Collapse, I Alone Save Everything

"Is that so... To be honest, this is my first time in England too."

Durandal said with a sigh.

Just then, a woman's voice came from the side.

"In that case, please allow me to be your guide and show you around properly."

A young girl with dark golden hair also came up to them at this moment, looking at Ming Yu with a smile:

"Ming Yu, we meet again."

"Hello, Senior Rita."

Ming Yu greeted her politely as well.

Although she had claimed to be just a maid when he first met her on the Hyperion, whether based on his memories as a captain from his past life or as a member of St. Freya, he had long known that this maid was actually one of Schicksal's only three S-Rank Valkyries.

Moreover, compared to the straightforward Durandal, Rita, who was always inscrutable and meticulous, was probably the more difficult one to handle in a sense.

"Speaking of which, seniors, are you two here on vacation as well?"

Ming Yu asked.

"Yes, England is Rita's hometown. The Bishop gave us a few days off, so we came here to relax and sightsee."

Durandal explained.

...Just here for vacation?

I'd believe that if pigs could fly!

Ming Yu grumbled internally.

It was possible that Otto, that paranoid guy, had sent these two to London under the guise of a vacation to monitor him.

Well, Durandal might be debatable, but Rita was very likely to have received some instructions from Otto.

It wasn't that he hadn't considered Otto sending people to watch him, so he had been cautious all the way, and only summoned one of Judah's chains to locate Chariot of Sanctus.

But he really hadn't expected to run into these two S-Rank Valkyries.

Dealing with the World Serpent's guards was already troublesome enough, and now there were two more S-Rank Valkyries. It seemed that his plan to find Chariot of Sanctus was going to fall through.

However, since these two S-Rank Valkyries from Schicksal happened to be here... they might not necessarily become his "helpers."

A rough plan quickly formed in Ming Yu's mind – a strategy of "driving the tiger to swallow the wolf."

He would use the S-Rank Valkyries to contend with the World Serpent.

Chapter 56: Driving the Tiger to Swallow the Wolf

Evening.

After coincidentally meeting the two S-Rank Valkyries by the river, Ming Yu, despite their insistence, ultimately declined Rita's offer to be his guide and found a hotel near the Thames River to stay in.

Ming Yu knew, of course, that doing so would obviously attract Rita's attention, but that was precisely the effect he wanted.

—For the vast majority of Valkyries, upon seeing the S-Rank Valkyries, the pinnacle of their admiration for Schicksal, and two of them at that, they would probably be so excited they'd jump up on the spot. How could they possibly refuse their invitation to accompany them?

His repeated rejections were precisely to draw Rita's attention.

Opening the window facing the Thames River, Ming Yu's gaze fell upon a spot above the river.

After that, he had already located the approximate position of Chariot of Sanctus and was just waiting for the right moment to act.

It was just a bit too early at this time; it would be better to start acting in the latter half of the night.

On one hand, it was a dark and windy night, which was good for getting things done. On the other hand, it was also when the number of ordinary people on the streets was at its lowest. If any fighting were to break out, it would minimize losses and damage as much as possible.

During the idle waiting time, Ming Yu simply closed the window, drew the curtains, and comfortably lay down on the bed, taking out his phone from his pocket.

Coincidentally, there were a few new messages in their "St. Freya Family" chat group.

Kiana: "Hey, Ming Yu, Ming Yu, remember to bring back some delicious food from England!"

Ming Yu: "...Should I bring you a stargazy pie?"

This country was truly a culinary desert, with almost no outstanding cuisine. If he had to mention something, fish and chips were probably acceptable.

Mei: "Are you getting used to living there?"

Ming Yu: "Everything else is fine, I just miss Mei's cooking~"

Theresa: "Remember to take lots of pictures and send them to the group!"

Bronya: "...Be safe."

Ming Yu: "Okay, okay, I will."

Himeko: "What are you guys talking about?~"

(Suddenly sent a very revealing selfie, probably drunk)

(Group owner Theresa recalled one of the member's messages)

(Himeko has been muted)

Contacting these familiar beautiful girls was always a pleasant thing, and time passed by so quickly.

He would do anything to get the projection of Chariot of Sanctus, but at the same time, you could say he would do nothing.

The latter half of the night finally arrived as scheduled.

Ming Yu glanced at the mechanical watch on his wrist. The hands were pointing exactly to three o'clock.

This was the perfect time to act.

[Save point, recording].

Ming Yu pulled open the window, faint electrical sparks appearing on his body, and then he leaped down, landing on the street.

The dark street was silent, save for him, who darted into an alley like a bolt of lightning.

Upon reaching the vicinity of the Thames River, he didn't rush to destroy the seal. Instead, he stood still, closed his eyes, and began to sense his surroundings.

To be precise, he was using the reflection of electromagnetic waves to grasp the environment and structure around him.

This was another application of his electromagnetic abilities, allowing him to detect any hidden trackers nearby.

Relying solely on his eyesight and personal observation, he wouldn't be able to tell if Miss Rita was around. As an S-Rank Valkyrie of Schicksal, she had received professional assassin training and possessed quite unique skills in concealing her presence.

