A.N. Power stones fell off a cliff for some reason.
"Hello, old friend, I am in need of your assistance." Otto spoke.
Fu Hua had been back at Schicksal HQ for a while now. When the eruption happened, she had been picked up by a Schicksal Transport and had been brought back to Schicksal HQ by Otto.
However once she had arrived back Otto had informed her that her help was not needed, and that the Herrscher had apparently disappeared, and that the remaining Honkai beasts were being taken care of.
She had mixed feelings about Otto. She was well aware of his less-than-moral deeds, but he was still a key figure in humanity's fight against the Honkai. Whenever she confronted him, he always had an explanation ready, sometimes even a convincing one.
And despite her fragmented memories, she somehow recalled that even Otto's worst deeds were tame compared to whatever she had forgotten in the past, as part of her oldest memories. That thought bothered her more than she liked to admit.
She was now being sent on a new mission, Otto had claimed that it was related to the artificial Herrscher project.
"My friend, the 3rd Herrscher has been found, and is now a student at St. Freya Academy."
"?" Fu Hua's mind blanked for a moment.
"In addition, she is apparently in a romantic relationship with subject K-423."
"?" Fu Hu's mind fully crashed.
"This is quite fascinating. Not only does it confirm the viability of the Artificial Herrscher Project, but it has also helped us confirm the conditions under which an Herrscher awakens. We may, in time, have many more Herrschers fighting for humanity."
Fu Hua's mind recovered a little bit, her feelings were always a little complicated when it came to Herrschers fighting for humanity. Her own memories were so full of hate and fear towards anything born of the Honkai. Yet, surprisingly, the First Herrscher had chosen to fight for mankind
She had lost most of her memories during the second eruption, however she was somewhat used to this, and had grown used to relying on her emotions and feelings towards things rather than her own memories. Overall, her general impression of the first Herrscher was mostly positive.
"...However I am a bit worried about Theresa's ability to handle the both of them, and recently, she has been going through a rebellious phase and doesn't like to tell me things anymore. This is why I would like you to go undercover to St. Freya Academy as a student, to observe K-423 and the Third Herrscher."
"?" Fu Hu's mind crashed for a third time, she was over 50,000 years old, according to the earliest records Otto had found, and she was going to go undercover as a student?
"Luckily," Otto said with a smile that was much too casual, "your MANTIS biology halted your physical growth at a young enough age that no one will question it. And, of course, I trust you to handle things if the Third Herrscher loses control."
He placed a stack of four folders on the table in front of her.
Fu Hua picked up the first one. The label read: Raiden Mei.
"The Third Herrscher," Otto narrated. "Former heiress of ME Corp, which, as you know, has ties to our friends in Anti-Entropy. I don't expect they'll come for her."
Overall, she didn't really know what to make of it, the Third Herrscher had apparently awakened due to bullying due to her Fathers arrest, compared to the First Herrscher, who had become a Herrscher in an event that had caused the death of an entire city, and the Second Herrscher, who had become a Herrscher after the human experiments in the Babylon labs, this seemed a bit tame by comparison.
After she finished reading the file and Otto had finished her narration, she picked up the next file in sequence.
When she finished reading, she picked up the second folder: K-423.
"Nothing you haven't seen before," Otto said lightly. "Though, as mentioned, she's now romantically involved with Miss Raiden Mei."
Fu Hua decided not to dwell on that and set the file aside.
The next folder was labeled Bronya Zaychik.
"Formerly under Cocolia," Otto explained, "the former Anti Entropy Executor now being hunted after causing the Third Eruption. Miss Zaychik defected and joined St. Freya. Psychological assessments and interviews confirm her loyalty to Schicksal. Or, at least, her lack of interest in returning to Anti Entropy or Cocolia."
Fu Hua nodded slightly and picked up the last file.
Lee Edelhart.
"A very interesting case," Otto narrated, "Her past is a complete unknown, her file is almost completely empty, however she is not a member of Anti Entropy. In fact, our good friends at Anti Entropy are also attempting to investigate Miss Lee Edelhart's past, unsuccessfully I might add."
The photograph attached, dated today, was of a girl with long blonde hair, green eyes, and wearing a uniform that looked a bit like what Otto normally wore.
"Hey," she remarked, "this one looks like you."
Otto's smile twitched a bit, he paused a bit before continuing, "Her records in Japan's central database are valid in terms of age, but she was somehow added to Schicksal's files only a week ago. Each of the others describes her as mysterious. The Third Herrscher even claims she used some form of energy attack that reversed her Herrscher transformation. Coincidentally, Anti Entropy has begun new research into Imaginary Energy within the past few days since the eruption."
She read through the interview transcript, which seemed to indicate her supposed overall lack of knowledge about Honkai, however, the others had let slip that Lee had told them several things about the Honkai during and after the eruption.
She had also been found with one of a set of Alloy Dominators that had once belonged to a B rank Valkyrie that had once had the misfortune of running into Siegfried on a mission.
