Enjoy!
Please read the note at the end.
Bianka 'Durandal' Ataegina.
The leader of the Immortal Blades.
The strongest Valkyrie of all time.
To face her in combat was either a great honor…
Or a great horror.
And it was most definitely the latter as the indomitable blonde S-Rank Valkyrie stood on the opposite side of the arena from us. Seeing her serious gaze directed in our general direction as her body posture shifted into a battle ready stance had me nervously gulp and grip my sword just a bit tighter.
I couldn't remember the last time the prospect of fighting an opponent had me this terrified! The closest encounter that I could think of that could come close was fighting Iudex but that was due more to the fact that the soulium juggernaut looked physically imposing.
Durandal on the other hand merely gave off an aura that made her terrifying to go up against.
"Got a plan Captain?" Layla asked behind me and even if I couldn't see her I could make an educated guess that she was too also feeling terror. On my other side Mashu said nothing but I could hear her slightly bring her shield closer to her body and her breathing slightly tense up.
"Nope," Was my quick and nervous response to her as the three of us waited for something to happen with bated breath.
I wasn't too sure how long we remained in this stifling silence but I knew eventually it had to be broken. Opening my mouth I was going to give the order for the three of us to go on the offensive, to try and catch Durandal off-guard with a sudden attack. The chances of it succeeding were close to none but it was better than sitting around and doing nothing.
But just as I was about to speak, Durandal decided that now was the perfect opportunity to strike.
Normally when one struck first in spars like these normally, unless they had anything short of teleportation, the other side was given enough time to react accordingly.
While the blonde Valkyrie fortunately did not have the powers of teleportation, she did have the Bright Knight Excelsis' built in thrusters…
And they were very, very fast.
Shooting forward with astounding speed, I couldn't even scream my reaction as Durandal surged toward us with her spear at the ready. It must've taken the blonde Valkyrie like four seconds to cross her side of the arena, which was quite big, over to our side
Seeing how I was the intended target I raised both of my arms up to activate the Caliburn's shields so that I could potentially tank a hit from the S-Rank Valkyrie. The Luminous Blaze System had proven its resilience time and time again without fail but how would it fare against the strength of the strongest Valkyrie?
Well there was only one way to find out right?
So the plan was to hold out my arms like an X, try and tank Durandal's no doubt powerful attack, then have Layla and Mashu try and capitalize on our only advantage of numbers and hope to overwhelm the valkyrie. Yet when I tried to raise my arms to put this plan into action…
My body tried to backstep instead.
My mind tried to do one thing while my body tried to do another which resulted in my body falling back clumsily. I couldn't even voice my surprise as instead my eyes simply widened at how close Durandal had gotten, her spear thrusted forward at my defenseless form.
"Senpai!" Whether it was just instinct or if she actually anticipated that I was the blond Valkyrie's intended target, Mashu placed herself in front of me with her shield out front. A second later Durandal's spear slammed into the greatshield, shaking the ground as a result as a loud clang resounded through the arena.
Mashu was strong, her strength could rival that of Kiana's, but Durandal's strength was in another league. The difference in strength was so evidently clear as seconds after the two Valkyries clashed the shielder began to be pushed back, the soles of her feet and shield digging into the ground as the S-Rank Valkyrie tried to force her to yield.
Something that Mashu was not willing to do.
Before my back hit the ground Layla's arms were able to catch me. "Captain, get up!" The sniper urgently shouted as she helped me get back on my feet. "We need a plan to-!"
"We need to help Mashu, she won't be able to last alone against Durandal!" I frantically interrupted her as I watched our other teammate struggle to keep up against the blond Valkyrie. She was doing remarkably right now against her but I knew it wouldn't last long.
A plan would go a long way but it would be useless if Mashu fell to Durandal. She was the defensive corner piece of our team and against Durandal of all people we desperately needed everyone to even have a chance of winning.
Layla looked over to the shielder and just nodded as she brandished her sniper, which now had a bayonet attached to its barrel. Ever since the end of our first mission the Gunnhildr decided that she needed a close range option and had trained relentlessly to get proficient with it.
Unsheathing my swords the two of us immediately began to rush Durandal, the two of us brandishing our weapons as we came at her from opposite sides.
As I mentally readied myself to lock blades with the strongest Schicksal Valkyrie, I caught Durandal's blue eyes shifting from Mashu over to me. Locking gazes with her piercing blue eyes, I couldn't help but shiver at the sight of them.
Calmly blinking, the blond Valkyrie shifted her focus back on the shielder in front of me which definitely had me confused. Was she really intentionally leaving her flanks open or was she really that confident in her skills?
Or were we not that much of a threat that she wasn't taking us seriously?
Whatever the reason was would forever remain a mystery as without warning she threw her spear straight at me with the force of a missile. My eyes widened as I narrowly dodged the thrown projectile, skidding on the ground as I tried to catch my breath. The thrown spear had stopped my charge and as I prepared myself to resume it I looked up to see what Durandal would do next.
Reaching forward the blond Valkyrie's hands grabbed onto Mashu's shield and slammed a foot into the ground before throwing the shield, alongside its bewildered wielder, right at me.
This time I could not dodge out of the way, only a small scream left my mouth, as my teammates body slammed into me. We both groaned in pain at the impact as we were sent tumbling in the ground with the shielder sprawled out on top of me. "M-Mashu," I grunted in pain as I tried to stand back up, attempting to get the Schariac back up as well.
In response the ash blonde and lavender haired shielder merely groaned in pain as I gently eased her body onto the ground. It seems that holding back the strongest Valkyrie had sapped all of her strength and had none left when the Valkyrie threw her at me. I couldn't fault her, it must've been the equivalent of trying to hold back a raging freight train.
"Mashu! Captain!" Layla shouted in worry when she saw our sprawled out forms before she leveled a glare at the S-Rank Valkyrie. "You'll pay for that!" The black and green haired sniper promised before she rushed forward and jabbed her bayonet at the seemingly distracted Valkyrie.
And without skipping a beat Durandal merely tilted her head out of the way, not at all fazed by the fact that her head had nearly been skewered by Layla's bayonet. That didn't deter the sniper as she continued her attempts in trying to land a successful hit with her bayonet.
From my position on the ground I watched as the S-Rank Valkyrie simply dodged any strikes that Layla made, seemingly dancing with how elegant she was with her moves. It felt strange saying that in a situation where we were fighting an opponent that was leagues stronger than us but seeing how graceful Durandal was in dodging was mesmerizing to see…
And the familiar frustrating feeling of familiarity as well. What had once been confusion was slowly bleeding into frustration. I had nothing against the blond Valkyrie, but my body and mind felt like it was being torn in two whenever it was related to the S-Rank Valkyrie.
I also had a sneaking suspicion that my earlier mishap in the beginning was due to this as well. So even my body knew how to fight against Durandal as well? Even if I had never met her face to face before?
Resisting the urge to scowl at how conflicted I was beginning to be at how this situation was turning out to be, I pushed it down and focused on the fight on hand. Frustration would only make me sloppy against the S-Rank Valkyrie and I needed all the concentration I could get and the less distractions the better.
Standing back up, I readied my two swords before running towards where Layla and Durandal were fighting with the intent of giving my teammate support. I knew that the S-Rank Valkyrie was toying with the valkyrie in training and that should she take this fight seriously then Layla would be easily taken out.
As I got closer to the fighting duo the blond Valkyrie threw a quick look at me, her blue eyes slightly narrowing at my approaching form. Her shift of her attention to me was all that Layla needed to raise her bayonet sniper and slashed downward with all the force she could muster. A small part of me was hopeful that with her attention focused elsewhere the S-Rank Valkyrie wouldn't see the blow coming and we could deal our first injury to her.
But then without even looking, Durandal's hands reached up and calmly caught the bayonet's blade.
