"Valkyrie of Schicksal, you cannot approach any further."
In a deserted alleyway, Joyce looked at the beautiful young girl a few meters ahead with a heavy gaze. The Divine Key, Star of Eden, hovered above his right palm; he did not dare to be careless.
He had learned about the current Schicksal through various channels and naturally recognized the person in front of him.
Rita Rossweisse—one of the three active S-rank Valkyries of Schicksal, a Valkyrie specializing in hunting missions, and the Vice-Captain of Schicksal's strongest Valkyrie squad, Immortal Blades.
One had to admit that the Schicksal organization during this period was in its most prosperous era in history, and Anti-Entropy was currently unable to contend with it.
"I assume you are Mr. Welt Joyce. Rita Rossweisse is honored to meet you."
Rita, dressed in a neat maid uniform, gave an elegant bow. Her burgundy eyes intentionally glanced at the Star of Eden as she spoke in a kind tone, "You need not hold hostility toward me. My goal is the same as yours: to protect Lady Lierre and Lady Theresa."
Not only can she 'resurrect' the dead, but she can even replicate and bring out Divine Keys. Lady Lierre is truly incredible.
It was no wonder the Overseer was so invested in her, even pushing Lady Theresa and Lady Lierre together regardless of public opinion.
After all, Lady Lierre's potential was limitless; she naturally had to be firmly under Schicksal's control.
Had it been her, she would have done the same.
However, if she could not be used by Schicksal... there was a saying that what one cannot have, one must destroy.
Since the first Herrscher of Reason and Cheng Lixue had appeared, Lierre and Theresa had to be together—even if they were just acting, the fake had to become real!
Because Lierre's potential threat was far too great, she had to be tied to Schicksal's chariot!
And Rita's arrival was precisely for this reason.
"I'm sorry, I still cannot let you pass."
"May I hear your reason for stopping me?"
"This is my duty. Furthermore, I do not belong to Schicksal, and I cannot trust you absolutely. Please understand."
Joyce's attitude did not yield in the slightest.
Based on his understanding of Otto, sending Rita to approach Lierre might indeed be to protect her, but that was only one objective; the other layer was likely for surveillance.
If Lierre intended to oppose Schicksal, Rita, acting as a guard, might have to act to eliminate the future trouble.
"Hehehe... Please rest assured, I will not make things difficult for you."
Rita chuckled softly, then said, "After all, before long, once Lady Lierre and Lady Theresa have successfully become engaged, you will essentially be one of us in Schicksal as well."
Although she didn't have much information, she had deduced that those summoned by Lady Lierre likely could not resist her orders.
Otherwise, why would Joyce willingly stand guard at a gate?
Rita was very beautiful, and her smile was quite pleasing to the eye.
But Joyce had no desire to appreciate it; his current mood could be described as absolutely terrible.
Meanwhile.
Inside a living room with tightly drawn curtains, dozens of people were tied up. Some were silent, some looked ashen, and some looked in terror at Cheng Lixue and Cecilia inside the room.
"Senior Cecilia, through interrogation, these people are all eyes from Anti-Entropy, acting under Cocolia's orders to watch Lierre. However, they do not know Cocolia's specific objective."
Cheng Lixue held a birdcage containing several trained carrier pigeons. "This is the method they use to pass intelligence to each other."
Cecilia: "?"
Is it this primitive?
"Did you ask why they use carrier pigeons?"
"They say that Anti-Entropy's communication system has been hacked multiple times, leading Cocolia to distrust it now."
"This... could a top-tier hacker have breached their main system?"
"They aren't sure, but it seems to be related to Lierre."
...
"What a coincidence, I didn't expect you to be here too."
Kiana, feigning surprise, sat down at Lierre and Theresa's table. She propped up her chin, looking at the two with a smile. "So, which stage are you at now? Have you reached the 'Kiss' stage yet?"
"What are you blabbering about!"
Theresa lunged forward and covered Kiana's mouth, looking around in a panic, worried that others had heard.
You're here to cause trouble, aren't you!
"Mmph, mmph!"
Kiana jerked her head back to break free, spat a few times, and complained to Lierre, "Auntie, control your girlfriend! She didn't even wash her hands before covering my mouth."
Girlfriend?
Those words struck Theresa's heart like a heavy hammer, her cheeks heating up rapidly.
"Kiana! Don't just say whatever comes to mind!" Theresa said crossly, raising a fist in a threatening gesture.
"Hey! Don't hit me, I didn't do anything wrong."
Kiana quickly stood up and hid behind Lierre.
"Now, that's where you're wrong. Kiana isn't talking nonsense. Are you not my girlfriend?"
Lierre stood up and held back the restless Theresa, shielding Kiana behind her.
"B-b-b-but..."
Theresa wanted to argue.
But realizing she was, in a sense, indeed Lierre's girlfriend, she had to give up the argument.
Looking at the blushing Theresa staring at her, Kiana actually thought back over her words for once.
A moment later, she realized there was a flaw in her phrasing.
"Um, sorry, my words just now were indeed incorrect."
Kiana scratched the back of her head with an embarrassed expression.
Bad luck, I accidentally misspoke.
Theresa: "?"
I finally managed to convince myself to accept the term, and now you're changing your tune?
"She's not blaming you. I still have a few takoyaki left; have some."
Worried that Kiana might cause more trouble, Lierre handed over the half-finished box of takoyaki.
"Forget the food for a second."
Kiana shook her head in refusal with a look of regret, then switched to a serious tone. "I truly did mispeak. You two are people who are about to get married. I should have said: Auntie, control your fiancée!"
The moment she said this, the people nearby stopped what they were doing and turned their gazes toward Lierre and Theresa.
"Is that girl really not joking? Those two lolis, even smaller than her, actually have a marriage contract?!"
"My god, this news is explosive."
"Damn, if this is true, their guardians are really reckless!"
"Ignoring the facts, they are both so cute. I ship this couple!"
...
Hearing the discussions of the people around them, Theresa's body couldn't stop trembling. She was so shy that steam was practically rising from the top of her head.
"Ki—a—na!"
Theresa glared at Kiana in shame and indignation. "I see... you're definitely doing this on purpose. You're here to make a fool of me, aren't you?!"
With that, she prepared to teach Kiana a lesson.
"Kiana, run!"
Lierre spread her arms to block Theresa, reminding Kiana to get away.
She couldn't bear to let Kiana take a beating because of her.