"That's... Aunt Theresa? But why does she look so small?"
Seeing the distinctive nun's habit, though the height didn't match, the presence of the Oath of Judah confirmed her identity.
With her external brain (Bronya) absent, Kiana actually used her own brain for once.
"According to Bronya, this is a fabricated world. If I go up and call her 'Aunt Theresa,' she might get suspicious. Hmm, I remember the communicator mentioned other Valkyries coming too. Got it."
Thinking of a way to greet Theresa, Kiana approached.
But then she saw something that left her stunned.
She watched as Theresa's severed left hand regenerated at a visible rate.
"Captain Theresa, your hand...?"
"Ah? Are you the reinforcements? As for my hand, don't worry about it. If you're here to help, follow me. Time is of the essence."
After answering Kiana's question, Theresa's arm had fully regenerated.
She picked up the Oath of Judah and immediately led Kiana toward the battlefield.
Kiana let Theresa drag her along while observing this younger version of her aunt.
"Wait, if Aunt Theresa was already fighting at this age, that means her height was already set. So why is the older Aunt Theresa so tall?"
Suddenly, Kiana's mind began to spin with newfound wisdom.
But then, Theresa's words interrupted her train of thought.
"Siegfried, you're finally here. Let's go, we need to stop the Second Herrscher."
Seeing Siegfried arrive, Theresa wasted no time and prepared to head to the battlefield.
"Hey, Theresa, we're going to the battlefield, but why are you bringing a little girl? She's not even wearing Valkyrie armor. Did you pick up some random civilian?"
Glancing at Kiana, Siegfried felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity but couldn't place it.
Still, he shifted the topic to Theresa.
"Ah, right. Are you really here to help? Where's your Valkyrie armor?"
"Uh, I am here to help. My name is... Bronya Zaychik. I'm strong enough that I don't need armor."
"...You do know we're facing the Second Herrscher, right? You... you should leave. Even if Schicksal is desperate, they shouldn't send someone without armor to help. Go, I won't report this to the Overseer."
Theresa frowned and waved her hand, urging Kiana to leave the battlefield.
Without armor, going to such a high-level battle was suicide.
"I'm not afraid of sacrificing myself. As a Valkyrie, how can I back down just because I'm scared of death? Besides, I'm really strong. If you don't believe me, test me."
"...Fine, follow us for now. You'll get a chance to fight some Honkai beasts. If you're not strong enough, retreat immediately."
For some reason, Siegfried felt compelled to defend Kiana.
He felt that this girl was someone important to him.
"Hmm, I never had an affair. What is this feeling? Could she be my father's illegitimate daughter?"
Unbeknownst to Kiana, her father was already spinning wild theories in his head.
In his mind, her identity had shifted from daughter to sister.
If Kiana knew, she would have rolled her eyes.
Soon, they encountered their first wave of Honkai beasts. The strongest among them was only a Templar-class, so Siegfried and Theresa tacitly agreed to let Kiana handle them.
If she couldn't even deal with these, there was no point in her joining the later battles.
"Watch me. I'm not weak."
After receiving a pair of pistols from Siegfried, Kiana demonstrated the Kaslana family's gun kata in front of him.
Seeing the familiar gun kata, Siegfried was convinced of his theory.
This girl had to be his father's illegitimate daughter. How else would she know the Kaslana family's gun kata?
"I'll have to talk to Mom about this when I get back. I wouldn't dare have an affair, but Dad? How could he?"
Deciding to throw his father under the bus, Siegfried watched as Kiana finished off the Honkai beasts.
"Handling a Templar-class Honkai beast without Valkyrie armor? You're at least A-rank. Alright, let's go."
Theresa nodded and agreed to let Kiana join them on the battlefield.
Kiana happily nodded and followed behind them.
"Oh, one more thing. Overseer Otto has already sent Cecilia out."
"What! Cecilia just gave birth to little Kiana and is still recovering. How could the Overseer do this?"
Hearing this news, Theresa was thunderstruck.
"That's why we need to hurry. We have to stop the Second Herrscher before Cecilia arrives. That way, she'll be safe."
"Then let's split up. We'll regroup if we find the Second Herrscher."
To protect Cecilia, Theresa had no choice but to propose the risky plan of splitting up.
After all, facing the Second Herrscher alone was extremely dangerous.
"Alright, I'll go this way. Be careful, both of you."
Grabbing his Divine Key, Judgement of Shamash, Siegfried took a different path to search for the Second Herrscher.
In the freezing snowfield, the three split up.
Beep beep beep—!
"Hey, Siegfried, what's up?"
"I've spotted the Second Herrscher. Hurry over. I'll try to hold her off, but I won't last long. Get here quickly."
"Got it."
Seeing the location Siegfried sent, Theresa immediately led Kiana toward it.
Meanwhile, Siegfried had just ended the call when he sensed danger.
Dodging to the side, a spear-like object shot past where he had been standing.
"You dodged that? You're not a mere insect but a slightly stronger bug. Well then, prepare to die."
Seeing Siegfried dodge her attack, Sirin was slightly surprised but continued to look down on him with disdain.
"Well, I hope Theresa gets here soon. Otherwise, these old bones won't last long."
Merging his pistols into the greatsword form of Judgement of Shamash, Siegfried charged at the Second Herrscher.