The Strike Team Reaches a Fork in the Road of Fate (Continued)

Although I've heard there's been some unpleasantness between Theresa and Otto, to be honest, Otto still dotes on Theresa quite a bit.

"It's my bad luck to get this kind of lousy job during the holidays."

Ragna felt like swearing.

"I think your attitude of doing your job well even though you clearly don't want to is really remarkable, Captain..."

Himeko complained, "Alright, alright, it's all in the past anyway. The person was taken away by that bishop, so from now on it has nothing to do with us."

"... That's right, it's alright—I hope so."

"... I mean, generally speaking, if someone sets up a flag like this, they're bound to get involved in something later, right?"

"Could you say something auspicious, Liu Bai?"

Two years later, in 2010, in France, at an orphanage.

Goodbye, Professor Ragna!

"You must come back after the flowers you taught us to grow bloom!"

"We'll be waiting for you!"

The children waved to Ragna, who had finished his volunteer work.

"So, Captain, you really do a proper job."

Himeko sat alone on the transport ship, watching Ragna, who was reluctant to part with the children, with a half-smile.

"Himeko, if you can't speak, you don't have to." Ragna said goodbye to the children while tapping Himeko on the head.

"Hmm~ Actually, I still miss the time you were at the maid cafe."

Himeko shrugged.

"Speaking of which, is it just my imagination? I think I saw a familiar face among those kids?"

"... You mean Bianka?"

"Who? Hmm... I have absolutely no recollection of them." Himeko pondered for a moment and then shook her head.

"Two years ago, Kolosten, Kiana Kaslana."

"Ugh... cough cough cough!"

Himeko almost choked on her own saliva.

"Wait a minute, wait a minute, how does Kiana resemble that blond kid at all?"

"Her current name is Bianka Atagina. If you call her by the wrong name and someone hears you, it will cause trouble—of course, her face, or more specifically, her facial features... Himeko, you're not the kind of person who can't recognize someone just because they change their hairstyle, are you?"

Ragna looked at Himeko suspiciously.

Liu Bai was also surprised. "Are your maids' memories a little too good?"

Did you meet Bianka at Schicksal at least ten times before?

Bianka has changed almost everything about her appearance, except for her face.

"After all, I was the one who retrieved her back then, so what's wrong with having a slightly deeper impression of her?" Ragna smirked. "By the way, what are the orders from above this time?"

"The pursuit of Siegfried from two years ago—intelligence indicates that he did not enter Anti-Entropy ...or rather, he did not fully enter Anti-Entropy's control range."

Himeko handed the tablet to Ragna.

"We're flying to Siberia to assemble. Several transport ships have been dispatched to pick us up. That bishop is really in a hurry."

Ragna took a look and his expression turned somewhat displeased.

"So, what kind of tragic fate is this..."

She had just served as a volunteer counselor for the other woman's daughter for a long time, and now she was going to arrest her father.

This feeling is really strange.

"What's the main objective? To arrest Siegfried or to recover K423?"

Although Ragna was somewhat annoyed, military orders were paramount.

"The tablets are all in your hands—the worst-case scenario wasn't mentioned."

"If this keeps up, I'm really going to have to apply for retirement."

Ragna put the tablet aside.

"What does Liu Bai think?"

"If you want my advice, I would definitely run away. I have connections with Anti-Entropy, so you can run away anytime you want."

This should be considered a key point in the plot, right?

In the original timeline, the entire assault team was wiped out here, encountering K423 in her Herrscher of Reason state... which is now Kiana, resulting in the death of everyone except Himeko.

... However, Ragna actually had a chance to withdraw.

Ragna died because he hesitated when he saw Kiana's childlike face while attacking her, which led to his demise.

Of course, apart from Ragna, everyone else was basically just there to feed the enemy...

"Oh~ So you've finally revealed your true feelings?"

Ragna joked with a smile.

"While your suggestion is somewhat tempting, defection is not something that can be decided with just a few words."

After all, factors such as family members need to be considered, and Ragna has no right to make decisions for his players.

"I just think you guys have no hope... Forgive me for being blunt, but the only way you can probably deal with Siegfried is to kidnap K423."

"... Undeniably true."

Ragna nodded with a wry smile.

There were two reasons why she was able to chase after Siegfried two years ago.

Firstly, Siegfried was on the run, and if he dared to look back at her, Siegfried would definitely not be able to escape.

Secondly, the stealth fighter that Siegfried stole was no match for the heavy fighter that Ragna was riding in.

