Chat Group: Starting by Swapping Bodies with Elysia?

"I'm going to kill Cocolia, Bronya."

The silver-haired girl looked up at [Jiang Qiao], her monotone voice betraying no emotion.

"..." Bronya's expression was a mixture of conflict and resignation.

She hated Cocolia for what she had done to Seele. But Cocolia had also given them a happy childhood, however brief.

Sensing her hesitation, Jiang Qiao said softly, "If you're uncomfortable with [Bronya] killing Cocolia, we can switch back. But my decision won't change."

Cocolia's crimes deserved punishment, and dying at the hands of her adopted daughter would be a cruel twist. But Jiang Qiao wasn't interested in psychological torment. He had no personal vendetta against her. While he disliked her incompetence, that wasn't enough to warrant excessive cruelty.

He wanted her dead for one reason: she was in his way. She was a liability.

As for using Bronya's body… he was considering her feelings.

"..." After a long silence, Bronya spoke, "No need. Use Bronya's body… Bronya wants you to do it as Bronya."

She knew Cocolia was wrong. While she still cared for her, she also knew how much Cocolia had changed. From a loving mother to a ruthless politician, constantly losing, and losing, and losing… it saddened her.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Bronya doesn't want to see Cocolia continue down this path. Seele, and everyone at the orphanage, wouldn't want this either."

"Let the kind Cocolia live on in our memories."

Ending Cocolia's madness as her adopted daughter felt… right. It should have been her, the real Bronya, to do it.

But—

…It missed.

[Bronya] stared at her slightly trembling hand.

While he'd aimed for a clean kill, he'd underestimated the residual emotional attachment in Bronya's body. It was small, but enough to make the bullet deviate. If it had been the real Bronya, she probably wouldn't have been able to pull the trigger.

"One more shot, then." [Bronya] aimed again. This time, there would be no hesitation.

But before she could fire, Cocolia's subordinates reacted, aiming their weapons at the silver-haired girl.

"In the name of Welt Yang, stand down!"

Welt's voice echoed through the ship's comms. As planned, he was taking control of the situation.

"The… Supreme Leader?" The soldiers hesitated, looking at each other, then lowered their weapons.

While loyal to Cocolia, they were still members of Anti-Entropy.

"...Cocolia? Did you kill her?" Welt frowned, noticing the scene. As the Herrscher of Reason, [Bronya] had the authority to execute Cocolia.

But it wasn't Anti-Entropy's way.

"Not yet. I missed. I was about to fire again."

Welt's eye twitched. Missed, and was about to fire again… If he hadn't sensed the girl's inherent goodness, he would have thought she was a psychopath.

"Since she's still alive, let her live for now."

"Cocolia is still an Anti-Entropy Executor. We can't just kill her. She's… useful." Einstein's voice echoed.

While neither she nor Tesla liked Cocolia, she was a valuable asset. Cocolia controlled a significant portion of Anti-Entropy. Keeping her alive would make the transition of power smoother.

"Don't worry. Cocolia will receive a fair trial." Welt reassured Jiang Qiao.

"I give you my word."

"Whatever." [Bronya] let the gun vanish, her expression unchanged, as medics rushed to Cocolia's side.

He wasn't fixated on killing her. He just wanted to eliminate a problem. Whether she lived or died didn't matter.

Death was just the most efficient solution. And honestly, he didn't think Cocolia would be happy living like this.

For someone like her, death was a mercy.

"So that's what you were thinking, Bronya." He sighed, looking at [Jiang Qiao] on the screen.

—She was gambling.

By asking him to use Bronya's body, she'd been hoping for a sliver of mercy.

And she'd won.

If it had been him, or any other body, Cocolia would be dead.

But even if she'd lost, Bronya would have accepted it. Ending her mother's tragic life as her daughter… it was something she could live with.

She'd gambled Cocolia's life on the remnants of familial love in Bronya's body.

Then, the alarm blared again: Warning! Warning! High Honkai Energy detected!

—Not within the warship, but at the Valkyrie hospital in New Zealand.

…

Cocolia's faction was ruthless, like a certain banana-loving man. Under the barrage of artillery fire, the New Zealand branch was suffering heavy losses.

While the Valkyries fought back, they were outnumbered and outgunned. They were equipped with outdated weapons, barely enough to handle stray Honkai Beasts, let alone Titans.

But everything changed in an instant!

Whoosh!

A powerful wind blade swept across the battlefield, shredding Titans.

"Hahahaha!" A girl with black and green hair, Wendy, laughed maniacally.

Wendy, once confined to a wheelchair, now felt an overwhelming surge of power. She was free!

—As the youngest A-rank Valkyrie in the Oceania branch, Wendy had been on track to become an S-rank. But the Gem of Desire experiment had ended her career.

She hadn't taken it well. Her relationships within the branch had been strained, and the transition from prodigy to cripple had been difficult. The other Valkyries mocked and ridiculed her.

The negativity festered, turning Seele, who resided within Wendy, bitter and resentful.

Jealousy, anger, hatred…

It all exploded during Anti-Entropy's attack, allowing her to access the Gem of Desire, transforming into the Herrscher of Wind.

A powerful storm erupted, sending debris and Valkyries flying.

Until—

Clang!

A crescent-shaped, ice-blue blade sliced through the air, stopping Wendy's laughter. With the help of a mechanical figure, the Valkyries caught in the storm were rescued.

