Sky Striker Princess, but the swan song of Valkyrie.

The girl dressed in black paid no attention to the conversation between the people in front of her.

She simply sensed it silently and confirmed that her master had no need for her at the moment.

Then, he planted his own body—the crimson Flash Blade—into the floor, and then squatted down behind the upright Flash Blade, hugging his knees.

And so, without breaking free of this state or launching any further attacks, he simply remained calmly watching in Lingyi's direction, without uttering a word.

SONG didn't have many thoughts on her actions. For now, their main objective was to explore Lingyi's past and seek possible dialogue.

..........

A space for the mind.

"Are you alright? Was it ringing?"

Kohinata Mirai looked at Tachibana Hibiki, who was lying weakly on the ground, with concern in her eyes.

Since they escaped from the ruins of the Fire City, Tachibana Hibiki collapsed to the ground, looking as weak as if a string had been broken, and her spirits were extremely low.

"This is probably what Elfnein meant by the weakness and pain after the battle."

Seeing Tachibana Hibiki lying on the ground, trembling and barely able to open her eyes, needing to be helped up, Chris thought of a reason.

"In this state, Miss Hibiki is unlikely to be able to fight, let alone move normally. She needs to rest as much as possible."

Looking at Tachibana Hibiki lying on the ground, Tsukuyomi realized a fact.

If even Hibiki Tachibana, the strongest and most powerful among them, couldn't withstand the weakness after a battle, then it's unlikely that the others would be in much better shape afterward.

"However, thanks to Ms. Hibiki, we roughly understand what it's like to fight in this place. Next time, let me and Choji take over, Death."

Xiaoqiege patted his chest and offered his recommendation.

"No, in terms of combat strength, the duet between Xiaoqiege and Xiaodiao should be an ace on par with Hibiki."

"The best course of action is to confront Lingyi; she is like that red form, even more difficult to deal with."

In response, Kohinata Mirai shook her head, rejecting Akatsuki Kirika's suggestion, and rationally offered her thoughts from the perspective of combat strength.

"That makes sense. So, if we encounter Zero's powerful form, then let me and Death take over."

Listening to what Kohinata Mirai said, Akatsuki Kirika nodded as if she understood, and then smiled and took the initiative to accept the task.

"That's fine. Now, let's first determine the current situation."

After a brief conversation to determine the next course of action, Chris turned her attention to her surroundings.

At this moment, she noticed that this was a closed house full of ruins. Through the nailed-down windows, she could see familiar buildings and courtyards. Looking around the house, she could see that the people around her were also familiar.

However, the familiar buildings and courtyards have now become ruins where their former forms can barely be discerned, and the only familiar people left are the children who have been gathered here; the adults are nowhere to be seen.

"It feels like a while has passed."

Combining this with the memories that surfaced during Hibiki Tachibana's previous battle, the musicians present roughly understood the situation here, which occurred sometime after that bombing, many days later.

"...By the way, where is Lingyi now?"

After confirming her surroundings, Chris subconsciously searched for Zero's figure, but she couldn't find that familiar white-gold color for a moment. It seemed that she had gone somewhere else and hadn't returned yet.

"Are you looking for the eldest sister? She left this morning, just like before, telling us not to go out and to wait for her to come back before making any new decisions."

Just as Chris was wondering, a girl with slightly red and swollen eyes and a calm expression noticed her movements and pointed out Lingyi's whereabouts.

Kohinata Mirai remembers this girl. She initially stood up for Rei and provoked her, but was quickly won over and became one of the children who respected Rei the most.

"Is that so? Then do you know... what Lingyi went to do?"

Knowing this, Kohinata Mirai realized that they could only wait until Zero returned, so she took the opportunity to start gathering information.

"I don't know, my older sister has always told us not to help... Although, I also know that we can't really help my always amazing older sister anyway..."

During the conversation, the girl's expression changed one after another, from dissatisfaction to anger to disappointment, and I couldn't help but rub her already red eyes again.

Are you alright?

