"Headmaster! You finally came!" The three girls immediately grew excited when they saw the little nun.
"Team Seven, didn't you send out a distress signal? Weren't you supposed to be surrounded by dozens of Honkai Beasts?" Theresa scratched her head and jumped down from the cross in confusion.
"Headmaster, you were a step too late. They already dealt with those Honkai Beasts. He saved us." The captain of Team Seven pointed at Ishiu and the other two, who were preparing to leave.
"Oh?" Theresa looked over in surprise. She had initially assumed they were people from Anti-Entropy and had not paid them much attention, but the moment she looked over, the white-haired figure in her memories nearly made her eyes pop out.
"Cecilia..." Theresa stared fixedly at Kiana, unconsciously murmuring a name.
"No, that's not right. She isn't Cecilia. She is..."
Thinking of a certain possibility, Theresa's heart suddenly burned with excitement. She no longer cared about her Valkyries and hurriedly picked up Judas from the ground before running toward them.
"Wait a moment!"
Ishiu and the other two had already walked out through the football field gates when they heard the voice from behind them. They all turned around.
"You are...?" Ishiu looked at the little nun who had dropped from the sky in confusion, unsure why she had called out to them. Did she want to specifically thank them? That did not seem necessary.
"Is your name Kiana Kaslana?" Theresa ignored Ishiu's question and stared intently at Kiana as she asked nervously.
"Huh? How do you know my name? Has this young lady's great name become known even to nuns?" Kiana froze for a moment and looked at Theresa in confusion.
"You really are Kiana? That's wonderful! I finally found you." Although she had already expected it, Theresa still trembled with excitement when Kiana nodded and admitted it.
"You found me? Who exactly are you? And... why do you look so much like me?" Kiana frowned. Even with her thick nerves, she sensed something strange when she saw Theresa's face, which resembled hers by sixty percent.
"Hehe, take a guess. I do have a very close relationship with you. Can you figure it out?" Theresa smiled at Kiana. She had not expected to find Kiana on such an eventful night.
"A close relationship..." Kiana frowned even more deeply. As she racked her brains trying to think, Ishiu and Bronya beside her both showed looks of realization, then looked at Kiana with sympathy.
"Kiana, do you remember why you came to Changkong City?" Ishiu reminded her subtly.
"My purpose? Of course, it was to play with you and Mei... Ah, no. Right, I came to resolve the Honkai incident and look for my lousy dad while I was at it." With Ishiu's reminder, Kiana came to her senses.
Her lousy dad had suddenly run off several years ago, and now a little girl who looked so much like her had appeared, claiming they had a close relationship...
"Holy crap! Are you my younger half-sister?!" Kiana was so shocked that she nearly jumped off the ground. Her eyes widened, her azure pupils filled with anger toward Siegfried.
That lousy dad! She had searched everywhere for him, only to find out that he had gotten together with another woman and had another daughter years ago!
Kiana's anger instantly surged upward. If Siegfried had been standing before her right now, he would have received a righteous iron fist from his biological daughter.
"Pfft—!"
Theresa had been smiling as she waited for Kiana's answer, but the moment she heard that, her face turned red.
She clenched her fists, craned her neck, and shouted in both agitation and fury, "Kiana! What nonsense are you talking about? I'm not that playboy's daughter! And I'm definitely not your sister!"
"Huh? You aren't? Then who are you?" Hearing Theresa righteously deny her guess, most of Kiana's anger vanished, but even more confusion appeared on her face.
"I'm your aunt!" Theresa planted her hands on her hips and spread her legs slightly. Her voice was booming as waves, and she spoke each word clearly.
"Aunt...?" Kiana's lips twitched. Looking at Theresa, who was only as tall as her chest and had such a youthful face, she took a deep breath and put on a gentle expression. "Little sister, you can't say things like that casually. Have you seen a middle-aged man with white hair and blue eyes somewhere?"
"Kiana, I know this is hard for you to believe, but it's the truth. I really am your aunt. I knew your mother, and I know that irresponsible father of yours too. Don't be fooled by how cute I look—I'm much older than you. And I was the one who gave you your name back then."
"You think saying that will make me believe you?" Kiana frowned.
"Well, I have many things I want to tell you, and there are ways to prove that I'm telling the truth, but the current situation doesn't allow it." Theresa looked at the hundred-plus people behind her, who were being protected by Valkyries as they began to leave. She pursed her lips. "How about this? Follow me for now. Once this is over, I'll explain everything properly. Oh, and you were the one who dealt with those Honkai Beasts just now, right? Very good. You really do have a bit of your mother's former spirit."
Seeing Theresa's approving gaze, even Kiana could not help blushing despite her thick skin.
She shook her head and pointed at Ishiu. "I didn't kill those Honkai Beasts. Ishiu dealt with all of them by himself. He was too fast. I didn't even get a chance to make a move."
"Hm?" Theresa immediately looked at Ishiu curiously. "You can kill Honkai Beasts?"
"Yes." Ishiu nodded, then looked at Theresa and asked, "You said you're Kiana's aunt. Then you should at least tell us your name, shouldn't you?"