Both mine and Layla's eyes widened in shock at how easily she had just done that but we couldn't dwell on it for long as the S-Rank Valkyrie wrenched the sniper rifle free from Layla's hands and out of the arena. The sniper opened her mouth to voice her bewilderment but it quickly turned into a groan of pain as the blond Valkyrie immediately kneed her in the stomach. Judging how I couldn't hear anything snap, the attack hadn't had enough force to break her ribs.
But it must've been extremely painful if the way Layla immediately slumped over was any indication.
Intent on avenging both of my fallen teammates I immediately engaged Durandal with the hopes that I could pick up where Layla had left off. Though I would quickly find out that I wouldn't have better luck than the sniper as all my strikes simply hit air.
However unlike with Layla instead of simply dodging through my attacks the moment the opportunity presented itself Durandal went on the offensive with only her fists. Now I was no novice in dealing against warriors who primarily used their fists. I've been trained, more like beat up, by Fu Hua enough times to get a sense of how to dodge and fight back.
But Fu Hua was like a river stream, she fought with a certain grace that could easily turn into something ferocious.
Durandal was like a raging hurricane, her fists rained down on me without any hesitation. A single moment of weakness or flaw would have me ripped asunder by her relentless barrage, even with the Caliburn's defenses.
Unfortunately I neither had the experience or the skill to effectively dodge the Valkyrie's punches and had to rely on the Luminous Blaze System to soak up the punches. Already I was having flashbacks of the shield system cracking under Iudex's might and was sure that if I remained on the defensive I would be seeing a repeat of the shield breaking.
Sure the Caliburn was stronger than the prototype gauntlet I used back then but the Soulium Juggernaut had nothing compared to Durandal's strength.
So instead of waiting for a slow and inevitable defeat I decided to go on the offensive the moment a window of opportunity presented itself. If I was going down then I was going down swinging!
After a few seconds after I had made that resolution a small window was shown and with my left hand I tried to go on the offensive and try to turn the tide of the battle.
Try was the keyword as the moment I had extended my arm Durandal reached up and batted my sword out of my left hand, sending it flying into the air. With the loss of my weapon and my hand out of position the only thing I could do was watch in horror as the blond Valkyrie took advantage of my defenseless state by throwing a punch at me.
I couldn't activate the Luminous Blaze System in time, too little time to try and expand the already active shields. I couldn't dodge out of the way either, too little time and I knew that I didn't have the flexibility to dodge such a close strike.
The only thing I could do was prepare myself for a world of pain when Durandal's fist collided with the white armor of my Kingsbane suit.
Yet the moment that her fist made contact with the Caliburn's armor instead of a world of pain…
I felt the stigma on my shoulder activate and the familiar sensation of being whisked away.
Of course it would choose a time like this for another memory.
Having had this happen to me more than enough times that I would like, I was already mentally prepared for whatever this vision would throw at me. The fact that it chose to do it just as I was about to get punched had me slightly pissed at the timing.
But at the same time it had me curious. This vision could've happened at the beginning of the match, or when I had gotten thrown into the ground alongside Mashu, or any other time, so the fact that it had chosen now to happen was a bit strange.
"Alright I think this is a good place to start," My other self announced as he dropped the bag that he was carrying on his back. Turning around I saw that Bianka had been following behind him and gave him a questioning look at his words.
"Start? Start what?" Her eyes moved to observe the surroundings that they were currently in.
No longer were they in the grassy plains but rather on a big mountain clearing. As the other Haruto's eyes followed Bianka's gaze I got a better look of where we currently were at.
Wherever we were was really high up, high enough that we were seemingly above the clouds themselves as we could be seen from this vantage point. Other mountains could also be seen, soon being shorter than the mountain we were on while others seemingly shot up to the heavens themselves.
So this was what one of the bubble universes that the pair had traveled through looked like.
"Training obviously!" The young boy cheerily announced, much to Bianka's and my confusion. Seeing his companion's confusion he then pointed a finger at her and further elaborated. "For you!"
"Me?" The young girl questioned as she also pointed to herself in disbelief.
"Aren't you a Valkyrie? Don't you guys have to train regularly to make sure your skills don't get rusty?" The young boy replied as he lowered his hand.
Bianka merely placed her hands on her hips and gave the boy in front of her an unamused stare. "I've been keeping up with my fitness everyday. Do you think that I would've allowed myself to get lazy with my training?"
"But not against someone else, that's a completely different thing." He pointed out.
Unable to refute his statement the young girl looked to the mountain side that they were on, her blue eyes trying to spot if they were truly alone. After a few silent moments spent observing their surroundings she returned her gaze back to my other self and crossed her arms. "Then who's going to be my opponent?" She gave him a skeptic look. "You?"
Instead of feeling insulted by her words he beamed joyously before he pointed to himself. "Yup!"
Bianka merely raised her brow as she looked her traveling partner up and down with an unimpressed look. "...This is some sort of joke isn't it?"
"Of course not!" He said in faux hurt, though a part of me wondered if he was actually hurt by her words. "I can fight too, you know!" He resolutely said, though it didn't do much in convincing Bianka.
"Are you sure about that?" She asked, giving him another look up and down to see if she had missed anything, and shook her head when she saw nothing new."Yes!" The boy assured as he patted his chest with his hand. "Hit me!"
That got a reaction out of the young girl as her indifferent expression broke as she looked stunned by his request. "Why do you want me to-!
"Just hit me!" 'Haruto' interrupted. The young Valkyrie looked as if she was going to argue more but one look at the boy's hazel eyes showed that he wasn't taking no for an answer.
Knowing that she had no other choice the young girl simply shrugged before she began to walk towards her traveling partner. If anything this could serve as a way for her to vent some stress, giving a good bruise on the cheek would teach him not to take her lightly.
When she got in arm's reach of 'Haruto' she cocked her fist back before throwing a fast, strong punch. There was no fear that she would break his jaw as she wasn't using all of her strength but there was enough that the connecting hit would hurt like hell and leave a nasty bruise.
As her fist was moments away from connecting with its target the young boy suddenly moved…
And Bianka found herself staring up into the blue sky, her back slightly stinging in pain as she felt the coarse rough ground.
…
…
Blue eyes blinked.
What had just happened?
A young boy entered her field of view, smiling as he looked down at her. "Hey I thought I said for you to hit me. Why are you laying on the-!"
Bianka's valkyrie instincts immediately kicked in as without hesitation she used her legs to try and knock the young boy's legs from out under him. Some might think that this was a bit overkill considering that they were travel partners(were they friends though?) but she was not one to go easy during a spar.
Especially when said sparring partner became smug after getting one up on her.
Without much difficulty 'Haruto' jumped out of the way and Bianka chose that opportunity to get back on her feet. Getting back on her feet and slipping into a combat stance she looked at the young boy with a serious look.
He was more than his rather innocent appearance suggested.
Watching her with a calm and relaxed expression the young boy rested his arms behind his head. "Are you sure you're some kind of warrior cause that was pretty lame." He lightly taunted.
A tick mark appeared on Bianka's face as her expression shifted into an infuriated scowl. "I'll show you!" She yelled before she rushed towards her opponent with her fists at the ready.
"I hope so!" My other self shouted back and without warning the vision distorted, kind of like how a television might glitch out and distort whatever was being shown. The distortion wouldn't last long but when it did it became abundantly clear that something had changed.
I was no longer in my original position of watching as a bodiless spectator.
I was now somehow in the body of my other self, looking through their eyes as the young Valkyrie was now coming towards m..e…
Us.
…
…huh?
"I…no…" 'My' mouth began to move on its own as a strange warm feeling began to spread through my body, the source of it coming from my shoulder.
Where my stigma was.
"We will show you what we are capable of!"
