Meanwhile.
Far East Branch, St. Freya Academy.
It was already night, a pile of dark clouds obscured the distant horizon, and the road stretching to the ends of the earth flowed beneath the overcast sky, like a path leading to the deepest parts of endless darkness.
Murata Himeko stood at the edge of the darkness, silently watching the distant night.
Dark clouds pressed down, threatening to crush the city, and the thrilling shouts and clashes echoed in her ears.
In the endless darkness, there was no light, no warmth, only fear and confusion reverberating in her ears.
The sky belonged only to fire and smoke, outside the Academy belonged only to fear and death. She gripped her greatsword, the roaring cannon fire continued, many mechs were hit by stray bullets, and with a burst of intense gunfire and screams, blood splattered across the battlefield.
Witnessing blood staining her clothes, mechs roared, and shouts were muffled.
At this moment, she thought of many things.
"Tsk~ Not dying at the hands of a Herrscher, but actually having to fall at the hands of Schicksal, a bunch of beasts."
Murata Himeko took a final sip of her favorite strong liquor, muttering to herself.
She dared not drink too much, lest she lose her reason and delay the battle.
Himeko slowly reached out her waiting hands to touch, but was separated by the transparent darkness.
"Hoo~" She let out a long breath and hoisted her greatsword.
Just a few hours ago, Murata Himeko was comfortably sleeping in bed.
Because she had been drinking too much recently, she had become weak and developed a fever, so she specifically asked Theresa for a day off.
Valkyries are not gods; they also get fevers and illnesses, and they also feel tired. They just fight better than ordinary people.
Perhaps in recent years, due to severe Honkai erosion, her physique had gradually weakened, leading to illness.
Fortunately, she took leave; otherwise, if she had gone to Sea of Quanta with Theresa and the others, St. Freya Academy would have no commander.
In that case, it wouldn't be long before Schicksal would attack the Academy.
She didn't know what they were thinking, clearly it was their own branch, yet they loudly declared it a rebellion and then came to suppress it.
"Ridiculous, isn't it just for the Challenge Space? To say it so grandiosely, hmph!"
Murata Himeko's heart burned with anger.
Since the Far East Branch was the farthest from Schicksal Headquarters, Otto Apocalypse's main forces hadn't arrived that quickly.
The first wave of mech attacks had already been repelled by them!
Fortunately, with the mech defense line previously built by Theresa, they were barely able to withstand Schicksal's fierce assault!
She understood that the so-called suppression was actually plunder.
Otto Apocalypse's goal was the Challenge Space within the Academy!
"Major Himeko, Schicksal's main forces are about to arrive. Currently, sixty percent of our mech defense line is damaged, and less than thirty percent are fully combat-ready, and a large number of pilots have been blown up."
A Valkyrie from the Far East Branch reported nervously beside Himeko.
In this battle, Schicksal seemed to know they had many defensive mechs, so they sent a dense tide of self-destructing mechs.
Each tiny self-destructing mech was like a fast-moving spider, often reaching the front before their mechs could even attack.
A single small self-destructing mech could destroy a Titan Mech weighing several tons!
The blow this dealt to the Far East Branch was immeasurable!
One must know that after Kiana's squad, Yunduo, and Theresa left, their combat power in the Far East Branch was sparse.
All things considered, there were only Murata Himeko, Benares, and the mech defense line left.
Within the Academy, there were only a few A-Rank Valkyries.
On the battlefield, especially in mech combat, they couldn't exert much combat power at all.
At this moment, Murata Himeko stood at the top of the wall, behind her was St. Freya Academy.
An Academy that allowed all Valkyries to grow up healthy, not treating them as expendable items.
It was the place where she and Theresa had truly poured their hearts into.
It was also the place where she had lived for countless years.
Murata Himeko, who retired from the front lines, transformed from a young girl into the independent Teacher Jizi she was today.
Too many stories had unfolded in this small Academy.
There had been too many regrets and dreams, bearing the marks of too many years and hopes.
