Hearing the emotionless voice in her head, Yunduo hesitated.
She was truly exhausted. After fighting the Honkai for so long, her soul had gradually become weary. Even eternal death did not frighten her; rather, it was what she wanted.
She just wanted to rest.
According to the Challenge Space description, this was a space similar to a parallel timeline, not a product of the Honkai.
Specific Valkyries can enter, undertaking various dungeon missions. Completing a mission yields rewards, but failure accelerates Honkai erosion and reduces one's lifespan.
Each person has only one chance to challenge each dungeon. Dying in a dungeon mission does not affect reality, but the experience of a completely realistic death still casts a shadow, becoming an unforgettable nightmare for those with low mental resilience.
So... want to try again?
"Ah, Class Monitor, I know I was wrong! I'll do it again next time—no, no, no, I wouldn't dare."
To the side, Kiana honestly admitted defeat, looking like a little chick being held by the scruff of its neck. To change the subject, she gestured toward Bronya. "This is a friend I just met, Yunduo~ She's from Shenzhou. Do you guys know each other?"
Yunduo was startled awake by the trivial bickering. Before her, Bronya was looking at her with a puzzled expression.
She wore a light black dress, her twin-drill short hair swaying gently. Her exquisite face was devoid of expression, and her small head tilted slightly. Her gray eyes seemed to ask, 'Why are you spacing out at a time like this?'
For some reason, Bronya felt that the strange girl hiding in the corner with Kiana looked very familiar.
Furthermore...
Why, upon seeing them, were her eyes filled with such loneliness and sorrow?
Why did she feel a sense of heartache?
Even though she herself didn't have many emotions to begin with.
"Hello, my name is Yunduo."
Yunduo's sudden words broke Bronya out of her daze.
"Bronya."
Bronya's tone carried a cold touch, but Yunduo knew it was just because she wasn't good at expressing her feelings.
Watching Kiana cling tightly to Mei and act spoiled, Yunduo smiled slightly.
"Is this person... happy?"
Bronya guessed; she didn't know why she had such a feeling.
At this moment, Yunduo no longer hesitated.
She made up her mind in an instant and thought silently, 'Open it.'
She was just doing it for fun anyway; it wasn't like she had to complete the mission herself.
She hadn't thought about gaining power or protecting them or anything like that.
Following Yunduo's silent command...
The next second, a white light cut through the storage room, and a rift in space and time was abruptly sliced open!
Buzz!
Yunduo's ears rang as she entered a pure white space.
Inside, there was no flow of time, nor any breadth of space.
It was a space that existed, yet also a space that did not.
The Challenge Space!
Following her were Kiana and the other three.
Fu Hua and Bronya had prepared for battle in an instant, while Mei shielded Kiana with her body.
Only a certain idiot still hadn't grasped the situation, asking blankly, "What are you guys doing? Hide and seek?"
Because unexpected events rarely happened within St. Freya Academy, Kiana never thought she would enter an unknown space.
"Idiot Kiana, look at your surroundings," Bronya reminded her.
"Surroundings? This... where is this?"
In Kiana's deep blue eyes, there was a strange and mysterious space, like a birdcage enveloping them.
"Welcome to the Challenge Space—"
In the white space, a metallic voice different from Bronya's rang out.
The system introduced the details of the Challenge Space.
Kiana listened guardedly, only realizing afterward, "You can get rewards by completing missions? Is this a training space set up by Aunt?"
"No, the training space isn't located here," Fu Hua explained softly. "This might be some unknown time-space. Let's follow its requirements for now; otherwise, it will be hard to get out with our strength alone." "Agreed," Bronya seconded.
The four talked for a moment while Yunduo watched them silently.
"Um, Yunduo, I'm sorry for dragging you into this, but don't worry, I'll get you out."
Seeing that Yunduo seemed to be "suffering," Kiana tried to comfort her.
"It's fine, I was just thinking about something else. You guys try it first."
Hearing this, Yunduo's lips curved slightly as she accepted the kindness.
This idiot—even when she couldn't guarantee her own safety, she was still comforting others.
Everyone unanimously decided to send one person first to scout the Challenge Space.
And this task was forcefully taken up by Kiana.
"Since I caused this, the task of exploring the unknown space should naturally fall to me. Besides, we members of the Kaslana Family have a natural resistance to the Honkai."
"Idiot," Bronya sighed.
"Hey! Challenge whatever... Listen! This lady will be the first to challenge. Show me whatever tricks you've got!"
After preparing for battle, Kiana shouted toward the empty space.
As soon as she finished speaking, her figure suddenly vanished.
Everyone was startled to find that the surrounding space began to change continuously.
The white space was completely dyed a romantic purple, like a red cabbage buried deep in the darkness.
Dong!
Dong!
Dong!
A distant bell tolled from the end of the hazy space.
A massive theater rose from the ground, with the wailing of a bell tower at its peak.
Ancient Roman-style buildings grew densely from the darkness beneath their feet. A circular stage unfolded before them, suspended in mid-air, waiting for the actors' final curtain call.
A sense of oppression and crisis crept into everyone's hearts.
The theater of the apocalypse had issued a performance ticket. Was this Kiana's mission?
"Welcome to—the Dominion Theater!"
"Background Hint: November 2017. Mysterious dolls appeared all over the world, numbering over five hundred. These eerie dolls claimed to come from a place called the Dominion Theater, disguising themselves as humans to enter society and cause mass destruction. Anti-Entropy confirmed that the cores within the dolls came from the Tenth Herrscher—the Herrscher of Domination."
"One night, Kiana was pulled into the Dominion Theater alone again. It turns out the Herrscher of Domination's goal was to awaken Sirin and form an alliance with her. To destroy Kiana's will, the Herrscher of Domination brought out the Gem of Haste that originally belonged to Himeko..."
"Challenge Mission Act I: Everlasting Flames officially begins!"
"Challenger: Kiana."
"Mission Objective 1: Defeat the Herrscher of the Void · Sirin and reclaim the Gem of Haste!"
"Mission Objective 2: To be unlocked."
The bodies of the onlookers became transparent. Aside from their vision, they no longer had any connection to the scenes within the Challenge Space.
They saw Kiana standing before a mirror, reaching out blankly to touch the glass.
After their initial shock, the group barely managed to regain their composure.
They noticed a vast amount of information. Since the authenticity was temporarily in doubt, they didn't discuss it first, focusing instead on Kiana's own safety.
Mei looked worried. "Is that Kiana? She has to kill a Herrscher? That's impossible. Why is there such an absurd mission? Kiana isn't even a B-Rank Valkyrie."
Fu Hua: "Yes, I also think it's unlikely. However, I feel like the name Sirin sounds familiar—Cheng Li... there's a name I can't quite remember."
Bronya noticed the time and guessed, "2017? Is this three years in the future?"
Yunduo looked at Kiana in the dungeon, whose eyes were wide and round, and whispered, "Good luck. After all, you can do all of this."
At the same time...
Before Kiana could react, the mirror in front of her shattered with a bang!
Large shards of the mirror reflected her image.
In addition, there was a woman with golden eyes. She looked exactly like Kiana, only more mature and arrogant.
"Long time no see, my vessel☆."
The woman in the mirror said.
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