The third planet of the solar system.
A silver cone floated silently in low-earth orbit, hugging the outer edge of the time vortex.
This was a kilometer-class, orbital-to-ground conical assault and landing craft: the "Kunkata-class" Medium Landing City—the standard heavy ground armament for the Helljumpers, which also served as a temporary spaceport for the Empire's expeditionary forces.
---o---
Inside the Landing City.
Swoosh.
Pale golden particles of light rapidly dissipated within a massive transparent chamber, and two figures appeared in the teleportation room, one after the other.
"Your acting was quite impressive."
The soldiers guarding the teleportation room immediately greeted the two with a fist-to-chest salute.
"No."
As Wendy floated toward the opened transparent door, the woman beside her gently shook her head, refuting the claim.
"Legion Commander Wendy, that wasn't acting just now."
"A natural performance, then?"
"Yes. I believe that since we are counterparts, there shouldn't be too great a difference in our personalities and styles."
"..."
Wendy really wanted to argue, considering the two counterparts she had met were both deemed "excellent"... in very different ways.
"Alright."
Wendy waved her hand dismissively.
"In any case."
"Durandal, thank you for your assistance."
---o---
The story traces back to fifteen minutes ago.
The clash of Wendy and Bianka's ultimate moves had sent the already devastated continent of Oceania back into the embrace of Mother Ocean.
After all, [Palatinus Equinox: Song of Nibelungen] was a temporary power-up. Bianka couldn't unleash her full potential right away—the moment their ultimate moves made contact, [Starlight] was immediately suppressed by [Shed Plume].
However!
Bianka's sudden power-up originated from the "Honkai Consciousness," so while her ultimate couldn't win in a direct confrontation, it was more than sufficiently supplied.
The beam struggle had consumed a massive amount of Wendy's Imaginary energy reserves. By the time [Shed Plume] actually struck Bianka, its remaining power was only enough to heavily injure, not kill her. The World Bubble within her body had absorbed all the impact force that exceeded her limits. Without a special method of repair, Bianka would likely be unable to use the power of her World Bubble for a very long time.
And just as Wendy prepared to finish her off for good...
A thrown spear, formed by reversing the effects of a perfect fluid to maximize friction during its flow and thereby unleash a pseudo-Authority of Thunder ability, [Titan's Grip], was intercepted by a square pillar of light that descended from the heavens.
"Immovable Star Anchor."
Wendy recognized the source of the skill in an instant.
As her gaze slowly lifted, a woman clad in golden armor swiftly descended to the ground.
"Please calm down, Legion Commander Wendy."
"Your influence on this time node is already nearing its limit. Even if the river's altered course can be corrected, further disruption to the time vortex could very well ruin His Majesty the Emperor's plans."
"You are aware of the consequences of doing so."
"..."
After a brief moment of hesitation and a suppressed impulse—
"...You're right, Bianka Durandal Kaslana."
"I lost my composure."
Wendy dispersed the swirling wind and lightning in her hands.
Contacting a counterpart, destroying the original history, obliterating Oceania... the impact of a single, isolated time node on the flow of time was actually minuscule. But even a singularity could not withstand such a "completely unrecognizable" change.
The combined influence of all the plan's executors in the first two-thirds of the operation amounted to less than 1%, but at this node, Wendy alone...
This was the reason Durandal had appeared.
"Why are you here?"
"I'm not a student at St. Freya. The Apostles wouldn't have sent a 'helper' for me too, would they?"
Wendy then added a final comment:
"And you're so late, on top of it all."
"No, my originally scheduled arrival was several years from now."
Durandal shook her head again as the golden armor plating slowly dematerialized from her body.
"Oh? The reason?"
"The Headmaster has arrived."
"...Tch, that Kallen woman."
Wendy pursed her lips.
"If I remember correctly, Kallen isn't an executor for this operation, is she?"
"The plan has changed."
Durandal's expression grew a little more serious.
"The planet's temporal flow rate is 0.79% faster than normal. To stabilize the singularity of this time node, our current time has been forcibly pushed back by one week."
"That's not a reason."
It was a fact, but not the reason.
"The Antimatter Legion is about to arrive."
"!?"
