291. Bat Forest
"Wendy, you were amazing!"
The crowd tossed Wendy high into the air in celebration. With each ascent and descent, Wendy's spirits soared higher than ever before.
Even when she became an A-rank Valkyrie, she hadn't felt this happy.
Although her opponent was unwilling to accept defeat, seeing the smile on Wendy's face made everything seem insignificant.
Yun Ling really knew how to manipulate emotions.
"We lost this match, why?!"
"We weren't as good!"
"So what should we do?"
"More training! More training! More training!"
"Double the training volume today, let's go!"
They left in a large group. Before leaving, each of them playfully punched Yun Ling's shoulder, a way of getting revenge for the match.
It was also a way of showing their approval of Yun Ling.
"Although I really want to invite Wendy back to St. Freya Academy, with teammates like these, Wendy probably wouldn't agree," Yun Ling asked softly.
"Hmm…" Wendy nodded.
Watching her former teammates' retreating figures, a faint trace of melancholy flashed in Wendy's eyes.
Although their relationship hadn't changed, drifting apart was inevitable.
"Well… we're leaving now. We'll come again next time if we have time. When I have time, I'll secretly bring Wendy over to our side," Yun Ling whispered in Wendy's ear.
"Hehe, then Yun Ling, you'd better watch out for being hunted down by the Oceania branch," Wendy smiled and said goodbye to Yun Ling.
As the warship took off, Yun Ling and the others gradually moved away from the Oceania branch. Wendy sat in her wheelchair, quietly watching them leave, until they slowly shrank to a dot, and were then completely obscured by the clouds.
"Today was truly joyful..." Wendy slowly pushed her wheelchair back to the ward.
Joy is wonderful, but after it comes an endless emptiness...
Especially for someone as sensitive as Wendy, this emptiness is unbearable, because she is so lonely.
But she won't show it, silently hiding it deep within her heart.
And this emptiness cannot be filled, because that joy is fleeting.
Until this emptiness grows ever larger, completely devouring her heart, then... this is the beginning of her downfall.
A person or thing that can fill this emptiness becomes a necessity for Wendy.
Yun Ling is striving to become that being.
Separating herself from her former teammates is the first step.
Looking at Wendy's post on her WeChat Moments, a group photo of several people, Yun Ling casually liked it.
Then he turned off his phone, muttering to himself.
"Wendy, please don't disappoint me."
…
"By the way, isn't Rita an S-rank Valkyrie? Is it really okay for her to sell desserts here every day?"
Yun Ling arrived at the dessert shop with Kiana and Yuna and saw Rita as usual.
"About this, I'm a little embarrassed to say. Actually, even we S-rank Valkyries have fixed holidays. Unless it's a particularly urgent mission, we won't be specifically called out during our holidays."
"I prefer to save up my holidays and take a long vacation all at once, so I have more time to do what I want," Rita explained.
"It seems the Schicksal Headquarters' leave system is quite humane." Yun Ling nodded.
"His Excellency the Bishop has always valued the Valkyries' welfare and benefits, prioritizing individual needs unless absolutely necessary," Rita said with a smile, incidentally advertising the shop.
"Maybe I'll actually be drawn to visit Schicksal Headquarters someday." Yun Ling nodded.
"Really? Then, on behalf of Schicksal Headquarters, I welcome you anytime," Rita said elegantly, making polite remarks.
In reality, both sides felt this was unlikely.
Suddenly, a communication device at Rita's waist began to vibrate.
"An urgent message? Looks like my wonderful vacation is coming to an end." A hint of helplessness appeared on Rita's face.
"That's unfortunate. Could you please pack three more of this dessert for me to take back for the others to try?" Yun Ling said obliviously.
"No problem, welcome back next time," Rita nodded.
The three left the dessert shop, and Kiana nudged Yun Ling lightly with her elbow.
"I don't know why, but I always feel that this woman named Rita has some ill intentions."
Perhaps her foolish intuition was more accurate, but Kiana felt that the Rita in front of her was somewhat unreal.
"Your perception might be a bit too sharp, because she really does have ill intentions."
"Huh? Really?" Seeing Yun Ling nod, Kiana became somewhat insecure.
"A few days ago, I noticed she was secretly observing me. Maybe she's taken a liking to me and wants to steal me away from you," Yun Ling chuckled.
Kiana rolled her eyes, muttered "narcissist" under her breath, and then pulled Yuna away.
Rita is currently completely untrustworthy, even though she had a good relationship with the Sword God Yun Ling during the fourth simulation.
Moreover, during Yun Ling's previous probing, Rita seemed to have a slight memory of it, but judging from her behavior, it should just be like a 'dream'.
At least not as profound as Kiana's.
However, a little contact is still fine. After all, no one dictates that human relationships must be completely pure and flawless; total devotion is rare.
Shortly after returning to St. Freya Academy, Yun Ling was summoned to the principal's office again.
Unexpectedly, Rita was there, and Fu Hua was present as well...
After exchanging slight nods with the two, Yun Ling waited for Theresa to speak.
"Yun Ling, the Schicksal Headquarters has sent you on a mission that requires Rita to carry out. However, just to be on the safe side, you and Teacher Fu Hua will go together. It's not a mandatory mission; you can choose to decline."
"Could I ask what the mission is first?" Yun Ling wasn't in a hurry, but rather wanted to clarify first.
"The location is in a forest not far from Reichenbach Falls. You may not have heard of it, but it's a severely affected area by the Honkai. Although Schicksal sends Valkyries every year to exterminate the Honkai beasts, the Honkai energy concentration continues to rise."
"Recently, the Honkai energy concentration there has suddenly increased abnormally. The Archbishop suspects something might be wrong there, so he hopes the Far East Branch can cooperate with Rita to investigate the cause."
"Himeko hasn't been feeling well lately, and Lin Chaoyu is on a mission, so it's just you and Teacher Fu Hua left."
Theresa explained.
"Is it the Bat Forest, which is known as the Forbidden Zone?" Yun Ling's eyes narrowed.
"You know about it?" Theresa was somewhat surprised; news of the Bat Forest should have been blocked.
"I accidentally saw it when I hacked into Schicksal... cough, I accidentally saw it while checking the St. Freya Academy database." Yun Ling quickly corrected himself.
Rita's eyebrows twitched slightly, but she pretended not to hear.
"St. Freya Academy's database isn't open to the public! Don't just go in like that!" Theresa glared at Yun Ling, displeased.
"Okay, I'll take this mission. I'm actually quite interested in restricted areas." Yun Ling nodded.
"Alright, Rita's the team leader this time, so you should prioritize her orders. It's a small matter... never mind, with Teacher Fu Hua there, there shouldn't be any problems. Go and come back quickly."
Although she didn't know why Fu Hua was going, since Fu Hua was going with them, it basically meant they were no longer in danger.
Theresa waved her hand, signaling the group to go and carry out the mission.
...