"Class Monitor, are you sure your old residence was here?" The white-haired girl with a single ponytail sighed.
She was dressed neatly in a simple and sleek style outfit, with a bulging waist pouch and a handgun strapped to her leg...
Although she didn't use handguns much for combat anymore, she still carried her old preffered weapons, just in case.
This girl with a single ponytail is Kiana, the Herrscher of Flamescion.
"Yeah, but... compared to before, its appearance has changed quite a bit." Fu Hua, referred to as the monitor by Kiana as she looked at the small house in front of them with a nostalgic gaze.
It stood out among the surrounding European-style buildings, being more square, and even the roof tiles were in Chinese style. Although time had passed, and most of the buildings in Schicksal had been renovated, when it came torenovating the house where Fu Hua lived, it seemed that specific instructions were given to preserve its original appearance...
Fu Hua gazed at the house, which was somewhat familiar but had subtle differences and a rare smile appeared on her face.
"In the past, I used to hang a feather in front of the door to remind myself that migratory birds know where home is, and not to forget their homeland... But now, after a hundred years, that feather is probably long gone." Kiana raised an eyebrow, hands on her hips.
"But don't we have that temporal device? I can use it to search."
"Huh? There's no need for that trouble, Kiana. Just being able to come here and see it is already satisfying for me..."
"Ah, let's give it a try. You never know, we might actually find something."
Kiana took out the Gnius device from her hand and looked towards the distance where several Honkai Beasts were gathered, their bodies semi-transparent. They seemed to be unable to see Kiana, who was close by, as they walked around aimlessly, as if in a world completely unrelated to the girl.
The girl recalled what Theresa had told her before:
"In areas of temporal projection and overlap, we receive fragments of information from ancient times."
"These fragments may be small physical objects, voice clips, or even include some emotional mappings."
"However, the abnormal temporal projections in Schicksal not only bring information but also some strange Honkai Beasts."
"As long as the Gnius device is used to activate the temporal projection, they will fall into reality, but once they leave the projection area, it will automatically close and the Honkai Beasts will return to their state where they cannot interfere with us."
"Although this is much better than the situation where Honkai Beasts rampage within Schicksal, researchers have been complaining to me that it is not convenient to study temporal projection phenomena."
"I'm quite confident in my combat abilities." Kiana tapped the dial-like device and the blue energy transmitted from it to the temporal projection core nearby.
Then, the blue light spread out from it, and the Honkai Beasts solidified into entities, turning their heads towards Kiana.
Fu Hua raised her hand helplessly and clenched her fist towards the Honkai Beasts. "Kiana, you're acting too fast..."
"It's okay, I can handle these Honkai Beasts easily."
A burst of flames rose from the void, wrapping around Kiana. Her casual clothes disappeared, replaced by a flowing armor predominantly white with fiery red lines, and a cape fluttered behind her, rustling.
Herrscher of Flamescion squinted her eyes slightly as she became serious.
Three strikes, Kiana only used three strikes to burn all the solidified Honkai Beasts to ashes.
She carefully adjusted her output, swiftly eliminating the Honkai Beasts without affecting the buildings and terrain here, which were considered "historical sites".
"Hehe, Class Monitor, how did I do?"
"You did well, but next time, don't act so impulsively..." Fu Hua lowered her arms, returning to a relaxed posture.
"Huh?" Kiana tilted her head, scratching it.
She obviously had the appearance of "you can say whatever you want, I'll listen."
"Really..." Fu Hua smiled.
She knew that Kiana had grown a lot and had discarded many things on the girl's path to maturity, but still seeing such a lively side of Kiana, Fu Hua thought it was a good thing.
"Haha, we found it after all!"
Kiana pointed behind Fu Hua, and as the Monitor looked, she saw the feather, red and white, similar to the one on Fenghuang Down's back.
Fu Hua gazed silently at the feather, as if seeing a long-time companion.
After a few seconds, Fu Hua spoke, "When I first arrived at Schicksal, I was very unfamiliar with everything around me. The utensils for eating were like weapons, and the pillows for sleeping felt like they were going to swallow my head..."
"Although Otto had become the Archbishop at that time, there were still some people of noble birth who held grudges against him for rising to power through rebellion. My situation was similar."
"It wasn't until I recovered from my injuries and could move freely here that I realized almost no one around me was willing to talk to me."
The girl in the close-fitting combat outfit calmly recounted her past, "Perhaps because I couldn't speak their language well at the time... but perhaps also because I was once their enemy, the direct cause of Schicksal's failed Eastern Expedition."
