"Hey, Elias Elias! Sit next to me!"
"Alright, Kiana."
Elias couldn't help but smile wryly at the white-haired bundle of energy in front of him.
Fish are said to have a seven-second memory—he figured his little paramecium probably wasn't that different.
Just this morning when they left the Valkyrie dorms, she was full of rage and grudge, threatening to make him pay. Yet now she was back to her cheerful, bubbly self.
She really didn't hold grudges at all.
Well, maybe her memory just wasn't great. (lol)
"Sorry, but it's all fixed now."
"Hm? What was that, Elias?"
"Nothing, all healed."
Elias lightly touched Kiana's neck, and under the healing powers of the Herrscher of Death, the bite mark faded away completely. Her neck was once again smooth and white.
Although, he did feel a tinge of regret as his mark disappeared. Watching the proof of his claim vanish from her body left him slightly unwilling.
Still, he knew that was just selfishness and possessiveness talking—as if the girl with his mark belonged to him alone. Not the healthiest thought.
"Elias, actually... I wouldn't mind."
"Hm? Mei, you wouldn't mind what?"
"N-Nothing..."
Having finally mustered up the courage, Mei instantly lost it again.
She couldn't possibly say she wanted Elias to bite her too, right? If anything, that'd have to wait until they were alone in the dorm. Right now, they were in class—dozens of curious eyes secretly watching them.
Elias, Mei, Kiana, Bronya, and Seele were naturally the center of attention in the classroom.
Thanks to Kiana's big mouth over the past two days, the Valkyries of St. Freya were well-informed about what had happened during the Third Honkai Eruption.
So they were especially curious about Elias and Mei.
A girl who became a Herrscher.
And a boy who brought that Herrscher back to humanity's side.
"Raiden Mei, are you really a Herrscher? Your power is electricity, right?"
"Wow, I've never seen a real Herrscher before. The textbooks said they're humanoid, but you seem just like a normal girl!"
"You're Elias? The hero who saved Nagazora?! C-Can I shake your hand?!"
"Are you two really together? Like, together together?"
Once the first Valkyrie summoned the courage to speak up, more and more followed. Soon, Elias and Mei were completely surrounded by beautiful girls.
For Mei, this wasn't unfamiliar. Back at Chiba Academy before her father's imprisonment, she was often the center of attention.
But Elias found it rather novel.
Even though Mei looked like a regular beautiful girl now, her identity as a Herrscher hadn't changed. Yet these Valkyries still had the courage to come gossip—how bold were they?
"Your attitude toward Herrschers is... much more positive than I expected."
Honestly, Elias had worried Mei might be ostracized because of her powers.
After all, Valkyries were warriors trained specifically to fight the Honkai. Herrschers were its very agents—natural enemies.
"Well~ we learned in class that so far, every Herrscher who's shown up has been a good person."
"Oh? Can you elaborate?"
"Just check the textbook, Elias."
One Valkyrie immediately flipped open her book to the relevant page. Elias took one glance—and was instantly stunned.
The textbook detailed the exploits of the First Herrscher of Reason (Welt) and the Second Herrscher of the Void (Elias). And surprisingly, the account wasn't distorted by Otto's usual shameless tampering—the records were accurate and truthful.
It clearly described how the Herrscher of Reason had protected an entire city, and how the Herrscher of the Void had faced down a rain of missiles alone to protect someone dear to him.
The textbook praised their heroic acts and emphasized that Herrschers were still human—that they weren't inherently enemies of humanity.
(Makes sense. Schicksal isn't the only big player anymore. Thanks to me, Anti-Entropy has closed the gap a lot in recent years. And St. Freya is no longer just a Schicksal sub-branch—it's become a truly independent Valkyrie training institution.)
Add to that all the A-rank Valkyries who were saved by Elias during the Second Eruption—many of whom now work as instructors here—and Otto couldn't rewrite history even if he wanted to.
Sure, he could falsify digital records, but he couldn't erase the memories of so many who were saved. Those people chose to speak out and publicly share Elias' deeds—to prove that even as a Herrscher, he was a hero.
A true hero shouldn't be slandered.
And thanks to that, today's young Valkyries weren't as blindly misled as they would've been in the original timeline. They didn't see Herrschers as irredeemable enemies.
