Holder of the Sacred Mark

"Ah... I'm... still alive?" Olga crawled up from the snow, shook her head, and gradually regained clarity. The casual strike from Ashwatthama had nearly shattered her armor completely. Fortunately, though her entire body looked red, she hadn't actually been hit in any vital spots—she could still move.

It was impossible not to be afraid, facing an Emperor-class Honkai Beast on her first battlefield. But her duty as a Valkyrie still drove her forward. The result, however, was a wasted effort.

After roughly treating her wounds, Olga began searching for Sophia, who had only become her teammate a few days ago.

"Sophia... Ah."

Compared to Olga, Sophia had been less fortunate. The same casual blow from Ashwatthama had shattered her armor and sent her flying, knocking her unconscious inside a damaged building. Then the whole structure collapsed, burying her under the rubble.

Olga walked to the edge of the ruins. Bright red blood was seeping out steadily, with no sign of struggle from within. She knew her comrade had left her forever.

"Right, what about the Emperor-class Honkai Beast?" Wiping the tears from her eyes, she turned her head. The villagers were bowing and worshipping in scattered groups, all facing the same direction. After some inquiries, she learned what had happened while she was unconscious.

"One shot destroyed an Emperor-class Honkai Beast?!... Wait, purple hair, that face... She's the Herrscher of Void!" She remembered clearly—the Herrscher of Void had fled after clashing with the Herrscher of Reason, and she had seen her appearance back then.

Sirin paid no attention to the villagers prostrating themselves. She went to Ivan's side and observed the faint red pattern on her back. Having never attended a day of school, she had no idea what it was. She even guessed it was some kind of illness Ivan had and planned to treat it with the Herrscher of Death's authority.

"A Stigmata?"

Sirin didn't recognize it, but Olga, as a Valkyrie, knew it all too well. She never imagined that in this semi-isolated little village, there would be a natural Stigmata bearer. If she was willing to join Schicksal, she would surely become a core force against the Honkai in the future.

"Stigmata?" Olga's words instantly stirred old memories in Sirin. She remembered that the researchers' experiments on her and the other orphans were all aimed at advancing Artificial Stigmata research. And judging by this Valkyrie's shocked expression, this child was probably like her—a special individual meeting certain conditions.

She looked at Olga, who was about her age, and muttered to herself:

"So Schicksal not only performs human experiments on orphans, tormenting them endlessly, but also forces such young children to the front lines? A bunch of bastards, indeed."

"That's not true at all! I came here to protect ordinary people and destroy Honkai Beasts completely of my own free will! As for the human experiments you mentioned, they're utterly baseless—Schicksal is a righteous organization that protects humanity and fights the Honkai!" Hearing Sirin's words, Olga's face flushed red, and she instinctively retorted. Only after speaking did she realize she was facing a Herrscher—by nature an apostle of the Honkai. Her words were practically asking for trouble.

"But shouldn't a Herrscher be the ruler of Honkai Beasts, belonging to the same faction? Why would she destroy an Emperor-class Honkai Beast to save people?"

Though Olga's heart was full of doubt, looking at Sirin's expression shifting from clear to stormy, she knew clearly that her Valkyrie career was probably over. She couldn't even withstand a single blow from an Emperor-class Honkai Beast. Facing a Herrscher, she couldn't imagine any chance of survival.

"Oh well. As a B-rank Valkyrie, encountering both an Emperor-class Honkai Beast and a Herrscher on my first mission—even some A-rank adults probably never had that experience. Facing enemies stronger than myself, my comrades and I upheld the duty of a Valkyrie and fought to the very last moment. I didn't disgrace Schicksal..."

Olga gently closed her eyes. Compared to her teammate, she was undoubtedly lucky—at least she had the chance to look back on the past and let her mind wander before dying.

June 7, 1986. She was born in Novosibirsk. As a child, aside from being more restless, she was no different from other kids her age.

Until 1999. Her whole family was attacked by Honkai Beasts during a trip. By the time the Valkyrie squad arrived, only she—a girl with Honkai resistance far beyond normal—had survived.

After that, she naturally joined Schicksal. After over a year of training, she set foot in Siberia under her instructor's lead as a rookie...

Her Deathbed Vision seemed to drag on too long. Olga reviewed every major event from her year-plus with Schicksal, but the death she imagined still didn't come. After minutes of torment, her mental defenses began to crack.

Though her physical abilities far exceeded normal humans, she was still just a thirteen-year-old girl with her own dreams for the future. The thought that her ideals would end before they even began—fear quietly crept into her heart.

"Take care of her."

"Huh?!" Olga opened her eyes in shock. The Herrscher before her was still glaring angrily, but clearly had no intention to kill.

Though Sirin's face remained dark, looking at Olga's expression, she guessed Olga knew nothing about the Babylon Experiment Tower. And since she was about the same age, Sirin had no plans to kill her.

Objectively speaking, though this place was remote, once she left, low-level Honkai Beasts might still attack here. Clearly, even against the lowest Charge-type Honkai Beast, only she in the entire village had a fighting chance.

Of course, as a Herrscher, Sirin could summon Honkai Beasts loyal to her and have them act as bodyguards against other Honkai Beasts. But recalling the terror on Ivan's and the others' faces facing Ashwatthama, and since low-level Honkai Beasts lacked intelligence and might not execute her orders well, having a Valkyrie as a guard was obviously more acceptable.

"Absolutely do not hand her over to Schicksal, or face the consequences. Bella, let's go." Sirin said coldly, then the two rose into the air, their figures quickly vanishing into the sky.

Only then did Olga, her mind still lagging, realize that the Herrscher wanted her to protect this child.

"She has some inexplicable hatred for Schicksal, but... why does she, an apostle of the Honkai, act like a normal person?"

In the distance, a blue pillar of light pierced the sky. Extremely high concentrations of Honkai Energy radiated outward from that point in all directions.

[Worst case scenario, the entire Eurasian continent could disappear]

[It's strong. Only if you join the fight can victory be guaranteed]

Recalling the Herrscher of Corruption's words, even without a day of schooling, Sirin understood what would happen if the Herrscher of Frost passed through human cities now.

Thinking of Ivan, and then of the children in Siberia who might share similar experiences to Ivan and herself, Sirin activated the Herrscher of Void's authority and began to lock on.