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

As soon as Himeko spoke, Keng Huo's heart skipped a beat, as if he had suddenly grasped a question that he had never considered before, or rather, had subconsciously avoided considering.

"What those rookies did on the battlefield! Screaming! Running away! They forgot all the tactics! They had absolutely no training! Their squad cooperation was a complete mess! They were all hot-blooded! They tried to take on a hundred enemies one by one!" Himeko was so angry that she was incoherent. "They even crouched down with their hands on their heads! They did it all!"

"What kind of plan is this! Might as well just wait to die!" Himeko's emotions seemed to have reached a breaking point, and the murderous intent in her eyes seemed to be able to gouge Keng Huo out of his body. "What you handed over to me is just a bunch of little girls!"

"Is that so..." Keng Huo muttered to himself thoughtfully.

Before Keng Huo could finish speaking, he felt a tremendous force coming from his collar. Himeko grabbed his collar with both hands, lifted him up, and slammed him against the wall. Her delicate, pretty face was so close to Keng Huo's; what should have been a heart-pounding scene made Keng Huo's heart skip a beat: "Did you even hear me?! Valkyries are soldiers! Listen carefully! Valkyries are soldiers first and foremost! Soldiers must obey! Fight! No retreat! No acting on their own! These students you've taught! They have absolutely no discipline! They run around the battlefield screaming! Attracting even more Honkai Beasts! They're completely useless in the battle! They only make the situation more chaotic!"

"Your educational policy! Your methods! Are completely wrong! You have produced a group of high school students who possess power far beyond what ordinary children could have! They have absolutely no awareness of how to harness this power!"

"Sending them back to the battlefield is sending them to their deaths!"

Chapter 45 Confusing Psychological Counseling

"Show me the footage from the battlefield recorder." Despite being pinned against the wall by Himeko, Keng Huo remained calm and made a request.

"I already said! Those images are completely useless..."

"You bitch, can't you let me finish what I'm saying!" Keng Huo roared, his aura suddenly exploding, his shout drowning out all the surrounding sounds. "Since you say you trust me! Then trust me to the end! My educational methods are absolutely correct! I believe in those children!"

"But your belief is useless!" Himeko retorted without backing down, her momentum in no way inferior to Keng Huo's. "You're sending these children who have no awareness of facing death to the battlefield! Who exactly do you want to kill?! Honkai Beasts?! Them?! Or me?!"

"That's why I said let me see the recording! Let me see where the problem lies!" Keng Huo angrily shoved Himeko away, the force so great that Himeko could hardly believe Keng Huo was just an ordinary person. "Don't compare them to the Valkyries trained by headquarters using weapon-based methods! They are my students!"

"They are my students too!" Himeko's eyes seemed to be scalding with rage.

"Himeko, let him see the battlefield logs." Theresa's voice suddenly came from behind, her tone carrying an unquestionable tone.

Himeko stepped back with a cold face and threw a memory card at Keng Huo: "Tell me when you're done reading. I don't want to watch that kind of suicide battle again."

Keng Huo silently picked up the memory card, plugged it into Theresa's computer, found the battle footage from that day, and silently switched it to 10x speed playback.

He doesn't need to see the details, he just needs to know what happened.

Keng Huo saw confusion.

After being dropped onto the outskirts of Changkong City, the Valkyrie squads were momentarily confused and disoriented. They seemed unsure of what to do next. Each group of three huddled together, some looking around helplessly, others turning on their battlefield recorders to look at the map, seemingly trying to confirm their direction. However, none of them followed the instructions taught in class to quickly occupy advantageous reconnaissance positions and advance in a reconnaissance formation.

Finally, some of them seemed to remember something and began to slowly form a B-7 reconnaissance formation, but they did not form a united front with the other teams, because the other teams did not form a united formation either, so the squad's line appeared isolated.

Keng Huo saw a Valkyrie standing on a high place happily waving her arms and shouting something to another squad in the distance.

Keng Huo even caught a fleeting glimpse of what appeared to be a Valkyrie taking a selfie in the video.

Finally, these newly recruited Valkyries seemed to remember what they had been taught in class, and quickly formed a combined formation, with scouts advancing to investigate.