Kohinata Mirai noticed the reddened eyes of the calm girl who answered her question and realized something.

Not only Lingyi, but everyone here is probably saddened and terrified by this sudden tragedy, as can be seen from the oppressive and numb atmosphere.

..........

Realizing this, Kohinata Mirai subconsciously looked at the girl in front of her with concern.

Even knowing that they were just phantoms in my memory, I still couldn't ignore the joys and sorrows of these children after spending so much time together.

"Hey, what's with that look? Are you worried about me? Haha, me... what could possibly happen to me? At most, I'll just be the same as before. Everything's fine, there's nothing I can't accept..."

The words seemed to trigger a sensitive spot in the girl in front of him, making it difficult for her to control her emotions, but she still stubbornly refused to admit defeat.

"How could I possibly accept this... Aunt Smith... Aunt Smith and the others are all dead, all of them, not a single one left!!"

The girl didn't say anything, but another girl who had been silent overheard the conversation. She, who had been listless, suddenly became emotionally unstable.

It is clear that the feeling of being displaced by war, and then losing one's home again after finally settling down, is not easy to bear.

Previously, there was no outburst, only exhaustion from excessive grief. After resting, that sorrowful emotion once again took hold of the hearts of these children who had experienced such misery.

"...What should I do now? Waaaaah!"

The children, worried about the future, revealed their despair about it in just a few words.

"Stop crying, you're making me cry too, waaaaah—"

Even children who don't want to escape reality are forced to confront the tragic reality by this atmosphere.

Like a chain reaction, the grief spread like wildfire throughout the space, quickly spiraling out of control, with sobs and wails echoing throughout the room.

"This……"

Kohinata Mirai never expected it to trigger such a chain reaction. Looking at the noisy and sorrowful scene before her, she was momentarily at a loss.

Click—Squeak—

Just then, the sound of the lock being unlocked, accompanied by the rattling sound of the damaged wooden door opening, rang out. Then, in the doorway stood the figure of a simple, plainly dressed girl with long, platinum blonde hair, her clothes covered in a little dust.

"Ah, big sister, you're back? It's alright, we're fine."

Upon seeing Lingyi return, the girl, having managed to control her emotions slightly, suppressed them and turned to greet Lingyi's return.

"Zero Clothes..."

When Kohinata Mirai saw the girl enter from outside, she was startled because of the way Rei looked in their direction.

Was it a bone-chilling cold, or a lifeless stillness? No, neither.

There was nothing there; those emerald green eyes held not a trace of human emotion, revealing only pure emptiness.

"Um, Zero..."

Kohinata Kiroichi (2%) Kuzumi Mirai just wanted to say something, trying to figure out what was wrong with Rei.

Then, her words drew the attention of Emerald Eyes, and immediately afterward, Kohinata Mirai felt an overwhelming sense of helplessness erupt from her heart, almost consuming all her vitality.

"Hey, big sister, what did you do today?"

The girl's questioning interrupted Kohinata Mirai's inner terror, and Rei's gaze finally left him, allowing her to catch her breath for a moment.

...........

When the girl asked her question, Lingyi didn't answer. Instead, she looked at the children she had lived with before, who hadn't yet recovered from their crying.

Silently, he took out a dark object from his pocket and pointed it at the ceiling.

bang——

The flames, accompanied by a tremendous explosion, unleashed the greatest fear of the moment, instantly silencing the entire area.

After things quieted down, all the children present looked tremblingly at the person who had caused the situation.

The girl, whose clothes were stained with freshly dried blood and who held a pistol she had somehow acquired, was a far cry from her usual cold and aloof self.

Chapter Sixteen: Transformation

"...Let's prepare to leave. We can't stay here any longer."

With concise words, Lingyi directly conveyed her decision to everyone present.

"Leave? What do you mean? Didn't you go to find someone to rescue you, sister...? Oh, so no one survived, not even a single one..."

The girl standing by the door, somewhat reluctant to accept it, asked the question, revealing the fact that she already knew the outcome.

