Chapter 170: The Arrival of Rita
"Rovel, why were you gone for so long?" Mei asked, tilting her head in mild confusion as he finally returned to their dorm.
"Ah... ran into a minor detour along the way," Rovel replied, waving a hand dismissively as he took a seat. "But I did manage to figure out the exact process for the early assessment."
He quickly relayed the details of his conversation with Theresa to both Bronya and Mei, laying out the specific requirements the principal had given him.
"It appears we have overlooked a critical variable," Bronya stated flatly, her gray eyes locking onto him. "Even if we possess the knowledge that the Oceania Branch hosts the Valkyrie assessment, will Major Himeko actually agree to let us go?"
She hit the nail right on the head. Himeko was their direct instructor. Without her explicit authorization, Kiana and the rest of the squad would be completely barred from participating in any official exams.
"So the ultimate bottleneck is still Himeko..." Mei murmured, lowering her gaze to the floor as she fell into deep thought. She racked her brain, trying to come up with a viable way to persuade their stubborn, heavy-drinking teacher.
A sudden, alarming thought crossed her mind. Could it be that we really have to rely on Rovel's... seduction tactics? It was easy enough to joke about, but this was her boyfriend! She hadn't even gotten a proper taste of him herself yet! The idea of offering him up on a silver platter for Himeko to devour was absolutely out of the question. Don't even think about it!
"I'll try to sound Himeko out over the next couple of days," Rovel said, letting out a soft sigh as he laid out their final fallback option. "If she absolutely refuses to budge, then we'll just have to bite the bullet and wait until the standard exams in September."
The ultimate power of decision rested entirely in Himeko's hands. As long as a student at St. Freya wanted to officially become a Valkyrie, bypassing her authority was impossible. The only exception was if someone was directly handpicked and appointed by Overseer Otto himself—just like Rovel. But that was an entirely different set of circumstances.
"I suppose that is our only viable path forward..." Mei conceded, before suddenly glaring at him with narrowed, warning eyes. "But you are absolutely not allowed to use seduction!"
"Understood, loud and clear." Rovel nodded with a confident smirk. He refused to believe he couldn't accomplish a simple negotiation without resorting to honey-trapping his instructor. With his silver tongue and tactical mind, smoothing things over with Himeko wouldn't be an issue.
"However, you girls need to start preparing immediately," Rovel continued, shifting to a more serious tone. "The early assessment kicks off at the end of February. That leaves us with barely two weeks on the clock. We also need to figure out a way to aggressively tutor Kiana. Even if Himeko shoots us down and we can't go, treating this as a dry run will perfectly prepare us for the next exam."
Realistically, by the end of February, his own physical condition likely wouldn't have fully recovered from the recent backlash. But Rovel wasn't particularly worried about his own status. After all, officially becoming an A-Rank Schicksal Knight didn't offer him any immediate, game-changing benefits. Therefore, his primary focus had to be supporting the three girls and ensuring their combat readiness.
With Bronya's tactical intellect and raw firepower, securing a promotion to B-Rank was practically guaranteed. In fact, even aiming for A-Rank wouldn't be much of a stretch for her. Project Bunny 19C was simply too overwhelmingly powerful for standard academy metrics.
As for Mei, Rovel mentally reviewed her current status. Her total four-dimensional attributes hovered around 680 points, a solid threshold that already placed her firmly at the level of a B-Rank Valkyrie. Based on Rovel's quiet observations of the various instructors around the academy, a baseline of 500 total attribute points roughly equated to the weaker end of the B-Rank spectrum.
Mei's current combat prowess was undeniably outstanding among ordinary humans. She had achieved remarkable mastery in Basic Kendo and reached an advanced stage in the Hokushin Itto-ryu sword style. Yet, strictly in terms of raw system attributes, she was technically the weakest link among the trio.
Bronya possessed an incredibly resilient mental capacity, and with a devastating super weapon like Project Bunny 19C at her command, any slight deficiency in her personal physical attributes was completely negated.
Then there was Kiana. She was a clone carrying the genetic legacy of the Kaslana lineage, with Sirin's terrifying essence flowing through her veins. Although she hadn't consciously awakened her Stigmata yet, she possessed an innate, monstrously high resistance to Honkai Energy. With proper, focused training, her physical strength and combat instincts grew at an exponential rate. In terms of raw, untapped potential, she easily ranked the highest among the three.