As she watched the dust cloud kick up from her attack Bianka 'Durandal' Ataegina inwardly sighed, but it wasn't from how much of a fight the 6th Valkyrja Squad had offered her. She knew how strong her strength was and while the squad was impressive they were still in training.
No she was sighing at her own actions that had led up to this in the first place.
Ever since the blonde Valkyrie had emerged from her trip in the Imaginary Sea she had immediately thrown herself into training not only her strength but also character. What followed was her moniker of 'Schicksal's Strongest Valkyrie'. It was a long and arduous road but she was happy with where she was today.
But there was always room for improvement so her path was a never ending one, one that got harder with each step she took.
However along the way she matured and no longer was she the bratty, immature, impulsive young girl. Now she was the mature, coolheaded leader of the Immortal Blades that were Schicksal's sword against the Honkai threat.
Or so she believed.
There were times where her old character would reveal themselves, though it was either when she was alone or when Rita knew which buttons to press. Everytime it did show she disciplined herself to never let it slip again.
Yet all it took was for her to reunite with her long lost friend for her to show the side that only Rita saw brief snippets of.
She should've seen it coming, the biggest indication of something being wrong was his bright coloration of his hair that was oddly reminiscent of Himeko Murata. She knew that there was no way for her dear friend to be here, no possible explanation whatsoever.
But even with all of the clues the resemblance between the two of them was so strong that Durandal could not control herself and immediately hugged him, regardless of the people present at the warehouse.
How could she not? It had been so long since she had seen her friend and she had always dreamed of their reunion happening.
So you could imagine her pain when she heard Haruto ask who she was. Those simple words struck a dagger in her heart that hurt more than any wound a honkai beast could inflict on her.
But she would not be deterred, not when her friend was finally near. She had seen it in his eyes, a brief flash of familiarity at the sight of her. He had recognized her but it was fleeting, as if there was conflict within him at the sight of her.
And with that a small hope that her friend was truly here had been lit inside of her.
However now that she had looked back at her actions it was apparent that she was rash in her approach. She internally kicked herself for rushing into this without giving her mind the appropriate time to think about it. It was a mistake that her younger self would constantly make and a mistake like that was something she thought she would have to never make again.
She had deliberately placed the 6th Valkyrja Squad in harm's way by moving them to the Vanguard of the honkai nest raid, a position that only the most experienced Valkyries would be placed at, and by doing so she had placed the inexperienced team in danger. She was lucky that not only was Fu Hua present, but also the fact that Midori, who had seemingly already befriended Haruto already, was never far from the squad.
The S-Rank Valkyrie would have to thank her at a later date.
She even had to place herself in front of her friend when the Parvati had unexpectedly charged him. The elephant-like, or warthog-like, Honkai beast normally required a team of Valkyries to deal with and it was only a small miracle that it was a newborn Emperor.
Still it did not excuse the fact that she had placed the inexperienced team in danger. Durandal would have never made such an amatuer mistake, placing a team in such unneeded danger.
It was a mistake that she would not make again.
But the need for answers gnawed at her like an itch that she could not get rid of. Starting off as something minor it would eventually grow and grow until she would do something rash once more…
The next time fortune might not be on her side.
So she would do one final test, one final trial to determine whether or not if Haruto was the same 'Haruto' she knew.
A spar.
It was her spars with her friend during the time of their journey through the Imaginary Sea that made her the warrior that she was today. Those spars had opened her eyes to the possibilities of how she could expand her combat capabilities and helped her unlock the strength that she used today.
Those very same duels were the inspiration behind the creation of her two most loyal knights, King and Queen.
However in her eagerness to find answers she had completely forgotten to reserve her strength against not only Haruto but his teammates as well. Though their time in the arena was short lived Durandal was impressed with what she saw.
Mashu Schariac would one day be a fearsome shielder, that was without doubt. Throwing herself in harm's way without any hesitation was something the shielder should be proud of. Coupled with the fact that the magenta and ash blonde valkyrie-in-training was beginning to learn how to use the fabled strength of her family's bloodline meant she would live up to their legacy and maybe even exceed it…
However she had yet to find the fire to stand stalwart against any threat.
Layla Gunnhildr was the exact opposite of her older sister. Wendy would privatize the mission first while Layla would prioritize the lives of her comrades instead. A praiseworthy trait to find in any teammate.
Durandal prayed that the sniper would never be forced into the position of choosing between the mission and her teammates.
As for Haruto Nakamura…she was not so sure what to say about him. His skill with the sword was good, and with time and proper guidance he would be skillful with it, but it was nowhere near the level of her friend.
She resisted the urge to sigh, she had made this more problematic than it needed to be. If she had just heeded his words the first time then it would've never ended up like this. Once the squad recovered from this spar the first thing she would do was to offer her profound apologies for her behavior and-!
It was only her instincts as a Valkyrie that she was able to swerve her head out of the way milliseconds before the sharp point of a spear suddenly shot out of the smoke.
For a moment Durandal wondered how Haruto had gotten a spear from. She hadn't seen it strapped to the back of the Caliburn Battlesuit, was it a function of his two swords then?
The blonde Valkyrie would soon have her answer as she saw the spear was not a vibrant red like his swords.
But rather of a familiar golden light.
Before Durandal could think of any further she jumped away from her current position, using the thrusters of the Bright Knight Excelsis to assist her just as a giant hammer of light destroyed the ground that she had just been standing on.
Landing quite a distance away, coincidentally where her spear had been thrown to, the blonde Valkyrie watched as the cloud of dust around Haruto dissipated…
Revealing the knight in training as he rested a massive hammer of light on his shoulder, and on his other hand was the spear that he had used to try and stab her with. His hazel eyes had a slight golden glow to them as the red haired teenager stared at the Valkyrie in front of him in a trance-like state.
Seeing the familiar glow of the weapons he was holding should've brought a smile to the Valkyrie's face but the teenager was not done quite yet. Dispelling the weapons he had, Haruto created a more basic weapon instead.
A simple sword.
Moving his stance he held the sword with both hands in front of him, a position familiar with all users of the sword for it was the most basic position to have your sword at the ready. For some it might seem like a non-intimidating way to project one's own self but Durandal knew better.
It was a way to lull your opponent into a false sense of security, a tactic that her friend loved to use.
So despite the fact that he had managed to catch her off guard and was ready for round two…
Bianka could not stop the smile that grew on her face as she readied her spear.
Many assumed that as the right hand woman of Durandal and the Vice Captain of the Immortal Blades that Rita Rossweisse was the blonde Valkyrie's closest confidant. The light brown haired valkyrie would not deny that she was one of the people that the strongest Valkyrie called a friend…
She could not claim that she was her closest confidant.
The maid would like to think that she was the second closest, with Lord Otto coming right behind her. Being the second closest would normally mean that Rita would be someone that Durandal would rely on and by extension know how she would act.
But nothing would prepare her for the joyous smile that was currently plastered on Durandal's face as she fought against Haruto Nakamura, who was only growing more mysterious with each time she heard the teenager's name.
The first time she had seen the teenager was when she had been hunting the black feline who she had just recently learned was named Kuro. The black cat had been a suspect in the infamous break-in of Massive Electric and it had been her job to bring the feline in.
Speaking of which when the cat had been revealed to be a stowaway back at the warehouse her blue eyes had locked gazes with her and let out a small hiss.
It seems that she remembered the night after all. Could Kuro not understand that she had no hard feelings about what had gone down that night? What kind of maid would she be if she did not complete the mission that she was assigned?
Cats could be such fickle animals and she was thankful that Durandal was not interested in getting a pet cat. She feared that if the blond Valkyrie ever adopted a cat she might one day accidentally order Carbon Stalker to…play with the feline.
Getting back on track about the red haired teenager, the maid didn't think too much about him at first. Wiping her loyal canine's memory of their encounter had been strange but in the grand scheme of things she did not think that he would hold much importance.
