Huh? I'm Fighting a Herrscher? For Real?

A while earlier, outside Babylon Tower, the three of Siegfried were still fighting desperately, but there were simply too many Honkai Beasts. The three of them were gradually being overwhelmed.

"Phew~ These guys just won't stop coming, no matter how many we kill. Salome, let's see who can kill more." Nicholas bared her shark-like teeth and said to Salome between breaths.

Salome, however, looked speechless.

"You idiot, Nicholas. Our mission is not to let a single Honkai Beast through. Who said anything about competing with you?"

Nicholas was just about to complain about how boring Salome was when a sudden disturbance came from ahead. Siegfried immediately told the two of them to hide behind him.

Walter Yang stood high in the sky. With only a small portion of Star of Eden's energy released, over a hundred Honkai Beasts were reduced to ashes in an instant, leaving the three below dumbfounded.

The three of them were startled when Old Yang revealed his affiliation. They naturally knew about the hostile relationship between Anti-Entropy and Schicksal. Combined with the strength he had just displayed, watching him walk toward them step by step made them grit their teeth.

They knew that in their current condition, they were absolutely no match for this First Herrscher.

Contrary to their expectations, the Anti-Entropy leader stopped several meters away from them and extended his right hand.

Back to the present, at Schicksal HQ, Floating Island.

Otto was watching his former self playfully chase the former Kallen through the Data Space, and he felt somewhat melancholy for a moment.

"Lord Bishop, Siegfried reports that the Anti-Entropy leader, First Herrscher Walter, has appeared near Babylon Tower."

Hearing the name Walter, Otto immediately recalled how Walter Joyce's Friendship-Breaking Fist had humiliated him in 1955.

He pressed his left hand against his face and said grimly, "How is the battle with Anti-Entropy going? Tell Siegfried to defend Babylon Tower at all costs."

"According to Siegfried's report, they haven't fought Anti-Entropy. They said they came to assist with the investigation of Babylon Tower. Considering the urgency of the situation, Siegfried agreed to cooperate with Anti-Entropy temporarily and allowed them to enter Babylon Tower."

"They're already inside? That self-willed fool, Siegfried!" Otto was just about to lose his temper when he suddenly thought of something, and the corners of his mouth rose involuntarily.

"Tell Siegfried that I understand the situation. His judgment was absolutely correct. Fighting the First Herrscher would only result in mutual destruction, with no benefit to us whatsoever. Let's accept Anti-Entropy's goodwill..."

Jessica Browning was a B-rank Valkyrie. When she encountered a Honkai Beast attack, she was rescued by Valkyries. Wanting to save more people like them, she chose to join Schicksal. Fortunately, her resistance to Honkai Energy far exceeded that of ordinary people, allowing her to become a Valkyrie. After accidentally witnessing Cecilia spar with other Valkyries, she became one of Cecilia's many devoted admirers and took her as her role model from then on.

Unfortunately, her wish had only been fulfilled halfway. Although she had become a B-rank Valkyrie, she had not gotten her wish to fight Honkai Beasts and save more people. Instead, she had been assigned to guard headquarters all this time.

In a sense, she was extremely lucky. After all, in a world plagued by Honkai outbreaks, Schicksal HQ could be considered the safest place. At least here, there was no risk of making the ultimate sacrifice.

"Sigh, I've been here for years. There's no use daydreaming. I'd better continue patrolling." Jessica patted her cheeks and continued with her work.

At that moment, several lights flickered in the laboratory behind her, immediately drawing her attention. She clearly remembered that something extremely important was stored inside. Not the slightest mishap could be allowed.

She jogged into the laboratory. Inside two glass cabinets, a purple gem lay quietly in place. Jessica breathed a sigh of relief, then smiled. Something that looked no different from ordinary glass was supposedly capable of withstanding a nuclear strike. Even if the entire Floating Island were shot down, the item inside would remain undamaged. How could anything possibly have happened? She really had been too sensitive.

It was said that this gem could unleash energy on the level of a Herrscher. Jessica was no idiot. Although she wanted to fight on the front lines, her academic knowledge was still quite good. She naturally understood exactly what Herrscher-level meant.

"A Herrscher is even more powerful than an Emperor-class Honkai Beast. In other words, even an S-rank Valkyrie might not be its match." Her teacher's words echoed in her ears. Every time she saw the gem, she could not help sighing.

"Even Cecilia might not be able to defeat it. What kind of existence could it possibly be?"

Suddenly, the laboratory door closed on its own. Immediately afterward, every light on the ceiling began flickering in turns. As a Valkyrie, Jessica did not panic in the face of the sudden emergency. Instead, she chose to report it at once.

However, no matter how she struck the computer, the screen remained pitch-black. Static continued crackling through her communicator.

Then, a pair of delicate hands reached out from the computer screen and seized both sides of the computer. With a forceful pull of her arms, a figure leaped out of the computer.

"Hi there. How are you feeling?" Enoshia, still wearing the appearance of Corrupted Elysia, looked at Jessica, who had already collapsed against the corner of the wall, and waved with a smile as she greeted her.

If Elysia had greeted her like that, people would probably have thought an angel had descended among them. But when it was Corrupted Elysia, especially in an environment like this, even the most beautiful smile would only look terrifying to others.

"This is Schicksal HQ, you..." Although Jessica was extremely frightened, she still rose to her feet while trembling and drew her pistol, aiming it at Enoshia.

"I know. I wouldn't have come if this weren't Schicksal HQ." Enoshia chatted with Jessica as she leisurely walked up to the Conquest Gem. She reached out with both hands and removed the glass cover. Schicksal's renowned defensive system, which supposedly could not even be breached by an A-rank Valkyrie, did not activate at all.

"Put down what you're holding and surrender immediately, or I'll shoot!" Jessica swallowed and shouted while forcing herself to remain calm, even though she knew the pistol probably posed no threat to Enoshia.

"Not bad professional discipline. Do you know who I am?" Enoshia asked playfully. She glanced around the room and found that, aside from the Conquest Gem, everything else looked incredibly high-tech. Unfortunately, with her level of knowledge, she could not understand what any of it was for. So she decided to stop there and avoid complications.

"Even if you're a Herrscher, I won't be afraid of you." Jessica tightened her grip on the gun.

"Oh? You're pretty clever. You guessed that I'm a Herrscher right away. But that makes sense. Aside from Herrschers, there aren't many people who can deal with the defensive system at Schicksal HQ."

Hearing that, Jessica felt her blood freeze. Only one sentence remained in her mind.

Huh? I'm fighting a Herrscher? For real?

Enoshia did not waste any more words. With a single strike, she knocked unconscious Jessica, who had already lost the ability to fight.

"To think they'd assign just one B-rank Valkyrie to guard something this important. Did Schicksal think she was Finality Ki? They're far too confident in their own systems." Enoshia dragged her aside, then flew brazenly out of Schicksal's base with the Conquest Gem in hand.