Collapse, Kiana's Cross-Dressing Strategy, Chapter 28

"Sigh, if it weren't for all these people here—I'll let it slide this time, see you next time."

The shadowy figure said with a relaxed tone, then turned and disappeared into the mecha army.

Bai Yan lowered his greatsword, his forehead slightly sweaty.

His hands were numb, and he was completely drained of strength, his legs trembling.

The shadowy figure's strength far surpassed Raiden Mei's. Even a momentary sensory deprivation consumed a great deal of energy.

If it were a one-on-one fight, Bai Yan would have his greatsword knocked away and be defeated in one move by the opponent's skill.

Durandal was able to provide swift support because she had noticed Bai Yan's abnormality from the very beginning.

Based on her understanding of Bai Yan, she knew he must have noticed the truly important aspect, so she constantly monitored his situation to provide support at any moment.

When she noticed Bai Yan making a move, Durandal immediately picked up her lance and threw it, then quickly moved in to provide support.

She could feel that the shadowy figure was not weak, otherwise, she wouldn't have come.

At this very moment, as the shadowy figure failed to snatch the person and retreated, the mecha forces immediately resumed their covering fire.

This time, another S-rank Valkyrie from Schicksal also moved.

Rita, at some point, had picked up her scythe and flashed into the mecha formation, reaping them.

The sturdy mecha bodies shattered like cutting melons and vegetables before her.

The Valkyrie charge squad also began their assault.

Led by Ragna, they disrupted the mecha formation, immediately causing losses to the Anti-Entropy and World Serpent allied forces.

Jackal stopped speaking and quickly activated her aircraft.

The Welt clone hurriedly unleashed a gravity field with all its might, then squeezed out its remaining strength to create a mecha to block Theresa, before staggering back onto the aircraft.

The aircraft quickly ascended, disappearing into the distance after accelerating.

The remaining mechas immediately converted into quantum state, with more than half teleporting away.

Not long after, the allied forces had completely fled, as if it were a joke, leaving without any hesitation.

Everyone from Schicksal was a bit stunned, completely unable to comprehend the enemy's intentions.

Himeko had already picked up her weapon, ready to protect the trainee Valkyries beside her, but the greatsword in her hand never got a chance to move.

They caused a big commotion, then got beaten up in return, and finally fled in disgrace.

What kind of performance art was that?

Bai Yan pondered for a long time but couldn't understand what these people meant. He had even distracted himself by worrying beforehand, whether to guard against Bronya's betrayal or against Raiden Mei being captured.

In the end, he felt that Bronya, without her Heavy Cannon, was safer, so he chose the other side.

After all, in such a situation, if Cocolia were hiding in the shadows controlling Bronya, it would be like pointlessly offering a pawn for the opponent to play with.

His prediction was useful, but he hadn't expected the other side to suddenly run out of steam.

Raiden Mei came back to her senses and walked up to Bai Yan with a complicated expression: "Um, thank you."

"Don't mention it, we're all on the same side."

Her expression became even more complicated, so she ran off to thank Durandal, as if to cover up some emotion in her heart.

The battle ended. Durandal exchanged pleasantries with Raiden Mei, then followed her to Bai Yan and the others.

Volume 1: Chapter 35: Rita Arrives in Far East

"Any leads?"

As soon as she approached, Durandal asked Bai Yan, causing Kiana and the others nearby to glance over.

"If World Serpent's target was something else, then making a fuss here would be reasonable—after all, the invincible Durandal is here."

Mid-sentence, the female voice's tone changed, making Durandal's skin crawl and her toes want to start building foundations.

But thinking that Bai Yan had a mission, she could only endure.

"O-other objectives... that person in black was very strong, but I feel like I've seen them somewhere before."

Bai Yan put his greatsword back on its rack and said indifferently, "I don't know, but at least she was indeed the main force responsible for capturing the Herrscher of Thunder."

Seeing the two chatting, Kiana walked over, hands on her hips, a plaster on her face, looking somewhat comical.

"You really are strong, Durandal."

"Thank you, but you seem to have very little experience fighting people?"

"Tsk, don't get cocky, I'll catch up to you sooner or later."

"I look forward to it."

Durandal carefully observed Kiana, then glanced at Bai Yan, silently noting down this girl.

"A reminder, Lady Durandal, those students seem to have recovered."

"That's right, at this time they should be coming out of their tense emotions—Huh?!"

She noticed Bai Yan making a heart shape at her again, and her internal alarm bells rang loudly.

The next moment, the crowd suddenly surged, completely surrounding Durandal.

Seeing this, Bai Yan pulled Kiana and Raiden Mei along. "Kiana, clear a path."

"Okay!"

The three of them slipped through the crowd, with Kiana leading the way.

Bai Yan saw Durandal looking flustered and thought, This method really works.

There will always be fangirls jealous of someone who can personally hug their idol, and then they'll think they can't fall behind others.

"She's really popular..." Kiana gazed at the crowd, sighing with emotion.

