HI3: I Don't Want to Be a Valkyrie

With Kallen's permission, Yae Sakura faced the terrifying Honkai Beasts, unsheathed her katana, and slowly approached.

As she watched her sister prepare to fight, Yae Rin looked at Kallen.

"Kallen-nee, I also—"

Before Yae Rin could finish, Kallen stopped her, "No way! Maybe in a few years..."

"Ugh...you're right!" Feeling like she'd been doused with cold water, Yae Rin could only helplessly watch Yae Sakura ahead.

At first, the Honkai Beast was extremely fearful of the barefoot girl approaching it. The aura she emanated made it feel as though she was an unstoppable force of destruction.

It didn't even think about escaping.

It thought it would surely die here—until, to its surprise, she did not attack. Instead, she let a fragile-looking young shrine maiden step forward to fight.

Kallen... was a being it feared. But this little girl before it... Yae Sakura... it decided to give her a swift death.

As for whether Kallen would kill it after, the limited intelligence of the Honkai Beast did not bother to consider such consequences.

Yae Sakura gripped her katana tightly in her right hand and slowly approached the Honkai Beast.

The creature's overwhelming presence weighed heavily on her. From childhood until now, Yae Sakura had never encountered a monster like this. Just its massive, towering form alone was enough to put her under immense pressure.

But... thinking about all the effort she had put in over the past half-year, about Kallen-nee, whom she deeply respected, and about her beloved younger sister watching from behind—she clenched her teeth, and a surge of strength filled her entire body.

"Big guy... come on! Let me personally cut you down!"

When she was about seven or eight meters away, Yae Sakura stopped in her tracks, raising her katana toward the Honkai Beast before her.

She assumed her stance, ready to strike at any moment.

The Honkai Beasts observed Yae Sakura before them. Initially, they had intended to wait for her to approach before devouring her in a single gulp. However, they didn't anticipate that she would halt right in front of them.

But the Honkai Beast weren't one to overthink; if she wouldn't come to them, they'd simply go to her.

Hwoaah!

The Honkai Beasts opened their massive maw and let out a peculiar cry towards Yae Sakura, then... charged directly at her.

Just as it was about to collide with Yae Sakura, she swiftly sidestepped, immediately evading the Honkai Beasts' attack.

In that moment of evasion, Yae Sakura gripped her blade with both hands and forcefully slashed at the Honkai Beasts, leaving a clear mark on their body.

However... for the Honkai Beasts, it was no more than a trifling scratch.

Realizing it had missed Yae Sakura, the Honkai Beasts halted just in time, swiftly turning around. Sensing the wound on its body, it let out an enraged roar aimed directly at Yae Sakura.

Meanwhile, aided by the Honkai energy within it's body, it's wounds swiftly healed completely.

Once fully recovered, the unharmed Honkai Beast regarding the one who had injured it—Yae Sakura—suddenly leaped up and slammed its entire body directly towards her.

As the Honkai Beast charged at her, Yae Sakura's expression remained stoic. With no regard for grace, she executed a swift somersault on the ground, dodging squarely out of the Honkai Beast's attack range.

The impact of the Honkai Beast crashing into the earth made the ground itself seem to quake. Without a moment's hesitation, Yae Sakura thrust her samurai sword into the ground before her, drew her two pistols from her waist, and fired both barrels directly at the Honkai Beast's eyes.

Without waiting to assess the damage, she immediately re-holstered her pistols, gripped her samurai sword, and executed a fluid motion on the ground, akin to a carp flipping itself upright. In a flash, she was back on her feet, swiftly closing the distance with the Honkai Beast.

"Look out!"

As Yae charged forward, Kallen's expression shifted instantly. Gripping her Tranquil Rhapsody, she prepared to rush to her companion's aid at any moment.

Yae's previous two shots had missed their mark; instead of hitting the Honkai Beasts' eyes, they'd struck the forehead area. But such a hit didn't phase these creatures significantly.

When they detected Yae's approach, several tentacles suddenly sprouted from the beast's back, hurtling directly at the young girl.

Despite the onslaught of tentacle-like appendages, Yae's composed demeanor remained unwavering. With her katana at the ready, she swung directly towards the incoming threat.

Blades flashed as steel met flesh—well, not exactly flesh. In an instant, the Honkai Beasts' tentacles were once again severed, falling to the ground and oozing a strange, viscous liquid.

As Yae Rin watched her older sister Yae Sakura neutralizing the threat, she hadn't yet had the chance to sigh in relief.

Suddenly, several more tentacles emerged from an unknown location, swiftly winding around Yae Sakura's entire body from bottom to top.

First her legs, then her torso... and finally her hands.

"Big sis!"

Seeing how Yae Sakura, who had been dominant moments ago, was now captured by the monster, Yae Rin tensed up and called out anxiously. Holding her two guns, she wanted to shoot and save her sister but feared accidentally injuring Yae Sakura.

"Kallen-nee..." Helpless, Yae Rin turned towards Kallen.

"She'll be fine..."

Kallen remained remarkably calm about Yae Sakura's capture, as if she had unwavering faith in her.

"Huh?" Yae Rin was slightly confused; her big sis had clearly been grabbed by the monster, so how could she possibly be "fine"?

But in the very next moment, Yae Rin understood—it was true that her big sis was unscathed.

Yae Sakura, still entangled by the tentacles, made an incredibly swift motion with her wrist.

Her katana instantly severed the tendrils binding her.

With the tentacles cut away, Yae Sakura forcefully shrugged off the restraints, ignoring the foul smell as she swiftly closed the distance to the Honkai behemoth. She then drove her katana directly into the creature's heart.

"Did I succeed?"

Yae Sakura gazed at the katana in her hand, fully stabbed into the Honkai Beast's heart. A smile immediately spread across her face.

Surely I killed it, didn't I?

She had successfully slain the fearsome Honkai Beast.

But... Yae Sakura's expression froze as she realized the Honkai Beast, despite having its heart impaled by the katana, wasn't dead at all. Instead, as if nothing had happened, it opened its massive jaws... and lunged straight for Yae Sakura.

Seeing the giant maw bearing down on her, Yae Sakura realized with dread that it was too late to dodge.

Was I... still too careless...?

"Geh..."

Just as the Honkai Beast's jaws were about to clamp down on Yae Sakura, Kallen, who had been watching intently, finally sprang into action.