Chapter 96: Vampires and Schicksal

But in the next moment, the middle-aged priest's face froze in disbelief as he stared at Serenade.

At the moment he fired, Serenade's Tranquil Rhapsody in her right hand vanished, and she blocked the bullet bare-handed.

As Serenade's right hand opened, the Honkai energy-infused bullet was frozen in a ping-pong-sized ice cube.

"You..."

"Your gun seems rather weak! Want to try an ice bullet?"

Serenade threw the frozen bullet onto the priest's body before immediately slapping his shoulder. The priest's entire body was swiftly encased in ice, transforming him into an ice statue.

"You can stay here comfortably for now, Father."

Serenade paid no further heed to the middle-aged priest. She picked up the items from his desk and examined them closely...

They were documents detailing the use of Honkai Crystals for human modification...

Utilizing Honkai energy to modify humans results in a success rate of 0.0001 percent.

To date, only a handful of true successes have been achieved.

Due to the lack of advanced experimental equipment and knowledge from previous civilizations like that possessed by Otto, the current Schicksal organization's methods of utilizing Honkai energy for modification are somewhat crude.

Among males, the mortality rate when exposed to Honkai energy stands at 100 percent. Therefore, Schicksal's primary experimental targets are women.

Of these experimental subjects, a small portion were brainwashed volunteers, while the rest consisted of slaves from defeated nations, Black Death-infected individuals, and deceived civilian women.

Among these experimental subjects, some collapsed and died outright, while others transformed into monsters... or what we now call Honkai Beasts.

Especially... when Valkyries were exposed to powerful Honkai Crystals, there was a ninety-nine percent chance they would become deranged monsters.

Moreover, Serenade had recently obtained intelligence about the current Schicksal plan. Though their Eastern campaign had failed, Schicksal's leadership refused to abandon their efforts. They had unanimously decided... to exploit the ongoing Black Death outbreak and create an army of monsters under their control.

It must be understood that when ordinary people are transformed into monsters by Honkai energy, they immediately gain terrifying power far beyond that of normal humans.

If such monsters were organized into a powerful army, even gods... could be overthrown!

This was the current thinking of Schicksal's leadership.

The Schicksal organization is now continuously researching how to control these monsters and Honkai Beasts.

Serenade set down the documents in her hands, feeling somewhat surprised. These things... were never mentioned in the comics at all.

She couldn't tell whether these events had always existed but she simply hadn't known about them, or if the butterfly effect had altered Schicksal's destiny.

Controlling Honkai Beasts?

How could they even think of such a thing? Did they believe themselves to be Herrschers?

Only Herrschers possessed the ability to control Honkai Beasts and zombies.

After reviewing the documents, Serenade left the room and continued toward the headquarters' center.

[Ai-chan's notification: Your Titan has been completely destroyed. x3]

[Ai-chan's notification: Your Thunderbolt Mecha has been completely destroyed.]

As Serenade once again took down another Schicksal executive, Ai-chan's notifications chimed in her ears. Serenade paused momentarily before regaining her composure.

This was expected.

Apart from the Titan Berserker and Titan Father, the other Titans were merely low-tier models. With the right approach, they could be easily destroyed.

Now that even the ordinary mechas were being completely destroyed, it was time to take things seriously.

Serenade removed her crow mask.

Continuing with this identity for what was to come would be inappropriate, as it would bring significant negative consequences for Kallen.

Although Serenade wore a crow mask that covered the upper half of her face, the previous Schicksal executive had still recognized her as... Kallen.

"Perfect! Since Schicksal is essentially this world's Catholicism... Christianity, then... let's strike them down with Christianity's greatest mythological nemesis!"

-

Vampires—cursed by God, hated and hunted by Christians.

Theoretically, they should also be Schicksal's enemies.

So...

"Switch to Valkyrie... Luna Kindred!"

As the Valkyrie form activated, the Sixth Serenade vanished, replaced by a small figure...

No! A young girl.

The world's... no, the universe's most adorable being: Theresa (Luna Kindred).

However... the SS-grade Luna Kindred left Serenade... or rather, the current Theresa... feeling somewhat inadequate.

Without hesitation, she opened Ai-chan's Treasure Trove and exchanged 100 Ai-chan Exclusive Coins for a one-day Valkyrie Graduation Experience Card.

The SS-grade vampire princess Theresa instantly transformed into an SSS-grade Valkyrie.

Sensing her enhanced power, Theresa's fangs peeked out from her smile, creating an adorable grin.

A pair of massive bat wings sprouted from her back. With a leap, she soared... to hover above the Schicksal Church-like structure.

Theresa gazed at the central building of Schicksal before her, the Blood Cross on her back radiating an aura of sinister power. She tapped her friend interface once more.

"Come forth! My mount... Inky."

At Theresa's summons, the black dragon from her friend list materialized above Schicksal headquarters. This was the dragon companion she had reclaimed in the Rimuru World, both a familiar and a mount.

The massive creature stretched over fifty meters long, a hybrid of dragon and Honkai Beasts. Its terrifying appearance resembled Deathwing from World of Warcraft.

The dragon's wingspan was equally colossal. When fully spread, its shadow engulfed nearly half of Schicksal headquarters.

ROAR!

A deafening cry shook the air as overwhelming draconic pressure radiated from the beast. The entire city held its breath, not daring to make a sound.

Only A-rank Valkyries and higher could withstand the black dragon's might.

As the colossal dragon—something that only existed in myths—materialized above them, the entire Schicksal faction fell into a state of panic.

This included even the High Priest of Schicksal himself.

A dragon... A creature that had only ever existed in legends.

"The dragon! The mythical dragon has actually appeared!"

"Damn it! I can't help but feel compelled to prostrate myself."

Facing the sudden appearance of the giant dragon, Schicksal's soldiers began to panic. However, Valkyries quickly detected Honkai energy emanating from the black dragon.

They instantly recognized what it was.

"That's a Honkai Beast—a powerful one in the form of a dragon."