"…Huh?" Rita spoke out loud suddenly.
"What is it?" Durandal responded, already turning toward her.
"A message from the Overseer. I'll take it on the public channel."
A message from Otto. Great. What's that bad guy up to now? We still haven't figured out why he invited everyone here in the first place.
A hologram of Otto flickered to life, looking around at all those who were gathered, and expression that was somewhere between looking smug, and looking completely done with everything.
Kiana clenched her hands into fists.
"Good afternoon, my friends aboard the Hyperion. Good afternoon, Valkyries. Did research on the Herrscher Core go smoothly?"
Aunt Theresa spoke up, "Grandpa… Didn't you say there was no reason to contact us anymore?"
"Wow, don't be so cold, Theresa. Are you still mad at me for killing that clone? You all have obviously forgiven Rita, but you still hold it against me? Anyway, I currently do not have anything I need to discuss with those of the Hyperion. But I do have a mission for Schicksal's S-rank Valkyries."
He shifted his attention toward Durandal and Rita. Durandal squared her shoulders before continuing ""Does it have to do with that "journey" you mentioned?"
Otto stuck his hand out, palm upturned, "Haha, sharp as usual, Durandal. That's right, I've already made all the necessary preparations… I just need a little help from you and Rita. Ah, right. Other members of the Immortal Blades, you can stay there and continue to assist my Granddaughter. She will be taking over the Schicksal Overseer position shortly, after all. It'd be great if everyone gets familiar with the work ahead of time. How to put this… for the vast majority of you, this is the last time you'll hear from me. I'll be hitting the road soon."
Won't be seeing him anymore? Is that good or bad? He won't be around to cause chaos again… but I still really want to beat him up.
Otto paused long enough for the tension to coil tighter. "Is Mr. Welt also on the line? I'm really sorry that I didn't let you guys enjoy Thanksgiving that year in New York. All these years, I've wanted to apologise. I've even wanted to kneel down at a monument and weep to express my regret. But after all these years… I'm guessing you don't want me to do anything pretentious like that."
The look on Welt's face was the same as when she was called on to answer the question during his classes. He looked completely done.
"…This is what you wanted to tell me before you "hit the road"?"
"What else should I say? To give another example, do you think K-423 also wants me to apologise?" Otto responded.
Kiana very much wished that the Otto in front of her wasn't just a projection. Her knuckles whitened.
Otto continued, "Since you are all so flawless and heroic, I didn't think you would be so petty."
Durandal spoke up, her voice steady. "Overseer, let's not discuss whether or not there's a problem with what you just said. The Herrscher of the Void… No, the Herrscher of Flamescion… She has a name."
Otto made a small gesture, a simple cue to continue.
"It's not K-423. It's Kiana Kaslana." Durandal finished.
Kiana felt something ease inside her, a warm wave rising in her chest, the kind she usually only felt around Mei and the others.
Yes! You tell him!
"Okay… Kiana Kaslana. That's fine, after all, the real owner of that name became like that 10 years ago."
??? What's that supposed to mean?
"Theresa? It seems like you want to say something."
"You…" Theresa barely managed to get out.
"Relax, Theresa. You don't have to say it if you don't want to. Your Grandpa has done a lot of things that don't make sense, and he knows this well. You might find that some shocking things will happen soon. When they happen, you will probably think your Grandpa is not someone worth remembering. Just remember that the positives and negatives are both important."
"What do you mean? What will your "journey" bring about?" Theresa asked.
"You'll know soon enough, so I don't need to explain here. But don't worry, those events will not pose any threat to you. Durandal, Rita, come to the Morning Glow Overlook on Kaslana Street to give me a report. I need you to take one final shift. As for the rest of you…"
Otto turned to look directly at Kiana.
Huh? Me?
"My old friend has arranged a little side show, you should be able to find the location easily."
Otto promptly hung up, leaving everyone speechless.
Tesla was first to speak up, "Ugh. That despicable old fool. Can't he talk like a normal person? If Mophead didn't cover my mouth, I would've given him a piece of my mind."
Little side show? My old friend? Who is he talking about? That guy still has friends?
"Tesla, he used those excuses to provoke us. But if he really is gonna walk away like this…" Welt paused, something dark flickering behind his glasses. "Why would he want to provoke us?"
"So you're saying that he might still have some plans for us?" Einstein confirmed.
"That would explain that disgraceful speech of his today. But… What does he gain by provoking us, and even provoking those around him. How does it help him achieve his goals?" Fu Hua asked, her brows drawn in quiet focus.
"And the goal that he claims to have also raises some doubts. If he really just wants to go to a parallel universe to search for another Kallen… Then one would assume, forgive me for this, Madam Theresa… that he would be satisfied by successfully cloning Kallen?" Einstein continued.
"And he wouldn't even need to leave this world." added Welt.
"So keep in mind what Nagamitsu said, that "free will is unchanging" and "there is only one choice that was made." It seems she was suggesting a contradiction."
Aunt Theresa finally responded, her voice softer. "...If Nagamitsu was still here, we could ask for her opinion. After all, she participated in a lot of spatial experiments for Schicksal."
