Anna

Time rewinds a little bit.

Philippines, Mindanao Island.

"Anna, let's go, time to head back."

In the night, Captain Jell, with her short light blue hair, walked over and patted Anna on the shoulder, pointing to the transport plane ready for takeoff not far away.

"Sorry, Captain. Made you worry..."

Anna looked a bit disheveled and dusty. The Honkai energy engine of her Fairy series standard weapon hanging at her waist was severely overheated. At this moment, Anna was gritting her teeth and constantly checking it.

"This time I was too reckless..."

Her voice was calm but tinged with confusion, suppressing deep sadness and self-doubt.

"No, you did great, full of a sense of justice, everyone likes you."

Jell smiled gently to comfort her, pointing to the temporary survivor camp not far away. Five or six survivors were lying there in a deep sleep, all rescued by Anna from the small city next to them, now reduced to ruins.

"But next time remember not to act alone without permission. As vice-captain, it's not good to leave your post without authorization."

Anna paused in her actions. As a member of the Schariac family, she could have used better weapons and equipment, but the proud Anna had refused.

But now, she felt her pride and insistence were like a joke.

"I'm not a qualified Valkyrie..."

Anna looked up at the sky covered in dark clouds. The air was heavy and oppressive, and she felt a bit self-destructive.

"Sorry, Captain, you guys go back first. This mission is already completed, I want to be alone for a while, and I'll rejoin the team later..."

As if knowing she was still being willful, Anna forced an apologetic smile at Jell, but her lips were still stubbornly pressed tightly, with a hint of pleading in her eyes.

"...Okay, I approve it."

Jell looked at Anna with a bit of heartache. This girl was so cheerful when they first met, but now she was slowly becoming quiet and silent. Jell couldn't help but feel a little soft-hearted.

After thinking for a moment, she took the nearly broken weapon from Anna's hand and handed her own still-intact equipment to her. She smiled at her and encouraged Anna brightly,

"You are the vice-captain of the Snow Lotus Squad, an elite A-rank Valkyrie, you need to cheer up."

"..."

Anna was silent, not responding.

Jell understood that Anna still had some resentment in her heart, sighed, and said,

"Someone always has to die. From the moment she, I, we, became Valkyries, we were already prepared."

Hearing this, Anna looked up and glared at the captain, but Jell instantly glared back, sternly scolding,

"But not you actively seeking death like that!"

Recalling Anna's previous reckless and impulsive behavior, Jell simply brought the matter out into the open, no longer caring about saving her face.

"You're right, Anna Schariac, a young lady from a distinguished family! Although you have passed the A-rank Valkyrie exam, you are not a qualified Valkyrie!"

Anna's face turned pale.

.........

Anna Schariac grew up in the Schicksal Headquarters since she was born. She received the most orthodox Valkyrie education from a young age, and was influenced by countless excellent senior and even peer Valkyrie heroic deeds at the headquarters. All of this planted seeds of glory and mission in her heart, making her yearn for the identity of "Valkyrie". She never complained when subjected to strict training from instructors.

Since she achieved her wish to become an A-rank Valkyrie and joined the Snow Lotus Squad, her mood has plummeted like a rollercoaster.

Although the incident had passed a long time ago, and everyone seemed to have forgotten about it and no longer mentioned it, that event was like a thorn stuck in Anna's heart, making her often toss and turn at night, even waking up in shock from her dreams.

The gap between reality and ideal was too huge, causing her to lose her composure instantly.

She didn't even dare to contact her friends at headquarters, fearing that they would see her embarrassment and anxiety and worry about her.

Even so, she was trying hard to adapt to life here, to adapt to the annoying hot and humid climate, to shoulder her responsibilities as vice-captain, and to strive to become a true, qualified A-rank Valkyrie.

But life here was completely different from her imagination and the stories she had heard from her seniors.

"Is this considered mission complete?"

After a certain emergency mission was completed, Anna avoided the other team members celebrating the mission completion and found a quiet corner to question Captain Jell.

"Yes, our squad's mission is completed. The subsequent work has been officially taken over by the local government. Other rescue forces will be stationed later, just like the previous times, Schicksal doesn't need to intervene further."

Captain Jell seemed to understand what Anna was thinking,

"Don't worry, the Honkai in this area has been resolved, and the residual energy is dissipating quickly. We don't need to do more."

"...But we didn't do anything at all. All the enemies were defeated by Durandal."

Anna was already fed up with this kind of life,

"We actually didn't do any work, right?"

Every time it was like this: suddenly receiving an alarm about Honkai occurring somewhere, the Snow Lotus Squad would urgently dispatch, take a transport plane to the disaster site, and then stand by on the spot, watching helplessly as a blue shooting star fell from the sky, eliminating more than 80% of the threats, and then turning into a shooting star and leaving.

What they really did was to clean up the remaining enemies after Durandal left, search for possible survivors, and then hand over the disaster site to the local government, in order to show them "Schicksal has excellently completed its responsibilities" —

Such a fact that was basically irrelevant to them.

