After a while, Otto finally walked out slowly, with a tiny Theresa following beside him.
Theresa's facial muscles were still stiff.
"The disaster in Changkong City remains vivid in our minds, yet humanity's war against the Honkai has only just begun..."
Every Schicksal branch had prepared for inspections, but Theresa had not expected her grandfather to single her out. She was still dissatisfied even now.
Otto's greatest virtue when speaking onstage was that his speeches were shorter than "just a few words."
Perhaps because he wanted to spend more time with his granddaughter, his speech was perfectly timed and ended right on schedule.
The next segment was the on-site drawing of lots.
Two people were itching to get started.
"Durandal, Durandal, Durandal..."
This girl only had her sister on her mind, all so she could get up close and personal with her in a moment.
Bronya looked at Kiana. "Idiot Kiana is about to get flattened."
"Hmph! It's still unclear who'll flatten whom!"
"With your zero win rate against the class monitor?"
The two started bickering again.
"Alright, alright, stop fighting," Raiden Mei said helplessly. "It's about to begin. Try to be serious."
Only then did the two call a truce.
Kiana made a face at Bronya, then turned to Bai Yan. "Xiao Yan, I remember you transferred here from headquarters. How much do you know about Durandal?"
Ragna writing her a recommendation letter was no secret to the academy principal's niece.
Raiden Mei and Bronya also turned their eyes toward Bai Yan curiously.
"My brother was fairly familiar with her, so he told me a few things.
"She's an exceptionally serious person. Ever since she was little, she aspired to become the strongest. Even though she's achieved that goal now, she still works harder than anyone else.
"Sigh, if you ever meet her, you'll feel that double despair of talent and hard work piled together."
Hearing Bai Yan put it that way, Kiana began to hesitate.
She sank into thought, though her gaze wandered everywhere. When it met Rita's, she realized Rita had been looking in her direction too.
Seeing this, Rita smiled and nodded in greeting.
Kiana blinked, then turned back to Bai Yan. "Is the other S-rank just as amazing?"
"That one is a normal S-rank. Durandal should be placed in a category of her own." Bai Yan looked elsewhere as she answered casually.
"Huh?"
"Don't worry. I believe Kiana won't be weaker than them in the future."
"Oh..."
After hearing Bai Yan say that, Kiana suddenly felt less confident.
In her mind, an inequality had already formed: Class Monitor < Rita < Durandal.
The image of Fu Hua repeatedly beating her up was still fresh in her mind. Whenever she thought of the class monitor's simple, direct punches that could hit her in the face at any moment, she felt pressure as heavy as Mount Tai.
She immediately shook her head, driving that feeling away.
"I'm a Kaslana genius, I'm a Kaslana genius..."
As the host, Rita, announced the start of the drawing, everyone around Bai Yan headed for the stage.
But just then, Rita suddenly beckoned to Bai Yan.
"?"
Bai Yan's heart skipped a beat when she saw it.
What was Sister Tazi up to?
But she did not hesitate and soon walked slowly over to Rita.
"Huh? Why did she call Xiao Yan over?"
"Maybe that S-rank thinks idiot Kiana isn't up to it and wants to replace you."
"If anyone's getting replaced, it'll be you, you loser!"
"Sigh..." Raiden Mei sighed.
Rita's eyes were full of amusement as she looked Bai Yan up and down, nodding slightly as though she were quite satisfied.
"Rita, what is this about?"
"Lady Durandal hoped you could participate in this event, but since you weren't on the competition roster, she specially reserved a commentator's seat for you."
"...Isn't she afraid I'll spout nonsense?" Bai Yan's mouth twitched.
"Perhaps, in her eyes, Xiao Yan is quite reliable." Rita lowered her gaze slightly.
So she just wanted to beat her up. Dumb Goose had quite a lot of resentment.
"She knows I can't actually go onstage and commentate, right?"
Rita merely smiled without answering.
Bai Yan understood and knowingly remained where she was instead of going down.
She asked casually, "There won't be any insider dealings in the drawing, will there?"
"Miss Kiana is indeed someone receiving a great deal of attention, but rest assured, Lady Durandal knows where to draw the line."
At once, Bai Yan's imagination began to run wild.
If she did not know the truth, she would only view this from the angle of a personal grudge.
But the problem was that those two were deeply connected, and Kiana was also at the core of Otto's plan.
Forget it. None of this was something she could interfere with. She would just let nature take its course.
