Honkai Impact 3rd: My Days as a Captain in Schicksal

Keng Huo shrank back in fright and said somewhat awkwardly, "Ah... well... big brother, you look a bit older than your age..."

"You want to fight, right? You definitely want to fight, right? You're asking for a beating, come on over here! Come on, let's have a good fight! I'll be waiting for you right here, or I'll be your grandson!!" The stubble-faced youth rolled up his sleeves and stood up.

"Whoever backs down is a dog! Come on over if you dare! I'll make you take ten punches without batting an eye!" Keng Huo rolled up his sleeves without any hesitation, put one foot on the table, and shouted loudly into the communicator.

The two were arguing fiercely across the screen, but neither of them offered to go to the other's side first.

"Forget it, it's pointless."

"It's really pointless, forget it."

The two of them spoke almost in unison, and then simultaneously sprawled out on their chairs like lazy bums.

Seemingly because they both realized that the other was like them, they simply sat down and discussed the important matter at hand.

"Speak quickly if you have something to say, I still need to sleep." The stubble-faced young man's tone was very unpleasant, and his pajamas made it clear that he was telling the truth.

"It's very simple. St. Freya Academy wants you to do something, not to do scientific research."

"Sure, what do you need it for? The extra materials will be one-third of the consumables."

"Um... are you really not going to consider my 3T seed..."

"……roll!"

"Great! I was worried about where I'd get three terabytes of seed after you agreed..." Keng Huo patted his chest. "You scared the hell out of me."

The bearded young man felt his forehead veins throbbing, and he suddenly regretted not taking the 3T seed. Even if there was nothing real, it would have been very satisfying to annoy this lousy guy on the other side!

"Hurry up, what do you need to do? Let me see." The stubble-faced young man opposite seemed to be getting sleepy, yawning as he asked, "Let me tell you in advance, this is a materials science research lab, we can't make anything too complicated."

"Don't worry, St. Freya Academy only needs you to provide what you make." Keng Huo shook his head, revealing a friendly expression like the Big Bad Wolf meeting Little Red Riding Hood. "It's really just some metal processing, purification of Honkai Beast tissue fluid, and decomposition of Honkai Beast shells, etc. It's not that complicated at all."

The stubble-faced youth's eyes instantly sharpened: "Are you sick?"

"Yeah, what's wrong?"

"..." The stubble-faced youth paused, whether choked by Keng Huo's words or thinking about what to say next, after a while, Keng Huo had become impatient and he continued, "Why don't you let your research institutions do this kind of trivial matter?"

“We didn’t.” Keng Huo shrugged, looking completely innocent.

"Aren't you the deputy head of the Far East branch?" The stubble-faced young man frowned even more deeply. "A branch that doesn't even have its own research institution?"

“Even if there aren’t any, I’m still desperate,” Keng Huo shrugged, looking completely unfazed. “My superior only brought combat personnel with him when he left; there were no research staff at all. It’s impossible to bring in researchers from elsewhere. For certain reasons, we can’t accept research staff sent from headquarters either, so…”

"...Is it possible for me to give up this collaboration now?"

"I'm sorry, but please accept this cooperation."

"I don't know why, but I have a feeling this is a pirate ship..."

"Big brother, I'm sorry."

"Sigh, my shoulders are a little sore, I'm going to sleep, let's talk tomorrow."

"Brother, I was wrong! I have an octogenarian mother to support and a baby crying for food. This is my first job, and my whole family is counting on this commission to eat. The mountains have been blocked by snow for more than ten days, and we're starving..."

"Ugh, I don't even know how much I'll earn doing this kind of work that only apprentices do. I'm quitting."

"Brother, you are a magnanimous man, with a heart as vast as a prime minister's belly. Please forgive my previous offense. I was truly blind and did not recognize your greatness..."

"Oh well, I'm the only one in this lab anyway. If they don't want to take it, they don't want to. I don't have any achievements to show for it anyway. I can just wait three years and then transfer out..."

"Oh, never mind then. You'll have to wait three years. I was hoping to apply to headquarters to transfer you directly to the Far East Branch."

"Hey, you said I'm carefree and have nothing to do... wait, what did you say?" The stubble-faced youth's eyes widened, thinking he had misheard.

Keng Huo shook his head, as if he hadn't heard what the stubble-faced youth was saying: "Ugh, I'm so annoyed! I thought St. Freya Academy was finally going to have its first official researcher, but I didn't expect you to be so fierce..."

