Amidst wails and cheers, St. Freya High School finally concluded its liberal arts tests, marking the halfway point of the Valkyrie qualification exams. Of course… the more important Valkyrie combat assessment was not yet over. For this reason, the top students were rubbing their hands together, ready to achieve another good result, while the poor students were clinging to their last glimmer of hope, wishing to get a better score in the practical combat…
Perhaps because the written exams had just ended, Theresa could hear the noisy chatter of the students in St. Freya High School's square through the floor-to-ceiling windows, like birds chirping in a forest…
"The two B-Rank Valkyries sent to Siberia have been out of contact for over 48 hours…" Theresa looked at the report in her hand, her small hand couldn't help but tremble… Although 'Schicksal' had many Valkyries, the B-Rank Valkyries, as the backbone of their forces, were still highly valued by Schicksal… Besides, the Valkyries sent out were all children she had once taught…
"I'm afraid the situation is grim…" Himeko said with a grave expression. The ones who had met with an accident were her subordinates. Even though she had personally witnessed many of her subordinates lose their lives due to various reasons, she still felt sad every time she experienced it again…
"..." Theresa closed her eyes in silence. Being out of contact for 48 hours indeed meant that the chances of survival were slim…
"Hah~" Theresa opened her eyes, looked at Himeko, and said softly, "This also proves that the Honkai energy source that appeared in the Siberian forest this time is no ordinary thing…"
Something that two B-Rank Valkyries couldn't handle… it must be an extremely powerful creature, like the Honkai Beast [Ganesha] that appeared back in 2012… Of course, it could also be various strange spaces and fields…
"So what do we do now?…" Himeko said, looking troubled. "The other Valkyrie squads all have missions… For a sudden situation like this, there's temporarily no one available to handle it…."
"But we absolutely cannot let it be… You know how many animals and plants are in the Siberian forest… If a large-scale [Honkai] outbreak occurs… the consequence will be…" Theresa said gravely. "The Siberian forest will become a paradise for Honkai Creatures!"
"..." Himeko's pupils couldn't help but contract. She could also imagine that terrifying outcome… At that time, the only way to destroy the Honkai Beasts might be to use a nuke… This would be a man-made and natural disaster no less severe than the Second Honkai War…
"Then there's no other way…" Theresa stood up and stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, looking at the students in their St. Freya High School uniforms on the campus path outside, speaking as if sighing.
"Since no young Valkyries can go… then let us old folks go." Theresa turned her head to look at Himeko, the meaning in her eyes quite obvious.
"Ahem… wait a minute, I need to state a fact!" Himeko said, sitting up straight. "I'm still a young woman in my 20s! I don't want to be like the Principal, who is already an old lady. You should be around 4..."
Before Himeko could finish her sentence, her mouth was covered by a red-faced, teeth-gritting Theresa....
"Cough cough…" I was about to die… Himeko frantically pulled the pouncing Theresa off of her. Just now, she was almost suffocated to death by Theresa…
"Theresa, you little… you almost killed me…"
"A woman's age is a secret! Besides, aren't you almost a 30-year-old woman? How dare you call yourself a girl?!"
"...Still better than your 4…" Just as Himeko said a single number, she saw Theresa preparing to walk towards the golden cross 'Judah's Oath' placed by the door, and she hurriedly shut her mouth…
"Ahem… alright, let's end the topic of age here…" Himeko hurriedly changed the subject. For two older, single women to chat about this topic was just mutual harm…
"But, if it's just the two of us, isn't that a bit too few people?" Himeko said with a slight smile. "Let's bring that kid Li Xuan along too!... Anyway, that kid is so secretive, he must have other tricks up his sleeve. We can take this opportunity to see for ourselves…"
"Hmm… is that so?" Theresa raised an eyebrow at Himeko, feeling somewhat in agreement in her heart… They actually never really understood this child, Li Xuan… Although Li Xuan was now a member of St. Freya High School, there were still many blanks in his file…
The science department of St. Freya High School had already initially collected data on Li Xuan's body, but the specific situation had not yet been fully determined… Moreover, Theresa had used her authority to look up the past records of this person 'Li Xuan,' but the result was…
A complete blank! Or rather, it was as if he had suddenly appeared in this world, with no past records, no birth certificate… In short, nothing could be found… This was incredible for 'Schicksal,' whose influence spanned the entire world.
"I'll think about it…" Theresa sighed and said, "You go and prepare your things first… We'll set off tomorrow morning…"
"Okay, I still have a lot of things to do, so I'll be leaving first…" Himeko said with a slight smile. She stood up and walked out in a carefree manner… even thoughtfully closing the door to the principal's office gently…
'Hmph… serves you right for always showing off your relationship…' Himeko secretly took pleasure in the misfortune of a certain someone who had escaped singlehood and was sticking to Yae Sakura every day. She hummed a little tune and swaggered out of the building…
This was the curse of a single dog…
........................…..
"Achoo!~" Li Xuan, who was flipping through a sheepskin book, suddenly sneezed, making him rub his nose.
After deciding to focus on 'Swordsmanship,' Li Xuan began to study the sword manual given to him by his convenient master, 'Hokushin Mei'… After all, relying solely on wished-for weapons was not as reliable as one's own abilities. Except for melee weapons, other weapons would always run out of bullets or uses.
Unlike the 'Hokushin Itto-ryu' passed down through generations in Raiden Mei's family, the book in Li Xuan's hand recorded the oldest and most complete version of 'Hokushin Itto-ryu'… Although it was the oldest version, it was also the best version, even containing many techniques that even Mei didn't know…
All this time, Li Xuan had only turned a page after learning a technique. After so many days… he had finally memorized all the techniques by rote. This 'legacy' personally written by 'Hokushin Mei' was finally flipped to the last page by him…
"This is?…" Li Xuan looked at the last page, which was different from the techniques recorded on the previous pages. It was just a short paragraph… as if the author had a flash of inspiration and casually jotted it down…
[I have considered… if all the techniques are single-handed sword techniques performed with one hand… then, if the left hand simultaneously performs a sword technique while the right hand is performing another, would they not complement each other?.... I feel it is possible…]
[If it is truly as I imagine… 'Hokushin Itto-ryu' should be named 'Hokushin Nito-ryu'… Under dual blades, one shall surely dominate the world!…]
"D-Dual Blades?!" Li Xuan's eyes widened, his mind instantly flashing with that dual-wielding sword skill from a certain Japanese anime that was renowned throughout the entire ACG circle…
'Starburst Stream'…
'You're amazing, my master…'
(End of this chapter)