Then came her newest assignment from the Overseer himself. To investigate the first male student of St. Freya named Haruto Nakamura.
Not much could surprise the Maid of Schicksal but hearing the teenager's name for the second time, this time in her line of duty, had certainly raised an eyebrow. Furthermore her earlier suspicions were proven right when she discovered that Himeko Murata was indeed the aunt of Haruto.
However even with this new information she was certain that Haruto Nakamura would not surprise her even more. A teenager who became a warrior in the service of Schicksal, just like the rest of his peers at St. Freya Academy.
Yet he found himself not only under a squad that consisted of two valkyries-in-training that were special for their own reasons, that very squad that was led by Fu Hua of all people. He also found himself in a partnership with the eccentric Christopher Asplund and the Yggdrasil Advanced Engineering Corps.
Not only did he have a rather well-off squad, he also had access to opportunities that most if not all Valkyries-in-training would get access to. It was quickly apparent to her that Haruto Nakamura was full of surprises.
But she would be given the biggest surprise from the teenager when she saw how despite Durandal's efforts to bring him down, he stood his ground.
From her spectator area she watched as the red haired teenager went on the offensive against the S-Rank Valkyrie, two glowing swords in hand. The maid could hear murmurs of surprise from the spectators as they saw the knight-in-training clash blades with the S-Rank Valkyrie but while they were impressed by what they saw Rita saw something they couldn't.
Something that only she could see due to how close she was with the blond Valkyrie.
He couldn't match Durandal's fearsome strength, no one could, but the maid saw that the teenager wasn't trying to. The blonde valkyrie pushed the knight's blades off of her spear and retaliated with a quick lunge, a move that even the maid had trouble dealing with at times.
Yet Haruto merely swerved his body out of the way before he went to punish his opponent, the golden blades he was holding transforming into a two-handed hammer. The S-Rank Valkyrie did not panic as she simply vaulted away from the hammer's path.
But she would be pushed further on the defensive as a fan of golden daggers were flinged in her direction with deadly speed, forcing her to use her spear to block them. Lowering her spear, Durandal quickly rushed forward as she saw Haruto rushing her, not allowing her a moment of reprieve.
While others may find such a situation against such an aggressive opponent harrowing, the blond S-Rank Valkyrie must've felt the complete opposite as the smile on her face grew with each blow she exchanged with Haruto.
Watching the smile on her captain's face, an epiphany suddenly came to Rita on why the blond Valkyrie was feeling a level of joy that she had never seen before. It wasn't as if Durandal did not like to smile, it was just the maid had never seen a smile like this one before.
Haruto could not react fast enough to Durandal's attacks, not even the light brown haired Valkyrie was fast enough to do that without failing at least once.
No, the red haired teenager somehow knew her moves already and was able to react appropriately the moment the blond valkyrie performed any action.
What was even more astounding was that he was against a fighting style that the S-Rank Valkyrie had developed during her time in the 'failed' Lonely Panthalassa mission. As far as Rita knew, there had only been one other person that could know the strongest Valkyrie's fighting style.
The one responsible for delivering Bianka back to this world.
It wouldn't take one long to connect the dots if they had all the information.
Which then left the maid with the question of what to do now with this new information.
The appropriate thing to do was to report this information immediately to the Overseer. Such information would be critical in that Haruto Nakamura possessed a link to his strongest Valkyrie, especially when the Knight-in-training was slowly gaining importance in their war against the Honkai.
It was the right thing to do in her position as the Vice Captain of the Immortal Blades.
However…
Would it be the best choice as Durandal's friend?
She would not deny it, she was a bit jealous of Haruto's seemingly natural ability to make Durandal smile. After spending so many years as the blond Valkyrie's closest confidant there were only a few smiles that she was able to garner out of her fellow valkyrie.
But that jealousy was nothing compared to the maid's wish for her friend to be happy.
So she would simply report to the Overseer that Haruto Nakamura, and the 6th Valkyria Squad, showed immense potential and that under Durandal's guidance he would grow to be an important asset for Schicksal. She knew that Otto Apocalypse would eventually see that the two were close but only she would know just how close they really were.
After all…
It was the maid's duty to clean up after these sorts of messes.
With that conviction Rita continued to watch the duel between Haruto and Durandal, her curiosity having been piqued and wanted to see how far the teenager would last. The two rushed once more to meet the other in the middle, ready to clash once more…
However, just at the last possible moment before sparks flew the knight's battlesuit suddenly beeped very loudly before the gauntlets on his arms opened up and steam began to vent out of the several openings. So it seems that the Caliburn Kingsbane suit had multiple failsafes in place in order to prevent the suit from overloading, how interesting.
The suit's surprise shutdown had also ceased whatever trance Haruto had been under as the golden blades he was wielding dissipated into motes of light. Blinking confusedly, the teenager's eyes lost their golden glow as he began to look around with a perplexed expression.
"Huh what-!" Whatever he was about to say was sadly interrupted as with his guard down Durandal's fist had no problem slamming itself into his face, promptly sending him flying into the air and landing on the ground with a painful thud.
An awkward silence filled the arena as Durandal looked towards Haruto's slumped form with a bewildered expression, not at all expecting that the spar would end like it had. Rita so wished she had a camera to forever tease her about this moment.
"Uh…medic!" Before she could ask one of her Immortal Blades for a camera Midori rushed onto the field to check on her friend's condition.
"Oh well," Rita thought to herself before she went over to assist Midori. It wasn't as if this was the only time she'd get to this rare side from the S-Rank Valkyrie. She had a feeling that she would be seeing this side much more frequently than before.
"Dang Captain!" Layla exclaimed as she and the rest of the 6th Valkyrja Squad huddled around me in the Yggdrasil Advanced Engineering Corps' infirmary. "She screwed you up!
"Geez Layla," I groaned as I held the ice pack on my left eye which I was 100% confident that a black eye was already present. "Thanks for your concern." I sarcastically thanked before hissing at the lingering pain from the bruise on my eye.
"Layla-san is exaggerating senpai," Mashu assured me. "The bruise is healing quite nicely."
"Really?" I questioned as I took off my ice pack and turned my head to a mirror close by, noting the swelling of the bruise on the skin around my left eye. It looked like I was going to have a nasty black eye when it was done forming. "It certainly doesn't feel or look like that."
"Schicksal medicine is leagues better than what is available for the public. Rarely do Valkyries come out of fights unschathed so we had to develop medicine that could effectively treat their wounds in the shortest amount of time." Fu Hua informed us as she handed a water bottle over to me, to which I thankfully took.
It made sense, we were fighting against an enemy that 'modern' weaponry could barely hope to deal with and while developing better and deadlier weapons was good, it ultimately useless if you didn't have Valkyries or Knights who couldn't survive their wounds from the Honkai.
I just hoped that the black eye healed by the time we had to return to St. Freya. That was a story I did not want to explain to Kiana and the others.
Though judging the look on Keji's face when he had snapped a photo of my bruise earlier I had a feeling that I wasn't going to get that luxury.
Speaking of my chess loving friend from the corner of my eye I could faintly see him and Midori making small talk with each other, smiles on their faces as they caught up with each other and told stories of what had happened since they had to go separate paths.
Seeing the two of them talking to each other reminded me of the promise I had made with the once undercover Valkyrie and seeing just how happy the two were had me realize just how happy Mei would be when she was reunited with her friend.
Something else to add to my seemingly ever growing list of things to do.
"Still it should be said to take it easy in the meantime." My thoughts were interrupted as Marie walked over to us, tablet in hand. "We don't want that bruise of yours to remain there much longer."
"It's already been memorialized over there." I pointed to Keji who was currently showing Midori the photo of my black eye, much to the amusement of the both of them as they laughed at my appearance. "I don't think I'll be forgetting its existence any time soon."
