Kiana—Promotion! Mei Allowed Me to Join

On Schicksal's floating island—

"No way! I won't do it no matter what!"

Raven sat on the sofa, arms crossed.

Her perfectly shaped legs were elegantly crossed, and the heels of her shoes looked sharp enough to kill.

Even the black, hooded tactical armor couldn't hide her alluring figure.

Her rose-red eyes stared resentfully at Grey Serpent—and at Otto, who was sitting nearby—as if she were about to pull out a gun and shoot them both in the head.

"You told me I was coming here to handle resignation paperwork, and now you throw a mission at me? Grey Serpent, it's one thing to deceive the enemy, but now you're lying to your own colleagues?"

"Don't say it like that, Raven. This mission is something only you can handle. It's for the greater cause of World Serpent..."

"Didn't you say when I joined that I could quit anytime I wanted? Even a secret organization needs to keep its promises!"

"Ahem! I'm doing this for your own good. One last job—wouldn't it be nice to rake in a big score before retiring? This Mr. Otto here is a major client, very wealthy. Wouldn't you like to renovate your private island villa a little more nicely?"

Grey Serpent tried earnestly to persuade her.

Even as a mechanical bionic lifeform, it felt deeply awkward—especially awkward. It had just introduced her as an elite operative to the client, and then she announced she was quitting.

Just remembering the subtle look Otto had given made Grey Serpent want to format its memory bank.

What it didn't realize was that Otto's gaze wasn't mockery or disdain—it was sympathy and understanding.

(Tsk tsk tsk~ That dreadful sense of deja vu. When my old friend Fu Hua suddenly messaged me about leaving Schicksal, I felt the exact same way. Sigh~ some employees these days, just because they're good at their job, they think they can disrespect their superiors.)

Still, Otto tried to curry favor, pouring a glass of red wine for Raven and expressing his hope that she'd accept the mission.

According to Grey Serpent, Raven's strength was only that of a regular S-rank Valkyrie—about on par with Theresa. But she possessed the super-deadly weapon: Seven Thunders of Retribution!

The Third Divine Key, the Key of Sanction: Seven Thunders of Retribution.

Forged from the Herrscher Core of the Third Herrscher in the Previous Era, it had the terrifying ability to disassemble anything it struck down to the atomic level!

Otto had personally experienced its power once before. A single shot had decomposed his soulium body into atomic dust. If he hadn't logged off in time, he'd have been done for.

Yeah... deadly as hell!

Whether S-rank Valkyrie or Herrscher, as long as you got hit, it was instant death.

Such an unreasonable and powerful weapon would undoubtedly play a key role at the critical moment.

But Raven still refused flat-out.

"This isn't about the money! I was ready to wash my hands clean, and now you throw a high-risk mission at me!"

Natasha really wanted to flip them both off.

"That damn White Dove already warned me—people in our line of work always face some huge disaster when they try to retire. If anything pops up around then, don't take it—or you're guaranteed to get wrecked!"

Her island villa was already bought.

Even the construction was nearly complete.

Raven was just waiting to pack her bags and move in next month with the children she'd adopted. From then on, she'd leave behind the chaos of the world and enjoy a peaceful retirement.

There was no way she was taking on a mission that screamed 'trouble.'

Was this about money? Did they really think she, Natasha Cioara, was the type to sell out for cash?!

"Raven, here's the advance payment. And the reward after the mission is... this much."

"Pfft—! Cough cough! I-I'll think about it."

Raven glanced at the check Grey Serpent handed her and immediately spat out a mouthful of red wine right onto its face.

That long string of zeroes made her swallow hard, her eyes instantly turning into money signs.

This single job was worth as much as the last three years combined!

Thinking it over, just because she'd bought a private island villa didn't mean she wouldn't need money anymore. While her current savings were enough for a comfortable middle-class life, who wouldn't want to live even more luxuriously?

Watching the black-feathered money-hungry Dodo bird fall into the cash trap yet again, Grey Serpent couldn't help but feel deep disdain.

(Sigh~ This unambitious girl. What did I teach you? Always dreaming about that island villa. We're World Serpent, bearers of the great mission to defeat the Honkai. Can you stop thinking about money all the time? Have some sense of duty, will you?)

(Actually... maybe I should just find a chance to blow up her island. Then she'll have no choice but to return to active duty with World Serpent. A mere villa? Compared to our grand mission to save the world, it's nothing. And really, it's your own fault for buying a non-flying island.)

"...Hmm? Why does it suddenly feel chilly? Grey Serpent, what were you just thinking?"

Raven suddenly felt a chill run down her spine and eyed the long-silent Grey Serpent suspiciously.

"I was thinking about why islands sink—cough cough—I mean, I really think you should accept this mission."