However, Mei held one absolute trump card of her own: the Herrscher of Thunder. Her internal Herrscher personality had essentially been overwritten and assimilated by her own darker, more dominant persona—the Thunder Queen. Whether it was the gentle, apron-wearing Cooking Lady on the outside or the imperious Thunder Queen dwelling within, they were both fundamentally Mei. Because of this unique harmony, there was absolutely no risk of the Herrscher personality suddenly going rogue and turning against her.
This was a stark contrast to Kiana's situation, where Sirin's dormant, malicious will remained asleep deep inside her body, silently biding its time until Himeko inevitably had to deliver that tragic, final lesson.
Without tapping into the apocalyptic power of the Herrscher of Thunder, Raiden Mei could only be classified as highly "talented." While she did possess a natural Stigmata, it was unfortunately bound to the Gem of Conquest in a highly specific, restrictive manner. If her Stigmata were to fully awaken, it would instantly trigger the activation of the Herrscher of Thunder.
If Mei truly wanted to spike her power levels in a short amount of time, her best course of action would be to sit down and have a heart-to-heart with her inner Thunder Queen. All she really needed to do was mentally enter the password—'I can't do anything'—and then sit back while the Thunder Queen logged into her body to carry the match for her.
"Understood," Mei and Bronya replied in unison, both nodding in firm agreement with his assessment.
Unfortunately, Rovel's plans to negotiate were immediately stalled. Himeko had apparently been dispatched on an urgent field mission that very morning, leaving him waiting around the faculty lounge in vain. He had no choice but to shelve his silver tongue and wait until tomorrow to corner her.
The very next day, a sleek, small-scale Schicksal warship descended through the clouds, touching down smoothly at the docking bays of St. Freya Academy.
Rita Rossweisse stepped off the ramp, her elegant maid uniform fluttering in the artificial breeze. She had rushed over from Headquarters at the absolute fastest speed the engines could handle. No matter what obstacles stood in her way, she was fiercely determined to protect Lady Theresa's purity from the clutches of that dangerous male student.
Before her arrival, Rita had thoroughly reviewed the intelligence files regarding Fang Ruobai. From Overseer Otto's personal notes, she learned that this seemingly ordinary Descender possessed the terrifying, explosive strength to unleash an attack comparable to the devastating might of the Divine Key, Judgment of Shamash, in a single instant.
Even Otto didn't have an exact measurement of his upper limits. However, based on Rovel's recorded performance during his recent dive into the data space, it was glaringly obvious that his baseline combat state was already equivalent to, if not greater than, an A-Rank Schicksal Knight.
And the most alarming detail of all? It had been less than three months since this Descender first materialized in their world. His growth rate was nothing short of monstrous.
Rita smoothly handled the corridors of the academy, dragging a massive, reinforced metallic case behind her until she reached the principal's office. Pushing the door open, she offered a flawless curtsy.
"Lady Theresa, greetings."
Her sudden, silent appearance in the doorway startled Theresa so badly that the petite principal nearly tore the limited-edition Homu comic book right down the middle.
Upon realizing the intruder was just Rita, Theresa let out a long breath of relief, her tense shoulders slumping. Rita had known about her secret obsession with Homu merchandise for years, so there was no point in trying to hide the colorful pages under her desk.
"Rita? Why are you here?" Theresa asked, her blue eyes wide with genuine surprise. She quickly checked her terminal. She hadn't received a single advanced notification regarding a visit from Headquarters.
"I am the designated officer in charge of this specific armor transport mission," Rita replied, her tone perfectly polite and measured as she gestured to the heavy case beside her.
"You? Transporting armor?" Theresa blinked, utterly stunned. It was supposed to be a standard set of third-generation Schicksal Knight armor. Why in the world would Headquarters dispatch an elite S-Rank Valkyrie to act as a mere delivery courier? It was a massive waste of resources.
But a second later, Theresa's sharp mind caught onto a glaring discrepancy. It had only been a few days since Rovel filled out his custom measurement forms and submitted the requisition request. Even with Schicksal's advanced manufacturing capabilities, how could a custom-fitted combat suit be forged, assembled, and shipped that quickly?
"Rita... exactly what kind of armor are you transporting in that case?" Theresa asked, her brows knitting together in deep suspicion.
"To answer your question, Lady Theresa," Rita said, a sweet, enigmatic smile curving her lips. "It is a prototype of the latest fourth-generation series—a Godslayer Armor."
She patted the reinforced steel of the transport case. "The Lord Overseer personally bestowed a name upon it. It is designated as the [Godslayer Armor: Hell Knight - Moon Ember]!"
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