The black haired scientist followed my gaze and when she saw what I was looking at she merely chuckled to herself, fully expecting what she saw. It must've been a relief to the older sister to see her younger brother acting his age despite the fact that he was a part of humanity's defenders.
"Perhaps for now, but not as long as you think it may last," She reached into her lab coat and brought out a syringe with an unknown liquid. Walking over the scientist injected whatever the mystery liquid was into my arm.
"It's a medication that should drastically increase your body's healing, by tomorrow the black eye will appear as if it healed." She told me and I couldn't help but marvel at what she had just injected into me.
Anime medicine was certainly something else.
"Say Marie-san, where is Asplund-san?" I asked as I looked around the area that the Yggdrasil Advanced Engineering Corps claimed for themselves, not seeing a hair of the eccentric pudding scientist. Come to think of it, I hadn't seen him at all ever since I woke up in the infirmary.
"He's in his private office at the moment, no doubt pouring over the combat data that you provided during your guys' fantastic spar with Durandal." The mental image of Asplund hunched over form in a dark office frantically scrolling through his computer with a half eaten pudding was almost too funny to look at, and I would've if my body wasn't tired as hell.
"I think you mean beatdown," I groaned as every single muscle in my body was screaming in pain. "We got destroyed back there."
"I think you mean we got destroyed back there," Layla motioned to herself and Mashu, who while they both sported less wounds than me they had gotten the shorter end of the stick in the due. "Me and her got creamed, you on the other hand…" She motioned to my black eye, which was the only visible injury I had.
"You were amazing Senpai!" Mashu praised next to the sniper. "I don't think I've seen anyone beside Rita-sama spar that well against Durandal-sama!"
"I must agree with Mashu-san," Fu Hua added her two cents in. "It takes immeasurable skill to stand against Durandal let alone to fight on equal standing."
"Geez you guys," I turned my gaze away from them and used my free hand to rub the back of my neck in embarrassment. "I'm not even that strong, that was just a lucky moment for me. I don't even remember all that I did."
It was true. The last thing that I could remember was the vision of the training on the side of the mountain with my other self and Durandal. I had somehow ended up from being a spectator to witnessing the vision through the eyes of my other self.
As I was watching through the eyes of the other 'Haruto' the scene in front of me suddenly shifted from watching a young Bianka charging at me to having a split second before Durandal's fist barreled into my face and knocked me out.
Which led to my current situation of waking up in the infirmary with a growing black eye and my entire body aching as if it went through an intense marathon.
"Even so the abilities you showcased were," I looked back up and my body could not help but shiver at the intrigued and almost excited gleam in Fu Hua's eyes. "We must increase our training in order for you to use your newfound abilities efficiently."
I let out a pained and tired groan, knowing that meant once we got back to St. Freya I would be put through even more hellish training. I wasn't the only one to have known what I was going to go through as everyone else laughed at my misfortune.
Marie was the first to stop laughing before she tried to assure me that this wasn't such a bad thing. "While you might think this training to be a bad thing it will most certainly be beneficial for you down the line," Tapping on her tablet the scientist then placed it in front of me just as a video began to play. "I must say Haruto-san I didn't think I'd see the day that Aslpund would actually consider redesigning the Caliburn Battlesuit for your stigma alone."
The video in front of me began to play and I couldn't help but openly gawk at the sight of the duel between myself and Durandal. That was supposed to be me?! I could only watch in awe as I saw myself clash with the S-Rank Valkyrie, summoning a wide variety of golden weapons that were wielded with deadly efficiency.
That was me, a knight in training who was barely getting used to using two swords, who in the moment looked to be a weapon master.
Now how the hell was I supposed to replicate that?!
The video continued to play until up to the point where the Caliburn suit shut down on itself, the reason I was told of why this was that the Kingsbane Battlesuit had almost overloaded from my stigma's power and had activated a shut-down initiative before it could blow up.
That would not have been fun.
"Now as much as we would all love to try and help Haruto unlock his newfound powers he needs his rest, especially you two," Marie motioned to Mashu and Layla's injuries. "While they might not be as obvious as Haruto's, you two do have some bruises that need time to heal."
The black haired scientist turned to Fu Hua. "Fu Hua-san Alvitr-san has requested your presence. The gray haired Immortal Blade did not tell the reason why she called for you but from what I could gather it involves the 6th Valkyrja Squad."
"Thank you for telling me Marie-san," The A-Rank Valkyrie thanked. "I'll be sure to immediately seek out Alvitr-san then."
With that everyone began to disperse, each having their own task to do which left me alone on the infirmary bed with my thoughts. Settling into a comfortable spot on the bed my mind raced to try to find a way to replicate what I had just done.
I didn't know how to describe it but it did feel as if something within my body had changed, what that change however was unknown to me. It didn't take a genius to know that change was only possible due to the spar against Durandal but other than that I didn't know how to exactly identify, let alone use this new change.
"I think I know how," Without warning Hyperion spoke in my mind, the reclusive spirit deciding to finally show up. I was wondering where the cheeky little spirit was and of course they decided to show up when I got a black eye. "And it's quite obvious."
I didn't say anything as I simply allowed them to continue their explanation. "We've always known that Durandal was linked to your stigma and your spar with her just confirmed it for us. Your stigma subconsciously reacts when you're either in mortal danger or you're in close proximity to her and it's obvious which one out of the two works out for the best."
It was a sound conclusion to make, especially with all the information that we now had. It was a conclusion I would've made but there was one teensy, tiny little problem with it.
"Do you know how impossible that sounds right now?!" I argued in my mind. Getting close to the Valkyrie that I was supposed to know but in reality didn't was practically a death sentence!
Forgoing the fact that it was practically impossible considering her status as the Captain of the Immortal Blades, the worst part was dealing with the awkwardness of how our last meeting had ended.
How the hell were you supposed to deal with that?!
"I know, I know," Hyperion assured me. "But I'm not the only one who wants answers now do I?" They said, stopping me in my tracks.
Despite all the negatives and the risks that another meeting with the strongest Valkyrie could entail, the need for answers practically squashed them all together.
So I spent the afternoon on my bed in the Yggdrasil Advanced Engineering Corps' infirmary, body tired from the battle it had gone through but my mind having its own battle to deal with.
I resisted the urge to groan contentedly as I stretched my sore body, my body thankful for the reprieve. After a few hours of rest in the infirmary I was finally cleared by Marie that I could walk around the base, with the reminder of not to push myself. My black eye, which thankfully already showed signs of getting better, and body still needed to rest.
The caveat of not pushing my body was easily accepted as I desperately needed to stretch my legs. Rest was important and all but sitting in the silence of the infirmary, with the occasional nurse checking up on me, was really starting to
I didn't plan on going far, just a small walk in the vicinity of the Yggdrasil Advanced Engineering Corps' base. Stepping out into the open I took the time to appreciate a deep breath of fresh air, letting it soothe my body. After some time basking in the fresh air, I aimlessly began to walk in a random direction, not really caring where I was going.
It was already night time by the time I had been discharged from the infirmary and I briefly entertained the idea of asking Layla or Mashu, or maybe even the both of them, to accompany me on the walk. It would be nice to walk around the base as a team, the more the merrier.
But in the end I ultimately decided not to invite them. The two of them could still be possibly resting from their duel against Durandal and I had gotten lucky when it came to injuries.
I also knew that they would eventually try and ask about Durandal which was a conversation I was not looking forward to having.
Alone with my thoughts I wandered aimlessly around the Schicksal military base, surprised with what I found. When one thought of a military base one normally wouldn't think that there would be a garden, a rather large one at that.
It was very well maintained, a diverse variety of flora called this place home and the river going through it all really added to the serene magical feel that this place was radiating. Following the well laid trail, I walked over a small bridge that was above the river where on the other side a rather large tree was situated.