When they returned to the base, they could usually receive a considerable bonus issued by the government...

"Is this Valkyrie work?"

Anna asked with some confusion, even faintly feeling a suppressed anger deep in her heart. She couldn't feel any sense of value in such "missions". This kind of life made her feel extremely absurd.

Again and again, every time it was like this. Anna felt she had really had enough.

Is this the so-called elite Valkyrie squad?

"Cooperating with Durandal-sama to complete the new armor experiment mission, this is the highest order personally issued by the Overseer."

Jell also felt that the recent period had been muddled, but she didn't hate this kind of life. She took Anna's hand and walked towards the transport plane, smiling and comforting her,

"At least the disaster is properly resolved, and the team members won't encounter any danger this way, which is also a good thing."

The other team members were already waiting on the plane. Seeing Anna and Jell walking towards them now, they waved happily, as if celebrating the successful completion of the mission, or celebrating the safe return of everyone.

"..."

Anna looked at the relaxed expressions of her teammates, thinking that maybe she was just being too serious.

I'm still not good enough. Anna sighed, and couldn't help but think of that golden-haired figure who fell like a meteor just now,

Why can Durandal always be so dazzling?

I really want to chat with her...

Anna thought somewhat lonely. If Durandal were here at this moment, what would she do?

She had never felt the gap between herself and Durandal so clearly and deeply before. That once somewhat familiar figure now looked incomparably distant.

So, Anna continued to endure this life that felt like years.

Until one day, the thorn in her heart was picked open again, and the anger and dissatisfaction squeezed in Anna's heart were ignited all at once—

"Obituary? What obituary? Why is there an obituary? Our team members are obviously all unharmed, why would an obituary be sent here?"

Anna, who was sweating profusely in the training room, heard a "beep beep" sound from her terminal. She clicked it open and saw a message that made her confused. The girl in the photo looked extremely sweet with a smile. Huh, have I seen her somewhere before?

What a pity, Anna felt sorry for the passing of a comrade, not thinking too much.

It wasn't until she saw the detailed information that her expression froze, and she remembered the day she came to report, the thing she saw and deliberately forgot.

"Captain?"

Anna rushed to Jell's room, seeing her opening the oven and taking out freshly baked cookies.

"Ah, Anna, you're here? Come and try the freshly baked cookies."

Jell greeted Anna warmly.

"No need..."

Anna and Jell had the same hobby, and they would usually get together to study new pastry recipes, but today she really wasn't in the mood,

"Did you receive..."

Anna swallowed the remaining words. She knew that compared to herself, who had never met the person, comrades who had fought side-by-side would be more pained and saddened by this news.

"Yes, I received it."

Unexpectedly, Jell only stiffened slightly, and then said calmly,

"The mortality rate of the Third Research Institute... is well-known within Schicksal, so I had expected it."

Although her tone was calm, Jell's gaze was fixedly looking at the desk in another room. There was a small group photo on the desk. Her eyes were unfocused, and she murmured to herself,

"This way, she can be considered relieved, right?"

"Relieved? Do you know what you're talking about? That's our comrade!"

Anna said angrily. An A-rank Valkyrie's hearing is excellent, and she heard her voice clearly.

Her anger was not directed at the captain, but she didn't know what she was angry about, but she truly felt angry.

Anger, anger, she understood - she was feeling indignant for them!

"Sacrifice and death are inevitable. As Valkyries, sacrificing for Schicksal, sacrificing for the future of mankind, isn't that also a matter of course?"

Jell shook her head, restrained her thoughts, reached out and picked up a cookie to hand to Anna, and said with a smile,

"Come, try it, sugar-free, won't make you fat."

Anna really wanted to slap her hand and knock the cookie to the ground, but her long-standing upbringing made her choose to restrain herself. The team members would notice!

Calming herself, she said in a trembling voice,

"Captain, don't you feel sad at all?"

Jell withdrew her arm, and put the cookie back into the plate with some regret. She said in a very ordinary tone,

"Maybe the next one will be me? It's better to save some energy to do other things."

"You... are unreasonable!"

Anna stormed out, slamming the door.

"..."

Silence filled the room for a moment. Jell said nothing, just picked up a cookie from the plate and stuffed it into her mouth, nibbling on it in small bites, and muttered to herself in a somewhat puzzled tone,

"Really, it would taste better if you added some sugar, why would anyone like sugar-free?"

"Valkyries are still afraid of getting fat, really unreasonable..."

.........

Soon, the members of the Snow Lotus Squad all noticed that the atmosphere between the two captains was a bit awkward.

"Captain, Vice-Captain, you guys..."

"It's nothing, mission is important, let's go."

Jell smiled, not taking it to heart. She had just received another order to suppress a Honkai incident, located in Mindanao Island.

Everyone boarded the transport plane and arrived at the Honkai disaster site. Under the dark night covered by gloomy clouds, the small town of only 100,000 people was now engulfed in flames. Countless Honkai monsters roamed and rampaged through the streets and alleys.

