Although Kiana sometimes did strange things, after a period of training, Himeko discovered that she possessed extraordinary talent in certain areas far beyond ordinary people.
For example, in courses such as astronomy and in Valkyrie combat training, Kiana displayed abilities far exceeding those of her peers.
Her control over Honkai energy was astonishing—she could easily construct all kinds of weapons from it.
Her physical abilities were also far superior to others. Even without undergoing the super-transformation surgery, her genes had been enhanced by the Research Division at birth.
In terms of strength, agility, and endurance, she could already rival Schicksal's strongest Valkyries.
A month later—
"Kiana, today is your first exam since enrolling. Do your best."
At St. Freya Academy, Himeko cheered Kiana on in front of the exam hall.
"No problem, I'm a genius!"
Kiana was brimming with confidence.
"This kind of test is nothing to me~~"
"Confidence is good, but don't underestimate the Valkyrie exams, Kiana," Durandal reminded her.
"Besides combat training, there are also cultural subjects like history, biology, and geography. To become a Valkyrie, you must pass all of them."
"Ho~"
The white-haired bundle walked into the exam hall with a smug look, clearly not taking it seriously.
On the wide training grounds, several A-rank Valkyries from Schicksal served as proctors, with Theresa present to observe.
"This practical exam requires you to independently defeat a Knight-class Honkai Beast within the time limit to pass."
"You may use your own weapons or those issued by the academy."
After Shigure Kira finished reading the rules aloud, the students took turns entering the field.
Knight-class Honkai Beasts weren't strong, but for recently enrolled trainee Valkyries, they posed just enough challenge to serve as an appropriate benchmark.
"Understood."
Bronya, Durandal, and Mei each went up in turn, swiftly and cleanly defeating their targets.
Some of the newer students, still inexperienced, panicked and ran around after being struck by the beasts—forcing the examiners to step in and clean up the mess.
"Tch..."
Kiana had seen Emperor-level and even Judgment-level Honkai Beasts on the space station—and she'd even sparred with Herrschers for fun.
These small fries didn't even count as warm-up opponents.
Taking a step forward, she projected a long spear.
"Black Abyss White Flower~?"
Theresa blinked in surprise—the weapon in Kiana's hand looked eerily similar to the Sixth Divine Key, which had gone missing along with Cecilia.
"Maybe she saw it in a book," she muttered, shaking her head, not thinking much of it.
Boom—
Bang!!
With a single strike, Kiana shattered the Honkai Beast into pieces.
"She's got monstrous strength too? Impressive..."
"At this rate, becoming an S-rank Valkyrie one day might not be impossible..."
Theresa's expression turned from surprise to awe. She couldn't help but feel lucky to have discovered such a gifted child.
"Heh, easy~~"
Kiana smirked as the other students looked at her with admiration and astonishment.
Even Bronya, Mei, and the usual top students couldn't help but be impressed.
"I'll definitely take first place."
...
Two days later, when the results were posted—
Kiana stood before the bulletin board, staring at the list in disbelief.
"Tied for first place: Raiden Mei and Bronya."
"Second place: Durandal."
"Third place: Ana Schariac, Seele Vollerei..."
"Kiana—failed."
"???"
"Wha—WHAT?! WHY?!"
Kiana froze, her face twisting in disbelief as she looked up at the sky.
"Papa... Mama... you're watching, right? You must be watching... right?!"
Her mind spun with a flurry of panicked thoughts.
"Kiana, you're too one-sided," Theresa said, holding the report and shaking her head.
"Other than the practical exam and astronomy, which you nearly aced, your scores in biology, history, geography, physics, and chemistry don't even add up to sixty."
"How did you manage that? And what did you even write on your physics paper?"
Theresa pulled a sheet from the file folder.
"Newton's three laws and the basic concepts of relativity—these things are simple, right? You just memorize them."
"What's this about 'relativity needing to be classified under lightspeed, superluminal, and extradimensional conditions,' and 'general relativity not being applicable to higher-dimensional models'?"
"Did Einstein ever say that?"
Kiana often answered questions using bizarre methods and theories—so far ahead of her time that the teachers at St. Freya couldn't even understand them.
—Being one step ahead makes you a genius; being ten steps ahead makes you a lunatic and a dreamer.
The theories of the Starsea Empire were things that, to the locals, only existed in science fiction novels.
"He really said it!!!"
"And the formulas I used are real! They were proven by Kayo Senju and Midori Fuse! Also, that's the famous Siren Compiler's Three Laws—an evolution and supplement to Newton's laws!"
Kiana raised her voice in protest. She had learned all of that while wandering around the space station.
"Einstein also said that modern physics no longer exists and that his theories need to be revised!"
"???"
Theresa was so exasperated she almost laughed.