The RPC-6626 crushes all fancy tricks. Do you even understand the value of Honkai Beast fighter? (Tactical lean back) Stealth fighters are so fragile that they don't even have the right to engage in a firefight with the RPC-6626.

... So it would be strange if Siegfried hadn't been shot down back then.

"Isn't there any other support?"

"I'd love to have one too," Ragna said helplessly. "The limit I can apply for is probably just one RPC-6626."

"..."

What's the use...?

That thing can only bully the short-armed S-Rank Valkyrie; Siegfried is clearly not short-armed.

On another note, Liu Bai glanced through his memories and realized that Rita seemed to have the shortest arms among the S-class characters.

Bianka can throw spears, Theresa may have short arms, but she can throw Judah's light spear, and Li Sushang has the ancestral mystical strike technique from Tai Xu Mountain...

It seems like Rita doesn't have any clear ranged abilities... which is really unexpected.

Ragna probably sensed Liu Bai's embarrassment as well.

"It's not like we're the only Valkyrie in Schicksal ... Liu Bai, you should be used to being the vanguard by now, right?"

Ragna looked completely unfazed.

Once they find Siegfried, a large force will naturally carry out the arrest.

"I'm afraid you'll get wiped out instantly."

Liu Bai glanced at his current compatibility with Himeko.

207%

Himeko, with her triple strength for ten seconds under the buff... well, let's just forget about it.

Although there is a possibility of a direct confrontation, this is certainly not the outcome Liu Bai desires.

"The idea of being instantly killed is really scary..."

Ragna returned the tablet to him.

"Don't worry, I will act cautiously once the operation begins. If any problems arise, I hope Liu Bai can point them out in time."

Ragna spoke with a sincere expression, but Himeko's expression began to darken.

Compared to Ragna, who didn't know much about Liu Bai, Himeko started to feel a bit numb halfway through the conversation.

What does Liu Bai mean by this? Does it mean that his own team will be instantly killed if they carry out this mission?

You better call in reinforcements! Call in reinforcements!

Call over Sister Ragna and that First Herrscher whom we've never met before!

Gang up on them! Gang up on them!

I refuse to believe I can be defeated like this!

"Don't worry, it's been shaken."

"Switch back to the private chat channel," Liu Bai replied.

"I had already sent the message privately via tablet. I just wanted to see if I could persuade Ragna. If I could just get the team to run away, it would save me a lot of trouble."

After all, no one can guarantee zero casualties if a real fight breaks out.

However, it is clear that under various restrictions, persuading Ragna with words is not an easy task—even though Liu Bai's persuasion skills are already quite high.

Persuasion skills are not hypnosis or charm...

(How long will it take to arrive?)

Himeko typed on the tablet.

"I don't know. Siegfried and Anti-Entropy are at a pretty bad point. At most, we know roughly where Siegfried is living in seclusion, but finding him would be quite difficult."

Liu Bai is also quite troubled. Although Edison is in charge, some things really haven't changed.

Okay, although Edison was a strong woman, she had exceptionally high moral standards.

Because Bianka's situation can basically be viewed as a death sentence—after all, falling from a thousand meters in the air and being hit on the head by spacecraft wreckage, it's practically saying "this character has no choice but to die."

So things become easier to understand.

The father had just lost his only daughter, who was left by his deceased wife, and Anti-Entropy should bear about 30% of the blame for this.

In this situation, it's difficult to offer advice or suggestions to anyone, especially since Edison's parents also passed away early, so there's bound to be some empathy involved.

If we're talking about someone who can advise others without considering the atmosphere, then Otto is the only one.

But Otto was able to appease Cecilia after blowing up Siegfried mainly because of Bianka...

"This matter has caused quite a stir..." Liu Bai sighed, "I will try my best to urge them on."

"..."

Ragna looked at Himeko typing on her tablet and Liu Bai suddenly falling silent, and felt a sense of unease.

Is this really a reliable thing?

Instant kill... No, she shouldn't have gone that far...

No, if they encountered Emperor-Class Honkai Beast, her team members could indeed be instantly killed.

Does Liu Bai mean that this time they might encounter an opponent of at least the level of Emperor-Class Honkai Beast?

How could he...?

No, now is not the time to consider that.

The most important thing now is, what if their opponent is really Emperor-Class Honkai Beast?

Even so-called heavy fighter jets are just toys in the hands of super-powerful enemies like the Emperor-Class Honkai Beast.

RPC-6626's most outstanding achievement was temporarily resisting the Emperor-Class Honkai Beast Ashva's half-body Child of Dawn.

Is this what they call guidance from Guardian Spirit?