"Kiana, how on earth did you manage it? A zero, on a test where you wrote down answers? Based on my understanding, even if you get every answer wrong, a teacher will usually give you a point or two for effort. Mr. Welt doesn't seem like the type to be completely unforgiving."
Xin Yu was curious. He had a particularly deep impression when it came to tests, recalling a teacher who once told him that if he put his answer sheet on the floor and stepped on it, he'd get a higher score than some students.
In other words, even if you were terrible at answering questions, you should be able to get a single-digit score through sheer luck by guessing a few questions, and Kiana's luck wasn't bad at all.
Kiana looked away awkwardly, then said in a very small voice, "Well... I was writing and writing, and then I fell asleep... By the time I woke up, it was almost time to hand it in, so I wrote a bit fast... and... my handwriting got a little messy at the end."
"A little... messy?"
Welt, who had only walked a few steps away, suddenly stopped. He reached into the briefcase tucked under his arm and pulled out a test paper.
Immediately, Xin Yu saw a sheet that had been partially soaked in drool. The handwriting at the beginning was still somewhat normal, but the characters on the latter half looked like they were drifting into a doctor's scrawl.
"Kiana Kaslana, is this what you call 'a little messy'?"
Welt pushed his glasses up his nose and spoke in a serious, stern tone. "I know that some of you Valkyries feel that academic classes are useless. You believe that all you need to do is pick up your weapons and head to the battlefield to fight Honkai beasts and the Honkai-infected Dead. You think it doesn't matter if you're illiterate, as long as you can understand orders and swing your weapon."
"But learning is not merely a process of acquiring knowledge. The things you learn may not be of any use in the future, but the process of learning itself is exercise enough. Mathematics enhances your logical thinking. Language improves your comprehension and expression. And history teaches you how those who came before us arrived at this present moment, showing you the many mistakes we can learn from."
"You need to approach your studies with the right attitude, Kiana. If you truly wish to become a warrior who can fight to protect others, you must first understand what it is you are protecting. You must know what meaning there is in protecting others, and what your battles can bring to them, or to yourself."
"Don't wait until you're trapped in a dilemma, lost and confused, before you try to search for answers."
After hearing him out, Kiana nodded seriously. If this were the past, Kiana would have indeed thought that these academic subjects were of no help to her in a fight, so she never paid much attention. But now, with the memories of the future, Kiana understood a certain truth: if her own knowledge reserves were insufficient, then even with the power of the Herrscher of Finality, she would never be able to control and utilize it properly.
Xin Yu watched Welt's departing figure and couldn't help but marvel internally. He never expected the younger Mr. Welt to be such a good teacher. No wonder he and Himeko would become the "parents" of the Express crew.
"Kiana, he's a really good teacher. You have to study hard and not let down his earnest guidance."
"Xin Yu, I have a question. What's your education level?"
"...Uhm... I... I think... I graduated from university?"
A drop of cold sweat inexplicably trickled down Xin Yu's temple. If the pre-amnesia him truly had the knowledge of a university graduate, then the current him, having lost the vast majority of his memories, probably couldn't even beat a high schooler... no, even beating a middle schooler was a serious question.
Watching Xin Yu's somewhat awkward expression, the smile on Kiana's face gradually took on a mischievous edge.
"Xin Yu, you heard what Mr. Welt just said, right? Studying is a very important thing! I don't think you've even graduated from high school, have you? Surely you don't want to be the bad student who sits on the sidelines, wallowing in complacency while others work hard, do you?"
"A young man like you wouldn't want to set a bad example for his girlfriend, right?"
"..."
Xin Yu looked at the smug grin on Kiana's face and, after a moment, let out a helpless sigh.
"Alright, if I can't even do it myself, I have no right to lecture others. Kiana, I'll be a student and study hard too. In exchange, you have to study seriously as well. We'll supervise each other."
"Hehe! Pinky swear! You have to promise me you won't leave before the end of the course~ Otherwise, how would I know if you went off somewhere else to study properly? You have to stay with me."
Xin Yu looked at Kiana's smiling face with a bit of bewilderment.
Could it be that this was her goal?
That's right. Kiana was the one who proactively dragged him here to see Mr. Welt. She's been at this school for a while now; how could she not know what he would say after seeing her test?
Which is to say, she planned all of this, just to use studying as an excuse to forcibly make him stay?
"This is really unexpected. I never thought you'd resort to conspiracies and ploys."
"Otherwise, you'd probably leave soon, wouldn't you? Xin Yu, just as you said, you never lack for time, and neither do we. So why can't you stop and take a proper rest for yourself?"
Kiana reached out with both hands and cupped Xin Yu's face, looking earnestly into his eyes, into those black-and-white irises, into the pupils that were as dark and deep as an abyss.
"It's time you took a proper rest, too. The world isn't at a point where it will be immediately destroyed without you. Humanity hasn't reached a state where it will perish without you. No matter when you choose to act, you will always be in time to do what you want to do."
"So for now, please stop. Temporarily forget the power you possess. Temporarily forget the shackles and responsibilities you've placed upon yourself. Be an ordinary student, live an ordinary life, study ordinarily, and spend an ordinary day with your friends, with the one you love."
"Go and experience it again—the life a normal person should have. Then, let that experience become the cornerstone of your own growth, allowing you to walk your own path more firmly, more resolutely."
"So, I'm begging you. Can you please stop for a little while?"
Seeing the pleading look in Kiana's eyes, Xin Yu suddenly found he had no reason to refuse.
"Alright, I promise you."
"Pinky swear!"
"Alright, pinky swear."
Their pinkies hooked together, forming a tangible bridge. The warmth from each passed through that point of contact and into the other's heart.