Otherwise, she had spent her time drifting aimlessly, at most chatting with the other Seele inside her.
------------------------
"Mmm, Sister Bronya..."
Slowly opening her sleepy eyes, Seele tilted her head slightly, murmuring.
"Another dream?"
"No, it feels like... Sister Bronya is calling me."
"Hehe, then you must be half-asleep. Get up and go back to sleep."
"...Oh."
Even though the other Seele poured cold water on her, Seele's heart was still full of hope.
That feeling, it must mean Sister Bronya is finding a way to bring her back!
Consciousness space.
Looking at Seele's expectant expression, the other Seele helplessly shook her head.
'Hopefully, that feeling of yours is real...'
····
"You know where Seele is?!" Bronya's pupils shrank, her voice trembling with excitement.
Everyone had never seen Bronya so worked up before.
"Mm-hmm." Herta crossed her arms at her waist, lifted her chin, opened her right eye, and gave a slight nod.
"How is Seele? Where is she? Is she doing well? Where did you see her? Let me go see her!"
Words poured out in a rush.
Kiana stared blankly at Bronya spitting out so many words in one breath without pausing.
So Bronya's speed wasn't only fast when gaming.
"Don't get excited, be patient."
Looking at Herta's exaggerated act, Bronya forcefully suppressed the fire in her heart, her blazing gaze locked on Herta.
At that moment, Bronya displayed an unprecedented enthusiasm.
...
"That's basically it. Right now, she's in a quantum state. Even if she came back, you wouldn't be able to see, touch, or hear her."
Herta shrugged as she spoke.
"How could that be..." Bronya's eyes trembled slightly.
It was hard to imagine how someone with Seele's temperament could drift alone in the Sea of Quanta for so long.
How lonely, how afraid she must have been.
But Kiana didn't hold back, asking directly.
"That so-called Sea of Quanta, doesn't it have any way to deal with it?"
She didn't know Seele, but that didn't stop her from feeling sympathy.
After all, she herself had wandered alone since childhood, and Seele was even worse, thrown into a strange place to drift endlessly, with no concept of time or space.
Just imagining it made Kiana's hair stand on end.
"Lady Herta." Mei looked at her eagerly.
Just then.
"I say, you all calm down a little." Theresa lightly patted the table, soothing them.
"If you're this messy, you won't be able to save anyone."
After saying this, she looked at Herta, her tone sincere.
"Lady Herta, since you personally entered the Sea of Quanta and even met that girl called Seele, do you have any clue on how to rescue her? As long as there's even a single method, we'll give it our all. All expenses, St. Freya will take full responsibility!"
With a grand wave, Theresa declared generously!
Though St. Freya's finances had always been tight, such a huge place to run. At worst, she'd just go cry poor to her grandfather again!
For Bronya's sister, crying poor was nothing. A small matter!
Fu Hua rubbed her chin with one hand, memories flashing of conversations with Kevin.
The Sea of Quanta... Su was there observing the world. Could he have come across that drifting girl?
"Don't be too excited." Herta raised both hands slightly, calming everyone's emotions, then spoke.
"Resolving quantumization isn't something so simple. Her body is already fully quantumized, and because she's been in the Sea of Quanta too long, she's absorbed much of its aura. Bringing her back isn't something you can just snap your fingers and do."
"This time, I came mainly to look for inspiration from them." Herta glanced at Raiden Mei and the others as she spoke.
Indeed, she was here for inspiration.
Quantumization, such a peculiar phenomenon was deeply tempting to her. For a genius, resisting such unknown temptation with rationality was already exceptional.
But she was more exceptional than them all. Herscher, the apostles of Honkai, existences connected to the Imaginary Space.
Considering that the Imaginary Tree and Sea of Quanta had warred endlessly for ages, Herta naturally kept an eye on it.
"As for that little girl you're worried about being bullied, she's perfectly safe now." Thinking of that street rascal who showed up everywhere, Herta shook her head helplessly.
"And for some reason I still don't know, she can use the power of the Sea of Quanta. She has no trouble protecting herself."
The incident Seele had encountered earlier was a completely unique case.
Although Seele's quantumized body carried a strong aura of the Sea of Quanta,
At that time, it happened to be during the fierce conflict between the Sea of Quanta and the Imaginary Tree, with Godzilla's involvement, so the Sea of Quanta had reached unprecedented vigilance.
