A strong light flooded out of the room Kiana and Theresa opened. It was because all the lights in the room were on, and the open curtains allowed the sunlight to stream in unobstructed, illuminating every corner…
"..." Kiana stared speechlessly at the trash scattered all over the floor, the underwear and bras thrown everywhere. She even saw a sock, emitting a peculiar odor, tossed onto the air conditioner…
I only ever toss my socks under the desk at most. Who throws them on top of the air conditioner? Kiana thought with disgust.
"This room looks like a garbage dump. What is it?" Kiana asked, her eyes half-open.
"It's as messy as ever. Can't be helped—" Theresa said with a helpless, squinting expression. "This is the world of an older, single, woman living alone."
"Don't open that closet!" a woman suddenly shouted.
"Rumble!—" Three girls in cleaning outfits tumbled out of a room… followed by a massive avalanche of garbage, cardboard boxes, and all sorts of miscellaneous items pouring out after them…
"Why is there so much stuff in the closet!" the black-haired girl who had fallen complained. She pushed herself up with her hands, trying to stand, when her eyes accidentally fell on the two people standing at the door—the white-haired girl from her memories.
"Starting three months ago, she just kept stuffing useless things into that closet…" Murata Himeko, wearing a mask and holding a feather duster, explained sheepishly to Mei.
But at that moment, Mei had no time to listen to the older woman's words… She scrambled to her feet and rushed towards the door…
"Kiana!" the long-haired girl cried out excitedly. Her inky black hair swayed as she ran forward, her long, slender legs clad in fluffy slippers.
"?" Kiana looked towards the source of the voice, confused, just as a dark shadow lunged into her arms. A familiar, fragrant scent filled her nostrils, and a smile spread across Kiana's face.
"..." Bronya and Himeko, still on the floor, watched the two embrace in silence… Himeko looked indifferent, while Bronya had an annoyed expression on her face.
"Welcome home!" Mei said, hugging Kiana tightly.
"What a touching reunion. Well then, I've fulfilled your request. You should respond to my proposal now, shouldn't you?" Theresa said, looking up at the two girls who were a head taller than her.
"If I join, you'll tell me where my dad is?" Kiana asked, separating from Mei and turning to Theresa.
"It's not that simple. If you want me to tell you where your old man is—" Theresa flashed that sly smile again. "You'll have to become an S-Rank Valkyrie first!"
"Ah, is that all? If this young lady gets serious, whether it's a Valkyrie or anything else, I'll become one for you to see!" Kiana said confidently.
At that moment, she had no idea what being an S-Rank Valkyrie truly entailed… She had just set a flag she would later regret…
"By the way, where is Li Xuan?" Mei suddenly asked, craning her neck to look out the door. Why couldn't she see him?
"Uh… about that…" Kiana looked guiltily at Theresa beside her, signaling for her to speak.
"Ahem… Li Xuan… he's temporarily missing… But we've already started searching for him…" Theresa said, embarrassed. To have failed to find a surviving Stigmata wielder after the battle… it was humiliating.
"Right! Major Murata Himeko, didn't I tell you to start searching immediately?!" Theresa suddenly remembered her earlier order to Himeko…
"Ahem… well, I already sent Yuudachi out with a small Valkyrie squad…" Murata Himeko coughed as if she had a cold. She couldn't very well admit it was because she couldn't find her own officer ID… after all, using the equipment on the warship required her officer credentials… just like a student needs a student ID…
Meanwhile, in Nagazora City.
"So you're saying, when you arrived, you only found me and didn't see anyone else?" Li Xuan asked, standing on a street not far from the city center library.
"Mhm!" Yae Sakura confirmed, the sauce from the three bowls of instant noodles she just ate still lingering at the corners of her mouth.
Sigh~ To think such a cute girl likes instant noodles… Li Xuan had completely lost his appetite for such fast food, having eaten his fill of it during summer vacations. He took a clean white napkin from his ring and reached out to wipe Yae Sakura's mouth.
"Burp~" Yae Sakura let out an unladylike burp, nearly making Li Xuan drop the napkin…
"The ramen of later generations is so delicious~" Yae Sakura sighed contentedly.
"..." A speechless Li Xuan held the used napkin. "Poof!" A bright red flame erupted from his right hand, instantly turning the wastepaper to ash.
Li Xuan had gradually gotten used to using this flame ability on the way to the library. The heat and burning power of the flame seemed to depend on the amount of his own Honkai energy he burned… meaning, the more Honkai energy, the hotter the flame.
"Alright, let's go~" Li Xuan said, patting Yae Sakura's fluffy head.
"Don't touch me as you please, kid~" a sharp voice came from behind Yae Sakura. It was the black fox.
"..." Li Xuan silently took out 'Tyr's Wrist' from his ring, shouldered it, aimed the barrel at the sealed library entrance, and gently pressed the trigger.
"Bang!~" A rocket shot out from the launcher, its fiery tail streaking towards the library doors.
"Boom!" With a massive explosion, the wooden library doors were blown to splinters.
"Klick!~" Li Xuan immediately recalled 'Tyr's Wrist' and took out 'Seele's Toy Box'. The toy box shimmered and transformed into a golden cross, which he planted in the ground like a fortress wall.
"Done…" Li Xuan said casually, turning to look at the stunned fox and Yae Sakura.
"Roar Roar Roar Roar!!!!~~" Countless Honkai Zombies poured out from the shattered library entrance.
"..." What a 'huge crowd'… Li Xuan thought, watching the scene speechlessly. Just how long had these Honkai Zombies been stuck in there?
Meanwhile… on a warship some distance from Nagazora City…
"What?! You saw the Third Herrscher hit the boy named 'Li Xuan', so you didn't retrieve him because you were afraid of attracting Schicksal's attention?!" In the dim command room, a woman with curly, light-blonde hair shouted.
"Don't you know that even a corpse has value?!" the woman said angrily. "That was a person with an unknown Stigmata!"
"Your punishment will be dealt with later…" the woman said, pointing at the nine anxious girls standing before her. She took out a small communicator and dialed a number…
"Beep beep~" The call connected almost instantly. The woman spoke directly. "Deploy the new model Anti-Entropy mecha!… Enter Nagazora City!"
"Yes, including the Berserk Titan… even if it means declaring war on Schicksal!"
At that moment, Li Xuan was completely unaware that he had become the prey of many…