The walls that Kiana made them raise three times, the Academy cafeteria where Theresa made students eat more vegetables, resulting in bitter melon at every meal for a day, the unincreased height mark Theresa carved on the century-old tree in the center of the Academy, the playground where Bronya dug a hole to hide Homu comics as treasure... "I really want another drink," she murmured to herself.
But it's fine.
As long as she died.
After she, the supreme commander, died.
The children in the Academy would be safe.
She had just ordered them all into the air-raid shelter.
As non-combatants, they would surely be re-integrated into Schicksal Headquarters.
This was merely the battlefield between her, the Far East Branch commander, and Schicksal Headquarters!
Himeko gazed at the distant night.
The pitch-black sky seemed to be utterly dark, devoid of any warmth, not even starlight.
In this world, some paths must be faced alone, traversed alone. No matter how long or far the path, how dark the night, one must walk it silently alone.
Children, after I die, you will naturally understand that some things are unavoidable.
For profit, even betrayal, even being ruthless to saplings planted by one's own hands, is possible.
You must learn what love is, what life is.
This world is not just about profit; more importantly, it's about love and life.
After I die, you will understand. The ideals of St. Freya Academy will continue in your hearts.
Himeko murmured in her heart.
The cold wind ruffled her hair, causing the seasoned veteran to squint her eyes.
Himeko looked back, and suddenly, she saw countless silent gazes.
Naive, resolute, hopeful... they were the Valkyries of the Academy.
All the Valkyries had gathered at the rear, illuminated by a faint white light, like stubborn green pines.
Some were new students who had just arrived for the autumn semester, barely more than a month ago.
Some were logistics personnel who had been injured on the battlefield and could no longer fight.
And the vast majority had been brought by Theresa from other Schicksal branches or Headquarters.
"What are you doing out here? Schicksal's main forces will be here soon, quickly get back to the air-raid shelter!"
Himeko was stunned, her heart aching, yet she understood the situation and immediately shouted.
"Major Himeko, they are unwilling to hide inside..." her adjutant said softly.
"What's going on, a bunch of kids, not hiding inside, playing some war game?!" Himeko clenched her sword-wielding fingers, her face flushed either from anger or excitement. "Fighting is for adults, don't get involved."
After speaking, she found that no one moved, each as stubborn as a rock. Seeing this, Himeko knew that being tough wouldn't work, so she softened her tone slightly, speaking in an almost coaxing manner.
"As long as you don't act, you are still Schicksal students, Otto Apocalypse won't do anything to you."
"But once you act, you will be branded as traitors in their eyes! According to relevant regulations, you will be executed! Schicksal will not show any mercy. Many of you are veterans from there, you should know this!"
...
A moment of silence, she could only see determined eyes.
The breeze ruffled their hair, like unfurling banners that refused to fall, it was their ideals that brought them together.
Among them, a Valkyrie with baby fat stepped forward and shouted loudly: "Major Himeko, we all know this, it's our choice, we swear to live and die with the Academy!"
"Exactly! Why should we be traitors just because they say so? Does Headquarters really have that much power?"
Below the wall, the Valkyries were all agitated, anger burning fiercely through the crowd, like an unceasing blaze.
The wild grass of resistance had turned into an eternal flame, a fire that darkness could not extinguish.
"We don't know what betrayal is, we only know that Principal Theresa gave us everything, allowing us to live like ordinary girls, instead of 'Valkyries' used as tools!"
"At Headquarters, they don't treat us as people. Even missions that could be replaced by mechs are instead replaced by our lives because of excessive cost! Why? Why do we live peacefully here, and they still come to harm us?"
"It was the Headmaster who taught us what love is, what life is. This is our home!"
"They want to destroy our home, how can we just hide in the air-raid shelter and watch?"
Listening to their words, Himeko was momentarily lost in thought.
This was the ideal of St. Freya Academy that Theresa had told her about.
At first, she thought it was too ethereal, how could mere teaching accomplish that?
"Himeko, come with me to the Far East. There, I want to establish an Academy, an Academy with ideals completely different from Schicksal's. I want to see a completely different world, to teach them what love is, what hope is."
"What, you want to establish an Academy? That kind of thing, it can't possibly succeed, can it?"
"Help me, Little Himeko! Once you come, you'll be the Vice Headmaster!"
