A soft lashes trembled.
As a strand of morning sunlight brushed across her face as the pink-haired girl slowly opened her eyes.
Inori Yuzuriha pushed herself upright.
Silk-fine bangs swayed against her porcelain-pale cheeks, still dazed with sleepy innocence.
The oversized pink pajamas slid slightly off her shoulder, revealing a glimpse of smooth skin beneath the loose strap.
Cute and alluring pure innocence wrapped in quiet temptation.
But tragically, no one was here to witness this scene that would drive any man insane.
Her wine-colored eyes drifted between a pair of black and white stockings placed beside her bed — hesitating.
————————————————————————
[The King seems to prefer the black ones.]
————————————————————————
A seductive voice purred within her mind.
Inori gave the faintest nod and picked up the black stockings.
Lifting her flawless legs, she rolled the nylon smoothly over her foot and up her thigh — soft curves subtly outlined beneath the dark sheen.
After slipping into her casual outfit, her long pastel-pink hair needed no styling — just one quick brush and it flowed like flowing satin.
————————————————————————
[I can feel it. The King has returned to this world. You—]
————————————————————————
"I know."
Her voice soft and clear like an orchid blooming in a quiet valley carried certainty.
As one of the holders of the interdimensional chat group, Inori always knew more about Nagami than the others.
One soul. Two bodies.
A dual-core system that lets Nagami reply to group chats instantly in almost any situation.
Between the heiress Kiana and Inori, they shared daily stories with him, sometimes even helping him handle tasks ahead of time.
A chat group embedded in the soul… Convenient was an understatement.
————————————————————————
In the warm, homey living room…
A certain blue-eyed "tuna" rushed to the dining table, sitting eagerly and wagging her metaphorical tail.
She looked around and blinked in confusion.
"Eh? Sis, where's Mom?"
"Mom left early for St. Freya Academy. Theresa begged and cuddled and played the pity act to make her help prepare next month's Valkyrie exams." ×2 voices overlapped.
The exact same answer came from directly opposite and behind her, the heiress reading a book, and true Kiana bringing breakfast, both perfectly calm as if this routine absurdity was totally normal.
Their twin gentle voices carried a hint of indulgent affection.
Double the big-sister energy.
The paramecium Kiana couldn't help but beam in happiness, but that smile quickly froze.
Then sank.
"Wait— Exams?!"
Her eyes widened dramatically.
For a creature whose intelligence is inversely proportional to the comfort of her environment… this was a catastrophic revelation.
Her tragedies were rewritten by the one she loves.
She was now surrounded by a caring mother, two doting sisters, loyal friends and she even recovered her annoying dad.
Sure, there were still family squabbles here and there, but for her?
This was happiness beyond calculation.
So her IQ had dropped to historic lows.
She even completely forgot everything C.C. had drilled into her brain.
'Hehe~'
"Whyyy do we have to take exams again?!"
She grabbed her head dramatically, braids flailing like angry cat tails.
"We just had exams last month! Why again?!"
She stabbed a fried egg with her fork as if punishing it for existing, stuffing it into her mouth with a furious chomp.
"When vacation comes, you'll all get to go out and play while I'll be stuck in the empty classroom taking makeup exam after makeup exam! I refuse! Uwaaaaah!"
Gripped by despair, the tuna tackled the the heiress's arm, rubbing her cheek against it with desperate kitten-style pleading.
"Eeeeek! Snuggling me won't help!" The heiress Kiana pushed her idiot "sister"'s face away with zero mercy.
Even though they looked identical the heiress Kiana actually appeared younger, despite being the "older" one by birth.
Physically, the tuna Kiana's body had aged up to match true Kiana… but mentally?
Removing everything before age eight… That meant Sirin was technically only—
'Screech of mental math.'
"…Hmm."
The realization made the tuna's entire expression crumble.
She plopped into her seat with a defeated thud, giving the table a light punch in frustration.
"And I'm a Herrscher!! Why does a Herrscher have to take Valkyrie exams?!" Her voice layered strangely dual personas overlapping — eyes flashing gold and blue.
One thing united both personalities:
They absolutely hated studying.
"That's exactly why." True Kiana sat down, removing her apron elegantly.
"Because you are the Herrscher of the Void, your Valkyrie evaluation is very different from everyone else's."
"Different? How different?" the tuna slumped over the table, chin squished against the surface, a picture of hopeless despair.
But when she heard true Kiana say the magic word her head shot up with sudden hope.
"So… does that mean I can pass really easily?"
"Of course…" true Kiana smiled sweetly right as the tuna's eyes lit up—
"…absolutely not~"
Compared to the heiress, true Kiana was the kind of big sister who loved teasing her younger sibling.
"I'll let Mei explain the details." She gestured toward the Herrscher of Rice— no, sorry the Herrscher of Lightning, stepping out of the kitchen with a frying pan in hand.
With her gentle smile and apron tied neatly around her waist, Mei looked exactly like a loving housewife preparing breakfast.
"Kiana-chan, we're no longer under St. Freya Academy's normal roster," Mei explained softly. "We're now part of Schicksal's special operations team — Flame-Chasers."
Officially, they answered to the Schicksal Archbishop and Schicksal's Special Advisor, Nagami.
In reality, Otto had zero authority over them.
"So our examinations are even stricter than regular Valkyrie tests. This was Nagami's decision."
Mei didn't mind studying, since she was already a model student type through and through.
Even if electromagnetics sometimes made her question the meaning of life, her training undeniably improved her control as a Herrscher.
"Ohhh, so it was Nagami's idea~?" the tuna Kiana perked up instantly.
If she just asked him sweetly enough… surely he'd let her pass, right?
"That's impossible!" ×3
Not just the two Kianas, even Mei shot down that idea immediately.
The heiress tapped the table lightly to get her idiot sister attention, expression turning serious.
"Nagami told me personally — this is for your safety. He refuses to go easy on anyone for this exam. If you fail…"
A bad feeling crawled up the tuna Kiana's spine.
"H-How bad is it…?"
"Anyone who doesn't pass… isn't allowed to participate in the next special assignment."
Special assignment = going to Honkai Gakuen 2's world.
"EH?!?!?!"
The tuna Kiana's eyes stretched wide in horror, twin ponytails shooting upward like startled cat ears.
"No way!!!"
She immediately burst into dramatic wailing.
No one comforted her.
Instead, the heiress turned toward Inori, who had just emerged from her room.
Looking at her genuinely surprised.
"Wow, Inori, you actually woke up late today?"
"Mhm."
She greeted the heiress softly, then walked toward the door.
Bending down slightly to slip on her shoes, her skirt hugged the perfect curve of her hips as she balanced on one leg.
Her black-stockinged foot slid gracefully into the leather shoe.
A soft tap of her heel against the floor.
She lifted her head, voice crisp and calm:
"Preparing to begin— Void Resonance."
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