Bronya, who looked much younger than her, had actually surpassed her in theoretical studies with astonishing speed.
Still, though Kiana had taken quite a blow, she was no longer the bookworm from St. Freya. She did not laze around relying on her physical advantages, but instead worked even harder...
Anna's Despair
May 22, 2015. At a Schicksal base in North Africa, thunder rumbled without end.
In the main control room, Otto looked at the data displayed on the screen, a satisfied smile appearing on his face.
More than half a year had passed since Gwen dealt with the Simulated Herrscher that appeared in Changkong City.
During that time, no earthshaking event comparable to the birth of a Herrscher had occurred.
As a result, Gwen's life remained fairly routine: studying and training. However, because the two Herrschers by his side had yet to complete their Valkyrie training, the frequency of Gwen's missions remained pitifully low.
Still, thanks to the missions he had completed early last year, his achievement in quelling the Third Honkai, and his record of defeating the Simulated Herrscher that had beaten former S-class Valkyrie Theresa, Gwen passed the S-class examination at the beginning of this year alongside Rita and Yolandale, both established A-ranks by comparison. He became Schicksal's first S-class Knight in history—
By the time Otto designed and implemented this promotion system, Valkyries had already replaced Knights as the main force against Honkai.
The previous male Honkai Energy-adapted individual with outstanding abilities had been named Siegfried Kaslana. Due to certain historical reasons, he had never received an official rating.
And to celebrate this exciting occasion, the delighted Bishop Otto directly bestowed upon Gwen, the new S-class, the title of "Apocalypse Knight."
At this moment, in this base originally constructed for dangerous experiments, the Apocalypse Knight who had only been promoted at the beginning of the year was undergoing testing—
Over the past year, Gwen had not slacked off in the slightest. He had constantly worked to train himself, even inviting Fu Hua, an ordinary-looking A-rank Valkyrie nominally assigned to the Far East Branch, to train with him when she came to headquarters to report on her duties. In the end, under the deliberately unleashed force of Fu Hua's punch, he opened the second stage of the Gene Lock.
With his Gene Lock opened to the second stage, Gwen's already extraordinary rate of progress had not become much faster, but it had remained steady, without slowing due to his increased strength.
Under such circumstances, Gwen's control and application of his own power—including the Herrscher of Thunder's power he had obtained from Raiden Mei—became increasingly proficient.
And through repeated tests, the data Gwen left behind steadily rose, causing Otto to pay more and more attention to a plan he had initially dismissed with a smile.
However, over this past year, Gwen still had not undergone One-Body Fusion with Kiana to attempt to acquire the Herrscher of the Void's power, and Otto had not urged him to do so.
In Otto's original plan, Kiana needed to form enough bonds with the world before the Herrscher consciousness could be awakened.
Though Gwen had now appeared as an unexpected delight, Otto had not become impatient because of it. He intended to act only after Kiana had grown to a certain point—
He wanted both the complete Herrscher of the Void and Gwen, who had acquired Herrscher power.
After completing his training, Gwen left the training grounds and entered the main control room.
"I thought Yolandale's talent was already rare in this world. I never expected you to be even more outrageous than her."
Pointing at the graph formed by Gwen's test data, Otto could not stop smiling.
"With you, it truly is my greatest fortune—and the greatest fortune of Schicksal, of this world."
"You flatter me. These data are indeed quite encouraging."
Looking at the line rising almost exponentially, Gwen wore a faint smile as well, though it was not very obvious.
"Still, against the End, this is not enough. Far from enough."
"Don't put too much pressure on yourself, Gwen."
Seeing this, Otto lightly patted his new friend's shoulder.
"This is not fifty thousand years ago, and Schicksal is not Fire Moth. We will not let the past repeat itself."
"Mm."
Gwen nodded and was about to say something when a buzzing sound came from Otto.
With an apologetic smile, Otto pulled out his Schicksal terminal without avoiding Gwen, allowing him to see the caller ID—Amber.
Something must have happened...
Knowing Amber would not urgently contact Otto unless something serious had occurred, Gwen thought to himself.
