The Dimensional Codex of Destruction

Chapter Ten: Negotiation

"Ha! This brat is my auntie!?"

"You have to call me Headmaster!"

Seeing Kiana still looking incredulous while bound, Qin Mo walked over.

"Don't let Theresa's appearance fool you, she's already 42 years old, 4 years older than your mother..."

Before Qin Mo could finish speaking, Judah's chains released Kiana and coiled towards Qin Mo.

However, before they could get close to Qin Mo's body, Qin Mo, as if foreseeing it, dodged the chain's attack. Then, with his right hand, which was enveloped in Armament Haki, he caught all of them.

The Key of Restraint, Oath of Judah, made using the core of the Herrscher of Reason, possessed the ability to nullify Honkai Energy. Qin Mo had always wanted to test if it could only nullify Honkai Energy or if it could nullify all supernatural abilities like Imagine Breaker.

But seeing that his Haki and the Ripple within his body were unaffected, it seemed it wouldn't work.

"To actually grab Judah's chains with your bare hands, just who are you?"

Theresa didn't continue her attack. Truth be told, the previous attack was merely playful.

"I'm just an ordinary person who wants to fight Destruction. How about it, about the request I mentioned earlier?"

Qin Mo released the chains in his hands, letting them retract, and asked Theresa.

"To become a student at St. Freya Academy?"

Theresa shifted her gaze to Raiden Mei. "Is this little girl the Third Herrscher? Her name is Raiden Mei, right."

"Raiden Mei, greetings, Headmaster."

Seeing the polite Raiden Mei, Theresa nodded. "She's a well-mannered young lady, better than I expected."

Then she looked at Bronya, who had been silent all this time.

"Bronya's name is Bronya."

Theresa nodded. After all, it had only been a day since the Great Eruption broke out, so much of the intelligence wasn't fully gathered. Theresa merely thought Bronya was someone who had survived by luck.

"Alright, I agree."

Theresa nodded. "However, I have a condition, which is that you must accept the supervision arranged by the academy!"

"Regarding this, I have another request, no, perhaps 'deal' is a more fitting word."

Qin Mo suddenly spoke.

"What is it? This is non-negotiable. Although you seem normal now, you can't guarantee that there won't be any problems later."

Qin Mo didn't directly answer Theresa's words, merely saying, "It's not about supervision, but a new deal. However, I'd like to discuss it with the Headmaster alone."

"Alone? You mean...?"

Theresa looked at the others.

"Mei, you and Kiana go out first."

Mei wanted to say something more, but she realized she didn't know what to say. She could only leave behind, "Please be careful."

"Himeko, you go out and wait for a bit too."

However, one person was unhappy with this request.

"Wait! Auntie! Qin Mo said you know where Daddy is, right!"

Before Kiana was escorted out, she finally remembered the purpose of her visit.

"Siegfried? I do know where he is."

Theresa looked down at Kiana. "But if you want me to tell you, there's a condition! That is, become an A-rank Valkyrie. Since you're going to attend school here, then become a Valkyrie. Once you become strong, I'll tell you."

"Hmph! I thought it was some tough demand. If I get serious, I'll become a Valkyrie or anything else you want!"

Theresa nodded. "It's good to have confidence. Himeko, take them to your dorm first. I'll talk with this brat a bit more."

Watching the others leave, Theresa sat on the desk and looked at Qin Mo. "So, tell me, what is this deal you mentioned?"

"The Far East Branch, no, the philosophy behind the founding of St. Freya Academy, do you still remember it, Theresa?"

After everyone else left, Qin Mo didn't hesitate to sit on the nearby sofa.

"Philosophy?"

Theresa frowned, unsure what Qin Mo was getting at, but she still replied, "St. Freya Academy was established to train Valkyries who fight for the beauty of the world. Are there any questions about this?"

"Fight for all that is beautiful in the world? Heh..."

Qin Mo chuckled. "That's clearly just Schicksal's slogan. And if that were enough, Cecilia wouldn't have proposed establishing the Far East Branch, establishing this St. Freya Academy where Valkyries can experience beauty and cherish their own lives. She wouldn't have proposed having her own daughter, Kiana, study here."

