After learning about the situation in Oceania from Welt, Lynelle almost immediately grew somewhat worried.
As everyone knows, in the Honkai universe, the most nerve-wracking thing isn't offending some super big boss—it's being on Otto's radar.
The second most nerve-wracking thing is being on the radar of one of Otto's counterparts—I'm looking at you, certain mysterious coffin guy.
That goofy pseudo-duck Void Archives, who's basically just Otto in a different skin, doesn't count. Ugh.
And the current situation with the Oceania branch? That definitely fell into the category of being targeted by Otto.
After all, just looking at the current pairing of Wendy and Ragna—a watered-down version of the Kiana and Himeko combo—it was pretty obvious what schemes Otto was cooking up in that mind of his.
Sure, Ragna was definitely quite a bit stronger than Himeko, but she also didn't have any Godsbane Suits.
Going up against a fully out-of-control Herrscher… she'd probably have to risk her life, wouldn't she?
If Wendy could use this opportunity to master the Herrscher core, it would prove Otto's plan was completely viable.
He'd just need to recreate this scenario with Kiana.
If Wendy failed, well, Otto would have plenty of time to adjust and figure out where the plan went wrong.
Treating Wendy entirely as experimental fodder was a truly despicable move, the kind that might easily earn him a thorough cursing-out from the herrscherified Wendy later—maybe even some creative insults aimed at his ancestors.
But, to be fair, Otto was pretty open-minded when it came to the whole 'parents' thing. 'This or that, can it bring Kallen back?' was pretty much his only benchmark.
So, Lynelle quickly decided to focus most of her efforts during this period on Oceania.
At the very least, she needed to be physically present there. It wasn't arrogance—with all the assets she'd accumulated so far, if she went all out, aside from Durandal, Li Sushang, or a fully prepared Otto himself, there probably wasn't anyone left in Schicksal who could stop her.
The more intricate a plan was, the more sensitive it became to variables. And the power Lynelle now represented was far from the insignificant weight it had carried during the Second Honkai Eruption.
With these thoughts in mind, Lynelle boarded a plane bound for Oceania, ready to assume her duties there.
--+--
Meanwhile, at St. Freya...
"What?"
Kiana stared at Theresa, her face a picture of shock.
"Auntie, what do you mean Lynelle requested a long leave of absence?!"
"Just what it sounds like."
Theresa looked strangely at Kiana, seemingly not understanding why she was so worked up.
"There's been some trouble back in Lynelle's hometown, so she's tied up for now and requested a long leave… But according to her, she'll probably still come back about once a month."
"So… Kiana, did you need her for something urgent?"
"I… No, it's nothing. I understand, Auntie…"
Kiana trudged out of the office, dejected.
'Sirin, I'm sorry… I didn't expect Lynelle to have left St. Freya. Should we… skip class and go look for her in Shenzhou?'
'No need,' Sirin's voice echoed in Kiana's mind. 'She doesn't have any family back in Shenzhou. That's obviously just an excuse. She's probably tangled up in something again. If that's the case, we'd better not disturb her.'
'Besides, I can only stay awake for a few hours each day now. Any longer and I start feeling this weak, dissociated sensation… So, even if you found her, I might not get a chance to see her anyway.'
'Huh? Sirin, are you okay? But you were fine back in New Zealand…'
'That's because you came into contact with the Gem of Serenity back then. The Herrscher of Death's authority sensed its master's proximity and automatically repaired my core… But with no one controlling it, that power dissipated, and I returned to my previous state.'
'Still, now that I'm awake, I probably won't fall back into that deep sleep again. I can at least stay conscious enough to chat with you like this to pass the time.'
'It's fine, Sirin! I just space out in class anyway. Chatting with you means I won't get caught by the teacher… Ow!'
'Space out? You'd better study hard!'
A slight wave of dizziness suddenly washed over Kiana's head.
'If you want to become a powerful Herrscher, you need a solid knowledge base! Lynelle told me that in her memories, she saw these magical pig-like creatures called "Trotters." They can teleport across the universe relying on their precise calculations of spatial ability.'
'Even pigs can calculate logarithmic functions and Schwarzschild radii! You can't be worse than a pig, can you?'
'Wha-what? What's a 'Wadashi Radius'?'
Hearing the series of abstract terms Sirin was throwing out, Kiana immediately felt like she'd been thrown into a world of incomprehensible jargon.
'It's the Schwarzschild radius! How do you not know this? I remember seeing your St. Freya textbooks even have primers on the Sea of Quanta—you should have learned this stuff by now!'
'Whoa, this is so complicated… Even if we did cover it, I wouldn't understand it…'
Kiana's eyes seemed to spin in circles. 'Sirin, you never studied this stuff either, right? So how did you get so powerful…'
'Because I'm a natural-born Herrscher. I can operate the Herrscher core by instinct. But you, like that Welt guy, inherited your core. So controlling it is much harder for you.'
Sirin let out a light 'hmph!'
'And who told you I never studied this? Lynelle left a whole set of basic science textbooks and an advanced text on spatial theory inside the Herrscher core for me. The latter seems to have been edited by someone named Herta…'
'No idea who that is, but the textbook she compiled is surprisingly easy to understand. It's almost like it was made specifically for students like me with no foundation.'
'So, you'd better catch up on your studies, and then put in another two hours of learning in your dreams every night after you sleep! How can you get stronger without knowledge? And if you don't get stronger, how are you going to protect Lynelle!'
'Eeek!'
Kiana clutched her head. 'How can this be… Sirin, can't I just give the core back to you…'
'Who wants your core? It's yours now that it's with you. If I really wanted a core, I could perfectly adapt to any one I find—it doesn't have to be this Void one. But you're different. Who knows what your aptitude is? What if you can only use this specific Void core? If I took it from you, you'd have nothing left.'
Sirin paid no heed to Kiana's complaints. 'Don't even think about slacking off. Lynelle's message didn't say why I needed to stay hidden within you, but I can't just freeload for nothing, can I?'
'Besides, it looks like I'll be sharing this body with you for quite a long time. So, consider this my way of paying rent until you fully master this core's power. You are my little sister, after all.'
'So, it's settled then. Starting tomorrow, I'm adding extra lessons for you, okay?'
'Sirin, noooo!'
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.