Suddenly, the scene became chaotic. Keng Huo paused for a moment, rewound slightly, and found where the chaos began.

Keng Huo witnessed terror and chaos.

As a heavy support Valkyrie in the back row climbed onto a pile of rubble, a hand suddenly reached out from the rubble and grabbed her ankle.

The Valkyrie let out a sharp scream and jumped back like a startled rabbit, but lost her balance when one of her feet was grabbed and rolled down the rubble.

The Valkyries in the back row immediately erupted into chaos. Some screamed in fright, others rushed over to check on the fallen Valkyrie, and still others aimed their cannons directly at the direction from which the scream had come.

Meanwhile, the assault-type Valkyries, who were slightly more on the outer edge and skilled in close combat, also panicked. They instinctively moved closer together, cautiously observing their surroundings. Some of them broke away from the formation and ran towards the center of the team, towards the heavy firepower support-type Valkyries.

Fortunately, the hand belonged to a low-level zombie. After being infected by Honkai energy, the citizens of Changkong City, if their Honkai energy adaptability is not strong, will turn into this kind of tireless, emotionless, slow-moving thing, whose only feeling is hunger, and which cannot be called a living or dead thing.

They have no real weaknesses, because their internal organs have long since decayed and their bodily functions have long since ceased. The only reason they can move is because a small amount of Honkai energy coiled around their bodies drives the muscles that allow them to move to continue functioning. Honkai energy replaces the oxidation reaction in cells to provide energy for the zombies, but they will always be hungry, chasing after any living non-human creatures they can see, either to eat them or to be killed by them.

The zombie that was still able to move in the ruins was quickly eliminated, and the Valkyrie who rolled down the ruins suffered no loss other than a moment of loss of appearance and face.

Meanwhile, the reconnaissance Valkyries on the outermost perimeter seemed to have heard the shouting over the communicator and began to retreat in unison, though some chose to remain on the perimeter to continue reconnaissance.

After a brief period of chaos, everyone gathered together to encourage, hug, and comfort each other.

Keng Huo paused the recording, silently removed the memory card, stood up and said to Theresa, "Give me one night to watch this recording... I will give you the answer you want tomorrow morning."

“I can’t say anything, but this situation was within my expectations, and I have a way to solve it.”

"Anyway, by tomorrow morning... trust me."

"These are my requests, is that alright?"

Theresa nodded silently.

Keng Huo pushed open the door and left without looking back.

As for Himeko, she had long since disappeared.

Keng Huo stood on the road outside, took out his communicator, hesitated for a moment, and then dialed Mei's number.

“Teacher Keng?” Mei rejected the voice call and sent a text message instead.

"Are they still standing there?" Keng Huo replied.

"Mm." Mei's reply was very brief.

"Then I'll go there now," Keng Huo sighed.

Keng Huo put away his communicator, quickly ran to the cafeteria, told the students who were still waiting to go back to their dormitories, and told them to meet in the auditorium at seven o'clock the next morning. Then he walked quickly toward the group of newly promoted Valkyries who were still standing in the square.

You can sense the confusion and helplessness of those newly promoted Valkyries from a great distance.

"Everyone, go back to your dorms first. We'll meet in the auditorium at seven o'clock tomorrow morning, and I'll summarize the problems that arose during this operation," Keng Huo said with a smile.

But everyone remained unmoved, just looking at each other, and no one took the first step.

Looking at the girls with their heads down, Keng Huo seemed to see the repression and confusion solidify in the group, connecting everyone together.

Keng Huo felt somewhat helpless, but also somewhat understanding.

These children, whose families were destroyed in the Honkai, were rescued from despair and told that they could have the power to take revenge on the monsters that destroyed their beautiful lives. Taking revenge on the Honkai that took everything from them is the driving force behind everything they do now. They train day and night, eagerly hoping to return to that land one day.

But when the opportunity came, they didn't seize it.

Not only did they fail to capture her, but they also made a mess of their first mission. The Major Himeko they admired was furious with them. This stark contrast made these naive girls start to doubt whether they were truly worthy of the title of Valkyrie. The mission started like a spring outing and ended in chaos, making them realize their carelessness and laxity.

