Humans are in chaos, despicable outsiders.

"...Ouch, I just cleaned the room. Never mind... Fujin, do you usually need to eat?"

"If you wish to feed me, sir, I would not mind..."

Chapter Sixty-Four: How can someone your age sleep!

"Su, why did you agree to that child's suggestion? And why did you drag me into it? This is completely different from your usual self."

In the world bubble, Kevin watched his friend sitting leisurely under the cherry blossom tree, deep in thought, and voiced his confusion.

"...Don't you understand, Kevin? With that child's help, the Honkai is indeed no longer an insurmountable problem. However, her essence is ultimately that of a god, and one day she will choose to leave this universe... She can't stay and act as a babysitter for this civilization forever."

The silver-haired youth shook his head and continued explaining to his friend:

"A civilization that is still in its infancy has no future, and in the dark universe, the enemy is far more than just the Honkai."

"Do you remember what MEI said, Kevin?"

"What?" The white-haired youth was stunned.

"...every star in the sky could be a potential enemy of humanity."

"—We can overcome the trial of collapse with her help, but if civilization itself stagnates, it will eventually be destroyed by other disasters."

"Besides, Kevin only barely passed the test... The trial from the Honkai consciousness is absolute. That fellow being can help us lower the difficulty, but we can't skip it..."

"I see... I understand."

Kevin nodded as he watched the girl in the distance having a great time fighting with his doll.

--

After shredding the last Titan mech in front of him that had gone out of control due to Honkai energy, Houraiji Kyusou stood on the deck of the Moon Throne. The entire warship had been cleared and was heading towards St. Freya Academy.

The trio inside the Moon Throne restored order after the final wave of chaos caused by Bronya's loss of control.

"...The gears of fate will truly begin to turn...He will crush you...and her...You cannot escape, you cannot be spared—"

The girl was murmuring to herself on the deck as she watched the trio turn the combat channel into a chat room. A black raven landed on Jiuxiao's left shoulder.

"Sir?" Foggin asked.

"The plan can begin, Fokin—keep it under control. We want her to mature mentally, not awaken the Second Herrscher..."

The purple-haired girl gave orders and warnings to the raven that had landed on her shoulder.

"I understand, sir—the Valkyrie exam for St. Freya Academy is in a few days," Fokin reminded Jiuxiao, as if remembering something.

"Let's make our move then. The consciousnesses of the Second Herrscher and Sirin should awaken around that time..."

"Your will, my lord—and we have arrived."

Fokin, the black bird, nodded its head towards the sky, then took flight again from her shoulder, heading down towards the St. Freya Academy dormitory.

"Time to go back..." The girl watched the raven fly into her dormitory, then turned and walked away via the elevator on the upper deck.

"Hmm, Himeko?" A communication request appeared on her terminal.

"Is there something you need, Major Himeko?" Jiuxiao looked at the communication projector.

"Ahem... It's like this, as you know, the academy's annual Valkyrie assessment is coming up soon. Headmistress Theresa, wanting her dear niece to avoid failing and being demoted to a D-rank Commoner Valkyrie, entrusted me to tutor her..."

"Uh...so, you know what I mean, Jiuxiao?" The older single woman on the screen turned her head and whistled.

"Okay, I understand. Do you mind if I bring Fu Hua along too?" Jiu Xiao shook his head helplessly, looking at Himeko on the screen.

"No problem, I'll talk to Fu Hua too. It's true, you definitely can't control Kiana on your own—it's settled then."

The communication was quickly disconnected.

"It's not that I can't control her... it's just that after it's all over, I'll definitely beat her so badly she'll end up in the hospital. With Fu Hua around, she'll just get a few more bumps on her head at most."

Jiuxiao shook his head and continued walking towards the lower deck. The Moon Throne had arrived at St. Freya's airport, where a large number of researchers were eagerly awaiting their work, carrying their equipment.

--

St. Freya Academy has once again entered the annual Valkyrie Exam preparation period, and at this moment, on the road leading to the training ground—

Wearing black combat uniforms, Jiu Xiao and wearing blue training uniforms, each with one hand, dragged a white cat-like insect wrapped in a blanket towards the simulation training room.

"Hey Kiana, don't sleep in class! Why are you always looking up? Why don't you even open your eyes?"

"Right? Right, Kiana, what are you doing in class? I just... I find this all so unbelievable?"

"With this kind of learning attitude, I thought you didn't write a single word in class. This isn't how you study! This isn't how we studied back then."

"Your attitude is unbearable! How can you sleep at your age? Can you even sleep at this stage of your life? Have you no self-respect?!"

Dragging the white, fluffy little bundle of fur, who was curled up in bed and looking withdrawn, the two of them muttered to themselves as they carried her into the training room.

"Aaaaaah! I don't want to hear it! This old hag is chanting sutras!!!" Kiana screamed, her head splitting open from the chanting.

...The air suddenly fell silent.

"Uh, class monitor... Jiuxiao... I suddenly remembered I have something to do... so I won't be able to keep you company..."

