One day later, on Schicksal HQ's floating island...
"The wielder of the Judgment of Shamash? With power output several times higher than any recorded in Schicksal's database? Vanished after eliminating a large-scale secondary Honkai disaster?"
"And black market intel brokers are spreading rumors that the Second Herrscher, Kiana, has been appearing frequently in Arc City? Possibly even residing there?"
Reports on the previous day's events quickly reached the desks of Otto and Theresa, the two heads of Schicksal.
Almost immediately, two calls rang out from different offices—
"Kyuusyou!"
"Rita—"
"Go prepare now! A private jet will take you to Arc City shortly! Investigate both pieces of intelligence thoroughly—and if possible, you must bring back the Second Herrscher/Kiana this time!"
...The two chosen unlucky Valkyries had barely returned to HQ before being saddled with another urgent mission.
"Lady Kyuusyou, Miss Mei, we meet again..."
Perhaps to save on costs, the air traffic controllers for East and West Schicksal had consolidated their flights into one. This led to the current situation:
Houraiji Kyuusyou sat alone, with an entire row of seats beside her empty. Across the aisle, a squad of Immortal Blades Valkyries huddled behind their Vice Captain, Rita, as if facing a mortal enemy. Mentally, they were cursing the entire Logistics Department's Air Traffic Control division and their families.
"Mhm, good morning, Miss Rita—hey, hey! Why are you all staring at me like that? Is it because alcoholic beverages aren't allowed on the flight...?"
Kyuusyou pouted at the Immortal Blades Valkyries, who looked ready for battle.
"Hmm... You may all rest in the other cabin. I will speak with Miss Kyuusyou alone."
As if granted a royal pardon, the Valkyries nodded gratefully to their Vice Captain and scrambled into the rear cabin.
"Tch... Am I really that scary...?"
Kyuusyou pouted, watching the Valkyries practically flee the cabin.
"Rita hopes Lady Kyuusyou is aware of the impression she makes..."
The maid's lips twitched as she observed Kyuusyou's apparent dissatisfaction.
"Ahem, let's drop it. Now that they're gone, it's just us allies here... Let's discuss the intelligence and our plan. Feel free to share any theories you have."
With the Immortal Blades out of the way, Kyuusyou dropped her act.
"Wait... Kyuusyou, do you and Miss Rita know each other?" Mei asked in a hushed, surprised tone, covering her mouth.
"Ah, Rita isn't just an acquaintance—she's one of us. Mei, if you have any questions or thoughts, just speak freely."
"Um... I wanted to ask... Miss Rita, are you also here to take Kiana back?"
"That is correct. The Lord Overseer wishes for us to bring Miss Kiana to a laboratory in West Africa to participate in experiments with the Second Divine Key, the Key of Infinity."
"Experiments... Miss Rita, could you please..."
"I apologize, Miss Mei, but we must bring Miss Kiana back. That point is non-negotiable."
Rita smiled and shook her head.
"But there's no need for you to worry so much, Miss Mei... This experiment won't harm Miss Kiana in any way. In fact, she's fully aware of it."
"Kiana knows?"
Mei's expression was one of utter disbelief.
"That's right, Kiana knows, Raiden Mei. Everything we're doing is essentially just putting on a show for Otto."
Kyuusyou took over from Rita, her words meant to soothe the anxious Mei beside her.
"This..."
"Honestly, Miss Mei, if we truly intended to do anything to Miss Kiana... we'd be the ones getting beaten to a pulp..."
"Right now, the only person under the Lord Overseer's command who could possibly stand against a fully realized Herrscher is Lady Durandal. And besides... Miss Kiana now possesses multiple Herrscher Cores, barring any unforeseen circumstances. Overseer Otto wouldn't go looking for that kind of trouble for himself..."
"So, let's put the topic of Miss Kiana aside for now... We still have another heavyweight to consider..."
"The unidentified wielder of the Judgement of Shamash... According to field reports, the sword wielder annihilated that... hmm? Humanoid Judgment-class Honkai Beast... without suffering any backlash from the Judgement of Shamash?"
"Setting aside the question of why a wild Judgment-class Honkai Beast appeared in Arc City, to wield the Judgement of Shamash completely without side effects... This person is already a heavyweight figure. According to Schicksal's historical records, only the progenitor of the Kaslana bloodline, the very first wielder, could achieve such a feat..."
"And that ancestor... lived at least tens of thousands of years ago, during the Previous Era..."
Rita spread her palm, displaying a data file to Houraiji Kyuusyou and Raiden Mei.
"However, there's a puzzling detail—according to all eyewitness reports from the scene, the wielder appeared to be female... Yet in Schicksal's records, this Kaslana ancestor was male."
"Do you have any leads, Kyuusyou and Miss Mei? Or perhaps some theories?"
Rita turned her gaze to the two before her, seeking their opinions.
"Unleashing the Judgement of Shamash, being a woman, and remaining unharmed by it... Miss Rita, Kyuusyou... could Schicksal's records be wrong? Maybe the Kaslana ancestor was actually a woman?"
Raiden Mei proposed a very bold theory, leaving the other two to exchange glances.
"Hmm... Let's consider that a possibility for now..."
Kyuusyou nodded, mentally apologizing to a certain noodle-slurping man.
"But I have a more practical guess..."
Kyuusyou offered another theory—
"This white-haired woman who so enthusiastically lent her aid... could she be Snow?"
"...Why does your guess feel even less plausible, Kyuusyou?"
Mei pictured Snow's appearance and couldn't help but retort.
"No, Miss Mei, Lady Kyuusyou's theory is still a possibility..."
Rita explained, "I cared for Lady Snow when she was a child. Hmm... Even back then, she displayed a special ice power, which bears some resemblance to the abilities of the Kaslana ancestor described in Schicksal's records."
"Furthermore, Lady Snow does possess Kaslana blood—specifically, from the direct line of the Kaslana family that was thought to have ended 500 years ago: Lady Kallen's lineage."
"While Lady Snow's usual hair color is the gold she inherited from Lord Otto, it's not impossible for it to turn white if her Kaslana bloodline were to fully awaken or undergo atavism..."
"Oh, is that so? In that case, Kyuusyou's theory does seem more plausible," Raiden Mei nodded thoughtfully.
"Lady Rita, Lady Kyuusyou, we will be arriving at Arc City in five minutes—"
The onboard announcement brought their brief discussion to a temporary halt. Inside the cabin, Rita and Kyuusyou began to ponder whether World Serpent was currently an ally or an enemy...