"Sorry, bro, I was just showing off..."

"...I'd rather guard Antarctica alone and endure this loneliness than come to St. Freya Academy, which is full of girls..."

"Brother, I was wrong! Please let us cooperate sincerely!"

"It's so pitiful for the girls in our academy. They're all in their prime, with such great figures, yet there's not a single man in the academy besides me..."

"Brother! I sincerely repent to you! Please entrust this task to me! I won't take any money!"

Chapter 44 The Defeat of the Valkyrie

Keng Huo walked out of the dormitory gate feeling refreshed and stretched happily.

He had already discussed the details of the deal with the stubble-faced youth. The youth would process the raw materials for high-strength alloys and biomimetic armor for St. Freya Academy, while St. Freya Academy would promise to apply to headquarters as quickly as possible to transfer him away from the Antarctic Research Center.

The moment the communicator screen went black, both of them smiled knowingly, each thinking they had hit the jackpot.

Keng Huo thought so because St. Freya Academy essentially got a free laborer to process, manufacture, repair, and maintain the Valkyries' anti-Honkai weapons without paying a single penny, while the stubble-faced youth thought it was entirely because those tasks could be done by the base's own automated machinery...

Therefore, the two sides hit it off immediately, and he even appeared to be very generous.

"Huh? The Hyperion? Why is it back so soon?" Keng Huo looked at the Hyperion airship hovering above the hub port with some surprise. "Wasn't it supposed to be back tomorrow night? Why is it back a whole day early?"

A sense of unease swept through Keng Huo's heart, prompting him to abandon his thought of going to the cafeteria for a bite to eat and instead quicken his pace toward Theresa's office.

Before he had even reached halfway, a large group of students suddenly rushed out of the girls' dormitory area, like a herd of migrating wild buffalo, charging unstoppably towards Keng Huo.

Before Keng Huo could react, he was immediately surrounded by a group of beautiful women.

"Teacher Keng, Teacher Keng, why did the Hyperion return ahead of schedule?"

"Is this return to replace the second batch of Valkyries boarding the ship?"

"Teacher Keng, Teacher Keng, the Hyperion has returned ahead of schedule. Should we switch batches today or tomorrow?"

Surrounded by dozens of girls, Keng Huo suddenly felt his head was spinning. He had thought that the Hyperion had arrived at the academy some time ago, but judging from the students' reactions, could it be that the warship had only just docked?

Completely bewildered, Keng Huo had no idea how to answer the students. Like the girls, he was also unaware of this situation, which had not been communicated to him beforehand.

Suddenly, his communicator rang. He took it out and glanced at it, only to find that it was an urgent message from Theresa.

A feeling as if Mount Tai was pressing down on him rose up from his spine. Keng Huo smiled and picked up the communicator, gesturing for the students to quiet down: "Wait a moment, I have an urgent message from the headmaster. Everyone, please go to the cafeteria to eat something while we wait, okay?"

Although the girls were somewhat reluctant, they obediently followed Keng Huo's instructions, reluctantly turning their gaze away from the Hyperion, chattering amongst themselves as they headed towards the cafeteria.

Keng Huo watched the students' departing figures, his smile gradually fading. He picked up the communicator and placed it in front of him: "Theresa, what's up?"

“The plan has failed.” Theresa’s answer was concise. “You need to go and calm the Valkyries who have been withdrawn from the front lines. Then you can come back and we can discuss revising the plan.”

"The plan failed?" Keng Huo frowned, his expression full of disbelief. "Could it be that the Honkai Beasts in Changkong City have rioted on a large scale? Have the crossbow-class Honkai Beasts arrived on the outskirts of Changkong City? Have there been any casualties?"

“…Some people were injured, but no one died. The danger level on the outskirts of Changkong City is just as you estimated before, within the students’ capabilities…” Theresa’s expression was somewhat complicated. “The values ​​you estimated before were all correct… The problem is that we all overlooked the most important thing.”

"What?" Keng Huo asked instinctively.

Theresa opened her mouth, as if she wanted to say something, but hesitated and didn't speak. She was silent for a few seconds before saying, "It's hard to explain in a short time... but you'll understand when you take a look... We've overlooked something very important..."

With the police lights blaring in his mind, Keng Huo couldn't help but feel a little impatient and jogged towards the hub port. As soon as he reached the entrance of the hub port, he saw the automatic gate slowly open, and a crowd of people surged out from inside like a tide, completely opposite to the slow movement of the automatic gate.

