Honkai Impact: My Power Grows When Valkyries Fall For Me — Chapter 57

Chapter 57: Pseudo-Herrscher

A silent, intimate game was unfolding beneath the table.

Mei could feel the warmth of Lucian’s fingertips against her own. A slight, teasing scratch of his nail sent a wave of tingling electricity up her arm, making her heart hammer against her ribs. She lowered her head, pretending to be engrossed in the lunch on her plate, using the simple act of eating to hide the blush blooming across her cheeks.

Lucian, however, felt no shame at all. With a hint of deliberate mischief, he gently hooked his finger around hers, a silent invitation.

The heat on Mei’s cheeks intensified, and she practically buried her face in her plate. She didn’t dare look up at Lucian, let alone glance at Kiana and Bronya seated across from them. All she could do was bite her lower lip, trying to anchor herself. She shot a quick, secret glare at Lucian, but it held no real threat; it was more of a coquettish pout than a warning.

Across the table, Bronya saw everything.

Her gray eyes remained calm, unreadable, but the methodical motion of her chewing salmon paused for a nearly imperceptible moment.

Then, in the hidden space beneath the table where Lucian and Mei couldn’t see, Bronya’s foot, encased in the light armor of her exoskeleton, delivered a sharp, precise kick to Lucian’s shin.

He looked up, a flicker of surprise in his eyes, his gaze sweeping across the table.

Bronya was looking right back at him, her expression a perfect mask of neutrality. She set down her utensils, picked up the napkin beside her plate, and carefully dabbed at the corners of her mouth. The action itself was innocuous, but paired with her placid, unwavering stare, it sent a clear, silent message.

It was a look that said, I saw that.

‘…’ Lucian thought, a bead of sweat forming on his brow. This girl… she’s definitely doing this on purpose.

A few days later, in the Principal’s office.

Theresa sat in her custom-made, oversized office chair, her expression uncharacteristically serious as she studied several documents spread across her desk.

A gentle knock sounded at the office door.

“Come in,” Theresa said without looking up.

The door opened and Lucian walked in. “Theresa? You wanted to see me?”

Only then did Theresa lift her head, her small face etched with a complex expression. She pointed to the chair opposite her desk. “Sit.”

Lucian sat down as instructed, a good guess already forming in his mind. He figured this had to be about the discovery of a Pseudo-Herrscher in Changkong City. Calculating the timeline, it was about the right moment for it to appear…

As if on cue, Theresa slid a document bearing Schicksal’s encrypted seal across the desk toward him.

“The search and rescue operations in Changkong City are nearing completion,” she began, her tone grave. “But our reconnaissance teams have detected abnormal Honkai Energy fluctuations in the area of Senba Academy.”

Lucian picked up the file and quickly skimmed its contents. Inside were detailed monitoring data, satellite images, and on-site reconnaissance reports. The data indicated that the Honkai Energy at the former site of the academy was exhibiting a strange, periodic activity, a pattern completely different from the typical diffusion of Honkai Beasts or the mindless shambling of Death Soldiers.

“A Pseudo-Herrscher…” Lucian murmured, the words tasting like ash.

Theresa nodded grimly. “Yes. Precisely a Pseudo-Herrscher.”

“Do you need me to handle it?” Lucian looked up, meeting her gaze. Given the strength he had already demonstrated, it was the most logical assignment.

Theresa nodded, then shook her head, a gesture of pure frustration. “Originally, I planned to go with you.”

“But when the mission was reported, Schicksal Headquarters denied my deployment request.” As she spoke, Theresa clenched her small hand into a tight fist, her voice thick with dissatisfaction. “The reason they gave was that, as the head of the Far East Branch, I shouldn’t personally intervene in high-risk, frontline missions.”

“Sounds just like an excuse Grandfather would cook up…” Theresa muttered under her breath before continuing. “So, Headquarters issued a new directive. They’ve appointed you as the team leader for this operation.”

She slid a formal paper deployment order toward Lucian. The golden emblem of Schicksal Headquarters was particularly conspicuous under the office lights.

“Rita Rossweisse will accompany you as your adjutant.”

“Rita?” Lucian repeated the name. It wasn’t unfamiliar. An S-rank Valkyrie from Schicksal Headquarters, vice-captain of the Immortal Blades, and a legendary figure some players in his old life had jokingly dubbed the ‘Herrscher of Seduction’. But if she was being sent by Headquarters, it was undoubtedly Otto’s hand at work.

‘Is this to monitor me?’ he wondered.

Theresa seemed to sense his doubt. She sighed, propping her chin on her small hand, her expression tinged with helplessness. “Grandfather’s arrangements are never straightforward.”

“Rita’s strength is beyond question. With her there, the mission’s safety will be greatly enhanced…” she admitted, “but conversely, she is also Grandfather’s eyes.”

