"Of course I said all that on purpose. But even if you know, what can you do about it? Otto, the only option before you now is to trust me."
Elias muttered to himself. With a casual flick of his hand, a bolt of electricity shot out and crack—the drone shattered into pieces.
"Right now, you're completely useless. I'll give you a bit of motivation to move forward. Hopefully you'll show me something interesting."
The reason he deliberately revealed information about the Imaginary Tree?
It was nothing more than a whim on Elias' part.
The current Otto was simply too dull. His greatest use lately had been serving as an audience for Elias to flaunt his affection without restraint. Every day he was bombarded with lovey-dovey photos of Elias and Eliana Kaslana until he practically coughed up blood—and yet he could do nothing about it.
Although the reason for that was that Elias had already stripped Otto of nearly all his power and trump cards, he now rather hoped that one of the so-called final bosses of this world would pull himself together and bring him some amusement or surprise.
As for whether Elias might overturn the board by doing this.
There was no chance at all.
At this very moment, Otto's every move was under his surveillance. If he dared take any action Elias disliked, he could be rendered powerless in an instant.
Because Elias had planted a spy.
"Keep monitoring him. If that bastard tries anything wicked again—human experimentation, for example—inform me immediately. I'll execute him myself," Elias said to someone.
(Yes, Lord Elias.)
The white-haired, golden-masked, modified Valkyrie secretary standing right beside Otto responded silently in her heart.
That's right. The Archbishop of Schicksal's chief secretary was the spy Elias had planted. Amber had long since become his person.
Back in the Cecilia side-story incident, Elias had captured more than two hundred Valkyries from Schicksal. Among them was this modified Valkyrie. Once he learned that Amber was Otto's most trusted secretary, how could he possibly not make proper use of her?
Back then, he had taken a direct and forceful approach—using the Authority of Discipline combined with the Authority of Corruption—to seize control of Amber and make her submit to him.
Elias: (At the time, I did consider slowly taming her. But there wasn't enough time, and Amber's loyalty to that damned Otto was extremely high. I had no choice but to use harsher methods.)
This modified girl had not disappointed him.
Of the more than two hundred Valkyries Elias had captured, Otto had suspected every single one of them afterward and reassigned them all to obscure posts. Only Amber, the Archbishop's secretary, had never been moved. She continued to enjoy Otto's "trust."
Though Otto had once suspected her as well, nothing had happened over the past twenty-four years. Even a cautious fool like him had gradually relaxed his guard.
Thus he had no idea that the trusted secretary at his side had already been reshaped entirely into Elias' form.
Amber: (I am deeply sorry, Archbishop. I have long since belonged to Lord Elias. Although my loyalty toward you has never changed or diminished... my body no longer obeys my mind. It obeys that Lord's commands instead.)
"Come to think of it, I really did something rather terrible," Elias said with a delighted smile. "I controlled her body instead of her mind, letting Amber remain mentally clear while watching herself betray Otto against her will. My conscience aches just a little."
He looked thoroughly pleased. This was his punishment for the artificial girl.
"Although Otto was the one who created you, and I understand your decision to devote your loyalty to him... that doesn't change the fact that you chose to stand in a villain's camp. Since that's the case, I'll have to forcibly pull you from darkness into the light, regardless of your will. Miss Amber, you should thank me."
Amber: (Yes. Thank you, Lord Elias.)
Behind the golden mask, Amber's eyes were slightly unfocused. For twenty-four whole years, due to the Authority of Discipline and the Authority of Corruption, she had existed in a state where her mind resisted, yet her body obeyed.
This kind of play was undeniably stimulating.
To the point that this naturally airheaded secretary had recently begun to feel that something about her was changing. Or perhaps... she had already started to grow accustomed to it.
"For now, continue following Otto's orders. Oh, right—does your authority grant you access to the Godsbane Suit?"
(No problem, Lord Elias.)
"Good. Help me secretly deliver all the remaining Godsbane Suits. Leaving them with that damned Otto is just a waste anyway."
(Yes. I understand.)
With Elias' current abilities, obtaining Schicksal's remaining Godsbane Suits would be effortless.
He could simply open a portal and take them by force.
But he deliberately ordered Amber to steal them instead. That, too, was part of her training.
Inside Schicksal Headquarters.
Otto: "I need to reformulate my plan to reach the Imaginary Tree. For the time being, do not allow anyone to disturb me. You will handle all the Archbishop's duties in my stead, Amber. You'll have to work overtime during this period."