"Is this intelligence received through the connection between the World Bubble and the Quantum Sea, inverted twice from 'beneath the waters'?"
Wendy's slightly narrowed eyes widened a fraction in surprise.
"Correct."
"The situation is just as you suspect, Legion Commander Wendy."
"The Antimatter Legion's primary target is not here, but Earth is, after all, the departure point for the Imperial fleet's warp jumps... The Apostles believe the Antimatter Legion possesses the ability to reverse-trace spatial signatures."
"Why not clear the..."
"No, this place was meant to be a trap from the start?"
As a Legion Commander, Wendy's methods were quite direct, but that was because she was too lazy to think... After all, it wasn't wise to waste brain cells on problems that could be solved with fists.
"Yes."
"That is also why the Headmaster appeared in my place."
"If the opponent is Otto's counterpart... Headmaster Kallen is clearly a more suitable choice than I."
"Are you implying Kallen is no longer your match?"
A slight smile played on Wendy's lips.
"No, that has been a publicly acknowledged fact at the academy since I entered my third year. The Headmaster's charm does not rely on her combat strength—to be precise, most of it has nothing to do with her combat strength... My respect for the Headmaster will not diminish in the slightest because of it."
"..."
"Hmph."
"That woman has been off the front lines for far too long. It's no one's fault she's become like this."
"I just hope she doesn't ruin things due to a lack of strength."
Her words were scornful, but her concern was real.
Before becoming the head of St. Freya Academy, Kallen and Wendy had been comrades-in-arms for a long time.
Wendy surveyed her surroundings.
Aside from the far west, there was no place left to stand on the vast planetary plate.
"What's your plan?"
"I need to borrow your counterpart for a while."
"Oh?"
"Theresa is on her way."
"Although the combat situation has undergone a 'tiny' bit of change compared to the original timeline, the overall direction has not deviated too much."
"Anti-Entropy's reformist faction is also on their way here."
Durandal stated her intentions without any reservation.
"I will make contact with them as the true 'Durandal'. During this time, please entrust your counterpart to my protection."
"At the same time..."
Durandal glanced at Bianka, who was floating on the water's surface, supported by an energy field.
"I'll leave 'me' in your care."
---o---
"It's what I should do."
The perspective returned to the interior of the Landing City.
Durandal matched Wendy's "pace."
Inside the moderately sized corridor, the surrounding soldiers, who were beginning to bustle with activity, all immediately cleared a path for the two of them to the command room.
"How many Imperial troops are stationed nearby?"
"Six Landing Cities."
Although, like Wendy, this was her first time aboard this particular Landing City, Durandal had clearly received a lot of intelligence beforehand through prior communications.
"That's it?"
Wendy's voice was a mixture of doubt and dissatisfaction.
Landing Cities were not true starships. While equipped with heavy firepower, they lacked sufficient mobility. If they were to engage an enemy on the level of the Antimatter Legion... they could easily find themselves in a situation where they couldn't give chase and couldn't escape.
As a Legion Commander, Wendy automatically became the supreme commander of this operation the moment she stepped onto the Landing City. Though she hadn't extended her senses, the information automatically compiled in her mind told her there was no one present with a higher rank.
"Take me to the supply room."
"This handful of troops would be lucky not to be wiped out in one fell swoop. Using them for an ambush is just wishful thinking."
Wendy hesitated for a moment but ultimately held back from asking, "Who came up with this plan?" While her strength had reached the Apostle level, her status was not yet that of an Apostle. It was better to act cautiously and not needlessly offend someone.
With the staff of the Plague Legion absent, Wendy could only reluctantly begin to turn the long-unused gears in her brain.
"Put the Landing City into a Level 3 energy-saving state. Divert all reactor power to the supply room. I used up too much just now; I need to recover."
"With your help, it should be barely..."
"Legion Commander Wendy."
Durandal interrupted her.
"Hm?"
"The Landing Cities are only serving as transport ships and 'anchors' for warp coordinates... After all, the Helljumpers' equipment is basically the toughest among all the legions."
"The ones truly responsible for the fighting are—"
Click.
Just as the two approached the command room, the bright silver doors slid open.
"Yo!"
A burly man walked out of the command room.