Otto and Grey Serpent exchanged a glance, and the two schemers seamlessly launched into their persuasion.

"Miss Raven, rest assured, all I need you to do is pull the trigger. It's a job so simple you only need to move a finger."

"That's right, Raven. Mr. Otto is just looking for some insurance. You might not even need to fire a single shot—it could end up just being a sightseeing trip. Easy money and light work like this doesn't come around often~"

At this moment, Otto and Grey Serpent had basically transformed into infomercial salesmen, insisting this was an easy-peasy, can't-lose type of deal.

And staring at the zeros on that check, Raven—the one-and-only Island-Bombing Crow—finally caved under the weight of monetary temptation.

"Alright, fine. But this is the last one."

"Excellent, Miss Raven. Congratulations on making the right choice."

"Yes indeed, Raven. As your colleague, I'm happy for you. Once this is done, just return the Seven Thunders of Retribution and World Serpent promises not to bother your retirement."

"Hmph!"

Raven shot them both a glare, then pulled out the Seven Thunders of Retribution and began tuning the Divine Key.

In her own words, this Key of Sanction was like a willful lady—if she didn't pamper it properly, its performance would drop, or it might outright refuse to work.

The Seven Thunders of Retribution was extremely picky about its wielder.

Currently, Raven was the only one in all of World Serpent recognized by it. And she had to regularly maintain and spoil it; otherwise, it would revert into a slingshot and be completely unusable.

Raven: (Honestly, what was the original designer thinking? What's the point of the slingshot form, anyway?)

Vil-V: (Ehehe~!)

(^)

Seeing that Raven had finally accepted the mission, Otto and Grey Serpent both breathed a sigh of relief. The former looked at her with keen interest, recalling some intel related to Natasha.

"By the way, Miss Raven, I heard you used to have a partner with the codename 'White Dove.' Back in the day, you two were known throughout the underworld as the strongest mercenary duo..."

"What are you getting at."

Raven paused in her adjustments.

Otto continued curiously,

"I'm just a bit intrigued. Your partner apparently disappeared without a trace about a year ago. Miss Raven, do you happen to know anything about that?"

"White Dove? Hmph. He's long dead."

Raven's voice dropped lower and colder, continuing her adjustments as if completely indifferent.

But Otto narrowed his eyes and curled his lips into a pleased, infuriating smile.

"Dead? No, no, no~ Miss Raven, your eyes say otherwise."

When she mentioned White Dove, the look in her eyes—dark, stubborn, and pained—was all too familiar to Otto.

Five hundred years ago, when Kallen had just died, he was the same. He too had clung to denial, hoping it was all just a nightmare, believing the Saintess hadn't really died.

He took truth as falsehood.

Death as illusion.

Reality as a fleeting dream.

Stubbornly convinced the Saintess still lived.

"Miss Raven, humans often believe their most important people are immortal and eternal—but such beliefs are nothing more than illusions. You should try to move on. Though you've lost your partner, you still have—"

Click click!

The next second, the Seven Thunders of Retribution finished transforming in Raven's hands. The black, alien-shaped sniper rifle was aimed squarely at Otto's forehead.

Electric blue energy sparked from within the weapon, and for once, even Otto Apocalypse felt the very real threat of death.

"Mr. Otto, let me remind you: if this Seven Thunders of Retribution hits your head, even your most prized consciousness-transfer trick won't save you."

Because before his mind could switch to another soulium body, his head would already be atomized.

The warning in Raven's eyes required no explanation.

Otto awkwardly raised his hands in surrender, clearly getting the message.

Grey Serpent offered a casual comment from the side.

"Mr. Otto, you really do like courting death, huh? Friendly reminder: that's Raven's taboo. Don't touch it."

"Grey Serpent, from your tone..."

"Yep, exactly what you think."

Grey Serpent sighed and looked out the window. After White Dove disappeared, several of its clones had tried to comfort the grief-stricken Raven. The result? One of them got their head blown off by the Seven Thunders of Retribution.

Even now, there's a top-ranking bounty mission on the dark web seeking any information on White Dove, offered at an astronomical price. It was posted by Raven herself under a fake account.

And at that moment, as if prompted by fate, a flock of white doves raised on Schicksal's floating island passed by the window—right into Natasha's line of sight.

She stared blankly, her thoughts adrift.

"Doves in the church will never kiss crows... Maybe he disappeared because he hated my black feathers."

But the very next moment, Natasha grit her teeth.

(Hmph, I don't care what the reason was. That bastard who disappeared without a word is definitely still alive and kicking somewhere! You signed a lifelong contract with me—and now you want to bail? Dream on! White Dove, you'd better be ready—I'm coming for you!)

...

At St. Freya Academy—

"Achoo!"

