In their locked bedroom, the projector hummed back to life, displaying a complex strategic flowchart on the screen.
"Our overall plan remains largely unchanged," Kyuusyou said, tapping the table and taking a sip of water. "The only modification is adding Kallen Kaslana to the list of the dead to be resurrected."
"K-423's suffering is a necessary part of her growth and transformation. Your father wasn't wrong about that."
"She will mature, become more sensible... and stronger. She will solidify her beliefs and become even more like a true Kaslana warrior."
"This is the one point on which all three of us agree," Kyuusyou nodded.
"Faced with this brutal and desperate trial of civilization, innocence and weakness..." Snow trailed off, her gaze fixed on the core of the plan—the white-haired Valkyrie at its center.
"Those who lack even the right to live certainly don't have the right to create a better future," Kyuusyou interjected with a shrug.
"And then there's Himeko." Kyuusyou tapped another section of the screen, where a photo of the red-haired Valkyrie was displayed.
"She will live. That's a promise I made—though she'll have to bid a temporary farewell to the students she cherishes," Snow said, her gaze fixed on the highlighted photo.
"Our main challenges lie in those predicted futures—or rather, the 'storyline.' They're not set in stone; while the general outline remains consistent, the minute details can sometimes diverge... like Mr. Yang's visit to announce the exam results. According to the original 'storyline,' he wouldn't have visited at all." Kyuusyou studied the mind map, crisscrossed with lines and annotations, her finger tapping at the tiny footnotes detailing minor events and specifics.
Anti-Entropy Invasion
First Herrscher Replica
Welt Yang
Godsbane Armor
Honkai Energy Serum
-
"To ensure no details slip through the cracks... I think... I have the perfect candidate..." Snow seemed to recall something, opened her terminal's projection, and moved a photo to the map's corner.
The girl in the photo had pale golden hair like Snow, but unlike Snow's loose, flowing locks, the girl's hair was neatly tied into a single ponytail. A small black crown-shaped hair ornament secured the ponytail, and even through the photo, the sharpness hidden within her purple eyes was palpable.
"Ninti...?" Kyuusyou murmured her name, disbelief coloring her face as she recognized the familiar features.
"...Not the Ninti you know," Snow replied. "Though their appearances are indeed remarkably similar—like Bronya, she was adopted and trained as an assassin after the Second Eruption."
"Except Bronya met Cocolia... while she... she met Irene, or rather, Rita Rossweisse...?"
"I still remember how Irene grabbed her by the scruff of her neck, like a kitten, and dragged her into the living room," the girl said with a teasing smile, clearly reliving the amusing scene.
"...Pfft! So, what's so special about this child?"
"It sounds cold-blooded, but if she were just another child soldier-assassin from after the Second Eruption, there wouldn't be anything particularly special about her. In fact, such cases are quite common in Eastern Europe," Kyuusyou remarked, glancing at the girl on the projection screen.
"She is very special... Have you ever played Assassin's Creed?"
"Assassin's Creed? That game made by the French company that runs its servers on potatoes?"
"Exactly, that's the one..."
"Then it's easy to explain. The child is a natural Stigmata wielder... and the ability granted by her Stigmata is something like Eagle Eye Vision... along with a scientifically inexplicable ability—she can diminish her own presence, quite literally her sense of being there, to the point where she can effectively become invisible right in front of someone."
"So, even if someone's standing right in front of me, I might not notice them?" Kyuusyou mused, then offered an example: "Like... if I was looking at you, but my mind just skipped over your presence?"
"Pretty much. Of course, this ability would be useless against cameras. Surveillance footage can't be tricked, and she can't exactly crawl through the screen and physically erase the memories of whoever's watching the recording..." Snow nodded in agreement.
"...I recall you possess a similar skill, don't you? You managed to fool Project Bunny and sneak up behind Bronya."
"My other half of my bloodline is Kaslana," Snow stated abruptly, her words seemingly unrelated to Kyuusyou's question.
"...So, this is the Knight's righteous backstab?" Kyuusyou teased.
"No... what I mean is—my Kaslana heritage is genetically dominant. Did you really think that ice-cold chill, like liquid nitrogen being poured on you, came from nowhere before I kissed you?"
"...Fine, fine. So you're a MANTIS Fusion Warrior too, huh?"
"Speaking of which, your body temperature is noticeably lower than normal, but compared to Kevin's, it's still within an acceptable range. At least hugging you in summer must be quite refreshing."
"It's spring now. Don't think too far ahead," Snow said, her lips curling into a slight smirk.
"I lowered my body temperature to match the ambient temperature, fooling Project Bunny's life sensors. And as for stealth techniques... I'm reasonably proficient," the girl replied, shaking her head to steer the conversation back on track.
"I later asked to adopt that child, but Rita's probably taking care of her now..." Snow pondered, sounding uncertain.
"I'll write her a letter later, inviting her to St. Freya Academy," Snow said, opening a desk drawer and rummaging for paper and a pen.
"Soon, Himeko and the others will be exploring the Chiyou ruins, and then Anti-Entropy will invade... It's best if that child comes to the academy as soon as possible. The sooner she arrives, the better for us," Kyuusyou nodded.
"The Chiyou ruins aren't worth our attention... It's just a waste of effort... In the end, it'll all come to nothing," Snow said, shaking her head. She reached out and crossed out the Chiyou ruins on the map.
"It's worth noting the subsequent Anti-Entropy activity and Singapore's Gem..." The girl tapped two points on the screen.
"Dr. Magi... the original sample of the Honkai Energy Serum—we must obtain it." Kyuusyou's gaze shifted to Dr. Magi, the chief scientist of Schicksal Lab 3 and the core figure of the Singapore operation, as marked by the two. An elderly man with snow-white hair, nearing eighty.
"Moreover, we need to reach some kind of agreement with Anti-Entropy... A mere serum sample is meaningless to us. We require their research capabilities to complete the God-Slaying Spear, and not just one copy..." Snow focused on the flagged Anti-Entropy intrusion.
The dossier included headshots of Mr. Yang, the history teacher at St. Freya Academy, and a petite girl with striking blue hair. Small text beneath each image identified them:
"Welt Yang, leader of Anti-Entropy, and Executor Dr. Einstein..." the girl murmured, her expression unreadable.
-
That evening, the postman from St. Freya Academy carefully retrieved a meticulously sealed letter from the academy's mailbox. It would soon be placed aboard Schicksal's transport plane, bound for Vienna, Austria, and delivered to a certain young woman.
"From a fundamental perspective, Otto Apocalypse's plan doesn't directly conflict with ours—in fact, some aspects align perfectly with our interests."
"...That's a good thing." Watching the postman depart, the young woman drew the curtains and offered her assessment.
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Spy- Ok never done this before, but... Heres the deal. If this fic in the next two weeks reaches top uh 4 on the list for powerstones at the end of the week. I will double the daily uploads to match some of my other fics.