"Sigh, it is what it is. What else can I do?" Himeko shrugged, lying back on the bed. "I'll just lie here for a few days and I'll be fine. Oh, right, Irene, could you help cover a shift for me?"
"Mn, that depends on what shift you want me to cover?" Irene walked into the ward. "If you want me to lead a combat class, I definitely can't do that. But if it's other courses, I could give it a try."
"It's definitely not that." Himeko shook her head. "When the time comes, just send out a notice and let them have a sparring session. Fu Hua will know what to do. I just need you to handle the liberal arts classes."
"That's no problem." Irene nodded. She wasn't an all-rounder in liberal arts, but she could still teach the basics; she just had to follow the textbook.
Moreover, given Himeko's habits, she had likely already prepared the lesson plans. With the lesson plans as a reference, as long as she didn't teach anything wrong, it would be fine.
"Mn? Irene?" Theresa looked at Irene. "It's already this time. Aren't you going to rest, Irene? Weren't you tired today?"
"I'm just a little bit unable to sleep." Irene smiled at Theresa, then turned her head to look at Himeko. "It looks like you still need to rest a while longer?"
"I feel okay. It's just mild Honkai corruption, not like it's the first time." Himeko waved her hand, lying on the bed. Mild Honkai corruption was something every Valkyrie would encounter more or less once or twice.
Not everyone had Honkai Resistance on the level of the Kaslana Family, and even members of the Kaslana Family would occasionally encounter it once or twice.
Although areas with high concentrations of Honkai energy were rare, one would inevitably encounter them once or twice after executing enough missions.
Honkai energy was something very unreasonable. And for a Valkyrie like Himeko, who was tormented by Artificial Stigmata, this degree of Honkai corruption was, if not a daily meal, then at least a common occurrence.
She definitely had to lie down for a bit, but Himeko was already used to it. If you gave her a can of beer, she might even be able to go out on a date or something.
At the very least, she couldn't really let herself 'die without a man'. Mn, although this was probably a dream shared by the vast majority of Valkyries, only a portion persisted in it.
And only a very, very small portion could actually find a partner. After all, setting aside other factors, there were two Great Gates standing in front of them finding a partner.
One was their physical fitness, which had been strengthened by Honkai energy for a long time. If one wasn't careful, it wouldn't just be a matter of a shattered pelvis.
And as for the other Great Gate, it was the Honkai energy within their bodies. Compared to the former, the latter was truly a major problem.
Men possessing Honkai Resistance could be said to be pitifully few. Finding one was easier said than done. Otherwise, why would they be called Valkyries? Right?
And among the majority of Valkyries who wanted to find a partner, a portion would quietly shift their mindset, feeling that since they couldn't find one anyway, self-digestion wasn't necessarily impossible.
This was also why a certain white-haired dumpling could cling to Mei so much without causing any waves within the academy.
Because everyone had this same nature. Since everyone was in such a situation, it naturally didn't stand out much.
However, Himeko felt that she still couldn't wallow in the mire with them. Dying without a man or whatever was still too terrifying.
"Is that so?" Irene nodded. After glancing at Himeko, she turned her head to look at Theresa. "Principal Theresa, do you have a moment? Can you come talk with me?"
Theresa stood up with a whoosh upon hearing this and nodded: "Of course."
Irene waved her hand at Theresa, then walked out of the ward. Theresa followed her out, and after they left, Himeko settled down to sleep.
She had been commanding the battle earlier, so she could still muster up some energy, but now that the battle was over, the fatigue was present regardless.
The slight pain of Honkai corruption also helped her stay alert, but this kind of pain was something she had long since grown accustomed to.
However, pain was still pain. If it kept hurting, she wouldn't be able to fall asleep, and staying up late was a young girl's great taboo.
"Sigh." Himeko pressed the call button on the side and spoke to the nurse on the other end. "Come help give me a shot of painkiller. I want to sleep for a while."
[Okay, Colonel Himeko.]
Meanwhile, outside, Theresa and Irene found a terrace on the Hyperion that would only open when in non-combat mode.
"Irene, what did you want to say?" Theresa looked at Irene. Every time Irene sought her out for a talk... mn, based on her experience, it was rarely for anything good.