"Lady Rita!" The surviving Valkyries cheered, recognizing one of Schicksal's two S-rank Valkyries. Even in this remote branch, they knew her.

Rita, as an S-rank, was just as popular as Durandal.

"Evacuate the wounded!" She ordered, setting down an unconscious Valkyrie.

—Soon, she caught the attention of the laughing girl in the sky.

"Rita Rossweisse, Schicksal's S-rank Valkyrie! Hahaha, you came just in time!"

Wendy, now in her Herrscher form, grinned, her eyes fixated on Rita like a predator on its prey.

—As the abandoned "Gem of Jealousy", Seele's envy was amplified as a Herrscher. She no longer needed a Herrscher personality; Wendy herself was hostile towards humanity.

She'd once admired S-rank Valkyries, but now, only jealousy remained. She wanted to crush her former idols.

S-rank Valkyries are nothing! I am a Herrscher!

Wendy unleashed a barrage of wind blades.

"...This is tricky." Rita sighed.

She'd arrived with Jiang Qiao, who was dealing with Cocolia. She was supposed to assist the New Zealand branch. But she'd run into a Herrscher instead.

Having met the relatively friendly Herrscher of the Void and Reason, Rita had almost started to think that Herrschers were on their side… if they were being used by Jiang Qiao.

But she was still wary. Those two Herrschers were incredibly powerful.

But as a Schicksal S-rank Valkyrie, she couldn't back down!

She dodged and blocked Wendy's attacks, the newly upgraded Silver Moon system deflecting the wind blades.

—Thanks to Jiang Qiao, who, as the Herrscher of Reason, had upgraded her Argent Knight stigmata and unlocked the Silver Moon system.

"She's not that strong…" Rita thought, blocking a wind blade.

Compared to the Herrscher of the Void and Reason, this one seemed… average. While she had a lot of AoE attacks, they were slow and easy to dodge. And while the wind blades were powerful, they weren't a threat to her fourth-generation armor.

I can do this!

She grinned, gripping her scythe.

A mere Herrscher of Wind? Nothing I can't handle!

"Awaken, Master of the Refrigerator!"

The Silver Moon materialized behind her. She winced internally. The original activation phrase was "Master of Frost," which sounded much cooler. But Jiang Qiao's upgrade had changed it to "Refrigerator."

I'll change it back when I return to Schicksal!

She sliced through a wind blade and charged towards Wendy.

—Their battle was a stalemate.

Wendy's tornadoes were too slow, and Rita blocked or dodged the wind blades. Rita, on the other hand, lacked ranged attacks. Argent Knight was designed for close combat, using its ice powers to slow enemies. It was perfect for her. In close combat, even Durandal would struggle against her.

But Herrschers were ranged attackers! They weren't supposed to engage in close combat!

Wendy was surrounded by tornadoes. Rita couldn't get close. And the Silver Moon's ranged attacks only enhanced Wendy's wind with ice shards.

Rita felt her limbs growing stiff.

"This is bad!" She barely managed to deflect a wind blast, feeling the strain. She'd thought she could handle a Herrscher solo…

—Wendy wasn't weak.

As a prodigy, she had been on the verge of becoming an S-rank. Only her lack of experience had held her back. If not for the Gem of Desire, she would have been the fourth S-rank Valkyrie.

And now, as a Herrscher, her power had grown exponentially. Only Durandal could defeat her.

BOOM!

A large, homing wind blast struck Rita, who was too exhausted to dodge.

Wendy grinned, unleashing a powerful wind blade. "It's over!"

A cloud of dust and the clang of metal obscured Rita.

Wendy, assuming victory, relaxed.

Then—

BAM!

Her eyes widened as a blue, metal fist slammed into her stomach.

"Ugh!"

The force sent her flying, doubling over in pain.

The dust cleared, revealing a small figure standing before Rita.

"You couldn't beat her?" The silver-haired girl looked at Rita, covered in cuts.

Rita looked embarrassed. "She's… a bad matchup."

"..." [Bronya] stared at her, dumbfounded.

Do you even know Wendy's Honkai energy level?

800 HW! Only 800 HW!

He turned to Wendy, emerging from the rubble, his expression strange.

Due to the Will of Honkai diverting energy, while the Herrscher of Wind in the previous era had become stronger, this one was… malnourished.

Even the weakest Herrscher usually had 2000 HW… well, except for this one.

—Wendy was weaker than she should have been. Instead of 2000 HW, she had only 800, equivalent to a medium-sized Honkai reactor.

While a Herrscher's strength wasn't solely determined by energy levels, a low level meant limited power, especially for Wendy, whose abilities relied on manipulating wind.

If it had been a 2000 HW Wendy, Rita would have run.

Wendy clutched her stomach, blood trickling from her lips. "You… you ambushed me!"

"All's fair in love and war."

"But if you want a fair fight, I'm game."

"Okay!" Despite her anger, Wendy was intrigued.

This girl seemed strong.

"But—"

The silver-haired girl's voice changed.

"If you lose, you'll behave, right?"

Wendy wasn't inherently bad, but he was too late. The Herrscher personality had taken over. Bronya's usual methods wouldn't work, and Jiang Qiao wasn't interested in slow, drawn-out solutions.

He would subdue her.

First, a beating, then, re-education.

"Hmph, fine." Wendy grinned confidently.

That had been a cheap shot. She hadn't been ready.

I beat an S-rank Valkyrie. I can beat you too!

—I am the Herrscher of Wind!