Theresa's Judah

Kallen went in a different direction from everyone else, while Theresa, Rita, and Durandal grouped together, charging forward in a triangular formation.

With Judah on her back, Theresa entered the battlefield and immediately identified their three targets, along with the Deadwalkers clustered around them.

"Durandal, the Deadwalkers are yours! Rita, cover me as I approach the Honkai Beasts!" Theresa shouted, gripping the chains wrapped around Judah.

"Understood!" Durandal immediately replied, then suddenly accelerated past Theresa, thrusting the Yu Long · Prototype spear in her hands directly at the nearest Deadwalker.

This wasn't like fighting the regular zombies. Faced with the sudden attack, the Sickle Deadwalker reacted in time, raising its scythe to block Durandal's path.

But while its speed was sufficient, its hasty block lacked the force of Durandal's fully-prepared strike.

The sickle, which had taken Shu so long to break, was sent flying from the massive impact. The Sickle Deadwalker itself was thrown into the air by Durandal's spear, only to be impaled through the throat by her immediate follow-up strike.

That was Rita's favorite place to attack. Durandal had seen how effective a throat strike could be, and now, facing a Deadwalker, she used it subconsciously.

The first to break through always draws the most fire. In response to Durandal's aggressive push, the Deadwalkers surrounding the Catapult-class beast were spurred into action, raising their weapons and charging at her.

At the same time, the large orbs held by the three startled Catapult-class beasts began to glow an intense red.

"Rita!" Theresa yelled. Rita nodded, dashed forward two steps, and somersaulted over Durandal and the cluster of Deadwalkers, landing directly in front of the three Catapult-class beasts.

Several Deadwalkers that hadn't yet reached Durandal changed course and rushed toward Rita instead. Wielding her own Yu Long · Prototype, Rita became a blooming rose of steel, expertly holding back the attacking Deadwalkers.

And finally, Theresa made her move.

Her small frame swung the massive Judah, the golden cross spinning through the air on its chains like a meteor hammer before Theresa let it fly.

Leaping into the air with it was Theresa herself. In that brief moment of hang time, the sides of Judah opened, revealing the nine weapons hidden within.

A halberd, a pike, a spear, and a lance—

Theresa hurled the four polearms from mid-air, each with a specific destination. In pairs, they struck two of the Catapult-class beasts.

The orbs held by the impaled beasts instantly cooled down, the signs of an impending explosion gone.

But the last one was still charging, the warning orange glow about to consume the entire orb.

There was no time to throw anything else to stop it, but Theresa's descent was taking her right above the head of the remaining beast!

She grabbed Judah and, with the force of a falling mountain, smashed it down onto the Catapult-class beast's head.

A dull thud was followed by a sharp cracking sound. The nearly half-ton golden cross gave the Honkai Beast a good lesson in the power of physics.

Its small head was smashed to pieces, along with the core hidden within, known as the [Honkai Beast Heart].

The expanding orb froze the instant before detonation, then crumbled into a pile of fragments from the aftershock.

"One down!" Theresa shouted, reporting her success to the others. Her hands didn't stay idle; she pulled the fifth and sixth weapons from Judah.

A great halberd and a battle-axe!

Theresa spun, launching the two most primitive and violent weapons through the air. They once again struck the distant Catapult-class beast that was already trying to charge up again, two polearms still sticking out of its body.

The heavy impact sent the beast tumbling, dislodging large chunks of its armor and interrupting its charge once more.

Theresa, meanwhile, gripped a short handle protruding from the ground, her body parallel to the floor, her feet planted on the shaft of Judah, which stood embedded in the earth.

The power that erupted from her short legs was astounding. Theresa launched herself forward like a cannonball. The short handle she was gripping was pulled free from Judah as she surged forward.

It was a katana!

A weapon ill-suited for blocking, clashing, thrusting, or chopping, but perfectly designed for one thing: slashing.

With its thin body and sharp edge, if one could find the perfect angle, it could slice through anything!

In mid-air, Theresa held the long blade with both hands. In a single instant, she flashed past the Honkai Beast. After skidding to a halt on the ground, she immediately dashed toward the final beast without pause.

Behind her, the Honkai Beast she had passed was now in two halves, the cut perfectly smooth.

Only one Catapult-class beast remained!

As she ran, Theresa glanced up at the giant Honkai Beasts still battering the Titans' linked formation. To create the space for her team to eliminate these smaller beasts, Himeko and the others could only maintain their defensive posture, pinning the battlefield in place.

As soon as she took out that last Catapult-class beast, she, Durandal, and Rita could eliminate the remaining Deadwalkers, then support Kallen in finishing off all the Seraph-class...

A sudden sense of danger flared. Theresa halted her advance, rolling to the side.

Two sharp blades crisscrossed through the air where she had just been, carving deep gashes into the ground.

Scrambling to her feet, Theresa looked up and saw a pair of Deadwalkers, similar in design but distinct in black and white, blocking her path with twin blades in hand.

"Tch..." Theresa's heart sank.

"That's... a Jun-Ninja and a Joyo-Ninja!" Durandal, sensing trouble, spared a glance in Theresa's direction. Having memorized the entire encyclopedia of Honkai-related enemies, she recognized them immediately.

Of course, Theresa knew what they were, too, which was why she felt such a sense of dread.

She now held only a katana, with no ranged options. The white Joyo-Ninja wasn't a major threat.

But the black Jun-Ninja... its ability to block and counter was a massive headache.

She subconsciously glanced at the two who were supposed to be covering her. The dozen or so Deadwalkers had them completely tied down; it would be some time before they could finish them off.

Time... Theresa's peripheral vision caught the Catapult-class beast she had knocked down twice beginning to charge up for a third time. She tightened her grip on her katana.

Come on... Let's see who's faster...