Cecilia was instantly drawn to the descending Durandal, her eyes continuously scanning her up and down, an unusual feeling rising in her heart, causing her to show a thoughtful expression.
--------------------------------
Otto looked at Cecilia, who was lost in thought, and pursed his lips. He knew that paper could never truly cover fire.
Sure enough, as soon as Durandal appeared before Cecilia, she immediately noticed her. Perhaps this was the purest form of familial bond buried deep in blood.
Perhaps this was also why Theresa had never realized Durandal's true identity.
But now that Kallen had been resurrected and he had retired, there was no need to be as cautious as before. He spoke slowly, "Cecilia, I assume you've already noticed it, haven't you?"
Cecilia slowly raised her head, her calm gaze fixed on Otto, yet she said nothing.
Seeing this, Otto turned his eyes to Theresa and said, "Little Theresa, haven't you always wanted to know Kiana's whereabouts?"
Theresa looked surprised, her voice filled with joy and anticipation, "Grandpa, you're finally willing to talk about it?"
Otto nodded slightly, then turned his gaze toward Durandal and continued, "Mm, after hiding it for so long, it's time for her to know about her past and reunite with her family. Right now, Siegfried and Cecilia's daughter is standing right before you."
Everyone followed Otto's gaze and saw only Durandal standing at a high place, while Rita had already slipped aside, smiling at Durandal.
In an instant, the vast plaza fell silent.
Theresa's mouth twitched slightly as she secretly complained in her heart, 'How is that possible? If Durandal is really Kiana, then how could I not have noticed all this time? What does that make me?!'
The clownish Theresa still clung to a bit of hope and quickly asked, "Grandpa, don't joke about this kind of thing. How could Durandal possibly be Kiana? With that golden hair, I'd sooner believe she's your illegitimate daughter. Where's the real little Kiana?"
Otto looked at the not-so-bright Theresa, rubbed her head, and sighed, "Theresa, so that's what you thought? I wouldn't mind, but unfortunately, I, Otto, don't have such blessings."
Cecilia's gaze locked firmly on Durandal, her voice resolute, "Theresa, I believe what Otto said. He has no reason to lie at a time like this. I can feel it, she really is Kiana."
"The strongest Valkyrie of Schicksal, Durandal, is Dad and Mom's biological daughter? My... sister?"
Kiana's eyes widened, her face full of shock. The strongest S-rank Valkyrie of Schicksal, the one she had always wanted to surpass, was actually her sister.
'Do I still need to surpass her then?'
No, she still had to surpass her. Even if it's her sister, it doesn't matter!
After a moment, Kiana seemed to suddenly remember something and slowly turned her gaze toward Theresa, asking softly, "Aunt, why didn't you ever realize that Durandal was my sister?"
Bronya cast a disdainful glance, saving Theresa some face, and unceremoniously mocked, "Stupid Kiana, with Durandal's dazzling golden hair, who could possibly associate her with the all-white-haired Kaslana family?"
Kiana scratched her head thoughtfully, "Come to think of it... that's true. I misunderstood you, Aunt. I'm sorry."
Theresa waved her hand and said softly, "You're forgiven. And I do have some fault. I've met Durandal many times, yet I never noticed or suspected anything. I truly am an unqualified aunt."
With that, a trace of sadness flashed through her eyes, but soon she gratefully looked at Bronya, who had "argued in her favor... uh, explained things."
Meanwhile, Durandal, who was at the center of the discussion, was completely dumbfounded, her mind echoing, 'Who am I? Where am I? What just happened?'
She looked at Otto in disbelief, as though every word he said was pure nonsense.
Otto noticed Durandal's reaction, smiled helplessly, and continued, "Durandal's golden hair came about when, during the theft of the K423 experimental subject with Siegfried, she fell freely from several thousand meters onto a snowy mountain, her life on the brink of death.
I used Soulium technology to save her. Her hair turned golden during the treatment, and she also lost her memories prior to the age of eight."
Cecilia, quietly listening on the side, had shock and heartache flash through her eyes. She slowly walked up to Durandal, looking at the girl now as tall as herself, her heart filled with emotion.
Cecilia gently reached out, embracing Durandal softly, and said tenderly, "Kiana, you must have had a hard time all these years."
The sudden hug left Durandal momentarily at a loss, her mind going blank. She hadn't expected Cecilia to suddenly embrace her.
Her body stiffened, not knowing how to respond to the sudden action.
However, deep inside, Durandal realized she didn't want to push Cecilia away.
On the contrary, she seemed to yearn for this feeling of being embraced, yearn for the warmth that came from the other person.
Amid the swirl of confused thoughts, Durandal tried to calm herself. She took a deep breath and said slowly, "Miss Cecilia, just call me Durandal. Lord Otto has been good to me. I don't feel like it's been hard."
This was the truth.
The memories she had lost were no longer that important to her. She had already found her own future, she was Durandal, Bianca Atagina Durandal.
Kiana, however, felt her heart tremble, her face full of guilt and sorrow.
'If it had been me who fell from that aircraft back then, wouldn't sister and Dad be living happily now? Then the name that originally belonged to my sister wouldn't have been stolen by me...'
While Kiana was drowning in guilt, Fu Lin noticed her abnormal expression.
He reached out, gently patted Kiana's shoulder, and asked with concern, "What are you thinking about? Your face is all twisted up, it looks ugly."
Kiana slowly raised her head, gazing at Fu Lin, her eyes shimmering as if with tears. She softly murmured, "Fu Lin, do you think if I had been the one who fell from the aircraft back then, sister and Dad would have been happy?"
Fu Lin's expression grew subtly odd when he heard this. After a moment of silence, he slowly said, "That's not necessarily true."
Kiana looked at him suspiciously, as if asking why he would say such a thing.
Fu Lin explained, "Maybe it would have been like in Honkai Gakuen 2, the end would have come early, resulting in the 'Apocalyptic Destruction' achievement. Of course, that's just one possibility."
Kiana's mouth dropped open in shock as she said in disbelief, "No way, right?"
Fu Lin gave a helpless smile, "I told you, it's just a possibility, not a certainty. Just treat it as me talking nonsense."
Then he shifted the topic and continued, "Back then, Durandal fell from that aircraft to protect you. If you think like that, it's like denying everything she did as meaningless."
Hearing Fu Lin's words, Kiana's guilt eased a little. She couldn't help but chuckle softly and said, "Okay, hearing you say that really does make me feel a lot better."
Kiana☆ had somehow appeared behind the two, staring at them with a ghostly gaze, "You two seem to be enjoying your conversation～"
"W-wronged! I was just comforting Kiana, nothing else!"
Fu Lin's hair stood on end as he hurriedly explained, and Kiana nodded beside him in agreement, "That's right."