Sure enough, according to Amber's report, a large-scale Honkai eruption had occurred in Manila, and the Snow Lotus Squad stationed there had instantly lost contact.
Upon hearing this, Gwen unconsciously frowned—
At the beginning of this year, when Gwen and the other two were promoted to S-class, sixteen-year-old Anna had also completed her A-rank promotion examination. She had been dispatched from headquarters to Manila to serve as vice-captain of the elite Snow Lotus Squad.
And in Gwen's memories, Anna had indeed experienced a major Honkai eruption before becoming a Herrscher, during which she met Chen Tianwu.
"Gwen, I may need to trouble you with this."
After hearing Amber's report, Otto spoke with a grave expression.
The Honkai eruption had caused the Valkyrie squad stationed there to lose contact instantly. That alone showed how severe this Honkai eruption was.
And with both Yolandale and Rita away on missions, Gwen was the first choice to lead the response.
"Understood."
Gwen nodded and asked,
"My speed is relatively fast. I can reach Manila quickly.
How about I head over first to provide support and eliminate the high-threat targets, while the remaining reinforcement units make their own way there?"
"It won't consume too much, will it?"
Otto asked.
"It won't be a problem. If I travel at a steady speed, it will only cost two Lightning Spears."
Gwen shook his head.
As he spoke, Gwen turned and took two energy potions from a suitcase nearby, casually pouring them into his mouth.
"Then, Gwen, head to the battlefield first. The coordinates have already been sent to Prometheus. She will guide you to the target."
Seeing Gwen's confident expression, Otto did not ask further questions and nodded in agreement.
"Then I'll be going."
Gwen nodded, set down the potion containers, then transformed into a streak of light and shot out through the emergency passage, vanishing from Otto's sight.
"Heh..."
As though he had thought of something, Otto chuckled, an amused look appearing on his face.
At the same time, near the core of the Manila Honkai eruption, the hastily assembled Snow Lotus Squad faced the greatest crisis in its history—
A terrifying Honkai Beast, taller than most high-rise buildings and as massive as a mountain, charged toward them with unstoppable momentum.
It was Ganesha, an Emperor-class Honkai Beast. It was a terrifying existence that required several fully staffed and well-equipped Valkyrie squads to coordinate after thorough preparation in order to kill it reliably.
Yet only minutes after the Honkai eruption began, just as the Snow Lotus Squad had barely managed to gather, this terrifying monster came charging at them with unstoppable force.
There was no doubt that, in the core area of this major Honkai eruption, where Honkai Beasts and zombies of all sizes roamed, they had no way to deal with the charge of this unstoppable Emperor-class Honkai Beast.
"Anna, take everyone and leave!"
Fable, the captain who had lost an arm after being ambushed by a suddenly appearing Temple-class Honkai Beast at the start of the eruption, made his decision in an instant and shouted to Anna beside him.
"I'll stop this thing."
"Captain..."
Anna called out, but did not continue—
This was the frontal charge of a newly born Emperor-class Honkai Beast at the center of a Honkai eruption. Its terrifying aura clearly told them there was no way to block it. At such close range, even directly evading it would not get them beyond its attack range. Only by delaying it could the Snow Lotus Squad have a chance to escape.
The only people in the Snow Lotus Squad capable of doing that were the A-rank Fable and Anna.
Clearly, Fable, who had lost an arm, had chosen to leave Anna with the hope of survival.
"Go!"
Reality was not a romance drama. No matter how unwilling she was, Anna had no time to waste here. Gritting her teeth through the pain, she gave the order.
"Everyone below me, retreat!"
"Yes!"
Though they were deeply reluctant, the Valkyries knew the battlefield would not give them time to cry. They responded immediately and, like Anna, fled to both sides.
However, when the suddenly approaching gale made Anna instinctively turn her head, she discovered that Ganesha had somehow accelerated. It had already reached Captain Fable.
And at this moment, all Snow Lotus Squad members besides Anna had yet to escape Ganesha's charging path.
Fear and despair almost swallowed Anna in that instant...
A Rescue at the Critical Moment
Anna had once read in many stories that before a person died, their memories would appear before their eyes like a revolving lantern, before ultimately returning to the darkness of death.