"Although Cecilia is no longer here, you, you still managed to establish this academy."

"..."

Theresa, who had been sitting on the desk, jumped down from it when Qin Mo was halfway through his sentence. She stood at eye level with Qin Mo, who was sitting on the sofa.

"Just who are you? Why do you know this!"

Not many people knew that the philosophy of St. Freya was proposed by Cecilia. Many people in Schicksal who participated in the Second Herrscher subjugation battle knew.

However, the rest of the words were purely a private agreement between Theresa and Cecilia.

"I've answered this question before. Of course, I'm not bringing this up to expose your past secrets, but to ask, Headmaster, do you think St. Freya has achieved what was promised back then?"

Theresa crossed her arms and snorted.

"Isn't St. Freya Academy right here?"

"Haha, that's not what I meant. While you have indeed provided those Valkyries with a superior living environment and allowed them to enjoy life's beauty during their studies and training, in order to become Valkyries and not be corrupted by Honkai Energy, they have to have artificial Stigmata carved into their bodies."

"Although artificial Stigmata can protect them from dying from normal Honkai Energy corrosion, they also have significant side effects. Not only do they cause pain and shorten lifespan, but they also cause the body to break down, don't they?"

Theresa looked into Qin Mo's eyes, not understanding what he was trying to say. While artificial Stigmata were a secret of Schicksal, it wasn't surprising that he knew about them, given that he even knew about the private matters between Cecilia and herself.

"So what are you trying to say?"

"What I want to say is very simple. I can help them alleviate the pain caused by the Stigmata and extend their lifespan. While I can't completely remove the side effects of the Stigmata, I can strengthen their vitality instead of letting this thing drag them down to death."

Chapter 11: St. Freya Villa

"New technology? What you're saying is useless to me. Although I'm the head of the Far East Branch, I don't understand technology."

"Of course not. If it were just this, I wouldn't have come to you. Besides, I don't want to deal with your grandfather, the Grand Bishop of Schicksal. I think you understand why."

Qin Mo shook his head and said, "What I'm about to show you is a power that originates from humanity's most primal instincts, a miracle hidden within the human body: Immortal Ripple!"

"Immortal... Ripple?"

As Theresa was feeling puzzled, she saw Qin Mo take a deep breath, and a brilliant golden light bloomed in his palm.

After warily holding Judah in front of her, she realized, "There's no Honkai Energy reaction? This isn't Honkai Energy? How did you do that?"

No matter how Theresa looked, there was no mechanism on Qin Mo's person that could emit light.

Qin Mo didn't explain. Instead, he turned to look around, his gaze fixing on the fish tank nearby. Then, he pointed his index finger at the surface of the water in the fish tank.

Theresa clearly saw something like golden lightning wrap around the fish tank. Then, with just a single finger touching it, without even grasping it, he lifted the fish tank.

No! He wasn't lifting the fish tank! He was lifting the water inside it, and even the goldfish in the water were unaffected.

"What is this! How did you do that!?"

Theresa couldn't understand how Qin Mo did it no matter how hard she tried. After all, she didn't feel any Honkai Energy reaction, and the fish tank was her own property, so there couldn't be any hidden mechanisms.

Theresa even ran over and put her hand into the water, watching the goldfish, which scattered at the sight of her hand, then withdrew her hand.

Looking at the water stains on her hand, she fell silent.

"This is Immortal Ripple, also known as Hamon. The principle is to generate ripples in the blood through specific breathing rhythms. The power generated is like dropping a stone into water to create ripples. A special breathing technique can also create ripples within the human body, thus generating immense power."

Returning the water in his hand to the fish tank, Qin Mo looked at Theresa. "The power of Ripple doesn't have strong destructive capabilities, but it's not a power of destruction. It originates from the vitality of the body. Ripple can alleviate pain, extend lifespan, delay aging, and prevent one from looking old even at a very advanced age."

"Oh, Headmaster, you don't need this, but the other girls should care about it."

Theresa, who had been struggling to understand Qin Mo's words, immediately became angry when she heard the latter part: "So, talking about a woman's age is a big taboo!"

He let out a sigh. "But this is all just your word. I haven't seen the other effects you mentioned."

Qin Mo thought to himself that Theresa was being a bit cunning.