"Is there something you need me to do? Or is the matter with Chiyou actually not over yet?"
"Don't be so nervous." Irene shook her head. "Every time I talk to you alone, it's not like it's always for something terrible. You're so scared."
"The last time you talked to me alone, it was about Chiyou." Theresa looked at Irene with narrowed eyes. "The time before that, you talked to me alone about how there was a Herrscher of Corruption inside my Stigmata that would drag me into a dreamscape."
"Of these two times you talked to me alone, which one was a good thing?"
"Then do you know the saying 'bad things don't happen thrice'?" Irene blinked and took out the Honkai Resistance Enhancer from her pocket.
"So this time, what I'm talking about isn't a bad thing~"
"What is this?" Theresa looked at the potion in Irene's hand. "Mn, some kind of medicine? What is it used for?"
"A drug capable of enhancing Honkai Resistance." Irene looked at Theresa. "Although there is a limit to the enhancement, the worse a person's Honkai Resistance is, the higher the degree of enhancement."
"How about it? I didn't bring bad news this time, right?"
Hearing Irene's words, Theresa almost lunged forward in a single step, wanting to take a closer look at the injection in Irene's hand, but she feared her movements would be too large and cause the injection to drop.
Looking at the injection in Irene's hand, Theresa didn't know what she should say for a moment. Although Theresa didn't understand research, she at least understood that for something like a potion, no matter how difficult the synthesis was, it meant there was a possibility of production.
And Theresa couldn't be clearer on what the Honkai Resistance Enhancer in Irene's hand represented. Setting aside everything else, didn't Himeko, whom they had just left in the ward, need exactly such a Honkai Resistance Enhancer?
It wasn't just Himeko; countless Valkyries needed Honkai Resistance enhancement. As long as their Honkai Resistance was sufficient, the threat brought by Artificial Stigmata wouldn't be so severe.
It could be said that the injection in Irene's hand was something countless Valkyries dreamed of, a life-saving elixir that could even determine whether a Valkyrie could live on.
"Is... is there only this one?"
"Currently speaking, only this one." Irene put the injection back into her pocket. She naturally understood what this injection represented; after all, she could say she was able to survive until now thanks to the help of this injection.
She had indeed been very impulsive at the start, wanting to directly use the injection on Himeko. After all, wanting to save Teacher Himeko was an obsession every Captain likely once held.
But along the way here, Irene had formed certain ideas. It wasn't that she didn't want to save Himeko anymore, but rather, why could she only save Himeko?
Because Himeko wasn't the only Valkyrie in deep crisis due to insufficient Honkai Resistance. Why couldn't she try to replicate the potion?
Of course, she couldn't possibly give away all the potion; that would be too unsafe. She only needed a portion for research. If they could research it, that would naturally be best.
If they couldn't research it, she could still save Himeko. She had already confirmed this with the System on the way here: the complete potion indeed had the best effect.
But reducing the dosage a little would also be effective, though the less the dosage, the worse the effect. Irene had no doubts about this; after all, it was impossible for an incomplete potion to compare with a complete one.
Irene just wanted to try. She didn't want Himeko to shoulder the risk alone. She was just a tiny butterfly, and her wings were fragile. Even if she could stir up a small air current that would eventually form a storm...
She didn't know how tough her wings were or how huge the storm she could raise would be. Moreover, she was ultimately selfish; protecting other Valkyries certainly couldn't be mentioned in the same breath as protecting Himeko.
"What do you need me to do, Irene?" Theresa looked at Irene's hand, her eyes seemingly unable to hold anything else. "Do you need me to contact Grandpa? Grandpa definitely has the best research equipment there; he will definitely be able to research it."
"No." Irene shook her head. Indeed, as Theresa said, Otto definitely had the best research facilities, but he was absolutely not the best choice.
Otto had too many hidden agendas. He would definitely research it, because this matter held no downsides for him; Otto would certainly research it to strengthen the Valkyries.
After all, in the end, regardless of whether his plan succeeded or whether he could save Kallen, the Current Era still had to face the Honkai. Valkyries becoming stronger was naturally a good thing.