"I nearly forgot that. My name is Theresa Apocalypse. You can just call me Theresa."
"My name is Ishiu, and she is Bronya."
After briefly introducing themselves, Ishiu looked at the Honkai Beasts outside, still wreaking havoc in waves, and said to Theresa, "Theresa, you're with Schicksal, right?"
"That's right. I'm the person in charge of Schicksal's Far East Branch. This Honkai outbreak happened in Changkong City, so I've dispatched all available personnel to rescue the residents. Schicksal's Valkyries are also desperately holding back the Honkai Beasts' invasion." Theresa's expression was grave.
"If that's the case, how about we cooperate?"
"Cooperate? How?" Theresa looked at Ishiu strangely, unsure what the boy meant.
"It's simple. You handle rescuing people, and I'll handle killing those Honkai Beasts. Have your subordinates send me the coordinates of the powerful Honkai Beasts, and I'll go slaughter them."
After an hour of fighting, Ishiu had realized something. Although he had killed many Honkai Beasts, it was only a drop in the bucket for Changkong City as a whole. Many of the Honkai Beasts he had killed were ordinary Rush-class and Knight-class ones, while Chariot-class and Emperor-class Honkai Beasts were scattered far apart. After killing one, it was difficult for him to find another.
Yet the ones causing the greatest damage to the city were often those Chariot-class Honkai Beasts and Honkai Emperors.
So if he truly wanted to stop the Honkai Beasts' large-scale invasion, he had to capture the ringleaders first and take down their strongest Honkai Beasts. As for the others, the Titan Mechs and Valkyries could handle them.
Unfortunately, Anti-Entropy's main force was still in Siberia. There simply were not enough people here to provide him with the intelligence he needed.
"Oh? You make it sound easy. Do you have that kind of ability?" Theresa curled her lips in dissatisfaction, thinking Ishiu was making fun of her.
Those powerful Honkai Beasts were easy enough for her to deal with, but she was an S-rank Valkyrie of Schicksal! There were only three S-rank Valkyries in all of Schicksal.
And Ishiu claimed he could kill those Honkai Beasts. Was he really as strong as she was?
Theresa did not believe it.
"Hey, who are you looking down on? I'm telling you, the brat is ridiculously strong!" Hearing Theresa question Ishiu, Kiana immediately became displeased.
She might usually act as though she found Ishiu irritating, but whenever someone spoke badly of him, she would always be the first to jump out and argue.
Because aside from her, no one was allowed to badmouth the brat!
"Oh?" Theresa narrowed her eyes noncommittally, then pointed at a Knight-class Honkai Beast that had just appeared around a nearby corner. "If you can take care of that, I'll believe you..."
Before Theresa could finish speaking, a violent gust of wind suddenly swept past her, blowing her skirt high over her face and exposing the little bears underneath.
"Ah!" Theresa felt a chill below and hurriedly pressed her skirt down with a flushed face. Then she looked furiously at the culprit.
But when she raised her head, she saw Ishiu standing before her, idly playing with a dagger in his hand as he looked at her with a faint smile. "Is this enough?"
"Enough for wha... Nani?!"
Theresa was still wondering what Ishiu meant, but when her gaze passed him and returned to that corner, she discovered in shock that the huge Knight-class Honkai Beast that had been standing there moments ago had already been cut in half. It lay miserably on the ground, dissolving into Honkai Energy.
"Y-you did this?" Theresa looked at Ishiu in disbelief, so stunned that she even forgot to settle the score over him blowing up her skirt.
"Of course." Ishiu looked completely relaxed.
"Uh..." Theresa's lips twitched. How long had her vision been blocked just now? Two seconds? Three seconds?
You were telling her that in those three seconds, he had killed a Honkai Beast at least thirty meters away, then run back here... Was he even human?
Was he farming points on a battlefield or something?
"Hmph, I told you the brat was strong, but you wouldn't believe me. Now you know how amazing my Ishiu is, right?" Seeing Theresa's dumbfounded expression, Kiana felt as refreshed as if she had eaten a bowl of ice jelly in summer. She became so smug that she blurted out something rather remarkable.
Of course, in Kiana's view, she and Ishiu were currently sharing a home, so calling him her Ishiu was not really a problem.
But to Bronya's ears, it immediately set off alarm bells.
Originally, she had not taken this seemingly foolish girl seriously. But now, it seemed that Kiana also had designs on Ishiu.
That would not do. Ishiu belonged to Seele. Since Seele could not act right now, Bronya had to keep a close eye on Ishiu for her. She absolutely could not let him be deceived by some vixen outside!
Thus, Bronya gained another person she needed to watch out for.
"Fine... Since you've proven your strength, I'll cooperate with you." Theresa rummaged through her pocket, took out a communicator, and handed it to Ishiu. "I'll have someone tell you the locations of every powerful Honkai Beast in the city. If you can't handle them, just forget it. Don't force yourself too much."