The white "cat bug" twitched and stretched on the floor, then hopped and twisted its way towards the training room door.

"Jiuxiao?" Fu Hua called out the name of her companion as she stared at the caterpillar wriggling towards the door.

"Hello, is this the medical department again? Yes, we need to reserve a bed. What are the symptoms? The usual: multiple fractures and bruises all over the body. Ah? It's that gorilla from Kaslana's family; it's indestructible, don't worry."

Jiu Xiao easily dialed the medical department's number and reserved another table.

The white fluffy ball, which was twisting rapidly towards the gate with its back to the two of them, broke out in a cold sweat upon hearing this sound.

"The original plan for today was to give Kiana a crash course on the attribute counters between Valkyrie armor and Honkai creations... but now—"

"So... what do we need to learn now...?" Kiana turned her head nervously to look at the two demon-like figures who were starting to stretch their muscles.

"Now... now you need to learn that machines restrain living beings, living beings restrain superpowers, and superpowers restrain machines—we can overcome everything."

"God, you guys are the bane of everything!!!"

With cracking and popping sounds, the two ruthlessly pulled the white cat-like insect, which had been wriggling towards the front door, back to its original position.

"Mei, help me—!"

……

"Have you figured it out?" Fu Hua asked, looking at the grinning white furball in front of her.

Kiana shook her head vigorously, as if in a fit of pique.

"I see, then we'll need it."

Fu Hua got into position again.

"Hey, hey, hey, I get it! Class monitor, I get it!"

Kiana realized something was wrong and immediately changed her tune, but it seemed to be to no avail.

"You've grasped it? Then let's exchange a few moves and see how much you've truly understood—"

Chapter Sixty-Five: I am the Hermit Ω, your guide

At night in St. Freya Academy, in the Valkyrie dormitory, Kiana, who had been "tortured" all day, lay on her bed in an unseemly sleeping posture, hugging a Houmu body pillow. The sheets and blankets were almost all kicked off the bed by her restless sleeping habits.

"Ugh... my head hurts so much..." the girl murmured in her sleep, lost in a dream that had been woven for her long ago. Outside her window, a pure black raven landed on the windowsill, its small black eyes emitting a faint red glow.

The white-haired girl's consciousness drifted into an endless dream—

"Is this St. Freya?!" Kiana looked at everything in surprise, while an eerie, nameless laugh echoed in the strange environment.

"Hehehehehe—Huh?!"

The eerie laughter abruptly stopped, as if a video tape had been cut short. Then, the scenery in front of Kiana began to be rewritten, with the European-style St. Freya Academy covered by a vast expanse of ice and snow.

"Is this...Siberia? Achoo! Is this a dream? Why do I feel cold? Achoo—! If only I had a Valkyrie outfit."

The white fluffy ball shivered, and then, driven by its own urgent desire, a Valkyrie armor appeared on its body.

"Huh? So my dreams come true? Then I'm going to beat up ten class monitors and Jiu Xiao—!"

There was no response; the vast snowfield remained deserted—after all... if you can't win, you can't win, and not everything is possible in dreams...

"Huh?! Well, can I at least ask for a guide? How am I supposed to get around in this snowy, white expanse?!"

Kiana stood with her hands on her hips, looking at the surrounding white expanse with displeasure, but this time, her call was answered.

"Like a dream, yet not a dream... It is your dream, and it is not your dream. It is a re-enactment of the past, a reflection of the future—child, come forward, witness the history that belongs to you, and forge your own future."

Before the girl, a figure dressed in a black and white combat uniform with gold accents was approaching, his face hidden by a black hood.

The only part of her face that was visible was a black V-shaped mask, from which pale golden hair cascaded down. Her slightly heaving chest suggested she was female. However, what truly drew Kiana's attention wasn't her combat outfit, but the golden greatsword on her back.

—The Heavenly Judgment, once carried by her father, but not the pistol or greatsword she remembered.

Instead, it was a strangely shaped greatsword, from which Kiana could only vaguely discern the shadow of the Heavenly Judgment.

"Come forward, descendant of the Kaslana family, witness the beginning of all this, and decide your future path... I am the Hermit Omega, and I will be your guide on this journey—"

A woman's voice is like a thousand voices, like an old person, like a child, like a saint, like a sinner—sublime yet blasphemous.

"Hmph, so secretive, he's obviously up to no good. Take this kick!"

Seeing the oppressive aura emanating from the hermit ahead, the white-furred ball of fur decisively launched a kick towards her—

Unsurprisingly, the attack was easily caught by Omega in front of her, or rather, the girl was caught in mid-air.

"Let me go!"

The white fluffy ball, held in mid-air, struggled desperately but could not break free from the mysterious man's arms, which were like iron clamps.

"OK--"

Kiana's arm slipped, and she fell to the ground, half of her body buried in the snow.

"Bah bah bah!"

The girl crawled out of the snow, spitting out the snow water from her mouth, and glared at Omega in front of her, seemingly thinking of a way to punch the guy in front of her.

Let's go—

The hermit glanced at the girl, spat out the snow water in his mouth, and turned away.