United Effort

"So that's why it stopped running—it found a suitable spot." Watching the Herrscher of Ice take cover at the bottom of Lake Baikal after a single failed strike, Tesla slammed her fist on the table.

Aside from Welt, who could move freely through the air, everyone else had to stay put on the vines. To protect the vines from destruction, Cecilia had to focus entirely on controlling Black Abyss White Flower, temporarily becoming a non-combat unit.

At that moment, the once clear skies over Lake Baikal shifted violently. Within minutes, the area around the vines was once again shrouded in an icy fog, severely hampering their vision and attack accuracy. Even if it launched a sudden assault now, Siegfried and the others couldn't guarantee a hit.

Facing the Herrscher of Ice stubbornly hiding at the lake's bottom, Welt found himself at a loss. To ensure it was dragged out, he'd theoretically have to drain all the water from Lake Baikal. Not only would that cause permanent, irreversible damage to the local ecosystem, but after using Simulated Black Hole not long ago, would he even have the strength left to kill it after such a massive undertaking?

Fortunately, the Herrscher of Ice had another opponent from the very start.

[Listen up, get up there.]

[Get up!]

[Get up!]

The Herrscher of Ice leaped from the ice surface like a fish, then quickly dove back into the lake.

"Damn, it's a Herrscher, not that Herrscher of Death who didn't want to live anyway. What a pain..."

Inside the Herrscher of Ice, Enoshia, who had partially infiltrated its consciousness, kept trying to imprint the thought of surfacing onto it, only to meet fierce resistance from its own will.

"Heh, can't rush. That move just now—Welt should have guessed it was me. Let them prepare first. If I want to break through, I still need to coordinate with those outside." Enoshia temporarily relaxed her control, sinking back into the depths of its mind.

Sure enough, Welt shared his speculation with the group.

"Miss Herrscher of Corruption's assistance gives us a precious opportunity. We need to quickly come up with a viable plan so her efforts aren't wasted."

Among Schicksal's members here, Cecilia would normally take the lead. But now, Cheng Lixue, Shigure Kira, and Nicholas—three A-rank Valkyries—firmly proposed their own plan.

"No, this is too dangerous. Salome and Patrick have already met with misfortune. As captain, I can't keep watching my squadmates throw their lives away!"

The three Valkyries exchanged glances. Since the Snow Wolf Squad was formed in 1996, this was the first time they'd seen her so emotional. Without a doubt, the loss of her two members had weighed heavily on her all along.

"Captain, after this battle, even we fools understand how insignificant an A-rank Valkyrie is before a Herrscher. The only ones who can deal fatal damage to a Herrscher are you and Siegfried's Divine Fire Judgment. But the Lord Bishop still sent us with you—his intent is clearer to you than to us. Creating an opportunity to kill a Herrscher with our lives is the most valuable thing we can do."

"Lixue... I..." Cheng Lixue's resolute words choked off what Cecilia was about to say.

"That's right, Lady Cecilia. Even if the enemy is a Herrscher, let us play some part." Shigure Kira said, already raising her sniper rifle.

The Herrscher of Ice was currently in a weakened state. No one knew if its terrifying recovery ability would return over time. From the earlier fight, it was clear that since becoming the Herrscher of Ice, it possessed high combat intelligence. If it escaped from here, the consequences would be unthinkable.

In the end, her duty as a Valkyrie forced her to silently approve their plan.

For any living being with emotions, different experiences naturally give rise to different feelings.

"Hmm... though my memories are severely lacking, similar to humans, the most unforgettable things in memory are those that push emotions to extremes—anger, joy, sorrow, excitement... That makes things easier."

Unlike with machines, when eroding a living being with emotions, the stronger and more resolute the individual's will, the greater the resistance to large-scale alterations. So to tamper with a Herrscher of the same caliber, Enoshia often chose a roundabout approach.

She didn't alter its cognition or memory. Instead, by stimulating its brain, she made it constantly recall those deeply engraved memories, forcing its emotions to swing wildly between highs and lows—like bending an iron wire back and forth until its will collapsed, allowing her to slip in.

"Sigh, even as the Herrscher of Corruption, tampering with another Herrscher's information is still too hard. Hmm... it's been a while—they should have come up with a result up there."

[Get, out!]

Under Enoshia's influence, the Herrscher of Ice leaped from the lake again like a carp jumping over a dragon gate. When it tried to dive back, it found its body floating uncontrollably—undoubtedly the result of Welt altering gravity.

Welt aimed at the Herrscher of Ice, casting a gravity restraint, successfully trapping it in midair before it could hit the water.

But... it was only trapped. The Herrscher of Ice's power usage was almost unaffected. Welt guessed this might be related to having been swallowed by it before—it seemed to have some resistance to his abilities. He knew that to deliver a fatal blow in the shortest time, he'd have to rely on the other two. Countless ice spears flew at Welt, but they were shattered by the artillery he conjured before getting close.

The biggest nuisances were the five ice hairpins and two lanterns. After losing the Herrscher of Rock's core, the lanterns had become much smaller and more compact, but they could still send a Valkyrie flying like a spinning top.

Watching the two lanterns charge at her from both sides, Cheng Lixue instead sheathed Ruoshui back into its scabbard and took a deep breath.

"Let him be strong, let him be fierce—a gentle breeze brushes the mountain ridge; let him be wild, let him be cruel—a bright moon shines on the great river." Facing the lanterns that had once killed an A-rank Valkyrie and were now growing larger before her, she pushed her state of mind into the Still Water Extreme Realm.

[Hua Jin: Pure Lotus], [Hua Jin: Weeping Willow], [Hua Jin: Green Pine], [Hua Jin: Bending Bamboo]

In an state of extreme calm, Cheng Lixue didn't meet the fierce lanterns head-on with inch-force. Instead, she used Hua Jin, deflecting them away from her with the finesse of four ounces moving a thousand pounds.

Welt increased the gravity slightly. Nicholas, floating in the air, seized the moment and leaped, landing one foot precisely on the lantern Cheng Lixue had pushed aside, lunging toward the Herrscher of Ice.

Facing the five ice hairpins flying at her, Nicholas didn't even glance at them—she just pressed forward.

Shigure Kira followed her lead, jumping from the vine with her right hand on the trigger. Amid the thick fog, she pulled the trigger.

"Bang, bang, bang"

Three bullets fired, successfully diverting the ice hairpins' original trajectory. The five hairpins collided in front of Nicholas, becoming her next springboard. She leaped again, vanishing into the mist. Shigure Kira, like Cheng Lixue, landed safely on the ice.

"Nicholas, it's up to you now."