She stared for a moment, then suddenly looked around and noticed Theresa leaning against Judah, sulking.

"I'm going to check on Auntie Mei."

After Kiana left, Raiden Mei looked back at Bai Yan.

"What is it?" Bai Yan asked, sensing her gaze.

"Xiao Yan, you were so fast just now. I didn't even realize that person was approaching... You're not actually like you performed in the practice matches, are you?"

Bai Yan felt a sense of alarm, his mind racing, while he maintained a facade of profound wisdom.

"As the old saying goes, 'Use the orthodox to engage, and the unorthodox to win.' That Herrscher and the mecha were just a diversion. The real killing blow must come from someone else."

Raiden Mei nodded, finding his words quite reasonable.

Having suspicions beforehand is definitely better than being completely unprepared like me.

Not far away, Rita handed over the affairs of reorganizing the organization to Himeko, then approached Bai Yan.

"Xiao Yan's performance just now was a bit unexpected," Rita said, her eyes holding a peculiar glint.

"It was Lord Durandal's timely support. Otherwise, that person could have taken me down in one move."

Rita didn't commit to an answer, merely staring at Bai Yan's ear.

"Xiao Yan, you're wearing the earring?"

"...Does Sister Rita dislike it?" Bai Yan immediately asked with a smile.

Rita narrowed her eyes.

This subordinate has actually learned to provoke my perfectionist tendencies. I really need to teach her a lesson.

She exchanged a few pleasantries with Raiden Mei and then found an excuse to call Bai Yan away.

This made Bai Yan's heart pound.

I forgot to take off the earring, and I'm still in the Luoshen Transformation state.

My perfectionist superior seems to have interpreted this as deliberate. But I didn't feel any unexpected physical strain from the sword strike I delivered to the person in black earlier. My speed and strength both increased in sync.

"According to the latest intelligence, our laboratory in New Zealand was attacked by Anti-Entropy's Cocolia forces. The Gem of Desire, along with its container, was all stolen," Rita whispered quickly.

Bai Yan suddenly understood.

This makes more sense. World Serpent and Anti-Entropy are attacking on two fronts. Capturing Raiden Mei is a feint; the real goal is to snatch the Gem of Desire. They're making a move while Schicksal's elites are away, diverting everyone's attention before heading to New Zealand. No, that's not right...

Anti-Entropy and World Serpent are cooperating, but who is the true leader? Cocolia has taken complete control of ME Corp. On the surface, she has the advantage in manpower and resources over the current World Serpent, so she should be the one in charge. But... what kind of organization is World Serpent? Would they be content to be a diversionary force? There's something fishy here!

"Cocolia hasn't given up on creating Herrschers?" Bai Yan asked calmly.

"It's just speculation at this point. Their actions regarding the Far East Branch are too obvious, making it impossible for us to even confirm if the Gem of Desire is their true objective."

The problem lies here. If World Serpent has other intentions, it can only be the Saint Artifact Project. But Kevin hasn't returned yet—

Bai Yan suddenly realized.

To try and extract Kevin at this time... go ahead, try it. If you disrupt Otto's plan, you'll be in for trouble.

"Xiao Yan, what are your thoughts?"

"Hmm, first, we can assume their primary objective isn't the Gem of Desire. After this incident, they're bound to face our counterattack. So, the question is, between those two organizations, who will bear the brunt of it?"

Rita understood.

World Serpent had always been elusive, making both their bases and personnel incredibly difficult to locate.

Therefore, Cocolia would have to draw most of the enemy fire, and it might even be necessary to extract information about World Serpent from her.

Bai Yan felt he could handle the interrogation!

He meant no offense; as an intelligence operative, interrogation was a fundamental skill.

"Mom Cocolia, you wouldn't want your little sister Seele to not be able to come home, would you?"

Sensing his thoughts wandering, Bai Yan quickly refocused.

Rita added, "Once Anti-Entropy draws our attention, World Serpent will begin their true plan."

"They'll first confirm our attention is genuinely diverted," Bai Yan chimed in. "If a judgment standard is needed, it's likely the deployment of elite Valkyries like Immortal Blade and the assault teams. Otherwise, I suspect World Serpent will stay hidden in their holes and observe the situation."

Rita nodded in agreement.

"It seems Xiao Yan's spirit hasn't been dulled by life here. That puts my mind at ease."

Her eyes gleamed as she walked up to Bai Yan and, from who knows where, produced a makeup case. She began meticulously touching up her pretty face.

Bai Yan didn't dare to move.

This time, Rita was considerate and finished in about ten minutes, preventing Bai Yan from getting leg cramps.

She leaned close to Bai Yan and compared their heights, remarking, "Xiao Yan has grown a bit. In another two years, she'll probably surpass me."

Bai Yan felt these words must have come from Ragna.

"Teacher Ragna is quite busy training new recruits lately, so she asked me to keep an eye on you."

Ragna was still the better mom; unlike someone else, who called you son but treated you like a little bird.

At this moment, Rita leaned in close to Bai Yan's face.