But giving it to Otto right now was absolutely not a good idea. After all, Otto was too hard to control. As for whom to give it to, Irene also had an idea in her heart.
Irene took the injection out of the syringe in front of Theresa and transferred about a quarter of it into a test tube. She had confirmed this point: the potion's composition was stable and wouldn't lose efficacy due to actions like being taken out.
Subsequently, Irene loaded the remaining potion back into the syringe, then looked at Theresa: "I have my own destination for the remaining potion. As for the rest of this potion, I want to give it to Himeko."
"Mn." Theresa nodded. "I'll hold Himeko down, and you inject her. Once the injection is done, Himeko won't be able to say anything."
Himeko truly needed this potion right now. Even if Himeko retired immediately and never touched Honkai energy again, her survival time wouldn't exceed three years.
Years of combat and Artificial Stigmata, combined with Honkai corruption, had long since pushed Himeko's body to a limit. But if she could make up for the Honkai Resistance...
The situation would change drastically. Honkai energy was a very strange thing. If your Honkai Resistance wasn't up to par, then this stuff was pure poison—deadly upon contact.
But if you had a certain amount of Honkai energy, before reaching the limit that your Honkai Resistance could withstand, this stuff could, in a certain sense, be considered a life-extending elixir.
Physical fitness and so on would be strengthened by Honkai energy, until the Honkai energy you came into contact with reached the limit of your Honkai Resistance once again.
And Theresa also knew that Himeko would absolutely not accept this potion so easily. Himeko would definitely refuse and persuade them to give this potion to someone else.
But Theresa was selfish too. Himeko was her close friend. With Himeko's physical condition this bad, how could she not think of a way?
And precisely because of this, Theresa understood that Himeko would definitely not accept it easily. So, for Irene to call her out, the thing she needed to do was simple.
"Since you understand, let's go." Irene prepared to return to the ward to forcibly administer the drug to Himeko, clutching the injection gun in her hand as she walked toward Himeko's ward.
As long as this injection is administered, you won't need to think about other things anymore.
But just then, Irene saw a nurse pushing a cart walking toward them: "Eh?"
"Mn, Principal Theresa, Colonel Irene." The nurse also saw the two standing in the corridor and immediately greeted them. "If you two are here to visit Colonel Himeko, please go back."
"Teacher Himeko wants to sleep. Her condition requires quiet rest; it is not suitable to have too many disturbances."
Irene was just about to say something but was stopped by Theresa at her side. Irene turned to look; Theresa shook her head at Irene. Irene wasn't clear, but Theresa was clear—what was the nurse here to do?
The nurse was definitely here to give Himeko a sedative to let her have a good sleep. Since that was the case, there was no need to forcibly pin Himeko down.
Wait a moment. After the nurse finished administering the drug, they would go in again. Unknown to gods and ghosts, Himeko wouldn't even know she had been injected, and there would be no need to worry about Himeko resisting or anything.
Although Irene didn't quite read what Theresa meant, she didn't speak. She watched the nurse enter the ward, and only then did Theresa whisper to Irene what the nurse was doing.
Irene nodded. She hadn't expected it to be this easy. Since that was the case, she would wait a little longer. In the process of waiting, Irene turned her head to look at the sky outside the window.
Her butterfly was finally starting to flap its wings. But this would absolutely not be the end. The storm she wanted to raise would absolutely not be just this.
Anti-Entropy
"Cocolia, that woman, I'm afraid she has plans of her own." Tesla crossed her arms, a look of suspicion on her face. Their Conservative Faction and Cocolia's faction could basically be described as fire and water.
Setting aside everything else, just the matter of Raiden Ryoma counted as a declaration of war against them. After all, Raiden Ryoma had supported them before.
The ME Corp under Raiden Ryoma had also served their Conservative Faction. Now, it had all fallen into Cocolia's hands.
"Then let's go see what she wants to do." Einstein, with her messy hair, held a coffee, looking at the vexed Tesla. "She has her objectives, and we can have ours."
"Mn, true enough." Tesla nodded. "It just so happens that a certain guy is probably rusting away from idleness. Just the right time to find him some work."
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