Sky Striker Princess, but the swan song of Valkyrie.

Listening to the teacher's increasingly rhythmic voice from the podium, Chris thought to herself, preparing to sit in her seat and daydream, trying to pass the somewhat long time.

"Excuse me, do you not have a textbook? Would you like me to lend you one?"

However, just as Chris was about to do so, the black-haired girl sitting next to her asked in a low voice.

"Ah, this..."

Unexpectedly, the person next to her suddenly offered help, and Chris was momentarily at a loss for how to respond to such enthusiasm. She had never known how a girl should respond in this situation.

Chris, check the bag I gave you. I've already put your textbooks in it; just take them out.

Just as Chris was struggling with her decision, Zero's voice suddenly rang out from the depths of Chris's heart.

What are you talking about? This isn't an empty package... it actually exists?!

Hearing Lingyi's voice, Chris said with some disbelief, but when she reached inside, she actually took out a book.

"Haha... No need. Since I'm here to see if this place is suitable for me to enroll, I've brought my textbooks with me. It's just that I haven't been to class in so long that I forgot to take them out."

Chris took out her textbook from the drawer and responded with a natural smile.

"Is that so? Okay."

Seeing that the other person did have textbooks, the black-haired girl stopped insisting and began to concentrate on listening to the lesson.

What exactly did you do?

After dealing with the black-haired girl's questions, Chris asked Zero what she had done, how she knew about her situation, and why she had stuffed a textbook into the empty bag.

[It's just that I placed an invisible floating unit under your chair. The book was placed there using the combat weapon activated by that floating unit. Hmm, you might not understand if I put it that way, Chris, just think of it as me placing an invisible machine next to you that can open portals and send and receive messages.]

Lingyi explained that she certainly couldn't let Chris handle things alone; if something went wrong, she would be the one in trouble.

I will put items into your empty bag as needed, and I will also remind you when you don't know what to do, so don't feel too much pressure.

Lingyi continued, saying that this action would reduce Chris's stress.

【All right. 】

Listening to Lingyi's words, Chris felt a temporary relief from the pressure of being alone.

"Okay, then focus on the lesson now, Chris."

On the platform at the back of the classroom, Lingyi, frowning as she operated her tablet, said this.

[Image: Zero Clothes]

P.S. I feel better now, I'll try to update more tomorrow.

Chapter Thirty-Three: The Trio

Ring ring ring...

"Alright, get out of class dismissed."

As the bell rang and the teacher left, Chris realized that this conventional class had come to an end, and she had actually listened attentively for a whole lesson.

[Who am I? I'm Xueyin Chris, a student at Lydian Music Academy. Wait, no, I'm not here to study. I have a mission. What mission was it again?]

Chris, completely assimilated by the atmosphere of this ordinary girls' high school classroom, was lost in thought.

"Um, your name is Christina, right? That's what I saw written in your textbook?"

Just as Chris was struggling with her decision, a voice suddenly came from beside her.

"Who?"

Chris snapped out of her daze and looked around, trying to find the source of the sound.

Wait, what's going on?

Then, Chris realized that things seemed slightly a bit off.

While she was lost in thought, a group of female high school students she didn't recognize appeared around her without her noticing.

She immediately tried to contact Lingyi via telepathy, but for some reason, Lingyi did not reply to her immediately.

There's been no reply. Could it be that Lingyi is in trouble? Has something changed?!

The inability to contact Zero caused Chris's anxiety to rise sharply.

Looks like I'm on my own now. One, two, three, four... Oh no, I'm completely surrounded!

Helpless, Chris looked around, began to understand her current situation, and then she discovered...

To her right and slightly in front was a small girl with brown hair and pigtails. Her lively eyes were full of self-exploration and curiosity, suggesting she was a vanguard soldier.

To her right was a poised and elegant girl with long, flowing blonde hair. Her calm and unflappable gaze clearly indicated that she was a professionally trained agent.

To her right and behind was a spirited-looking young woman with short gray hair; her confidence and commanding presence suggested she was a seasoned commander.

Finally, to her left was her deskmate, an intellectual girl with short black hair, who had been firmly blocked by her. Although it was not obvious on the surface, Chris always felt that she was the most terrifying of the four.

At this moment, the four people tightly surrounded the entire area around her, and no matter which direction Chris walked, she would have to face at least two of them.

[This is terrible! This situation definitely means my identity has been exposed. They are plainclothes officers lurking in this school, and now they've figured things out and want to arrest me. No, I can't just sit here and wait to die.]

Chris, whose mind was instantly on high alert, reflexively thought this: after all, if the office workers she passed by could be enemies, it was normal for there to be a few plainclothes officers in the enemy's stronghold.

[Behold my magic bow... Oh no, Lingyi took it earlier... Damn it, even so, I won't give in easily. Bring on all the humiliating torture methods, I won't yield!]

She wanted to escape with her magic bow, but then she remembered that Lingyi had taken it away beforehand. Chris's expression changed several times before finally settling on a look of heroic sacrifice.

Calm down, Chris. Nobody wants to do anything to you. They're just ordinary high school girls being curious about a newcomer. At least they don't mean any harm.

Just as Chris was pondering this, Zero's reminder, which hadn't replied to her earlier, suddenly rang in her mind.

Oh, is that so?

Hearing the familiar voice from the depths of her heart, Chris's previously agitated state instantly calmed down.

[That's about right, at least in this place. Anyway, just be casual and natural, and you'll be fine.]

"I am hiding in the toilet stall. I am looking through the wasp unit at the girls outside who seem to be looking for something, and I am replying like this."

