Before the deal could be finished, the demonic whisper suddenly vanished. Anna didn't know what the price was, but she had unhesitatingly agreed in her heart.
Yet, nothing happened. The power the voice spoke of did not arrive, and the Honkai Beast's lance was less than a meter away.
"Heh... so it was just a pre-death hallucination...." Anna laughed self-deprecatingly and closed her eyes.
"I hope in my next life... I can be a true Valkyrie...."
Boom—
Power descended, but not upon Anna. It exploded on the Honkai Beast.
The Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix shrieked as it dove from the sky with Ryn, stomping the Templar-class Honkai Beast into the ground with one foot.
The massive shockwave from the impact blew Anna to the ground. When she opened her eyes, she witnessed a scene she would never forget.
Schicksal's S-rank Valkyrie, and one of her idols, Lord Ryn. He was now standing atop a Honkai Beast that resembled a phoenix from mythology, his back to her.
"You've done well. Leave the rest to me."
Ryn's cold gaze swept over every Honkai Beast and Honkai Zombie in sight. He pointed a finger down at the empty air.
"Kneel!"
The dozens of Honkai Beasts and Honkai Zombies present all began to twist unnaturally, eventually curling into balls and turning into puddles of mush, deader than dead.
Ryn jumped down from the Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix's head and walked towards the rubble where there was a survivor. With every step he took, a nearby collapsed ruin would scatter and rise into the air.
People and buildings were separated by Ryn, but the only survivor here was Chen Tianwen....
"..."
Ryn remained silent. He reached out and beckoned Chen Tianwen over, then used the broken pieces of buildings to bury all the others who had lost their lives, before compressing the earth, completely annihilating them.
It was a necessary evil. If their bodies weren't incinerated, they would turn into Honkai Zombies or Honkai Beasts under the corrosion of Honkai energy.
"I'm sorry... I had to do this." Ryn bowed to the deceased, then carried Chen Tianwen towards Anna.
The moment he saw her, Cortana had already sent him her file.
"L-L-Lord Ryn..." Anna called out his name, both excited and afraid.
"Just call me Ryn. Vice-captain of the Snow Lotus Squad, Anna Schariac...."
Ryn reached out and helped Anna, who was sitting paralyzed on the ground, to her feet.
"Lord Ryn, I'm fine now! There are other important places that need you, don't worry about me anymore."
The girl's eyes were so determined at that moment, but the fear in her heart was betrayed by the uncontrollable trembling of her body.
She had lost the will to fight, but there was still something she could do: rescue other civilians.
"Don't try to act tough, little one. Get yourself together first! The casualties are already tragic enough, let's not add another one."
Ryn lightly chopped Anna on the head, then placed the Build Driver on her waist. Instantly, Kamen Rider Anna's transformation was complete.
"I'll lend you my Valkyrie battlesuit for now. Protect yourself! I need to go rescue others."
Ryn waved at Anna, whipped his cape around, and disappeared from before her.
If even the elite Snow Lotus Squad was down to only Anna, then what about the other regular squads... Ryn didn't have time to think. He just hoped to save as many squads as he could.
But didn't the file say Anna was an A-rank Valkyrie? How come she didn't even have a Valkyrie battlesuit or a weapon? And Otto still bragged every day about how good the benefits for HQ Valkyries were. This was clearly worse than the treatment at St. Freya High School.
At least the students at St. Freya High School were fully equipped with battlesuits and weapons. A Valkyrie without a battlesuit was ultimately a mortal. Although far superior to ordinary people, they were still far too weak compared to Honkai Beasts.
(I seriously suspect that in the game, apart from the main characters, no one else has a Valkyrie battlesuit. Every time, they die in droves over the smallest things, even the Immortal Blades get wiped out all the time.)
And Anna's mentality... it's too poor.... But she was still just a 16-year-old kid. It was her first time on the battlefield, so being scared and terrified was inevitable....
But it was clear she hadn't practiced the Heart State enough. After this Eruption was over, Ryn would have to put the HQ Valkyries through some serious training.
Feeling the boost from the Build Driver, Anna felt her fear diminish significantly.
"It's decided, from now on I'm Lord Ryn's biggest fan! For now, let's hurry up and save people! Come on, Anna! You can do it, you're a Valkyrie!"
Anna gave herself a pep talk, then began searching for survivors using the bi-detector displayed on the battlesuit.
————————————
"Chibaku Tensei."
Ryn used his authority to create an abnormal gravity singularity and threw it into the sky. The powerful gravity sucked all buildings, Honkai Beasts, and Honkai Zombies within a radius of dozens of kilometers into the air, compressing them into a giant solid sphere.
This was a move Ryn learned from an anime. Say what you will, it was very useful for clearing the field.
After the buildings and survivors were separated by the Chibaku Tensei, Ryn placed the living survivors on the Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix's back and flew them towards the refugee camp.
On the way back from the second rescue trip, a young man woke up.
Although the boy was in so much pain that he was on the verge of passing out again, his worry for his sister made him grit his teeth and hold on.
Chen Tianwu struggled to prop himself up and looked around. He knew someone had saved him, but he wanted to know if his sister was among those rescued.
Then, Chen Tianwu saw Ryn, who could move heaven and earth with a single gesture.
Dumbfounded, Chen Tianwu forgot his pain. Watching Ryn, who had noticed him waking up and was flying towards him, he couldn't help but say.
"Are... are you a superman?"
"No... I'm not. You should lie down, you're very seriously injured... Some of your internal organs and limbs have already become necrotic.... Hold on a little longer, we'll be at the refugee camp for treatment soon."
Ryn supported Chen Tianwu, helping him lie down. It was a miracle that Chen Tianwu was still alive, but if he didn't receive treatment soon, the miracle would be short-lived.
"My name is Chen Tianwu, benefactor... can you tell me your name?"
"Ryn. Don't call me benefactor, just call me Ryn...."
"You saved my life. I will definitely repay this kindness in the future! Cough, cough, cough..." Chen Tianwu was a bit agitated, but the excitement aggravated his injuries, causing him immense pain.