This child even made up physicists' names and physical laws—'Compiler's Three Laws'? Who would even come up with something like that?
"It's good to have imagination, but during exams, you need to follow the rules, understood?"
"..."
Kiana puffed her cheeks. She nearly blurted out that they could call Einstein and ask him directly—but remembering Cecilia's warning not to talk nonsense before leaving, she reluctantly nodded.
"One week from now, you'll have to retake the failed subjects. Do your best."
Theresa comforted her. "Let Bronya and Mei help you."
...
"Ahhhhh—!"
"Why do we even have to take cultural subjects?!"
In the dormitory, Kiana rolled around on her bed wrapped in a blanket.
"Isn't being a Valkyrie all about beating up the enemies?"
"If I can defeat everyone, why do I need to study? ..."
"???"
Mei and Durandal had no idea where she even got that kind of logic.
"Even a paramecium could solve those questions..."
Bronya muttered quietly, hugging her plush toy.
After getting to know Kiana better, she realized the girl was simply an over-energetic airhead.
"In any case, if you don't pass the makeup exams, you won't be able to become a Valkyrie."
Facing reality, it took Kiana a long time to calm down.
After all the trouble Setsuna and Cecilia went through to send her to Earth for schooling—and after all her big talk—failing everything would be too humiliating.
"No helping it, we'll start special training."
Himeko waved her hand dramatically.
"Bronya, I'm leaving Kiana to you. Make sure she passes the Valkyrie exams!"
"Understood. Bronya will ensure success."
...
"She seems to be doing well."
Back on the space station, Setsuna watched Kiana's life at St. Freya Academy unfold with a smile of fatherly pride.
Sending her to interact with peers her age had indeed been a good idea—it also helped strengthen the bond among the trio.
Otherwise, it would've been too strange if Kiana didn't even know Mei and Bronya in the future.
"Too bad Sirin didn't want to go. She's more of a homebody," Cecilia said with a laugh.
Sirin had been clinging to her side, with no intention of going to St. Freya.
"You'll attend classes in the capital later," Setsuna said, ruffling Sirin's hair.
"Sophon, monitor Kiana and the others closely. Report any anomalies immediately."
"Yes," Sophon replied coldly and respectfully.
Whoosh—Whirr—
The holographic interface opened before them as Grey communication link came online.
"Commander, stop grinning at your daughter and come pick up the Herrscher Core already!!!"
...
"Confirmed. Combat authorization acquired. Commencing real-time monitoring of Earth and designated targets."
Inside the space station, Sophon sat before the main control console, dressed in her uniform—her cold yet beautiful face illuminated by the flickering lights of countless data streams and signals.
Though she could manifest as a virtual image, when in operation, she preferred to take on her AI entity form—it was simply more practical.
By linking with the Sophon stationed above the North Pole, not even the slightest movement on Earth could escape her sensors and perception.
From her countless processing threads, she separated a few to track the special targets assigned to her by Setsuna.
Kiana, Bronya, Seele, Himeko Murata, Theresa...
Every named Valkyrie was on the list. The Angeloid units stood by on alert, ready to respond to any unexpected incident.
After confirming all assignments, Setsuna entered the experimental sector located in the side wing of the station.
In the vast hall, at its very center, floated a massive, irregularly shaped object radiating a dark red glow. Most of its surface was sealed within massive stone pillars, as if imprisoned.
Around it stood multiple containment energy barriers and various advanced, otherworldly devices.
"What is that...?"
Cecilia sensed an immense concentration of Honkai energy within the object.
"It was brought back from the Moon centuries ago," one of the nanobots answered casually. "During the previous era, Mei used her knowledge to seal away a portion of God's power."
"Oh, though by our temporal frame of reference, it wasn't that long ago," it added lightly.
"At the time, the Commander wanted to do what Sirin did—touch it, communicate with the divine, maybe freeload a few Herrscher powers... but, well, He didn't allow it."
"..."
"So you decided to take matters into your own hands?"
Witnessing the towering multi-story structure before her, Fu Hua couldn't help but sigh. When it came to scientific imagination, Dr. Mei still fell slightly short compared to the Starsea Empire's thinkers.
Still, if they truly returned to the Previous Era someday, and Mei saw how future scientists had used her theories to achieve such feats—treating both Honkai and Herrschers as mere technical problems—she would probably be quite comforted.
"Yes. We spent quite some time analyzing what we brought back from the Moon," said Grey and Kayo Senju with a nod.
"The data recovered from Griseo's Ark helped a great deal. One day, we'll go thank the scientists of the Previous Era properly."
As she spoke, she led Setsuna to the front of the massive machinery.
"This is a Honkai Energy Decomposition Unit—its purpose is to extract divine power."
"It decomposes Honkai energy, compresses it under immense force, purifies it, and then distills it into Herrscher Cores."
