Anna Schariac's spirits were running high, even though she hadn't slept the entire night.
She sat in the transport aircraft with her legs together, both hands resting uneasily on her thighs.
Her heart was uneasy, because the Overseer of Schicksal had taken notice of her.
Last night, right after finishing her bath, she'd received notice from Headquarters. She'd actually been ordered to report before tomorrow morning and accept the Lord Overseer's personal guidance.
After receiving that notice, Anna hadn't even bothered to dry off. Still dripping wet, she'd jumped up in her room.
The Schariac family held a special kind of feeling toward Overseer Otto.
It was a loyalty carved into the bone.
Even Cecilia would stop saving civilians under Otto's orders.
This came from Otto's brainwashing-style education. From childhood, the idea of being loyal to the Lord Overseer had been drilled into them.
But there were exceptions, like Siegfried Kaslana. When he was young, he'd watched some mecha anime made by ME Corp, and because he didn't want to be bound by duty, he ran away from home.
Animation really did ruin people.
But Anna wasn't the anime-brained type. She was absolutely loyal to Overseer Otto, and now that she'd actually been summoned to receive guidance from that great existence, her heart was full of excitement.
She packed her luggage overnight and said goodbye to her teammates. Even though she was reluctant to leave the teammates and captain she'd already grown close to, Anna still chose to head for Headquarters.
Overseer Otto's orders stood above everything.
But now, sitting inside the transport aircraft with Schicksal Headquarters drawing near, unease started rising in her heart.
She was happy that Overseer Otto had chosen her. But she doubted whether she could live up to the Lord Overseer's expectations.
The girl was the sentimental sort. She worried that if she performed too poorly, the Lord Overseer might end up disappointed in her.
That made her clench her fists. Then, with a light shudder, the transport aircraft came to a stop.
Anna Schariac had stepped off the track of history. She had come to Schicksal Headquarters to serve Overseer Otto.
The hatch opened and sunlight slipped in. Anna saw that someone was already standing on the landing pad.
White hair braided into a single plait, crystalline goggles over her face, a black nun's habit on her body.
It was Lady Amber!
Anna hurried to her feet. She didn't even bother taking her luggage. She got off the transport aircraft, stood in front of Amber, and saluted.
"B-rank Valkyrie Anna Schariac, reporting in!"
Anna didn't dare show Amber even the slightest disrespect. Amber might not be a Valkyrie, but she was the Lord Overseer's secretary.
And after every Valkyrie reserve passed selection and became a full Valkyrie, she had to come to Headquarters to swear an oath. Sometimes the Lord Overseer attended that ceremony himself, but most of the time it was Miss Amber who attended in his place. The fact that she could stand in for the Lord Overseer at all said everything about her status.
"Mm." Amber nodded.
Anna's energy and spirit both looked decent. As the Lord Overseer's secretary, Amber also served as his advisor. If the incoming party's attitude was too poor, she had the authority to offer the Lord Overseer her recommendations.
"Someone will take your luggage to the quarters prepared for you. Come with me first."
Amber said this, then turned and walked off. Anna didn't dare disobey. She quickened her pace and followed.
"May I ask where we're going?" Anna asked timidly. It wasn't that she'd never been to Schicksal Headquarters before. As a member of the Schariac family, she'd spent a long stretch of her childhood here, receiving the Lord Overseer's education.
"Lord Overseer wants to see you." Amber's tone was gentle. She'd likely be dealing with this girl a great deal going forward.
"L-Lord Overseer!?" She could already see him the moment she got off the aircraft? Anna was so flustered she didn't know what to do with her hands. Only after a long pause did she manage to ask:
"Is his lordship in good health?"
She'd seen the Lord Overseer when she was little, but that impression had grown blurry by now.
"Mm. Lord Overseer is doing very well."
Other than seeming even more inclined to slack off these past few days, there was no problem.
Amber answered. After thinking about it, she decided she should still offer Anna a little reassurance. The girl looked terribly nervous.
"When you're in front of Lord Overseer, don't be too timid. Lord Overseer treats Valkyries very well."
"From here on, you may end up staying by Lord Overseer's side. Remember one thing: whatever Lord Overseer says, you must obey unconditionally."
Overseer Otto liked obedient people. Rita, Durandal, Cecilia, and Amber herself were all that sort.
On the way to Otto's quarters, Amber shared her experience, and Anna listened carefully, committing every lesson from her senior to memory.
Miss Amber really was a good person.
Before she knew it, Anna wasn't as nervous anymore. Amber's words had helped steady her a little.
But the moment they stopped in front of the Lord Overseer's door, Anna's heart rose into her throat again. She was about to meet the greatest man in Schicksal.
Amber looked at Anna, who had frozen in place, then stepped up and knocked.
"Come in." A man's calm voice came from inside.
Amber placed a hand on the girl's back and gave her a push.
"It's alright."
Miss Amber's comforting voice came by her ear, and then the door opened.
Amber walked into the room first, and Anna trailed behind her, taut with fear and tension.
The moment she stepped inside, the space opened up before her.
Not daring to look anywhere else, Anna fixed her gaze on the only desk in the room. A blond man sat in the chair, studying the screen with a grave expression.
Memories from childhood stirred back to life. Overseer Otto was the same as he had always been — looking down over everything. His gaze was sharp. Even though Anna couldn't see the screen from where she stood, he was presumably studying how to make Schicksal develop even better.
Otto looked at the two girls who had come in through the door and, without a word, saved and closed Mount & Blade.
Last night, he'd wanted to get a good night's sleep. But having arrived five hundred years in the future, his emotions had been a little too wound up, and he couldn't sleep.
So he got up and started fiddling with the computer, only to discover this game.
Out of curiosity, he gave it a try. It was only when Amber knocked just now that he realized morning had already come.
He rubbed both cheeks with his hands. His eyes were a little tired.
He narrowed them slightly and looked at the two girls walking in. The one in goggles was Amber, which meant the girl beside her should be Anna Schariac.
"Mm. Amber, I'll talk with her for a while."
Otto said this because he didn't dare talk to Anna in front of Amber, afraid that something off about him might be noticed.
"Yes, Lord Overseer." Amber answered. Next would be the Lord Overseer instructing Anna. What a lucky girl.
Amber left the room. The door slowly closed, and only Anna and Otto remained.
Hearing the door shut, Anna shrank a little. And when she noticed Otto's gaze settle on her, she unconsciously straightened her posture — chest up, back taut.
"Don't be nervous." Otto smiled. He could tell this girl was nervous. He'd already gone through Anna's file yesterday, so he understood a little about her.
"B-rank Valkyrie Anna Schariac, right?"
Otto asked in a friendly tone. If nothing went wrong from here, this girl would become one of the first members of his own little circle.
She looked quiet and well-behaved. From first impressions alone, Otto felt she'd be a good child.
Good children were good. Otto liked good children.
And Anna's age was close to his real age, so he felt a kind of closeness toward her too.
Anna felt as if she were at an interview. Her hands were clasped behind her back, her body stiff, her mind a complete blank.
Faced with a man like a legend, she had clearly lost her nerve.
"How old are you?" Otto asked casually, the way someone would make small talk, trying to ease the girl's nervousness.
Blood rushed to the girl's head. She couldn't hear the words clearly. Almost without thinking, Anna said:
"B."