"So every time I came back here, looking at the feather on the door, it gave me a rare sense of peace."
"Class Monitor, you said... you were seriously injured when you first came to Schicksal?" "Yeah, that's right."
"Was it Otto who did it?" Kiana asked anxiously.
Fu Hua explained with a wry smile,
"No, it wasn't. That was a long time ago. I had a fierce battle with someone... Her mastery of Edge of Taixuan even surpassed mine, and I was seriously injured as a result."
"When I woke up, I was already in Schicksal." Fu Hua stroked the feather, continuing, "At that time, Otto helped me and brought me to Schicksal for treatment. It was also then that he proposed a deal to help me fulfill my 'mission'..."
"As for the outcome of that battle... Even Otto, who has nothing to do with this matter, refused to tell me the truth."
"Class Monitor..."
"It's okay, Kiana." Fu Hua smiled, "Those things are already in the past. Now, I won't be bound by such history anymore. I've found trustworthy companions again and found what I should do."
Just as the two of them were communicating and bonding, some images suddenly appeared abruptly, catching the attention of Kiana and Fu Hua.
"Huh? What's this...?"
What they saw was a Valkyrie wearing Schicksal's standard combat uniform.
What surprised them was that this uniform was of a completely new style that wouldn't exist until the 20th century, completely unrelated to the Schicksal of 500 years ago.
Moreover, according to Kiana's memory, the combat uniform she was wearing belonged to the logistics and intelligence department.
Kiana and Fu Hua exchanged glances, seeing a serious expression on each other's faces.
"Has the temporal projection undergone unknown changes again?"
"Don't worry, let's keep watching."
Bandages were wrapped around her shoulders soaked with blood and leaving deep red marks, indicating severe injuries.
But personnel inside the intelligence department always prioritize preserving their lives and conveying important information. In situations where nothing can be done, intelligence personnel are the first to evacuate...
What kind of severe injury is this? And how is she still alive if she failed to evacuate?
However, even with severe injuries the Valkyrie still held a handgun with her still functional arm, continuously pouring firepower towards the distance.
"Teacher Himeko! We need to get out of their detection range quickly! We can't continue to engage them!"
The unknown Valkyrie shouted loudly,
"Just keep your distance!"
"Alright, got it!"
An unexpected voice sounded here, surprising Kiana.
Then, a familiar fiery figure appeared, Himeko Murata who wore the Vermillion Knight - Eclipse armor, who was holding an unknown large sword. Her face serious as she retreated next to the handgun-wielding Valkyrie.
"It seems like that thing isn't pursuing us anymore... Luo Lin, what kind of trouble did you stir up?"
Himeko casually slashed down a floating mechanical monster, with her speed so astonishing, even Kiana and Fu Hua couldn't see what the monster was before getting sliced to bits.
But now they were more concerned about the people in the projection.
The Valkyrie referred to as Luo Lin sighed and replaced the pistol with a new magazine.
"I don't know either, but I can be sure it wasn't done by humans... After all, this is St. Fontaine."
"St. Fontaine...?"
Fu Hua frowned. She seemed to have some impression of this name, but before she could dig up relevant clues from her memory,
Kiana's exclamation interrupted her thoughts.
"Class Monitor, look around!!"
Fu Hua looked around and saw the buildings of Schicksal gradually blurring, the background of the temporal projection rapidly changing, projecting an unprecedented scene.
In the purple-red sky, clouds twisted into strange shapes, swirling around the distant canopy, forming vortexes similar to storms occasionally accompanied by the sound of lightning.
Under the ominous light, a city with a strange atmosphere appeared in front of Kiana and Fu Hua.
Broken and ash-covered glass, strange purple-red crystals could be seen everywhere, vehicles parked haphazardly on the road, yellowed old posters swaying in the wind.
These proved that something had happened here, leading to the complete abandonment of this city.
Closer to them, Himeko Murata supported Luo Lin's shoulder who was struggling to walk towards the distance.
"I saw the markings left by the St. Fontaine reconnaissance team, Teacher Himeko. Let's continue forward along this side..."
"I hope the people from your intelligence department are reliable..."
The projection trembled a few seconds later and disappeared.
"Is this... is this a Honkai Eruption happening? Like in Nagazora..."
Kiana was very familiar with this kind of cityscape, making her guess cautiously.
"And... Teacher Himeko... could this also be some kind of record from the past?"
Fu Hua pondered for a few seconds, then pressed her communicator. "At times like this, let's ask our companions.... Tesla, Dr. Einstein. We've encountered an unexpected situation..."