"Lord Otto, Kiana's whereabouts have been found. She is in a small town on the Danish border."
"Oh? Danish border? To run to such a place, does she think she can evade Schicksal's pursuit there?"
Otto, who was working (playing games), heard the report from his secretary, Amber. He opened Kiana's report and read it carefully.
This was a report from a Schicksal Valkyrie who went to deal with an Emperor-class Honkai Beast. However, by the time she arrived, the Emperor-class Honkai Beast had already been eliminated.
Not only that, she also found the person Schicksal was looking for in a nearby town, which was Kiana, who had recently betrayed Schicksal.
Otto did not directly write Kiana kaslana's name but only provided photos of Kiana in disguise.
If Kiana's name and picture were truly sent out, St. Freya Academy would probably be overrun by Schicksal Valkyries the next day.
Otto carefully reviewed the photos. Although Kiana wore a hood, her face, which occasionally showed, still exposed her.
Otto was not worried about Kiana's situation. Kiana herself was of no help to the current 'Sirin Project,' so it didn't matter if she ran outside.
What Otto was most concerned about were the women around Kiana: Yae Sakura and Cecilia.
When Otto saw Yae Sakura, his eyes radiated naked killing intent, but when he saw Cecilia, the killing intent in Otto's eyes receded.
Cecilia was dressed the same way as when she first met Siegfried. Otto knew very well what Cecilia looked like with short hair.
"Although I'm not entirely sure what happened, it's certain that they eliminated the Emperor-class Honkai Beast. And Cecilia… should be that girl named Inaba Tsukiyo transformed. Interesting~"
Since Inaba Tsukiyo transformed into Cecilia in front of Kiana, and Kiana showed no aversion, but rather seemed very intimate.
From this, it could be seen that Inaba Tsukiyo transforming into Cecilia was her own conscious act, which confirmed Otto's previous conjecture, causing Otto's eyes to narrow slightly.
His left index finger on the desk tapped continuously, making a "tap, tap, tap" sound in the room.
Secretary Amber stood not far from Otto, silent, waiting for Otto's response.
Otto thought for a while, then finally opened his eyes, his green pupils flashing sharply.
"Where is S-Rank Valkyrie Durandal, Amber?"
"She is in Europe, carrying out another mission. Lord Otto, do you intend for Lady Durandal to apprehend Kiana?"
"No~ No~ No~ Kiana is not essential to the current phase of the project, but I do want to thoroughly explore the secrets on her person."
Pointing at Inaba Tsukiyo who appeared on the screen, Otto truly wanted to thoroughly research the secrets hidden within Inaba Tsukiyo.
However, Inaba Tsukiyo was no pushover, to be manipulated like other Valkyries, nor was she easily deceived.
Soon, the A-Rank Valkyries used for the gem of serenity experiments were all tricked by Otto using excuses like 'saving humanity,' but such excuses could only be used against delicate young girls.
Otto saw clearly that while Inaba Tsukiyo appeared very delicate, her actions were absolutely ruthless.
Adding to that, during the previous investigation into Inaba Tsukiyo, it was discovered that her mercenary codename was "crimson moon."
This individual, it is said, once slaughtered everyone in an entire base during a mission to prevent her appearance from being discovered.
To a certain extent, this was true infiltration: killing everyone who had seen her face so that her true identity would not be revealed.
Although she only dealt with ordinary people, even an A-Rank Valkyrie of Schicksal would be incapable of such a feat, which shows how ruthless Inaba Tsukiyo truly is.
"I understand. So, Bishop, should we now send the Valkyrie Durandal to apprehend Inaba Tsukiyo?"
"...Given her personality, it's impossible to have her rush over immediately before she has completely finished her current mission. Have her go once her mission is complete, and she must act discreetly, without revealing Schicksal's involvement, only in sparsely populated areas."
Durandal, as an S-Rank Valkyrie of Schicksal, is indeed a very valuable combat asset, but her personality is too earnest.
While this earnestness and her relentless pursuit of improvement made her an S-Rank Valkyrie, if the mission orders aren't precise, she's very likely to mess things up.
If Durandal was simply ordered to bring Inaba Tsukiyo back, she might very well attack Inaba Tsukiyo and her companions directly with the Black Abyss White Flower in a densely populated area.
"...I understand. I will go notify her now."
Amber bowed to Otto and then turned to leave his office.
After Amber left, Otto reopened the photo, looking at Cecilia's picture, and then played the video he had previously downloaded, featuring Kallen, Cecilia, and Sirin together.
"Anti-Entropy? After leaving Schicksal, was the goal of joining Anti-Entropy self-preservation? Impossible, she must be trying to protect Kiana. Heh heh~ It seems Cecilia's consciousness is protecting Kiana."