Amber: "Understood, Archbishop." (This is merely Lord Elias' command.)
...
Two weeks passed after that.
St. Freya Academy.
Three weeks had already gone by since the new students enrolled. Whether they were newly recruited Valkyries or former Herrschers from the Previous Era, they had completed their initial training. The former still required further refinement, but the latter were already extremely powerful combat forces.
"How is the pseudo-Divine Key project progressing?"
"Very smoothly. That Doctor Vill-V is truly incredible. Our equipment has already undergone a full upgrade. Even a C-rank Valkyrie is now using soulium weaponry."
"And the pseudo-Divine Key plan you proposed, Elias—we've already completed one hundred of them. They've been distributed with priority to the captains of each Valkyrie squad. The increase in combat power is obvious."
Cecilia and Theresa reported.
Although the two of them were officially the principal and vice-principal of St. Freya Academy, everyone understood that the true power behind this Valkyrie-and-Herrscher academy was Elias.
"Mm~ Not bad, not bad. It's starting to resemble Fire Moth from the Previous Era a little. But the atmosphere here at St. Freya is much more relaxed. It's still not efficient enough."
Elias pulled Cecilia into his arms, enjoying the soft warmth of the white-haired beauty as he spoke.
However, he had no intention of pushing things too far. Unlike Fire Moth, St. Freya Academy was, after all, a school. Most of its Herrschers and Valkyries were young girls around twenty years old.
Simply sending them onto the battlefield against Honkai was already unreasonable enough. Elias had no intention of turning them into combat machines. The current state was good enough.
After all, World Serpent had already stepped into the open. Together with Anti-Entropy and Schicksal, the burden was no longer borne by a single organization like Fire Moth had done in the Previous Era. The Current Era was far less tense.
"Here. Thirty additional pseudo-Cores. Deliver them to Vill-V later and let her decide how to use them."
As he spoke, Elias placed thirty brilliantly colored gemstones onto the table. Each gem radiated dense Honkai energy. An ordinary person standing this close would already have been corroded.
"Oh—okay!"
Theresa took out a soulium jewelry box and carefully placed each pseudo-Core inside.
These beautiful gems, instinctively desirable to any girl, contained enough power to elevate an ordinary human beyond an A-rank Valkyrie.
"Elias, are you really fine dividing your own power like this? Won't it weaken you?" Cecilia asked worriedly.
The pseudo-Divine Key project used these pseudo-Cores to forge highly versatile Divine Keys, which were then equipped to top-ranking Valkyries to enhance their combat strength.
The results were obvious.
An A-rank Valkyrie wielding a pseudo-Divine Key could fight evenly against an S-rank like Rita. Some had even voluntarily fused with a Core to become pseudo-Herrscher Valkyries, gaining combat power surpassing ordinary S-ranks.
Thanks to this, St. Freya Academy's overall strength had skyrocketed once again. The number of A-rank and S-rank Valkyries had reached an unprecedented level, suppressing seventy percent of the world's Honkai outbreaks.
What Cecilia worried about now was whether these pseudo-Cores, created from Elias' own power, would diminish him.
"Well, there is some weakening," Elias said, clenching his right fist. "But in exchange for that loss, I've gained even more power."
In the original timeline, Six-Core Sirin had once divided her power to create four pseudo-Herrschers, including Benares. Although it caused her considerable expenditure, whenever those pseudo-Herrschers destroyed human cities, they in turn supplied her with massive amounts of Honkai energy.
That was why, during the Second Eruption, Sirin had been able to unleash large-scale attacks repeatedly.
Elias was doing something similar. Although creating pseudo-Cores weakened him initially, when the Divine Keys forged from them—and the Valkyries who fused with them—fought against Honkai, the pseudo-Cores would automatically absorb the Honkai energy from defeated Honkai Beasts and transmit it back to Elias.
As a result, his power did not decrease. It increased instead.
"Everything is going smoothly. My Honkai energy is about to break the four-million HW mark. Though it's still a long way from a certain Herrscher of Finality," Elias said.
Existing instruments could not measure the Herrscher of Finality's Honkai energy output. Every time they tried, the machines overloaded.
By Elias' conservative estimate, the Herrscher of Finality possessed at least ten million HW. After all, who knew how much Honkai energy it would take to rewind an entire era back to its primitive beginnings?
