The Headmistress of St. Freya Academy

As Murata Himeko landed, the external device resembling a booster automatically came apart.

"Wow! That's so cool!"

Kiana's eyes practically sparkled as she stared at Himeko's high-tech gear.

It felt different from dismantling those metal lumps earlier. Since they had been enemies, Kiana had taken them apart in just a few moves, but the person before them probably wasn't an enemy.

"All right, all right. If you want to look, you can take your time later. There are more important matters right now."

Himeko said with an amused smile, then looked toward Raiden Mei. "You're the Third Herrscher, aren't you?"

Hearing Himeko's words, Kiana immediately stepped in front of Mei. "Mei isn't a Herrscher!"

"All right, Kiana."

Raiden Mei pushed Kiana aside and looked at Himeko. "I don't want to be this Herrscher, but I do indeed possess a Herrscher's power within me."

"Oh? That really is strange. I heard Herrschers were all lunatics who loved causing destruction."

Himeko had never truly faced a Herrscher before, but she had learned from textbooks just how much destruction the Second Herrscher had once caused.

A Herrscher who could communicate peacefully was something she had never expected before coming here.

"All right, Murata Himeko. We aren't your enemies."

Qin Mo patted Mei and Kiana on the shoulders, stepped to the front, and looked at Himeko.

"You know me?"

Murata Himeko frowned at Qin Mo, also noticing the purple markings creeping up his neck.

"Young man, your Honkai sickness is already very serious. Do you know that? If this continues, you'll die."

Qin Mo pulled open his collar and glanced at it. "You mean this? Don't worry. I know what I'm doing."

"More importantly, I believe you've seen it too. The Third Herrscher can control her own power, and she's a Herrscher with no hostility toward humanity. So I want to speak with your superior, the principal of St. Freya Academy, Theresa Apocalypse."

Himeko frowned at Qin Mo's words. "Who exactly are you? You even know the principal's name. Judging by your appearance, you shouldn't be from Schicksal."

Mei's expression changed slightly upon hearing the name Schicksal. Others might not know much about Schicksal, but she knew that Schicksal was the root of the tragedies Kiana had suffered.

"Of course I'm not from Schicksal. If you represented Schicksal, I wouldn't be speaking to you this calmly. We are here because the person speaking with me is you, Murata Himeko, and the person above you is Theresa Apocalypse."

"You seem to know quite a lot about us. So what do you want to discuss?"

Planting the greatsword in the ground, Himeko looked at the boy before her with interest. He seemed to know far too much.

"Let me introduce myself first. Though you've never heard my name, I'm Qin Mo, from Shenzhou. These are Raiden Mei, Kiana, and Bronya."

Qin Mo introduced them one by one. "The purpose of your Far East branch should be to recover the Herrscher. We can go with you, but not as prisoners. We want to join St. Freya Academy as students."

Himeko frowned. "St. Freya Academy is a Valkyrie academy. What are you going there for?"

"To study, of course. What else would we go there for? That's why this isn't something you can decide. I hope to negotiate directly with Theresa. Why don't you relay my words to her? And mention that Kiana Kaslana is here. I believe that even if Theresa doesn't fly over immediately, she'll agree to my request."

Himeko felt that this trip had made her frown more than ever before.

As a woman who acted as soon as she made up her mind, she had never liked matters requiring this much thought.

Yet she simply could not figure out the background of this person named Qin Mo, while he seemed to know her very well.

Still, Kaslana...

Himeko knew of Schicksal's three great families as well. Looking at Kiana's white hair, so similar to Theresa's...

Forget it. She would leave the headache to Theresa.

"All right, then. I'll notify the principal now. Wait here for a moment."

As she spoke, Himeko used the communication device she carried to contact Theresa. Though ordinary communication equipment in Chang Kong City had been rendered unusable by the Herrscher of Thunder's power,

under the Hyperion, Himeko's special equipment still managed to connect with Theresa.

After hearing Himeko's report, Theresa made the decision without hesitation. "Then bring them here!"

"Huh? Principal, is that really all right? We still don't know what their intentions are."

"Don't worry. Once they're on my turf, there's no need to fear any bad intentions they might have. Do you know how many ways there are to use Judas?"

As an S-rank Valkyrie of Schicksal, Theresa possessed ample confidence. Though she was merely a Judas launcher, many Valkyries still idolized Theresa.

"All right then. But what is the relationship between that Kiana and you, Principal? They seemed certain that you would agree as soon as you heard her name."

"Kiana... I haven't seen her in many years. If we really calculate it, I'm her great-aunt."

"!!!"

Naturally, Himeko did not let the others hear her conversation with Theresa. When she returned, she brought Theresa's orders.

"The principal has agreed to your request. You may board the Hyperion directly and head to St. Freya Academy to meet her."

Qin Mo had originally thought Theresa would first demand a video negotiation, but after thinking about it, this was normal. After all, she was confident in her own strength. Compared to hiding behind a screen while Himeko held the situation down, it was more reliable for Theresa to step in personally.

Though she was a Judas launcher, Theresa was still very strong when Judas was present. He just didn't know whether Judas's ability to suppress Honkai Energy could suppress other kinds of energy.

"Qin Mo, will this really be all right?"

After both sides reached an agreement, Kiana became worried instead. After all, she was about to meet her family, even if it was only her great-aunt.

"It'll be fine. Kiana, don't you want to meet your great-aunt?"

I'm only doing this because of that...

Naturally, Kiana could not say such words aloud. Seeing this, Mei hurried over to soothe her.

Not far away, Himeko listened in on their conversation. "Just who is this Qin Mo? He even knows about that."