Deathly pale zombies, just crawling up from the ground, staggered into the sea of fire, and then walked out of the sea of fire covered in flames. Walking and walking, they fell to the ground, gradually extinguished.

Among the countless shrill and strange cries, the screams of surviving humans were too small and faint, drowned out and difficult to hear.

"According to plan, hold the intersection, wait for... Damn it, stop her!"

Jell was arranging tasks step by step, when she suddenly saw Anna looking at the life detector and saying "there are signs of life from survivors". Without saying anything else, Anna jumped out of the transport plane. Unable to stop her, Jell immediately became exasperated,

"Damn it, plan change!"

On the other side, Anna knew that her behavior was too impulsive, a violation of discipline, and even suicidal behavior that put herself in danger.

But she didn't care, she had had enough!

All the grievances and pent-up feelings made her feel as if she was suffocating.

Now, she just wanted to vent and fight!

Just wanted to save those poor innocent lives, just wanted to rediscover the glory of being a Valkyrie!

Therefore, just like Durandal she had seen before, she cut through the sky and descended from the sky!

This feeling of freedom is really comfortable...

Anna thought to herself as she fell in the air. When she was about to approach the ground, she pulled open the parachute. The momentum of the fall was stopped for a moment. The heat wave from the sea of fire below made her feel like her hair was about to be scorched.

Really impulsive...

Anna mocked herself with a smile, but it was too late to regret it.

She looked down at her position, glanced at the detector on her body, reached out and cut off the parachute, took out her Valkyrie greatsword from behind, and used the momentum of the fall to slash a tank-class Honkai beast that happened to be passing by in half with a heavy blow.

"Not as easy to use as a knight lance..."

Anna spat out the dust in her mouth, quickly flipped over and stood up, took out her dual pistols and shot down several flying Honkai beasts in a row, then put away her dual pistols, drew her blade and cut a bloody path out of the encirclement.

As an elite Valkyrie, being proficient in multiple weapons is just a basic skill.

Fight, fight!

Valkyries should be like this, eliminating Honkai, eliminating enemies, and protecting humanity, right?

We are not worthless consumables!

We are not dispensable decorations!

Anna vented angrily. In front of her, zombies and Honkai beasts were all knocked down and torn apart by her blade and dual pistols.

Fighting, venting, releasing...

The anger gradually subsided, but the sadness in her heart grew stronger—

What exactly are we?

Anna, disheveled and dusty, cried silently.

"Is anyone there?"

Kicking open a half-closed door, Anna shouted loudly inside. The life detector had already been damaged in the battle just now.

No response. Without hesitation, she went to the next room,

"Is anyone there!"

Still no response.

As if to prove something, Anna always gritted her teeth and persisted.

Her equipment began to be damaged, and her body gradually became tired, but she still gained nothing, and finally gradually gave up hope.

Maybe our fighting is really meaningless?

Exhausted, Anna couldn't help but start to doubt herself.

This world is so different from what I used to imagine...

Is it really my fault?

"Captain, I see her, Vice-Captain is over there!"

Anna heard someone shouting in the distance. The voice was familiar, it was a member of the Snow Lotus Squad.

"Heh, really causing everyone a lot of trouble..."

Anna dragged her tired body towards that direction. She still hadn't found the answer.

"Ah! Be careful!" X2

From a distance, Anna saw a knight-class Honkai beast wielding a terrifyingly huge lance, charging on horseback towards the teammate who had shouted. She was just a B-rank Valkyrie, and couldn't resist at all!

Captain Jell waved her greatsword, forcing back the small Honkai beasts approaching, and quickly rushed over to support, but it was just a hair's breadth away.

Damn it!

Watching her teammate she had spent day and night with about to lose her life, Anna felt remorseful and self-blaming. It was all because of her willfulness!

"Bang!"

A blue lance fell from the sky, firmly nailing the knight-class Honkai beast to the ground in front of the Valkyrie who had already closed her eyes and was waiting to die.

A blue stream of light flew over, and a golden-haired girl picked up the collapsed Valkyrie from the ground and gently handed her to Jell.

"Sorry, I'm late, leave the rest to me."

Durandal's voice sounded crisp and capable, full of unparalleled confidence and composure. She just nodded to Jell and Anna respectively, pulled out the lance from the knight-class Honkai beast's corpse, and the blue and white close-fitting armor on her body shone with light. With a tap of her foot, she rushed into the distant hell of flames.

In just a moment, the flames subsided, and the stream of light rose again, flying to the next battlefield as usual.

"It's really better to see once than to hear a hundred times, Durandal-sama is indeed worthy of her reputation..."

Crisis resolved, Jell sighed with emotion as she watched Durandal's departing figure.

Although she had seen her from afar a few times before, she had never faced her at such a close distance as today. The sense of shock was even more unparalleled.

"..."

Anna also looked at Durandal's departing figure, without saying a word. Her thoughts were slightly different from Captain Jell's.

Maybe, what I'm pursuing and yearning for is not wrong?

Recalling that figure like a heavenly god descending to earth, Anna thought quietly in her heart.