Yet now, with the threat of death so close, not a single memory of the past surfaced in Anna's mind. There was only emptiness—
Though Anna had escaped Ganesha's charging path, the terrifying aura rolling toward her with Ganesha still crushed down upon her. Already gripped by fear, Anna felt as if she too would be ground into pieces the next second.
At this moment, before Anna and the other Snow Lotus Squad members, Fable, whose right arm had already been severed, leaned on his greatsword with one hand. His Valkyrie armor operated at full capacity, supporting a pale blue barrier.
However, the barrier supported by that third-generation armor, which lacked its right-arm components, was still far too fragile before Ganesha, a terrifying existence that could almost be said to stand at the pinnacle of Emperor-class Honkai Beasts.
The instant that mountain-sized body, carrying an indescribably terrifying aura, crashed into his barrier, Fable heard a crisp shattering sound.
Feeling as though he had reached the end of his life, Fable even felt that Ganesha's movements had slowed considerably. The barrier shattered in an instant, turning into tiny fragments that scattered through the air, like his life that was about to fade away.
After all, no matter how slow Ganesha's movements appeared, Fable, drained from overloading his armor, could not escape it.
Then, just as Fable wore an expression of regret mixed with relief and Anna showed despair, a golden light from the west arrived in an instant. At the very moment Ganesha crossed the short distance between the barrier and Fable's body, it rushed to Ganesha's side—
"Trash—ah!"
A battle cry rang out alongside a dull impact. The Ganesha that would have crushed Fable alive in the next second was instantly sent flying sideways.
Fable only felt a gale sweep past, nearly lifting his body like a fallen leaf.
Yet the terrifying aura that had nearly driven them into despair was swept away along with it—
Bang—
The muffled sound of something heavy hitting the ground made Fable, who had already closed his eyes, instinctively open them. Looking toward the sound, he saw a tall figure that had just landed, sending dirt flying from the ground around it.
The others from the Snow Lotus Squad, including Anna, also looked toward that giant figure.
"That is..."
With her small mouth slightly open, Anna stared at the giant in disbelief.
Though the giant's body was predominantly purple with golden patterns, the silver within it and its godlike bearing made Anna immediately think of that scene from two years ago...
"..."
Realizing something unexpected had happened, the Valkyries all turned toward the sound. They saw that towering figure, disbelief written across their faces.
There was no doubt that this giant was Gwen, who had raced all the way from North Africa.
After sending Ganesha flying with a flying kick, Gwen turned and landed. He did not look at the Valkyries around him. The Nexus Armaments on his arms lit up, and the golden light of the Meta Field spread down from the sky, enveloping Gwen and Ganesha, which he had kicked high into the air.
Seeing that Ganesha, which had not yet managed to turn itself over, had no ability to escape the Meta Field about to descend, Gwen turned around and nodded at the Snow Lotus Squad Valkyries who had narrowly escaped death.
Ultraman nodding.JPG
The next moment, before the Valkyries who still had not figured out what had happened could respond, Gwen's massive figure vanished from their sight together with Ganesha as the Meta Field's golden radiance descended.
"Captain!"
Though they could not make sense of what had happened, the Valkyries immediately rushed to Fable's side and helped the exhausted Fable up from the ground.
"Don't ask anything. Move!"
Supported by Anna at his left shoulder, Fable frowned toward the direction where Gwen and Ganesha had disappeared. Before the team members could question him, he shouted sharply, cutting off their questions.
"Whatever that was, it helped us hold back Ganesha."
Anna spoke as well.
"Before the people from headquarters specifically assigned to investigate this arrive, no one is to discuss this matter...
Let's go!"
Anna still remembered the missing surveillance footage from back then and the gag order afterward.
"Yes!" N
Hearing both the captain and vice-captain say so, the Valkyries responded in agreement and followed Anna as they broke out toward the perimeter.
A major Honkai eruption that had produced a peak Emperor-class Honkai Beast like Ganesha was no longer something the Snow Lotus Squad alone could resolve.
What they needed to do now was open a path and prepare for the arrival of headquarters' reinforcement forces...
Before you continue