The Principal of St. Freya Academy

"Wow, it's huge."

After the discussion ended, Himeko naturally had the people aboard the Hyperion bring their entire group onto the ship.

Kiana was still extremely excited about the Hyperion, enough to dispel her uneasy feelings about meeting her family.

No, perhaps that was simply her personality.

"Welcome aboard my ship, the Hyperion."

When they saw Himeko again, she had changed into a red Western-style dress with a coat draped over her shoulders.

"It will take half a day to return to the Far East branch. Rooms have already been arranged for you."

The Hyperion had taken half a day to reach Chang Kong City, stayed for less than half an hour, and was now heading back again.

Still, their mission could be considered complete. They had successfully brought back the Herrscher of Thunder, though not in the manner of capture they had expected.

"Auntie Himeko, how much longer until we arrive?"

Kiana immediately asked without thinking.

"Call me Big! Sister! Himeko!"

Murata Himeko said through gritted teeth. "Or you can call me Teacher Himeko, Major, or Captain."

"Just as Himeko said, everyone should get some proper rest first."

Not allowing them to dwell on the matter of titles for too long, Qin Mo interrupted. "We've been traveling all day. We finally got a chance to rest, only to be attacked by Honkai Beasts. Everyone must be exhausted."

Though the series of events and the fact that none of them were ordinary people meant they were not particularly sleepy, they eventually returned to their assigned rooms to rest.

Naturally, Qin Mo, being the only male, was assigned a room by himself, while the girls were assigned together.

"Little brother Qin Mo, aren't you asleep yet?"

About half an hour after Qin Mo entered his room, the cabin door opened. Murata Himeko stood outside in her red dress, holding two cans of beer rather inappropriately. Seeing Qin Mo seated beside a small round table inside, she asked in a somewhat flirtatious tone.

"If I were asleep, wouldn't Big Sister Himeko have come all this way for nothing?"

Himeko laughed twice, pulled over a chair, and sat down. She casually placed the beer on the small round table beside them.

"You knew I was coming?"

Qin Mo laughed softly. "Who knows? Maybe I just couldn't sleep."

In truth, he was merely worried.

Though Himeko and Theresa were trustworthy people in the story, to them now, he and the others were merely a group of dangerous individuals who posed a risk.

Therefore, Qin Mo had kept his Observation Haki active, sensing the situation in Kiana and the others' room. There had always been only the three of them in that room, and no danger. However, he had noticed someone heading toward his room.

So he immediately began striking a pose in his room.

"Want some?"

Qin Mo did not hesitate to accept the beer pushed toward him.

Though he had only just come of age, Qin Mo had drunk beer many times before. Though only adults were theoretically allowed to drink, no one cared about Qin Mo. He had once worried about a future that was pitch-black, with no one to rely on.

At times like that, he could only drown his sorrows in alcohol.

"Then I'll gladly accept."

After pulling open the tab and taking a large gulp,

"So, what do you want to ask?"

"Hahaha, little brother Qin Mo, don't be so serious. I just came to chat with you casually."

Himeko took a gulp as well. "Where in Shenzhou are you from, Qin Mo?"

Is she probing my background?

Qin Mo did not know whether the place names in this world's Shenzhou matched those of his past life, so he did not intend to say much. Instead, he directly recited the information from the legal identity he had once obtained.

"Although I know I'm from Shenzhou, I haven't lived there for long. Ever since I can remember, I've wandered alone."

Qin Mo did not know why his legal identity had such a strange background. He even felt it made no logical sense. In short, a boy barely over ten had wandered around the world. Strangely, though he did not have much money, he possessed a legal identity and passport.

He had eventually arrived in Chang Kong City, which was also the only inheritance his parents had left him in legal terms.

Even Qin Mo himself did not know the places listed in his background. He just did not know whether anyone investigating it would find anything.

"But Chang Kong City has been destroyed now."

"Yes. The only place I had to stay is gone. So whether it's for Kiana, Mei, or myself, we need a new place to belong. I don't think you want a Herrscher wandering outside either."

Qin Mo's words practically struck Himeko's weak point. She did think that way. Though she had initially believed Qin Mo had some scheme in mind by wanting to enter St. Freya Academy,

she quickly realized that if she refused Qin Mo, she could not think of a better way to handle them other than killing them. Yet neither she nor Theresa would do such a thing.

Letting a Herrscher roam freely outside was dangerous, but killing a child who currently showed no harm was even less something she would do. Even if Schicksal headquarters ordered her to, she would not do it.

Himeko took her leave. After their brief exchange, she left on the excuse that the beer was finished and Qin Mo should get some rest.

However, Qin Mo did not sleep. He merely kept his eyes closed and pretended to rest.

Several hours later, the Hyperion stopped, and the group followed Himeko to the principal's office.

"Oh~ You're finally here. I've been waiting for a long time."

The moment they entered the office, a clear voice rang out within.

"Who! Who said that?"

Though a voice had sounded, Kiana could not see anyone.

"Over here! Over here!"

Apparently angered by Kiana's words, the owner of the voice slapped the desk hard.

"Huh? Why is there a little brat here? Wasn't this supposed to be my great-aunt's office? Little brat, do you know where my great-aunt is?"

Kiana walked up to the desk, slapped it, and asked.

Theresa behind the desk lightly snapped her fingers. The cross leaning against the chair behind her suddenly fired several chains from both sides, binding Kiana.

"Who are you calling a little brat, little girl!"

"I didn't expect that after not seeing you for years, you'd become this rude, Kiana."

Theresa leaped onto the desk and looked down at Kiana, who had been bound on the floor like a worm.