowly panned up.
"Huff… Huff… Theresa, aren't you here yet?"
As he finished speaking, the perspective finally showed Siegfried's face. At this moment, the blood flowing from his left forehead left a crimson trail over his left eye, and there was plenty of blood on the corners of his mouth.
He held the Shamash Greatsword in his right hand, propping it on the ground, while his left hand wiped the blood from his chin.
"As expected, are your legs just too short?" 』
『 ....』
〘Theresa Apocalypse〙: Siegfried! You bastard! Even at a time like this, you're still making fun of me?!
〘Siegfried〙: That's just my personality. Besides, I'm speaking the truth. Your legs really are short.
....