Raiden Mei Is Full of Resolve

Himeko was giving the scores, shook her head and glared at Anqi with a rather helpless expression.

Funding for testing the mecha wasn't a problem. With Tachibana Yuki's full support, St. Freya was rolling in money and didn't care about such a small amount.

But at least give some face to the other students taking the test at the same time. What should we do if this performance, which is completely different from the others, damages the girls' confidence and enthusiasm?

Anqi looked at her fingers, lowered her head, and gazed shyly at Himeko.

What else could Himeko do?

She could only smile, give Anqi a thumbs-up in praise, and then gesture for her to make way for the next test subject.

When Anqi walked up to Kiana, the girl was clinging to Raiden Mei, just recovering from the shock of the mecha brushing past her.

"Anqi! That's too much! How dare you scare us? What if Mei got hurt?! You idiot! You naughty girl! You deserve a beating!"

"Omitted~~"

Anqi stuck out her tongue and made a face.

Kiana immediately bristled and was about to jump down to unleash her tickling skills.

Then, Raiden Mei pressed her head down to stop him.

"Alright, alright, you two stop fooling around. Kiana, you're a few years older, so give way to Anqi. Anqi, I believe you planned this all along, but there's a limit to pranks. Okay, now it's my turn. Are you going to cheer me on?"

"Go for it, Mei!"

"Go for it, Mei!"

Raiden Mei comforted the two girls, giving them a high-five before calmly walking towards the testing area.

What followed was a fierce and exciting battle.

Anqi watched intently.

Kiana seized the opportunity to hug her from behind, like hugging a large doll, resting her chin on Anqi's head, stroking Anqi's incredibly soft cheeks, and said:

"Damn it, I never thought you'd be the obstacle on my path to becoming the strongest Valkyrie! Just you wait, I'll defeat you one day! Damn, it feels so good, I want to hug it and sleep with it!"

The words were initially competitive, but in the end they became distorted.

'Ah, this incredibly soft texture, this sweet scent... if I could hug it to sleep, I wouldn't have nightmares, right?'

Kiana glanced at Himeko, who was seriously evaluating and scoring, and couldn't help but feel a little envious.

I feel like Teacher Himeko has been getting better and better lately. She smiles more, is more gentle, and even her skin has become smoother and more radiant—it must be a perk she gets from having Anqi all to herself!

I, Kiana, am so craving it too!

"Sleep with me tonight, Anqi!"

"No, I want to be with Himeko!"

"Aren't you two always together? Just one night, just one night with me, please!"

"Hmm..."

Anqi certainly prefers the feel of Himeko's open and honest touch, but Kiana's cute and silly coquettishness is also hard to resist.

Who should I favor?

Anqi hesitated for a moment, then said softly:

"How about we go together?"

"Great! It's settled then!"

Kiana isn't picky; whether it's Anqi or Himeko, the feel of Himeko is perfect, they just have their own unique flavor.

"I feel like I've been tricked by Kiana!"

"No way! I'm so cute, this is a perk, a perk, you know what I mean!"

Kiana pouted and pinched Anqi's cheek in an annoyed manner.

Then, amidst the comforting feeling, she couldn't help but yawn again and started to feel sleepy.

A while ago, I suddenly felt much lighter, and an inexhaustible energy welled up from within, as if some kind of shackle I used to wear had been removed.

Thanks to this, both Honkai Energy and the body have become more easily controlled, resulting in a rapid improvement in combat ability.

However, at the same time, she began to have nightmares more and more frequently, dreaming that another version of herself was frantically chasing her—although in effect it seemed to sharpen her fighting spirit, it also made her more and more prone to mental exhaustion.

"Has the medical department still not found a problem?"

"No, they say I'm very healthy, almost too healthy. My aunt is even planning to take me to see a psychologist recently, but I feel like there's nothing wrong with me, and nightmares don't seem to affect me at all."

"Are you sure? Didn't you say you were being chased in your dreams?"

"That's what she says, but I always feel like she doesn't mean any harm. Hmm, I can't quite put my finger on it, but she's a hundred times better than before!"

Kiana raised her biceps, showing off her strong yet well-proportioned and cute biceps, and said with a grin.

'What amazing ancestral intuition!'

Anqi felt the soft, comfortable warmth of Kiana against her back and subtly curled the corners of her lips into a smile.

What malice could she, the Herrscher of the Void, Anqi harbor?

It was just a dream, helping Kiana release the excess energy she had after relieving her burden.

Who could bear to hurt the incredibly cute and irresistible Qi Maomao?

"Look, look! Mei did it too!"

As Raiden Mei plunged her scalpel into the core of the mecha, a dazzling current screamed as it poured in, electrifying the test mecha and causing it to spark and produce smoke, Kiana jumped up excitedly.

However, Raiden Mei is not the last one; the testing will continue.

As the sun set, the group began their journey home.

Kiana chattered incessantly at Raiden Mei, only to be repeatedly separated by Bronya to prevent this inconsiderate girl from acting crazy in public.

Anqi held Himeko's hand tightly, occasionally talking to Fu Hua beside her.

Although Himeko has become increasingly feminine lately, and although Fu Hua couldn't resist Anqi's requests and Kiana's enthusiasm, officially moving into Himeko's villa, St. Freya's daily life remained unchanged. Everything was peaceful, making one reluctant to let anything change.

Chapter 143 Raiden Mei was filled with determination

"Snap!"

In the kitchen, amidst the clash of knives and the fluttering of ingredients, Kiana casually grabbed a freshly washed cucumber, leaned it against the refrigerator door, and began to chew on it with gusto.

