Noticing Himeko's contemplative expression, Snow smiled mischievously.
"Himeko, do you know about the super-soldiers who fought the Honkai in the Previous Era—the MANTISes?" the blonde girl asked, throwing out the first question.
"MANTIS...? I don't know much about them. After all, I'm not a Schicksal archaeologist or scientist—but I have heard you mention the term often."
"The ancestors of your and Kiana's bloodlines, Kevin Kaslana and Su, the benefactor of the Apocalypse family—both were MANTISes from the Previous Era, according to your descriptions. And my other student, Fu Hua, she's one too. By the way, where is Fu Hua? Theresa said she went missing after covering their retreat." Himeko suddenly remembered and grew concerned for her other student.
"The Class Monitor... Himeko, you might not believe this... but she's in my head right now..." Kiana scratched her head, offering the answer under Himeko's bewildered gaze.
"The Eighth Divine Key, Fenghuang Down. Creating illusions and trapping people in them is just one of its functions. Its most crucial ability is to store the wielder's memories, and even their very consciousness—"
"Hindered by her deteriorating body, Fu Hua's exquisite combat skills—honed over tens of thousands of years and ingrained into her very instincts—gradually fell short against the Second Herrscher. Before her defeat, she managed to store a fragment of her consciousness in one of the few remaining feathers of Fenghuang Down."
"After her negotiations with Otto ultimately ended in a complete breakdown... accompanied by the gunshot of a certain old friend, her final remaining consciousness was transferred to that Fenghuang Down."
"So, Kiana wasn't wrong when she said... Fu Hua is now inside her head."
As Snow finished her explanation, a spectral image of a girl appeared before everyone. She had white hair with red streaks and was dressed in the style of a Shenzhou immortal.
Fu Hua's phantom shot an exasperated glare at Snow, who, upon seeing her appear, immediately turned away, whistling innocently as if nothing had happened.
"Teacher Himeko—"
Fu Hua performed a very Shenzhou-style clasped-fist salute toward Himeko.
"Fu Hua? What's with this outfit?"
"Hmm... This is what I wore during my time in ancient Shenzhou. Thanks to the help of that Herrscher of Memory who calls herself Huginn... my current state is indeed much better than before..."
The girl's phantom clenched her fists.
"Indeed... Class Monitor, you nearly unleashed Taixuan Eminence inside my head to blast that Purple Cat Snail..."
"Purple Cat Snail...? Pfft— Kiana's imagination is certainly vivid at times."
Fu Hua nodded sagely.
-
"I see now... this year's class at St. Freya is full of crouching tigers and hidden dragons."
Himeko sighed, feeling as if she had truly become an old woman left behind by the times.
No, wait. I'm not even thirty yet. What am I thinking?
"Ahem... could you two please stop interrupting?"
Seeing that the others had finished their conversation, Snow stopped whistling and approached Murata Himeko with a solemn expression.
"Mm... Snow, I heard what you said just now. You want Teacher Himeko to become a MANTIS?"
"Thanks to those restored memories, Snow, I must remind you... even in the late Previous Era, when MANTIS technology was incredibly mature, the transformation process was still inherently dangerous. Besides... where would we even get the technology?" Fu Hua warned everyone present about the risks of the MANTIS surgery.
"That's not what I meant. Even if she were to become a MANTIS—that choice doesn't rest with me, nor with you, nor with Kiana or anyone else. I'm merely relaying another possibility, another option, on someone else's behalf."
"The true choice belongs to you, and only you, Ms. Murata Himeko."
"Relaying on someone else's behalf?" Fu Hua's expression was puzzled.
"Of course, on someone else's behalf. If it were up to Kiana and me, we'd have Himeko shoved into a Schicksal sanatorium by now."
"Alright, I'm about to announce our decision—you lot still goofing off over there, settle down!"
Snow shot a glare at Bella, who had already started her 'uprising' by getting handsy with Doll Sirin, and Muninn, who was egging them on, clearly enjoying the chaos. The blonde girl then turned back to face the group before her.
For the first time in a long while, she wore the Valkyrie battlesuit Otto had given her as a birthday gift, a design reminiscent of the Schicksal Overseer's ceremonial attire. Her expression was solemn as she addressed the teacher from the Far East Branch.
"Murata Himeko, A-rank Valkyrie of the Schicksal Far East Branch—we have seen and acknowledged all your contributions to this civilization, to humanity, to Schicksal, and to these Valkyries."
"Now, I, Snow Apocalypse, hereby promise you that all Schicksal sanatoriums worldwide, including the one at Headquarters, will forever have their doors open to you, welcoming your arrival—should you choose it."
"Furthermore, considering your age and physical condition, all your non-civilian duties within Schicksal are hereby revoked, effective immediately—"
"...Can I take this as a declaration of forced retirement?"
"You may interpret it that way, Lady Himeko."
"And what if I submit another application for an Artificial Stigmata transplant?"
"Anyone who dares approve that application will be kicked off the Schicksal Headquarters floating island by me personally. Without a parachute."
The blonde girl stood before the red-haired woman, her expression blank. In a calm, unwavering tone, she spoke words that left no room for doubt.
"Forced retirement? Not even a chance?"
"None. You know full well what Schicksal's Artificial Stigmata are—"
"Then, in whose name?"
"Naturally, in the name of Schicksal. In the name of the Overseer's Apocalypse Family—and in the name of Snow Apocalypse, the spiritual leader of the Second Schicksal—I refuse."
Snow stood before the red-haired woman, completely blocking her path to ever becoming a Valkyrie again. Himeko understood that with the girl's status, if she refused, no one in Schicksal would ever accept her application.
Even approaching the two Doctors from Anti-Entropy was out of the question. They had always been critical of Artificial Stigmata technology, let alone performing the procedure themselves.
Thus, faced with the choice between retirement and continuing the fight, Murata Himeko decisively chose the latter.
"Fine! Then this retired teacher is running off to become a MANTIS! Lord Overseer of the Second Schicksal, I'll see you there!"
"...I knew it. You can never let go of your students, can you?"
"Hmph, isn't that obvious? How could a teacher stand by and watch from the sidelines!" Murata Himeko shot the girl an annoyed glare.
"Sigh... Mr. Su—no, Dr. Su—I'll be leaving our dear teacher in your care."
The blonde girl called out to a certain Previous Era ancestor who had been hiding in the shadows for quite some time.