"By the way, Elias, there's actually another issue at the academy," Theresa suddenly said.
"Hm? What happened?"
"The Herrschers from the Previous Era... although they complete every assigned mission, they lack enthusiasm. In the end, they're only helping humanity to repay your kindness. There's a huge gap in conviction compared to ordinary Valkyries."
Cecilia gave a wry smile. In terms of combat strength, the Previous Era Herrschers were reliable. But their morale was extremely low. Simply put, they lacked belief.
Protecting the world required at least some passion. Although no major problems had arisen yet, it was already affecting the academy's overall morale.
And if their enthusiasm could be ignited, their capabilities would undoubtedly yield even greater results.
Of course, Cecilia had no intention of exploiting them. Not everyone was a black-hearted capitalist like Mobius or MEI.
She simply hoped the Herrschers could feel more vitality—and pride in what they were doing.
"Alright. Then let's think of something together."
Elias gently raised a hand and stroked Cecilia's hair before beginning to consider possible solutions.
Just then, another white figure appeared. Misteln naturally slipped into his arms and spoke.
"I have an idea~ It may not make the Herrschers proud of protecting the world, but it will greatly increase their enthusiasm."
"Oh? Let's hear it."
Elias' eyes lit up. He knew his dear Miss [Idea] was always a cunning—cough—clever girl.
Incidentally, Elias was feeling rather pleased at the moment.
Holding Cecilia on one side and Misteln on the other.
Double the joy. Ultimate enjoyment.
Watching the two identical white-haired beauties in Elias' arms, a certain small girl nearby could only drool enviously.
"Don't rush~ As an exchange, my dear master must go on a date with me once a week from now on."
"Oh? You're negotiating terms with me now?"
"Is that not allowed?"
Misteln blinked cutely.
Elias instantly felt himself sinking.
"Deal! Now tell me—what's the idea?"
"Hehe~ It's simple. Since you are the source of motivation for these Herrschers, just provide a bit more incentive."
"Eh? What do you mean?"
Seeing Misteln's innocent yet scheming smile, Elias felt both intrigued and uneasy.
The very next day.
After implementing Misteln's proposal, the results were immediate.
The Previous Era Herrschers, who had previously yawned through missions without enthusiasm or morale, suddenly behaved as if injected with adrenaline. That very day, they began competing intensely.
From then on, each of them accepted at least three deployment missions per day. The academy's transport aircraft were no longer sufficient. Elias had to construct more than a dozen additional ones—and even then, it was barely enough.
Because under the new reward system, the top ten performers each month would earn the opportunity to go on a one-day date with Elias.
Previous Era Herrscher of Fire: "There's such a good deal?!"
Previous Era Herrscher of Death: "Sheele! Grab the missions!"
Current Era Valkyries: "A date with Elias? Charge!"
Raiden Mei: "What is that woman thinking?!"
Aponia: "Truly Misteln's style..."
Within St. Freya Academy, no one disliked Elias. In fact, more than ninety-five percent of the Valkyries and Herrschers secretly admired him. In the past, lacking any opportunity, they could restrain themselves.
But now the opportunity was right before them. As long as they competed hard enough, they could date the prince of their dreams—and perhaps even take things further.
Thus the entire academy entered a frenzy of competition. Its efficiency rivaled Fire Moth at its peak. Once again and again, Honkai was crushed beneath their feet.
"So this is your method?" Elias asked.
"Of course~ For the sake of protecting the world, my dear master will have to sacrifice a bit of his charm," Misteln replied sweetly.
"...Fine."
Misteln: (Hehe~ Just as planned.)
The [Idea] lady who had already secured the enormous advantage of "one date per week," watched the scene with satisfaction.
(The number of rivals has been increasing lately. This won't do. In that case, I'll just muddy the waters so no one can monopolize him. Besides, I've already secured enough benefits.)
There were only thirty days in a month. She alone monopolized four full days with Elias. Add the ten days reserved for the monthly top ten performers, and that left only sixteen days for everyone else.
With so many girls in the Valkyrie dormitory, dividing that time would not be easy.
"Let this love war grow even fiercer. I've already secured four days each month. What a profit."
However, just as Misteln believed victory was assured—
Mei: "Are you so certain?"
Eden: "If the person disappears, those four days are meaningless."
The girls: "Take down this shameless schemer first!"
Misteln: "!!!"