"Let's go? What are you still standing here for?" Keng Huo scratched his head, feigning confusion.

But none of the Valkyries moved, including Mei and the other two.

Keng Huo sighed, shook his head, and walked away.

The Valkyries exchanged glances, thinking that Keng Huo would stay and try to persuade them, but to their surprise, he simply left.

Doesn't this guy know how to be understanding of a girl's little whims?

But not long after, Keng Huo returned pushing a small cart with a small stool and some food on it. Those with sharp eyes could also spot a barbecue grill.

then!

They saw it!

Confused!

In front of them!

It's up!

Grill! Roast! Grill!

Before they could react, Keng Huo turned on the electromagnetic grill, quickly picked up a few slices of meat with chopsticks, and put them on it. Soon, the aroma of meat filled the air.

The Valkyries' stomachs began to rumble.

Keng Huo seemed to be fanning the flames... no, he actually picked up a small fan and fanned the Valkyrie team while grilling the meat.

The tantalizing aroma of roasted meat wafted into the Valkyrie's group. As if that wasn't enticing enough, Keng Huo, shaking his head, picked up a bottle of cumin and sprinkled it on the meat slices, saying in a strange accent, "Yo yo yo, authentic Xinjiang Turpan roasted lamb skewers..."

Then he suddenly stopped what he was doing, looked at the slices of meat on the grill as if he had just realized something, bent down, took out a bamboo skewer from the bag, skewered the meat slices, and changed his words to: "Authentic Xinjiang Turpan roasted mutton slices..."

Keng Huo could almost feel the murderous intent in the gazes emanating from the Valkyrie team in front of him.

And the rumbling of my stomach.

"Shameless..." someone whispered. If Keng Huo hadn't had good hearing, he probably would have missed it.

"Who?!" Keng Huo jumped up, shaking off the fake mustache he had just stuck on his lips. "Who dares to call me a scoundrel? Whoever dares to speak up, step forward! Don't be afraid to speak up, let's stand up and fight back!"

"You're such a scoundrel!" the girl couldn't help but shout. "We've all been working hard all day and haven't eaten yet, and you, not only are you grilling meat right in front of us, but you're also fanning the wind in our direction!"

“That’s right, that’s right…” A barely audible murmur of agreement rang out from the Valkyrie crowd.

"I haven't even said anything to you yet!" Keng Huo's eyes widened, as if he had been taken advantage of. "You're all blocking my wind! No wonder the fire isn't burning well! It's because you're blocking it!"

"Where does an electromagnetic grill get its fire from?!" the girl retorted. "You're clearly being dishonest! Trying to tempt us!"

"Who's tempting you! I'm exhausted after a long day of work, so what if I come out to find a place to grill some meat to improve my life? Is it bothering you?! Go away, go away, don't stand here and stare at me, I can't eat if people are watching me!" Keng Huo waved his small fan as if shooing away flies, looking like a bully at first glance.

"So I already said it! Why do you have to grill your meat right in front of us? Can't you see we're standing right here?" The girl seemed to be infected by the anger, and walked out of the line with her hands on her hips.

"Go away! Who told you to stand here?! Who gave you permission to stand here?! What are you doing standing here?!" Keng Huo looked at the girl with an impatient expression, as if she were an idiot. "If you don't want to smell it, then leave. You're here smelling my flesh so badly that you're practically begging for it, and you're telling me to get lost? How come I'm so bouncy?"

"We're here, of course, for..." The girl was about to retort with a fierce look, but she stopped halfway through her sentence, unsure of what to say next, because she didn't know why she was standing there for so long.

Waiting for Himeko to return?

But Himeko has already said that the party is dissolved.

Standing as punishment?

But no one made them stand as punishment.

They just couldn't bear to leave.

They subconsciously hoped that the mission was not over yet.

They anxiously hoped someone would tell them to continue the attack tomorrow.

But no one responded to them.

So under the starry night sky, they huddled together like abandoned kittens, seeking warmth from one another.

"Why don't we go..." whispers began to rise from the crowd.