"It's been so long since I last saw Rita. I've missed you so much~"
The girl in the ice-blue long dress took a light step forward and wrapped an arm around Rita's, looking extremely affectionate.
Fragrance lingered around them, and soft warmth filled her hands.
This was Bai Yan's first time acting like this toward her female superior.
She liked Sister Tazi's type too.
Rita froze slightly, then smiled in understanding.
"Honestly..."
She looked down at Bai Yan and quickly noticed a tiny flaw.
"Xiao Yan, why are you missing one earring?"
"This is called asymmetrical beauty."
"..."
Rita strongly disagreed with that explanation.
The earrings were obviously a pair. Wearing both of them was the perfect combination. How could one missing earring still be beautiful?!
A glimmer flashed in Rita's eyes as she considered how to deal with this girl while directing the pre-match preparations.
"Hey, Mei, look at them! Could Xiao Yan be close with that S-rank?!"
"Um... Bai Yan transferred from headquarters. It wouldn't be impossible for her to know Miss Rita."
"Hmph, hmph..."
Seeing Kiana stare at Rita while huffing like that, Raiden Mei felt rather unhappy.
Just then, Durandal arrived.
"What is that Durandal doing up there? Huh? Why is she talking to Xiao Yan? Don't tell me she's close with Xiao Yan too?"
"Probably..."
At that moment, Kiana had forgotten all about what Schicksal's strongest meant. She only wanted to have a proper match with that blonde Valkyrie.
Her fighting spirit had been thoroughly ignited.
Onstage, Durandal stared at Bai Yan without saying a word.
The girl in the ice-blue long dress released Rita and turned to face Bianca directly.
Using an excuse to get her away from the crowd might very well have been Rita acting on Durandal's instructions.
Though Bai Yan figured the idea had probably come from Rita...
"Long time no see."
"Mm..."
"Actually, I've missed you a little too, Bianca."
"Mm?!"
Xiao Yan slowly moved closer to Bianca, meeting her eyes at close range.
The next instant, while Bianca was still stunned, Xiao Yan suddenly launched a sneak attack.
The girl in the ice-blue long dress abruptly leaned in and wrapped an arm around the other girl's waist, their faces nearly pressed together.
A female voice softly sounded beside Bianca's ear.
"Fight well. I'll be cheering for you."
Then she abruptly pulled away. Only then did Durandal react, but she was completely at a loss.
"Hey! Why does she get to hug Lady Durandal?!"
"Exactly! How dare she?!"
"I'm so jealous... Wow, who is that girl? Does anyone have her contact information?"
The venue suddenly erupted into noise. Countless Valkyries began condemning Bai Yan, though envious voices were mixed in as well.
For some reason, Durandal's face felt a little hot. She stared at Bai Yan and opened her mouth, but ultimately only gave a cold snort. After quickly saying a few words to Rita, she headed offstage without looking back to prepare for the match.
Elsewhere, Kiana clenched her fists and remained silent, her fighting spirit rising at breakneck speed.
She walked to the drawing station, resolutely thrust her hand into the box, drew a slip with force, and eagerly opened it.
Dumb Goose: What Do You Mean, One Punch?
"Good!" Kiana quietly celebrated in a low voice.
She handed the slip to the Valkyrie guarding the box, then headed to the pre-match preparation room after speaking with her for a moment.
Seeing this, Bai Yan slipped into the preparation room right after her.
"Xiao Yan?"
"Shh, keep a low profile. I've already thrown Durandal off mentally. When you fight her later, use that special tactic I taught you before."
Kiana clenched her fists. "Got it! I'm not losing to her!"
"Don't care too much about winning or losing. As long as you land one punch on her face, you win."
"Xiao Yan, why don't even you have faith in me?!" Kiana complained indignantly.
"Oh, Kiana, don't be mad." Bai Yan grinned as she wrapped an arm around Kiana's waist from behind, the soft warmth in her arms deeply comforting. "I'm just giving the enemy plenty of credit."
"That's more like it... After I win, shall we go on a picnic together?" Kiana asked expectantly.
By picnic, she meant all five of them, including Bronya and Fu Hua, would go out together, and three of them would cook.
That way, she could eat until she was stuffed.
"Sure, sure, but will Mei be willing?"
"Uh, worst case, I'll try to persuade her then. Sigh, I don't know why, but Mei has always misunderstood you."
Before you continue