I didn't know what I planned on doing when I crossed the bridge, probably walk up and examine the tree. That plan very quickly flew out the window when I saw a familiar figure alone near the tree, their back facing me as they leaned on the railing and was looking out into the distance in contemplative silence.
Not wanting to intrude on them I took a step back, which resulted in the wooden bridge creaking loudly as a result.
Biting back a curse I watched as Durandal turned her head to face me, an unreadable expression in her blue eyes when she saw me.
"A-Ah sorry about that," I stuttered out as I averted my gaze, feeling my cheeks flush. "I-I didn't see you there, I-I'll just excuse myself and-,"
"...Haruto-san," Her cool voice interrupted me. "Would you join me?"
I looked back up in shock, not at all expecting that response. A small part of me hoped that she was joking but to my dismay I saw that she was indeed being serious about her request.
I had half the mind to turn her down, make some sort of excuse to get out of this situation. Yet I knew that an opportunity like this was very likely never to happen again, that this was one and only chance to have a private conversation with the S-Rank Valkyrie.
So against my slowly growing discomfort with the situation that was about to happen, I nodded my head. "S-Sure," I responded before I tensely walked over to where the blond Valkyrie was at. Taking the spot next to her on the railing I did my best to calm my rapidly beating heart at the close proximity of the valkyrie.
The two of us sat in silence with the only audible sounds being the night sky and the chirping of grasshoppers. I wouldn't say the silence between us was awkward or anything like that, but neither was it a comforting one.
It was threading a very line between the two of them and could easily fall into either one of them.
"...How is your injury Haruto-san?" Eventually it was the S-Rank Valkyrie who would break the silence. "Forgive me I was…not gauging my strength properly." She apologized with a guilty tone.
"I-It's fine Durandal-san," I did my best to assure her. "Schicksal's medicine will make sure this will just be a memory of the past." I gestured to my face where she had punched me and how much it healed already. "See it's already fading away."
But my attempt to try and lighten the mood ended in failure as after I said that we promptly returned to silence once more, this time it was more awkward than before. Our attempt at light talk was pretty much a failure and I felt if we continued to do this then I would lose this opportunity.
Internally I steeled myself for what I was about to do but knew there was no other way than to address the 'elephant' in the room.
I took a deep breath and decided to take the plunge. "...Durandal-san," I started out as I gathered what courage I had and turned to face the blond Valkyrie. "W-We need to talk."
"I-I feel like I should know you," I started out stumbling but eventually I found the will to keep on going. "Yet at the same time I don't."
I didn't know if those were the proper words to start off the beginning of a sensitive conversation but I couldn't back down now.
"...Haruto," After what felt like an eternity waiting for a response the S-Rank Valkyrie finally spoke, turning to face me with seriousness in her eyes that I only saw when she fought.
"Tell me what you know."
So I told her how I came to be aware of our 'connection'. Of how it all started when Kiana had been kidnapped by the World Serpent and how it was in the final moments of the battle I had unlocked the Excalibur.
I observed Durandal's facial expression when I mentioned the subsequent name of my 'power' but to my surprise she didn't recognize the name at all, if anything it seemed to be as if this was the first time she had heard the name.
Unsure of what to think about that epiphany I continued on how I had my first memory of the two of 'us' when their paths separated as her younger self returned to her world. I then told her of the Nagazora Eruption, of how I gained the Excalibur Stigma.
I left out the part of how I actually got it, if only because I had no idea how Apollo and Hyperion fit in with my 'other self', and decided that I would only do so when I had a better understanding of the situation.
Then I told her of how I gained more memories whenever the stigma activated in moments where death was right around the corner. I told her of the most recent activation when we were fighting against her and how I saw the vision of their first spar together on the mountain side.
Finally I told her of how I was nothing like the Haruto in the visions, that I was practically the opposite of all of their key characteristics. I told her of how I didn't want to get her hopes up about her friend and that just because I was getting these visions it didn't mean that I was who she hoped I was.
By the time I finished talking I looked back to Durandal who had an unreadable expression on her face. A part of me was worried that she didn't like what she had heard, that she would decide that I was some sort of demon possessing her friend's body and take me out.
Was that a highly unreasonable, crazy assumption to make? Why yes, why yes it was.
But it was also crazy that I was even having this conversation to begin with.
"Is that so?" She said in a guarded and robotic voice. Alarm bells were ringing in my head with how she was taking this and my mind was currently working overdrive on what I had to do next. Before I could say something I was thrown out of the loop when she suddenly chuckled.
An action that I would never think the indomitable Captain of the Immortal Blades would ever make.
"You act just like him."
"Huh?" I did a double take at her words. Out of all the responses that I expected this was not one of them. "That doesn't make any-!
"You are right that you don't act like the Haruto in your visions, even I can see that," She interrupted me as she turned back to face me. I wasn't sure what happened but for some reason I didn't feel nervous to look the blond Valkyrie in the eye now. "However I believe you are forgetting the fact that said visions only cover a snippet of a very long story."
Looking up at the moon from our spot, a nostalgic smile grew on her face. "He was always fretting over me, making sure I was comfortable. You wouldn't believe how many times I threatened to beat him up with how persistent he was. He would worry about every little detail that could go, something you both seem to do." She joked with a light smile.
"Is that so?" Was all I could say as I leaned in on the railing and just listened to the S-Rank Valkyrie ramble. A part of me should've felt offended at the light jab but the light smile on my face showed how I was enjoying where this conversation was going.
"Though now that I've had a chance to talk to you I can see that you are both different."
"He is optimistic while you are more pessimistic,"
"He has an eager way of solving problems while you favor a more cautious approach."
"You are more reserved, shy, while he is more open, wild, about his feelings."
"There are so many conflicting qualities between you both that it would be impossible to think that you are the same person and yet…" She looked back up to the moon with a smile on her face. "For as many qualities that conflict with each other the both of you share just as many qualities."
"Both of you would not hesitate to put your lives' on the line for others."
"You both would not hesitate to reach out your hands to
"You both fret over the details."
A smirk grew on her face. "You both have the tendency to perform iditioic moves that would have most people pull their hair in frustration."
The two of us shared a quick laugh at that.
"You are like two halves of the same whole. You have the qualities he lacked while he completes some of yours but yet both of you share so many similar characteristics."
I… had never really thought about it like that.
It felt so strange, just a few moments ago I was completely dreading having this conversation yet now we were talking and cracking light jokes as if we were old friends. But as good as this was, as much as I wished that this would be the end of it and all was right in the world there was still one dying question that needed to be answered.
"And knowing that…" I started off, my tone hesitant that this question might destroy the pleasant atmosphere we had going on. "What happens now?"
To my surprise the assertive, collective S-Rank Valkyrie just nonchalantly shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know," Was all she said before she turned back to face me, an inquisitive look in her eyes. "What do you think should happen now?"
What did I want to happen now?
…
"I…would like to know you better as an acquaintance or even a friend," I told her truthfully as I looked down, trying to gather the will to explain my reasoning. "I don't know if it's an obligation to my 'other self', or if it's to understand my stigma better, or it's just to give myself some peace, or-!"
I was cut off when a hand placed itself on my shoulder, prompting me to look up to see Durandal looking at me with a warm smile.
"I accept," Was all she said.
And with those two words it felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off my back. I could feel my stigma react as a warm soothing feeling began to wash over me…
As if it was happy with this outcome.
Sora had a pout on her face as she walked down the path of the rather nice garden the military base had. Normally all the beautiful colors of the diverse flora would've put a smile on the young child's face but she was still feeling down from the day's earlier events.
More specifically on how 'Operation: Sneak' had failed so miserably.
It was such a foolproof plan as well! She had taken advantage of her caretaker's daily break and had prepared for any factor that would have resulted in getting her caught. Then when everything had fallen into place did she go through with her plan.
It was going so well too! She had been able to sneak onboard the transport plane with little to no difficulty and when they had taken off the young pink haired child was all but certain that she was going to have the adventure she craved.