Although Anti-Entropy gaining Inaba Tsukiyo as a powerful combatant caused Otto some distress, it was only distress.
Schicksal still has many trump cards yet to be revealed. What if Inaba Tsukiyo possesses so many unknown powers?
He possesses the memories of the previous civilization; how could he lose to those Anti-Entropy fellows, or easily lose to a single person?
However, what concerned Otto more was Inaba Tsukiyo's ability to transform.
"If… if you truly possess this power, then can you also bring Kallen back to me? The Kallen who appeared in Schicksal's database last time, that must have been you."
Otto leaned back in his chair, pondering Kallen's words when she left Schicksal's database last time.
How could Otto ever want to be Kallen's enemy? Otto still remembered the Kallen he saw when he was dragged into a black abyss during his battle with Welt Joyce.
Even if the Kallen who appeared before him at that time scolded him for being unable to accept her death for five hundred years, constantly implicating other innocent people in his sins, and being nothing more than a perverted unrequited lover.
Even so, Otto knew he could no longer stop any of it.
After all, this world had left him only one path, so he shouldn't be blamed for clearing away all obstacles on it.
However, the plan had already progressed to this point; even if Kallen would despise him, he had no way to turn back.
Otto, who clearly understood what happened in the previous civilization, knew that it was impossible to defeat the final Herrscher through human strength.
The only way was to use the Herrscher's power to fight the Herrscher.
Even if it was the power of a god, as a human, he would utilize this power belonging to a god.
Just like his actions have always been: not being used by the Herrscher personality, but rather, in turn, using the Herrscher's power.
'Should I accelerate the plan's progress? But Sirin's consciousness needs a catalyst to advance the plan, it's difficult.'
To advance the plan, Kiana is a very important link; if there is no progress there, the plan cannot continue regardless.
Most importantly, Inaba Tsukiyo's transformations must include Sirin. If Sirin's Original Body meets the Sirin consciousness within Kiana, what will happen then?
(Bella: Huh? Which one is the Queen?)
While Otto was troubled, Amber was contacting Durandal, relaying Otto's instructions.
At this moment, Durandal's back was covered in the corpses of Honkai Beasts; it seemed she had just gone through a fierce battle, or rather, a one-sided massacre.
"Understood. Denmark, you say? It's a bit far; I estimate I'll arrive at the destination tomorrow."
"Yes. For this mission, please do not cause too much commotion, Durandal. Complete the apprehension mission as discreetly as possible."
"Discreetly… Understood. But Amber, I didn't bring any money, and I don't have any other clothes. In this state, I'll easily be exposed, won't I?"
Schicksal's combat uniform is indeed very convenient, but it also has its downsides, which is that it's very easy to expose oneself.
Moreover, the Black Abyss White Flower is still in her hand. Appearing on the street with such a large Black Abyss White Flower, are you sure she won't be noticed?
Durandal isn't stupid; she just has a very earnest personality. Since this mission needs to be discreet, she naturally needs some disguise.
"...Please proceed to the nearest Schicksal branch. There you can obtain the necessary operational funds and some casual clothes that are not easily noticeable. Would you like me to design an outfit for you?"
"No need, that's too much trouble. Oh, by the way, can you air-drop the clothes from my room? My favorite outfit is that dress in my room, Amber."
"...Durandal, this isn't for you to go out and play; it's to apprehend someone. Please remember your objective."
Change into her favorite dress? Please, Durandal is a top-notch beautiful girl, alright!
Or rather, every Valkyrie of Schicksal is a very beautiful girl, and as their rank increases, Valkyries become even more beautiful.
Especially S-Rank Valkyries, they are already at the level of Kallen and Cecilia, and even Theresa is incredibly cute.
Seemingly realizing her mistake, Durandal also fell silent for a moment, finally muttering a hasty 'understood' before turning off the screen in front of her.
After the screen turned off, she looked at the Honkai Beast corpses behind her, then raised her head to the darkening sky, and extended her right hand.
"Apprehension? Shouldn't this kind of thing be left to others? Since when does an S-Rank Valkyrie have to do such things?"
"And… she's a wanted criminal? This little girl, her bounty is even higher than Siegfried kaslana's?"
For some reason, Durandal thought of Theresa, who used to spend a lot of time by Otto's side.
"...Could it be that Bishop actually has other intentions?"
---------------------------------
If you'd like to read the next 40 chapters in advance, you can support me on Patreon.
I regularly post chapter previews there, so you'll always be up-to-date and won't have to wait too long.
patreon.com/SolyuraMT
And if you enjoy the story, don't forget to give me a Power Stone. Your support really motivates me to continue translating!