"So that's how it is... That's wonderful."
"Mm, if I ever meet them in person, I want to thank those two seniors who changed how the world sees us."
Mei said sincerely. She had braced herself for rejection or isolation from her classmates.
"Hehe, no need to thank me~" (super quiet)
Elias smiled and whispered.
After all, Mei, the two Herrschers mentioned in the book—of Void and of Reason—were standing right in front of her.
As the warning bell rang, history teacher Welt Yang walked into the classroom.
(Seriously, what is he doing here...?)
Elias looked at Welt in confusion. You're the Herrscher of Reason, the leader of Anti-Entropy. Why are you not drawing Homu comics or running a resistance? What are you doing teaching history at a Valkyrie academy?
Tired of being a Herrscher? Ready to retire?
If so, please hand over your core to me. Let me boost my power—or at least let Bronya ride a bike with a sidecar.
Go ahead and enjoy early retirement. No one will stop you.
"Alright, before we start class, let's have the new students introduce themselves."
"...Hello everyone, I'm Elias. I like music. Please take care of me."
"Hello, I'm Raiden Mei. I'm a Herrscher. I enjoy cooking. I hope we can get along."
Their intros didn't need to be long—Kiana's big mouth had already thoroughly introduced them over the past two days.
Still, Elias found himself reflecting.
Good grief. Every Herrscher currently active in this era was sitting in one classroom. St. Freya really was the Academy of Herrschers.
"Alright, let's begin the lesson."
"Zzzzzzzz~~"
"Elias, please wake the Kiana next to you. Also, let her know that due to sleeping through three consecutive classes, she's already failed this subject."
Elias looked down, speechless, at the already-dozing Kiana beside him.
What an infant-level ability to fall asleep.
How did she even manage this? She was clearly awake during his and Mei's self-introductions, but the moment her eyes touched the textbook—bam, out cold.
...
"Aaaah! I refuse to accept this!"
Upon learning she had flunked the course at light speed, Kiana wailed and rolled on the floor, loudly questioning whether her pride even mattered anymore.
It was only her third day at school!
"Alright, alright, don't be mad. Here, have a drumstick and calm down."
"Ooh, om nom!"
"Look at it this way—since you already failed, there's no point paying attention anymore."
"You're right! Elias, you're a genius!"
"...She didn't actually fall for that, did she?"
Elias couldn't help but laugh.
Sure, failing the class meant a retake—but Kiana was taking the concept of giving up to another level. Sure, learning without thinking is pointless, but no thinking and no learning is... strangely satisfying.
Even though she treated textbooks like sleeping pills in lecture, she was a whole different beast during combat training.
"Elias Elias, look!"
"Mhm~ not bad."
"Hehe! Third-gen Valkyrie battlesuit—B-rank: Valkyrie Chariot, White Comet! Doesn't it look amazing on me~?"
"Emmm... it's pretty lewd."
Elias blinked, offering a very sincere evaluation.
Sure, it was technically high-tech combat gear, but on her it looked like a tight, white bodysuit that hugged every curve. Her slim waist, those slender legs—this suit showed everything.
In the game, it didn't seem like a big deal. But in real life, one bounce from this girl and Elias felt like his vision was under assault.
While he had plenty of grudges against Otto, on the matter of Valkyrie suit design... he had to applaud the man. Otto really nailed it!
"Hm? Stars and cat motifs? Did you customize this yourself, Kiana?"
"N-No! Himeko made me do it! I don't particularly like stars or cats or anything!"
"Really? I think it's cute—especially the cat part."
Elias reached up and patted Kiana's head.
Such a cute little kitty—born to be gobbled up by Daddy. Heheheh~
Even if the White Comet suit underperformed in the game, in real life it was second only to fourth-gen Godsbane suits.
In fact, Kiana's battlesuit could even transform into Knight Moonbeam under optimal Honkai energy conditions.
After all, Kiana was Otto's chosen awakening vessel for the next Herrscher of the Void. In his grand resurrection plan for Kallen, she was the first—and most important—piece.
No way would he let anything happen to his precious paramecium.
"Theresa, what about mine..."
Elias looked expectantly at the headmaster passing by. She froze like a kitten caught stealing snacks.