Because it was a rare occasion for Kiana to pass all her subjects, and she didn't even need to retake the theory classes, which she always struggled with, Kiana received the unanimous indulgence of the Kitchen Triumvirate, who allowed her to sneak a bite in the kitchen today.

Incidentally, the so-called Kitchen Triumvirate refers to Raiden Mei, the "Master of Pots and Herrscher of Food," Anqi, the "Master of a Thousand Cooking Techniques, the Young and Top-Tier Chef," and Fu Hua, the "Most Talented, the Master of Shenzhou Cuisine, the Immortal of Pickled Vegetables."

They are the rulers of the kitchen, the masters who deserve the utmost gratitude from all diners!

"Speaking of which, Anqi, your assigned task got snatched again? This is the third time. Did you offend your aunt and she's deliberately blocking your application? Hahaha!"

Kiana leaned against the refrigerator door, suddenly remembered this incident, and then chuckled with schadenfreude.

Anqi, Raiden Mei, and Fu Hua suddenly paused for a moment.

Anqi knew perfectly well that they were deliberately blocking her, preventing her from accumulating contributions and slowing down her progress towards A-level.

Raiden Mei and Fu Hua also understood that every day they were delayed in advancing to Rank A meant a day later in gaining access to the Changkong City incident files and a day later in learning the painful truth.

Or perhaps everyone was tacitly aware of the situation, except for the simple-minded Kiana who didn't think much of it and simply felt that Anqi was unlucky.

"It doesn't matter. With my strength, I'll have a chance to advance sooner or later. Being a little slower won't affect anything. I can just consider it as continuing to accumulate strength. Anyway, it's better than Kiana's forever stuck in theory classes!"

Anqi said quietly, while expressionlessly reaching out and forcibly prying open Kiana's mouth, stuffing in a freshly fried chicken nugget.

"Ugh!!!"

The carefree Cabbage Worm screamed and ran out, burning up but unwilling to spit out the freshly fried chicken nuggets, forced to endure the pain.

A few minutes later, Kiana, her lips red, ran back and pressed her two fists against Anqi's temples.

"You really dare! It's burning me!"

"Who told Kiana to gloat!"

"Hey! I'm just trying to be helpful and remind you to think carefully about whether you've offended your period. If you have, go apologize right away! Where am I gloating?"

"Ugh! Shameless!"

The two girls argued and fought fiercely, completely ignoring the stove and the boiling oil pot next to them.

Raiden Mei and Fu Hua quickly stepped in, one pulling Kiana away and the other comforting Anqi.

"Kiana, Anqi, the kitchen isn't a place for you to play around!"

"If this keeps up, we won't have time for dinner."

The two tried to persuade him gently.

Kiana puffed out her cheeks, thinking about her dinner, and had no choice but to give in. She pointed at Anqi and said:

"I'll remember this grudge, and I'll teach you a lesson next time!"

"Omitted~~"

Anqi leaned against Fu Hua's smooth tongue and retorted with a sly face.

Kiana didn't respond, but casually tossed in another piece of fried chicken before walking out of the kitchen, satisfied.

Only then were the three cooks able to prepare their meals in peace.

But amidst the gradually increasing aroma of the food, Fu Hua and Raiden Mei couldn't help but secretly glance at Anqi's earnest figure.

Fu Hua sighed inwardly, feeling both helpless and pity.

Raiden Mei's originally cheerful mood was filled with deeper guilt and sadness, and she could only hide it with a forced smile until the end of dinner.

So, the next day, when Kiana went out shopping as agreed, she saw the blue color under Raiden Mei's eyes.

Those were the marks left by sleepless nights.

"Mei, you're not happy."

Kiana handed the ice cream to Raiden Mei, her brows furrowed in concern.

Raiden Mei paused for a moment, then smiled.

"No, it's just a small matter."

"Mei can't lie to me, I can sense it."

"... Kiana, you're usually so carefree and thoughtless, but at times like this, you're so perceptive that it leaves us speechless."

"That's right! Who told me to like Mei the most! Wait a minute, what does 'carefree and thoughtless' mean? Is Mei saying I'm an idiot!?"

Kiana licked her ice cream with her little pink tongue, put one hand on her hip, and questioned her unhappily.

Raiden Mei smiled, but she understood that Kiana wasn't angry; she was just trying to distract her. After accepting the gesture, Raiden Mei looked at the bustling weekend pedestrian street, sighed silently, and said:

"The headmistress is preventing Anqi from advancing to A-rank. I know she's trying to help me, but she shouldn't be doing this. I'm already aware of that."

"Mei, you..."

"The first thing Anqi will do after her promotion will definitely be to find the truth—but what I'm worried about now is not the truth, but that she herself is tacitly accepting this delay."

"I... I'm a little confused, Mei, tell me to slow down."

Kiana scratched her head and said weakly.

If she really thought about it, she could understand the key point—why did Anqi acquiesce to being delayed? It was simply because she had also guessed something, so she subconsciously resisted that truth.

"Anqi is very smart. Raiden Zaibatsu is the most famous company in Changkong City, and I am the daughter of the Raiden Family. In addition, the three of us enrolled in school shortly after the Changkong City incident... The principal's delay may have further confirmed some of Anqi's conjectures."

Raiden Mei smiled gently, a hint of sadness in her light purple eyes.

Kiana lowered her head, her small face showing conflict and guilt, and said:

Did I say something wrong last night?

"No, it has nothing to do with Kiana. It's because I'm too weak that I keep putting it off. Teacher Yang taught me a lot, but I finally realized that what I lack most is the courage and determination to face and solve problems."

"Mei, what exactly are you trying to say?"

"I appreciate the principal's kindness, but please tell her to stop. Let Anqi do what she wants. If she wants to know, none of us have the right to stop her. It's her right."