Snakes are terrifying creatures.
Legend has it that even when decapitated, a snake can still kill.
...
The next day, the Honkai disaster continued to wreak havoc in Sky Dome City.
Smoke rose intermittently throughout the city, and alarms blared nonstop—like a war-torn land trapped in chaos.
In any other world, a city constantly under attack would've long since seen its residents pack up and flee to safer places, hoping to escape the disaster.
But in this world, even with daily assaults by Honkai beasts, Sky Dome City was still considered one of the safest places on Earth.
After all, fully fortified cities like this were rare.
No matter how dire things got, it was still far safer to remain here than to struggle for survival in the wild or risk it in some unprotected small town.
This world may have been steeped in despair, but there were still those who held onto hope, believing it could be saved.
...
As the sun rose and fell, another day passed for Kagura, Himeko, and Kiana.
They spent it fighting Honkai beasts, rescuing civilians, and supporting the city's defense forces.
At the same time, their investigation into the origins of the disaster was making real progress.
Whenever they helped the local defense troops push back the Honkai beasts, they'd recover data cores from damaged autonomous defense mechs.
These cores held valuable information used to analyze the patterns of Honkai attacks across the city—clues that might lead them to the source, and to whoever was pulling the strings behind the scenes.
"Aun—no, I mean, Himeko-sensei," Kiana called out as the sun dipped below the horizon, another battle just ended.
She was rummaging through the wreckage of a destroyed mech and pulled out a data drive.
"I found something strange. It looks like Schicksal is planning a surprise inspection of a pharmaceutical company called Divine City Pharma. The person assigned to the mission is... Rita Rossweisse."
"Hm? Are you sure it's not just one of Rita's routine assignments? I mean, she is that kind of maid," Himeko said casually. "If it's just a standard inspection, there's no need to worry, right?"
"No, it's not that simple," Kiana replied. "Normally, Schicksal only inspects partner companies once a year. But it's only been a month since they last checked Divine City Pharma. Clearly, Otto has found something."
"Then... what exactly has Bishop Otto discovered?" Kagura chimed in. "Is there something in that company that's caught Schicksal's attention?"
"It's highly likely," Kiana nodded. "According to my previous intel, the areas where Divine City Pharma employees operate often overlap with Honkai outbreak zones. I flagged it as a potential lead."
"Hmm..." Kagura crossed her arms, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. "If you shared that lead with Miss Rita, and she reported it up the chain... and if it actually caught Otto's attention, then that must mean—"
"—That Divine City Pharma is definitely hiding something," Himeko finished firmly. "Looks like we should pay them a little nighttime visit and do some investigating ourselves."
"I agree," Kagura nodded. "If we follow this trail, we might just uncover the one responsible for creating these disasters and endangering the entire city."
Himeko smiled and gently patted Kagura's head. "Good. Since we're all on the same page, let's not waste any—"
'CLANK! CLANK!'
Before she could finish, metal canisters suddenly dropped all around them.
"What the—?!"
Before any of them could react, the canisters hissed to life, releasing plumes of strange gas.
"Tch—gas?!" Kagura instantly activated her White Moon combat suit, generating portable gas masks for both Himeko and Kiana using matter conversion.
She also triggered her suit's energy shield to prevent the gas from entering her system.
"No... wait. This gas doesn't seem to affect me at all," Kagura muttered as her suit completed an analysis of the unknown substance.
The results showed that the gas was composed mostly of harmless serums—completely inert to her.
But—
"Urgh...!"
'Thud.'
Himeko and Kiana suddenly collapsed to the ground, their faces twisted in pain.
Even without inhalation, the gas had taken immediate effect on them.
"Himeko? Kiana?! What's happening?!" Kagura rushed to their sides and crouched down to assess their condition.
"This gas... it weakens the Honkai energy inside us," Himeko gritted out, her eyes scanning the surroundings. "Damn it—we've been ambushed! And it's a highly targeted attack... Their goal is clear—us, the Valkyries!"
Kagura's golden eyes flashed with anger. "An attack specifically designed for Valkyries?!"
"Well, well. As expected from the captain of the Hyperion and one of the most seasoned Valkyries. Your instincts are still sharp... but sadly, you still walked right into the trap. Hahaha..."
A mocking voice crackled through a nearby speaker, hijacking the city's communication network.
"Miss Himeko, before you die, let me share a little secret with you," the voice said smugly. "This gas—this masterpiece that's causing you such agony—was created under your very own watch."
"That's right. What you're breathing in is the mass-produced version of serum HSN-B46—the same one you staked your life on to defeat the Herrscher of the Void.
Its codename? The God-Slaying Lance. What a delicious bit of irony, don't you think?"
"No need to be surprised. Valkyries are nothing but pests—small obstacles in the grand scheme of things."
"Humanity will never defeat the Honkai relying on Schicksal's false authority."
"In short—your time is up. And the organization known as Serpent... will be your replacement."
'BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!'
Several combat pods slammed into the ground nearby, opening to reveal humanoid figures.
They were Deadwalkers—humans infected by Honkai energy. But these weren't your average mindless monsters.
They wore red-and-black visors, sleek white bodysuits, and wielded advanced anti-Honkai weaponry.
The power radiating from them felt... almost like Valkyries.
But what was most disturbing: they didn't act on Honkai instinct or destroy indiscriminately.
They moved like soldiers—obedient, organized, and deadly.
"Poor little Valkyries," the voice in the speakers sneered. "Come and meet the lovely gifts I've prepared for you."
"These beautiful creatures are called Death Weavers—custom-built by Serpent to do one thing: hunt down Valkyries like you."