Could you blame her? Ever since she had arrived at St. Freya she learned of the Valkyries and how they were humanity's resolute defenders, of how they fought against creatures who only craved destruction.
It was just like a fairytale come to life!
Adventures like these were what kids her age craved! She didn't want to stay cooped up in a classroom while Haruto nii-san fought to protect her. She was going to help him!
However she had forgotten that she was still a child and was in no condition to fight or go on such an adventure.
A fact that was drilled into her by her nii-san when she had stumbled out of the box she had been hiding in. How was she supposed to know that they were all outside?! It was hard to hear in there!
At least her nii-san didn't tell her oji-san, she would take a grounding over a scolding from him any day. He might've even pulled her out of St. Freya and that was something Sora did not want to happen.
Stopping for a brief second to grumble to herself about all the assignments she was going to have to do now since she was grounded, Sora decided now was a great time to head back to Marie nee-san before she gets more 'grounded' for staying out too late.
However, just before she was about to turn around she heard a faint sound, so faint that she would've missed it entirely if she was still grumbling to herself. Straining her ears to try and pick up the sound again her efforts were rewarded with the confirmation that it was the sound of people.
Getting curious, the young child decided to not return back and instead try to find where the people she was hearing were coming from. Using her masterful skills in stealth and tracking she tiptoed her way closer and closer to the sounds, which were growing louder and louder with each correct step she took.
Eventually she arrived at a wooden bridge and when she looked over the top of its crest she saw who exactly she was hearing.
There near a tree were two people talking to each other, smiles on their faces as they leaned on a railing. It looked as if they were lost in their own little world. One of them was her nii-san and the other was someone that Sora had begun to idolize, who couldn't when they saw just how great Durandal Ataegina was?!
"No way that happened!" Haruto laughed. "That's so funny!"
"You should've seen the reaction on his face," Durandal had a light grin on her face as she continued to regale him with her tale. "He was downcast for a week as the stench of the trap stuck to him and no one, not even I, would be near him for long."
The red haired teenager laughed at the mental image. "That reminds me of something that happened to me. It happened in the Nagazora Kitsune Festival and it relates to Midori and Keji. You see what happened is that we were at this booth and…"
The young child watched in amazement as the two of them exchanged banter. She wasn't exactly what someone would call a 'social butterfly' but her being Haruto's imouto meant that she knew what kind of person he was.
It would take him a while to open up to people, getting to know them better. Not to say her big brother was a bad person, he was anything but that, yet he was always wary of who he befriended.
Even with someone as awesome as Layla nee-san or Mashu nee-san her nii-san took a while to open up with them.
Yet here was someone she knew he had just met, after Layla nee-san had regaled to her the story of how Haruto got a black eye from getting punched in the face by Durandal, and was talking to them as if she was an old friend.
The smile he had on his face was just the same as if he was talking to either Kiana or Mei nee-san!
It was like a fairy-!
"Didn't your mother tell you that it's bad to eavesdrop?" A voice interrupted her internal thoughts.
It took everything in Sora not to yelp outloud in surprise as she jerked her head to the person who had just spoken to her. Looking up she saw who she knew as Rita Rossweisse, the second in command of the Immortal Blades, who was looking at her with a coy expression.
How had she snuck up on her without her noticing?! Was she some kind of ninja Valkyrie?!
Quickly calming herself down the young child put on a confident smile before addressing the maid valkyrie, careful not to interrupt the conversation still going on a few meters in front of them. "It's not a crime if I'm not caught." She confidently stated.
"Is that so?" Rita smiled at the young child's response, no doubt enjoying the boldness of her words. The light brown haired valkyrie opened her mouth to say something but just as she was interrupted as another laugh came from where Haruto and Durandal were at.
The sudden laugh had the both of them looking at the two other people near them having a good time with each other. Seeing the content expressions on their faces, Sora looked up to see what Rita thought of the scene.
The Maid of Schicksal looked at the two's banter with an expression on her face that the young child didn't know what to make out of. The adult's dark pink eyes looked to be mixed between happiness and a bit of envy? The last one Sora was not sure about as she had only seen it for a brief second before it had disappeared.
After some time spent in tense silence the valkyrie finally spoke up. "It would be unruly for the both of us to continue listening so shall we head back Sora-sama?" She held out her hand for the young child to take.
Giving one last look towards Haruto and Durandal the young child then grabbed the older female's hand and the two began to make their way out of the garden, giving its two other occupants some much needed privacy.
After the two walked away from them in silence Rita eventually spoke up.
"...Sora-sama, might I ask you a question?"
Being casually called '-sama' certainly threw the young child out of the loop but she managed to give a response. "U-Uh sure?"
"How much do you know about Haruto-sama?"
"Alot!" She puffed chest out in pride with a smug smile. "I'm his adorable imouto after all."
The valkyrie smiled at her behavior. "Is that so? Well in that case may I make a proposition. If you can tell me more about Haruto-sama, in return…" She looked down at the young child with a knowing smile.
"I will tell you more about Durandal-sama."
Sora didn't even need to think about a response as her eyes twinkled in delight at the propostion.
"Deal!"
And thus a beautiful partnership was born that night.
Our stay with the Immortal Blades was meant to have lasted two days, the first day was for the raid of the honkai nest while the second day was more dedicated for general training. It would've been something similar to a regular training day for the 6th Valkyrja Squad, albeit much more intense.
Though seeing how hard we got destroyed by Durandal, that plan was promptly discarded in exchange for recovering from our injuries.
I didn't know what I was going to do now that the squad had an entire 'day off'. I couldn't train so the only thing I could think of doing was hanging out with my teammates. Maybe go watch a movie with them or just spend the day lazing around with them.
Preferably I would've liked to spend time with Durandal, get comfortable with our newfound 'friendship' but there were two factors that wouldn't have made that possible.
One she was the Captain of the Immortal Blades, and that meant that she couldn't just go and 'hang out'. She had her own responsibilities to deal with that were much more important than a simple get together.
The other was that we had just spent the majority of the previous night talking and getting to know each other and I don't know if it was just me but it would've definitely felt weird if I tried the same thing just a few hours after that.
Yet there was one thing I forgot about these two factors that was quite important, and that was what Durandal would think.
Which led to my current dilemma.
"How the hell did this happen," I muttered to myself in disbelief as I surveyed the town center that I was now in. There happened to be a small, rural town, which looked familiar but I couldn't figure out why, near the military base and I just so happened to be assigned a 'mission' with someone else.
And guess who that other person was.
"Forgive me Haruto-san, I was just talking with Rita about the mission." Durandal walked over to me dressed in casual clothing, a far cry from the Bright Knight Excelsis Battlesuit I was so used to seeing her in.
"It's no problem at all Durandal-san," I assured her as the blond Valkyrie walked over to where I was. Once she got closer I looked around to see if there would be anyone else joining us and after a quick observation it was indeed only the two of us completing this 'mission'.
"Forgive me for asking but what exactly is our mission here?" I asked her.
"We are here to negotiate for supplies to be delivered to the base." She answered, much to my surprise.
"Supplies?" I questioned with a brow raised. "I thought that supplies were delivered by Schicksal itself."
"They are," Durandal affirmed. "But Schicksal alone cannot produce the necessary supplies to maintain all of its military bases. Whenever it is possible we try to source our supplies from local sellers, to both minimize costs and to also prevent a base shutdown should something happen to our supply lines."
That actually made a lot of sense. Sourcing supplies from a local town or city not only meant that they were fresh and delivered in a timely manner as opposed to getting them from another base, it also allowed the base to develop friendly relations with their neighbors.
As advanced as Schicksal was compared to the rest of the world it still functioned like a normal company.
"If that's the case then why am I here?" I inquired as I pointed to myself.