"That's true. However, the power I've acquired from traveling the world is not limited to this. Another one has a visually apparent effect."

Qin Mo silently switched his character card. "Ripple exists to extend the lifespan of Valkyries. Then this power is to increase their survival rate. I call it, Armament Haki!"

"Come on, attack me, Theresa!"

Qin Mo's arm was instantly enveloped in Haki, turning black.

"Attack? Alright!"

Perhaps to vent her personal grievances, Theresa drew a spear from Judah and thrust it at Qin Mo.

Clang!

The spear hit Qin Mo's palm and didn't budge at all. Not even a scratch appeared.

"This is Armament Haki. Haki is the power of one's aura, materialized. Armament Haki can increase defense and destructive power, and it can also be transmitted through the body to objects."

After blocking Theresa's attack, Qin Mo plucked a leaf from a nearby potted plant. The leaf was instantly enveloped in Haki, turning black. He then used it like a blade to cut the flowerpot.

The fragile leaf actually tore a smooth cut in the flowerpot, as if it had been sliced by a sharp blade.

"This is the increase in destructive power. What do you think?"

Theresa returned the spear to its place. "Is this your bargaining chip? Since it's a trade, what do you want?"

"Let me be clear, the Far East Branch doesn't have money. If you want money, you should go find your grandfather."

Qin Mo smiled. "Do I look like someone who cares about money? I only have three requests."

"First, you are not allowed to hand over our group to Schicksal headquarters. Because we came here not for the name of Schicksal, but for this Far East Branch established by Cecilia's will, and for you."

Qin Mo remembered the words he often heard in his past life: You can trust Theresa's character, but you can't trust her intelligence.

So he had to set the agreement in advance. Basically, as long as an agreement was made, Theresa wouldn't break it.

"That's naturally not a problem. Since you are students of St. Freya, protecting students is my duty as headmaster. What's the second one?"

"The second is to prohibit informing Otto about my situation. You can make up an excuse and say I'm just an ordinary person who knows Ripple and Haki."

Actually, Qin Mo had revealed quite a bit about himself along the way to maintain the initiative. If he were facing Otto, they might have already figured out all his secrets. However, he felt much more at ease with Theresa and Himeko. It wasn't that he underestimated their intelligence, but Otto was simply too monstrous and cunning.

"That's not a problem either. What about the third one?"

"The third one is that Mei and the others don't want to live in the dorms!"

"If you're not living in the dorms, where will you live? We agreed that someone needs to supervise you all, and you can't leave this island."

Qin Mo shook his head. "What I mean is, I need you to build me a villa for us to live in. Of course, I don't have any objections to who you arrange to live with us, as long as everyone has their own room. It's even fine if you, the head of the academy, live with us."

"Ha! A villa?!"

Theresa immediately jumped up. "I, the head of the academy, don't even have a villa to live in! St. Freya Academy doesn't have such a building either. Do you know how long it would take to build one starting now!"

"With Schicksal's technology, it should be done within a week."

Seeing Qin Mo's nonchalant demeanor, Theresa gritted her teeth. "Do you know how much it would cost to use Schicksal's technology? The Far East branch doesn't have that much money."

"I think if you sold Ripple and Haki, no, even if you just sold Ripple to your grandfather, you wouldn't even need to sell it. Just give it to him and act cute, and you can get as much money as you want."

Hearing Qin Mo's words, Theresa seriously considered it. As someone in her forties, Theresa had no psychological burden about acting younger; acting cute was even easier.

After all, her appearance was only twelve years old, and Otto had always looked the same.

"Alright, I agree. But I also have a request and a question."

Qin Mo breathed a sigh of relief that she agreed. Fortunately, he had read compiled posts about Honkai's background online when he was trying to understand the protagonist's origins. Otherwise, with his habit of skipping the game's story directly, he wouldn't have found any topics to create this sense of mystery.

"The request is perfectly normal. What is it?"

"I want you to be a teacher at St. Freya, responsible for teaching Ripple and Haki! Anyway, your previous request only stated that you wanted us to join, not that we had to be students, right?"

Theresa looked smug, as if she had gained a great advantage.

"That's a reasonable request. I agree. So, what's the question?"