The headquarters of Schicksal is located in Vienna, Austria, but it's not actually in the city itself. Utilizing technology left over from the previous era, Schicksal has constructed a massive floating island and used optical, electromagnetic, and other counter-surveillance techniques to conceal it, avoiding the gaze of the vast majority of people. Everyone at Schicksal takes pride in it; it's like a flag representing hope against the Honkai.
Otto often spends his free time strolling around the Schicksal headquarters. Other staff members and Valkyries alike look at Otto with starry eyes, and he warmly engages in conversations with them, including emotional communication, problem-solving, and work inspections... He seems like the perfect leader no matter how you look at it.
In short, most people feel that with Otto around, there are no difficulties in the world that can stop their progress.
It is precisely because of this that Luo Lin is unwilling to stay on the floating island any longer than necessary. Working with such an unparalleled old fox is really testing her psychological endurance.
So she reported to her superiors, claiming to feel a sense of fear on the floating island and preferring the grounded comfort of the old Schicksal headquarters in Kolostein.
Schicksal takes good care of its subordinates. Anyway, all the facilities, including the old Schicksal headquarters, research institutes, manufacturing plants, and training grounds, are available. The internal work network is smooth, and even commuting to headquarters by plane takes only about ten minutes without delaying anything.
Furthermore, everyone is clamoring to work on the Schicksal floating island. Some even see being transferred to the floating island as a reward. Luo Lin's willingness to give up her position voluntarily is quite rare, and everyone is happy to accommodate her.
Luo Lin woke up on a large bed, sunlight filtering through the curtains onto her face, and the temperature in the blanket was just right...
"I really don't want to get up." The girl grumbled, but her actions of getting up and getting ready were not sluggish. She didn't want to attract Otto's attention due to small mistakes like being late and end up on his list...
Soon, Luo Lin was ready and headed out. Along the way, she saw many researchers and Valkyries wearing Schicksal uniforms. Luo Lin greeted a few familiar colleagues, who responded blandly and quickly returned to their own tasks. Neither particularly close nor isolated, this atmosphere was quite good in today's Schicksal—after all, it's not like the Theresa's warm Saint Freya Academy created by Theresa, slightly cold is the main tone of Schicksal.
Speaking of Saint Freya Academy, the important location where the main storyline unfolds, it seems it hasn't been established yet.
Theresa seems to have just handed in her report not long ago, and Otto has already expedited all the relevant procedures for her. Some of the documents even had his own signature on them, clearly signed with "Otto Apocalypse"...
It's estimated that Saint Freya will be established soon. Otto really cares about Theresa and takes care of her very openly.
As Luo Lin was thinking, she arrived at her workplace with her personal terminal— a research institute located in an industrial area on the outskirts of Kolostein. It was said that it had been invaded by traitors some days ago, suffered losses, and was now undergoing renovation and installation of new equipment...
As for who the traitor was? Siegfried Kaslana, the wielder of the 7th Divine Key; the Judgement of Shamash, a tough character who's said to have touched the buttocks of almost every Schicksal Valkyrie...
Luo Lin probably understood what point in the storyline she was at. Siegfried, along with his daughter, Kiana Kaslana, stormed the Schicksal HQ to carry out the Operation Siren plan, then, without using his brain, messed up and ran away with K423, leaving his real daughter behind at Schicksal.
Now, the research institute she was going to is the scene of the incident.
As soon as Luo Lin arrived, she was greatly shocked—
There was a huge hole in the roof of the research base, with the edges melted and solidified material, obviously caused by the Judgement of Shamash.
Looking inside through the open door of the base, the corridors were riddled with bullet holes, presumably all the work of Siegfried.
Dozens, even hundreds of incubators and a large amount of building materials were being moved out of the damaged base and placed on the open ground. Small drones created a clean environment suitable for maintenance by partitioning the equipment and space, while a group of scientists and mechanics in lab coats were busy there.
Next to them stood Valkyries responsible for maintaining order, as well as a bunch of powerful and strange-looking engineering machinery roaring and operating.
A Valkyrie walked over tiredly with a personal terminal and shouted, "Luo Lin, are you from the logistics department?"
"Good morning, are you Charlotte?" Luo Lin greeted and took out a chocolate from her pocket, handing it to the other person. "Here, chocolate, perk up."
"Thank you." Charlotte was somewhat surprised but still accepted the gift.
The two confirmed the information on the terminal and then turned their heads to look at the building materials and incubators spread out on the ground.
That's quite a lot of stuff.
Charlotte also seemed to be troubled by the amount of work. She remained silent for a few seconds before speaking, "Let's swipe our ID cards and get started..."
"Okay, the sooner we finish, the sooner we can go home!" Luo Lin rubbed her hands together excitedly. She was very much looking forward to how the system would be updated, and finding something to do to pass the time was not bad either.
---
After a hopeful day, Luo Lin returned home covered in dust and exhaustion. She filled a bathtub with hot water and soaked herself in it.
"Ah! The temperature is just right!" Luo Lin rubbed her belly and squinted comfortably.
The Schicksal cafeteria is really good. After all, it's made up of elite talents from all over the world, so it naturally needs to be accompanied by top-notch service. Just the chefs from various countries can prepare three shifts of meals and supply fresh food 24 hours a day.
Valkyries have good physical fitness, and with their daily training workload, the demand for food is not small. The consumption of food and combat forces by logistics and other support personnel combined is equivalent to that of the combat troops.
In other words, chefs basically cook for Valkyries, and they also take care of the meals for other people on the side.
After relaxing in the bathtub for a while, Luo Lin got up to tidy up the bathroom, then threw herself onto the sofa in the living room, rubbing her hands together excitedly.
Eating, drinking, and working are all taken care of, now it's time to open the Abyss system and go looking for trouble.
No, starting today, the horn of counterattack has sounded!
"Come on, let me see the assist module!!"
A semi-transparent system frame unfolded in front of Luo Lin, with various characters flashing in three empty slots. Finally, one shiny name caught the girl's attention:
[Bianka Ataegina]
"Damn, Dudu!"
Bianka "Durandal" Ataegina, the S-rank Valkyrie who leads Schicksal's strongest unit, the "Immortal Blades," has woven a 'world' into her own body resulting for her to gaining unprecedented power. Otto once joked about adding a "Durandal Rank" above S-rank, which shows how strong she is!
Moreover, Bianka's veins carry the pure blood of Kaslana and Schariac, making her the real Kiana Kaslana that Honkai Impact 3rd players have been dreaming of but unable to obtain.
Luo Lin was delighted with the auspicious start given to her by the assist system. She already imagined Bianka clad in shining Bright Knight Excelsis Armor, holding... oh no, Abyss Flower, ruthlessly stabbing Fu Hua Valkyrie Accipiter into the sky.
Reaching out towards the shiny name, Luo Lin muttered fiercely under her breath, "Sorry, Fu Hua, today I stand shoulder to shoulder with Durandal and will definitely win this!"
This is the struggle I made for survival... huh?
Luo Lin watched as the data stream descended from the sky, and the golden-haired petite figure appeared in front of her.
"Hello, my name is Bianka Ataegina. Is there anything you need from me?"
The 12-year-old Bianka stood in place, timidly greeting her.
Nooooooo!!!!
Oh no, why did I summon the still-young dudu instead?!