"Tch~ I'm not interested in that. As long as it's better for Valkyries, that's enough. Among us old Valkyries who've been discharged, very few live to be thirty. As long as you can help Valkyries live out their later years peacefully, I'll be satisfied."
...
To let these children, who had not yet grown up, grow up normally and healthily, to teach them love and hope, instead of being disposable tools.
Now, after all these years, the saplings from back then had grown up, wanting to form an umbrella to protect the Academy.
Although light is only a brief moment, and darkness is eternal.
It was precisely this brief moment of light that gave birth to life and hope.
They all came from darkness, yet they were destined to pursue light with their lives.
This was what Theresa wanted to see.
This was everything she had always hoped for.
Himeko's eyes felt warm, her heart ached, but she couldn't cry. As the pillar of strength, she couldn't shed tears.
She could only casually wipe away the warm stream from the corner of her eyes, then turn her back.
Her emotions were not as calm as they appeared on the surface.
Her fingertips trembled slightly, her heart pounded violently, and even her lips became dry.
Behind her, seeing Murata Himeko remain silent, the Valkyries in the Academy breathed a sigh of relief.
Himeko was their teacher and their superior, usually a very authoritative presence.
This situation was still very tense.
At this moment, Murata Himeko closed her eyes.
The battlefield was not as pure as they hoped.
The night was long and endless, and there was still a long time until dawn. This period was difficult to endure.
Someone would die every minute and every second.
A chilling coldness seeped from her heart throughout her body. Watching her comrades die, she couldn't even cry.
She could only choke back sobs, her soul trembling, a tremor at the core of her heart.
She remembered many years ago, the moment her captain died at the hands of the Herrscher of the Void.
At that moment, she was just a little girl who understood nothing, believing that the future belonged to romantic rose colors.
It was her Captain who gave her selfless love and protection.
Years passed in the blink of an eye, and now it was her turn to protect others.
Murata Himeko's gaze seemed to hold fragmented starlight.
Is there no light, no warmth?
Then, starting now, she would become that sliver of light and warmth!
Just as Himeko was waiting for the second wave of attack, she suddenly heard a familiar sigh.
"Ms. Himeko, please calm down for a moment. What you are doing now will only result in innocent casualties."
Hearing that voice, instantly!
Himeko's pupils instantly narrowed into a straight line, her gaze, cold as a sword, fixed on the mysterious visitor standing dozens of meters in front of her.
This was a beautiful young girl with ash-gold short hair covering her left eye and wine-red pupils.
She wore an ice-colored thorn headpiece and had blue and white metallic wing decorations on her left arm.
She wore a black lace bustier, a dark blue armor jacket, and a black short skirt with white trim.
She held a scythe far exceeding the size of her body.
Her aura was mysterious yet dangerous.
Rita Rossweisse!
The Vice Captain of Schicksal's strongest Valkyrie squad, the "Immortal Blades."
Durandal's trusted adjutant, a mysterious warrior combining strategy and combat prowess.
Her demeanor was humble and low-key, often leading people to forget that she was a powerful S-Rank Valkyrie.
"Rita—you're about to break through the Academy's gates, and you're telling me to calm down?"
Himeko held her greatsword horizontally in front of her, saying angrily, "You attack the Far East Branch while Theresa and Yunduo are away? Is that all the ability you have?!"
This furious questioning left Rita speechless.
No matter how elegant or humble she was, it was useless in this situation.
Schicksal Headquarters was the aggressor, invading while the Far East Branch's core forces were away.
This fact was laid out completely before them; the power of words was so thin that it could not conceal this crime!
"First, please allow me to apologize on behalf of Schicksal's Valkyries. None of this was our original intention."
"You must understand—what Lord Bishop Otto cares about most is the matter of resurrecting the deceased."
"Enough! In the end, it is merely the strong plundering the weak. You, as Schicksal Headquarters, pride yourselves on being righteous, yet you commit such heinous acts. There is no need to say anything more."
Flames blazed in Murata Himeko's eyes.
"As long as I, Murata Himeko, can stand here, and as long as there is fire burning, don't even think about entering the Academy."
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