"Tch. Since God won't share, we'll just take it ourselves."
Given that massive concentrations of Honkai energy could give rise to a Herrscher, and that similar experiments had already been conducted on the space station, Setsuna had no trouble grasping the concept.
"What's the success rate? Any risks?"
"Based on calculations, there's roughly a fifteen percent chance that, during extraction and compression, a Honkai eruption will occur—potentially spawning new Herrschers."
"And possibly multiple Herrschers at once. I assume that's not a problem?"
"Oh, that's fine," Setsuna replied casually, motioning for Grey to activate the device.
Surrounded by Cthulhu girls, Spirits, and shipgirls, the appearance of another Herrscher—or several—made little difference.
It would just mean one extra step: beating them up before taking their Cores.
Vmmm—
The floor rumbled beneath their feet as the machine released a deafening hum.
A massive tide of Honkai energy surged throughout the station.
Using the legacy of the Previous Era, the Research Division sought to seize divine authority itself.
Rumble—
The sealed Honkai energy burst outward, flooding the containment field with a violent energy storm.
Lightning, fire, and hurricanes intertwined in chaos. Were it not for the stabilizing energy field, it would have caused a catastrophe in moments.
"Energy extraction complete—compress it!"
At the command, the Angeloids and lolis swiftly executed the sequence, their synchronized actions calming the raging storm.
From all directions, the gathered forces began compressing the Honkai energy tide into a single point.
The pale energy mass grew darker and smaller, its color deepening until it was almost compressed into a black-and-red singularity.
"Establish imaginary-space connection, refine Honkai energy—"
"Commander, we'll need your help. For a Herrscher Core to be complete, it must be linked to the Imaginary Space."
Following the instructions, Setsuna activated his Herrscher authority, connecting to the Imaginary Space and channeling even more Honkai energy through the system.
"Purify! Separate the excess Honkai energy!!"
Nanobots and the other scientists worked frantically at the holographic interface, stripping away impurities.
"Double-check all systems, perform secondary compression—prepare for materialization!!"
"5, 4, 3, 2, 1..."
"Output power at maximum! Disable the containment field!!"
...
After a dazzling sequence of complex operations—
Boom—!
The chaotic Honkai energy inside split into four energy spheres, each violently bursting before collapsing into a single miniature singularity.
At last, four crystals—red, purple, blue, and cyan—floated in midair, identical in form to the Herrscher Cores of Reason and the Herrscher of the Void that Setsuna had seen before.
Each one radiated immense power.
"Success! No extra Herrschers spawned for us to beat up—we're amazing!!!"
The nanobots, research lolis, and Honkai scientists all high-fived each other and hopped around in excitement.
"This is a monumental leap for science! We've reverted Honkai energy back into Herrscher Cores!!!"
"Oh yeah!!!—"
Cecilia and Kallen exchanged puzzled looks, unsure what warranted such intense enthusiasm.
"Reverting chaotic Honkai energy into Herrscher Cores," Tesla explained succinctly, "is like turning a skewer of lamb back into a living sheep."
"Uh... yeah, that's pretty impressive, I guess..." Cheng Lixue scratched his head, completely lost for words.
"Hmm..."
Setsuna gently took the four crystals into his hands, turning them over with mild curiosity.
"They're identical to the originals—Herrscher of Wind, Herrscher of Thunder, Herrscher of Fire, and Herrscher of Death."
Grey nodded. "Exactly. The remnants from the Moon happened to yield these four."
"The same type as Sirin's, huh?"
Setsuna smiled faintly.
Click—
He opened his ship armor and deployed the Herrscher Core Drive Module.
One by one, he installed the four Cores inside.
In an instant, his vision flooded with surreal, prismatic images.
In the depths of his mind, he seemed to hear a voice speaking to him—
"God grants you His crown... wield lightning as your bow, and shatter all before you."
"God grants you His authority... command the endless storms, traversing infinity within a breath."
"God grants you His robe... pour the wine of death, sweet as dream."
"God grants you His sword... be wrapped in immortal flame, let the stars burn anew."
"..."
"Did I just install too many Cores and start hallucinating?"
Setsuna shook his head, driving the strange voices away.
[Core analysis in progress...]
A few minutes later, the ship's AI emitted a soft chime.
[Confirmed. Installation complete. Herrscher of Thunder, Herrscher of Wind, Herrscher of Death, and Herrscher of Fire Cores successfully integrated.]
[Current synchronization rate: 100%. No anomalies detected.]
"Nice."
He raised his hand, feeling multiple powers intertwine and surge through his body.
Along with them came fragments of knowledge—new insights into the laws governing Herrscher authority.
Glancing at the Drive Module, he counted six Cores in total now, including those of Reason and Corruption.
"So, I'm six-core now? Congratulations to me."
—
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