The next day, Rita left.
Having completed her mission, she didn't stay for long. S-rank Valkyrie Rita was very busy. Perhaps due to the residual effects of the 3rd Eruption, small-scale Honkai eruptions began to occur in various parts of the world outside the Far East. Deadwalkers and Honkai Beasts frequently attacked human cities, and Rita needed to lead Valkyrie squads to eliminate several of the more tricky targets.
As a dignified S-rank Valkyrie, Rita could actually hand over most missions to the A-rank Valkyries under her command. Kings against kings, generals against generals—it was only logical.
A-rank Valkyries dealt with super-giant Honkai Beasts over a hundred meters tall, while the opponents of S-rank Valkyries were Emperor-class Honkai Beasts, Judgement-class Honkai Beasts, and even Herrschers.
"So, what happened? I received news that Himeko ordered all crew members to be on standby on the Hyperion yesterday."
Standing by the window of the Principal's office, watching the transport plane carrying Rita disappear from view, Theresa turned her head to look at Evan and asked.
Evan blinked innocently.
"Why do you think I have anything to do with this, Theresa?"
"Although Himeko often launched the Hyperion without my orders before, there is no Honkai outbreak in the Far East right now. She shouldn't have shown such a cautious demeanor. Rather than believing Himeko has some plan against Rita or even Schicksal, I'm more inclined to believe you put her up to it."
Honestly, Evan was quite surprised. He hadn't expected Theresa to notice something.
Although during this period, Evan and Himeko Murata, having tasted the forbidden fruit, had become somewhat addicted and spent every night together, they had been very secretive about it. No one should have discovered it.
At least, it shouldn't have been discovered by Theresa.
Glimpsing Evan's expression, Theresa raised an eyebrow.
"Do you know what Himeko said after I mentioned wanting you to be the Captain of the Hyperion?"
"I'd like to hear the details."
"She said that as the Captain of the Hyperion, you should have the authority to command everyone. Even I, as the Principal of St. Freya Academy, am just a Valkyrie when on board the Hyperion and need to heed your dispatch."
"Uh..."
"Whether or not we should go to that extent depends on your future performance, but I have clearly felt it. Compared to the Principal's orders, Himeko is more willing to listen to your opinions. Really, do I lack trustworthiness that much?"
By the end, Theresa seemed quite annoyed.
"Because you are cute, Theresa. You know, 'cute' and 'dignified' are two words that are far apart. You win some, you lose some."
This wasn't the first time Evan had called her cute. Although she had longed to hear others praise her before, the current Theresa still felt somewhat uncomfortable.
She decisively pulled the topic back on track.
"So, why did you have the Hyperion prepare for battle?"
"I was worried Schicksal might have ulterior motives."
"Did you discover something?"
"Some things that cannot be proven yet."
Kiana harbored the will of the 2nd Herrscher, Sirin, inside her. Because the Herrscher Core, the source of power, had been divided into several gems, the current will of Sirin had been asleep. Evan didn't think St. Freya Academy's technology could detect the other party's existence. To prove what he said was true, he would either have to rely on Schicksal's technology, seek help from Anti-Entropy, or merge the power of the gems into Kiana's body and inject a large amount of Honkai energy to activate Sirin's will.
The current Evan didn't want to choose any of those paths.
"..."
Evan's answer made Theresa sigh. She suddenly felt she was failing a bit as a Principal.
"Then did you tell Himeko about those unprovable things?"
"Never. I just asked her to have the Hyperion ready for battle. Luckily, Himeko has a high degree of trust in me and didn't ask much."
Evan's words made the previously annoyed Theresa feel much better. She turned around, walked to the desk, picked up her tablet, operated it for a while, and handed it to Evan.
"I haven't been idle during this time either. besides sending people to negotiate with various cities in the Far East about the Honkai Inhibitor Devices according to the plan you proposed earlier, I also collected some data. Take a look."
Data?
Evan originally thought it would be details on the manufacturing cost of the Honkai Inhibitor Devices or the attitudes of various cities in the Far East. It turned out to be something else.
"I heard from Bronya that to help Kiana learn history quickly, you entered Schicksal's virtual world. It contained data on the earliest warrior in history to fight the Honkai—Ji Lin, right?"
"Mhm."
Evan nodded while quickly browsing the text on the tablet.
It was the legend of Ji Lin, who possessed the ancient divine weapon [Xuanyuan Sword] and protected the land of Shenzhou in the distant past.
At the end of the legend, it mentioned that Ji Lin went to the Nine Realms (Nine Serenities) to defeat a Honkai Beast named Chiyou.
Noticing Evan's gaze and seeing that he had finished reading the data, Theresa spoke.
"If I'm not mistaken, that ancient divine weapon [Xuanyuan Sword] should be a Divine Key like my [Oath of Judah], a super weapon left behind by the Previous Era. It won't be damaged by the passage of time. Perhaps it would be very suitable for you."
Evan quickly understood Theresa's intention.
"So, you already have a plan, Theresa?"
"Kiana passed the history makeup exam. I can make her a trainee Valkyrie ahead of schedule, just like Raiden Mei and Bronya. She can search for the Nine Realms with you, the new Captain of the Hyperion. Fu Hua is originally from Shenzhou, so I'll ask her to collect further information. She'll be your guide when the time comes."
Theresa believed there was a high probability the legend was true, but she didn't have much faith that Evan and the others could actually find the Nine Realms or obtain the Xuanyuan Sword. This mission was more about letting Evan get familiar with the role of Captain and giving Kiana and the others some training.
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