Although she said that, they still ate quickly and went over.
Arriving at Theresa's office, Himeko was naturally nowhere to be seen. Theresa was also fully dressed in her nun's habit and wasn't sitting at her desk reading manga.
But she was standing on her tiptoes, seemingly trying to reach the nun's veil hanging high up…
Ah… so Theresa really didn't wear her veil because she couldn't reach it…
By the way, who was so mean as to put Theresa's veil so high up?
"That Himeko… Ah! You're here… cough cough!"
Seeing Kiana and the others arrive, Theresa coughed lightly, pretending to be serious as she explained the mission.
"This mission is relatively simple, but very urgent. Anti-Entropy's Cocoilia went to steal the Gem of Desire from Schicksal."
"That brave, huh? Did she die?"
Kiana didn't expect Cocoilia to be so bold as to directly steal from Schicksal. Of course, she also knew it definitely wasn't her in person.
"How could she possibly act herself? She merely used an insider she had planted in Schicksal."
As expected, Cocoilia wouldn't put herself in danger.
"Although we discovered it quickly, that person also reacted very fast, using some unknown acquired authority to shut down the entire facility."
"Hmm… then that facility is a bit embarrassing, being shut down by one person. By the way, are they filming Resident Evil?"
Kiana couldn't help but complain. She couldn't imagine Otto allowing his subordinate's gem to be stolen.
So… it was all Otto's fault!
"…That's not important. Now we need a team to infiltrate and retrieve the gem. You need sufficient strength, and you are the best candidates."
Theresa was also surprised that someone could steal a gem from Schicksal, but… considering the person was a high-ranking researcher.
He must have been studying the gem closely, so this… was normal?
"The mission location is in New Zealand. Himeko will pick us up shortly."
It was obvious Himeko went to pilot the Hyperion; who knows where it was parked.
"What is the tranquility gem…?"
Mei didn't refuse the mission; after all, she came from Chang Kong City to atone for her sins and to be with Kiana.
"It's… a Herrscher core, just like the tranquility gem that accelerated your awakening, Raiden Mei," Theresa explained.
"So, to prevent that guy from being provoked and resorting to desperate measures, you two are the best candidates. Cute girls always make people forgive them, right~?"
Although she was joking, Theresa knew very well that it was precisely this possibility that made Kiana's deployment necessary.
She hoped everything would end peacefully.
"A Herrscher, huh…"
Mei didn't expect to potentially encounter a Herrscher so soon.
"I told you it's just a gem! It's not in a person's body, so it's fine!"
Kiana reassured Mei, but… she herself knew better. This time, she would definitely encounter the Fourth Herrscher, Herrscher of Wind Wendy.
She didn't believe Otto didn't know whether the gem was with his subordinate or not. For this situation to arise, he must have intervened.
"Indeed, so if the mission is carried out quickly… you can still come back for dinner tonight!" Theresa nodded and said.
Not long after, Himeko sent a communication telling them to go to the Hyperion.
When she separated from Mei, Theresa once again handed her the earphone.
"I think… you also know this mission is very dangerous. That Cocoilia used the tranquility gem to cause the Honkai in Chang Kong City last time."
When Mei wasn't around, she naturally had to explain the seriousness of the mission.
After all, Kiana was already arranged to participate.
"This time it's the tranquility gem again, and there's a high chance you'll encounter a Herrscher. We… will provide assistance."
"…"
Kiana felt that while those options were somewhat useful in the end, they were mostly a pain.
"Don't worry about it being like last time! I made Ai-chan furiously play bishojo games for two weeks straight! No problem!"
Theresa was full of confidence. Ai-chan was an AI, after all; after extensive repetitive learning, her logic was very complete!
"Ah, this… Is Ai-chan okay?"
Kiana never expected that while other places trained protagonists to play games, here it became training an AI?!
"Option one, of course I'm fine! I'm a high-performance AI, so this level is certainly no problem! Option two…"
It seemed Ai-chan heard Kiana's concern and popped out, muttering strange words.
"Hey, hey, hey! Ai-chan is almost broken!"
She's already starting to list options!
"Ah… it's fine! Just temporary overheating! She'll be fine after a short rest!" Theresa's eyes conveyed the meaning, "Please trust me."
"Kiana? What's wrong with Ai-chan?"
It seemed Mei had been away too long and came looking for them.
"Nothing's wrong! She caught a cabbage virus last night, so all the AIs are confused right now! Aunt, let's go!"
Kiana quickly pushed Mei away, unable to let Mei find out.
She knew very well Mei was very hostile towards people who approached her with ulterior motives, just like at Chiyu Academy.
Before Mei delved into these matters, it was best to leave first.
"...Ai-chan, you should rest well."
Theresa felt Ai-chan was doing it on purpose, but there was no evidence, so she could only let her rest for now.
The Hyperion's speed was very fast. Why it waited until she woke up to arrive was probably because it cleared out the monsters in Chang Kong City and also searched for survivors.
"Alright, Hyperion has arrived at the mission location. Kiana, Mei, although the squad is not full, I have applied for and produced Valkyrie Armors for you."
Of course, it was impossible to let them just infiltrate as mere mortals. Human bodies have their limits.
"Next, change into your armors, and let's begin the mission! I've already put the mission map in the armor!"
As expected, the armors were the armors of the three main characters.
"That's efficient, getting them ready so quickly. I always feel like we're getting special treatment. Everyone else is still studying at the Academy, and we already have our own armors."
Kiana complained as she put on the armor. This was definitely a case of pulling strings.
The armor automatically adapted, so it could still be used even as they grew.
"To be honest, us getting into the Academy was already special treatment… Ah, speaking of which, is Bronya the last member of our three-person squad?"
Mei still remembered Theresa saying the squad wasn't full earlier.
"It's obviously her~! But we can't count on her right now, so let her lie in bed and rest well!"