Theresa agreed so readily not because she truly believed in Ishiu's strength, but because these terms of cooperation cost her nothing. She only needed to send him locations. If Ishiu could handle those Honkai Beasts, that would naturally be best. If he could not, it did not matter.
"Great. Then thank you in advance." Ishiu took the communicator and smiled at Theresa. Then he turned toward Bronya, but before he could speak, she beat him to it.
"If you're thinking of leaving Bronya behind and acting alone, then Bronya swears to God that she'll kick your butt hard with her boots."
"Uh... Fine, forget I said anything." Ishiu's lips twitched. He really had wanted to act alone, since it would have been more convenient for him.
But Little Pudding was so determined that he decided to forget it. She could be pretty terrifying when she got angry.
"Then let's get moving." Kiana said eagerly.
"Kiana, don't go. Stay with me," Theresa said.
"Why should I stay with you?"
Although Theresa claimed to be her aunt, Kiana was not that easily fooled. Without decisive proof, she would not believe Theresa's words.
But the words Theresa spoke the next second made her freeze.
"Weren't you looking for Siegfried? I know where he is."
(P.S.: Recommending two books.
"Trialbreaker"
"I, Merlin, Am Going to Build a Gundam!")
Bronya: Seele, I'm Sorry, It's Not That Your Sister Is Heartless, It's Just That...
In the end, Kiana was still talked into leaving with Theresa, because Theresa's offer was simply impossible for her to refuse.
Thus, Ishiu and Bronya began operating on their own.
"Ishiu, what do you... think of Seele?"
On the way to their target location, the two ran side by side. After remaining silent for a while, Bronya suddenly asked.
"Seele? Why are you suddenly asking about that?" Ishiu looked at her in confusion, unable to understand why Little Pudding had suddenly brought it up.
"Don't worry about that. Just tell Bronya what you think of Seele. Do you like her?" Bronya suddenly grew somewhat impatient, and her voice carried a few unfamiliar emotions.
"Of course I like her." Ishiu nodded without hesitation. "Seele is the cutest girl in the world, and she has such a good personality. There probably isn't anyone in this world who wouldn't like her."
"That's good." Bronya nodded, then closed her mouth and said nothing more.
"Little Pudding, you..." Ishiu had just wanted to ask Bronya what she meant when a furious roar from a Honkai Emperor in the distance interrupted him.
They had arrived at the target location.
"Ishiu, are you sure about this?" Looking at the fifty-meter-tall Honkai Emperor radiating an overwhelming presence, Bronya's face turned slightly pale.
"It's nothing. It's not like I haven't killed a Honkai Emperor before. Just wait here for my good news." Ishiu licked his lips. Wolf Fang in his hand was slightly hot, as though it were telling him that it was time to go.
Half an hour later, Theresa and Schicksal's Valkyries escorted a group of several thousand people out of the city. There had originally only been a few hundred, but more and more people had joined along the way, nearly causing Theresa to collapse.
There were simply too many people. With only herself, several Schicksal Valkyries, and Kiana, they could not protect everyone.
Fortunately, Anti-Entropy's mechs mobilized at the crucial moment and helped them out of their predicament.
"Whew... Himeko, how is the evacuation of Changkong City's residents going?" Theresa wiped the sweat from her forehead, took out her communicator, and connected to the Hyperion.
"The residents near the eastern outskirts have all evacuated safely. Nearly half the people in Changkong City still haven't withdrawn, and there are only more and more Honkai Beasts. All our battleships, together with Anti-Entropy's forces, have held back most of the Honkai Beasts, but many still made it into the urban area."
A mature female voice came through the communicator. It belonged to the Hyperion's captain, Schicksal's A-rank Valkyrie—Murata Himeko.
"I'm counting on you. Please hold on a little longer." Theresa clenched her fist and said solemnly.
"Mhm. I would even if you hadn't said so. By the way, what kind of person did you find earlier?"
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"The person you had me send the locations of Changkong City's powerful Honkai Beasts to. He's way too fierce." Murata Himeko's voice was filled with astonishment.
"Did he really kill the Honkai Emperor?" Theresa asked tentatively.
"He killed three." Murata Himeko sounded surprised, appreciative, and delighted all at once. "In just half an hour, he killed three Honkai Emperors and seven Chariot-class Honkai Beasts. Not to mention all the other miscellaneous Honkai Beasts. You could say that he relieved our Valkyries of enormous pressure by himself."
"What?!" Theresa's mouth fell open, her face full of disbelief.
Ding! Congratulations to the host for completing the mission: Stop the Honkai Beasts' invasion and ensure that two-thirds of humanity survives. Random reward being drawn— Ding! Congratulations to the host for receiving one unopened box of ultra-thin 0.001mm Durex—System-produced, guaranteed premium quality. Leakage rate: 0%. Ding! Congratulations to the host for completing the mission: Kill more than one thousand Honkai Beasts. Random reward being drawn— Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining the title: Thousand Demon Slayer!
Ishiu sat down against Heavy-duty Bunny in utter exhaustion. Within several kilometers around him, not a single Honkai Beast remained.
Before you continue