HI3: I Don't Want to Be a Valkyrie

The refreshing, damp sea breeze, carrying a hint of briny aroma, caressed every inch of her face and body, bringing a sense of comfort.

The white-haired maiden—or rather, the current Kallen—sat by the fire, gazing at the recently unlocked Valkyrie Sixth Serenade.

Ice Kallen's Sixth Serenade—when it first debuted, the promotional video showcased Ice Kallen unleashing her ultimate attack, complete with the iconic, cool mask-clad gesture. The girl had been utterly captivated by the sheer awesomeness of it all.

As soon as Ice Kallen became available, she'd immediately splurged a bit of gold. Miraculously, the first ten-piece gacha draw yielded the character herself, along with the weapons for Sixth Serenade, one after another.

Adding to that, through relentless grinding for fragments, the current stats for her Sixth Serenade were now...

A fully powered-up character.

SSS Rank Valkyrie: Sixth Serenade Five-Star Dual pistols: Tranquil Rhapsody

Then came the Stigmata of Sixth Serenade's 'Jin Shengtan (Set)':

Initially, the girl had prepared the 'Nohime Sets' for Ice Kallen, but found it lacking.

She subsequently drew a set of Jin Shengtan, and only after equipping it did she feel that Ice Kallen was a true S-rank Valkyrie.

Just as Sir Otto had said, "only Kallen is the most powerful Valkyrie."

The attribute bonuses of Jin Shengtan were truly impressive: 15% increased all-elemental damage, 30% for a two-piece set, with an additional 10% elemental vulnerability.

Talk about elemental damage explosion...

After resting for a while, the beautiful goddess —Miss Kallen—rose and extinguished the flames.

Kallen surveyed her surroundings, aware only that she was in the Far East. Beyond that, she had no idea of her precise location.

"Hmm..." At least she could tell she was near the coast.

Regardless, finding a populated area was her first priority. With people around, she'd be able to gather information.

As she observed, Kallen spotted a river flowing towards the sea. She decided to follow it upstream, thinking:

Water is indispensable for human survival, so following the river would likely lead to people. Besides... if I get hungry, I can always electrocute fish or blow them up for dinner.

-

As the girl walked, she pondered her situation.

Now I'm currently in Kallen's body, within the Honkai World...

Could my previous ideas finally come true?

But in this world, Sir Otto isn't yet a Bishop, so he has limited influence.

Otto's rapid ascent to power, seizing his destiny... was largely due to Kallen's death. What if Kallen never died?

Everything would have turned out completely different.

And then there's... At this point in time, the real Kallen must still exist in this world, right?

Which means...

Two Kallens?

If I were to meet this world's Kallen, would she think I'm her parents' secret child? Like an identical twin sister she never knew about?

Suddenly, this feels incredibly intriguing...

I can hardly wait. It's bound to be loads of fun.

-

However, the Sixth Serenade is not the true Kallen, only a part of her.

Each Valkyrie armor comes with its own narrative, which is but a fragment of Kallen's life.

Thus, every Valkyrie armor merely represents... a portion of the true Kallen.

The tale of the Sixth Serenade goes like this...

In the year 1475, a great battle on the Kipchak Steppe forever changed Kallen Kaslana.

She had fought for ten years without ever tasting defeat, yet before the immortals of the Far East, she found herself utterly defenseless. She believed in justice, fighting for the people, but the corruption of fate shattered her convictions.

On her journey home, she witnessed the plight of those displaced by war. As a vanquished knight, there was nothing she could do to change the fate that had begun to rot from within.

Then, as Kallen, she chose to embody the shadows that struggle against light.

The Purple Raven represented Kallen's rebellious spirit. She helped people reclaim taxes that priests had extorted, freed imprisoned civilians, punished corrupt constables, and carried out all the justice abandoned by their time.

Though the young maiden ultimately couldn't witness the future she longed for—in just a year after becoming the Purple Raven, Kallen's life came to an end—

She had brought hope to those struggling in the darkest age, the flickering light of tomorrow to those languishing in the night. People sang tales of the Purple Raven, weaving her exploits into poems and plays, immortalizing the soul of a rebel forever.

She transmuted the night into a stage, her body a lyre, her blade a string. The nocturne resonating from the shadows was the herald of the approaching dawn.

This was the Sixth Serenade: Kallen.

"Help... Help me!"

"Ah... It hurts so much... Yotarou... Save me..."

"Help! There's a monster..."

-

Kallen had been following the river for what felt like ages, encountering not a single sign of human life. Suddenly, panicked cries for help filled the air.

Kallen's expression froze as she turned towards the voices outside the forest. Two purple-blue guns materialized in her hands—the signature weapons of the Sixth Serenade, her five-star graduation equipment: Tranquil Rhapsody.

Gripping her dual guns, Kallen sprang into action. Her body blurred into countless indistinct shadows, racing towards the source of those desperate pleas.

As Kallen burst through the trees, she found herself facing a group of mere handfuls of villagers from the Far East's Warring States period. They were in utter disarray as they fled, their lives hanging by a thread.

Behind them, a towering monster chased relentlessly. It stood seven or eight meters tall, with prominent ox horns adorning its head. Its appearance was somewhat akin to an ordinary water buffalo, but what remained was nothing but a cruel and terrifying visage.

In its wake, numerous villagers lay dead, their bodies scattered across the landscape.

The scent of blood wafted through the air, causing Kallen to involuntarily furrow her brow.

"A monster? But that's not possible..."

Kallen gazed at the monster before her. This wasn't some world of ghosts and ghouls; this was the Honkai world, where such creatures shouldn't exist.

Yet as the Minotaur-like creature closed in on the last villager, the beautiful Kallen raised her gun...

But... she didn't fire. Instead... she charged forward with a flying kick, striking the monster's chest.

The seven- or eight-meter-tall Minotaur was sent flying at least ten meters away by Kallen's kick.

Then... it let out a pitiful wail and lay motionless on the ground.

Blood began to flow from the body of the creature.

"Indeed... sometimes a kick is better than firing a shot."

This was the legendary Kaslana Family's "Gun-kata" technique.