"She also apparently refused a medical examination on the Hyperion, just like Bronya Zaychik, however Bronya Zaychik's past and the results of a medical examination taken today explain why this is the case. However, unlike Bronya Zaychik, Lee Edelhart has scheduled her medical examination for the last possible day regulations allow for, about 2 weeks from now. Very interesting."
Overall, the situation was full of red flags. "So what's the deal with her, she isn't Schicksal and she isn't Anti Entropy, who is she with?"
"According to her, nobody. I don't want to interfere with K-423's relationships, however this is a potential blind spot. It's something else you will have to investigate on your mission, I need you to dust off your old detective skills and solve this case."
"You mean use the Fenghuang Down to read their memories?" Fu Hua asked.
Otto simply smiled.
>>> POV Change<<<
Lee was currently browsing her new laptop looking for a pendant. Or technically an amulet.
She was sitting on the couch of Himeko's apartment while Mei was in the kitchen attempting to learn how to cook.
Kiana had been so frustrated with Lee the night before last that she'd ended up ranting to Mei about it. Mei, ever gentle, had offered to make Kiana something to eat instead, which had gone about as well as expected. She was formerly a rich Heiress, it's not like she had ever really cooked before, and she was far from becoming the Herrscher of Rice she would be in 2 years time.
Kiana, however, had eaten the entire thing anyway, declaring that anything Mei made was the best food in the world.
Mei had tried to eat her own dish and failed spectacularly, ending up in the cafeteria afterward, Kiana tagging along and eating even more food.
Apparently that had motivated Mei to improve, because she'd spent most of yesterday glued to her phone, watching cooking tutorials while experimenting in the kitchen. She was still doing that now.
She was still doing that today, and Kiana was in the living room draped over the side of the large chair while watching cat videos on her phone that was sitting on the floor.
Bronya was in our shared room gaming. Himeko had left hours ago, no one was entirely sure where she'd gone.
That left me completely bored.
I could go play something with Bronya, she'd been surprised upon seeing my username, technicallyalien, and realised that I was her Kallen Fantasy VI gaming buddy, but I wasn't really in the mood.
Theoretically, I should have been looking for Fu Hua. But since she was supposed to be monitoring Kiana and Mei, it wasn't like I wouldn't run into her sooner or later. Actively searching felt like a waste of time.
So instead, I shopped.
Luocha's pendant from Honkai: Star Rail looked nice, it resembled a sword with a flower on its hilt, but I wanted something different. I'd decided on one that resembled a Seed of Abundance instead. After a while of searching, I gave up and put in a custom order made of clear aventurine. I had personally found this whole idea very amusing.
Order placed. Estimated delivery: a few days.
Then came a knock at the door.
Mei was too busy cooking, Kiana was half-asleep watching cat videos, so naturally I had to get it.
When I opened the door, I blinked.
Fu Hua.
Well, that was convenient.
She greeted me politely. "Hello, I am the second-year representative. I'd like to speak with you about your past schooling, Miss Edelhart."
Perfect, I thought.
"Of course," I said, closing my laptop.
Fu Hua led the way out through the main building and across the courtyard until we reached one of the small parks near the dorms. The air smelled faintly of the sea.
I stopped when she did. "So," I asked, "what did you want to talk about?"
Fu Hua didn't answer. Instead, she reached into her uniform and drew something from within her sleeve.
The Fenghuang Down.
A golden feather drifted from it, slowly spiraling through the air until it hovered right in front of me.
"?!" Lee.
"?" Fu Hua.
Wow! You're really just going straight for mind reading instead of talking! I didn't even get a chance to say anything!
I folded my arms. "Did you just read my memories?"
Fu Hua's eyes narrowed slightly. "No." She waved the hand holding the Fenghuang Down again. Another golden feather appeared, shimmering faintly, then faded.
Her expression shifted, she seemed confused.
I blinked once, then understood.
The Fenghuang Down wasn't working on me.
I thought about it for a second before I came up with a possible explanation.
The Fenghuang Down used Honkai energy, and it was technically a psychic attack.
Presumably that Honkai energy had to enter the body, presumably the brain, to be effective.
The instant the Honkai energy tried to enter my body it was deleted by my Abundance constitution.
That was good, it meant that I didn't have to worry about Otto reading my memories, however I still had Fu Hua to deal with. Now was a good time to reveal my hand.
With my arms still crossed I said, "Sorry, but Fenghuang Down won't work on me."
Fu Hua still looked confused, then seemed to register the fact that I had called Fenghuang Down by its name, and knew about its effects.
Fu Hua quickly put it back in her pocket, and got into a boxing pose, presumably to physically remove the memory.
"You don't need to do that, I am not hostile towards you in any way." I said, a bit panicked but trying not to sound panicked.
"Who are you?" Fu Hua said simply, putting down her arms.
"Technically, I am an alien," I started, before Fu Hua got back in boxing pose, "Hey, Hey! It's true!"
"You expect me to believe that?" Fu Hua stated.
"Actually there are several Alien species that have visited this planet recently, but I am a Human, just not from this planet." I said, before putting my right arm behind my back in the classic Sunday pose.