He first greeted Wendy before immediately heading over to his own daughter—his thick arms were muscular enough to lift Durandal like a small cat.
"You two are too slow! I've been waiting for a long time!"
"Sieg... Big Brother Siegfried?"
"Dad, be gentle."
Durandal brushed Siegfried's large hand from her shoulder with a hint of "disdain," while Wendy beside her let out a sound unlike her usual self. Siegfried currently held no military rank, but in his youth, he had joined the War Legion as an "unofficial explorer." He had saved Wendy's life when she was still a rookie during a joint operation with the Plague Legion to attack the "Fourth Quantum Line of Defense."
On a side note, the seemingly messy seniority within the Kaslana family was rather common throughout the Empire. The citizens of the Empire lived for so long that friendships were often based on individual relationships—for instance, Kallen was Siegfried's cousin, but she was also Wendy's comrade-in-arms... It was overly complex and not worth dwelling on.
"Why is Big Brother Siegfried here?"
"A 'civilian' shouldn't..."
"Well."
Siegfried scratched his head vigorously.
"I am indeed a civilian now, but the blood of the Kaslana family flows through my veins... Do we need a reason to go to war?"
"...That's true."
The three great families of the Empire did indeed enjoy certain privileges, but with them came the paradox of always charging to the front lines.
"Besides,"
After answering Wendy's question, Siegfried's gaze shifted back to Durandal.
"With both of our daughters out on a mission, how could we parents possibly stay at home with peace of mind?"
"..."
"I won't comment on that."
Wendy's expression stiffened for a second.
But in the end, that was all she said. While she supported Big Brother Siegfried's choice, she didn't understand it. Compared to building a small family, Wendy valued the merits and honors brought by war more... This included her views on Kallen.
This was, in fact, the mainstream ideology of the legions and even the Empire itself.
"You just said 'parents'."
Wendy's little-girl demeanor vanished, replaced once more by the bearing of a Legion Commander.
"Is Cecilia also part of this mission?"
"..."
"Correct, Legion Commander Wendy."
"As part of the populace, we have voluntarily answered the Empire's mobilization order issued to all [Higher Primordial Species] within its domain."
The legions were not short on combat power.
But when facing an adversary like the Antimatter Legion, the more high-level combatants, the better. The Empire's civilian populace had enjoyed a long period of peace, and individuals like Siegfried and Cecilia who lived in "seclusion" were numerous.
To be precise, they accounted for more than half of all [Higher Primordial Species]. Those currently active in the legions and on the front lines were mostly "youngsters" not exceeding 2000 years of age.
"I see..."
"Excellent."
"With your help, this mission will be much easier to—"
"Legion Commander Wendy, we aren't the only ones who came."
"?"
Faced with Siegfried's "doting father" smile, Wendy didn't have time to grasp his meaning before communications from the other Landing Cities materialized in front of her.
"Familiar faces..."
"Wendy, long time no see!"
Red eyes, golden hair, a toddler's physique in a sunflower-like dress, and the most prominent feature: a cross-shaped star on her forehead.
"Totori!?"
"Sigh, sister, it seems Lady Wendy only has eyes for Totori."
"Indeed, sister. Our Legion Commander is so heartless."
The Head of the Seventy-Fifth Chamber of the Throne's Ninety-Nine Chambers: Totori; and the Chief and Vice Chief of Staff of the Plague Legion's General Staff Headquarters, the sisters Clare and Flora.
"I don't really mind. There's still a lot of work to do on the Landing City... Aisha, can we turn off this communication?"
"We can't, Kika! The mission orders haven't been given yet!"
Aisha Lopez and Kika, the captain and vice-captain of the Plague Legion's "Brilliance" assault squad—their combination of close-quarters and long-range combat made them the most coordinated pair in the entire Plague Legion.
To counter the possible surprise attack from the Antimatter Legion, an order from the Throne had specially gathered the high-level elite combatants and the "brains" of the Plague Legion here.
And there were also "acquaintances" providing external support from the other two great families:
Ninti Apocalypse and Angelia Schariac.
"Hmph."
"Just a bunch of annoying people."
Wendy first snorted with great disdain, then her tone shifted.
"But..."
"As helpers, I suppose they'll do."