In the simulated combat training room of the combat simulation chamber, the newly formed Fire Moth Squad was conducting its first combat exercise.
Kiana held twin pistols, blasting several sprays of data-generated blood from the Guardian Dead. Mei darted between the Dead, her katana prioritizing the heads of the Ranger Dead.
Take out the ranged ones first! The two who had suffered plenty of sneak attacks that morning thought the same thing.
Not far away, Bronya controlled Heavy-Duty Rabbit 19C and poured artillery fire onto the newly spawned Honkai Beasts. The mosquito-like Rush-type Honkai Beasts relied on their small size, fast movement, and sheer numbers to quickly close in on Xing's side.
"Bang!" Xing used his greatsword like a tennis racket, swatting a Rush-type Honkai Beast away like a mosquito. One sent flying knocked away an entire group.
This sword is so heavy! Xing felt his hands swelling. Lifting it was easy enough, but swinging it was a completely different matter.
"Bronya, we do this, then this..." The two little ones discussed their tactics.
More Rush-type Honkai Beasts surrounded them. Xing tossed the greatsword to Bronya. "Now!"
Heavy-Duty Rabbit 19C grabbed the hilt, calculated the direction and force, then threw it. The greatsword spun through the air and flew into the Honkai Beast horde, turning a large number of Rush-type Honkai Beasts into fragments of data.
The nimble Xing quickly followed after it, picked up the sword once it had lost momentum and fallen to the ground, then continued chopping at the remaining Honkai Beasts. He was exhausted, but he could not stop. Bronya provided fire support from afar—a truly reliable teammate.
"Xing, lend me your sword!" The white-haired fuzzball ran over, yanked the sword away without waiting for an answer, and ran back, leaving Xing standing there clutching his arm. A truly terrible teammate.
She excitedly watched the Natural-type Honkai Beast before her, which was about to throw a bomb. "You know how to throw balls, right? Watch me smack it back!"
"Wait, Kiana!" Xing tried to stop her, but it was too late.
The glowing red bomb was hurled with force by the Natural-type Honkai Beast. The girl swung hard at it, and then... there was no then.
The bomb exploded the instant it struck the blade, blasting the bug right out again. Why "again"?
"..." The three fell silent.
After that—
"Why did that happen?" Kiana muttered, clutching a cup of ice water.
"Idiot Kiana, it would have been one thing if you got yourself killed, but you got Xing and me killed by that Ninja-like Dead too." Bronya mercilessly roasted her. Did she know how hard that teleporting guy was to fight?
"Ha ha, don't worry about it. You're not the first people to try that." The young woman in the combat simulation chamber brought over several drinks and tried to comfort them.
These four kids were really enthusiastic. In past years, freshmen had not even come to register by this point, yet they were already doing simulated combat. (They had nowhere to stay, so they could only be forced to live on campus.)
"Oh, right. Do you know this year is especially unusual?" The young woman put on a mysterious expression.
"Huh? Why?" Kiana, Mei, Bronya, and Xing were immediately intrigued. Gossip really was a girl's instinct... Wait, was something wrong here?
"Hehe, you really don't know. Good thing I'm so well-connected—I got this huge scoop early from the girls in admissions. This year, St. Freya will welcome its very first male student!" The young woman was extremely excited.
Kiana: ~~( ﹁ ﹁ ) ~~~
Mei: ~~( ﹁ ﹁ ) ~~~
Bronya: ~~( ﹁ ﹁ ) ~~~
Xing: (ー`´ー)
"So? Aren't you shocked? What are those expressions?" Seeing the four of them looking utterly speechless, the young woman began to panic because she had failed to get the reaction she expected.
"You don't believe me, do you? It's true! The girls from admissions guaranteed it. Don't tell me you don't understand the significance of a male student? Let me tell you..."
Kiana looked at Xing and wanted to laugh, but did not dare. His hand was resting on the hilt of the sword behind his back. She could probably beat him, but only one-on-one...
Expressionless Ya Ya nudged Xing and whispered, "Is she talking about Xing?" The boy nodded. "If there isn't another boy, then it should be me."
"Senior, do you know what he looks like?" Kiana felt like she was about to burst from holding in her laughter, so she tried to steer the young woman onto another topic.
Instead, the woman became even more animated. "The girls said he has an extraordinary background. The principal found him while fighting an Emperor Class Honkai Beast. He's tall and burly, broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, with dark skin..."
Kiana could not hold it in any longer and burst into laughter, clutching her stomach. Even Mei covered her mouth and giggled. As for Bronya, she had no feelings—wait, then why did she turn her head away?
"Bullshit! What I heard was that he's a handsome young man, graceful as jade and dashing beyond compare..." another young woman on duty argued.
Xing silently pulled Bronya away. If he stayed any longer, he would not be able to control his greatsword.
"Ha ha ha ha! I'm dying! What expressions would they make if they knew the person in question had been standing right beside them?" Once outside, Kiana finally let loose.
"Broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, with dark skin—pfft!" Kiana looked at Xing and laughed with absolutely no conscience.
Why did he have to be so pretty? And he was still just a child, so no one could even tell his exact gender.
Xing's face darkened. He nearly pulled out Mortal Tribulation Difficult to Cross, but could only hug Crimson Kite Bird to ease his sorrow.
What he did not know was that the nightmare had only just begun.
"Hey, did you hear? A boy is coming to St. Freya." That evening, the four heard people at the next table in the cafeteria gossiping.
"I heard too. What's his background?"
"They say he's the principal's illegitimate son! The St. Freya Gossip News is exploding over it."
"That can't be right. I heard he's a genius the principal poached from Schicksal Headquarters. He became an A-Rank Valkyrie at a very young age, and the principal even sold herself just to get him..."
Xing suddenly understood how Adam, the protagonist of A Post-Honkai Odyssey, felt.
The rumors that followed became even more outrageous—
"Did you hear? That man?"
"The man who conquered Principal Theresa and Teacher Himeko, and plans to conquer all of St. Freya Academy next?"
This world was not supposed to have men building harems.
"They say that man was originally Lord Bishop's second son, but his eldest brother seized power. To keep himself safe, he came to St. Freya to receive the principal's protection."
What kind of palace intrigue plot was this?
"...That man ate an Emperor Class Honkai Beast alive right in front of the principal, then muttered that it was too salty."
Eating Honkai Beasts raw was something I might really end up doing someday.
"This man rode thunder down from the heavens. The principal was shocked and asked, 'Who are you?' The man proudly replied, 'I am the Prince of Condemnation...'"
I'm numb.
During the three days before school started, Xing traveled between his dorm, the library, the cafeteria, and the combat simulation chamber. Everywhere he went, he heard rumors about himself, each one more absurd than the last. These girls really had wild imaginations.
On the final night, Xing dragged his exhausted body back to the dorm and happened to run into Welt returning with bird's nest soup. Perhaps because they were the same gender, Xing had been assigned across the hall from Welt, the history teacher.
"Little guy, you've been working hard. Don't push yourself too far. You're still young—it wouldn't be good if you wore your body down." Welt looked at Xing, who seemed almost lifeless, and could not bear to see it.
Even a child this young had taken up a weapon. He could not help thinking of himself.
"Thank you for your concern, Teacher." Xing answered weakly. After entering his room, he set down the greatsword he had carried all day and nearly collapsed onto the floor. Kiana had far too much energy; she had dragged the entire squad into the combat simulation chamber to train until they dropped.
After taking a hot shower, the soreness throughout his body eased, and he felt as though he had entered paradise.
He took the lemonade he had bought earlier from the refrigerator and chugged a huge mouthful. That hit the spot!
After feeding Crimson Kite Bird, Xing planned to go to bed, but someone knocked on the door.
"Who could it be this late?" Xing opened the door in confusion. Looking up, he saw an enormous golden cross.
Judah?
"Why are you holding your head up so high?" A voice brimming with resentment sounded out. Xing lowered his gaze and saw a white-haired, blue-eyed loli.
"Principal?" Seeing the face that looked ever so slightly similar to his own, Xing was a little stunned.
"This seems to be your first time meeting me. How did you know I was the principal?" Theresa spotted the flaw. Theresa went on the offensive!
"Isn't there a photo of you on the teacher page of the terminal?"
Theresa, KO!
Why had Theresa come to find Xing at this hour? Let us turn the clock back one hour—
The hardworking principal of St. Freya Academy, Theresa Apocalypse, was still diligently working even at night. Look, she was carefully reviewing documents. Wait, why were these documents full of pictures?
"Theresa." Himeko entered through the door, holding a report.
"Wah!" The power of an S-Rank Valkyrie was displayed at that moment. In almost less than a second, Theresa yanked open a drawer, shoved the HOMU comic inside, closed it, then pulled out a document to put on an act.
"Theresa, are you sneaking peeks at HOMU comics while working again?" As her old friend, Himeko knew this Legal Loli inside and out.
"No... I'm working very seriously!" The short white-haired girl's eyes darted away, and her voice was quiet. She was clearly lacking confidence.
"Aren't you going to check on your illegitimate son? Everyone at St. Freya Academy knows about your relationship now."
Theresa bristled in anger. "What illegitimate son? Those girls are just spreading nonsense. You believe that too? We're both from the Kaslana Family, so what's strange about looking alike?"
"Oh~" Himeko looked at her meaningfully and slowly placed a report on her desk. "Then how do you explain this?"
"What is this?"
"Out of curiosity, I took one of your hairs from your bed and compared it with that little fellow's DNA. Turns out I found something unexpected."
Theresa quickly scanned the report, her gaze stopping on the final line—Upon examination, they were confirmed to be mother and son.
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