My dearest Ninti,
I hope this letter finds you well. It's been a year since we last met. During my travels, I've made new companions and friends, and I've also reclaimed my family name.
You once told me you had forgotten your surname, and we promised that when I rediscovered mine, I would share it with you. So... from this day forward, you are a member of the Apocalypse family. But—do not reveal this lightly, Ninti. The history and burdens carried by this name are far older and heavier than you can imagine.
Finally, come find me, Ninti. I need you now, and my friends need you too. Come to my side... my child. Seek out Irene; she will tell you where I am.
Until then,
Respectfully awaiting your reply,
Snow Apocalypse
-
After refolding the letter, the petite blonde girl tucked the envelope into her dress, rose from her chair, and headed toward her bedroom to pack her luggage. It was time to leave.
After neatly folding her clothes and placing them in her suitcase, she retrieved the two daggers Miss Irene had gifted her and added them to the case. Ninti gazed at the sparsely packed suitcase, wondering if she had forgotten anything.
Her gaze shifted to the right, and her pet—a large, golden tabby cat—came into view. Her purple eyes darted back and forth between the slumbering cat and the nearly empty suitcase. Finally, she reached out with guilty hands, scooped up the chubby cat, and attempted to stuff it into the suitcase.
"Neither cats nor daggers are allowed in your luggage—they're prohibited items, you know," a gentle, slightly teasing voice chimed in from behind her. The gray-gold, short-haired maid stood behind the girl.
"Sister Irene..." Ninti turned around, clutching the orange cat awkwardly, unsure where to put it.
"Just put the kitten down, Ninti," the maid said with a hint of exasperation, her gaze softening as she looked at the little girl's lack of common sense.
"So, Little Ninti wants to go out?" Rita asked, eyeing the neatly packed suitcase.
The girl nodded.
"And who is Little Ninti going to see?" the maid continued, her smile warm as she observed the fidgeting, blonde-haired child.
"..." After a moment's hesitation, Ninti pulled an envelope from her pocket and handed it to the maid.
"Sister Irene... can be trusted," Ninti affirmed with a nod.
Rita took the envelope and unfolded the letter inside. Instead of reading the contents, her eyes immediately went to the signature at the bottom: Snow Apocalypse.
-
"I see... Lady Snow has already found what belongs to her," Rita murmured, nodding slightly as she carefully refolded the letter and returned it to Ninti.
"So, little Ninti wants to go find Lady Snow?"
"Lady Snow said she needs Ninti... Ninti wants to be with Lady Snow," Ninti replied earnestly, gazing at the maid before her.
"...I see. Then Ninti must protect Lady Snow," Rita nodded.
"...Ninti will!"
"Well then, Sister Irene has prepared a gift for you. She originally intended to give it to you when you were older."
"But since you're leaving on a long journey now, we'll have to give it to you now."
Rita reached behind her and produced a set of white robes with a hooded cloak.
"Ugh..." The girl didn't rush forward excitedly at the sight of the new clothes. Instead, remembering some unpleasant past experience, her face paled with terror as she backed away slowly.
"Come on, Ninti, try it on! I'll show you how to use it," the maid said with a smile, grabbing the girl who was trying to flee.
"Ugh! What are you doing? Let go!" The golden-haired girl spat out in mangled english.
That day, Ninti was once again reminded of her past humiliation—being treated like a doll and forced into bizarre outfits by Rita.
"Hmm... all done!" Rita nodded approvingly at her masterpiece. Before her stood a figure clad in a white robe and hooded cowl, resembling an assassin master straight out of a video game—though this particular assassin might be a little on the short side.
"Ninti, listen carefully. This suit is officially called the Valkyrie Battlesuit. It's equipped with full-spectrum cloaking, electronic jamming systems, and a biological pheromone deception device currently in the Schicksal experimental phase."
"You can activate it either through the wristband or by voice command. It's very simple to operate, Little Ninti. You can try it out later." Rita reached out to smooth the white robe, which had become slightly wrinkled during Ninti's struggles.
"And finally, one last small gift... Ninti, remember to thank any big sister who looks like Lady Snow when you see her in the future, okay?"
"A big sister who looks like Lady Snow?" Ninti's expression was puzzled.
"It's Lady Bianca! Here, Ninti, this is your identity card. I, Sister Irene, asked Lady Bianca to get you the A-rank Qualification for Schicksal Valkyries."
"Lady Bianca... I see now, Sister Irene! With this, I can go be by Lady Snow's side, right?" Ninti looked at the rectangular card in her hand, still a little confused.
"I've already submitted your application for you, Ninti. Miss Snow is currently stationed at Schicksal's Far East Branch. The transport ship should be ready by this afternoon," Rita said after a moment's thought.
"Huh? When?"
"Just now, of course! After all, being a perfect maid means taking care of every detail, right?"
-
"What?! Grandpa wants to assign an A-rank Valkyrie to the Far East Branch? Absolutely not! I absolutely refuse!"
Theresa stormed around her office, waving a recently approved transfer request at her adjutant and Murata Himeko.
"But... this wasn't approved by the Lord Overseer," the adjutant said helplessly, watching the Headmaster's tantrum.
"Huh? Let me see... 'Request to be transferred to the Far East Branch'? 'Approved by the Schicksal Council'?" Theresa examined the application with growing bewilderment.
"But aren't Valkyries of this type supposed to be stationed at Schicksal Headquarters only?!" Theresa pointed at the applicant's profile card attached to the request.
Infiltration Operations, Intelligence Gathering, Special Operations, Assassination. If the profile had tags, every single one of these four would apply.
"This person's from the Cleanup Squad, right? Right?! They must be! Why would someone like that come to St. Freya Academy?!" Theresa screamed, her composure crumbling.
"Could it be... have they finally discovered I've been secretly using academy funds to buy Homu manga and plushies?! Is Grandpa finally going to disinherit his spendthrift granddaughter?!" Theresa jumped off her Headmaster's chair and began pacing anxiously around the room.
A deathly silence suddenly fell over the Headmaster's office.
"Theresa/Headmaster, you'd better explain... What do you mean you've been using academy funds to buy Homu comics and dolls?!" Veins bulged on the foreheads of the Adjutant and Himeko.
Two iron hands seized Theresa, who had been pacing the office, their grip so tight that her skull creaked ominously.
"...Judah, save me!!!" a desperate scream echoed from the Headmaster's office, startling a flock of birds into flight.