"Swish—" The door to Class 1-B2 at St. Freya High School was thrown open with a bang…
"Click! Clack!" Brown leather shoes made a crisp sound on the tiled floor as a pair of long, slender legs clad in black over-the-knee stockings stepped into the classroom.
She had a delicate face, snow-white skin, and waist-length black hair that swayed gently with her steps, and a warm smile graced her face.
"Squeak~" With her back to the class, the black-haired girl picked up a piece of white chalk and wrote on the blackboard. The chalk tip crumbled into fine white dust as she wrote four elegant characters: 'Raiden Mei.'
"Hello everyone, my name is Raiden Mei. Please take care of me from now on." Mei's delicate face wore a dignified smile. She placed her hands in front of her, bowed slightly, and then spoke with a gentle smile.
"Ooh~"
"The new student seems so mature…"
"Mei-san seems as well-mannered as a young lady!…"
Raiden Mei's self-introduction gave everyone the impression of a well-bred young lady, making them instantly take a liking to her.
"Alright, Mei-san, please choose one of the empty seats in the last row to sit~" the homeroom teacher said with a smile.
"Yes, teacher." Mei bowed slightly, then turned and walked straight to the last row of the classroom, taking a seat near the back door and sitting upright.
"Clap clap!~ Alright, now let's welcome the second student," the beautiful teacher said, clapping her hands to draw everyone's attention.
"..." Under the watchful eyes of the class, a small girl with long, light-gray hair and light-gray eyes walked in. She was cute but had a mechanical, cold expression. On her back, she carried a Homu-shaped backpack.
"Swish swish~" The expressionless little girl took a piece of chalk and wrote on the blackboard in neat handwriting that looked like it had been printed by a computer—'Bronya Zaychik.'
"Hello everyone, Bronya's name is Bronya… likes… Homu," Bronya said seriously, her delicate, doll-like face showing no emotion.
"..." The class fell into a dead silence.
"Hmm?…" Bronya tilted her head unconsciously, looking at everyone with confusion, revealing a hint of adorable cluelessness.
"Waaah~ Her backpack is the super popular Homu!"
"That's not the point, is it?!"
"The deadpan little loli is so cute…"
"Shut up, you fujoshi, she's mine…"
For some reason, the girls below the stage suddenly became noisy again.
"Haha~ Bronya-san, please go find a seat in the back~" the teacher said warmly. Bronya nodded silently with half-lidded eyes and trotted to the seat next to her beloved Mei-oneesama, right by the wall.
"Alright, and now for our last student!~" the teacher announced loudly.
"Hello everyone, I'm Kiana Kaslana!" A cute and beautiful girl walked into the classroom with a bold swagger, quickly scribbling her name on the blackboard in messy handwriting.
She turned around, her snow-white hair tied into two pigtails flying in the air. Kiana spoke with what seemed like boundless confidence.
"I like to eat pretty-girl-flavored instant noodles, and also…" Kiana patted the beautiful, spring-like curve of her chest and said confidently.
"I will become an S-Rank Valkyrie!" The confident girl made her declaration in the morning sun.
"..." This time, the class was truly silent. A girl with glasses, long gray-black hair, and clearly Chinese features lifted her eyes to look at the confident girl on the podium, a sharp glint flashing in her eyes.
"...What an idiot." Principal Theresa held her teacup as she watched the video feed of Kiana's classroom. She looked helplessly at the confident girl standing on the stage, her eyes seeming to see the image of her dear friend from long ago.
"Cecilia… your child has grown up…" Theresa looked out the window, the face and voice of that woman appearing in her mind once more.
"How could your child not become an S-Rank Valkyrie…" A gratified smile touched Theresa's lips as she silently took a sip of her sweet milk tea and sighed with emotion.
"By the way… I wonder how Yuudachi and the others are doing." Theresa's delicate brows furrowed with worry. Anti-Entropy's sudden attack had temporarily broken the blockade of Nagazora City, but Schicksal had now regrouped and dispatched troops to Nagazora City for expulsion.
But… she didn't know what had happened to the Valkyrie squad that had been sent earlier to search for Kiana's friend, 'Li Xuan.'
"Click!~" As Theresa's thoughts wandered, the door to her office was opened.
A soldier with an anxious look on his face spoke, and his first sentence made her happy: "Prin-Principal! Yuudachi and the others are back." But his second sentence plunged her into an icy abyss: "But there are only two of them, and one is seriously injured!"
"..." Theresa silently jumped down from her chair and quickly walked out.
And at that moment, in Nagazora City, a great battle was about to begin…