After confirmation, she should have been transported to the historical period she had selected.
At that moment, her vision should have been filled with surreal, dazzling light—as if peering through a soap bubble into a mysterious, multicolored world.
And indeed, the moment she initiated the jump, this phenomenon did occur—but it vanished instantly, like a soap bubble popping.
At the same time, Brunhilde felt a faint tremor.
How to put it? It was as if she had just started the car and was about to rush forward when an invisible force suddenly yanked the vehicle back to its original position.
After the inexplicable glow faded, the scene that reappeared before her eyes was still the banks of the Wu River—meaning she hadn't escaped the original timeline?
No, she had moved forward slightly.
What should have been in front of her was the chaotic scene of the Han King's army panicking after Xiang Yu's body suddenly collapsed. Yet now, there was no sign of the Han King's forces.
Instead, the scene before her was one where the portal still existed, where black-armored soldiers stood, where the Hegemon King of Western Chu, Xiang Yu, remained.
In other words, had she been thrown back to an event that happened over ten minutes ago?
Wait, no—Brunhilde's pupils constricted as she noticed something off.
First of all, where was Xiang Yu?
Wait, wasn't he right there in her line of sight? Why was she questioning it?
Because there should have been two Xiang Yu's—one the android, the other his real body. But now, only one figure remained, seemingly the artificial one. So where was the real body?
She scanned the surroundings but found no trace of it.
And the crate? The one that had carried the artificial body was also missing.
Could it be that instead of rewinding, time had fast-forwarded, and the portal had reopened, allowing their group to emerge once more?
Yes, that must be the case.
"S-Sister!"
Randgriz's voice trembled with disbelief as she stared wide-eyed in one direction, as if she had spotted something utterly inconceivable.
What was it?
Following her gaze, Brunhilde finally realized what that faint, out-of-place black object in her peripheral vision had been—a ship!
But why was a ship so shocking?
If it were an ordinary vessel, it wouldn't be worth a second glance. The problem was, this was not a ship that belonged to this era.
It was a steamship, powered by steam—a product that shouldn't exist until after the First Industrial Revolution.
And it wasn't the only one. Several other transport ships were docked along the riverbank, ferrying something upstream.
"Wooooo—!"
The sound didn't come from the ships but from the land. Turning toward the noise, Brunhilde was stunned once more by what she saw—a steam train, billowing smoke, rumbling across a massive bridge spanning the river.
"Sister… isn't this supposed to be the year 202 AD? Not the 18th century?"
Randgriz's voice was dazed.
This timeline was far too abnormal. The Industrial Revolution, which should have begun in the 18th century, had somehow started over two thousand years early?
Something had to be wrong.
Such a glaring historical discrepancy couldn't possibly have been concealed, yet they had never heard of anything like this.
It was utterly bizarre, filling Randgriz with unease.
Now, she could somewhat understand why their youngest sister, Göll, had been so inexplicably terrified.
And so, while feeling unsettled, Randgriz also wondered—what had Göll seen during her first two trips with their sister?
"Sister?"
Randgriz finally noticed the panic on Brunhilde's face, her entire demeanor flustered and at a loss.
Had her sister been even more startled than she was?
Could it be that Brunhilde had discovered something even more horrifying through the Akashic Records?
"S-sister!"
Her face had turned pale, as if struck by an unimaginable blow, her whole being dazed.
"What's wrong, sister?"
"—The Akashic System is unresponsive!"
A tremor laced with fear escaped Brunhilde's lips—this was the reason for her bewildered expression.
When Randgriz tried to verify the time, she was horrified to find she couldn't summon the Akashic System. No matter how much she called, there was no response, no presence to be sensed.
This situation was akin to being trapped in a virtual game—where the consciousness suddenly becomes confined within the game, unable to summon the system interface, making logout impossible and leaving one forever imprisoned in the virtual world.
"Sister—they seem to be able to see us!"
At that moment, Randgriz noticed something even more bizarre. The black-clad soldiers were all casting sharp gazes their way.
It was as if they had suddenly spotted assassins—weapons were drawn, and they charged forward, swiftly forming a half-circle around the two.
Strangely, the weapons in their hands weren't swords or blades, but muskets?
Of course, such firearms were only a threat to ordinary humans. But they were Valkyries—not true gods, perhaps, but demigods nonetheless, far beyond the reach of human weaponry.
Under normal circumstances, there would be no reason for concern. But the current situation was anything but normal, especially with the presence of that artificial human—Xiang Yu, the Hegemon King of Western Chu—who seemed capable of posing a genuine threat to them.
"Stand back!"
The approaching Xiang Yu issued his orders with a calm demeanor.
"Understood."
The soldiers promptly stowed their smoothbore guns and retreated with precision.
It seemed that the two sisters had indeed been spotted.
However, it was one thing for Xiang Yu to notice them; the fact that ordinary humans could also detect their presence was utterly impossible. Ordinary humans should not be able to see them on the other side of the temporal barrier.
This situation was akin to them truly entering this era.
Entering this era? At this thought, Brunhilde's expression changed drastically.
No way, could it really be like that!
Only this scenario could explain everything.
Is this a joke? Have they inexplicably entered this era?
And this era has suddenly leaped into the Industrial Revolution?
It was as if yesterday was the normal pre-Christian era, and today they had directly entered the Industrial Revolution.
If they had jumped across a decade or so, it might have been somewhat understandable. The problem was that Brunhilde had also seen the hundreds of cavalrymen following Xiang Yu, clearly in a state of having just escaped the pursuit of the Han army, most of them bewildered by the strange surroundings.
Thus, she could not comprehend it.
Perhaps she had begun to grasp some points, but she simply could not believe it.
As Xiang Yu, with his imposing presence, drew nearer, Brunhilde tensed to the utmost, her fists clenched, ready to defend and counterattack at any moment.
When Xiang Yu stopped three meters in front of her, a look of amusement crossed his face.
"Welcome to the Empire of Qin, Valkyrie Brunhilde."
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