At first, Kiana could still hold her own against these manipulated fake Valkyries.
But as time passed and her stamina waned, Kiana gradually began to struggle.
What made Kiana even more despairing was—
Whenever she defeated one, another would emerge from some unknown corner, seemingly without end.
The girl was immediately plunged into a bitter battle.
At that critical moment, a crimson feather suddenly drifted down through the mysterious dream space.
Then, a male figure suddenly appeared before Kiana.
"Y-You're Ye Li?!" Kiana was shocked and angry. "Did that hateful bastard create you too?!"
The thought that this man, who cared for her even more than her father did, had also failed to escape the mysterious being's manipulation made Kiana burn with anger!
Furious, Kiana gathered the power of her Valkyrie armor and launched a Neko Charm Kick straight at him.
Yet, to Kiana's surprise, 'Ye Li' easily dodged her full-force strike.
Just as Kiana was about to steady herself and attack 'Ye Li' again, 'Ye Li' suddenly turned and charged toward the fake Valkyries.
"???"
Kiana herself was utterly dumbfounded by the bizarre sight, but the people in the real world erupted into deafening cheers!
With Ye Li's help, Kiana was finally able to catch her breath, and the situation gradually began to improve.
At the same time, that mysterious being noticed the anomaly within the dream space.
She froze for a moment. Then, upon seeing Ye Li, she let out a terrified cry. "Impossible! How could you be in a place like this?! Shouldn't you have ██████████ already?!"
The mysterious being's strange reaction naturally caught Kiana's attention as well, but just as she was about to speak, a wave of dizziness swept through her mind.
In an instant, the dream space rang with the sound of shattering glass, while spiderweb-like cracks spread wildly through the void.
Just as everything was about to end, a venomous and crazed voice suddenly echoed through the space:
"Don't think this is over!"
"Neither you nor those blasphemers will escape me!"
"Just wait! Wait for that day to come! I'll crush you with my own hands!"
The next morning, sunlight streamed through the window and filled the room.
Kiana climbed out of bed and looked out the window with an exhausted expression.
"Ugh... My head hurts so much. I think I had a strange dream, but I can't remember what happened."
Just then, someone knocked on the door of the Valkyrie Dormitory, and Raiden Mei's voice came from outside.
"Kiana, are you all right?" Raiden Mei asked worriedly.
"Ah! Mei?! I just woke up. What's wrong?"
"It's nothing, as long as you're okay. I knocked for quite a while and got no response. I thought something had happened to you."
"Oh, come on~ What could possibly happen to me?" Raiden Mei's concerned words swept away Kiana's lingering exhaustion. "Wait for me. I'll change and come right out!"
After washing up, Kiana and Raiden Mei headed to the examination venue together to take the annual Valkyrie Exam.
After several rounds of battle, Kiana unexpectedly achieved outstanding results.
Even Raiden Mei, standing nearby, could not help but remark, "Kiana's performance today has been surprisingly good."
"I don't know what's going on either. Fighting feels especially smooth today—so smooth that it hardly feels like me."
Kiana said, "Of course, maybe it's because my opponent is Mei. Maybe I unknowingly brought out some special strength."
Perhaps because she was in such great form, Kiana also achieved good results in the following exams.
Even Rita, who had come from Schicksal Headquarters to inspect the event, praised her without reservation.
Soon, the Valkyrie Exam reached its final round.
For this round, the Valkyries had to wear Synchronized Immersion Devices. The trial program responsible for simulated combat would generate corresponding opponents based on each Valkyrie's strength.
One simulated battle after another began and ended, and soon it was Kiana's turn.
"Candidate Kiana Kaslana, prepare for connection."
However, after Kiana put on the immersion device, a problem appeared in the backend system.
"Read rate: 98.6%..."
"Connection synchronization rate: 100%. Generating hostile module..."
"Connection synchronization rate: 120%. H-h-h-hostile module g-g-generating..."
Listening to the chaotic System Prompt in her ear, Kiana was utterly startled.
"What's going on? Himeko, what happened?"
Looking at the string of error codes on the backend control screen, Himeko could not make sense of it for a moment.
"This isn't right. Normally, when the system reports an error, the entire program should immediately crash and terminate. But now the program's synchronization rate has remained at 120%..."
Seeing Kiana in danger, Theresa, as Kiana's aunt, was also extremely anxious. "Can't we terminate the program directly?"
"Principal, I'm afraid not. If we terminate the program recklessly, it may have unknown effects on Kiana herself."
"Then what should we do..."
Before Theresa could finish speaking, an earth-shaking roar drew everyone's attention back to the synchronization program.
"Ganesha?!"
Upon seeing the generated Honkai Beast, Theresa looked utterly incredulous. "How is that possible?! The database shouldn't be able to generate an Emperor-class Honkai Beast!"
But now that things had come to this, they could only place their hopes on Kiana herself.
In response, Kiana confidently raised her twin pistols. "Don't worry! Since there's no way to disconnect, this young lady will beat him flat!"
However, though she said that, when Ganesha's overwhelmingly oppressive body appeared before her, she could not help feeling a little intimidated.
Just then, Kiana heard a familiar voice from not far away. She turned around and found Raiden Mei there.
"Kiana, I'm here to help too!"
Kiana:!!!
Before Kiana could express her gratitude, another voice rang out.
"This monster is very strong. Idiot Kiana will probably have a hard time defeating it, so Bronya is joining too!"
Looking at the two companions beside her, both willing to risk themselves to help her, Kiana's heart filled with fighting spirit.
"True fearlessness is knowing that someone will always catch you when you stumble backward."
Ye Li's gentle voice echoed in her mind, and Kiana felt strength surge through her entire body!
After a bitter battle, the three of them finally defeated the simulated Emperor-class Honkai Beast, Ganesha.
The moment Kiana disconnected from the Synchronized Immersion Device, Theresa and the others rushed over.
"Kiana, are you all right?"
Though mentally and physically exhausted, the stubborn Kiana still haughtily declared, "Phew~ A mere... mere Emperor-class Honkai Beast. This young lady beat it without breaking a sweat..."
"Stop bragging and go get some rest," Himeko said, shaking her head.
While everyone was fussing over Kiana, Rita, who had come from Schicksal Headquarters, somehow walked over as well.
Looking at the exhausted Kiana, Rita sincerely praised her. "That was truly an excellent battle. Although your opponent was merely a simulated virtual module, it was still an Emperor-class Honkai Beast."
Rita's praise made the already smug Kiana puff up even more.
Taking the opportunity, Kiana immediately made a request of Theresa and the others. "Since this young lady's combat performance was so outstanding, does that mean I don't have to take the theoretical written exam?"
"Indeed, as you said, Kiana, given this situation, the exam should be terminated..." Himeko said.
Kiana: Yes!
"But, Kiana, I never said that terminating the exam meant it wouldn't be held again, did I?"
Himeko said with a stern face, "Tomorrow. I'll arrange another Valkyrie written exam tomorrow, so you'd better study hard tonight, Kiana~ If you fail, hehe... you know the consequences!"
As Himeko's words fell, Kiana slumped onto the floor with a lifeless expression and shouted, "Ah! Why are you doing this to me?!"
Before you continue