The leader was none other than Himeko. She was wearing the uniform of a warship commander, and her eyes were full of coldness. She didn't even glance at Keng Huo, and walked past him as if no one else was there. In the instant they brushed past each other, Keng Huo vaguely heard a cold snort full of anger.

Keng Huo felt a sense of foreboding, but he was completely at a loss as to what to do about the situation.

Following Himeko out in single file were the newly recruited Valkyries who had launched this attack. Each of them had their heads down, lips tightly pressed together, and remained silent. The entire group was filled with an oppressive atmosphere that was obvious even without being told.

Keng Huo almost instinctively concluded that something unexpected had likely happened during this operation, but he had no idea what it was.

Keng Huo quickly glanced at the Valkyrie's team and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Including Kiana's three-person hunter team, there were a total of twenty-one people in seven teams, with no one missing.

As long as no one is injured, any loss is acceptable.

But what exactly is this oppressive atmosphere that seems to be solidifying?

Keng Huo knew that he shouldn't ask what had happened so openly at this moment, but Ji Zi's behavior just now made him hesitate. If he went to talk to Ji Zi, who was still angry, he would probably be met with a cold shoulder.

Keng Huo followed behind the group without making a sound, and when he saw an opportunity, he quietly tugged at Kiana, who was walking at the back of the group.

"Kiana, what happened? Why is everyone so gloomy?" Keng Huo asked in a low, anxious voice.

Kiana seemed to have known all along that Keng Huo would come looking for her. She glanced at Keng Huo uneasily, then looked at the group in front of her out of the corner of her eye. She secretly moved closer and was about to whisper something when Mei, who was frowning, grabbed her and pulled her back to the group.

Keng Huo was somewhat taken aback by the unusual behavior of the duo and could only turn to Bronya for help.

Bronya stared at Keng Huo with her emotionless eyes, ignoring his plea for help, and continued walking forward with the group without making a sound.

Suddenly, Keng Huo's communicator beeped almost imperceptibly. He took it out and saw a very short text message from Bronya.

"It's not a good time to talk now. Go ask the headmaster." The screen displayed this message.

Keng Huo looked up somewhat uneasily into the line, only to meet Mei's eyes, which held a mixture of worry and apology.

The advancing procession suddenly stopped, and Himeko's cold and emotionless voice came from the front of the procession.

"Disband."

But the newly crowned Valkyrie's team didn't seem to react much; everyone just stood there with their heads down, like elementary school students being punished.

Keng Huo quietly stood at the side and rear of the group, trying to see what Ji Zi was doing.

Himeko clearly saw Keng Huo, but she only glanced at him coldly, turned around and left without saying a word. Judging from the direction she left, she seemed to be heading towards Theresa's residence.

Keng Huo didn't follow immediately. Instead, he waited until Himeko was out of sight before quietly sneaking towards Theresa's residence from a place out of sight of the Valkyrie's group.

Behind him, the newly crowned Valkyries stood there blankly, as if reluctant to leave.

"A bunch of useless trash."

Keng Huo stood outside Theresa's door, and the first thing he heard was Himeko's words, filled with anger and disappointment.

Keng Huo didn't rush in, but planned to listen outside the door for a while before deciding whether to knock.

But the next second Theresa's voice rang out: "Keng Huo, come in."

Keng Huo sighed, knowing he had no choice but to go in now. He pushed the door open and asked with a frown, "What exactly happened?"

The room was decorated too simply. Himeko was standing by the window with her back to Keng Huo, looking out the window as if she was thinking about something. Theresa, on the other hand, was sitting in a chair with a serious expression, staring at Keng Huo as if she wanted to say something but couldn't.

"What on earth happened?" Keng Huo leaned against the door frame with his arms crossed, the oppressive atmosphere in the room making it almost impossible for him to breathe.

"The hunt in Changkong City has failed," Theresa replied simply.

"I know we failed, but what happened to make those kids so gloomy?" Keng Huo pressed. The team he had just seen was completely different from the newly recruited Valkyries he remembered. Those kids were always full of energy and smiles, chattering away like little sparrows every day. They were a stark contrast to the lifeless team standing in the square now.

"Nonsense! Failure is failure! There are no excuses!" Himeko, who had been facing away from Keng Huo, finally turned around and stared at him with furious eyes. "You want me to lead a bunch of kids into battle! How can we possibly win!"