She sensed something was wrong just after class ended. In order to avoid being bothered by these students who had nowhere to release their youthful hormones, she quickly found a place to hide, which is why she didn't reply to Chris's communication in time.

[Phew, that's terrifying, a high school girl.]

Chris exclaimed in amazement at how naturally she was enveloped.

Indeed, if you have any questions, feel free to ask me. I'm getting back to work now.

Lingyi silently agreed, then continued to concentrate on working on her tablet.

She has now completed the surveillance setup for the teaching building and is currently setting up surveillance systems for the dormitory building.

"Christina, Christina, what's wrong?"

The girl who greeted Chris earlier, who was also a short girl with pigtails to Chris's right front, asked again, somewhat puzzled, when Chris didn't respond.

"Um... oh yes, that's me. So what do you want with me?"

Once she felt more at ease, Chris answered the other person's question as naturally as possible and asked in return.

"Well, it's nothing really. I was just a little curious why you suddenly came here to listen to the lecture. Oh, right, you don't know our names yet, do you? My name is Itaba Yumimi, and this lady next to me is Terashima Shiori."

"And I am Ando Genesis, and that one over there is Kohinata Mirai."

After establishing a connection with Chris, the trio who had suddenly appeared quickly introduced themselves and also mentioned the name of the black-haired girl standing nearby.

[What's going on? These guys are way too familiar! Who asked you? Don't just jump in and introduce yourselves. Now I'm forced to chat with them!]

Chris thought to herself as she was forced to listen to the three people's self-introductions.

[What should I do next? How should an ordinary high school girl react in this situation? Damn it, I have absolutely no relevant experience. Anyway, first I need to think about my persona, introduce myself...]

At this moment, Chris felt a deep respect for Zero, who had escaped the vortex force field beforehand. She was incredibly capable of quickly realizing such a troublesome situation and leaving immediately.

"Haha, my name is Christina, well, you can just call me Christ. As for why I came here, one reason is that I need to find a school to attend, but I don't know which school is better, so I plan to try it out first before making a decision. As for the other personal reason, I'll keep it a secret for now."

Chris explained to her in one breath the character design that Zero had previously arranged for her. (The rest of the text appears to be unrelated and possibly machine-generated gibberish.)

"I see, I see. Christina, so you're like one of those mysterious transfer student characters from anime."

Yumimi Itaba nodded, thought for a moment, and said this. As for the confidential part, she didn't ask any more questions since they weren't very close.

"Alright, Yumi, didn't you hear what Chris said? She hasn't decided whether or not to transfer to our team yet."

On the other side, Ando Sōse denied it with a smile.

"Don't worry, according to the development in the anime, a mysterious character like Chris who suddenly appears will definitely become a mysterious transfer student within one episode for some reason."

However, despite Ando Soseki's statement, Itaba Yumimi maintained her own opinion.

"This isn't an anime."

Terashima Saori, who had been silent until now, smiled and spoke.

"Of course, that's not my only reason. Don't forget our Lydian Music Academy. At least here, we have the best teaching facilities. Once you experience the good things about Lydian, Chris will definitely choose to come here."

Yumimi Itaba made this assessment with great confidence.

"However, while the teaching is like this, Lydia's infrastructure is probably not particularly good."

Upon hearing Yumi's words, Terashima Saori said with some doubt.

"Yes, yes, whether it's the steep, smooth slope of the classroom design, the school playground with its right-angle turns that make running uncomfortable, or the dormitory with its limited space that makes it a bit cramped for two people, they are all inconvenient in various ways."

Ando Sōse also said this very seriously.

"Speaking of which, why was the school designed this way?"

"Who knows? Maybe the designer was someone who only considered aesthetics and not practicality."

Soon, as the topic shifted, the conversation moved from Chris to complaining about the school facilities.

Yes, yes, that's it. They completely ignored me, letting me escape this hellish break time.

As the conversation drifted further and further away, gradually reaching a point of perpetual motion, and the three of them completely forgot about themselves, Chris silently popped champagne in her mind. She never expected that her troubles would be resolved by herself like this.

I'm so lucky.

Chris's mood brightened, and she even unconsciously began to swing her legs, which were clad in black stockings and red leather shoes.

However, it turns out that sometimes it's better not to be too happy too soon.

bang-

【Hey, what's that?】

Chris felt that when she swung her feet under the chair, her feet hit something hard, making a crisp collision sound.

Chris, sit up straight, your foot is touching my Bumblebee robot.

Zero's voice rang out at just the right moment, answering Chris's question.

[Ugh, why did you put the wasp machine under my feet, Rei?]

Chris asked, somewhat devastated.

【Your question is strange. If you want to create a portal for your handbag that no one else can touch, then under a chair is definitely the most convenient place.】

Lingyi said matter-of-factly.

However, this was no longer Chris's concern, because the strange noise she made had drawn the attention of the three people who had been chatting amongst themselves back to her.

"Ah, sorry, Chris-chan, we got so engrossed in our conversation that we forgot about you."

Upon noticing Chris again, Itaba Yumimi immediately apologized, as did the other two.

No, there's absolutely no need to apologize. You guys keep talking, don't worry about me!

At this moment, Yukine Chris, who had briefly escaped sight, was captured again by the force field of the girl high school student.

"Sigh, really, you three, if you still haven't noticed, I'm even thinking of reminding you."

[So, no matter what, I'm destined to face challenges.]

Furthermore, unlike the force field that only had three people before, another person named Kohinata Mirai, who had been silent on her left side all along, also joined the encirclement and annihilation of her.

This is absolutely terrible!

Chris thought to herself.

Chapter Thirty-Four: Photographs

Topics involving high school girls are often wildly imaginative; you never know how the conversation might veer off course.