"L-Little shorty???"
Upon seeing her grandniece, Theresa had originally wanted to give her a warm hug. But the moment she heard those three words, she froze on the spot.
Gu Yu, who had been keeping watch over the three S-rank Valkyries, even saw Theresa's colors and luster gradually turn grayish white.
"Um..."
Seeing Theresa's devastated expression, Kiana, who felt like she might have done something bad, cautiously spoke with a hint of apology.
"How about... little kid?"
"Kiana, you disrespectful brat!"
After Kiana dealt her a second blow, Theresa instantly slammed Oath of Judah into the ground with imposing fury.
"Judah!"
Countless Iron Chains shot out from Judah, stabbing toward Kiana like venomous serpents.
"...How did this turn into this?"
Seeing Theresa fly into a rage over a few words, Gu Yu covered his face in despair before stepping directly in front of Kiana.
"Henshin..."
[KamenRideGarren]
[AttackRideRock]
After transforming in an instant, Gu Yu raised his right hand and released the tortoise crest, creating a rocky barrier.
The rapidly shooting Iron Chains struck the barrier and pierced straight into the stone, forcibly stopped by Gu Yu.
When Gu Yu had first seen Durandal and Rita, he had already begun to sense trouble.
The consecutive battles from before had left him in terrible condition. He could still fight, but against these two powerful enemies, his odds of winning were absurdly low.
As for Theresa, this neutral figure was a potential ally in Gu Yu's eyes.
If Kiana could pull Theresa onto their side, then even if Durandal and Rita were directly ordered by Otto to seize someone, Theresa could hold them off for a while.
But now...
—Well, it was all over.
"W-What are you doing?"
Seeing Theresa's explosive attitude, Kiana hid behind Gu Yu and complained haltingly.
"Isn't it just calling you a little shorty? You really are shor..."
"Kaslana!"
"Tch, got it, Elder Brother Gu."
After Gu Yu cut off her suicidal remark, Kiana pouted and fell silent.
"What little shorty? I'm your aunt."
Perhaps realizing that she had been overly hasty, Theresa withdrew the Iron Chains extending from Judah and glared at Kiana indignantly.
"When I held you as a child, you were so adorable. Now you've become this disrespectful..."
"That Siegfried really didn't raise you properly."
"Stinky Dad?!"
The instant she heard her father's name, Kiana's expression changed.
During the years Siegfried had been missing, Kiana had been constantly investigating his whereabouts.
And now, this small girl in front of her actually knew her father's name...
—She had to get her father's whereabouts from this girl.
However, just as this thought flashed through Kiana's mind, Durandal, who had been watching from the sidelines, awkwardly coughed twice.
"Lady Theresa, the mission. The mission."
"Tch, I know."
After Theresa fell silent, Durandal addressed everyone with a serious expression.
"Greetings, everyone. We are the Valkyrie squad Blade of Immortality, under the anti-Honkai special organization Schicksal."
"My name is Bianca Durandal Attagina, captain of Blade of Immortality."
After briefly introducing herself, Durandal swept her gaze across the group and asked sternly.
"Among you, has anyone been hearing strange voices since yesterday, or gained some particularly unusual power?"
"Just say you're looking for the Herrscher of Thunder."
[KamenRideBlade]
After switching forms, Gu Yu gripped the weapon that appeared in midair—the Blay Rouzer.
"I..."
"The person you're looking for should be me."
However, before Gu Yu could finish, Raiden Mei, who had remained silent all this time, stepped forward first.
"Mei?"
Gu Yu hurriedly turned his head and saw the incomparably complicated expression on Raiden Mei's face.
"Gu Yu, I'm grateful that you saved me and hid the fact that I'm a Herrscher."
"But I don't think you need to clash with this lady over Raiden Mei, who once nearly killed you."
After having that dream in the morning, Raiden Mei had gradually come to believe that it was her memory.
During the period when she had lost her memories, she had transformed into a terrifying demon and nearly killed the young man before her.
Yet after the battle ended, the young man had not only spared her, but had chosen to pull her back from the brink of death.
Raiden Mei was not someone who failed to appreciate kindness. How could she, after learning this, watch the young man continue to protect her and become enemies with a female knight who looked so difficult to deal with?
"Mm, that makes things easier."
After confirming that the mark detected by the Hyperion indeed remained on the girl, Durandal said with visible relief.
"Then..."
"Durandal, I have an urgent mission for you."
Just as Durandal was about to speak with the girl, the voice of Schicksal's Grand Bishop Otto came through Durandal's communicator.
"Lord Otto?"
Upon hearing Otto's voice, Durandal asked in confusion.
"What could be more urgent than dealing with a Herrscher???"
"Mm. The sudden outbreak of the Third Honkai Outbreak in Changkong City is likely related to those people from Anti-Entropy. Take Blade of Immortality and begin clearing out the Honkai Beasts and Meele in Changkong City. At the same time, investigate information related to the Third Honkai Outbreak."
"This..."
"Oh, and leave Rita behind. Have her handle the follow-up matters concerning this Herrscher."
"Understood."
After hearing Otto's words, Durandal no longer had any doubts.
Otto's attitude was very obvious right now...
—He wanted to send her, Durandal, away so Rita could do something he did not want her to see.
She was not an idiot. She could easily see through something on this level.
However, Durandal did not question Otto's orders in the slightest. Instead, after giving Rita a deep look, she led the other Blade of Immortality members out of everyone's sight.
In any case, this was not the first time Durandal had encountered such a situation.
She trusted that Archbishop Otto would fight against the Honkai, and she also trusted that only Rita could handle these matters properly.
Then what need did she have to doubt those she trusted?
Now, let me explain why.
When I discussed the Honkai Impact 3rd plot with other friends, I felt a little awkward while reading through the story.
First, there was Theresa. From the side-story manga Anti-Entropy Invasion, she learned certain things from Einstein at that time. Combined with the later plot, it seemed to be related to clones.
But in the main story, she directly rebelled against Schicksal for Kiana.
Then, according to the game's side story [Eternal Cycle], Theresa herself knew that the Kiana who had escaped was K423, while the real Kiana had been taken back to Schicksal Headquarters by Otto.
That was awkward...
Did she know or not?
If she had known all along, then her later attitude toward Kiana was very strange.
And if she did not know... what do you mean she didn't know? Wasn't it written in the plot? There was no plot where Otto used Void Storage's Mimicry Utsu-semi to wipe her memories, and the official writers did not even mention it. What am I supposed to do here? [Stares at the sky].
Logically speaking, those of us writing fanfiction are making a living off the official work, so it is only right to give the official writers some face and not criticize them too harshly.
But after reading this part of the plot, I really...
Forget it. Anyway, I only said all that because I wanted to express one thing.
I'm going to make some major changes.
Without deviating from the overall direction, I'm going to alter some of the details a little.
Otherwise, some characters are clearly meant to be positive characters, yet they come off as especially bitchy... That is not good. Really not good.
PS2: As usual, please vote.
If you can't find it by searching the book title, try searching for the author. It might just have been renamed!
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