Perhaps sensing Kiana was about to return from the restroom, Siegfried left with a final threat, departing as decisively as he had arrived.
It was a shame he took the Judgement of Shamash with him.
Otto could understand Siegfried's choice. He had no other option but to agree to let K423 join Schicksal.
Anti-Entropy was currently mired in severe internal factional strife. If K423, who possessed the Core of the Second Herrscher, were to join them, it would only throw the situation into greater chaos.
Furthermore, now that K423 had reappeared in Otto's sights after being taken by Siegfried, Siegfried knew Otto would never let her go again. He didn't want K423 to live a life on the run with him, constantly fleeing.
Every father wishes for his daughter's happiness.
Thus, he could only consent.
Otto let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. He had successfully bluffed his way through the confrontation with Siegfried. He had acted strong because he knew Schicksal was his capital, and the real Kiana, held within Schicksal's headquarters, was the leverage that kept Siegfried from acting rashly.
It felt good to overwhelm others with sheer power and status.
However, the peaceful resolution was only possible because, at present, Otto and Siegfried had no irreconcilable conflicts.
Although the original Otto had orchestrated many things during the Second Honkai War, Cecilia's death was ultimately her own choice. She had used the Sacred Blood Liberation of the Black Abyss, White Flower to save the Siberian plains, which had been contaminated by the rampaging Core of the Herrscher of Finality.
It was a death that not even the Black Abyss, White Flower could reverse. Otherwise, Otto would never have told Cecilia that using its ultimate power would guarantee her demise.
Even before the Honkai fission bombs fell, Cecilia's life was already fated to end.
This led Otto to a thought.
If Cecilia were still alive, the situation might be much better.
Because the Schariac house were Otto's loyal hounds.
The entire Schariac family... a lineage of devoted martyrs.
---o---
Hearing approaching footsteps, Otto wiped the solemn expression from his face and replaced it with a gentle smile.
Kiana walked towards him, a look of firm decision on her face.
She didn't return to her seat.
Instead, she stood directly in front of Otto.
She looked at him, and he remained seated leisurely, his emerald eyes watching her calmly.
"If I become an S-rank Valkyrie, you'll really help me find my dad?" Kiana asked.
Otto nodded.
"Then this young lady chooses to join that... Schicksal thing."
Kiana extended her hand towards him. Otto gazed at her slender, jade-like fingers but did not take her hand. Instead, he asked a question.
"Did you wash your hands?"
A vein throbbed on Kiana's temple. 💢!
She almost lost her composure. She had just made a life-altering decision in the bathroom, and Otto shattered the gravity of the moment with a single sentence.
Hey! Is this the time or place for a question like that?!
Seeing Kiana's expression, Otto simply smiled.
He stood up. Instead of a simple handshake, he placed his left hand behind his back like a graceful nobleman, making Kiana grudgingly admit that the man had a handsome face.
If he were to crossdress, he'd surely be a beauty who could topple nations.
Otto leaned forward slightly, taking Kiana's outstretched hand in his right. He then lowered his head.
He placed a light kiss on Kiana's fingertips.
"My dear little kitten, welcome to Schicksal."
A smile played on his lips, and his deep eyes focused on Kiana as if to drink in every part of her.
In the end, K423 had once again fallen into Otto's grasp.
Kiana's heart skipped a beat.
It was the first time she had ever been treated this way, and she was at a complete loss, wondering when she should pull her hand back.
However, after the kiss, Otto smiled and spoke again.
"Did you really wash them? Well, it doesn't matter. I don't mind."
The atmosphere was ruined once again. Kiana angrily snatched her hand back from his.
Why is this guy always like this?
She sat back down in her seat with a pout. But as she settled in, something felt off. It seemed as though someone had sat in her chair while she was gone.
Kiana looked at Otto, suspecting he might have done something perverted like rubbing his face on her seat while she was away.
A shameless person like him was definitely capable of it.
Otto, having returned to his own seat, saw her suspicion and said with a laugh, "Your dad was here just now."
"He said he's entrusting you to me. He also told me not to push you too hard, and that three children would be enough."
Kiana stared at him, dismissing the latter half of his statement as nonsense. Still, a sliver of hope made her scan the surroundings.
But the shop was empty, save for the two of them.
"You actually believed me?" Otto raised an eyebrow.
A wave of disappointment washed over Kiana, but she covered it with a huff and placed her hands on her hips.
"Of course this young lady didn't believe you!"
Does he really think I'm that stupid?
Seeing her act tough, Otto just chuckled and took a sip of his now-cold tea. Kiana went back to battling with the dessert in front of her.
After a moment, she asked curiously, "So, am I a Valkyrie now, just like that?"
Otto shook his head. He put down his cup and pointed to its empty interior.
"Make me a cup of tea."
"No way," Kiana said with a scowl.
Otto shook his head again.
"The first thing a Valkyrie must understand is: everything for Schicksal, everything for humanity."
"The second is this: obey the orders of your superiors."
"However, you aren't an official Valkyrie yet, merely a trainee. Only after you pass the Valkyrie assessment will you be considered official."
"What? There's a test?"
Hearing it was so troublesome—and that there was a test, when she'd never even been to school—Kiana was already starting to regret her decision.
"But there's no rush for the assessment. For the time being, you'll stay by my side. If your performance satisfies me, you may be able to skip the formal test."
"Satisfy you?" Kiana held her fork in her mouth and clutched her chest with both hands, making an expression of clear disgust. "No waaaay~"
Otto just smiled at her antics.
"I am preparing to go to Nagazora City in the Far East. You will come with me. Consider the trip to Nagazora your Valkyrie assessment."
Otto wasn't comfortable sending Kiana to Schicksal headquarters alone. What if she fell in with a bad crowd?
Therefore, he decided to teach her personally.
And mold Kiana into a shape of his own liking.
To make her a firefly that shines only for him.
"Nagazora City? What are we going there for?"
Otto turned his head and looked out the window at the gloomy sky. The clouds were heavy; it looked like a storm was brewing.
Seeing him turn, Kiana followed his gaze toward the sky, where faint flashes of lightning could be seen.
Otto's calm voice reached her ears.
"To kill, to take, and to save."