"U-Uh... I still need more time to negotiate with Grandpa—cough, with Schicksal HQ. The fourth-gen suits are Godsbane-class, and we only have a few total. Even if we get one approved, we'd need to redesign it for a guy."
"Alright, alright. I'll wait."
Elias waved it off understandingly—but secretly hoped Otto would just hand him a male version of Key of the Void... with a couple of bonus Herrscher cores on the side.
"Mei, your suit looks great too."
"Thanks. It's the Crimson Impulse set."
"But it's totally pink..."
Elias muttered.
Mei's style was a clear contrast to Kiana's. Her suit was also a third-gen Valkyrie battlesuit.
Unfortunately, it couldn't evolve into a Godsbane-type.
Meanwhile, Bronya was wearing the standard Valkyrie Chariot gear. Just looking at her made Elias decide—one day, he'd get this girl on a motorcycle, wearing that elegant Herrscher gown.
All in all, their suits matched their in-game default outfits. Of course, for Mei—who was already the Herrscher of Thunder—the armor was kind of unnecessary.
As for Elias and Seele, they had no battlesuits for now. Elias was a special case with too high of requirements, and Seele had only just joined—Theresa needed time to prepare.
"Let's go train!"
With that, Kiana grabbed Elias' hand and dragged him off to the training field, excited like a kitten begging its owner to go outside.
"Kiana, are you sure about this?"
"Of course! I've got a new battlesuit now—there's no way I'm losing to you again!"
"Ah, youth."
Elias gave her a slightly amused look. Time to show this girl—who got a new outfit and immediately got cocky—what reality looked like. Not that he was jealous or anything. Definitely not.
The two arrived at the training hall, each holding training weapons. As the countdown ended, they rushed toward each other.
"Elias! Eat my kick!"
"Nice speed—but way too naive."
Kiana leapt high—easily over ten meters into the air—and aimed a textbook knight kick right at Elias.
But he'd seen that coming a mile away. She was clearly used to fighting Honkai Beasts—mindless enemies. Fighting people was a whole different ballgame.
He simply sidestepped and let her fly past, then gave her a none-too-gentle kick to the backside.
"Ow! Elias, you kicked my butt?! I'll get you back for that! Behold the might of Kaslana gun-fu!"
"Oh? You mean that mix of kicks and punches with the occasional bullet for flair?"
Elias chuckled.
Siegfried's teaching methods were... subpar, to put it nicely. Kiana's version of Kaslana combat was far from official.
It was more like a few base moves mashed with her own improvised techniques—barely better than street brawling.
Though her aim was decent.
Even so, Elias didn't bother dodging the tranquilizer rounds.
"Foul! I hit you! Why are you still running?!"
"Dummy. Unless you're firing Honkai-core sniper rounds or heavy artillery, bullets like these can't hurt me. Your peashooter can't even break my skin."
Elias' current body had evolved far beyond human limits. Thanks to the Herrscher of Death's powers, he was virtually bulletproof—on par with high-tier Honkai Beasts.
"Tch! It's not over yet!"
"Not bad. Your speed and strength really have improved. That battlesuit's doing work."
Even as Kiana went all out, it wasn't enough.
Against Elias' monstrous physicality, Kaslana brute strength just didn't cut it.
In terms of technique, Kiana was arguably better—but this was a pure stat difference. When your opponent outclassed you in agility, power, and defense, even good technique fell flat.
Especially when that opponent fought like a lunatic.
Thanks to self-regeneration via Herrscher of Death's Authority, Elias treated defense as optional. Offense was his best defense. Trading blows? No problem—he'd just heal.
"Kuha!"
Kiana went flying again from a palm strike. Elias had held back—if it'd been a fist, she'd be out cold.
Having been beaten down long enough, Kiana finally reached her limit.
Without hesitation, she activated her ultimate.
"NekoCharm! (Nice and Bouncy!)"
She launched herself into the air again, this time with a golden cat-shaped aura engulfing her leg.
It was a massive, glowing kitty kick—and it could actually break through Elias' defenses.
"Hmm. That is pretty bouncy."
Elias looked at the shining feline foot flying toward him. The blow could hurt him, no question.
"Too bad... flaw—fleeting!!"
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