Durandal added, "She believed that the Overseer would use the 2nd Divine Key to leave this world. She also thought that, just as Otto said, it wouldn't impact us in any way. But…"
Rita continued without missing a beat, "But he is the Overseer. Maybe technical staff believe that he doesn't lie… but I'm afraid that's not necessarily the case. Maybe we can learn something from the awakening of the Herrscher of the Void."
Huh? These guys are still going to go meet up with Otto?
She spoke her thoughts aloud, "So, are you guys really going to obey his orders and go report to him? And what with that side show he mentioned, he seemed to be talking directly to me."
Einstein answered with a contemplative nod. "He said that it would be easy to find, we can look for clues later. For now…"
"…We'll just have to see what happens." Durandal finished.
"Maybe it's a trap." Einstein added.
"But if we don't go see for ourselves… we may be susceptible to hidden threats." said Welt.
"Everyone calm down. The Overseer doesn't represent the entire Schicksal organisation anymore." Rita reminded them, her tone firm. "From the moment he announced his resignation, Master Theresa's position also needs to be taken into consideration."
Durandal followed her lead. "Yes. At least I can guarantee that the Immortal Blades won't regard you as enemies again."
Welt's projection pushed up his glasses. "But you guys need to be careful as well. As soon as Otto discovers that he can't manipulate you anymore, he may do something cruel."
"You're talking about… Reanna, right?" Durandal asked.
"You know that name?" Einstein said, surprised.
"Yes. I have a… friend who told me her story. I knew that she once wielded the Abyss Flower. And I know the basics of… her relationship with Anti-Entropy."
Fu Hua stepped in, her expression softened by memory. "Reanna was a good person. The time spent when she and I worked together reminds me of the relationship between you and Rita. It was just that at that time I didn't make friends easily… So I didn't get to know her well."
"She was a warrior, and a true Valkyrie." Einstein added.
Tesla huffed loudly. "If you knew her, you should have known what kind of degenerate the Overseer is."
Durandal fell silent for a moment, letting the weight settle. "The Overseer really went too far against Anti-Entropy. It was one of Schicksal's darkest moments."
Aunt Theresa stepped in gently, redirecting the discussion. "Okay. However you look at it, those events in the past don't have much relevance to our situation now. Durandal, Rita, If you think going to meet with my Grandfather is the right choice, the Hyperion crew won't stop you. But… you must be careful."
"Yes. We will be extremely cautious." Durandal replied.
Rita followed, voice calm but serious. "He's the crafty Otto Apocalypse… so everyone needs to be on guard and plan for the worst."
"We'll be on high alert. Let's hope for the best." Theresa confirmed.
Kiana added her own little encouragement, "You can do it. You're Schicksal's strongest S-rank Valkyries."
"Thank you. I also believe in you, Herrscher of Flamescion." Durandal responded.
That warm glow returned to Kiana, settling deep in her chest.
…
While the data from the Herrscher Collision Experiment was still processing, Tesla came up to Kiana.
"Ha, Otto wasn't lying when he said it would be easy to find." said Tesla, tossing a projection into the air. The image rotated slowly, revealing a massive banner slung across the front of an old historical building. The contrast was jarring. The building looked like it belonged in a museum. The banner looked like it belonged in a schoolyard prank, the words painted on in uneven strokes.
The banner read: "Lee's final history lesson. Open to students and Herrschers only. (Class monitors included)"
"Lee?" Kiana asked, hopeful.
She hadn't been aware of Lee's supposed death at the time, but after returning to the Hyperion, teacher Welt had explained the whole twisted mess. Lee had faked her own death to trap Welt in the Sea of Quanta. Everyone had believed she was killed by Otto. Even Welt. But then she'd shown up again, alive, in that impossible place. And worse, she had apparently brought that super bad guy Kevin the Gem of Desire, freeing him from his imprisonment.
Still… Why did she do that? Lee isn't the kind of person who would be okay with project Stigmata. Sure it wasn't that long… but I feel like I knew her rather well.
To Kiana, Lee had always felt like a hedgehog. A small, prickly creature hiding something sharp under soft fur. Defensive. Guarded. She always seemed especially uneasy around Kiana and Mei, flinching away from emotional contact as if it were a physical threat. But strangely, she had seemed more at ease around Durandal.
Kiana felt a faint sting at that. In just a few days, Lee had acted more open around Durandal than she ever had around her.
Her mind drifted back to the first time they had met, almost three years ago now. That night remained vivid. That quiet moment when Lee had slept beside her, sharing her bed. It was one of Kiana's core memories, tucked away in a warm place that she didn't visit often.
After all, it had been the first time she slept next to someone after Siegfried had left.
For a long while, she had convinced herself that Siegfried must have been the reason Lee had disappeared afterwards. That he had kept them apart. But after St. Freya, after everything, it became obvious that Lee had been avoiding her on her own. Avoiding something, or maybe afraid of something Kiana couldn't see.
She remembered the last time they had all eaten together. Even though Durandal had been a stranger back then, the dinner had been warm. Comforting. A little awkward, but somehow right.
And now, after all this time, Lee wanted to talk? Her "Final lesson."
The phrasing sent a chill up Kiana's spine. She flinched without understanding why.
Only her, Bronya, and Fu Hua had been invited.
It presumably wasn't a trap. The three of them were among the strongest combatants remaining. Anyone trying something underhanded would have picked a softer target.
But still…
What does she want?