A Seele with a low presence naturally became a target for pursuit.
Hearing Seele was safe, secure for now, Bronya's heart, burdened for years, finally eased a little.
Thus, Herta smoothly obtained the chance to observe the Herrscher of Thunder and Herrscher of Poison up close.
....
Time flowed, and soon months passed peacefully. Until the Oceania branch of Schicksal stirred up a storm.
"Whoo-!!"
Wild winds howled, sand and dust filled the sky, green trees and streams of water tore across the air.
The peaceful atmosphere was completely shattered as unseen currents raged.
Strangely, part of these currents lingered thickly only around the Oceania branch and its nearby surroundings.
Even so, the powerful field indirectly influenced the entire region's climate. Many people, not even grasping the situation yet, saw the violent winds above and ran for their lives without hesitation.
At the center of the gale, a faintly glowing green light appeared.
...
"The Oceania branch is showing Herrscher readings, we've lost contact!"
"Suspected Sixth Herrscher sighted, Honkai energy reaction exceeding 2000 HW!!"
The entire Schicksal base shook from the sudden Honkai surge.
Once Honkai energy density exceeded 1000 HW, the birth of a Herrscher was highly probable.
Normally, though, the energy fluctuated around 1000 HW without climbing much higher.
But now the outburst had far surpassed the threshold, meaning, this Herrscher's power was unprecedented! Far beyond any before!
"Lady Durandal, according to intel, the Oceania branch once implanted the Gem of Desire into the legs of A-rank Valkyrie Wendy."
"So this Herrscher is very likely that Valkyrie..."
Durandal frowned slightly. She knew Wendy. A seed of an S-rank Valkyrie, once a renowned genius of the Oceania branch.
Of course someone like her would catch Durandal's eye. But she had faded into silence long ago. Who would have thought that her reappearance would come in such a way...
"How long until the nearest troops reach the site of the Honkai outbreak?" Durandal asked the intel officer ahead.
"Reporting, Lady Durandal, the nearest Valkyrie unit to the Oceania branch will need at least half an hour to arrive."
The Oceania branch itself was already a base where Schicksal was stationed. When there were no missions, Valkyries mostly stayed at the base.
And considering that only S-rank Valkyries could contend head-on with Herrschers, the Oceania branch had likely already ceased to exist.
The only consolation was that the Herrscher's power had remained confined to the area around the Oceania branch, giving residents of other regions time to evacuate.
"Rita, lead Immortal Blades to guard every important entrance and exit. I'll go defeat the Herrscher."
Durandal said seriously.
"...Yes."
Rita bowed slightly and agreed.
Although she wanted more to fight side by side with Durandal, this time the Honkai energy reaction far exceeded the concentration of a normal Herrscher.
If she dared to go there, she might just end up being defeated.
Not only would she fail to help, she would instead burden Durandal.
Thinking of this, Rita sighed lightly in her heart.
An S-rank Valkyrie was already a being beyond humanity, yet in front of these true monsters, S-rank was merely the entry point, only enough to qualify for being taken seriously.
...
St. Freya Academy.
"This is our mission this time. Himeko, I'm counting on you."
Theresa pointed at the coordinates of the Oceania branch on the map, her small face solemn.
"A Herrscher… This mission is extremely dangerous, Theresa." Himeko frowned tightly.
"It's fine, Himeko-sensei. We've already mastered the Herrscher's power well, and although the opponent's Honkai reaction is immense, they've only just awakened. Based on our actual combat experience, it shouldn't be a problem."
"That's right. Plus, with remote support from the Hyperion, we will definitely win!" Yuna said confidently.
After this period of hard training, she was confident she could gain the upper hand in a battle against a Herrscher.
After all, she had already encountered the strongest Valkyrie of Schicksal, and she had trained for so long, if she still couldn't win, then there would truly be a problem.
Don't compare her with someone like Kiana, that single-celled paramecium!
Looking at the girls, Himeko finally made up her mind.
After all, Valkyries were meant to charge forward on the path of resisting Honkai.
At worst, she could directly link up with the Hyperion, activate the Nexus system. While she couldn't compete with a Herrscher in raw power, her ability to gamble with her life was nothing to underestimate!
"Mm-hmm, you all work hard. I'll be cheering for you."
That single line shattered the atmosphere.
"Herta, " Kiana stared at Herta, speechless.
"You really intend to just watch?"