Elias suddenly sneezed. Though the weather had turned cold, there was no way a Herrscher's body would catch a cold.

"Who's thinking about me this early in the morning? Haa~"

He had pulled another all-nighter. By the time he woke up, it was already noon.

Since it was the weekend and there were no classes, and the weather was freezing, all the girls decided to stay in.

Bronya was playing video games, Mei was cooking, Rita was collecting the laundry she'd hung out yesterday, Himeko was drinking beer, and Dark Seele was watching TV with Kiana...

All in all, the Valkyrie dorm was at peace today.

Until Elias walked downstairs.

"Elias, you're awake!"

Kiana came running over, not even bothering to put on slippers.

Her white stockings slapped against the floor as she sprinted across the room.

And then she gave the still-groggy Elias a massive bear hug.

Just like that, the moment of peace ended.

Bronya crushed her controller, Mei's chopping knife split the cutting board, Rita dropped the laundry in her hands, Himeko spilled her beer, and Dark Seele snapped the remote in two...

"Uh, Kiana? Are you okay?"

"Why wouldn't I be? Hehe, hehe..."

Elias looked in surprise at the grinning Kiana wrapped tightly around him, starting to wonder if someone had spilled catnip on him. Why was she being so clingy today?

Sure, Kiana was usually pretty affectionate, but not this much. Their relationship was still somewhere between friends and lovers. Even if she was a bit airheaded, she had her boundaries.

Usually, she'd only come seeking head pats when Mei wasn't around. But now? Mei was right there in the kitchen, and Kiana still dared to act this bold?

Elias wasn't the only one stunned. Everyone else was equally shocked by this paramecium's blatant defiance of danger.

All eyes turned toward the kitchen. As expected, Mei's horns were already sprouting, and she was leaking arcs of electricity.

"Kiana, did you eat something weird today?"

"Uh-oh, Mei's knife is trembling."

"Is this idiot always this gutsy?"

But the most unexpected part—

Just as it looked like Mei was about to slice this audacious cat in half, she suddenly set the knife down and turned away!

Bronya and the others were left dumbfounded once again.

Mei... are you seriously turning Buddhist now?!

"Hehe~ Elias, you're officially my boyfriend now! I already told Mei last night, and she agreed. So from today, you're all mine!"

"Haah?!?" xN

It was as if lightning struck everyone in the room. They stared in stunned disbelief, unable to process what they'd just heard.

Even Elias stood frozen in place.

"W-Wait, I'm your boyfriend now, Kiana?!"

"Yup! Mei agreed!"

Kiana clung to him gleefully, and after Elias' brain finally rebooted, he managed to squeeze out a single line.

"Kiana, even if you asked Mei, you haven't asked me if I'm okay with it!"

"So Elias, are you okay with it?"

"Duh! Of course I am!"

Without hesitation, Elias wrapped his arms around his clingy Kiana and spun her around joyfully, planting a few kisses on her cheeks.

Like he would ever say no!

He never expected to wake up to such a surprise. For a moment, he wondered if he was dreaming.

Meanwhile, across the room, Seele, Rita, Wendy, Ji Xuanyuan, and the others all swallowed hard and glanced toward Mei, their gazes burning with intent.

(So there's a method like this... challenging the main girl directly? Impressive, Kiana. Maybe I should try...) xN

At that moment, Mei's eye twitched furiously. She suddenly regretted agreeing to share Elias with Kiana last night. This paramecium just had to announce it publicly!

Quietly, Mei opened her phone and scrolled through the post she made last night:

[My boyfriend is way too popular. How do I stop my close friends from trying to steal him? Urgent, need advice!]

Reply 1: Oho! We got drama! Spill it!

Reply 2: Tsk tsk, forget fire and theft—guard against girlfriends!

Reply 3: Lock him in a dark room! Problem solved!

Reply 4: Why even hesitate? Destroy them all! Blood must be spilled! I want carnage!

Reply 5: Got pics of your boyfriend? Let us judge just how amazing he is. How long is he?

...

"I think reply 3 has a good point. What do you think, other me?" Mei asked.

(I prefer reply 4. Also, let's deal with reply 5 while we're at it.) Herrscher Mei responded.

"So... both 3 and 4, then?"

(Hmph. For once, we're on the same page. Approved.)

The girl and queen nodded in unison. Their synchronization was unprecedentedly high—even the Gem of Desire inside her pulsed with greater output.

But just as the rest of the girls began plotting in silence—

Bang!

The dormitory door burst open.

Theresa came running in, panic written all over her face.

"This is bad! Really bad! My grandpa—he's leading a whole fleet of Valkyries and warships from Schicksal, heading straight for the academy! And he's demanding we hand over Kiana—

Aaaahh! What are you all doing this early in the morning?!"

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