However, even the most sophisticated concealment techniques couldn't erase one's physical existence. As expected, Ming Yu spotted the Valkyrie's figure at a distance of about a hundred meters.

Only after confirming that she had indeed followed him did Ming Yu feel at ease.

If she hadn't come, it would have been inconvenient.

In addition to Rita's presence, it seemed there were also some other special detection devices aimed in this direction, presumably arrangements made by World Serpent.

Dealing with either of them alone wouldn't be easy.

But with both of them present, he could pit them against each other and reap the benefits.

So, next... let's begin.

A coin materialized in Ming Yu's hand.

He raised his hand and aimed it at a point about fifty meters above the water surface directly in front of him.

Although there appeared to be nothing there, according to the detection reaction provided by Oath of Judah, there was indeed a significant amount of Honkai energy reaction.

It was likely a piece of pre-civilization technology similar to the one that stored the Star of Eden, seen during the time of Joyce – a transparent container suspended high in the air.

However, he didn't have the necessary permissions to slowly break the container's seal, so he could only resort to brute force.

Taking a deep breath, electrical sparks gathered at his fingertips, and Ming Yu fired a Railgun.

A dazzling white light shot from the ground into the air, directly hitting something invisible to the naked eye.

After a brief delay, the space began to warp and shatter, revealing the original form of something that had remained unchanged for thousands of years.

A massive train appeared directly above the Thames River and began to fall towards the water's surface.

And... a small but unignorable little fellow.

—An armed puppet created based on Kevin Kaslana.

The white-haired little fellow held a miniature replica of Judgment of Shamash and fell from the sky along with Chariot of Sanctus.

It looked expressionlessly in Ming Yu's direction, and without a hint of hesitation, it raised the greatsword in its hand and swung it down fiercely.

—Judgment of Shamash unsheathed!

A radiant blaze instantly spread from the lake's surface to the street.

"Bishop, the mission you mentioned is to monitor Ming Yu's actions, correct?"

A day ago, Rita asked, confirming the mission assignment from Otto on the terminal in her hand.

"That's right, Rita. Report to me immediately if anything happens. If nothing happens, you can just take a few days off with Durandal."

The voice from the other end of the terminal said casually.

"Then, if he were to travel to areas outside of London..."

Rita mused.

"Don't worry, I have arrangements for other areas. You two are responsible for the London region."

"Understood, Rita."

The dark golden-haired girl thus began another routine mission.

Unlike the other S-Rank Valkyrie, Durandal, who often fought Honkai beasts on the front lines, her missions were more often surveillance, infiltration, or assassination.

This is likely what they mean by specialization.

Moreover, given her personality, she was more suited to carrying out these types of tasks.

After a fated "chance encounter," and given that Ming Yu had been consistently declining their invitations to travel together, Rita concluded that he indeed had something to do in London and began her serious surveillance.

In the middle of the night, witnessing Ming Yu leaving the hotel where he was staying and starting his actions, Rita concealed herself and quietly followed him.

Subsequently, she saw Ming Yu fire the Railgun, shattering the container of something and bringing it back to light.

Rita already knew about Ming Yu's combat ability to manipulate electromagnetism, and she had seen it firsthand. Therefore, Rita focused more of her attention on the object that had reappeared in the world.

"...A train?"

The girl with dark golden hair murmured in confusion.

She truly didn't recognize what the object before her was.

She didn't recognize it, but someone else did.

Otto, who had been remotely observing the situation through the camera device on Rita, spoke with an uncharacteristic tone of excitement, a tone Rita rarely heard from him, abandoning his usual composure and confidence.

"The detection shows that the device possesses a Honkai energy reaction similar to other Divine Keys. It's highly probable that this is the Second Divine Key."

Currently, the vast majority of the Divine Keys were under Schicksal's control. Only a few were not in his possession, and the Second Divine Key was one of them.

Therefore, he had reason to believe that the device, which looked like a train, could indeed be the Second Divine Key.

This deduction was sound. Otto had always believed that the Second Divine Key was located in Britain.

The whereabouts of this Divine Key were inextricably linked to a myth from Britain.

—Specifically, it was a legend related to King Arthur.

The tale of the boy named Arthur pulling the sword from the stone with the help of the great magician Merlin and the Lady of the Lake, becoming the king of Britain, was a well-known myth in the West.

Of course, Otto wasn't interested in how that king rose to power, how he formed the Knights of the Round Table, or how his empire eventually declined.

What he cared about was another related legend.

—The legendary isle of Avalon, an ideal land isolated from the mortal world, the place where King Arthur finally rested in eternal slumber.

Naturally, there was no place called Avalon on Earth, but Otto didn't believe it was merely a myth fabricated by later generations. He believed it truly existed.

If it wasn't on Earth... then it must be located on the other side of space-time.

Legend had it that the great magician Merlin gave King Arthur a sword, a sword capable of cleaving space, and it also served as a link to another time-space.