A flicker of worry passed through Theresa’s blue eyes. “Lucian, I have a feeling Grandfather’s interest in you is… unusual.”

Lucian set down the file, his own expression calm. He knew exactly why Otto was paying attention to him. That old fox must have encountered a version of him on a previous timeline—perhaps at the Tower of Babylon, or even earlier. For a man like Otto, the ability to traverse time would be the ultimate prize. With such a power, he could endlessly attempt to alter the foregone conclusion of Kallen’s fate.

“When do we depart?” Lucian asked, cutting to the chase.

“The transport aircraft is on standby, and Rita has already arrived at St. Freya. It’s mainly…”

Theresa’s words were cut short as the office door was suddenly knocked again.

“Come in.” Interrupted, Theresa looked toward the slowly opening door, a hint of displeasure on her face. An elegant, tall figure stepped inside.

It was, indeed, Rita Rossweisse.

Lucian instantly recognized her attire from countless images—the classic combat suit that blended the aesthetics of a maid’s uniform with the functionality of Valkyrie armor. The Dark Rose.

“Good afternoon, Lady Theresa,” Rita said, offering a slight, perfect bow before her gaze settled on Lucian. “This must be Lord Lucian. A pleasure to meet you. I am Rita Rossweisse.”

Lucian stood, meeting her gaze. “A pleasure to meet you, Miss Rita. I look forward to working with you on the upcoming mission.”

“You are too kind, Lord Lucian,” Rita replied with a faint smile, her wine-red eyes betraying no discernible emotion.

Seated opposite each other on the transport aircraft bound for Changkong City, the atmosphere between Lucian and Rita was quiet, almost unnervingly so.

Lucian looked out the window at the land speeding by below, the green fields and forests gradually giving way to a sickly purple haze and scenes of utter devastation. Over Changkong City, the massive cumulus clouds of Honkai Energy had mostly dissipated, but the immense, bruised stain that remained greeted their arrival with a silent, menacing presence.

“Lord Lucian seems lost in thought,” Rita’s gentle voice broke the silence. She sat with impeccable posture, calmly observing him as if they were merely engaging in casual conversation over tea.

Lucian pulled his gaze from the window and looked at the woman across from him, offering a small shrug. “Just thinking about the contrast. What this city once was, and what it has become.”

A barely perceptible sigh tinged his voice. Just days ago, he had been quietly attending school in this very city. Now, he was returning as a soldier, tasked with subjugating a monster born from its ashes.

Time had a cruel way of moving on.

“The trajectories of fate can indeed be poignant,” Rita mused, her voice smooth as silk. “However, it is precisely because of such regrets that we must press forward, to prevent more tragedies from being born.”

Her words carried a sense of clarity and resolve. She looked at Lucian, and for some reason, her polite smile seemed to deepen slightly. “Speaking of which, Lord Lucian is seventeen this year, correct?”

“Huh?” Lucian was momentarily taken aback by the sudden shift in topic. He looked at Rita, whose smile remained as elegant and unreadable as ever.

“Yes. I’ll be turning eighteen soon.” Though in this world, the idea of celebrating a birthday felt like a distant, alien concept. The combined age from his past life and his years handling the treacherous waters of Schicksal made him almost forget the legal age of the body he now inhabited.

“On the cusp of adulthood…” Rita’s tone held a trace of imperceptible sentimentality, and her gaze held a hint of something that looked like sympathy. “At that age, one should be in school, excited over small worries and dreaming of the future.”

She sighed softly, her wine-red eyes turning to look out the window at the increasingly clear, scarred land below, as if speaking to herself. “Not rushing between ruins and battlefields as you are now.”

Lucian didn’t respond, simply following her gaze out the window. Including his previous life, he was forty-two years old. He was no longer the child Rita spoke of. He pulled his gaze back, looked at her, and offered a calm, quiet smile of his own.

The transport aircraft began its gradual descent, the jagged outline of Changkong City growing clearer outside the window. Crumbling walls and skeletal ruins loomed faintly within the gray-purple mist of Honkai Energy. The streets were deathly silent, populated only by the wandering silhouettes of Death Soldiers, the sole witnesses to the cataclysm that had unfolded here.

“Indeed,” Lucian said, his voice low. “But it’s about time we end the reminiscing.”

The aircraft began its final descent, preparing to land at the designated site. Through the window, they could clearly see the temporarily cleared landing zone below and the few relatively intact buildings surrounding it. That was their forward command post, the supply point for this operation.

A slight vibration ran through the cabin as the aircraft touched down smoothly. The hatch hissed open, and a gust of wind rushed into the cabin, carrying with it the scent of scorched earth and an unnervingly sweet, cloying odor—the smell of decay.

“We should move.”