"Normally Rita or Alvitr handles these kinds of missions but Rita informed me of something that required her full attention but didn't elaborate on what it was. Alvitr-san has to run a training exercise with our newer recruits, including Midori-san, which left me to complete this mission."
She then pointed to me. "Rita requested that I bring you along in order for you to learn about the intricacies of how Schicksal operates and I agreed with her request."
"Is that so…" I couldn't help but mutter out loud. I don't know if it was my paranoia acting up but I was pretty sure that Rita had planned for this from the start. I didn't know what the Maid of Schicksal was planning but I would have to keep my eyes open for the remainder of this mission now.
"This mission will be an invaluable experience," Durandal assured me, all but oblivious to my inner suspicions. "As the sole Knight of Schicksal you will be called on to meet with our allies and strengthen our alliances with them. This is a great learning opportunity for you."
Seeing how I had no way out of this, without doing something incredibly stupid that would draw suspicion onto me, I just shrugged my shoulders and accepted my fate. "Well I suppose we should get going then," I motioned for the S-Rank Valkyrie to lead. "After you."
Soon the two of us went into town to speak with various suppliers. Nothing really exciting happened during this time. It mostly consisted of seeking out the suppliers with Durandal taking the lead in the conversations and I just sat back and listened.
Not to say I didn't contribute as I asked my fair share of questions on how these partnerships with Schicksal actually worked but for the most part it was the blond Valkyrie doing most of the work.
It didn't take long for us to find all the suppliers and by the time we finished talking with the last one it was already noon. Normally that would've marked the end of the mission and our return to base yet since it was already lunchtime I offered to have lunch at a local restaurant.
It was probably selfish of me but I didn't want to return to the base so soon, not on a rare 'day off'. Especially considering this time would allow me to bond further with the S-Rank Valkyrie.
Luckily the S-Rank Valkyrie did not voice her objection and we had a rather nice lunch which led to us back in the town's square, an ice cream cone of our favored flavor in hand.
"Nothing beats a refreshing cone of ice cream after a hard's day of work," I noted as I took a lick of my vanilla ice cream cone. Call me old fashioned or plain, it was hard to beat such a favored classic.
Beside me Durandal let out an appreciative hum as she enjoyed the fudge ice cream cone that she had gotten. I never assumed that the S-Rank Valkyrie would enjoy such a flavor but then again there were many things that I was beginning to learn about her.
The two of us were left in a silent, but comfortable, atmosphere as we enjoyed our cones of ice cream as we watched the residents of this town go about their daily lives without. It was strange that people watching could be so relaxing but I wasn't complaining.
"This reminds me of one of the bubble universes that I had gone through." Durandal spoke up as she lowered her ice cream cone.
"A town?" I asked her, intrigued with where she was going.
"Did you think all of the bubble universes we went through were vast stretches of nature that we had to traverse through every single time?" She asked me with a smirk on her face, which prompted me to turn my head in the other direction and hoped that she didn't see my embarrassed flush.
Though that didn't work as she lightly giggled to herself.
"But yes some of the bubble universes we traveled through had us going through cities like these. Most of them were fleeting arrivals however some were special." She told me as she looked at the central fountain with a nostalgic smile.
"How so?"
"Most often than not we made friendly acquaintances with fellow bubble universe travelers. Some explored for the thrill of the unknown while others were like me, trying to find a way back home." She explained. "The most notable of them were these two twins that were born from the stars, searching for something only they knew of."
Hearing that last sentence had me pause in my ice cream cone enjoyment. That sounded very familiar but for the life of me I couldn't put my finger on why that was…
"Our time traveling together was short but very notable, though I wonder if they found what they were looking for…" She chuckled to herself as I could imagine her going down memory lane, probably thinking about the numerous shenanigans they must've gone through.
"Now that I think about it I had completely forgotten about these experiences, forgotten when I became the Captain of the Immortal Blades. Yet just being here with you has made me remember all of these as if they had happened just yesterday." She commented and the only thing I could think of doing was going along with the flow.
"Is that so?"
All she did was simply nod before silence settled between us as we finished up the remainders of our cones. Enjoying my last bite I turned around to see that the blond Valkyrie had already finished with hers. I was a bit saddened knowing that this was probably the end of our town visit but I knew it had to end eventually. I prepared myself to leave my spot but before I could do that our attention was taken by the sounds of laughter.
Turning my head in the direction of the laughter I saw a bunch of kids hanging around at an arcade, no doubt it being the reason for their collective amusement.
Durandal also had her attention piqued by the kids' laughing, though it quickly shifted to the arcade behind them. "That is an arcade right?" She asked me.
"Yes, why do you ask?"
"I remember in one of our journeys that he had desperately wanted to take me to one, so that I could experience in his words 'The Best Place Ever'. However we couldn't due to my wish of reuniting with Rita." She explained and this time I could hear the tone of regret in her voice. She was probably just now realizing that moment could've been another memory of her journey with the other 'Haruto' that she could've held onto but her desire to be reunited with Rita had burnt that bridge for her.
"…Then let's fix that." I unexpectedly said, drawing her attention.
"Hm?" The S-Rank Valkyrie showed slight surprise at my offer.
"Seeing how we have some time to kill, I don't think going to an arcade is a bad idea." I did my best to grin confidently. "It's important to live a little, you know. And 'The Best Place Ever' sounds like the perfect place to go"
The S-Rank Valkyrie was silent in contemplation but eventually a smile graced her face as she nodded. "Okay then," She agreed.
That was good, she didn't seem against the idea. I just now had to build momentum for this to work. "I'll have you know that-!"
However in this amiable atmosphere I had forgotten one key factor that seemed to love rearing its head in the least opportune moments.
And it was that plans could be swiftly changed.
"H-Haruto?!" A familiar voice cried out in shock.
My body immediately shivered as my mind immediately recognized who the speaker was, but there was no way that they could be here! There was no reason for them to be here or anywhere close to this town right now!
Yet here they were.
Slowly, in an almost robotic way, I turned around to face the person who had just shouted my name.
And came face to face with someone I hadn't seen in what felt like forever.
"O-O-Oka-san…" My pale face trailed off as I looked directly into the wide hazel eyes of my red haired mother, who was staring at me and Durandal with a slightly open mouth.
"W-What are you doing here?"
When I mentioned that I had a special thing planned for dear Haruto's parents this is what I meant XD.
Sorry for the late update, there were a multitude of things that affected the update schedule. First one being Pokemon fanfiction again lol. I binged the Pokemon Traveler Fanfiction for like four days and after that it led to the second thing. The temptation to write a pokemon fanfiction.
I don't even know what started it at first but I now have a google doc dedicated to the pokemon fanfiction where the character will be a ghost type trainer. Will it ever see the light of day? Maybe after I finish this story but that's so far into the future.
Writing Durandal and her interactions with Haruto took up a huge amount of my time as I wanted to make sure that I was 100% sure it was good, well for me at least. I spent like an entire day just staring at the doc for this story just brainstorming the conversations that would happen. This was the chapter that would either make or break her position in the story so I hope I did it well enough for you guys.
Now I know you want me to say some other stuff but I don't really have the time to as the last reason I chose to upload today is that I am going to be away at an Anime Convention, specifically AnimeExpo, and that I know I will be mentally finished after the convention so here's the chapter.
It's also the reason why if you think this chapter feels a bit rushed as I only had enough time to proofread this once.
I won't be responding to PMs for a while so please be patient if it takes a week for me to answer you.
Welp that's all for this chapter. If you enjoyed it, drop a fav/follow/kudos as they really help me out with creating great chapters. Reviews are deeply appreciated and if you have a question or a really interesting theory I am more than happy to reply. Please be patient if I don't respond to you super fast. Even if I don't respond to your comment for whatever reason, know that I read each and every one of them! PMing me is the best way for me to respond to your questions.
Peace!