"Otherwise?" Herta said in surprise.
"... Don't you have even the slightest desire to help?"
"Nope."
Herta raised her index finger, shook it, and answered with confidence.
"You've got two Herrschers here, a Valkyrie who can temporarily raise her power to S-rank, and a genuine Valkyrie carrying a Divine Key. If you still can't beat a freshly awakened Herrscher, then you're no better than the Idiots in the Intelligentsia Guild."
"Even though I don't know what this Intelligentsia Guild thing you said is, I'm getting really mad."
"Alright, alright, Kiana, we need to head out." Mei tugged on Kiana's sleeve, softly trying to ease the tension.
With that, the heavy atmosphere instantly dissolved.
Everyone seemed to have lost their nervousness about facing the Herrscher.
Theresa smiled, though her eyes still held an unshakable melancholy. Because it was she who had recommended Wendy for the Gem of Desire experiment.
...
Inside the Oceania branch.
The smooth ground showed no trace that a grand building had once stood there.
This was the center of the storm. Outside, fierce winds howled, but inside, all was calm.
At the center of the wide foundation, a cocoon hovered quietly in the air, its emerald luster flowing across its surface, occasionally accompanied by breezes in the shape of flowing patterns.
Wendy, once an A-rank Valkyrie of Schicksal, had her legs crippled after the Gem of Desire experiment.
If it were only that, Wendy could have accepted it, it was a necessary sacrifice on the road of resisting the Honkai.
But ever since her legs became disabled and she sat in a wheelchair, the people once around her left one by one, and those she saw daily treated her with indifference, like strangers.
Wendy couldn't understand. They used to be so close. Later, her world became filled mostly with researchers in white coats.
The way they looked at her wasn't as if she were a living person, but as if she were a vessel, a vessel for the Gem of Desire. Over time, Wendy grew to hate. She hated everyone who had poured their malice onto her.
Because of this, as the host of the Gem of Desire, she was noticed by the Will of Honkai, eager to drive out the anomaly that didn't belong to this world. In the end, the once genius girl became her former comrades' enemy.
After becoming a Herrscher, because of that faint voice, Wendy did not leave to rampage elsewhere.
Instead, she quietly remained at the Oceania branch, absorbing Honkai energy.
Once she absorbed all this Honkai energy, her strength would reach its peak.
Even without knowledge of fluid mechanics, she could suppress others by sheer power alone.
Don't underestimate an illiterate who can hurl bricks with strength!
"They're here."
Inside the emerald cocoon, a barefoot girl slowly opened her eyes. The wind told her that someone had stepped onto the island.
There's no doubt. They were enemies.
Having once been one of them, Wendy knew very well who would be sent this time.
Schicksal's S-rank Valkyries.
She just didn't know how strong that straight-laced knight really was.
Her cyan irises looked out from the cocoon into the distance.
By now, she should be stronger than that "strongest Valkyrie," right?
...
Elsewhere, stepping into Wendy's domain, Durandal slightly lifted her gaze, calmly watching the currents of wind pass overhead.
"These winds are her eyes." With those simple words, the Immortal Blades turned pale.
"Lady Durandal, do you mean she already knows we're here?" Rita frowned slightly.
Battles were contests of intelligence and strength. The Sixth Herrscher's Honkai energy at birth already far surpassed ordinary Herrschers.
The fact she hadn't taken the initiative to attack meant she was clearly scheming. And now, if their movements had already been detected…
They were starting at a disadvantage.
"Rita, stay here with the others. I'll go take a look."
"Lady Durandal!" Hearing that she still intended to go alone, Rita couldn't help but speak up.
Although Durandal had decided this from the beginning, the current situation clearly wasn't in their favor. Rushing in recklessly could only mean falling into a trap.
"Don't worry. I've already contacted Theresa. They're on their way. Even if the Sixth Herrscher is extraordinary, I'm confident I can stall her."
Durandal didn't say it all out loud, but her resolve was clear.
Seeing Durandal so determined, Rita hesitated, then sighed softly.
"In that case… I wish you triumph in battle." She bowed slightly and spoke gently.
"Return safely."
"Mm!" Durandal nodded, and under the gaze of the Immortal Blades, her figure was slowly engulfed by the storm.
Taking a deep breath, Rita spoke in a low, steady voice.
"Everyone, take down the nearby Honkai beasts and reduce Lady Durandal's burden."
"Yes!"