Boom!
A violent explosion shook the upper floors of the Empress Hotel.
Fu Hua's clash with the Welt clone ended with the clone losing its tongue and the luxurious penthouse suite exploding.
A figure leaped from the burning floors toward the ground.
"Tsk tsk tsk, the Class Monitor's legendary reputation is about to crumble," Kyuusyou remarked, watching the Valkyrie plummet from the upper floors, eliciting gasps from the crowd below.
"Let's leave this to Ninti. I've thought of a suitable candidate for the Divine Authority Squad."
"Who?" Kyuusyou glanced curiously at Snow.
"The intelligence officer assigned to the Class Monitor's mission—Wraith, an A-rank Valkyrie from the Central Intelligence Department."
"Ah, her... Her disguises are indeed impeccable, and we could certainly use a dedicated intelligence officer in the squad."
Kyuusyou nodded, acknowledging the potential recruit's skills.
"Wait, have you even thought about how to convince her?"
".....?" Snow's Valkyrie Battlesuit, resembling ceremonial armor, materialized onto her body.
"Never mind I asked. Just go ask your dad directly," Kyuusyou said, rolling her eyes.
"He'll give it to you..."
"Kyuusyou, go negotiate with the city's governing body..."
"According to the Neutrality Treaty, Anti-Entropy mecha and Schicksal Valkyries aren't allowed here!"
"...Yet we're still here. That treaty's a joke."
"We didn't enter as Valkyries..."
"Ah, we're just a group of utterly defenseless tourists from the Far East Island nation."
Snow said with a cheerful smile, her expression suddenly turning serious.
"But Cocolia... she's driven a Titan right into the streets!"
Her azure eyes swept downward to the street below, where an Anti-Entropy Titan Mecha now stood at the entrance of the Empress Hotel.
"They're not even pretending anymore..." Kyuusyou muttered, following Snow's gaze.
"This country's government made a grave mistake," Snow said, shaking her head.
"When Schicksal and Anti-Entropy—especially Anti-Entropy's radical faction—two powers transcending mortal nations clash..."
"They're just insignificant sacrifices."
"Find them and extract everything Cocolia knows about their deal."
"That would also benefit our friend—Welt Yang could use that evidence to make trouble for Cocolia."
"Even if we can't bring down Cocolia, the radical leader, at least we can keep her restrained for a while."
"Why's she been so restless lately?" Snow grumbled, her frustration evident.
"Alright, I'll get them talking. See you soon, Captain."
Kyuusyou rolled her eyes and, mimicking Fu Hua's movements, leaped off the building from the opposite side, landing gracefully on the roof of another building. She sprinted toward the distant Administrative District.
The golden-haired Valkyrie shook her head, activated her armor's flight systems, and soared toward the small bar where their target was located.
-
In the dead of night, the blonde Valkyrie stood at the entrance of a dilapidated alley.
"This is it..." She surveyed the alley. A rusty iron gate hung a sign:
VALHALLA
The girl murmured the name on the sign, casting a strange glance at the illuminated advertisement next to it. The ad featured a Homu with a large red prohibition symbol across it.
"Homus not allowed? How odd..." Shaking her head, she pushed open the bar's heavy door.
In stark contrast to the alley's squalor, the bar's interior was impeccably refined. Solid wood tables, plush velvet sofas, and polished cabinets were meticulously arranged. Rows of expensive, top-shelf liquors lined the counter.
At this late hour, the bar seemed to be closed. Snow was the only customer present, apart from a brown-haired bartender humming softly as he polished a red wine bottle.
The young man seemed to be in high spirits, his bright blue eyes sparkling with cheerfulness and ease.
Snow, dressed in formal attire, approached the counter and settled onto a stool.
"Good evening, sir. I'll have a glass of Château Latour 1988, please." She smiled, her gaze lingering on the bartender.
"Uh... Miss, this bar is already closed. You can check the business hours on the sign outside..."
"Besides... you're not of legal age, are you? We don't sell alcoholic beverages to minors here..."
"Tch... how boring—what if I insist?" The usually elegant young woman now exuded a rebellious aura that clashed with her refined attire.
"...Then I'll have no choice but to notify the police and your parents to come pick you up," the waiter said with a helpless expression.
"Is that so? Go ahead and call them!" The girl stood up and slammed her hand on a specific spot on the bar counter.
"What?!" Panic flashed across the waiter's face. In the next instant, he heard the girl's words, and he truly understood what it meant to have his heart and lungs seize up.
It was Overseer Otto's communication channel. He had just reported to the Overseer not long ago...
"Stop playing with my mom's 1:16 scale figure in the middle of the night! Pervert, answer the phone!"
Just kill me now... The waiter decided to give up thinking.
The call connected, but the holographic projection showed only a table with no one in sight.
"...?"
After what seemed like an eternity, a pair of trembling hands finally emerged from beneath the table, gripping its edge to hoist himself up.
Otto Apocalypse, the golden-haired, blue-eyed Overseer of Schicksal, crawled out from under the table.
"Ahem... My dear Little Snow, what brings you here so late?"
"And the Kallen figurine? I always make them one-to-one scale," the golden-haired Overseer muttered to himself. Of course, Snow on the other end of the screen and a certain Valkyrie from the Intelligence Department probably couldn't hear him.
"My squad needs an intelligence officer. I've decided on her. Hurry and get her into the bowl... cough, I mean, onto the team!"
The golden-haired girl pointed to the employee who had given up on thinking.
"Central Intelligence Department A-rank Valkyrie, Simon Lailey, codename Wraith. Is that correct?" The golden-haired man in the video turned to the employee beside Snow.
"Uh... yes, Overseer!" the employee responded, startled.
Realizing her current appearance was inappropriate, she frantically removed her disguise, revealing her true form:
A competent Big Sister with dark brown hair and cyan eyes.
"You're now assigned to the Far East Branch, under the command of Snow Apocalypse, S-rank Valkyrie of the Divine Authority Squad. From now on, you'll only report to her."
"My child, is there anything else you require?"
"No, and since when did I become an S-rank Valkyrie?" The girl's face showed confusion.
"Just now," Otto confirmed with a confident nod.
"Oh, right, Dad! I really like the birthday gift."
"...I'm glad you like it."
The communication was abruptly cut off.
"Hooray!" A cheer seemed to erupt from the Overseer's office.