"...Let's leave, we must leave here."

Lingyi did not respond to the girl's half-questioning, half-desperate answer; she simply repeated the fact silently.

"No, no, no, is there really no way? Only a week has passed, there might still be people buried under the rubble who haven't escaped... What if, sister, what if we search a little longer and find them?!"

Seemingly unable to accept this fact, some children, whose emotions were slightly broken, tried to wait a little longer, unwilling to admit that no one had actually survived.

"...There's no time for that now. To be frank, according to what I've heard, this place has become a battlefield for a three-way conflict."

"In the north are the invading forces that initiated the bombing; in the southeast are the warlords who seized power through a coup; and in the southwest is the old government, which is a combination of religious terrorist organizations."

"According to their intelligence system, they are ready to advance. Staying here will only result in becoming prisoners of war in the chaos, or... military merits."

For those who still harbored naive fantasies, Lingyi, who already knew the cruelty of reality, laid it all out before them in a straightforward manner.

In these days, in addition to seeking help from people who can organize a rescue, Lingyi has not stopped investigating the current environment.

However, the more she investigated, the more desperate she felt about the current situation.

If the previous battlefield was merely a binary confrontation where the patterns of each side's fighting were predictable, then after the coup, it had completely transformed into a chaotic arena where the future was entirely unpredictable.

If Lingyi saw this situation in a peaceful place, she might have exclaimed that this place was truly blessed with outstanding people and abundant resources, a place teeming with life and teeming with vitality.

But now, being in the middle of this miserable, chaotic place, she couldn't laugh at all.

"...So, what should we do now?"

"If you want to leave, you'll have to face those terrible things. Is there really a way to leave, Sister Zero?"

Although they couldn't understand some of the words spoken by Lingyi, their instinct for survival in the cracks of war made them understand the desperate situation represented by those words.

So, these precocious children, who had been forced to mature by their environment, quieted down and looked with hopeful eyes at the person they trusted most.

“This is not something you should worry about. I will tell you what to do. You just need to follow my instructions.”

"And be prepared, although I will try my best, I cannot guarantee that the process will be smooth. The only thing I can guarantee is that I will definitely get you out of here alive."

Therefore, in response to hopes and expectations, Lingyi paused for a moment before making this promise in a calm yet earnest tone.

........

Faced with Lingyi's words, the atmosphere fell silent for a moment as they pondered the information in her words and tried to accept the reality before them.

"I see. Well, then I believe Sister Lingyi."

A few voices began to emerge, choosing to believe.

"Me too. If it were Sister Lingyi, then maybe it really would be possible."

"Don't worry too much. Until we reach our final destination, we will all be as patient as possible."

"If you don't even trust Lingyi, then there's no one worth trusting."

Immediately afterwards, various voices filled with concern and trust rang out, and with almost no obstacles, Lingyi's words were accepted smoothly.

After all, to them, this platinum-blonde foreign-looking girl was undoubtedly quite capable and reliable.

"Really? I understand. Let's get ready. Let's go move the supplies first."

In response to their support, Lingyi simply and without any emotional fluctuation simply arranged what needed to be done.

..........

Before the chaos had ended, foreseeing that the simple shelter that had always protected them from the wind and rain had disappeared, they organized the people they could gather and collected enough resources to store in the secluded area of ​​this temporary dwelling.

Now that we need to move, we must bring as many supplies as possible, which means we need to move these resources onto the vehicles.

The transport work proceeded in an orderly manner, with food, medicine, and some mechanical parts whose principles were unclear being piled up one by one on the modified military truck that Ling Yi had somehow acquired.

"Whew... How are you feeling? Are you recovered?"

The fatigue from the activity weakened his spirit, and Kohinata Mirai, having reached his limit, was resting in the shade, while also looking after the frail Tachibana Hibiki.

"Ugh—if only I could recover. I feel like I did when I first started training with my master, so tired, so sleepy, I have no strength, and everything is sore. Ugh—"

Hibiki Tachibana replied to Mirai Kohinata with great distress.